Article Title 
The Central Question of Decentralisation in the Arab Region

Date
26 March 2024

Credits
Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj 
Zedoun Al-Zoubi 

Link
https://www.lugarit.com/commentary/commentary-decentralization-after-the-arab-spring

Summary
The article explores the complex dynamics of decentralization in the MENA region, examining its potential to address systemic issues of marginalization and uneven development highlighted by the Arab Spring. Centralized governance has historically brought stability and development but also unchecked power and resource disparities. Decentralization emerges as a strategic pathway to enhance local governance, foster economic growth, and heal divided societies. The article reviews reforms in countries like Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia, while highlighting ongoing challenges in Iraq, Lebanon, and war-torn nations like Syria, Yemen, and Libya. It underscores the need for carefully tailored decentralization processes to ensure sustainable development, stability, and a more inclusive governance model, ultimately contributing to regional peace and reconciliation.

Decentralization After the Arab Spring: Prospects for the MENA Region

Article Title
Moving from Highly Centralized to Decentralized Governance Models:  A Preliminary Framework for Analysing Political and Economic Drivers

Date
02 July 2024

Credits
Hassan Masri
Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj

Link
https://www.lugarit.com/commentary/commentary-from-centralized-to-decentralized-governance

Summary
This paper provides a framework for analyzing the political and economic drivers that prompt highly centralized governance systems to pursue decentralization. Moving beyond the simplistic dichotomy of democratization versus authoritarianism, the study explores five key drivers—power balances, legitimacy, economic challenges, peripheral uprisings, and external influences—using global case studies. It emphasizes the complexity and context-dependence of decentralization processes, highlighting that successful outcomes require more than just normative frameworks. Instead, effective decentralization demands continuous adaptation, stakeholder engagement, and alignment of central and local governance roles over extended periods of time.

Exploring the Shift: Centralized to Decentralized Governance

Paper Title:
Moving Beyond the Legacy of Centralized Power: Multilevel Governance in Syria

Date:
23 April 2025

Publishers: 
LUGARIT + Omran Center for Strategic Studies

Authors: 
Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj + Hassan Masri

Summary:
This paper argues that Syria’s authoritarianism was upheld through systemic strategies of centralization by weakening local and regional governance. It warns against reinstating this model post-conflict and calls for an inclusive approach to reintegrating the territory. Sustainable recovery, the authors contend, hinges on empowering middle and local levels with real authority and institutional capacity.

Link:
https://link.lugarit.com/Klvn

Photo:
Syrian Parliament House. Damascus, Syria. 15 February 1955.  Photo © Camera Press / Sydney Morning Herald - via Alamy.


Moving Beyond the Legacy of Centralized Power: Multilevel Governance in Syria

Paper Title:
The Perils of Omission: What Syria’s Constitutional Declaration Fails to Say

Date:
12 May 2025

Publisher: 
LUGARIT

Authors: 
Zedoun Alzoubi (AR), Nihad Alamiri (EN)

Summary:
Issued in March 2025, Syria’s Constitutional Declaration outlines a five-year roadmap but omits key democratic principles, oversight mechanisms, and implementation timelines. This commentary identifies six critical omissions that could undermine the legitimacy and success of the country’s post-conflict political transition.

Link:
https://link.lugarit.com/qtoe

Photo:
Overview of the main hall inside the Syrian Parliament.  Photo published in Engineers' Syndicate Magazine in 31 January, 1955.  Photo via AMASyria.


The Perils of Omission: What Syria’s Constitutional Declaration Fails to Say

Paper Title:
Local Administration in Transition: Towards Inclusive and Accountable Local Governance in Syria

Date:
20 May 2025

Publishers: 
SALAR International + LUGARIT

Authors: 
Zedoun Al Zoubi, Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj, Ryan Knox, Obidah Alsayed Ali, Nihad Alamiri

Summary:
Syria’s reunification hinges on adopting flexible and inclusive local governance—not a return to centralization. This policy brief shows how Decree 107, if pragmatically reinterpreted, can bridge the current fragmented mosaic of local administration models with formal government structures, enhance accountability and stability, and foster a legitimate, resilient post-conflict transition. 

Link:
https://link.lugarit.com/HeiX

Photo: 
Marota City, Damascus — once envisioned as a model for local government financing, now stands as a stark reminder of the costs of centralized planning imposed on communities. Built on expropriated land, it embodies the disconnect between state-driven visions and local realities. 24 April 2025.  Photo © Jadd Hallaj / LUGARIT.


Local Administration in Transition: Towards Inclusive and Accountable Local Governance in Syria

العنوان 
الإدارة المحلية في المرحلة الانتقالية : نحو حوكمة محلية تشاركية ومسؤولة في سوريا

تاريخ النشر
٢٠ أيار ٢٠٢٥

الناشر 
SALAR International + LUGARIT

المؤلفون
زيدون الزعبي ، عمر عبد العزيز الحلاج ، رايان نوكس ، عبيدة السيد علي

الخلاصة
يعتمد توحيد سوريا على تبني حوكمة محلية تشاركية، لا على العودة إلى المركزية. يوضح هذا الموجز كيف يُمكن للمرسوم ١٠٧، إذا أُعيد تفسيره وطُبّق عمليًا، أن يربط النماذج الحالية المُجزأة للإدارة المحلية مع هياكل الدولة، وأن يُعزز المساءلة والاستقرار وشرعية العملية الانتقالية السياسية في البلاد.

الرابط
https://link.lugarit.com/HeiX

الصورة
ماروتا سيتي، دمشق - التي كانت تُعتبر في السابق نموذجًا لتمويل الحكومات المحلية، تُمثل الآن تذكيرًا صارخًا بتكاليف التخطيط المركزي المفروض على المجتمعات المحلية. بُنيت على أراضٍ مُصادرة، وهي تُجسد الفجوة بين الرؤى الحكومية والواقع المحلي. ٢٤ أبريل ٢٠٢٥. الصورة © جاد حلاج / لوغاريت.


الإدارة المحلية في المرحلة الانتقالية : نحو حوكمة محلية تشاركية ومسؤولة في سوريا

Paper Title:
Batnāyya, Iraq: Local Conflicts, Conflict Resolution and Visions for Peace

Date:
27 May 2025

Publisher: 
LUGARIT

Author: 
Dr. Esther Meininghaus

Summary:
In Batnāyya, Chaldean and Assyrian residents seek safety through exclusion of Arab families, deepening the town’s isolation. Political representation is obstructed by armed groups’ control of minority quotas. Residents envision peace through legal equality and secular governance, highlighting the need for inclusive, locally attuned interventions to counter structural marginalization.

Link:
https://link.lugarit.com/Hh71

Photo: 
A Chaldean family photo amid the rubble of their destroyed home following ISIS’s occupation.  Batnaya, Iraq. 14 May 2017. Photo © ZUMA Press, Inc. - via Alamy.


Batnāyya, Iraq: Local Conflicts, Conflict Resolution and Visions for Peace

Paper Title:
Beyond FDIs: Towards Sustainable and Socially Accountable Investment in Syria

Date:
24 June 2025

Publisher: 
LUGARIT

Author: 
Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj

Summary:
The article critiques blanket investment incentives in Syria’s recovery, urging performance-based, socially accountable policies. It advocates sector- and region-specific strategies, safeguards against elite capture, and decentralization to empower local governance. Drawing on regional lessons, it promotes investment that generates public value, reduces inequality, and supports inclusive, sustainable reconstruction.

Link:
https://link.lugarit.com/UaX5

Photo: 
Residents of Eastern Aleppo queue for bread on a harsh winter morning. In a city scarred by conflict and deprivation, such scenes reflect the urgent need for recovery strategies that serve the many, not the few.  Aleppo, Syria.  23 January 2025.  Photo © Andrea Backhaus - via ShutterStock.


Beyond FDIs: Towards Sustainable and Socially Accountable Investment in Syria

العنوان 
الاستثمارات الأجنبية لا تكفي: نحو تمويل مستدام يستجيب لاحتياجات المجتمع في سوريا

تاريخ النشر
٢٤ حزيران ٢٠٢٥

الناشر 
لوغاريت 

المؤلف
عمر عبد العزيز الحلاج 

الخلاصة
تنتقد المقالة سياسة الحوافز الاستثمارية الشاملة في سوريا بعد الصراع، وتدعو إلى سياسات قائمة على الأداء وخاضعة للمساءلة الاجتماعية. وتطرح استراتيجيات محددة بحسب القطاعات والمناطق، وآليات للحد من هيمنة النخب، وتؤكد على اللامركزية. مستفيدة من دروس إقليمية، تعزز الاستثمار الذي يخدم الصالح العام ويحد من التفاوت ويدعم إعادة إعمار شاملة ومستدامة.

الرابط 
https://link.lugarit.com/UaX5

الصورة
يصطفّ سكان شرق حلب في طابور الخبز في صباح شتوي قارس. في مدينة أنهكتها الحرب والحرمان، تعكس هذه المشاهد الحاجة الملحّة إلى استراتيجيات تعافٍ تخدم الجميع، لا القلّة. حلب، سوريا. ٢٣ كانون الثاني ٢٠٢٥. الصورة © أندريا باكهاوس - عبر شترستوك.


الاستثمارات الأجنبية لا تكفي: نحو تمويل مستدام يستجيب لاحتياجات المجتمع في سوريا

LUGARIT is a small think tank active in international development.

New tracks tagged #LocalGovernance