Decentralizing Indonesia : A Regional Public Expenditure Review Overview Report
Indonesia has embarked upon a radical and rapid decentralization program. Regional autonomy is transforming one of the most centralized countries in the world into one of the more decentralized ones. If managed well, a country as large and diverse...
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| Format: | Public Expenditure Review |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
Washington, DC
2013
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2003/06/2461573/decentralizing-indonesia-regional-public-expenditure-review-overview-report http://hdl.handle.net/10986/14632 |
| Summary: | Indonesia has embarked upon a radical
and rapid decentralization program. Regional autonomy is
transforming one of the most centralized countries in the
world into one of the more decentralized ones. If managed
well, a country as large and diverse as Indonesia will
benefit greatly from decentralization, through more
efficient service delivery, but also national unity and
democracy. Yet, not all is well. The Consultative Assembly,
the country's highest constitutional body, has
recognized as much by calling for a thorough evaluation of
the decentralization program, and adjustments of the
decentralization laws, if needed. Indonesia should use the
process of revision as an opportunity to create a consensus
on the type and extent of regional autonomy, and define
better rules of the game to ensure that the benefits of
decentralization will prevail. Rapid decentralization and
its hasty preparation have left much unfinished business.
Some of the issues encountered are merely teething problems
of an ambitious decentralization program, and over time
they can be ironed out. Others could jeopardize the success
of the program itself, undermine the potential efficiency
gains of decentralization, and even trigger fiscal
imbalances and macroeconomic instability over the longer
run. These issues fall into three broad categories: (i) the
assignment of functions over levels of government: (ii)
local capacity to implement the functions; (iii) the
intergovernmental fiscal system; and (iv) accountability at
the local level. |
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