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The Republic of Benin has often been cited as a model democracy in the African context. After years of pressure from bilateral aid donors, particularly France and Germany, municipal elections were held in 2002. This article addresses three related questions. How have free presidential and parliamentary elections affected political dynamics at the local level, especially in the rural areas where most people live? What do rural people think about the change of national regime? How will decentralisation affect local government? Based on empirical research in rural Benin, it shows that démocratisation means more of the same hybrid and composite form of local government. The boundaries between the state and private organisations (including Northern NGOs), and between the national and local levels, remain blurred. Local political arenas are more fragmented than ever, and informal politics flourish. This not only dilutes power at the local level, as different veto powers block one another, it entails constant negotiation between those involved, making political processes less predictable and local political institutions less accountable. Decentralisation is only making matters worse.

T  situation described by this statemen, often heard in the Central African Republic, seems to conform to the objectives of the currently fashionable policies of decentralisation and structural adjustment-for example, to end ' too much state '. However, the absence of the state in the rural areas of the CAR is so striking that the position in certain respects has almost reached the level of caricature. It also reflects the more general situation in other parts of the continent where the excesses of a centralised, over-staffed post-colonial re! gime can coexist perfectly with the pronounced absence in the rural areas of certain functions which are commonly supposed to be provided by the state, including basic administration and justice, as well as social, educational, and health services. This absence of the state does not mean that a void exists in its place. Local life may suffer from under-administration, but still be characterised by often latent and disguised greed, conflicts, and negotiation between various authorities, clans, and factions. This means that the study of local powers and politics must not be restricted to ' formal ' institutions but ought also to take account of all ' public spaces ' and positions of eminence. The protagonists and stakes involved are, therefore, visible and official to a greater or lesser extent, and always significant in number. This gives rise to complex political configurations which vary from one area, culture, and country to the next. Thus, due to historical factors, the fluidity and weak institutionalisation of most forms of jurisdiction are particularly marked in the CAR, although here can also be found the ' polycephaly ' and multiplicity of local ' power poles ' that exist elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa." This article is the outcome of research undertaken in the west and

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