Governance of Public Policies in Decentralised Contexts: The multi-level approach.
This recent OECD study examines the ability of sub-national governments to “better spend”, by identifying relevant paths for territorial competitiveness and effective delivery of public services, is mostly enshrined in their institutional background.
Rather than isolated actors, sub-national authorities and central governments are “mutually dependent”. In this context, and for a majority of OECD member and non-member countries, the key underlying question is not whether to “decentralise or not” or even opt for a specific decentralisation model, but to look at ways to improve capacity and coordination among public stakeholders at different levels of government to increase efficiency, equity and sustainability of public spending. This question of “multi-level governance” is therefore accurate, regardless of the constitutional framework of countries, federal or unitary.
To access this study please visit: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/50/42/48724565.pdf