IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/epolit/v42y2025i1d10.1007_s40888-025-00356-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The determinants of the distribution of the public investment budget between the decentralized territorial communities: evidence from cameroon

Author

Listed:
  • Simon Pierre Onana

    (University of Yaoundé 2)

  • Tanguy Lomie Mamoho

    (University of Yaoundé 2)

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to identify the determinants of the distribution of Public Investment Budget (PIB) between municipalities in Cameroon. Based on an original panel dataset of all the 360 municipalities found in Cameroon over the period 2013–2020, results reveals that efficiency is the most important determinant when distributing public investment budget in Cameroon, while equity is less consider when distributing public investment budget in Cameroon. On one hand, if the central government in Cameroon allocates the PIB as a priority in municipalities where there is a greater need for socio-economic development, on the other hand, it does not assist more the municipalities with a low tax base. The results further reveal that Cameroon’s PIB distribution system is also influenced by political and electoral considerations. In effect, the central government targets municipalities where the candidate of the aligned party collects more votes in the last presidential elections. Besides, municipalities with more uncertain voters in the last presidential elections receives more PIB, all other things being equal, while those headed by a mayor from the same political party as the President of the Republic do not seem to be a priority to targets. However, when the distribution of the PIB is guided more by political and electoral considerations, this can be the origin of an unequal allocation of the BIP and as well as the realization of public investment projects which do not fit with the real needs of populations. Consequently, the study recommends that public authorities in Cameroon should adopt best strategies when allocating PIB by taking into account, as a priority, the budget deficit and the socio-economic needs of the municipalities.

Suggested Citation

  • Simon Pierre Onana & Tanguy Lomie Mamoho, 2025. "The determinants of the distribution of the public investment budget between the decentralized territorial communities: evidence from cameroon," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 42(1), pages 339-367, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:epolit:v:42:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s40888-025-00356-3
    DOI: 10.1007/s40888-025-00356-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s40888-025-00356-3
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s40888-025-00356-3?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Khemani, Stuti, 2007. "Does delegation of fiscal policy to an independent agency make a difference? Evidence from intergovernmental transfers in India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(2), pages 464-484, March.
    2. Grossman, Philip J, 1994. "A Political Theory of Intergovernmental Grants," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 78(3-4), pages 295-303, March.
    3. Simon Pierre Onana & Marcellin Stéphane Bella Ngadena, 2024. "Does Regional Favoritism Affect Public Investment Budget Allocation? Evidence from Cameroon in the Context of Decentralization," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 60(10), pages 1648-1667, October.
    4. Hans Pitlik & Friedrich Schneider & Harald Strotmann, 2006. "Legislative Malapportionment and the Politicization of Germany's Intergovernmental Transfer System," Public Finance Review, , vol. 34(6), pages 637-662, November.
    5. Assar Lindbeck & Jörgen Weibull, 1987. "Balanced-budget redistribution as the outcome of political competition," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 52(3), pages 273-297, January.
    6. Alberto Porto & Pablo Sanguinetti, 2001. "Political Determinants of Intergovernmental Grants: Evidence From Argentina," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(3), pages 237-256, November.
    7. Arellano, Manuel & Bover, Olympia, 1995. "Another look at the instrumental variable estimation of error-components models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 68(1), pages 29-51, July.
    8. Emilie Caldeira, 2012. "Does the System of Allocation of Intergovernmental Transfers in Senegal Eliminate Politically Motivated Targeting?," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 21(2), pages 167-191, March.
    9. Shawn Cole, 2009. "Fixing Market Failures or Fixing Elections? Agricultural Credit in India," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 219-250, January.
    10. Dixit, Avinash & Londregan, John, 1998. "Fiscal federalism and redistributive politics," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 153-180, May.
    11. Dahlberg, Matz & Johansson, Eva, 2002. "On the Vote-Purchasing Behavior of Incumbent Governments," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 96(1), pages 27-40, March.
    12. Jameson Boex & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2005. "The Determinants of the Incidence of Intergovernmental Grants: A Survey of the International Experience (2005)," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper0509, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    13. Steven A. Meyer & Shigeto Naka, 1999. "The Determinants Of Japanese Local‐Benefit Seeking," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 17(1), pages 87-96, January.
    14. Blundell, Richard & Bond, Stephen, 1998. "Initial conditions and moment restrictions in dynamic panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 115-143, August.
    15. John C. Driscoll & Aart C. Kraay, 1998. "Consistent Covariance Matrix Estimation With Spatially Dependent Panel Data," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 80(4), pages 549-560, November.
    16. Maria El Khdari, 2019. "Déterminants des transferts intergouvernementaux : le cas du Maroc," Post-Print hal-02137651, HAL.
    17. Wallis, John Joseph, 1998. "The Political Economy of New Deal Spending Revisited, Again: With and without Nevada," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 140-170, April.
    18. Gonschorek, Gerrit J. & Schulze, Günther G. & Sjahrir, Bambang Suharnoko, 2018. "To the ones in need or the ones you need? The political economy of central discretionary grants − empirical evidence from Indonesia," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 240-260.
    19. Borck, Rainald & Owings, Stephanie, 2003. "The political economy of intergovernmental grants," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 139-156, March.
    20. Case, Anne, 2001. "Election goals and income redistribution: Recent evidence from Albania," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 405-423, March.
    21. Magnus, Jan R. & Powell, Owen & Prüfer, Patricia, 2010. "A comparison of two model averaging techniques with an application to growth empirics," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 154(2), pages 139-153, February.
    22. Koenker, Roger W & Bassett, Gilbert, Jr, 1978. "Regression Quantiles," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 46(1), pages 33-50, January.
    23. Mel Bungey & Peter Kenyon & Philip J. Grossman, 1991. "Explaining intergovernmental grants: Australian evidence," Monash Economics Working Papers archive-14, Monash University, Department of Economics.
    24. Arulampalam, Wiji & Dasgupta, Sugato & Dhillon, Amrita & Dutta, Bhaskar, 2009. "Electoral goals and center-state transfers: A theoretical model and empirical evidence from India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(1), pages 103-119, January.
    25. Sanogo, Tiangboho, 2019. "Does fiscal decentralization enhance citizens’ access to public services and reduce poverty? Evidence from Côte d’Ivoire municipalities in a conflict setting," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 204-221.
    26. Dennis Patrick Leyden, 1992. "Donor-Determined Intergovernmental Grants Structure," Public Finance Review, , vol. 20(3), pages 321-337, July.
    27. Maria Elkhdari, 2019. "Déterminants des transferts intergouvernementaux : le cas du Maroc," Revue économique, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 70(1), pages 67-96.
    28. Tiangboho Sanogo, 2019. "Does fiscal decentralization enhance citizens’ access to public services and reduce poverty? Evidence from Côte d’Ivoire municipalities in a conflict setting," Post-Print hal-01875189, HAL.
    29. Linda Veiga & Maria Pinho, 2007. "The political economy of intergovernmental grants: Evidence from a maturing democracy," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 133(3), pages 457-477, December.
    30. Banful, Afua Branoah, 2011. "Do formula-based intergovernmental transfer mechanisms eliminate politically motivated targeting? Evidence from Ghana," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 380-390, November.
    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. Emilie Caldeira, 2012. "Does the System of Allocation of Intergovernmental Transfers in Senegal Eliminate Politically Motivated Targeting?," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 21(2), pages 167-191, March.
    2. Maria EL KHDARI, 2015. "Déterminants des transferts intergouvernementaux : le cas des communes Marocaines," Working Papers 201531, CERDI.
    3. Abel Fumey, 2018. "Intergovernmental fiscal transfers and tactical political maneuverings: Evidence from Ghana’s District Assemblies Common Fund," WIDER Working Paper Series 031, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Maria El Khdari, 2019. "Déterminants des transferts intergouvernementaux : le cas du Maroc," Post-Print hal-02137651, HAL.
    5. Abel Fumey, 2018. "Intergovernmental fiscal transfers and tactical political maneuverings: Evidence from Ghana's District Assemblies Common Fund," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2018-31, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    6. Kayode Taiwo & Linda G. Veiga, 2020. "Is there an “invisible hand” in the formula-based intergovernmental transfers in Nigeria?," NIPE Working Papers 02/2020, NIPE - Universidade do Minho.
    7. Markus Reischmann, 2016. "Empirical Studies on Public Debt and Fiscal Transfers," ifo Beiträge zur Wirtschaftsforschung, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 63, May.
    8. Banful, Afua Branoah, 2011. "Do formula-based intergovernmental transfer mechanisms eliminate politically motivated targeting? Evidence from Ghana," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 380-390, November.
    9. Xin Wan & Yuanyuan Ma & Kezhong Zhang, 2015. "Political determinants of intergovernmental transfers in a regionally decentralized authoritarian regime: evidence from China," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(27), pages 2803-2820, June.
    10. Grégoire ROTA-GRAZIOSI & Emilie CALDEIRA, 2014. "La décentralisation dans les pays en développement : une revue de la littérature - Decentralization in developing countries: A literature review," Working Papers 201411, CERDI.
    11. Gonschorek, Gerrit J. & Schulze, Günther G. & Sjahrir, Bambang Suharnoko, 2018. "To the ones in need or the ones you need? The political economy of central discretionary grants − empirical evidence from Indonesia," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 240-260.
    12. Yannis Psycharis & Stavroula Iliopoulou & Maria Zoi & Panagiotis Pantazis, 2021. "Beyond the socio‐economic use of fiscal transfers: The role of political factors in Greek intergovernmental grant allocations," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(3), pages 982-1008, June.
    13. Kauder, Björn & Potrafke, Niklas & Reischmann, Markus, 2016. "Do politicians reward core supporters? Evidence from a discretionary grant program," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 39-56.
    14. Kauder, Björn & Björn, Kauder & Niklas, Potrafke & Markus, Reischmann, 2016. "Do politicians gratify core supporters? Evidence from a discretionary grant program," VfS Annual Conference 2016 (Augsburg): Demographic Change 145509, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    15. Josip Glaurdić & Vuk Vuković, 2017. "Granting votes: exposing the political bias of intergovernmental grants using the within-between specification for panel data," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 171(1), pages 223-241, April.
    16. Gregor, András, 2020. "Intergovernmental transfers and political competition measured by pivotal probability - Evidence from Hungary," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    17. Abel Fumey & Festus O. Egwaikhide, 2018. "Political Economy of Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers: The Rural‐Urban Dynamics in Ghana," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 30(1), pages 33-44, March.
    18. Guccio, Calogero & Mazza, Isidoro, 2014. "On the political determinants of the allocation of funds to heritage authorities," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 18-38.
    19. Andrew Abbott & René Cabral & Philip Jones, 2017. "Incumbency and Distributive Politics: Intergovernmental Transfers in Mexico," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 84(2), pages 484-503, October.
    20. Anastasios Kitsos & Antonios Proestakis, 2021. "Mediating distributive politics: political alignment and electoral business cycle effects on municipality financing in Greece," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 67(1), pages 1-26, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Intergovernmental transfers; Public investment budget; Cameroon; Decentralization;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H20 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - General
    • H77 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - Intergovernmental Relations; Federalism

    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:spr:epolit:v:42:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s40888-025-00356-3. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.