IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “Revenue Decentralization and Vertical Fiscal Imbalance: A Survey,” authored by Manuel E. Lago (Paris School of Economics), Santiago Lago-Peñas (Universidade de Santiago de Compostela), Jorge Martinez-Vazquez (Georgia State University) and Cristian Sepulveda (Farmingdale State College). This paper offers a comprehensive and up-to-date survey of subnational revenue autonomy and vertical fiscal imbalances (VFI) in...

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “ Asymmetric Decentralization in France: A Municipal-Centered Exception ,” authored by Guy Gilbert (ENS Paris-Saclay), Thierry Madiès (University of Fribourg) and Sonia Paty (University of Lyon 2, GATE Lyon Saint-Etienne). The paper analyzes asymmetric decentralization through the specific case of France, a unitary state that has developed distinctive forms of territorial asymmetry. Unlike cases where asymmetry...

The International Conference on Democracy and Global Governance successfully concluded, bringing together leading international scholars and institutional representatives to reflect on the most pressing challenges facing contemporary democracies. Organized by IDEAGOV and Foro Economico de Galicia, the Conference provided a high-level forum for the analysis of political polarisation, institutional resilience, and the global reconfiguration of governance. The opening session featured...

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “Asymmetric Decentralization and Inequality” , authored by Pablo Beramendi (Duke University) and Melissa Rogers (Claremont Graduate University). This paper explores how the organization of power in decentralized systems affects economic inequality. It examines how spatial inequalities and asymmetric decentralization interact to shape redistributive policies and progressive taxation. The study shows that not all...

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “Asymmetric decentralisation and municipal governance in South Africa.” authored by Nara Monkam ( University of Pretoria) and Panashe G. Taruvinga (University of Pretoria). The paper examines how asymmetric decentralisation affects service delivery within South Africa’s local government system. Although municipalities belong to a single constitutional sphere, differentiated expenditure responsibilities and...

Place: CEA – Centro de Estudos Avanzados, Parque de Vista Alegre, Santiago de Compostela Date: 9 March 2026 On 9 March 2026 , the Centro de Estudos Avanzados (CEA) in Santiago de Compostela will host the international conference “Democracy and Global Governance: 21st Century Challenges” , bringing together leading scholars and institutional representatives to discuss some of the political and governance challenges of our time. The event will count with the collaboration and support of...

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 often promoted...

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 asymmetries between regions...

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 Regional...

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 accommodates...

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 provides a particularly...

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 income levels,...

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 greater autonomy,...

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 may affect...

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 progress, analysing how...

Over two days (5–6 November), the Asymmetric Federalism Workshop – The Perils and Advantages of Asymmetric Decentralization brought together leading international scholars and experts at the Consello Económico e Social de Galicia (CES) to discuss the challenges and opportunities of asymmetric decentralization in contemporary governance systems. Organized by IDEAGOV and the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) , in collaboration with the Universitat Pompeu Fabra and Georgia State...

Place: Santiago de Compostela, Galicia Date: 5-6 November 2025 From November 5th to 6th IDEAGOV (International Center for DEcentralization And GOVernance) will host the international conference on Asymetric Federalism - The Perils and Advantages of Asymmetric Decentralization Arrangements. The conference will take place on the Sala do Pleno of the Consello Económico e Social de Galicia (CES) and is supported by Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela and the...

launch of the International Center for DEcentralization And GOVernance (IDEAGOV), a new research center based at the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain).