Includes bibliography and index. Decentralized capacity building. (2005). Pasig City, Philippines : The National Productivity Organization, Development Academy of the Philippines.

Introduction: Changing states, changing contexts -- Part I: Thirteen years after LGC-the evolving role of local governments -- Part 2: Matching role to capacity: are LGUs up to their new job? -- Part 3: Capacity-building: lessons and challenges -- Part 4: The agenda for change -- Part 5: The way forward-a summing up

This book provides a conceptual analysis of the institutional setting in which local government thrives and where local autonomy is at its best. It depicts a shifting landscape-a dynamic and politically-maturing environment that poses a tough challenge to capacity development. As it charts the paradigm shifts and the evolving roles of local government units, the book offers useful instruments to assess capability and match local responsibilities to capacity. Drawing from the rich experience of practitioners in the field, it makes a strong case for decentralized capacity-building that veers away from the conventional ideas of organizational engineering to something that puts premium on empowerment, social capital formation and respect for indigenous knowledge and practices.