scholarly journals Strengthening Rural Decentralisation: A Study on the Role of International Organisations

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Sujit Kumar Paul

The term ‘decentralisation’ has generally been used to refer to a variety of institutional reforms. It has sometimes been considered as a change in the organisational framework in which political, social and economic decisions are made and implemented. It is also understood as a mechanism to transfer responsibility and authority. In recent years, decentralisation has received singular attention all over the world. It has been considered as one of the most important elements in development strategy. It is a global and regional phenomenon, and most countries have attempted to implement it as a tool for development, as a political philosophy, and as a mechanism for sharing responsibility at different levels.Since 1980s, developing countries have increasingly adopted decentralised form of governance. Decentralisation means the transfer of authority and responsibility from central to intermediate and local governments. Although the democratic decentralisation in terms of Panchayati Raj Institutions (village councils) was a post-Independence phenomenon, there has been a legacy and tradition of village panchayats since time immemorial in India. The 73rd and 74th Amendment Act, 1993 of the Constitution of India has made the Panchayat an institution of self-government. As per the constitution, Panchayats shall prepare plan for economic development and social justice at their level. The District Planning Committee shall integrate the plan so prepared with the plans prepared by the local bodies at district level. The success and failure of the Panchayats would depend on planning and implementation. It also depends on maximum people’s participation at every stage of planning process, from proposal to implementation. People’s participation in local-level development has been exercised through the formulation of the Panchayat-level development plan, project coordination at intermediate and district levels of the Panchayats.The Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in West Bengal are very strong bodies, which function as real institutions of self-governance. In West Bengal, the planning process of grass-root level has some stages from proposal to implementation. After introduction of 3-tier Panchayat system in 1978, the Government of West Bengal brought about need-based reforms in the system from time to time from the very beginning. Encouraged by the State Government’s strong commitment to rural decentralisation, Department for International Development (DFID), Government of UK came forward to support the ongoing rural decentralisation initiatives and upscale the bottom-up planning process. In the present study, an attempt has been made to understand the role of DFID for strengthening decentralisation in rural Bengal.

2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 215-240
Author(s):  
Ilona Pálné Kovács

Asymmetrical power relations between centre and periphery have been analysed for decades by scholars, who pointed out the cumulative advantages of centres and the social, political and economic disadvantages of the dependent peripheries. The common element of centre periphery theories with a multidisciplinary approach is that the centre tends to keep the periphery dependent by draining its resources. At the same time, the positive mission of the centre is to provide services and job opportunities for the periphery, to accelerate its modernization and catching up and to act as a mediator towards the dynamizing networks. Developmental disadvantages of peripheries have sparked academic interest by asking whether and how disadvantages in power and space can be compensated for. In order to answer this question, this paper analyses the role of the state, the central government in shaping the centre-periphery relationship. In systems that are based on centralized redistribution and subsidies, the fate of both the periphery and the centre depends on their ‘designated’ place, which is determined by a public planning process at best, and by personal, informal power assertion situations at worst. We have much less knowledge about whether the peripheries’ own local activity can change this pre-assigned position and the disadvantages caused by peripherality, and if so, what governance conditions and public policy interventions are necessary to achieve this. The issue is particularly topical in light of the fact that in Hungary the relationship between the central government and local governments has become particularly controversial over the past decade. Local governments are steadily losing their position and resources. It is clear that peripheral municipalities have the narrowest room for manoeuvre, as they are unable to mobilise their own resources and are far from development and power centres. While the government has announced an ambitious rural development strategy, resource-strapped municipalities are unable to act as real partners. The theoretical part of the study draws on analyses employed by the EU-funded RELOCAL project while the empirical study relies on the first findings of an ongoing research programme funded by the National Research, Development and Innovation Office. The theoretical chapters review the main findings of different disciplines that analyse the peripheral situation and centre periphery relations from the perspective of the power-institutional context. The empirical chapters present preliminary empirical research results of an ongoing research project. So far findings have only partially highlighted correlations between power position and development trajectories. This has drawn our attention to aspects that were previously ignored, and which will influence the direction of further research. In light of data on local government elections in the county understudy, it seems that voter behaviour is not necessarily determined by the ‘losing’ or ‘winning’ position of a settlement or region. There is no significant divergence from national trends: opposition-led municipalities are a few (besides the county capital), and in particular in small municipalities, multiple re-election of leaders is common. Contrary to our preliminary assumptions, the majority of respondents belonging to the local elite consider local visibility and personal qualities more important than connections with higher levels of government in spite of their perception that the majority of development funding comes from national and EU sources. These results of course require further interpretation. It seems that people's political sensitivity is less dependent on the territorial location and the &success! of the municipality. It is also possible that the role of information transfer, communication, political socialisation and local networks is more important than local, personal and existential circumstances.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (S1-Feb) ◽  
pp. 79-84
Author(s):  
Aamir Iqbal

The creation of the institution of Panchayati Raj was a landmark in Indian history for democracy to percolate deep down to the grass-root level. It is seen as a mechanism through which the unheard’s voice could find a place in the planning and implementation process. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992, passed by the union government of India becomes the Panchayati Raj law, on April 24, 1993. This amendment act gave the constitutional status to the Panchayats. The power of the local bodies to govern and manage local issues is the highest level of democracy observed in India. Its outcome is the people’s involvement in running their affairs, which results in direct and participatory democracy at a local level, whereas at the national level, it is a parliamentary democracy. The concept of Panchayati Raj in Jammu and Kashmir is the original one; it was the Maharaja Hari Singh, the ruler of the erstwhile state, who introduced the concept of Panchayati Raj in the state in 1935 when he enacted the first Village Panchayati Regulation Act No 1. To see the development concerning the Panchayati Raj in other states of the nation, the government later came with new and comprehensive legislation, which is called the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act 19891. Even though Panchayati raj institutions provide opportunities to the local people to participate in the political and development process at the grass-root level, but these institutions still do not work suitably in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir.The present paper deals with the problems and challenges faced by the representatives of these institutions and emphasize the effect of militancy in the proper functioning of these institutions in the union territory of J&K.


Author(s):  
Kalaichelvi Sivaraman ◽  
Rengasamy Stalin

This research paper is the part of Research Project entitled “Impact of Elected Women Representatives in the Life and Livelihood of the Women in Rural Areas: With Special Reference to Tiruvannamalai District, Tamil Nadu” funded by University of Madras under UGC-UPE Scheme.The 73rd and 74th amendments of the Constitution of India were made by the government to strengthen the position of women and to create a local-level legal foundation for direct democracy for women in both rural and urban areas. The representation for women in local bodies through reservation policies amendment in Constitution of India has stimulated the political participation of women in rural areas. However, when it’s comes to the argument of whether the women reservation in Panchayati Raj helps or benefits to the life and livelihood development of women as a group? The answer is hypothetical because the studies related to the impact of women representatives of Panchayati Raj in the life and livelihood development of women was very less. Therefore, to fill the gap in existing literature, the present study was conducted among the rural women of Tiruvannamalai district to assess the impact of elected women representatives in the physical and financial and business development of the women in rural areas. The findings revealed that during the last five years because of the women representation in their village Panjayati Raj, the Physical Asset of the rural women were increased or developed moderately (55.8%) and Highly (23.4%) and the Financial and Business Asset of the rural women were increased or developed moderately (60.4%) and Highly (18.7%).


2020 ◽  
Vol 174 ◽  
pp. 04038
Author(s):  
Yuri Fridman ◽  
Galina Rechko ◽  
Ekaterina Loginova

The article discusses the place and role of strategic planning in ensuring that Kemerovo Oblast – Kuzbass develops comprehensively. For over thirty years, we have been studying the region with one of the leading national territorial-production centers established in the 20th century, how it emerged and functioned. Studies suggest that without regard to the economies of Russia as a whole and Kuzbass’s neighboring regions in particular, its issues cannot be satisfactorily resolved. At large, when strategic planning followed this assumption, it contributed to how fast and holistically the territory developed. Considering that, in the 21st century, strategy makers diverged from this concept and started to search for new approaches, the region’s economy has slowed down and its living standards have declined sharply. The momentum can be reversed with an active state socio-economic policy. Its previous forms, however, when the state gave preferences to private companies and did not require corresponding growth in standards of living in return, became unacceptable. It is necessary to work out a system of effective solutions and measures with mechanisms for reconciling the interests of the government, business and society within approaches that are adequate to the political and economic reality of today’s world.


SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 215824402199455
Author(s):  
Dragana S. Nikolić ◽  
Marijana D. Pantić ◽  
Vesna T. Jokić

The main task of planning documents is to achieve maximal rationality in the use of space, spatial resources, and balanced territorial development. The preparation of plans is regulated by a legislative framework, which embraces multiple phases and stakeholders. In a perfect planning process, it would be expected that all the elements are well coordinated and brought to common understanding, but in reality, obstacles and challenges can occur in any of these steps, especially in the implementation phase. Although a plan is fully prepared to be practiced, its implementation might be omitted. Therefore, this article analyzes the full process of spatial and urban planning from the perspective of plan implementation. The methodology is based on a combination of different data collection methods (interviews, fieldwork, direct observation) with the analysis of plans and the particular mention of those plans that picture the implementation issues the most. Also, legislative acts and semi-annual and annual reports on the achievements of the local government budget are analyzed. The approach indicates that plan implementation depends the most on the willingness of the government to perform changes in the system and to peruse punitive policy comprehensively. Although it is about implementation at the local level, the success primarily depends on clear definitions given in the legislative acts, freedom of the local communities to make their own decisions, and financial decentralization, side by side with the regional and local circumstances, institutional technical and staff capacities, and application of participatory planning that involves actors from various sectors.


2021 ◽  
pp. 89-112
Author(s):  
Gary H. Jefferson ◽  
Renai Jiang

This chapter assesses China’s science and technology (S&T) progress through the lens of the patenting literature in the context of China. In particular, after presenting an overview of China’s patent production over the past twenty-five years, it investigates the following questions: What accounts for China’s patent surge? What are the implications of the surge for patent quality? Does the nature of the patenting reveal China’s S&T direction and comparative advantage? How has the international sector affected China’s patent production? What has been the role of the government—the central, provincial, and local governments—in shaping patent production? And finally, how heterogeneous is China’s regional patent production; are patenting capabilities diffusing across China?


2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 159
Author(s):  
Yulia Yulia ◽  
Lukman Mohammad Baga ◽  
Netti Tinaprilla

Agam District Government has the goal of improving economic growth rate of 5.94 percent in 2011 to 7.98 percent in 2017. However, the constraints experienced by the development of the animal husbandry sector is a decrease in the growth rate of the animal husbandry sector and the contribution to the GDP, it is necessary for the development of the animal husbandry subsector in Agam by taking into account various aspects. This study aims to analyze the potential and role of formulating priority strategies of alternative development strategy animal husbandry subsector. Results of the analysis of the animal husbandry subsector LQ is a commodity basis. The shift results proportional growth 10.72 percent negative growth. Region share growth of 2.33 percent. The results obtained from the alternative strategies SWOT matrix were analyzed using QSPM. development and coaching each region based on the existing potential (6.278), increasing the promotion and development of human resources breeder (5.773), to build and develop patterns of cooperation and mutual benefit (5.618), examination of animal health and disease prevention (5.406), implementation and development appropriate technology (5.330) and optimization in securing local resources (4.982). Selected strategic alternatives of highest appeal total development strategy as well as coaching is done each region based on the existing potential (6.278), then the suggestions can be made to the Government Agam namely increasing the number of livestock extension workers and attract investors to develop the livestock subsector in Agam District.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-94
Author(s):  
Jelena Radosavljević

This paper aims to open up a discussion about relations between former Yugoslavia's socialism and planning practice resulting from self-managing system established in early 1950s. Although this system was applied through a top-down approach, it implied, at least allegedly, coordination, integration and democratic harmonisation of particular interests with common and general ones on local level. The paper will briefly review the history and concept of socialist ideology and consider the impact that it had on institutional arrangements evolution and planning practice in Serbia. It will then touch on the role of ideology for urban planning process at the local level, understanding self-managing planning principles, their benefits, role and significance in planning practice.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Der-yuan Wu

In the wake of globalization, cities have increasingly engaged in international affairs. Positioning as in-between administrative entities and to reconcile between competing national interests and universal objectives like the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), cities could demonstrate their agency in providing alternative pursuit of global development. In particular, while international affairs have in a way environmentalized, global environmentalism in turn has strongly urbanized in recent decades. Many cities along the coast, in Asia or broader world alike, are at the forefront of climate change impacts and would be vulnerable to any catastrophes such as the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004. After all, given the size of city economies, the material losses caused by climate-induced extreme weather can be tremendous. Thus, it is worthwhile to examine the role of Southeast Asian cities in international development in terms of their transnational networking. Moreover, the phenomenon that cities becoming active players in international affairs has been explored mostly in relation to North American, European or Western setting. Literature on cities’ transnational and multi-level engagement in the EU has been abundant. By contrast, there is very few researches focusing on the part of ASEAN in mainstream literature on city diplomacy or paradiplomacy. The primary purpose of this paper is thus to examine the state of play by Southeast Asian cities in some key multilateral networkings such as C40 Cities, International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG).Keywords: city diplomacy, Southeast Asia, transnational networking, multilateral networkingKota-kota semakin terlibat dalam urusan internasional setelah globalisasi mulai muncul ke permukaan. Memposisikan sebagai entitas administratif di antara dan untuk merekonsiliasi antara kepentingan nasional yang bersaing dan tujuan universal seperti Tujuan Pembangunan Berkelanjutan PBB (SDGs), kota-kota dapat menunjukkan peran mereka dalam memberikan alternatif pengejaran pembangunan global. Lebih lanjut, ketika isu lingkungan telah mendominasi dunia internasional, para pemikir lingkungan global telah membuatnya menjadi lebih urban dalam beberapa dekade. Banyak kota di daerah pantai, baik di regional Asia ataupun di regional lainnya di dunia, berada dalam resiko tinggi akan perubahan iklim dan rentan terhadap bencana seperti tsunami, seperti yang terjadi di Samudra Hindia tahun 2004. Terlebih lagi, mengingat ukuran ekonomi kota, kerugian materiil disebabkan oleh cuaca ekstrem yang disebabkan oleh iklim cenderung cukup besar. Dengan demikian, ada baiknya untuk memeriksa peran kota-kota Asia Tenggara dalam pengembangan internasional dalam hal jaringan transnasional mereka. Selain itu, fenomena bahwa kota menjadi pemain aktif dalam urusan internasional telah dieksplorasi sebagian besar di kawasan Amerika Utara, Eropa atau Barat. Literatur tentang keterlibatan transnasional dan multi-level kota-kota di Uni Eropa telah berlimpah. Sebaliknya, masih sedikit penelitian yang berfokus pada bagian ASEAN dalam literatur arus utama tentang diplomasi kota atau paradiplomasi. Tujuan utama dari tulisan prospektif ini adalah untuk menguji keadaan permainan oleh kota-kota Asia Tenggara di beberapa jaringan multilateral utama seperti Kota C40, Dewan Internasional untuk Inisiatif Lingkungan Lokal (ICLEI) dan United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG).Kata-Kata Kunci: diplomasi antar kota, Asia Tenggara, jaringan transnasional, jaringan multilateral


Yurispruden ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 208
Author(s):  
Fahrul Abrori

 ABSTRAKPandemi Covid-19 yang terjadi di Indonesia membuat pemerintah membuat kebijakan-kebijakan sebagai stimulus untuk menjaga kestabilan masyarakat dan perekonomian. Pemerintah pusat memberikan kewenangan kepada pemerintah daerah untuk mengelola keuangan daerah untuk menangani covid-19 di daerah masing-masing. Hal ini disebabkan karena pemerintah daerah lebih memahami kebutuhan daerahnya. Permasalahan yang diangkat Pertama, bagaimana hubungan Pemerintah Pusat dan Pemerintah Daerah dalam pengelolaan keuangan untuk penanganan pandemi Covid-19? Kedua, Apa peran Pemerintah Daerah dalam pengelolaan keuangan daerah untuk penanganan pandemi Covid-19? Menggunakan metode penelitian yuridis normatif dengan pendekatan perundang-undangan dan pendekatan konsep. Hubungan Pemerintah Pusat dan Pemerintah Daerah dalam Pengelolaan Keuangan untuk Penanganan Pandemi Covid-19 yaitu desentralisasi fiskal yang mana. Peran Pemerintah Daerah dalam Pengelolaan Keuangan Daerah untuk Penanganan Pandemi Covid-19 yaitu dengan melakukan refocusing kegiatan, realokasi anggaran, dan Penggunaan Anggaran Pendapatan dan Belanja Daerah.Kata kunci: Pemerintah Daerah, Pengelolaan Keuangan Daerah, Pandemi Covid-19 ABSTRACTThe Covid-19 pandemic in Indonesia led the government to make policies as a stimulus to maintain the stability of society and the economy. The central government authorizes local governments to manage local finances to deal with covid-19 in their respective regions. This is because the local government better understands the needs of the region. The issue raised first, how is the relationship between the Central Government and Local Government in financial management for the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic? Second, What is the role of local governments in regional financial management for the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic? Using normative juridical research methods with statutory approaches and concept approaches. The relationship between the Central Government and Local Government in Financial Management for the Handling of the Covid-19 Pandemic is fiscal decentralization. The role of local governments in regional financial management for the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic is by refocusing activities, reallocating budgets, and using regional budgets.Keywords: Local Government, Regional Financial Management, Covid-19 Pandemic


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