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Decentralisation has been advocated by donors and development agencies as an instrument to ensure broader participation of citizens as well as to improve local governance leading to poverty reduction from the bottom up. On the basis of a comprehensive review of nine case studies documented in the literature, this study questions this assumption. According to our findings, a clear link between decentralisation and a reduction in poverty cannot be established. Two important policy lessons emerge from this study. First, in an environment where the central state barely fulfils basic functions and is not interested in giving power and resources to local tiers of government, decentralisation should not be a priority for donors as it could be rather counter-productive. Second, in countries that fulfil basic prerequisites, decentralisation could be a powerful tool for poverty reduction.La décentralisation a été mise en avant par les partenaires au développement comme un instrument permettant d'assurer la participation des citoyens à la définition des politiques publiques ainsi que l'amélioration de la gouvernance locale, débouchant ainsi sur une approche participative de la réduction de la pauvreté. Sur la base d'une revue systématique de neuf études de cas de référence sur le sujet, cet article remet en cause cette hypothèse. Nous concluons en effet qu'il est impossible d'établir un lien clair entre décentralisation et réduction de la pauvreté. Dès lors, ce travail aboutit à deux recommandations importantes. Tout d'abord, dans un contexte où l'É tat central parvient à

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