The influence of horizontal and vertical fragmentation on Social Welfare Policy: The case of Israel

It is often assumed that unitary political systems like Israel are better able to implement social policy than federal systems which are marked by political fragmentation. This paper argues that the unitary political system of Israel, despite its monopoly of authority, exhibits significant difficulties in the policymaking process, such as the constraints in the formulation of a single or even coordinated national policy in many substantive areas, or the ability of local governments to significantly influence the implementation of these policies. To illustrate the problem, a case study of Project Renewal, the major social welfare and urban renewal programme of the Begin administrations, is presented. The analysis shows how political institutions influenced the establishment of administrative arrangements, the setting of priorities, the attainment of declared objectives and the allocation of resources.