- Dr. Serdar Yilmaz is an international development economist specializing in public economic management. Dr. Yilmaz ha... moreDr. Serdar Yilmaz is an international development economist specializing in public economic management. Dr. Yilmaz has broad experience in the related areas of fiscal decentralization, public expenditure management, subnational governance, and governmental accountability. He has extensive experience working in developing countries. Throughout his 20-year tenure at the World Bank, he has provided technical assistance and contributed to policy reforms in low and middle-income countries in Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Middle East, and East Asia regions.edit
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Research Interests: Business, Accounting, Fiscal Federalism, Housing, Developing Countries, and 15 moreFire Protection, Audit Committees, Electricity, Community Planning, Debt, Decision making process, Government Revenue, Allocation, Auditors, Budget Constraint, Budget Constraints, Government Transfers, Central Government, defaults, and Auditor General
Local governments play an important role in the COVID-19 pandemic response. They can identify the local vulnerabilities and respond accordingly. In this commentary, we are examining the relationship between COVID-19 case and fatality... more
Local governments play an important role in the COVID-19 pandemic response. They can identify the local vulnerabilities and respond accordingly. In this commentary, we are examining the relationship between COVID-19 case and fatality numbers and provincial governments in Indonesia using correlations and data visualization. We use the public health development index, regional sustainable development index, competitiveness index, and their components as proxies for provincial government capacity and strength. We have found some evidence of a negative relationship between COVID-19 case fatality and death rates and various indices of provincial strength. The correlations are higher when we examine provinces in island regions, such as Java and Sumatra, separately. Some of our findings suggest that stronger provincial governments are a good defense against the pandemic. At the same time there are differences between regions, which is a concern in terms of all-of-government response to the...
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Political decentralization is the primary mechanism through which citizen preferences are represented in the decision making, and is therefore essential to an effective system of decentralization. The purpose of this note is to elucidate... more
Political decentralization is the primary mechanism through which citizen preferences are represented in the decision making, and is therefore essential to an effective system of decentralization. The purpose of this note is to elucidate components of a well-designed political decentralization system and is aimed to assist task teams and stakeholders to evaluate political decentralization effort in any given country. There are two main components of political decentralization system: a) discretion allowed to the local government to perform fundamental functions that allow them to represent the preferences of the citizens in decision making process; and b) mechanisms that hold the local government accountable for appropriate use of this discretion.
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Angola has recently embarked on the decentralization process and counts with political will and commitment at the center. Various political decisions have been made to strengthen local administrative and fiscal systems, build human... more
Angola has recently embarked on the decentralization process and counts with political will and commitment at the center. Various political decisions have been made to strengthen local administrative and fiscal systems, build human capacity and deepen the role of civil society. These decisions are consistent with the overarching government vision laid out in the medium term government strategy (2009-13) and the long-term National Development Strategy, both of which identify decentralization and delivering basic services at the lowest administrative level as priorities. Another important step forward has been the approval of the Local Administration Law - Decree 02/07, which reduces the dependence of the provinces on the central government, foresees a gradual process of administrative de-concentration and transfer of resources to sub-national governments, and acknowledges the value of participation in the development process. The authors analyze accountability and discretion challeng...
Research Interests: Business, Accounting, Economic Growth, Foreign Direct Investment, Housing, and 15 moreHuman Resources, Decentralization, Corruption, Comparative Analysis, Authority, Consolidation, Government Policy, Laws, Decision making process, Institutionalization, Private Sector, Allocation, Audits, Central Government, and Beneficiaries
Local governments play an important role in the COVID-19 pandemic response. They can identify the local vulnerabilities and respond accordingly. In this commentary, we are examining the relationship between COVID-19 case and fatality... more
Local governments play an important role in the COVID-19 pandemic response. They can identify the local vulnerabilities and respond accordingly. In this commentary, we are examining the relationship between COVID-19 case and fatality numbers and provincial governments in Indonesia using correlations and data visualization. We use the public health development index, regional sustainable development index, competitiveness index, and their components as proxies for provincial government capacity and strength. We have found some evidence of a negative relationship between COVID-19 case fatality and death rates and various indices of provincial strength. The correlations are higher when we examine provinces in island regions, such as Java and Sumatra, separately. Some of our findings suggest that stronger provincial governments are a good defense against the pandemic. At the same time there are differences between regions, which is a concern in terms of all-of-government response to the...
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ABSTRACT All disasters are local with important repercussions for national and sometimes for international levels. An effective emergency response requires mobilising local government resources in the fight against disasters, including... more
ABSTRACT All disasters are local with important repercussions for national and sometimes for international levels. An effective emergency response requires mobilising local government resources in the fight against disasters, including pandemics. Local governments, being closer to people, are well-positioned to identify local vulnerabilities and design appropriate response actions. This paper reviews relevant literature on the role of local government in the fight against pandemics and identifies two important prerequisites in deploying local governments effectively in fighting against pandemics: the existence of an intergovernmental coordination mechanism, and local government capacity. The research methodology includes a content analysis of qualitative and quantitative information through a literature review and available data in the public domain.
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Abstract Outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic is testing governments' capacity. Generally, considerable attention is paid to the capacity and response of the central or national governments; however, COVID‐19 pandemic is local in... more
Abstract Outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic is testing governments' capacity. Generally, considerable attention is paid to the capacity and response of the central or national governments; however, COVID‐19 pandemic is local in nature. Although central authorities have important roles to play in COVID‐19 response, local governments, being closer to people, are best‐positioned to form the first line of defense.
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This chapter addresses the role of subnational government (SNG) borrowing and debt management as the financing conduit for the provision of a nation’s investment in its public infrastructure. It begins with a brief review of recent... more
This chapter addresses the role of subnational government (SNG) borrowing and debt management as the financing conduit for the provision of a nation’s investment in its public infrastructure. It begins with a brief review of recent literature on infrastructure deficit and the link between infrastructure services, economic growth, and development. It then describes intergovernmental organizational and institutional arrangements to promote efficiency in the allocation of scarce resources as well as satisfy the equity goal of matching the cost of using those resources to those who pay for them. Spatial considerations lead to the conclusion that SNGs must play a key role in infrastructure financing. And to play this role, the subnational sector must develop the capacity to take on and manage long-term debt. Having established this normative framework, the discussion turns to organizational and institutional arrangements that must be in place to enable a subnational government to carry out its capital financing and spending role. From there the chapter moves on to address financial risks related to SNG debt finance. Two appendices provide a summary of the intergovernmental fiscal rules for nine East Asian countries and the role of subnational borrowing and debt in China.
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Popular expectations for more public infrastructure services (i.e., hospitals, schools, roads) run high in Ghana because of recently discovered major oil and gas reserves in its’ offshore deposits. However, Ghana doesn’t have a good track... more
Popular expectations for more public infrastructure services (i.e., hospitals, schools, roads) run high in Ghana because of recently discovered major oil and gas reserves in its’ offshore deposits. However, Ghana doesn’t have a good track record of using natural resource revenues, be it gold or cocoa, efficiently and effectively for development. The hard fact is that despite significant gold and cocoa revenues, the country has always experienced chronic infrastructure “deficit.” It is unclear if the surge in oil revenues did translate into better development outcomes, whereas the sharp drop in oil prices would translate into more prudent allocation and use of capital budget. Weak and politicized public investment (PIM) system in Ghana exacerbates the potential cyclicality problems of natural resource revenues. To avoid these double traps of weak institutions and cyclicality, Ghana should find an appropriate strategy to “invest in the capacity to invest.” This paper employs an indica...
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Research Interests: Business, Human Resource Management, Public sector, Human Resource, Human Resources, and 13 moreDecentralization, Transparency, Consensus, Service Delivery, Authority, Public finances, Human Resource Management System, Budget Constraint, Resource Allocations, Block Grants, government finance, Central Government, and Gross Domestic Product
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The typical post-Bretton Woods era development growth, and public sector size. But decentralization is approach that emphasized central government-led surprisingly difficult to measure. Nearly all cases development efforts has changed... more
The typical post-Bretton Woods era development growth, and public sector size. But decentralization is approach that emphasized central government-led surprisingly difficult to measure. Nearly all cases development efforts has changed dramatically, and local examining the relationship between decentralization and governments have clearly emerged as players in macroeconomic performance have relied on the development policy. The thinking about what is Government Finance Statistics (GFS) of the International important to achieve in development objectives is Monetary Fund. However, despite its merits, GFS falls changing as fiscal decentralization reforms are being short in providing a full picture of fiscal decentralization. pursued by many countries around the world. In this For some countries, however, there is data that more context, a number of studies have attempted to quantify accurately captures fiscal responsibilities among different the impact of decentralization by relating so...
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Pergamon PII: S0308-5961(98)00034-2 Telecommunications Policy, Vol. 22, No. 6, pp. 541-553, 1998 © 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved Printed in Great Britain 0308-5961/98 $19.00 + 0.00 Regional universa telecommunication... more
Pergamon PII: S0308-5961(98)00034-2 Telecommunications Policy, Vol. 22, No. 6, pp. 541-553, 1998 © 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved Printed in Great Britain 0308-5961/98 $19.00 + 0.00 Regional universa telecommunication service provisions in ...
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... One suggestion by the state's Member Secretary of the Committee on Decentralization is to add a memorandum to every bill presented in the state legislature, which elaborates on local government implications of the bill... more
... One suggestion by the state's Member Secretary of the Committee on Decentralization is to add a memorandum to every bill presented in the state legislature, which elaborates on local government implications of the bill (Vijayanand, 2001). ... 322 V. VENUGOPAL AND S. YILMAZ ...
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During the past 20 years, advancements in telecommunications technologies have had a direct impact on firms, particularly in the service-related sectors, and the telecommunications infrastructure has become important to their production... more
During the past 20 years, advancements in telecommunications technologies have had a direct impact on firms, particularly in the service-related sectors, and the telecommunications infrastructure has become important to their production processes. These developments also have had an indirect effect on the overall economy of regions because of the externalities they generate. This article is an examination of the impact of telecommunications infrastructure on the service sectors’ output growth among the 48 contiguous U.S. states. The findings suggest that not every state receives the full benefits of its own telecommunications infrastructure. A state-by-state regression analysis shows the variation in returns on telecommunications investments across states. This variation may be due to the inefficient utilization of telecommunications infrastructure as a factor of production. Data envelopment analysis confirms that the states accruing significantly positive benefits are those in whic...
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Decentralisation offers significant opportunities to improve government accountability by exerting stronger pressures both from below (demand) and above (supply). The literature contains many examples, however, where the potential has not... more
Decentralisation offers significant opportunities to improve government accountability by exerting stronger pressures both from below (demand) and above (supply). The literature contains many examples, however, where the potential has not been realised, partly because ...
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Research Interests: Business, Econometrics, Accounting, Capital Markets, Fiscal Federalism, and 15 moreAutonomy, Financial Markets, Decentralization, Externalities, Devolution, Government Failure, Debt, Business Cycle, Income Tax, Government Intervention, Budget Constraints, government finance, Central Government, Allocation of Resources, and Income Redistribution
Research Interests: Business, Economic Growth, Democratization, Fiscal Federalism, Autonomy, and 15 moreLegislatures, Equalization, Consensus, Land Use, Inflation, Latin American, Empirical Research, Devolution, Debt, Legislative Power, Economic Stability, Data Sets, government finance, Central Government, and Income Redistribution
Abstract. The relationship between public capital, regional output and private sector productivity has been an issue of considerable interest in the regional development literature. There have however been few studies that develop... more
Abstract. The relationship between public capital, regional output and private sector productivity has been an issue of considerable interest in the regional development literature. There have however been few studies that develop linkages between these issues and the broader ...
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Research Interests: Accounting, Corporate Governance, Financial Systems, Human Resource Management, Internal Audit, and 15 moreAuditing, Autonomy, Internal Control, Cash management, Internal Controls, Accounting standards, Auditors, INTERNAL AUDIT FUNCTION, Internal control system, Audits, External Audit, Cash Flows, Central Government, Internal Auditors, and Auditor General
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Nepal embarked on a full-fledged federal system with the adoption of a new Constitution in 2015. Progress has been made in terms of setting up of key institutional structures, and strengthening the regulatory environment for federalism,... more
Nepal embarked on a full-fledged federal system with the adoption of a new Constitution in 2015. Progress has been made in terms of setting up of key institutional structures, and strengthening the regulatory environment for federalism, and to some extent staff deployment. But significant gaps still exist between the needs and existing capacity at all levels of government. A Federalism Capacity Needs Assessment (FCNA) was conducted in 2018-19 for the Government of Nepal (GoN). The FCNA used a broad definition of capacity, including organizational (physical and human) and institutional (laws and regulations) elements. This paper presents progress in the implementation of federalism based on the findings of the FCNA.
This paper analyzes local government discretion and accountability in Ethiopia in the political, administrative, and fiscal domains. It is based on literature review and interviews of local governments and community members in four... more
This paper analyzes local government discretion and accountability in Ethiopia in the political, administrative, and fiscal domains. It is based on literature review and interviews of local governments and community members in four regions (Amhara, Oromiya, Tigray and Afar), nine woredas and eighteen kebeles.