Decentralization of governance and development

In this paper we note that the institutional context (and therefore the structure of incentives and organization) in developing and transition economies is quite different from those in advanced industrial economies, and this necessitates the literature on decentralization in the context of development to go beyond the traditional fiscal federalism literature. We review some of the existing theoretical work and empirical case studies of decentralization from the point of view of delivery of public services and of conditions for local business development, and point to ways of going forward in research.