ABSTRACT
Decentralization, the devolution of power from central to local government agencies, was promoted as one way to increase local say in government and, hence, advance a more equal distribution of goods in society (Stiglitz 1999; UNDP 2004). However, some studies of urban planning practices suggested that decentralized governments may further the opposite outcome, an even less equal distribution of resources (Prud’Homme 1995; Wood 1958). Indeed, after more than a decade of changes towards decentralization, the correlation between a decentralized government and a more equal society is not evident. Moreover, many empirical studies on decentralization have shown that, after decentralization, the socioeconomic differences among decentralized localities have risen (e.g. Bird and Smart 2002). We know little, however, about how decentralization affects social equality within localities. Given the evidence that high income levels are correlated with active political participation (Alford and Friedland 1975; Mollenkopf 1989), decentralization in societies marked by inequalities may allow for policies to be disproportionately influenced by the goals of affluent groups, and thus may further local inequality. How do the pre-existing economic and political conditions in localities influence the social outcome of decentralization? Under which conditions might decentralized democratic governments foster greater levels of social inequality within their own boundaries?
