polycentric organization: a fundamental requisite for solving urban problems elinor ostrom amos...
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Polycentric Organization: A Fundamental Requisite for Solving Urban Problems
Elinor Ostrom Amos Sawyer
Workshop in Political Theoryand Policy Analysis
Indiana University
What is the Puzzle?
How to provide and produce local collective goods in urban areas of developing countries efficiently and equitably
What are Local Collective Goods?
Local public goods Difficult to exclude
beneficiaries Consumption is not
subtractable Example: Public safety
Local common-pool resources Difficult to exclude
beneficiaries Consumption is subtractable Example: Water supply
What is the Challenge?
Potential for free-riding due to difficulty of exclusion
Potential for overuse due to subtractability
Competitive markets fail to solve problems of free-riding and overuse of local collective goods
When Competitive Markets Fail, What Can Be Done?
The Top-Down View – create very large urban governments
Basis for massive reforms of U.S. urban areas in 20th century
Basis for African post-independence urban development strategies
The Polycentric View – a system of large and small, public and private agencies perform more effectively
Basis for recent U.S. reforms Basis for improving urban services
in developing countries
Assumptions of theTop-Down View
Collective goods are homogeneous Substantial economies of scale Urban voters have similar
preferences Voting aggregates preferences well Elected officials command public
bureaus to produce desired goods Bureau chiefs command street-level
bureaucrats to deliver goods and services
Street-level bureaucrats deliver services to passive clients
Additional Assumptions of the Top-Down View in Developing Countries
Government must control provision and production of public goods
Regular citizens have limited capacities to solve problems of collective action
People as subjects to be cared for by national government or claimants to demand public goods
Assumptions of Polycentric Theory
Urban collective goods vary substantially in production and consumption characteristics Major economies of scale do
exist for some goods, but not for all Road networks vs education or
policing Coproduction essential to
enhance production of education, police, and other services
Assumptions of Polycentricity (cont.)
Urban voters have a wide diversity of preferences
Individuals with similar, but evolving, preferences tend to cluster in neighborhoods
Preferences within neighborhoods are more homogeneous than across neighborhoods
Assumptions of Polycentricity (cont.)
Aggregating citizen preferences is always problematic Voting systems may produce
unstable outcomes when preferences are heterogeneous
Decisions within smaller jurisdictions related to neighborhood goods and services reduce heterogeneities
Need face-to-face mechanisms to supplement voting
Assumptions of Polycentricity (cont.)
Presence of many potential producers of local collective goods More information to citizens
and public officials Provides an exit mode if voice
is not sufficient Elements of competition
enhance efficiency and innovation
Polycentric Assumptions Particularly Relevant to Developing CountriesExistence of other centers of
authority in addition to national government National government cannot and
should not strive to provide all public goods
For many countries, constitutional-level reform required Individuals need to have legal
standing local communities need to have
limited constitutional authority
What are Public Economies?
Collective consumption units (local governments, larger governmental units, neighborhood associations, other voluntary associations)
Production units (governments as well as private organizations)
Relationships between them Larger collective consumption
units with smaller producers Smaller collective consumption
units with larger producers Collective consumption units and
provision units of the same size
Urban Public Economies in U.S.Police – increased efficiency and
better service to poor neighborhoods in urban areas with complex public economies
Education – smaller schools are more effective and efficient
Coproduction of safety, education, health is greater in smaller units nested in a larger urban area
Let’s Learn from Past Errors!
Many citizens in the U.S. now receive lower performance from their “reformed” urban government than prior to the massive reforms based on unvalidated theory
Learning from Past Errors in Developing Countries
Monocentric government most often turns predatory Rent-seeking is encouraged
Predatory governments often become repressive
Learning From the Past(cont.)
The monocentric “developmental state” is not the answer: Benevolent government may provide
many basic needs, but citizens/local communities may not be empowered
Participation through national elections essential but inadequate as means of empowerment
Not all forms of “decentralization” provide public goods equitably and efficiently and promote the empowerment of local people (local boss rule does occur)
Critical Considerations When Providing Public GoodsNature of goods strongly affect
performance of institutional arrangements for provision and production of goods
Biophysical and social conditions of community need to be considered in crafting institutional arrangements
Rules to be effective must be agreed and known (these may or may not be the same as rules on the books)
Essential Principles that Shape Successful Urban Collective Action Established boundariesCost/benefit proportionalityParticipation in collective choices MonitoringGraduated sanctionsConflict-resolution mechanismsSome autonomy at local level Rules governing nested
relationships with central government and external authorities
Providing Public Goods in Urban Areas: Examples from Developing Countries
Shack/Slum Dwellers Federation of India
Solidarity and Urban Poor Federation of Cambodia
Community-based organizations in Mexico City (San Miguel Teotongo, Cananea, Sierra Nevada)
Homeless People’s Federation of Philippines
Providing Public Goods in Local Communities: Examples from Africa (Niger Delta, Nigeria) Gbogbara Development
Association (Rivers State)BunuTai Community
AssociationsGio-Kpoghor and Ogu
Communities AssociationIlaje Development
Association
Gbogbara Development Association (Rivers State, Nigeria)
Community of about 20,000 Provided pipe borne water project through CBO
Goal of establishing 100 mono pumps over 10 year period (1994-2004) Completed 55 by 1999 Community contributed 85 per cent funding Local government contributed 15 per cent
Maternity home project Local women organizations initiated as 3 year project Project cost N5 million Community raised 63 per cent funding (with largest contributions from women,
youth) Local government contribution of 37 per cent funding
Bunu Tai Community Development Associations
Association of 5 community development associations (embracing population of 25,000)
Undertook bridge construction project as 4 year project (connecting communities to fishing ports and farm settlements)
Raised N12 million92 per cent contributed by
communities8 per cent by local government
Gio-Kpoghor and Ogu Communities
2 Communities of 12,000Commercial center of Tai local
government but without market stalls and shed
Completed first phase of community market project over 3 years (1998-2000) at N5 million Communities contributed 89 per
cent Local government 11 per cent
Ilaje Development Association (Ondo State)
Ilaje a war ravaged communityForm Gwama Cooperative
Society to lead post conflict reconstruction
Post-conflict reconstruction activities include: Scholarship program Micro-credit to youthful fishermen Established mass transport
business
Common Features of Projects
Strong participation of community-based collective action units (women’s organizations, youth, etc.)
Nested within area-based development associations
Collaboration with local government area
Critical Challenges of Urban/Local Governance in Developing CountriesDeveloping/strengthening local
capabilitiesEnding predatory/dependent
relationships with central government
Avoiding dependence on donor assistance as an alternative
Connect voice and exit with payment of local taxes
Avoiding boss rule at local level
How Can Challenge of Predation Be Addressed?
Deepen sense of shared community and sense of shared ownership (bonding relationships)
Establish horizontal linkages (especially complementary networks)
Establish vertical linkages Establish linkages with elements
in central bureaucracies and supportive national and external actors
Developing-Country Researchers Need to Write the Textbooks Young students need to learn
about the capabilities that people devise to make their lives more productive
Too many textbooks stress only the role of national officials and elections
The valuable research reported on at this meeting – needs to get into the curriculum of schools around the world!