In Asia: Weekly Insight and Features from Asia

While local governments are widely viewed as critical to development because they are considered citizens’ most accessible government unit, in many developing countries these local government institutions don’t live up to their potential…

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Nestled in a valley surrounded by tea plantations a few hours’ drive east of Colombo, Kandy is a UNESCO World Heritage Site famed for its natural beauty and cultural significance. In July and August during the 10-day “Esala Perahera,” Sri Lanka’s most celebrated Buddhist festival…

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Sri Lanka is no stranger to water-related disaster; the 2004 tsunami was only one such threat to livelihoods in the vulnerable island nation. In January and February 2011, Sri Lanka’s Northern, Eastern, and Central provinces were deluged by severe floods. Though flooding during the country’s bi-annual monsoon is a recurrent problem, the rains in the hardest-hit district of Batticaloa…

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In Afghanistan, governors are responsible for coordinating security, planning and development, and administration in their provinces. While they receive restricted funding from the Ministry of Finance, most lack adequate resources…

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Mongolia, a vast but sparsely-populated country, established centers of urban administration and governance only over the past 60 years or so. Until the mid-1940s, Buddhist monasteries and residences of nobility were the only truly fixed settlements, and virtually all citizens lived in portable structures while herding sheep, horses, and other cattle on the country’s open [...]

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