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Decentralization and culture: The case of Monrovia, Liberia
Author(s) -
Werlin Herbert
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
public administration and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1099-162X
pISSN - 0271-2075
DOI - 10.1002/pad.4230100302
Subject(s) - decentralization , blueprint , politics , public administration , political science , economic growth , development economics , sociology , economics , law , engineering , mechanical engineering
The World Bank's urban development project in Monrovia, Liberia attempted, between 1979 and 1987, to promote decentralization, enabling the municipality to pay for services and infrastructure provided under this project. Because of cultural barriers and a blueprint approach, the project resulted in charity rather than institutional reform. However, effective approaches and procedures require more attention to the underlying causes of existing problems. In as much as politics, even more than culture, affects decentralization, the World Bank needs to be more open with its borrowers about political requirements.