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<p>The rise of Mega Local Jurisdictions (MLJ) has been a worldwide trend that challenges national intergovernmental systems in reconciling the dual pressures of affording vitality, competence, and innovation, and ensuring equity, shared development, and conformity. Governance responses may vary significantly across institutional contexts. This study uses China as a case and argues that China’s central-mega provincial relations have evolved towards a delicate governance model that maintains dynamic and multifaceted balance by complicatedly interweaving decentralisation and centralisation. Provincial economic and leadership data between 1978 and 2021 are analysed to examine such a model. Findings suggest that central empowerment and control over mega provinces tended to be stronger than other provinces in both economic and political areas. Meanwhile, mega provinces were also under a compromise between more economic incentives and more political control. The paper further discusses the nature of the economic and political strategies of the central government to realise delicate balancing.</p>

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Governing a big country is like cooking small fish: exploring delicate governance of mega local jurisdictions in China

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月23日

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  • Yijia Jing,
  • Wenxue Fan,
  • Ping Zhang

摘要

The rise of Mega Local Jurisdictions (MLJ) has been a worldwide trend that challenges national intergovernmental systems in reconciling the dual pressures of affording vitality, competence, and innovation, and ensuring equity, shared development, and conformity. Governance responses may vary significantly across institutional contexts. This study uses China as a case and argues that China’s central-mega provincial relations have evolved towards a delicate governance model that maintains dynamic and multifaceted balance by complicatedly interweaving decentralisation and centralisation. Provincial economic and leadership data between 1978 and 2021 are analysed to examine such a model. Findings suggest that central empowerment and control over mega provinces tended to be stronger than other provinces in both economic and political areas. Meanwhile, mega provinces were also under a compromise between more economic incentives and more political control. The paper further discusses the nature of the economic and political strategies of the central government to realise delicate balancing.