National Planning Commission Arrangements

Abstract

Based on a review of relevant World Bank materials and outside sources, this note focuses on two questions of critical importance in discussions surrounding the establishment of a planning commission. These are: 1) what planning commission arrangements seem to be effective? 2) What should the role of a planning commission be in a quasi-federal system? It should be recognized that a planning commission is only one possible institutional device to deal with coordination issues within and across levels of government. The determination of the most appropriate mechanism for dealing with each type of coordination issue or failure requires careful understanding of the specific driving factors.