Governance and Sustainable Development

• Governance and sustainable development present challenges and opportunities, according to Dr. Shilpa Verma.

MDGs and SDGs

• In 2000, the UN launched the Millennium Development Agenda, which had eight goals.
• MDGs did not include significant governance aspects.
• In 2015, the 17-point Sustainable Development Agenda (SDGs), also known as the 2030 SDGs Agenda, replaced the MDGs.
• A new paradigm of development strategy emphasizes a joint participation of the state, non-state entities, civic and the private sector in governance and the economy.

Sustainable Development

• The World Commission on Environment and Development of the United Nations published "Our Common Future" in 1987.
• The report is known as the Brundtland report, which contains a famous definition of sustainable development.
• Sustainable development means "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" (UNWECED, 1987).

Challenges to Sustainable Development

• Poverty and exclusion
• Unemployment
• Climate change
• Conflict and humanitarian aid
• Building peaceful and inclusive societies
• Building strong institutions of governance and supporting the rule of law

Centrality of Governance

• In a 2012 UNEP Foresight Process, aligning governance to the challenges of global sustainability" was identified as the most urgent issue related to the global environment.
• The WEF Global Risks Report of 2012 places global governance at the center of its 'global risks map'.
• There are links to issues of greenhouse gas emissions, chronic fiscal imbalances, critical systems failures, rising income inequality, fragility, and demographics
• A 2014 UNDP report argues that good governance defines the economic, social, and environmental pillars" of the SDGs.

SDG Goal 16

• Goal 16 indicates, "effective governance institutions and systems that are responsive to public needs, deliver essential services, and promote inclusive growth".
• Providing access to justice and promoting effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels is part of goal 16.
• Institutions are the basics for good governance, which includes relations between state and people.

Questions to Consider

• To what extent can universal sustainable and inclusive development be achieved by SDGs?
• How far will and can local and national governments go towards committing to any targets?
• What role and resources can international organizations commit to?
• To what extent will it be possible to achieve consensus where required between national, inter-governmental, international governance, non-governmental organizations?

Post-2015 Agenda

• To adopt a universal post-2015 development agenda with sustainable development at its core.
• All countries need to recognize what fundamental change is required to address the emerging challenges to sustainable development.
• Shifts in economics to sustainable production/consumption include effective governance and a renewed global partnership with means of implementation.

Opportunities

• Transformative actions can be supported by multi-stakeholder partnerships, which include governments, private organizations, international organizations, parliaments, civil society, local authorities, trade unions, and research & educational institutions.
• Partnerships require specific roles to ensure accountability.

Governance Characteristics

• Participatory
• Consensus oriented
• Accountable
• Transparent
• Responsive
• Effective and efficient
• Equitable and inclusive
• Follows the rule of law

Governance Indicators

• Rule of Law
• Consensus Oriented
• Transparency
• Accountability
• Responsiveness
• Effectiveness & Efficiency
• Equity & Inclusiveness
• Minimizes corruption, includes community views, and considers the voices of the most vulnerable in society.

Model of Governance

• Crime and terrorism have increased focus on developing governance models to account for new dimensions because the world is increasingly interconnected.
• No single model of governance can or should be imposed.

Aspects of Governance

• Good Governance: Process of decision making, institutional foundations
• Effective Governance: Capacity of countries to pursue sustainable development
• Equitable Governance: Distributive outcomes

Good Governance

• Institutional issues, social justice, and inclusiveness are related to and can improve processes for decision-making.
• Developing countries are concerned about targets and indicators for good governance being used as aid conditionality.

Effective Governance

• Effective governance focuses on the capacity of institutions to resolve public policy and implement effective rules.
• Effective governance includes official development assistance, technology transfer, and issue-specific institutions (e.g. water board).
• There is a focus on capacity building, foresight, and long-term planning, which throws light on the quality of governance and delivery of public services.

Good vs. Effective Governance

• While there are many indicators for good governance, there is no universally accepted measure of administrative and legal capabilities for effective governance.
• Some propose using proxies, surveys, stress tests, road marker indicators, review and auditing mechanisms to ensure transparency about performance.

Equitable Governance

• Equitable governance relates to equitable application of the rule of law and distribution of wealth/opportunity.
• Aims to reduce societal inequity.
• It focuses on extremes in economic inequality.
• The Gini index measures the national level income and wealth distribution, but is only one possible indicator.
• New indicators need development to assess inequitable application of public funds within a country to its ethnic groups.

Studies on Governance

• Studies have shown a positive and direct effect on achieving development targets such as reducing poverty, increasing employment, and more equitable redistribution of income (Shylendra and Bhirdikar, 2005; Kioe Sheng, 2010).
• There are widely accepted arguments that governance should play a stronger role in the post-2015 development agenda.

E-Governance & Sustainable Development

• E-Governance: Political system, administrative system, civil society system
• Sustainable Development: Social sustainability, economic sustainability, environmental sustainability

Types of Sustainability

• Social sustainability (people): access to information, gender equality, human rights, fair labor practices, living conditions, health, safety, wellness, diversity, equity, work-life balance, empowerment, community engagement, etc.
• Environmental sustainability (planet): climate change, disaster management, pollution control, etc.
• Economic sustainability (profits): energy

E-Governance for Development

• Social sustainability focuses on accessibility for tech choices, E-gov services support, public health efforts, E-gov in remote areas, and initiatives to help narrow digital divides.
• Environmental sustainability focuses on the use of environmentally friendly ICT equipment for government operations, setting up alert messaging services to populations, and smart service for water management.
• Economic sustainability focuses on the use of energy efficient technology and smart work initiatives to alleviate traffic/pollution.

Good Governance Underpinning

• Mechanisms
• Processes
• Outcomes

Integrating Governance

• Integrate governance with sustainable development by protecting basic rights of citizens and creating valued services for higher living standards.
• Genuine development requires sustainability.
• The pursuit of sustainability depends on the government integrating services and providing one-step critical service to citizens.
• Efficiency, transparency, and accountability are important characteristics of decision-making for sustainability.

Institutions & Sustainability

• Institutions must help citizens achieve sustainability, especially public ones.
• They could contribute heavily to the maintenance of human rights, environmental protection, stable macroeconomic conditions, enhanced health conditions, and resource management.

Formal Institutions

• Formal institutions are necessary to identify problems, develop frameworks and create opportunities to create appropriate public policy.
• They are emphasized in the implementation process of sustainable development concepts.

Institutional Dimension

• Institutional dimension is one of the most famous research objects for sustainable development and good governance as a tool for achieving sustainability.
• Juknevciene and Krateivaite (2012) conducted an analysis of institutional development based on some indicators.
• It showed the manifestation of the institutional dimension grounded by the idea of good governance in implementing sustainable development.

Classifications of Indicators- Qualitative

• Rule of Law
• Protection of property rights
• Business Freedom
• Corruption
• Regulatory System
• Economic Freedom
• Civil and Political Freedom
• Bureaucracy

Classifications of Indicators - Quantitative

• Interest Rates
• Tax Rates
• Government Expenditure
• Investment

Challenges for SDGs Agenda

• It is a challenge to create and maintain public awareness, mobilization, advocacy, and continuity for 17 goals and 169 targets of SDGs.
• Political arrangements need to be inclusive and durable enough to allow progress.

Priorities for Achieving SDGs Agenda

• Planning for the long term: Create institutions that promote inter-generational equity.
• Integrating the different dimensions of sustainable development policy: Create synergies and coherence.
• Collaboration: Use complex and multi-sector teamwork, which means current approaches to development may be unsuitable.
• Innovation: Use information and communication technologies to engage citizens, the state, and the private sector.

Priorities for SDGs

• A challenge is to create political support for sustainable development.
• It is important to engage the public in identifying and developing solutions.
• Utilize existing institutional arrangements and international cooperation for sustainable development.

Good Governance & Sustainable Development

• There is an opportunity to achieve the sustainable development collectively with committed leadership, conviction, courage, hard work, and devotion, assisted by improved governance.
• Strong national ownership and well-managed policies help facilitate robust and inclusive growth.

SDGs and Targets

• The SDGs and targets are aspirational.
• Each government would set its own national targets based on global ambition, national circumstances, and incorporate into national planning.
• A major challenge will be transforming aspirations to implementation.

Foundation for Sustainable Development

• Good governance is widely acknowledged.
• Good governance includes sustained economic growth, social development, environmental protection, and eradication of poverty/hunger.
• It is determined by assessing mechanisms that promote governance, the processes used, and the outcomes achieved.
• Form and respect democratic international institutions to represent the interests of all sections of global society.

Conclusion

• Good governance is pivotal to the development process through mechanisms, processes, and outcomes.
• The institutional dimension is crucial for good governance and is a suitable environment for the performance of the sustainable development mechanisms.
• Good governance enables the government to be more effectively, efficiently, and responsibly involved in development plans.