Working Paper

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “The Delicate Balance of Special Autonomy Agreements: Lessons from Indonesia and the Philippines” , authored by Sarah Shair-Rosenfield  (University of York). The paper examines whether asymmetric decentralisation can fulfil its dual promise of granting meaningful regional self-governance while maintaining peace and territorial integrity in deeply divided societies. While asymmetric arrangements are

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “Heterogeneous fiscal decentralisation in Italian regions” , authored by Carlo Gianelle  (European Commission, DG REGIO), Agnese Sacchi  (University of Urbino; IDEAGOV) and Simone Salotti  (European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Seville). The paper provides a comprehensive analysis of Italy’s fiscal decentralisation process, which is characterised by persistent and institutionalised asymmetrie

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled  “Asymmetric Decentralization: Nature and Determinants” , authored by  Santiago Lago-Peñas  (USC, IDEAGOV, CISPAC),  María Cadaval-Sampedro  (USC, IDEAGOV),  Jorge Martínez-Vázquez  (Georgia State University, IDEAGOV) and  Ana Herrero-Alcalde  (UNED, IDEAGOV). This paper provides a systematic empirical analysis of the nature and determinants of asymmetric decentralization using information from the

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled  Perceptions of legitimacy in asymmetric decentralisation: evidence from Spain , authored by  Caroline Gray  (Aston University). The paper analyses the conditions under which asymmetric decentralisation arrangements sustain or undermine the legitimacy of the territorial model among regions that operate under the standard framework. While existing research has largely focused on whether asymmetry ac

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled  “An Economic Perspective on Asymmetric Federalism in Canada: The Case of Québec” , authored by  François Vaillancourt , (Université de Montréal). The paper examines the unique policy choices adopted by Québec since the post–World War II period and analyses their institutional and economic implications. As one of the most autonomous subnational governments in industrialised countries, Québec provid

IDEAGOV releases a new Working Paper by  Luiz de Mello  (OECD) and  João Tovar Jalles  (Universidade de Lisboa) titled  Parable of the Talents: Does Differentiated Decentralisation Improve Performance? . This study explores whether asymmetric decentralization (greater policy authority to selected regions) leads to stronger economic performance. Using harmonized OECD regional data from 1995 to 2021, the authors found that, while regions with more autonomy tend to have higher i

IDEAGOV publishes a new Working Paper entitled  “The Politics of Public Goods Provision under Asymmetric Decentralization”  by  Ignacio Lago  (Universitat Pompeu Fabra) and  André Blais  (Université de Montréal).   This paper analyses the impact of asymmetric decentralization on electoral politics and public service delivery across several democracies. The research shows that asymmetric decentralization changes how voters assign political responsibility. In regions with great

IDEAGOV publishes a new Working Paper entitled " Taxing Wealth or Capital Income? The Impact of Political Ideology on Property Tax Policy in Spain: A Quasi-Experimental Study"  by José María Tubío-Sánchez, Santiago Lago-Peñas, Xoaquín Fernández-Leiceaga and María Cadaval-Sampedro.  This paper analyses how political ideology influences local property tax policy in Spain. The results show that left-wing governments set higher than right-wing governments, however, while ideology

IDEAGOV is pleased ot announce the launch of its Working Paper Series, an initiative to promote high-quality research on governance, decentralisation and public policy.  The Working Paper entitled " Unfunded Mandates, Institutional Quality, and Social Progress: An Analysis for OECD Countries"  by Miriam Hortas-Rico and David Martinez-Algora initiates the series.  The paper studies the impact of the mismatch between political and fiscal decentralization impact on social progre