The book is based on the proceedings and papers of a conference held in Lahore in April 1993. The conference was sponsored by the Canadian International development Agency (CIDA) and organised by the Finance Department, Government of Punjab.

The basic conclusion of the conference was the realisation that, in contrast to the federal government, sub-national governments have generally been neglected in Pakistan even though they are responsible for the delivery of basic social and economic services like education, health, water supply and sanitation, roads, irrigation, etc., and collectively account for about two thirds of the public expenditure on social services in the country.