Decentralization, empowerment and economic efficiency : learning from business experiences in France

International audienceCentralisation or decentralisation in a given state, city or company is a fact which is theresult of a historical process. Therefore it cannot be changed quickly and easily be it in astate, a city or a company. However, for those in charge of political decision making,centralisation or decentralisation is a philosophical choice. Promoting centralisation ordecentralisation in each single decision, each implementation process, even on simple andlimited issues has great consequences on the long range.France is a particularly relevant example since it has been and remains one of the mostcentralised country in the world although its overcentralisation has been highly controversialfor decades and is still viewed by many politicians and scholars as a handicap in theglobalised competitive economies of today.Despite many reforms, the public sector remains highly centralised in France and isconsidered as less and less relevant, effective and efficient. Conversely, since the secondword war, the business community has profoundly changed its conception of administrativesciences and many French companies are decentralised nowadays. In this conference, I willemphasise the key role played by management in this transformation towards anempowerment of the bottom of the hierarchical pyramid.I will argue that the key points of a policy towards a more decentralised society are: 1/A fair balance between autonomy and accountability. 2/ A fair and complete attribution ofthe means needed by the decentralised entities to reach their goal. The Saint Louis duSénégal case study will illustrate the difficulties and complexities of the long process towardthe empowerment of the poors