Working Paper
The Rise and Fall of Decentralization in Contemporary Uganda

There has long been an emphasis on the importance of decentralization in providing better quality public services in the developing world. In order to assess the effectiveness of decentralization I examine here the case study of Uganda, which has seen major decentralization of power over the last quarter-century. Initial excitement about Uganda’s decentralization programme has, however, tapered off in recent years due to a number of problems outlined here. I suggest that many of these problems are the consequence of broader problems of poor state capacity and institutions that are endemic in developing countries.