As Robinson’s article in this IDS Bulletin notes, decentralisation is frequently advocated as a means of improving public service delivery, but there is very little evidence to determine whether or not this is actually the case.
Nowhere is this paradox truer than in sub-Saharan Africa. As Mutizwa-Mangiza (2000: 24) says, ‘many African countries have jumped on the bandwagon of decentralisation and participation without even assessing their own experiences’.
This article attempts to bring together the evidence that does exist about the impact of decentralisation on service delivery in the region and gives general lessons that can be learned.
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