ession into two types of federal governments. The first type is centralized federal government. This system is characterized by the domination of the federal government over the regional government. An example of this system is the government of Canada. The second branch of federalism is decentralized federalism which is marked by the domination of the regional government over the federal government. An example of this system is the United States government. The key to a successful federal government is finding the right balance of power between the federal and regional branches of government. If the central government becomes too powerful it will result in a government that is not very flexible and insensitive to regional interests. If the opposite were to happen and the government were to become too decentralized the nation will become fragmented into small, independent states and may cease to exist as a nation. Clearly there is a need for a balance of power between the federal government and regional government, but what the balance is depends on the state along with its origins and specific ideologies. Another issue that develops is the placement of residual powers. Residual powers are powers and responsibilities not specified to a distinct level of government (federal or regional) in the constitution. In Canada all residual powers go to the federal government, in contrast, in the American system of government all residual powers go to the states. This further reinforces the theory that Canada practices centralized federalism, while the Americans use decentralized federalism. While federalism is not the choice of most countries, most of the industrialized and developed nation prefers the system. In fact, 50% of the worlds population resides in federal states, while 51% of the worlds land mass is inclosed in federal states (Forbes, 227). It is obvious by these numbers that the small number of federal states exercise a h...
