Since 2019, Togo has resolutely engaged in the decentralization process marked by communalization and elections of municipal councilors. Financial autonomy constitutes an essential lever for the free administration of municipalities, allowing them to ensure decision-making and the implementation of development projects. However, despite a legal and regulatory framework defining taxation specific to local authorities, Togolese municipalities are often perceived as needing more financial resources. This study aims to map the financing mechanisms for decentralization in Togo and analyze their contribution to municipal budgets. By adopting a quantitative approach combining documentary analysis and interviews with 188 experts and practitioners of local finance from various Togolese structures, four main financing mechanisms were identified: local, national, Community, and international. Among these mechanisms, own resources (in particular from the sale of products and services, fiscal and non-fiscal taxes) and state transfers via the Support Fund for Local Authorities emerge as the primary sources of financing for municipalities. However, the study reveals that several instruments of local mechanisms, although institutionally defined, still need to be updated in many municipalities, thus limiting their effectiveness in resource mobilization. These results highlight the importance of optimizing the management of local mechanisms to strengthen municipalities’ financial autonomy and support territories’ sustainable development.

This article aims to examine the impact of fiscal decentralization on the performance of local government expenditure in Vietnam. By using a dataset including 63 provinces from 2012 to 2021, the research shows the more expenditure-based fiscal decentralization occurs, the better is the performance of local expenditure. Moreover, the level of provincial literacy and the size of the private sector have positive impacts on the local expenditure index, while the opposite effect can be seen in the case of the ratios of local citizens to total citizens of the country. Besides this, the study also provides some recommendations which are strictly related to the mechanism of fiscal decentralization to improve local expenditure performance of Vietnamese provinces, such as more effective decentralization of budget expenditures to local government, improving the vertical budget imbalance at local budget level, increasing local government budget autonomy, and establishing stronger mechanisms to control public spending.

Localization is globally accepted as the strategy towards attaining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this article, we put forth the South Indian state of Kerala as a true executor of the localization of SDGs owing to her foundational framework of decentralized governance. We attempt to understand how the course of decentralization acts as a development trajectory and how it has paved the way for the effective assimilation of localization principles post-2015 by reviewing the state documents based on the framework propounded by the United Nations. We theorize that the well-established decentralization mechanism, with delegated institutions and functions thereof, encompasses overlapping mandates with the SDGs. Further, through the tools of development plan formulation, good governance, and community participation at decentralized levels, Kerala could easily adapt to localization, concocting output through innovative measures of convergence, monitoring, and incentivization carried out through the pre-existing platforms and processes. The article proves that constant and concerted efforts undertaken by Kerala through her meticulous and action-oriented decentralized system aided the localization of SDGs and provides an answer to the remarkable feat that the state has achieved through the consecutive four times achievements in the state scores of SDG India Index.

The objective of this study is to examine the impact of decentralization on disaster management in North Sumatra Province. Specifically, it will analyze the intergovernmental networks, local government resilience, leadership, and communication within disaster management agencies. The study used a hybrid research approach, integrating qualitative and quantitative methodologies to investigate the connections between these factors and their influence on disaster response and mitigation. The study encompassed 144 personnel from diverse government tiers in North Sumatra and performed a meta-analysis on the implementation of disaster management. Intergovernmental networks were discovered to enhance collaboration in disaster management by eliminating regulatory gaps and efficiently allocating logistics. Nevertheless, local governments have obstacles as a result of limited resources and inadequate expertise, notwithstanding the progress made in infrastructure technology. The F test results reveal that leadership and communication have a substantial impact on the performance of BPBD personnel. The meta-assessment classifies its impact as extraordinarily high, suggesting comprehensive evaluation and successful achievement of goals in disaster management planning. Efficient cooperation among relevant parties is essential in handling calamities in North Sumatra. The government, commercial sector, NGOs, universities, and society have unique responsibilities. To improve effectiveness, governments should encourage private sector involvement, while institutions can increase their research contributions.

This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the literature on public financial management (PFM), aiming to identify key trends, influential publications, and emerging themes. Using data from Web of Science and Scopus, the study examines the evolution of PFM research from 1977 to 2024. The findings reveal a significant increase in PFM research output, particularly after 2010, with countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and China contributing the most publications. Central themes such as financial management, transparency, and accountability remain prominent while emerging topics like gender budgeting, health insurance, and blockchain technology reflect shifting priorities in the field. The study employed performance analysis and science mapping techniques to assess the structure and dynamics of PFM research. The analysis highlights key focus areas, including fiscal decentralization and sector-specific management, and identifies gaps in the existing literature, particularly regarding interdisciplinary and international collaboration. The results suggest that while PFM remains rooted in traditional governance and financial control, there is a growing emphasis on modern, innovative solutions to address contemporary challenges. This study’s insights provide a roadmap for future research, emphasizing the importance of transparency, technological integration, and inclusive financial policies. In conclusion, this bibliometric analysis contributes to understanding PFM’s evolving landscape, offering scholars and policymakers a clearer perspective on current trends and future directions in the field. Future research should focus on expanding interdisciplinary approaches and exploring the practical impacts of emerging PFM trends across different regions.

Decentralized cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, use peer-to-peer software protocol, disintermediating the traditional intermediaries that used to be banks and other financial intermediaries, effectuating cross-border transfer. In fact, by removing the requirement for a middleman, the technology has the potential to disrupt current financial transactions that rely on a trusted authority or intermediary operator. Traditional financial regulation, primarily based on the command-and-control approach, is ill-suited to regulating decentralized cryptocurrencies. The present paper aims to investigate the policy option most suitable for regulating decentralized cryptocurrencies. The study employs content analysis method to effectuate the purpose of the study. The paper argues that the combination of both direct and indirect regulatory approaches would be a feasible option for regulating decentralized cryptocurrencies. The absence of centralized authority and the borderless nature of decentralized cryptocurrencies would make them antithetical to centralized direct regulation. Therefore, the findings of the study suggest that regulators should focus on regulating intermediaries bridging the connection between the online world (crypto ecosystem) and the physical world (the point of converting crypto into fiat money). These intermediaries can work as passive actors or surrogate regulators who are indirectly responsible for implementing policy options on behalf of the central authority.