Duan, Haiyan. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 79-83). / Abstracts also in Chinese. / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.vi / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vii / Chapter Chapter 1 --- Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- Research Question --- p.1 / Chapter 1.2 --- Approach and Methods --- p.4 / Chapter 1.3 --- Structure of the Thesis --- p.7 / Chapter Chapter 2 --- Literature Review --- p.8 / Chapter 2.1 --- Provision of Public Goods as a Governmental Function --- p.8 / Chapter 2.2 --- The Design and Practice of Fiscal Transfer --- p.11 / Chapter Chapter 3 --- China´ةs Fiscal Institution --- p.20 / Chapter 3.1 --- "The Drop of “Two Ratios"", and 1994 Fiscal Reform" --- p.20 / Chapter 3.2 --- Post-1994 System and the Intergovernmental Fiscal Relation --- p.23 / Chapter 3.3 --- The Finance of Public Goods Provision --- p.37 / Chapter 3.4 --- Fiscal Institution below Province --- p.45 / Chapter Chapter 4 --- The Impact of Fiscal Transfer on Public Goods Provision: Cross-county Analysis of Shanxi --- p.52 / Chapter 4.1 --- The Equalization Effect of Fiscal Transfer --- p.54 / Chapter 4.2 --- The Impact of Fiscal Transfer on County Governments´ة Preference of Expenditure --- p.58 / Chapter Chapter 5 --- Conclusion --- p.75 / REFRENCES --- p.79

Thesis (MDF)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Poor financial management and a lack of financial performance are some of the major challenges that affect local government in South Africa. This has raised concern with regard to the financial sustainability of local government in South Africa. Furthermore, the poor state of financials in local government has directly impacted the ability of local government to execute and deliver on its constitutional mandate to deliver basic public services and goods to local communities. The lack of service delivery by local government has since resulted in service delivery protests around the country which have often turned violent. The improvement of the financial function in local government is said to have the ability to improve the general functioning of local government and lead not only to the delivery of basic public services to communities but also facilitate development in those communities. Thus, the objective of this study was to analyse and determine the drivers of financial performance and financial sustainability of local government in South Africa. The data that was used for the study is from all 278 municipalities in South Africa for the year 2013/2014. The study used regression analysis (Chi-Squared) with financial distress (performance) as a dependent variable and the following as explanatory variables: Type of municipality, cash cover, cash balances, reliance on grants and transfers, overspending, underspending, debtor growth, debtors as a percentage of own revenue and capacity in the key positions of the municipality. The regression analysis was supported by a contingency table and decision tress. The results and findings of the study are consistent with literature and indicate that the type of municipality, the degree to which a municipality relies on government grants and transfers, the manner in which a municipality manages it debtors, cash, creditors, its spending (in comparison to its budgets) as well as the extent to which municipalities adhere to legislative compliance all affect financial performance in local government in South Africa.

M.Com. (Development Economics) / The Local Government Equitable Share (LES) is a lump sum unconditional grant that is legally entitled to municipalities in South Africa. The grant aims to supplement municipal own revenues in the delivery of services. However, increases in the LES allocations to municipalities have coincided with increased service delivery protests and poor revenue management on the part of local government. Given these trends and the ultimate goal of the LES, it is important to assess the actual impact this grant is having on local government fiscal decision. This minor dissertation evaluates the impact of the LES on the expenditure and revenue decisions and performance of local government in South Africa. Specifically, the research seeks to ascertain the nature of such impacts in terms of how expenditure and revenue decisions are adjusted with this grant funding and whether such funds may be creating adverse incentives on the part of local governments to spend inefficiently and/or not maximising their effort in collecting own revenues. The analysis uses a cross sectional dataset for a sample of 129 municipalities for the 2009/10 municipal financial year, with the Stochastic Frontier Analysis as the primary methodology. The analysis finds that the LES has no statistically significant impact on municipal operating expenditure. This suggests that the funds from this grant might not have contributed to municipal service outputs in the 2009/10 financial year. Furthermore, the results found that the LES is positively correlated with expenditure inefficiencies and poor tax/revenue effort. This suggests that the LES funds create perverse incentives for local government to waste LES funds and not collect revenues from local taxes. The latter is due to municipalities substituting tax revenues with funds from the LES, hence resulting in the LES not having an impact on overall expenditure.

A thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Economic and Business Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand / This thesis investigates the problem of the economic organisation of the public sector. It begins by establishing context by considering the two related issues central to it: the boundary of the state and the internal organisation of government (Chapter 1). There is a growing literature that explores the boundary of the state in political economy terms. Moreover, the boundary of the state can be viewed in a similar light to the boundary of the firm. The Second Generation Theory of Fiscal Federalism explores the internal organisation of government through the lens of the theory of the firm. Second Generation Theory assumes that governments are subject to the same problems that firms face: for example, just like firms require institutions to align the incentives of managers and shareholders (e.g., better defined contracts), governments require institutions to align the incentives of politicians and citizens (e.g., better defined constitutions). In order to improve our understanding of economic performance over time, the state should be considered as a complex organisation held together by a series of public choice compromises. Chapter 2 considers one aspect of the state as an organisation: when a boundary change of an existing state generates a new state. It tries to economically capture the birth of a new state through boundary change by taking a cue from the theory of internal exit: the secession of a group of people from an existing state who will then go on to form a new state. Internal exit predicts an internal exit-proof tax rate, i.e., a state will set the tax rate so that internal exit will not occur (e.g., Quebec in Canada). However, in precolonial southern Africa (ca. 1600-1910), internal exit occurred. A well-known example of this is that of Mzilikazi who in the 19th century left the Zulu with his followers and formed his own, new state: the Ndebele. Why is it that in Africa internal exit as a threat failed and internal exit still took place? With the aid of a simple, historically informed model, this chapter offers a political economy explanation of why internal exit took place in precolonial southern Africa. The model shows how internal exit results from the payoff calculation of an elite member’s (e.g., Mzilikazi) desire to maximise his share of public revenue surplus. Chapter 3 considers the internal organisation of government through the role of intergovernmental grants in the context of laboratory federalism. The Public Economics literature on intergovernmental grants is extensive. In this extensive literature, grants are usually analysed according to consumer behaviour theory where income and substitution effects determine community spending (and ultimately community welfare). However, these effects shed little light on how local governments can use grants to experiment with policy (laboratory federalism) in order to develop new, successful policies. In fact, even casual empiricism shows that local governments routinely experiment with policy and achieve varying degrees of success. One recent example is Mayor Bloomberg’s range of anti-poverty experiments in New York City. Very little theory has been produced that ties policy experimentation with the role of grants, however. Chapter 3 takes an organisational view of grants, namely it likens them to incomplete contracts to show how certain grants can be policy instruments for the creation and discovery of new knowledge in the public sector. More precisely, the chapter develops an evolutionary learning model that captures the knowledge gains that different types of grants (e.g., lump-sum grants compared to matching grants) can engender. It shows that a lump-sum grant can bring about greater learning at the local government level than a closed matching grant. Chapter 4 concludes by summarizing and suggesting areas for future research. / MT2017

La régionalisation en tant que mode de gouvernance, est le reflet d'orientations politique, économique et sociale d'un État. Il est également celui d'un ensemble d'éléments démographiques, ethniques et géographiques.Au Maroc, cette forme d'organisation de l'État est l'émanation du pouvoir central. Sa construction s'est faite en évolution constante. D'un simple cadre économique à caractère consultatif, la région marocaine est élevée au rang de collectivité territoriale avec des compétences propres. Nous analysons cette évolution à travers les textes suprêmes marocains jusqu'à la dernière constitution du 1er juillet 2011, en faisant appel à d'autres expériences européennes en la matière, susceptibles de se rapprocher et d'inspirer la nouvelle régionalisation marocaine. / Regionalization as a mode of governance reflects political, economic and social orientations of a state, but also a set of demographic, ethnic and geographical elements.In Morocco, the question is an offshoot of the central government. Its construction was carried out in constant evolution. From a simple advisory economic framework, the moroccan region is elevated to a local authority with its own powers. We analyze this evolution through the moroccan supreme texts to the constitution last July 1st, 2011 by an appeal to other European experiences that come together and inspire new forms of moroccan regionalization.

Thesis. 1977. M.C.P.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Bibliography : leaves 333-337. / M.C.P.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1975. / Vita. / Bibliography: leaves 256-262. / Ph.D.

Thesis (MBA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2007 / The Department of Health and Social Development in Limpopo endeavors to efficiently and effectively manage revenue collection. The study analyzed the revenue collection for the Capricorn district hospitals from 2001 to 2006 by identifying problems and possible solutions related to revenue collection. A quantitative analysis of data has been obtained from in- depth structured interviews and revenue records. An analytic retrospective study design was used. All revenue records from 2001/2002 to 2006/2007, financial managers, revenue clerks, and clients /patients who came to request credit from each hospital constituted the population of the study. The findings were that in 2001/2002 none of the hospitals were able to attain the revenue targets. In 2005/2006 revenue targets were increased by almost double the amount however all hospitals were able to attain the revenue targets as prescribed. It implies that the hospitals were able to collect more revenue than in the previous financial year. It has been noted that the appointment of CEOs has brought a tremendous change in revenue collection. It has been identified that revenue is the life blood for a country or institution. The institutions need commitment of all stakeholders to collect revenue.

published_or_final_version / Geography / Master / Master of Philosophy

Chinese cities have experienced dramatic growth and transformation since the initiation of economic reforms in 1978. One of the main characteristics of contemporary urban development in China has been the massive expansion of urban land, which has become one of the most important means to generate fiscal revenue and promote local economic growth. The existing literature on urban China has addressed issues such as China’s urbanization, changing urban land use and changing public finance. What is missing from the existing literature is the interrelationship among these three processes. The links between urban socioeconomic development and land use change remain poorly understood, and the discussion of the relationship between institutional changes and urban land development has been rather limited. This thesis takes a political economy perspective to investigate the relationship among institutional changes, urban land development and urban socio-economic changes in Chinese cities, using Beijing as a case. The main argument made in this study is that urban land development has worked as an important medium to channel the effects of institutional changes toward shaping the pattern of urban economic and social development. During the period of 1996 -2008, Beijing experienced large-scale urban expansion. The area of agricultural land and unused land dropped by 1.1% and 2.9% respectively while the land used for construction increased by 5.6%, and the urban built-up area in 2008 was 2.75 times of the area in 1996. My research has found that the peak of Beijing’s urban land development occurred in the period of 2001 to 2004 when both the growth of urban construction land and the transaction volume of land conveyance reached their climax. Much of the newly increased construction land was converted from agriculture for industrial use. Over space, urban land development in Beijing was concentrated in the northwestern and eastern regions. My detailed analysis of the sources and dynamics of urban land development in Beijing has identified profound institutional changes made in the central-municipal fiscal relations as the most important driving forces responsible for the temporal, structural, and spatial characteristics of land development demonstrated in Beijing. My further assessment of the effects of urban land development in Beijing has revealed a mixed picture of improved economic efficiency and persistent social and spatial disparity. The efficiency of Beijing’s economic growth has improved significantly when compared with its past and with other cities in the region. However, the internal variations in urban socioeconomic development in the Beijing city-region has been worsen. By establishing the relationship among the three elements, namely urban land development, institutional changes and urban socio-economic development, this research challenges the conventional wisdom that sees land development as simply the passive outcome of economic growth and suggests that land should better be seen as the “medium” to connect and materialize the effects of changes in the political and institutional arena upon urban social and economic transformation. / published_or_final_version / Geography / Master / Master of Philosophy