The new book Descentralización y Gobierno Municipal en América Central (Análisis del marco jurídico, institucional, financiero y tributario de los gobiernos locales en América Central) has just been released and is the result of a widespread analysis of local governments in the Central American region carried out by the Central American Gobernability Institute (ICG), together with the DAR association from Madrid and Diputación de Barcelona and included the participation of local experts from ICG, as well as teachers from the DAR association from Madrid and the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), such as Dr. Adrián Torrealba, associated vice-president of ICG, and Dr. Antonio Rovira Viñas, professor at the Public Law Department of UAM. The study analyses the situation of the Central American municipal system in contrast with the predominant tendencies in the OECD countries and the rest of Latin America.
One of the main findings outlines the difference in public expenditure of local governments. While in the OECD countries it is always above 25%, in the Central American region it does not exceed 3.5%. One of the main reasons is the lack of fiscal resources in such countries which prevents an effective transfer of resources. This also contributes to the lack of a tax system. In terms of transfer of competences, this tends to be incomplete and poorly regulated since there is certain confusion among the concepts of deconcentration and decentralisation of public policies. Finally, the study warns of the lack of transparency in the management of some local governments´ expenditure.
July 30, 2012 cib