Belgium has a complicated system of power sharing to accommodate its Dutch-speaking and French-speaking populations. Power is divided horizontally among different branches of government, vertically between national and subnational levels, and among social groups. Specifically in Belgium, power is shared equally between the Dutch-speaking Flanders region and French-speaking Wallonia region through a number of mechanisms. These include having an equal number of Dutch and French ministers in the central government and forming separate community governments for each language group. This power sharing system was implemented to unite the country while respecting the distinct identities and interests of its main linguistic communities.

1. POWER SHARING IN
BELGIUM

2. FORMS OF POWER SHARING
 Horizontal Division of Power
 It is the sharing of power among the different organs of government, for example, power sharing by the executive, the
Legislature and the Judiciary. In this type of power sharing arrangement, different organs of government, placed at
the same level, exercised different powers. Such a separation ensures that none of the organs can exercise unlimited
power, thereby putting a check on each other.
 Vertical Division of Power
 It is a system of power sharing among governments at different levels. For example, a general government for the
entire country and governments at provincial or regional levels. In India, we refer to it as the Central Government,
State Governments, Municipality, Gram Panchayat etc. The Constitution lays down the powers of different levels of
government.
 Division of Power among different Social Groups
 Power can also be shared among different groups which differ socially like different religious and linguistic groups.
‘Community Government’ in Belgium is a good example of this type of power sharing. The system of reserved
constituencies in India is another example. Such an arrangement is used to give minority communities a fair share in
power, who otherwise would feel alienated from the government.
 Division of Power among Political Parties, Pressure Groups and Movements
 In contemporary democracies such a division takes the form of competition among different parties, which in turn
ensures that power does not remain in one hand and is shared among different political parties representing different
ideologies and social groups.

3. BELGIUM
There are three regions in Belgium:
Flanders (where the Flemish speak
Dutch) in the northern half of
Belgium, Wallonia (where most
people speak French) in the
southern half and the Brussels-
Capital Region in the middle (where
French is mostly spoken, with some
Dutch).
The population is about 60% Dutch-
speaking and 39% French-speaking,
with a few German-speaking towns
on the border with Germany. To look
after both groups, Belgium has a
complicated system of government.
Belgium, officially the
Kingdom of Belgium, is a
federal state in Western
Europe. It is a founding
member of the European
Union. It has the
headquarters of the
European Union, NATO and
some other famous
organisations. The capital
city of Belgium is Brussels.
Belgium has an area of
30,528 square kilometres
(11,787 sq mi). There are

4. ETHINIC COMPOSITION OF
BELGIUM

6. ACCOMADATION IN
BELGIUM

7. REASONS FOR TENSION BETWEEN THE
TWO COMMUNITIES
• The minority
French were rich
and powerful
• The majority
Dutch got the
benefit of
economic
development much
later.

8. POWER SHARING IN BELGIUM
- Equal number of Ministers from Dutch and French speaking areas in
the Central Govt.
- No single community can make decisions unilaterally
- Transfer of power from the centre to the state. State govt. will not
be a subordinate to the centre.
- Separate govt. in Brussels with equal representation for the French
and the Dutch.
- Formation of COMMUNITY Govt. elected by the people belonging to
one language community Dutch, French and German wherever they
live. This has power regarding
- Culture, education and language related issues.

9. RESULT OF ACCOMMODATION
The country united
respecting the feelings
of different
communities and
regions.

10. WHY IN A DEMOCRACY SHOULD
POLITICAL POWER BE DISTRIBUTED?
1.People are the source of all power.
2.People rule themselves through
institutions of
3.self governance.
4.Due respect is given to diverse groups
and views.
5.All have a voice in shaping public
policies.

11. MADE BY : VIKRAMADITYA LANDHE