Foundations for Local Governance (eBook)

Preface and Acknowledgements 5
Contents 9
1 Decentralization and Local Governance: Introduction and Overview 11
1.1 Aim of This Book 11
1.2 The Decentralized State Idealized 12
1.3 Decentralized State for Poverty Reduction 14
1.4 Review of the Past Literature 18
1.5 Actor Perspective as Research Methodology 21
1.6 Main Arguments and Chapter Summaries 28
References 32
2 Indonesia towards Decentralization and Democracy 35
2.1 Introduction 35
2.2 National Government and Regime Type 36
2.3 Political Decentralization 41
2.4 Personnel Management 44
2.5 Local Financial Autonomy 45
2.6 Civil Society and Public Participation 49
2.7 Summary and Conclusion 54
References 55
3 Entangled Democracy, Decentralization and Lifeworld in Flores under Global Trends 57
3.1 Introduction 57
3.2 Global Winds and Decentralization in Indonesia 59
3.3 The Persistent Ethnic Structure of the Nation-State and the Emergence of Regional Identity Politics 62
3.4 An Analytical Review of Democracy 66
3.5 Accommodation of Democracy in Indonesia 69
3.6 Concluding Remarks: Partnership in Reciprocal Translation for Our Better Lifeworld 79
References 81
4 Redesigning Local Governance in India: Lessons from the Kerala Experiment 85
4.1 Background for Local Government System 86
4.2 Methodology of Participatory Planning 90
4.3 Towards Making an Inventory of Lessons 92
4.4 Conclusions 99
References 101
5 Contrasting Experiences of Decentralization in Two States in India 103
5.1 Introduction 103
5.2 Civil Society in India 105
5.3 History of Decentralization and Civil Society in Karnataka 107
5.4 Collaboration with Civil Organizations and Government in Kerala 113
5.5 Comparing Experiences of the Two States 117
References 120
6 Challenges of Moving into a Devolved Polity in Sri Lanka 122
6.1 Introduction 122
6.2 Centralized Polity: Colonial Roots 126
6.3 Post-Colonial Decentralization Attempts 129
6.4 The Devolution Package 132
6.5 Practice of Devolution 134
6.6 Local Government in the Devolved System 136
6.7 The Transformation Experience 139
6.8 Center-Province Relations 140
6.9 Community Participation in Governance 142
6.10 Conclusions 142
References 144
8 Possibility of Creating a Deliberative Solution in Uganda 174
8.1 Revisiting Uganda in a New Context 174
8.2 LC System, Political Space, and Deliberation 175
8.3 Improved Service Delivery 179
8.4 Improved Linkages of Various Government Levels 181
8.5 Human and Financial Resources as Enabling Factors 182
8.6 Collaboration and Partnerships 185
8.7 Uganda at a Critical Crossroads? 189
8.8 Conclusions 190
References 192
9 Democratic Decentralization in Post-Apartheid South Africa 194
9.1 Introduction 194
9.2 Political System and Regime Type 195
9.3 Constitutional and Legal Basis for Democratic Local Government 199
9.4 Local Government Elections 203
9.5 Local Government Staffing 205
9.6 Local Government Financing 207
9.7 Accountability and Transparency 208
9.8 Decentralization Challenges 214
9.9 Conclusion 215
References 216
11 The Balance Sheet of Decentralization in Ghana 240
11.1 Introduction 240
11.2 Political System and Regime Type 242
11.3 Sub-national Assemblies and Elections 244
11.4 Framework of Local Government 248
11.5 The Local Government Structure 253
11.6 Personnel Management 255
11.7 Financial Autonomy 256
11.8 Civil Society and Participation at Sub-national Levels 258
11.9 Challenges to Decentralization 260
11.10 Conclusion 262
References 263
13 Conclusions 284
13.1 Usefulness and Limitations of the Actor Perspective 284
13.2 Comparative Analyses of Decentralization 286
13.3 Putting Decentralization Measures into Perspective 290
References 293
Contributors 294
Index 298