IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/rfe/zbefri/v32y2014i2p343-377.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Responsibility with accountability: A FAIR governance framework for performance accountability of local governments

Author

Listed:
  • Anwar Shah

    (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics (SWUFE) Chengdu, China; Brookings Institution Washington, DC; World Bank)

Abstract

This paper focuses on the role of local governments in bringing about fair, accountable, incoorruptible and responsive (FAIR) governance. Local governments around the world have done important innovations to earn the trust of their residents and their comparative performance is of great interest yet a comprehensive framework to provide such benchmarking is not available. This paper attempts to fill this void, by developing a general framework for performance accountability of local governments and by relating real world practices to aspects of this framework. The proposed rating framework requires several types of assessments: (a) their compliance with due process and law; (b) monitoring of fiscal health for sustainability; (c) monitoring of service delivery ; and (d) citizens’ satisfaction with local services. The approach yields key indicators useful for benchmarking performance that can be used in selfevaluation and improvement of performance. t From an analysis of practices in local government performance monitoring and evaluation, the paper concludes that ad hoc ad-on self standing monitoring and evaluation systems are more costly and less useful than built-in tools and mechanisms for government transparency, self–evaluation and citizen based accountability such as local government output budgeting and output based fiscal transfers to finance local services.

Suggested Citation

  • Anwar Shah, 2014. "Responsibility with accountability: A FAIR governance framework for performance accountability of local governments," Zbornik radova Ekonomskog fakulteta u Rijeci/Proceedings of Rijeka Faculty of Economics, University of Rijeka, Faculty of Economics and Business, vol. 32(2), pages 343-377.
    • Handle: RePEc:rfe:zbefri:v:32:y:2014:i:2:p:343-377
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.efri.uniri.hr/sites/efri.uniri.hr/files/cr-collections/2/11-shah-2014-2-1419233923.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ivanyna, Maksym & Shah, Anwar, 2014. "How close is your government to its people? Worldwide indicators on localization and decentralization," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 8, pages 1-61.
    2. Anwar Shah, 2006. "Local Governance in Developing Countries," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7192, December.
    3. Brian E. Dollery & Joseph Garcea & Edward C. LeSage Jr (ed.), 2008. "Local Government Reform," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 12592.
    4. Anwar Shah, 2006. "Local Governance in Industrial Countries," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7108, December.
    5. Brian E. Dollery & Lorenzo Robotti (ed.), 2008. "The Theory and Practice of Local Government Reform," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 12719.
    6. Anwar Shah, 2005. "Public Expenditure Analysis," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7436, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Anwar Shah, 2012. "The 18th Constitutional Amendment: Glue or Solvent for Nation Building and Citizenship in Pakistan?," Lahore Journal of Economics, Department of Economics, The Lahore School of Economics, vol. 17(Special E), pages 387-424, September.
    2. Anwar Shah, 2010. "Empowering States and Provinces or Unshackling Local Governments: Does It Matter for Peace, Order, Good Government, and Growth? (The Gustav Ranis Lecture)," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 49(4), pages 333-362.
    3. David Bartolini, 2015. "Municipal fragmentation and economic performance in OECD TL2 regions," ERSA conference papers ersa15p607, European Regional Science Association.
    4. Brian Dollery & Michael Kortt & Bligh Grant, 2013. "Options for rationalizing local government structure: a policy agenda," Chapters, in: Santiago Lago-Peñas & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez (ed.), The Challenge of Local Government Size, chapter 10, pages 242-262, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Hanes, Niklas, 2003. "Empirical Studies in Local Public Finance: Spillovers, Amalgamations, and Tactical Redistribution," Umeå Economic Studies 604, Umeå University, Department of Economics.
    6. Jean-Michel Josselin & Fabio Padovano & Yvon Rocaboy, 2013. "Grant legislation vs. political factors as determinants of soft budget spending behaviors. Comparison between Italian and French regions," European Journal of Comparative Economics, Cattaneo University (LIUC), vol. 10(3), pages 317-354, December.
    7. Benoît Le Maux & Kristýna Dostálová & Fabio Padovano, 2020. "Ideology or voters? A quasi-experimental test of why left-wing governments spend more," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 182(1), pages 17-48, January.
    8. Anwar Shah, 2014. "Decentralized Provision of Public Infrastructure and Corruption," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1418, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    9. Bernard Dafflon, 2012. "Voluntary amalgamation of local governments: the Swiss debate in the European context," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1204, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    10. Maksym Ivanyna & Anwar Shah, 2011. "Citizen-centric Governance Indicators: Measuring and Monitoring Governance by Listening to the People," CESifo Forum, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 12(01), pages 59-71, March.
    11. Banaszewska, Monika & Bischoff, Ivo & Bode, Eva & Chodakowska, Aneta, 2022. "Does inter-municipal cooperation help improve local economic performance? – Evidence from Poland," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    12. Juan Luis Gómez-Reino & Santiago Lago-Peñas & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2021. "Evidence on economies of scale in local public service provision: a meta-analysis," Working Papers. Collection A: Public economics, governance and decentralization 2103, Universidade de Vigo, GEN - Governance and Economics research Network.
    13. Fabio FIORILLO, 2011. "A model on interests representation and;accountability in small local governments," Working Papers 356, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche (I), Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali.
    14. Giovanna Di Ielsi & Fabio Fiorillo & Francesco Porcelli, 2022. "Le unioni di comuni in Italia: modelli di gestione associata a confronto (The Italian "unioni di comuni": A comparison among different management models of intermunicipal cooperation)," Moneta e Credito, Economia civile, vol. 75(297), pages 11-40.
    15. Dollery, B.E., 2021. "A critical appraisal of the Western Australian local government review panel’s recommendations," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 434-438.
    16. Juan Luis Gómez-Reino & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2013. "An international perspective on the determinants of local government fragmentation," Chapters, in: Santiago Lago-Peñas & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez (ed.), The Challenge of Local Government Size, chapter 2, pages 8-54, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    17. Mark Callanan & Ronan Murphy & Aodh Quinlivan, 2014. "The Risks of Intuition: Size, Costs and Economies of Scale in Local Government," The Economic and Social Review, Economic and Social Studies, vol. 45(3), pages 371-403.
    18. Rhys Andrews, 2015. "Vertical consolidation and financial sustainability: evidence from English local government," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 33(6), pages 1518-1545, December.
    19. Aurélien Bargain & Christophe Maurel, 2017. "L'instrumentation de gestion au service de la mutualisation de services publics communaux : quels enjeux pour quels effets ?," Post-Print hal-01907611, HAL.
    20. Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2013. "Fiscal Decentralization in Peru: A Perspective on Recent Developments and Future Challenges," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1324, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    local government; responsibility; accountability; theory; practice; performance;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H11 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Structure and Scope of Government
    • H72 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Budget and Expenditures
    • H75 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Government: Health, Education, and Welfare
    • H76 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - Other Expenditure Categories
    • H79 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - Other

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:rfe:zbefri:v:32:y:2014:i:2:p:343-377. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Danijela Ujcic (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/efrijhr.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.