The information revolution, in recent years, has worked as a catalyst to create a globalized yet localized world with local governments playing an ever-increasing role in the domestic and global economy. How these governments will be able to shoulder their responsibilities?especially the delivery of local services?more effectively is the concern of this book. The book, edited by Anwar Shah, provides a comparative perspective on international practices in local governance and draws lessons from these experiences to guide future reform. Case studies include the following countries: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, the Nordic countries, Poland, South Africa, Switzerland, Uganda, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Contributors to this volume include Jose Afonso, Erika Araujo, Miguel Asensio, Brian Dollery, Chris Heymans, Roy Kelly, David King, Leonardo Letelier, Jorgen Lotz, Mereurt Makhamutova, Melville McMillan, Nobuki Mochida, Remy Prud?homme, Jerzy Regulski, Larry Schroeder, Kaniz Siddique, Jesper Steffensen, and Pawel Swianiewicz. This important new series represents a response to several independent evaluations in recent years that have argued that development practitioners and policy makers dealing with public sector reforms in developing countries and, indeed, anyone with a concern for effective public governance could benefit from a synthesis of newer perspectives on public sector reforms. This series distills current wisdom and presents tools of analysis for improving the efficiency, equity, and efficacy of the public sector. Leading public policy experts and practitioners have contributed to the series.