Between EU requirements, competitive politics, and national traditions : re-creating regions in the accession countries of Central and Eastern Europe
By: BRUSIS, Martin
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Material type: 
ArticlePublisher: 2002Governance: An International Journal of Policy, Administration and Institutions 15, 4, p. 531-560Abstract: The article studies the impact of the European Union (EU) on the reforms of regional administration in Central and East European (CEE) accession countries. It analyzes the motives, process and outcomes of regional - or mesolevel administrative reforms in five countries - Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia - considering whether the EU has shaped these reforms to a higher degree than in relation to its incumbent member states. The article finds that the EU Commission's interest in regional self-governments with a substantial fiscal and legal autonomy has provided an additional rationale and an incentive to re-create regional self-governments. Advocates of regional self-government and an institutionalizationof regions in the accession countries have referred to European trends and (perceived) EU expectations of regionalization. Thus, the Commission and the preaccession framework have become catalysts for a process in which most CEE regions have already enhanced and will further increase their political salience. However, the trajectories and outcomes of regional level reforms can be better explained by a combination of domestic instituional legacies, policy approaches of reformers and their adversaries, and the influence of ethnic/historical regionalism
| Item type | Current location | Collection | Call number | Status | Date due | Barcode |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Periódico | Biblioteca Graciliano Ramos | Periódico | Not for loan |
The article studies the impact of the European Union (EU) on the reforms of regional administration in Central and East European (CEE) accession countries. It analyzes the motives, process and outcomes of regional - or mesolevel administrative reforms in five countries - Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia - considering whether the EU has shaped these reforms to a higher degree than in relation to its incumbent member states. The article finds that the EU Commission's interest in regional self-governments with a substantial fiscal and legal autonomy has provided an additional rationale and an incentive to re-create regional self-governments. Advocates of regional self-government and an institutionalizationof regions in the accession countries have referred to European trends and (perceived) EU expectations of regionalization. Thus, the Commission and the preaccession framework have become catalysts for a process in which most CEE regions have already enhanced and will further increase their political salience. However, the trajectories and outcomes of regional level reforms can be better explained by a combination of domestic instituional legacies, policy approaches of reformers and their adversaries, and the influence of ethnic/historical regionalism
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