A Baseline Survey of Subnational Governments: Towards a Better Understanding of Decentralisation and Deconcentration in Cambodia
Abstract/Summary
The district and provincial council elections in May 2009, for the first time, offered communes the opportunity to choose councillors from whom they can demand accountability, and introduced a new relationship between commune councillors and higher councils. The main goal of this survey is to gauge the view of commune and district councillors and district boards of governors on accountability, fiscal assignment, service delivery, division of labour between the commune and district, gender issues, unified administration and the reform in general. Despite some divergence, there is now strong consensus that the reforms have improved local livelihoods, strengthened local leadership and changed the way local and subnational public business is conducted.