Decentralization and Local Development in South East Europe

Decentralization and Local Development in South East Europe
Author: W. Bartlett
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 237
Release: 2013-02-21
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1137295651

Decentralisation is changing the face of South East Europe. This book provides practical analysis of the devolutionary measures reshaping post-Communist economies. Using case studies from Croatia, the former Yugoslavia, Albania and more, this collection offers valuable insights into political and fiscal redistribution.

The Political Economy of Democratic Decentralization

The Political Economy of Democratic Decentralization
Author: James Manor
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 152
Release: 1999
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

Nearly all countries worldwide are now experimenting with decentralization. Their motivation are diverse. Many countries are decentralizing because they believe this can help stimulate economic growth or reduce rural poverty, goals central government interventions have failed to achieve. Some countries see it as a way to strengthen civil society and deepen democracy. Some perceive it as a way to off-load expensive responsibilities onto lower level governments. Thus, decentralization is seen as a solution to many different kinds of problems. This report examines the origins and implications decentralization from a political economy perspective, with a focus on its promise and limitations. It explores why countries have often chosen not to decentralize, even when evidence suggests that doing so would be in the interests of the government. It seeks to explain why since the early 1980s many countries have undertaken some form of decentralization. This report also evaluates the evidence to understand where decentralization has considerable promise and where it does not. It identifies conditions needed for decentralization to succeed. It identifies the ways in which decentralization can promote rural development. And it names the goals which decentralization will probably not help achieve.

Barrio Democracy in Latin America

Barrio Democracy in Latin America
Author: Eduardo Canel
Publisher: Penn State Press
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2010-01-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0271037334

The transition to democracy underway in Latin America since the 1980s has recently witnessed a resurgence of interest in experimenting with new forms of local governance emphasizing more participation by ordinary citizens. The hope is both to foster the spread of democracy and to improve equity in the distribution of resources. While participatory budgeting has been a favorite topic of many scholars studying this new phenomenon, there are many other types of ongoing experiments. In Barrio Democracy in Latin America, Eduardo Canel focuses our attention on the innovative participatory programs launched by the leftist government in Montevideo, Uruguay, in the early 1990s. Based on his extensive ethnographic fieldwork, Canel examines how local activists in three low-income neighborhoods in that city dealt with the opportunities and challenges of implementing democratic practices and building better relationships with sympathetic city officials.

Subnational Data Requirements for Fiscal Decentralization

Subnational Data Requirements for Fiscal Decentralization
Author: Serdar Yilmaz
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 172
Release: 2003-01-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780821356999

This publication has been produced as part of a capacity building programme to strengthen the ability of national statistical systems to collect subnational demographic, socio economic and fiscal data. This is important in the design of public policy options, particularly as subnational governments in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe become responsible for the delivery of local services. This publication contains case studies from five countries in Central and Eastern Europe that are at different stages of fiscal decentralisation (covering Bulgaria, Romania, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, and Ukraine).

Patterns of Local Autonomy in Europe

Patterns of Local Autonomy in Europe
Author: Andreas Ladner
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2018-10-26
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3319956426

This book considers local autonomy, measured as a multidimensional concept, from a cross-country comparative perspective, and examines how variations can be explained and what their consequences are. It fills a gap in the literature by providing a comprehensive study of the different components of local autonomy across a large number of countries, over time. It offers a theoretically saturated concept to measure local autonomy and applies it to 39 countries, including all 28 EU member states together with Albania, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Moldova, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland Turkey and Ukraine, over a period of 25 years (1990-2014).

The Routledge Handbook to Regional Development in Central and Eastern Europe

The Routledge Handbook to Regional Development in Central and Eastern Europe
Author: Gábor Lux
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 341
Release: 2017-07-06
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1317123948

Twenty-five years into transformation, Central and Eastern European regions have undergone substantial socio-economic restructuring, integrating into European and global networks and producing new patterns of regional differentiation and development. Yet post-socialist modernisation has not been without its contradictions, manifesting in increasing social and territorial inequalities. Recent studies also suggest there are apparent limits to post-socialist growth models, accompanying a new set of challenges within an increasingly uncertain world. Aiming to deliver a new synthesis of regional development issues at the crossroads between ‘post-socialism’ and ‘post-transition’, this book identifies the main driving forces of spatial restructuring in Central and Eastern Europe, and charts the different regional development paths which take shape against the backdrop of post-crisis Europe. A comparative approach is used to highlight common development challenges and the underlying patterns of socio-economic differentiation alike. The issues investigated within the Handbook extend to a discussion of the varied economic consequences of transition, the social structures and institutional systems which underpin development processes, and the broadly understood sustainability of Central and Eastern Europe’s current development model. This book will be of interest to academics and policymakers working in the fields of regional studies, economic geography, development studies and policy.

Kosovo Divided

Kosovo Divided
Author: Marius-Ionut Calu
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 265
Release: 2020-04-02
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1838606602

Given the recent revival of nationalism in many parts of the world in tandem with new conflicts and forms of interventionism, this book uses the case of Kosovo to discuss some of key problems around contemporary practices of state-building. Based on exhaustive research and fieldwork, Marius Calu investigates how the management of plurality is a fundamental element of contemporary state-building seeking to build social cohesion, while for the new-born Kosovo it stands as vital symbol for its domestic sovereignty and legitimisation. With the aim of understanding why and in what ways the management of diversity has become a central element of state-building in post-conflict Kosovo, this study juxtaposes the de jure multi-ethnic liberal democratic form of governance with the de facto results and consequences of Kosovo's task to protect, accommodate and integrate its ethnic minorities.

Decentralisation and the Management of Ethnic Conflict

Decentralisation and the Management of Ethnic Conflict
Author: Aisling Lyon
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2015-10-30
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1317372042

Ethnic inequalities in divided societies can exacerbate social divisions and lead to conflict. Reducing these inequalities could have a de-escalating effect, yet there is little consensus on how this can be achieved most effectively and sustainably. Decentralisation is held to improve inter-ethnic relations in multi-ethnic states by allowing territorially concentrated groups greater autonomy over their own affairs, and the case of the Republic of Macedonia offers an example of the successes and failings of decentralisation. Decentralisation and the Management of Ethnic Conflict offers new insight into the dynamics of conflict management through decentralisation, using an in-depth case study of decentralisation in the Republic of Macedonia between 2005 and 2012. Guided by the concept of horizontal inequalities, the volume identifies the factors which influenced the decision to devolve responsibilities to the municipalities after 2001.Taking an integrative approach to studying the political, administrative, and fiscal dimensions of decentralisation and its implementation, the book investigates whether these institutional reforms have indeed contributed to the reduction of inequalities between Macedonia’s ethnic groups, and what the obstacles were in those areas in which decentralisation has not reached its full potential. The key lesson of the Macedonian case is that attempts to solve internal self-determination conflicts through decentralisation will fail if local self-governance exists only in form but not in substance. This book contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the challenges facing different forms of decentralisation in the long term, and as such represents a significant contribution to Conflict Studies, Development Studies and Political Science more generally.

Policy-Making at the European Periphery

Policy-Making at the European Periphery
Author: Zdravko Petak
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 344
Release: 2018-05-30
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3319735829

This book examines Croatia's economic and political transformation over the last 30 years. It brings together the best political scientists, macroeconomists and public finance experts from Croatia to provide an in-depth analysis of the Croatian policy-making context and the impact of Europeanization upon its domestic institutional framework. The second part of the book scrutinizes the political economy context and Croatia's long-term macroeconomic under-performance, especially in comparison to other transition economies. The final part explores sectoral public policies, including cohesion policy, education, health, pensions, and local government. The book offers a unique blend of Croatia's political economy framework and public policy analysis.

Policy Making at the Second Tier of Local Government in Europe

Policy Making at the Second Tier of Local Government in Europe
Author: Xavier Bertrana
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 327
Release: 2015-09-07
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 131737486X

Debates about multi-level governance have led to a profound restructuring of regional and local government. The second level of local government is under review in most European countries, with the aim to strengthen the institutional capacity of municipalities or to develop appropriate institutional structures for governing fragmented urban areas. This book provides a thematic and cross-national analysis of the key actors in local government that form the crucial components of effective and democratic policy making. Focussing on the second tier of local government, it examines new empirical data on councillors from this level of government in 15 European countries and integrates important variables such as party politics, notions of democracy, finance, multi-level settings. Divided into five parts, it addresses: Attitudes of county/provincial councillors towards administrative and territorial reforms; Their role perceptions and role behaviour; Their political orientation; Actor constellations and governance arrangements; Political socialization and recruitment, professionalization and career patterns of county/provincial councillors. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of local government, urban studies, regional studies, political science, sociology and geography.