In developing Asia, which is generally recognised to be leading the global recovery from the financial crisis, decentralisation has increasingly transformed the role of local government from implementers of national strategies to equal partners with national government in the design and implementation of social and economic initiatives. Nonetheless, given the initial signs of financial overheating in the larger countries of China, India and Indonesia, and the uneven recovery in the smaller, less developed countries, local governments across the continent are facing growing pressure by their constituents to take direct action in addressing the effects of the crisis on their local economies. Local agents (e.g. government, civil society, private sector) who have a “ground eye view” are better able to assess the economic opportunities and challenges of their community; are more cognisant of the community’s priorities; and are better positioned to mobilise local resources to ensure the initiative sustains its impact over the long term. Local governments, civil society organisations (CSO) and the private sector play a critical role in national and local dialogue as they are able to provide real-time feedback for existing initiatives, and information on new opportunities and challenges that might have arisen after the initiative was set up.