Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-wq2xx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T20:16:13.839Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

10 - Clientelism in Decentralized States

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 February 2019

By
Gianmarco León  and
Leonard Wantchekon
Edited by
Jonathan A. Rodden  and
Erik Wibbels
Jonathan A. Rodden
Affiliation:
Stanford University, California
Erik Wibbels
Affiliation:
Duke University, North Carolina
Get access

Summary

Clientelistic networks and decentralization share common organizational features and interact in different ways. They are both multi-tiered structures plagued with agency issues. In this chapter we study these links, reviewing the current scholarship and emphasizing how the different features of political decentralization affect clientelistic politics, and point to avenues for future research. In particular, we emphasize the role clientelistic networks and upward and downward accountability play in undermining programmatic politics. We finally provide a brief analysis of the role local bureaucracies can play in counterbalancing the efficiency losses introduced by clientelistic politics in decentralized states.
Type
Chapter
Information
Decentralized Governance and Accountability
Academic Research and the Future of Donor Programming
 , pp. 229 - 247
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agrawal, Arun, and Ribot, Jesse (1999). “Accountability in Decentralization: A Framework with South Asian and West African Cases.” Journal of Developing Areas 33 (4): 473–502.Google Scholar
Ahmed, Mirza Ashfaq, Lodhi, Suleman Aziz, and Ahmad, Zahoor (2017). “Political Brand Equity Model: The Integration of Political Brands in Voter Choice.” Journal of Political Marketing 16(2): 147–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Alatas, Vivi, Banerjee, Abhijit, Hanna, Rema, Olken, Benjamin A., and Tobias, Julia (2012). “Targeting the poor: evidence from a field experiment in Indonesia.” American Economic Review, 102(4): 1206–40.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Alderman, Harold (2002). “Do Local Officials Know Something We Don’t? Decentralization of Targeted Transfers in Albania.” Journal of Public Economics 83: 375–404.Google Scholar
Alesina, Alberto, and La Ferrara, Eliana (2005). “Ethnic Diversity and Economic Performance.” Journal of Economic Literature 43 (3): 762–800.Google Scholar
Alesina, Alberto, and Spolaore, Enrico (2003). The Size of Nations. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bailey, John, and Valenzuela, Arturo (1997). “The Shape of the Future.” Journal of Democracy 8: 43–57.Google Scholar
Banerjee, Abhijit, Kumar, Selvan, Pande, Rohini, and Su, Felix (2011). “Do Informed Voters Make Better Choices? Experimental Evidence from Urban India.” Mimeo, Harvard University.Google Scholar
Banerjee, Abhijit V., Duflo, Esther, Pande, Rohini, and Imbert, Clement (2012). “Enhancing Local Public Service Delivery: Experimental Evidence on the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in Bihar.” International Growth Center Policy Brief 6010.Google Scholar
Bardhan, Pranab (2002). “Decentralization of Governance and Development.” Journal of Economic Perspectives 16 (4): 185–205.Google Scholar
Bardhan, Pranab, and Mookerjee, Dilip (2000). “Corruption and Decentralization of Infrastructure Delivery in Developing Countries.” Working paper, University of California, Berkeley.Google Scholar
Bardhan, Pranab, and Mookherjee, Dilip (2005). “Decentralizing Antipoverty Program Delivery in Developing Countries.” Journal of Public Economics 89 (4): 675–704.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bardhan, Pranab, and Mookherjee, Dilip (2006). “Decentralisation and Accountability in Infrastructure Delivery in Developing Countries.” Economic Journal 116 (508): 101–127.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bardhan, Pranab, Mookherjee, Dilip, and Torrado, Monica Parra (2010). “Impact of Political Reservations in West Bengal Local Governments on Anti-Poverty Targeting.” Journal of Globalization and Development 1(1): 1–38.Google Scholar
Besley, Timothy J., and Burgess, Robin (2002). “Can Labour Regulation Hinder Economic Performance? Evidence from India.” CEPR Discussion Paper No. 3260.Google Scholar
Besley, Timothy, and Coate, Stephen (2003). “Centralized versus Decentralized Provision of Local Public Goods: A Political Economy Approach.”Journal of Public Economics 87: 2611–2637.Google Scholar
Bobba, Matteo, Leon, Gianmarco, Sossou, Damase, and Wantchekon, Leonard (ongoing) “Group Incentives in Local Governments: Evidence from Benin.”Google Scholar
Bohlken, Anjali (2012). “Upward Accountability: Village Politicians, Decentralization, and the Electoral Success of Party Machines in India.” University of British Columbia Working Paper.Google Scholar
Bordignon, Masimo (2004). “Fiscal Decentralization: How to Achieve a Hard Budget Constraint.” Workshop on Fiscal Surveillance in EMU: New Issues and Challenges: Brussels.Google Scholar
Burgess, Robin, Jedwab, Remi, Miguel, Edward, Morjaria, Ameet, and Padró i Miquel, Gerard (2015). “The Value of Democracy: Evidence from Road Building in Kenya.” American Economic Review 105(6): 1817–1851.Google Scholar
Burki, Shahid Javed, Perry, Guillermo E., and Dillinger, William R. (1999). Beyond the Center: Decentralizing the State. Washington, DC: World Bank.Google Scholar
Chanie, Paulous (2007). “Clientelism and Ethiopia’s Post-1991 Decentralization.” Journal of Modern African Studies 45 (3): 355–384.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crook, Richard C., and Sverrisson, Alan S. (2001). “Decentralisation and Poverty-Alleviation in Developing Countries: A Comparative Analysis or, Is West Bengal Unique?” Institute of Development Studies Working Paper 130.Google Scholar
Cruz, Ceci (2013). “Social Networks and the Targeting of Illegal Electoral Strategies.” American Political Science Association Annual Meeting Paper.Google Scholar
Dixit, Avinash, and Londregan, John (1998). “Ideology, Tactics and Efficiency in Redistributive Politics.” Quarterly Journal of Economics 113 (2): 497–529.Google Scholar
Djankov, Simeon, McLiesh, Caralee, Nenova, Tatiana, and Shleifer, Andrei (2001). “Who Owns the Media?” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 2620, Washington, DC: World Bank.Google Scholar
Easterly, William and Levine, Ross (1997). “Africa’s Growth Tragedy: Policies and Ethnic Divisions.” Quarterly Journal of Economics 112 (4): 1203–1250.Google Scholar
Eaton, Kent (2006). “The Downside of Decentralization: Armed Clientelism in Colombia.” Security Studies 15 (4): 533–562.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Enikolopov, Ruben, and Zhuravskaya, Ekaterina (2007). “Decentralization and Political Institutions.” Journal of Public Economics 91 (11–12): 2261–2290.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fackler, Tim, and Lin, Tse-min (1995). “Political Corruption and Presidential Elections 1929–1999.” Journal of Politics 57: 971–993.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Faguet, Jean-Paul (2004). “Does Decentralization Increase Responsiveness to Local Needs? Evidence from Bolivia.” Journal of Public Economics 88(4): 867–894.Google Scholar
Faguet, Jean-Paul (2012). Decentralization and Popular Democracy: Governance from Below in Bolivia. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Falleti, Tulia (2005). “A Sequential Theory of Decentralization: Latin American Cases in Comparative Perspective.” American Political Science Review 99: 327–346.Google Scholar
Ferraz, Claudio, and Finan, Frederico (2008) “Exposing Corrupt Politicians: The Effects of Brazil’s Publicly Released Audits on Electoral Outcomes.” Quarterly Journal of Economics 123(2): 703–745.Google Scholar
Ferraz, Claudio, and Finan, Frederico (2011). “Electoral Accountability and Corruption: Evidence from the Audits of Local Governments.” American Economic Review 101 (4): 1274–1311.Google Scholar
Ferraz, Claudio, Finan, Frederico, and Szerman, Dimitri (2015). “Procuring Firm Growth: The Effects of Government Purchases on Firm Dynamics.” NBER Working Paper 21219.Google Scholar
Finan, Federico, and Shecter, Laura (2012). “Vote Buying and Reciprocity.” Econometrica 80 (2): 863–882.Google Scholar
Finan, Frederico, Olken, Benjamin, and Pande, Rohini (2017). “The Personnel Economics of the Developing State.” In Banerjee, Abhijit and Duflo, Esther (eds.) Handbook of Economic Field Experiments, Vol. 2. Amsterdam: North Holland, pp. 467–514.Google Scholar
Fisman, Raymond, and Gatti, Roberta (2002). “Decentralization and Corruption: Evidence across Countries.” Journal of Public Economics 83: 325–345.Google Scholar
Fujiwara, Thomas, and Wantchekon, Leonard (2013). “Can Informed Public Deliberation Overcome Clientelism? Experimental Evidence from Benin.” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 5 (4): 241–255.Google Scholar
Gadenne, Lucie, and Singhal, Monica (2014). “Decentralization in Developing Economies.” Annual Review of Economics 6: 581–604.Google Scholar
Galasso, Emanuela, and Ravallion, Martin (2005). “Decentralized Targeting of an Antipoverty Program.” Journal of Public Economics 89 (4): 705–727.Google Scholar
Galiani, Sebastien, Gertler, Paul, and Schargrodsky, Ernesto (2008). “School Decentralization: Helping the Good Get Better, but Leaving the Poor Behind.” Journal of Public Economics 92 (10–11): 2106–2120.Google Scholar
Gans-Morse, Jordan, Mazzuca, Sebastiàn, and Nicheter, Simeon (2014). “Varieties of Clientelism: Machine Politics during Elections.” American Journal of Political Science 58 (2): 415–432.Google Scholar
Hagopian, Frances, Gervasoni, Carlos, and Andrés Moraes, Juan (2009). “From Patronage to Program: The Emergence of Party-Oriented Legislators in Brazil.” Comparative Political Studies 3: 360–391.Google Scholar
Hayek, Friedrich A. (1945). “The Use of Knowledge in Society.” American Economic Review 35 (4): 519–530.Google Scholar
Hicken, Allen (2011). “Clientelism.” Annual Review of Political Science 14: 289–310.Google Scholar
Hsieh, Chang-Tai, Miguel, Edward, Ortega, Daniel, and Rodriguez, Francisco (2011). “The Price of Political Opposition: Evidence from Venezuela’s Maisanta.” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 3(2): 196–214.Google Scholar
Humphreys, Macarthan and Weinstein, Jeremy (2014). “Failing Grade: How Transparency Shapes the Performance of Politicians in Uganda.” Mimeo, Stanford University.Google Scholar
Keefer, Philip, and Vlaicu, Razvan (2008). “Democracy, Credibility, and Clientelism.” Journal of Law, Economics and Organization 24 (2): 371–406.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kis-Katos, Bambang, and Sjahrir, Suharnoko (2017). “The Impact of Fiscal and Political Decentralization on Local Public Investments in Indonesia.” Journal of Comparative Economics 45(2): 344–365.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kitschelt, Herbert (2012). “Parties and Interest Intermediation.” In Amenta, Edwin, Nash, Kate, and Scott, Alan (eds.) The Wiley‐Blackwell Companion to Political Sociology. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 144–157.Google Scholar
Kitschelt, Herbert, Hawkins, Kirk A., Luna, Juan Pablo, Rosas, Guillermo, and Zechmeister, Elizabeth J. (2010). Latin American Party Systems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laffont, Jean-Jacques, and Meleu, Mathieu (2001). “Separation of Powers and Development.” Journal of Development Economics 64: 129–145.Google Scholar
Larreguy, Horacio (2013). “Monitoring Political Brokers: Evidence from Clientelistic Networks in Mexico.” Mimeo, Harvard University.Google Scholar
Larreguy, Horacio, Marshall, John, and Trucco, Laura (2015). “Breaking Clientelism or Rewarding Incumbents? Evidence from an Urban Titling Program in Mexico.”Google Scholar
Larson, Anne (2003). “Decentralization and Forest Management in Latin America: Towards a Working Model.” Public Administration and Development 23: 211–226.Google Scholar
Lederman, Daniel, Loayza, Norman, and Soares, Rodrigo R. (2005). “Accountability and Corruption: Political Institutions Matter.” Economics and Politics 17(1): 1–35.Google Scholar
Linz, Juan (1990). “The Virtues of Parliamentarism.” Journal of Democracy 1: 84–92.Google Scholar
Linz, Juan, and Stepan, Alfred (1996). “Towards Consolidated Democracies.” Journal of Democracy 7: 14–33.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Manor, James (1999). The Political Economy of Democratic Decentralization. Washington DC: World Bank.Google Scholar
Mares, Isabela, and Young, Lauren (2016). “Buying, Expropriating, and Stealing Votes.” Annual Review of Political Science 19: 15.1–15.22.Google Scholar
Martinez-Bravo, Monica (2014). “The Role of Local Officials in New Democracies: Evidence from Indonesia.” American Economic Review 104 (4): 1244–1287.Google Scholar
Miguel, Edward, and Gugerty, Mary Kay (2005). “Ethnic Diversity, Social Sanctions, and Public Goods in Kenya.” Journal of Public Economics 89 (11–12): 2325–2368.Google Scholar
Myerson, Roger (2015). “Local Agency Costs of Political Decentralization.” University of Chicago Working Paper.Google Scholar
Nas, Tevfik, Price, Albert, and Weber, Charles, (1986). “A Policy-Oriented Theory of Corruption.” American Political Science Review 80: 107–119.Google Scholar
Oates, Wallace E. (1972). Fiscal Federalism. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.Google Scholar
Olken, Benjamin, and Pande, Rohini (2012). “Lifting the Curtain on Corruption in Developing Countries.” VOX.eu [https://voxeu.org/article/lifting-curtain-corruption-developing-countries].Google Scholar
Panzetto, Giacomo A. M., Boffa, Frederico, and Piolatto, Amedeo (2016). “Political Centralization and Government Accountability.”Quarterly Journal of Economics 131: 381–422.Google Scholar
Persson, Petra, and Zhuravskaya, Ekaterina (2015). “The Limits of Career Concerns in Federalism: Evidence from China.” Journal of the European Economic Association 14 (2): 1–37.Google Scholar
Persson, Torsten, Roland, Gérard, and Tabellini, Guido (1997). “Separation of Powers and Political Accountability.” Quarterly Journal of Economics 112: 163–1202.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Prud’homme, Remy (1995). “The Dangers of Decentralization.” World Bank Research Observer 10 (2): 201–220.Google Scholar
Riker, William (1964). Federalism: Origin, Operation, Significance. Boston, MA: Little Brown.Google Scholar
Robinson, James, and Verdier, Thierry (2013). “The Political Economy of Clientelism.” Scandinavian Journal of Economics 115 (2): 260–291.Google Scholar
Rose-Ackerman, Susan (1999). Corruption and Government: Causes, Consequences, and Reform. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Scott, James C. (1972). “Patron-Client Politics and Political Change in Southeast Asia.” American Political Science Review 66 (1): 91–113.Google Scholar
Seabright, Paul (1996). “Accountability and Decentralization in Government: An Incomplete Contracts Model.” European Economic Review 40: 61–89.Google Scholar
Shah, Anwar (1998). “Balance, Accountability, and Responsiveness: Lessons about Decentralization.” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 2021.Google Scholar
Smith, B. C. (1985). Decentralization: The Territorial Dimension of the State. London: George Allen & Unwin.Google Scholar
Sneider, Mark (2016). “Do Brokers Know Their Voters? A Test of Guessability in India.” Working paper, University of California, Berkeley.Google Scholar
Stephan, Alfred C. (1996). “Toward Consolidated Democracies.” Journal of Democracy 7: 14–33.Google Scholar
Stokes, Susan (2009). “Political Clientelism.” In Boix, Charles and Stokes, Susan (eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Politics, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 1–27.Google Scholar
Stokes, Susan, Dunning, Thad, Nazareno, Marcelo, and Busco, Valeria (2013). Brokers, Voters and Clientelism: The Puzzle of Distributive Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Tanzi, Vito (1996). “Fiscal Federalism and Decentralization: A Review of Some Efficiency and Macroeconomic Aspects.” International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.Google Scholar
US AID (2009). Democratic Decentralization Programming Handbook. Washington DC: USAID.Google Scholar
Véron, René, Williams, Glyn, Corbridge, Stuart, and Srivastava, Manoj (2006). “Decentralized Corruption or Corrupt Decentralization? Community Monitoring of Poverty-Alleviation Schemes in Eastern India.” World Development 34 (11): 1922–1941.Google Scholar
Vicente, Pedro. (2014) “Is Vote Buying Effective? Evidence from a Field Experiment in West Africa.” Economic Journal 124 (574): F356–F387.Google Scholar
Vicente, Pedro, and Wantchekon, Leonard (2009). “Clientelism and Vote Buying: Lessons from Field Experiments in West Africa.” Oxford Review of Economic Policy 25 (2): 292–305.Google Scholar
Wallis, John J., and Oates, Wallace E. (1988). “Decentralization in the Public Sector: An Empirical Study of State and Local Government.” in Rosen, Harvey (ed.) Fiscal Federalism: Quantitative Studies. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, pp. 5–32.Google Scholar
Wantchekon, Leonard (2003). “Clientelism and Voting Behavior: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Benin.” World Politics 55 (3): 399–422.Google Scholar
Wantchekon, Leonard, Lopez-Moctezuma, Gabriel, Fujiwara, Thomas, Lero, Cecilia, and Rubenson, Daniel (2016). “Policy Deliberation and Voter Persuasion: Experimental Evidence from an Election in the Philippines.” Working paper, Princeton University.Google Scholar
World Bank (1994). World Development Report 1994: Infrastructure for Development. New York, NY: Oxford University Press for the World Bank.Google Scholar
World Bank (2000). “Decentralization and Health Care.” Decentralization Thematic Group. Washington, DC.Google Scholar
Zamboni, Yves, and Litschig, Stephan (2018) “Audit risk and rent extraction: Evidence from a randomized evaluation in Brazil.” Journal of Development Economics, 134: 133–149.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×