Assessment of Evolution in Provincial Decentralization

Conclusion • • Assessment: PNG's decentralization arrangements are unstable and evolving; there is less provincial decentralization than shortly after independence; decentralization arrangements have been increasingly complex; and there is an unusually/extremely high reliance on indirect representation. Explanation: These trends can be explained by the the political dominance within the country of national members of parliament (MPs); the dominance, within that group, of district over provincial MPs; as a countervailing force, strong, though variable, political support for provincial autonomy; and, finally, the underlying clientelistic, fragmented and unstable nature of PNG politics.

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