A source of perennial tension in states is the degree to which decision-making power and authority should be concentrated in central institutions and individuals. At present the conventional wisdom of central-local relations has swung in favour of decentralization. There is, we are told, a convergence towards decentralized models of governance. This book investigates whether such convergence is taking place through detailed examination of country cases in Asia-Pacific. An introductory chapter surveys current thinking and trends in central-local relations. Of special concern is relating service delivery to particular patterns of central-local relations. Themes raised in the opening chapter are taken up in the detailed cases on Bangladesh, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the island states of the South Pacific, Vietnam and Laos. Each study was researched by a country expert with long experience in issues of central-local relations. The results of the country survey reveal a complex picture in which divergence is still evident in the region's patterns of central-local relations. This book is essential reading for academics, students, public servants and aid workers concerned with public sector reform, governance and politics.