This book is an uncompromising analysis of Senegal's decentralisation policy in rural areas. It discusses the state's inability to promote local development, despite this being its main raison d'etre in a context of poverty. To identify reasons for the shortcomings, the author goes beyond policy statements and explores, sociologically, the compatibility of the behaviour and the cultural context of actors with the pursuance of local development objectives. Yet, there are indeed solutions to the actors' lethargy and to the weak coverage of the initiatives undertaken. The solutions can be found in the methodical and civic mobilisation around more ambitious actions that are more adapted to receptive localities, though opened to modernity and perfectly anchored in the culture for positive results. Rosnert Ludovic Alissoutin holds a PhD in Law. Since 1995, he has been working as a consultant on development issues in Senegal and Africa, particularly local development issues. The particularity of his approach lies in the rejection of scientific exclusivism and recourse to a multi disciplinary, open and flexible analysis of the complexity of human development. It is this perspective that informed his doctoral thesis on La Gestion de l'eau en milieu aride, which discusses legal, anthropological, geographical, and sociological issues. For additional information on his profile and work, visit his website: http: //www.ralissoutin.com."