Local government reform: Comparison of France and Turkey

Local governments are organizations established to meet the local needs of the community living in a region. Local governments, which are in a position between the state and the individual, are seen as an expression of citizens' self-management. The change in social, economic and political structure also affects public administration, and therefore local governments which are part of it. Demands such as efficiency, transparency and speed arising from change are being met by administrative reform. The aim of this study is to examine the reforms carried out after 1982 in Turkey and France, which is a reference source for Turkish state administration and reform. In this context, reforms carried out about local governments in France and Turkey was examined. For this purpose, the method of description was preferred from qualitative research patterns. In the first part of the study, concepts related to local governments and reforms are explained. In the second part, France's the local government structure and the reforms related to local governments were examined. In the third part, the local government structure and reforms of Turkey were broadly described. The reforms of the two countries were compared within the specified scope. The comparisons showed that the local government systems and reforms in the two countries showed significant similarities, but the local government reforms in Turkey did not result in the provision of administrative and financial autonomy as in France.