Are Strategic Interactions between Moroccan Local Governments Geographical or Political?

Maria Elkhdari (a), Samira Oukarfi (b), Samir Zine El Alaoui (b) and Youness Sahibi (c) (szineelalaoui@gmail.com)
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Maria Elkhdari (a), Samira Oukarfi (b), Samir Zine El Alaoui (b) and Youness Sahibi (c): (a) World Bank Group; (b) Hassan II University, Morocco; (c) Abdelmalek Essaâdi University, Morocco
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Samir Zine El Alaoui (szineelalaoui@gmail.com)

Journal of Economic Development, 2021, vol. 46, issue 1, 33-52

Abstract: This article aims to demonstrate empirically the existence of strategic interactions between the decisions of local governments in Morocco. The main objective is to know whether the interactions between Moroccan municipalities are geographical or political. In order to do this analysis, we use a detailed panel data on 1280 Moroccan municipalities from 2005 to 2009. Our results highlighted that expenditure choices of municipalities are influenced by choices taken in neighboring municipalities. These interactions exist not only among neighboring municipalities but also among municipalities whose Municipal Council have the same partisan affiliation. The analysis of neighboring interactions versus political interactions reveals the intensification of strategic behaviors between neighboring municipalities than municipalities that have the same political party at the top of Municipal Council. Therefore, decentralization induces strategic interactions between municipalities belonging to the same range in developing countries as well as in developed countries.

Keywords: Horizontal Competition; Spatial and Political Interaction; Decentralization; Local Expenditures; Morocco (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 H72 H77 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:jed:journl:v:46:y:2021:i:1:p:33-52

DOI: 10.35866/caujed.2021.46.1.002

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