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Under the previous regimes, Ethiopia practiced a highly centralized political and fiscal model, which is commonly known as ´´ top-down´´ approach of development planning. Since 1991 the systems of governance as well as the fiscal arrangement have been changed and the implementation of decentralization policy is ongoing. This is an indication of the political evolution in the direction of more democratic and participatory forms of governance and development. It is in this context a social research was conducted to assess the impact of fiscal decentralization on urban service provision at Bahir Dar municipality. A ten-year data is used in this case study to compare the pre and post decentralization periods. The book is a result of this BA seiner essay research conducted by the author in 2001, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Economics, and describes the context of the study period. It is organized under four chapters that will be of interest of junior social researchers. Moreover, it could be a source document to advanced researchers in a related domain.

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I got a college diploma in Forestry in 1990, BA degree in Economics in 2001, MA degree in Development studies in 2006. Worked in GOs and NGOs for over a decade, I obtained practical experience to the development discourse of motherland. Currently, moving to academics, I am a lecturer while having a PhD candidacy in Development Studies.

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