Public Administration PDF

Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Administrative Reform and Technology Introduction: Over the past decade, you probably have heard the expression of the “New Public Management” or “Reinventing government”. However, the reform movement in the public and non- profit sectors sh...

Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Administrative Reform and Technology Introduction: Over the past decade, you probably have heard the expression of the “New Public Management” or “Reinventing government”. However, the reform movement in the public and non- profit sectors should not be equated simply with a call for increased productivity. Instead, NPM and other reformist themes suggest that government shouldn’t account merely for its own activities but should be assessed on its capacity to achieve substantial public outcomes. Administrative Reform and Technology Introduction: Advances in Information Technology (IT) played an integral role in transforming public and non-profit organizations worldwide. The impact was twofold: 1) First, increased capacity for communication and information sharing redefined the distribution of authority within institutions. Every member of the organization had access to the latest news and information, and so shared one of the most important sources of power. Administrative Reform and Technology 2) Second, IT enabled public and non-profit organizations to engage more effectively with their counterparts in other sectors and around the world, as well as citizens. Such change restructured the ways in which governments and other public services agencies responded to opportunities and challenges. The ways in which we organize ourselves, engage with others and respond to public concern have undergone a transformation or, to use Don Kettle’s phrase, “a transformation in governance” Kettle 2000, P; 488) Administrative Reform and Technology Yet, as we explore the various aspects of reform, keep asking these questions: - Have we improved service to the public? - Is the work we are doing today consistent with our expectations for system of democratic governance? - Are we truly acting in the interest of citizens? I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform The New Public Management, or NPM, is a term used to describe a set of principles and practices in public services, which has emerged during the past several decades in variety of countries around the world. Although the application of NPM has varied country by country, the reform agenda has remained consistent in its drive to create organizations that are mission-driven, decentralized and incentive-based. Reformers strive for more flexible public organizations and more responsiveness, and a commitment to outcome-based governance. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform The best example of the NPM principles at work can be seen in New Zealand’s administrative reforms. Beginning in 1985 New Zealand’s rational government took several bold steps aimed at transforming its system of public administration. Among the most significant reforms, the government redeveloped it personnel system as an attempt to make top executives more performance-oriented; instituted a comprehensive performance measurement system based on a new process of measuring the productivity and effectiveness of government agencies; and reengineered its department systems to reflect the labor administration’s commitment to governmental accountability. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform Reports from the United Nations Commission on Global Governance and other international bodies reinforced this international movement, advocating decentralized decision making, civil society, empowerment, and a reliance on third-sector organizations for achieving public outcomes. A) Reinventing Government: In the early 1990s, Osborne and Gaebler’s (192) landmark work, Reinventing Government, brought many of the NPM principles to American shores. For Osborne and Gaebler, the reform agenda represented a response to what the call “the bankruptcy of bureaucracy”- that is, the ineffectiveness of government organizations. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform They believed that public agencies had failed to keep pace with changing candidates in the post industrial society, with government still attempting to represent to public issues with a “one-size-fits-all” approach. As a result, the systems in which public administrators function had become the problem, not the solution, and consequently citizens had begun to lose faith in the capacity of government to serve their needs. Osborne and Gaebler actually avoided the more traditional view that government should be run like a business: “Government and business are fundamentally different institutions. Business leaders are driven by the desire to get reelected… Differences such as these create fundamentally different incentives in the public sector” I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform Osborne and Gaebler maintain that public and private sector organizations face a distinct array of challenges. To carry out the reform agenda, Osborne and Gaebler provide 10 principles underlying reinvention and public entrepreneurship: 1) Catalytic Government: Steering rather than Rowing. 2) Community-Owned Government: Empowering rather than Serving. 3) Competitive Government: Injecting Competition into Service Delivery. 4) Mission-Driven Government: Transforming Rule- Driven Organization. 5) Results-Oriented Government: Funding outcomes, Not Inputs. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform 6) Counter-Driven Government: Meeting the Needs of the customer, Not the Bureaucracy. 7) Enterprising Government: Earing rather than Spending. 8) Anticipatory Government: Prevention rather than Cure. 9) Decentralized Government: From Hierarchy to Participation and Teamwork. 10) Market- Oriented Government: Leveraging Change through the Market. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform By applying the ten reinvention principles in the context of an given policy area, a new universe of opportunity, an altogether different system of governance, would evolve. B) Nonprofit Management Reform: Since the 1990s, the reform agenda in government has had substantial impact on the nonprofit sector. There is interconnected nature of public-nonprofit relations, but as governments use contracts, grants, and other strategies to devolve public services to nonprofits, they also have begun to hold their not-for-profit- counterparts accountable to many of the same performance and outcome objectives. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform Consequently, nonprofit organizations in today’s world find themselves buoyed by the “tides of reform” affecting the public sector. The factors precipitating reform in the nonprofit sector, of course, go beyond the government imposed. In fact, Paul Light (2000, PP. 1-43) has identified several important trends influencing the nonprofit reform movement including “nationalizing trends” relating to productivity, recruitment, resource development, and technology, combined with “local realities” of ensuring consistency, building patterns of shared responsibility, and enhancing nonprofit capacity for public service delivery. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform As Light (2000) explains, the movement to enhance productivity and accountability in nonprofit organizations can be categorized into 4 reformist principles: 1) Scientific-Management: Management should be based on the “one best way”, with individual organizations seeking to implement codes of internal conduct and basic best practices of administration. 2) War on Waste: Management should be based on a drive for external efficiency, with organizations and alliances reengineering to achieve efficient, streamlined systems for administration and service delivery. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform 3) Watchful Eye: Management should be based on creating more transparent patterns of administration, with organizational stakeholders holding agencies accountable for openness and compliance. 4) Liberation Management: Management should be based on achieving positive outcomes, with agencies working together in the public interest. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform Foundations, government agencies, and other funders, in conjunction with the nonprofit they support, must begin a more substantive dialogue around ways to coordinate grantee making and reporting requirements, as a way of bringing a level of consistency and coordination to an increasingly fragmented public policy process, and of easing the administrative burden on nonprofit organizations. Indeed, reforming the nonprofit sector will be as much about improving the dialogue among leaders in philanthropy, business, and government as it is building the capcity of nonprofit organizations. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform C) The Results of Reform: Proponents point out that some of the key reform-oriented initiatives, such as the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), have helped improve the public service. Kathryn Newcomer And Aaron Otto (2000) recently summarized the some of GPRA’s benefits at the federal level. Amplifying conflicting/ Polarizing expectations: GPRA has raised consciousness over some of the terms and concepts underlying management reform. I- NPM, Reinvention, and non-profit Management Reform Strengthening Programmatic communities: Federal agencies have started working more collaboratively on achieving shared objectives. Asking the Right Questions About Program Performance: GPRA has helped to enhance the quality of the discourse around the performance measurement. Effectively Reporting Performance: Federal official have improved their agencies’ capacity for accurately and appropriately measuring program impacts. Critics of NPM On the other hand, critics of NPM and Reinvention suggest that even though certain aspects of the reform agenda have contributed to meaningful improvements in public services, the application of these principles have produced a variety of negative externalists not envisioned by the early reformers. 1) In practice, public managers began to apply their reform agendas, many focused on the pursuit of administrative efficiency more than maintaining the democratic principles of effective governance. 2) Another point of concern is that “citizens are not the customers of government, they are its owners who elect leaders to represent their interests. Critics of NPM A customer-centered model puts citizens in a reactive role limited to liking or disliking services and hoping that administrator will change delivery of enough customers object. In contrast, citizen-centered public administration restores the public to an ownership position- a proactive relationship in which citizen engage with the institution of governance to achieve public outcomes. Critics of NPM Despite this criticism, however, the NPM and reinvention movement have had a pervasive impact on public administration, the principles underlying these reforms efforts have contributed to major initiatives to enhance government performance and accountability, public organizations at all levels employed a variety of strategies to streamline work process and enhance the public services. Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Introduction - In order to understand the concept of public administration you should pick up any newspaper and go through it, you will find reports about government policies, new bills and acts in the parliament, various public welfare programs undertaken by the government, parliamentary debates, etc. - In fact, It possible that you may even come across a newspaper report that condemns governmental policies over a certain issue, and criticize a lack action by the governmental bodies such as the municipality. - However, no country can function in the absence of public administrators. If there were no public administrators, there would be no police stations, municipalities or courts. Crimes would increase because there would be no system of punishing criminals; roads will be in poor condition; market forces will govern the economy. - In short, “there would be total chaos.” Importance of Public Administration We study public administration to find better ways of governance and to prepare future leaders and administrators of our country to face up to challenges that might lie ahead in their path. The relations between Public Administration and the Government The government can function effectively because of Public Administration. In common usage, Public Administration is mainly concerned with executing the implementation part of governmental activity, with the question as “how law should be administrated with equity, speed and without friction?!” The relations between Public Administration and the Government Public Administration compromises the systematic execution of the will of the people which has been discovered, formulated and expressed in the form of laws by the legislature. The function and scope of Public Administration are wide. That it is nearly impossible to have a single definition that everyone agree with. For instance, the assessment and rating of taxes the hanging of criminals, the delivery of mails, the recruitment of army, etc. are all acts of Public Administration. Definition of Public Administration Public Administration is centrally concerned with the organization of government policies and programs as well as the behavior of officials (usually –non-elected) formally responsible for their conduct. There are many definitions of Public Administration such as: Woodrow Wilson: “Public Administration is detailed and systematic execution of law. Every particular application of law is an act of administration. Administration is the most obvious part of the government, it is the government in action, it is the executive, the operative, the most visible side of the government.” Definition of Public Administration L.D. White: “Public Administration consists of all those operations having for their purpose that fulfilment or enforcement of public policy.” Luther Guilck: “Public Administration is that part of the science of administration which has to do with government and thus concerns itself primarily with the executive branch where the work of government is done, though there are obviously problems in connection with the Legislative and Judicial branches.” Definition of Public Administration - So, Public Administration, on the one hand, is an organized activity, on the part of a group of people, having been authorized on behalf of ultimate, sovereign, and the voters, to administrator and exercise direct control over their life activities. - On the other hand, it is a subject matter of study teaching and research in colleges and universities. As an academic endeavor, it concerns the pursuits of understanding relating to the real and proper structure and functioning of government organizations and behavior of organizational participants.  Definition of Public Administration - The study of public Administration is the study of the most effective ways of organizing the executive branch of the government, its institutions and procedures. It is mainly concerned with the means for implementing political values. - It is the coordination of individual and group efforts to carry out public policy.  Definition of Public Administration - We can define Public administration as: “the management of public affairs and the execution of government policy through the organization and the management of public institution.” - In Practical; it involves the planning, organizing, directing, and controlling of government operations and services to enhance public welfare. - Public administration plays a critical role in shaping the effectiveness and efficiency of government and its ability to serve the community. Key aspects of Public Administration - Policy implementation: translating laws and policies into action, ensuring they are executed effectively. - Management of Resources: overseeing human, financial, and physical resources to achieve government objectives. - Public services delivery: providing essential services to the public, such as education, healthcare, and transportation. Key aspects of Public Administration - Regulatory functions: enforcing laws and regulates that govern public behavior and protect the public interest. - Citizen engagement: involving citizens in the decision-making process and ensuring transparency and accountability. Functions of Public Administration - The most important function of the government is not to govern, i.e., to maintain peace and public order and to ensure the stability and security of the life and property of citizens, it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that the contracts are honored by citizens and their disputes are settled. - Public Administration has to play a very significant role as an instrument of development and change. - The Administration of the country reflects the genius of its people and embodies their qualities, desires and inspirations. Basic Functions of Public Administration Provide Schooling Offer Execute medical Policies facilities Implement Promote social Public security economic Administration measures growth Provide good infrastructure Basic Functions of Public Administration Thus, Public Administration consists of the action undertaken by the government to look after its people or to manage its affairs. Nature and scope of Public Administration There are 2 views that determine what is the nature and scope of Public Administration. 1) Managerial View. 2) Integral View. Nature and scope of Public Administration There are different opinions about the scope of Public Administration, on whether it is the managerial part of the government work or the entire complex of activities of only branch of government or of all branches, i.e., Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. There are 2 divergent views regarding the nature of the study of Public Administration: these are as follows: Nature and scope of Public Administration 1. Integral View: - Pursuit and fulfillment of Public Policy. - Public Administration is conceived in a comprehensive sense to include all the activities of the government whether they are performed in Executive, Legislative or Judicial branches of the government. - It means that these activities include not only managerial or technical activities, but also manual and clerical activities such as filing, paperwork, maintaining records, or all the non-managerial aspects of the public administrator. Nature and scope of Public Administration 2. Managerial View: It means the work of only those persons who are engaged in the performance of managerial functions in an organization constitutes the administration. Their jobs is to Plan, Program, and Organize all the activities in an organization so as to achieve the desired ends. 2. Managerial View The following list describes the managerial work of the administrative personnel: A) Planning: means working out broad outline of the things that need to be done and the method to be adopted to accomplish the proposed set for the enterprises. B) Staffing: means appointing suitable persons to the various posts under the organization. It covers the whole of personnel management. 2. Managerial View C) Organizing: means building up the structure of authority through which the entire work to be done is properly arranged and defined in order to achieve the desired goals. D) Directing: means making decisions and issuing orders and instructions and embodying them for the guidance of the staff. 2. Managerial View E) Coordinating: means interrelating various parts of the work and thus eliminating the overlapping and conflict in different activities of an organization. F) Reporting: means keeping both the supervisors and subordinates informed of what is going on and arranging for the collection of such information through inspection, research, and records 2. Managerial View G) Budgeting: means fiscal planning and accounting and control, i.e., all activities. Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Contrasting Business and Public administration Certainly, there are similarities between business and public administration. Managers across all private, public and non-profit are involved in questions of organizational design, the allocation of scarce resources, and the management of people. But there are differences between business and public administration. Contrasting Business and Public administration These 3 differences are: Ambiguity Pluralistic Decision Making Visibility  Ambiguity The 1st difference between business and government lies in “the purposes to be served”. In the most businesses, even with services objectives, the bottom-line profit is the basic measure of evaluating how good a job the organization is doing. In turn, the performance of individual manager can, in many cases, be directly measured in a way, in terms of their unit’s contribution to the overall profit of the company.  Ambiguity But in public or non-profit agencies/organizations, the objectives of the organizations in which one works may be much more ambiguous and were making or losing money is not the main criterion for success or failure. The main objectives of public or non-profit organization can be stated in terms of services. For example: agencies that interested in environment or to provide an adequate level of rehabilitative services to disabled yet, such services objectives are much harden to specify and to measure.  Ambiguity So, businesses wouldn’t tolerate a money-losing operation in a depressed area, but a public or non- profit organization, through equally attentive to the money being spent, might well consider meeting human needs more important than the financial “bottom-line”. Pluralistic Decision-Making Public services, at least in a democratic society, requires that many groups and individuals have across the decision process. The result, decision that might be made rapidly by one individual or small group in business might in public or non-profit organization require input from many diverse groups and organizations. Consequently, it is difficult to speak decision centers in government. Pluralistic Decision-Making W.Michael Blumenthal, a business executive who become secretary of Treasury in the Carter administration, described the situation this way: “if president said to me, you develop (an economic policy toward Japan), Mike, the moment that becomes known there are innumerable interest groups that begin to play role. The House ways and means committee, the Senate Finance Committee, and every member on them and every staff member has an opinion and seeks to exert influence. Also, the foreign Relations Committee, the oversight Committee, and then the interest groups, business, the unions, the State Department, the Commerce Department, Council of Economic Advisors, and not only the top people, but all their staff people, not to the president’s staff and the entire press.” Pluralistic Decision-Making “The diversity of interests seeking to affect policy is the nature and essence of democratic Government” Blumenthal Visibility Managers in public and non-profit organizations seem to operate with much greater visibility than their counterparts in industry. The public services in democratic society is subject to constant scrutiny by both the press and the public. Donald Rumsfeld (1983): “In government, you are operating in a goldfish bowel. You change your mind or make a blunder, as human beings, and it’s on the front page of every newspaper.” Visibility Executives in government realize that it is essential to democratic society that their work be visible to the public and subject to the interest and control of the citizenry. Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Elements of Public Administration The essential components of administration in any field, regardless of the area of operation or work. Can be broken down into 3 important groups. Administration can be successful if it is characterized by the following 3 fundamental of effective administration: A) Good interrelationship between the executive body and the legislature regrading policy- and decision- making (in the case of private sector, effective relationship among the board of directors). B) Competency the chief executive and his assistants and subordinates to streamline the policies and decisions adopted by the legislature or board of directors , so that they are broken down into a series of action to undertaken. Elements of Public Administration C) Ability of the people in charge of operations in providing effective leadership to the rank and file so that they follow orders and carry out tasks that are laid down in the plans properly. Hence, it can be said that the elements of public administration compromise of 3 sets of considerations or hypotheses: 1) The first consideration pertains to the part played by the executive head in making decisions and policies, 2) The second to the interrelationship between the executive official and his immediate associates in the top structure of the administrative hierarchy, 3) And the third to interrelationship between the higher operating chiefs and all employees of progressively lower rank. New Public Administration - Public Administration is an integral part of the social, cultural and economic life of a nation and is a permanent force in its life. - The origin of new administration may be traced to the 1st Minnow brook conference held in 1986 under the patronage of Dwight Waldo. Note: It is possible for a state to exist without a legislature or an independent Judiciary, but no state can exist without a well-organized administration. Elements of New Public Administration The basic elements of new public administration, as described in the report of Delphi exercise conducted in 1972-1973 by Emmanuel Wald at the Maxwell Graduate School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, New York, were as follows: 1) A softened normative approach. 2) Movement towards social technology. 3) Policy orientation. 4) Synchronization, i.e., the traditional breakdown of administrative activity into distinct functional components, such as planning, organizing, staffing, directing, coordinating, reporting and budgeting (POSDCORB). Features of New Public Administration 1. It was anti-positivist in more than one sense. It rejected the (i) traditional definitional of public administration as value-free. (ii) rationalist and determinative view of mankind and (iii) politics- administration dichotomy. 2. It was anti-bureaucratic and anti-hierarchical. 3. It was anti-mechanistic in its approach to organization problems rejecting overemphasis on the machine and the system. Features of New Public Administration New public administration displayed an intense concern for relevant societal problems. It stressed on ethics, values, innovations and social equality. It laid great emphasis on human relations, a creative approach to administration and social change. Characteristics of New Public Administration 1. It should increase orientation towards changing reality. 2. It should influence policies that can improve the quality of working life and it should also have competence to implement such policies. 3. It should be more oriented towards measuring the impact of laws on citizens rather than resting content with their mechanical application. 4. It should be more normative. Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Public Administration in Developed Societies Public administration is equally important, rather more important, in developed countries as well. This is so because the citizens of developed nation expect the state to cater to their needs as it has been already doing. The state provides several welfare services and protection to its citizens. Additionally, the government has to maintain the state- owned industries while also monitoring the private enterprises. The modern and developed society is more complex, and needs specialized bureaucrats who can maintain the status quo. In a nutshell, public administration in developed countries has to ensure the maintenance of the development as well as accelerate development from their point of view. Features of developed societies Developed countries are facing new challenges like: - Environmental pollution, - Economic strains (visible through unemployment and low growth rates), - Growing violence, - Less capacity to provide technical assistance as compared to the demand from developing countries, - Adjustment of the administrative system with fast changes in science and technology, - Maintenance of good relationship among the nations of the developed world, - Preservation of their hold on developing world. All these challenges require a system of public administration, which is engaged constantly to take care of the existing, potential and future problems as well as concentration keeping itself fit and fine. Features of developed societies 1- Regulating the private sector to promote accelerated development: Public administration in advanced countries has to develop the administrative machinery to regulate the development being taken up through private sector, so that it may fall in line with the total development and benefit the citizens. We generally hear about market economy model of development in advanced countries, but it is absurd to think that it is totally free of control. In USA, there are well established inter-state regulatory commissions. Public administration exercises this regulatory role to such an extent that private sector can not deviate from the policies of the government. Features of developed societies In developed countries, public administration through “management by exception’ gets better results through the regulation of the private sector than entering in the field directly”. In this way, the private sector is held in high esteem by the citizens in the context of services provided by it. Features of developed societies 2- Refinements of instruments of public administration to promote efficient services: People in developed countries are highly sensitive about their rights. Being educated, the exert pressure on the government machinery to get their due. Public administration has to refine its procedures and methods to provide best services to the people and remove all irritants. People in these countries are treated as human beings not like beasts, as it is the case in developing countries. Public administration has to make the administrative system- citizen-oriented. Since the demands of the citizens are likely to increase, therefore, public administration in developed countries has to keep its apparatus frictionless and efficient. Features of developed societies 3- Maintenance of the reputation, image and goodwill of the country: Public administration in developed countries is keen to maintain its reputation, image and goodwill, so that people from developing countries can be attracted for political, economic and social reasons. It has been seen that persons from developing countries in high offices and wealthy strata would prefer to get treatment in foreign health institutions even if that very facility is available in their country. Similarly, people from developing countries would prefer to get education in foreign educational institutions because of their higher standard of education and methods of educational administration. Features of developed societies 4- continuous efforts for administrative improvements and reforms: Public administration in developed countries is keen to keep its machinery well lubricated. In some of these countries, it is statutory to get the administrative system analyzed often a period of every 3 years. The results of all this is that their administrative system is well-designed and result-oriented. Features of developed societies 5- Highly specialized agencies to discharge complicated and complex functions: Public administration in developed countries is keen to deal with the tasks of development. Take the case od any field of development-health, education, industry, etc., and we would find the latest technology being put to use and prompt changes in administrative system installed to suit scientific and technological development. Features of developed societies 6- Public administration through environmental management: Environmental problems, such as environmental pollution, acid deposition, depletion of the Ozone layer, global warming, are a by product of development. These problems are causing anxiety and worry to the developed world. Features of developed societies 7- Public administration to check crime: Public administration needs to advise ways and means to control increasing violence and social problems like rape, drug addiction and AIDS. Public administration in the developed world is facing the problem of increasing violence born out of affluence. Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Nature, Scope and Importance of Administration in Developing and Developed Nations Burke rightly remarked "without proper management, your Commonwealth is no better than a scheme on paper and not a Living, active, effective Constitution. Administration is there under all Situations. There would be no existence without administration.” According to Ina Sharkansky, development exists in societies: 1. That have relatively equal distributions of benefits. 2. That utilize modern technology. 3. That assign rewards according to personal achievement and not according to family, Caste or tubal background. Nature, Scope and Importance of Administration in Developing and Developed Nations 4. That use specialists in economic and governmental roles, instead of generalists who must provide leadership in a full range of activities. 5 That have governmental units that can adjust to social and economic Change and acquire capabilities to meet new demands. Now we will examine separately the role of public administration in developing and developed countries Developing Countries and public administration Developing Countries are characterized by low per Capita Gross National product widespread poverty, scarcity, rapid population growth, and high dependency burdens Low levels of productivity, technological backwardness, and greater income inequalities, wide gap between urban and rural development, a negative balance of trade and non- or semi-industrial agrarian economy. Developing countries (with per capita income of $580 and below) Constitute 57 % of world’s population, accounting for 5% of the total world GNP. In Comparison the developed Economies with per capita $ 18 330 Constitute 16% of the world’s population and account for 73% of the world GNP. Such a Situation is politically unstable, morally untenable and psychologically unsound. Developing Countries and public administration According to prof. Jacob Viner, "A developing Country is one, which has good Potential prospects for using or more capital, or more labor, or more available natural resources, or all of these, to support its present population on a higher Level of living. Gunnar Myrdal has termed developing Countries as “Soft States” Coupled with the greater possibility of economic n, based on outdated processes and procedures, corrupt practices and ill equipped politico-administrative leadership. Haderson and Dwivedi in their brilliant article, “Administrated Development: the Fifth Decade-1990s”, have warned the developing countries of poor performance if they do not improve their administrative system. Developing Countries are entrenched in heterogeneity based on caste, religion, area, etc. Developing Countries and public administration Public Administration in Developing Countries: The widespread of poverty and the depressed standard of living of such a large number of people a very serious threat to peace as well as socio-economic development. The reasons for poverty and misery in developing countries are not the lack of potentialities of resources, human or material, but the under- utilization of these resources. Today developing countries are not utilizing more than 15% of the potential capacity of their human resources due to inadequate expertise and deficient system of public administration. Suitable schemes and programs need to be devised and implemented through enhanced participation of people for achieving desirable results. Developing Countries and public administration 1. Creating Conditions for absorption of Science and Technology: During the last few decades, phenomenal changes have taken place at a fast rate in the field of science and technology as well as in the external environment. These changes have had their impact on public administration also, which today has to shoulder multifarious takes designed to fulfill the rising aspirations of the people. In words of Professor Waldo, Public administration is “a part of the cultural complex, and it not only is acted upon, it acts.” Developing Countries and public administration 2. Improving administrative system-good governance: The Ideals of welfare state-progress, prosperity and protection to the common man-can be secured only through impartial, honest and efficient administration. In words of Professor Charles Bread, “the future of civilized government, and even I think of civilization itself, rests upon our ability to develop a science, a philosophy and practice of administration competent to discharge the functions of civilized society. Thus, there is a need that public administration must be modernized, that is, recreated, renewed and revitalized to produce the required changes and output necessary to provide goods and services to the people at minimum cost. This needs a different trend and magnitude of administration, culture and capacity. Developing Countries and public administration 3. Improving administrative capabilities and capacity: The administrative capability of a government and the manner in which the development programs are likely to be carried out are ultimately related. On the other hand, administrative inadequacies in a national government have a retarding influence on economic and social development. These deficiencies prevent the vast flood of money, talent and material from achieving their objectives. Developing Countries and public administration 4. Enlisting the support of the people: Public administration in developing countries has not been able to involve the people in the process of the development in spite of the creation of many institutions, because a vast majority of people are still struggling to make ends meet and there is rampant corruption most levels of the administration. Thus, these countries are not utilizing the unlimited potential power in them. All the plans and programs are based on the premise that people’s support would be forthcoming, but in practice, administration makes no realistic effort toward this end. Developing Countries and public administration 5. Strengthening of law and order machinery to ensure safety of the people: Economic development in the developing countries is not possible without ensuring good law and order system in which people feel safe and free. Law and order in the developing countries is still considered primitive and abused by the party in power. People have lost their faith in the impartiality and role of law and order machinery, which can create conditions for development and modernization. There is critical link between the legal system of a developing nation and the process of economic development though economic reforms. Developed nations are characterized by a single unified legal structure, while the legal structure of developing nations is mostly found to be weakly enforced and inconsistent. Developing Countries and public administration 6. Removal of corruption: Corruption in developing countries has become cancerous. Evan at the levels of higher authority, cases of corruption practices involving huge a mounts are reported daily. 7. Incompetence of bureaucracy: Bureaucracy is paramedical hierarchy, which functions under impersonal, uniform rules and procedures, and is defined as a formal organization which has formal rules and departments to coordinate hierarchical areas of activities. Bureaucracy, as described by Max Weber, has a division of labor, authority structure, roles defined for members and rules to guide activity. Developing Countries and public administration Ferrel Heady outlined the following characteristics of bureaucracy in these countries: - The public services providing state is large-scale, complex and instrumental, i.e., its mission is understood to be that of carrying out the policies of political decision-making. - The bureaucracy exhibits a sense of professionalization in the sense of identification with the public service as a profession, and in the sense of belonging to a narrow field of professional or technical specialization within the service. - The bureaucracy is highly specialized and reflects in its ranks most the professional and occupational categories found in the society. - The role of bureaucracy in the political process is fairly clear and the line of demarcation between the bureaucracy and other political institutions is generally well-defined. This is due to the fact that the political system as a whole is relatively stable and mature and the bureaucracy is, therefore, completely. - The bureaucracy is subjected to effective policy control by other functionally specific political institutions. Public Administration Dr. Mai Ghaith Democracy - Democracy is defined by several important cultural values that are pursued in a democratic society: Individualism Equality Liberty  Individualism Suggests that achieving the fullest potential of each individual is the best measure of the success of our political system. It is reflected in the familiar phrasing of Declaration of Independence that all persons are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights and that it is the purpose of government to secure these rights.  Equality - Which means that each person has an equal claim to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. - Person should be seen as an end, not as a mean; no one should be a mere tool of another. - In a democracy; each one has an equal claim to the attention of the system and should be able to expect just outcomes.  Liberty - That is the central value of democracy which means that individual citizen of democracy should have a high degree of self-determination. - You should have the maximum opportunity to select your own purposes in life and to choose the means to accomplish these. - Liberty is more than just the absence of constraints. Democracy and Public administration - According to American political tradition, there is a separation of legislative, executive, and judicial functions which has influence on the development of public administration. The primary task of legislative branch is the enactment of legislation, laws to make policy. The primary task of executive branch is the faithful execution or implementation of policy. And finally, the primary task of judicial branch is the interpretation of the law, especially as it relates to constitutional guarantees. The role of public administration David Rosenbloom (1993) has argued that these 3 functions of government are related to 3 views of the role of public administration in American society. Managerial approach Political approach Legal approach Managerial approach Which Rosenbloom connects to the executive function, emphasizes the management and organization of public organization. In other words, it is like private sector that concerned primarily with efficiency.  Political approach To public administration related to legislative function in the government, is concerned about ensuring constitutional safeguards. Efficiency becomes less a concern than effectiveness and responsiveness.  Legal approach To public administration is related to judicial function, emphasizes the administrator’s role in applying and enforcing the law in specific situations.