Decentralization and poverty alleviation. International experience and the case of the Philippines
Rodriguez, E.R.; Bird, R.
Public Administration and Development 19(3): 299-319
1999
ISSN/ISBN: 0271-2075 DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-162x(199908)19:3<299::aid-pad82>3.0.co;2-lDocument Number: 531662
It is argued that comparative analysis is often illuminating in the form and speed of decentralization and the paper uses it to cast some light on the current moves towards decentralization in the Philippines. The paper provides a quantitative overview of the relationship between decentralization and poverty across a number of Asian and Latin American countries. It discusses key aspects of the relationship between decentralization and poverty alleviation in the Philippines, drawing on a number of decentralization experiences in countries such as Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Indonesia and Vietnam. Issues discussed here are: a focus on local capacity; on local financial resources, in particular the role of fiscal transfers; and examines the effects of different approaches to decentralization on the targeting and delivery of poverty-related services - health, primary education, housing and infrastructure. It concludes by noting the importance of migration in any treatment of decentralization and poverty.