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Confronting the Informal in Good Governance: The Case of Decentralised Education-System Reform in Guinea

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  • Jennifer Swift-Morgan

Abstract

type="main"> For twenty years, technocratic planning and management approaches have dominated good-governance reforms in developing countries. This is true even for newer ‘participatory’ and ‘citizen-driven’ reforms that still struggle to engage with powerful informal forces affecting public service delivery. This article presents evidence from a case study of decentralised education-system reform in Guinea, revealing a wide range of influential dynamics outside the technical realm. These corroborate the argument for ‘good-fit’ alternatives to traditional governance approaches and concrete measures to better capture the constructive and disable the destructive effects of informality on development.

Suggested Citation

  • Jennifer Swift-Morgan, 2014. "Confronting the Informal in Good Governance: The Case of Decentralised Education-System Reform in Guinea," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 32(4), pages 399-425, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:devpol:v:32:y:2014:i:4:p:399-425
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