Poland: Decentralization and Reform of the State

by World Bank Group

The primary objective of this report is to take stock of Poland's progress in decentralization to local governments within the context of the Government's transition program, and to make recommendations on how decentralization policy may support, broaden and deepen transition objectives. The transition program is at a crossroads, however, and making decentralization of the state consistent with the short- and medium-term stabilization and growth objectives of this program requires clear decisions about the pace and scope of decentralization. After a chapter on a normative framework for decentralization, the rest of the report is organized according to the key issues facing decentralization (a) assignment of public responsibilities by level of government; (b) central/local fiscal relations; (c) financing of local government investments; and (d) local government planning and financial management. The final chapter provides an agenda for implementation of these recommendations.

113 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1992

About the author

The World Bank Group (WBG) is a family of five international organizations that make leveraged loans to developing countries. It is the largest and most famous development bank in the world and is an observer at the United Nations Development Group. The bank is based in Washington, D.C. and provided around $61 billion in loans and assistance to "developing" and transition countries in the 2014 fiscal year. The bank's stated mission is to achieve the twin goals of ending extreme poverty and building shared prosperity. Its five organizations are the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).

The World Bank's (the IBRD and IDA's) activities are focused on developing countries, in fields such as human development (e.g. education, health), agriculture and rural development (e.g. irrigation and rural services), environmental protection (e.g. pollution reduction, establishing and enforcing regulations), infrastructure (e.g. roads, urban regeneration, and electricity), large industrial construction projects, and governance (e.g. anti-corruption, legal institutions development). The IBRD and IDA provide loans at preferential rates to member countries, as well as grants to the poorest countries. Loans or grants for specific projects are often linked to wider policy changes in the sector or the country's economy as a whole. For example, a loan to improve coastal environmental management may be linked to development of new environmental institutions at national and local levels and the implementation of new regulations to limit pollution, or not, such as in the World Bank financed constructions of paper mills along the Rio Uruguay in 2006.