Abstract:
Whether the state is unitary or federal may also influence the performance of decentralization. In regimes with elected legislators, a unitary state vests its lawmaking ability in the national legislature, while a federal state has subnational legislatures as well, which have their own ability to make laws within their jurisdictions. A federal state is not necessarily more decentralized than a unitary government. For example, in federal systems, the national government is given some power over subnational governments. Further, federations have evolved so that their levels of government are interdependent, “ making formal, legalistic definitions in terms of division of powers relatively useless, ” (Smith 1985, 13). Also, a unitary system can “ devolve substantial powers to provincial governments so that a quasi-federal arrangement exists ” (Smith 1985, 14). These arrangements are sometimes uniform, sometimes asymmetrical. The Philippines, for example, gave greater regional autonomy to Muslim Mindanao and Cordillera in 1989, while maintaining a fiscally centralized system and a unitary government
Info
| Source Institution | World Bank |
| Source URL | http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTINDONESIA/Resources/Decentralization/Lit_Review_IRIS.pdf |
| Page Count | 37 |
| Place of Publication | Pasig City |
| Original Publication Date | September 1, 1999 |
| Tags | Decentralization, Decentralize, Institutional, Monthly Report, Public Service, Transparency |