---
title: "centralisation-versus-decentralisation tension — Definition"
description: "The centralisation-versus-decentralisation tension highlights the conflict between central authority and local governance."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/centralisation-versus-decentralisation-tension"
---

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Model Diplomat Research Team · Last reviewed June 22, 2026

TL;DR

- The centralisation-versus-decentralisation tension is the persistent structural conflict between concentrating power in the central authority and devolving it to subnational units.
- How does democratic centralism shape the centralisation-decentralisation balance in China?
- What was the significance of the 1994 fenshuizhi reform?
- What mechanism lets the centre control local officials despite administrative decentralisation?
- How has the balance shifted under Xi Jinping?

[Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services/glossary)Updated June 22, 2026

The centralisation-versus-decentralisation tension is the persistent structural conflict between concentrating power in the central authority and devolving it to subnational units.

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In 1994 Premier Zhu Rongji's tax-sharing reform (fenshuizhi) recentralised revenue collection from China's provinces, raising the centre's share of national fiscal income from below 30% to roughly 55% within a year.

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