Decentralisation of public administration: a comparative study of modern South-Eastern European countries and an assessment of the impact of the pre-accession path on local government

Abstract

The present study examines the decentralization of public administration in Romania, Croatia, North Macedonia, and Serbia, adopting a comparative perspective grounded in historical institutionalism. It explores the path taken in decentralisation in these post-communist states, assessing the influence of EU accession. Drawing on primary sources such as European Commission documents and secondary literature, the study evaluates local government structures, fiscal autonomy and administrative capacity. The findings indicate that despite shared historical legacies, the countries show divergences in local governance practices. Romania and Croatia tend to have smaller and more fragmented territorial units, while Serbia and North Macedonia show a consolidated more centralised municipal framework. North Macedonia, has the weakest municipal budgets relative to GDP, demonstrating strong central oversight while Serbia’s large territorial units and appointed mayors create distance between citizens and the administration which may affect the quality of democracy at local level. Similarities, such as weak administrative capacity at the regional and local level are also identified. The analysis suggests that historical trajectories, political transitions, and EU conditionalities have shaped the institutions at local level. The study is a contribution to debates on post-communist governance, highlighting the persistence of institutional path dependencies and the limits of Europeanization at local level.