Chapter 1 Flashcards
What does administration stand for according to Merriam-Webster dictionary?
“to manage or supervise the execution, use, or conduct of, e.g. administer a trust fund”
What does administration stand for according to Oxford dictionary?
“Manage and be responsible for the running of a business”
Public service/Public goods are
commodities or services or goods that are both non-excludable and non-rivalrous.
What does ‘public’ stand for?
1.Public service/Public goods
2.Public organizations
3.Public engagement
4.Public interest
5.Public realm
6.Public policies/Public programs
Public realm refers to
The public domain. It is defined as the Publicly owned and accessible places.
Public interest
collectively desired goals/results
The concept ‘policy’ in general refers to
A statement of goals and intentions with respect to a particular problem or set of problems that is often accompanied by a more detailed set of plans, programs, or instructions for pursuing those goals.
Public policies
are authoritative statements made by legitimate governmental actors (the chief executive, the legislature, public agencies), or nongovernmental actors (e.g. nonprofit organizations, private corporations) about important public problems and issues; e.g.
health, education, employment, housing, etc.
public administration is concerned with
- The management of public organization
- The implementation of public policies and management of public programs.
- The promotion of public engagement and management of public realm.
- The provision of public and quasi-public goods and services.
- The pursuit of public interest.
One definition of Public administration could be
Public administration is concerned with the management of public programs. In that sense, public administration is a function of government.
Who argued that public administration is the management of men and materials in the accomplishment of the purposes of the state?
White
Gulick in discussing the organisation of public administration argued for
A system of Authority whereby the central purpose of an enterprise is translated into reality
Who said that government leaders should engage the public in an ongoing dialogue in which society defines and evaluates it’s collective goals, examines it’s Norms and beliefs and in defining it’s purposes becomes better able to mobilize it’s resources and achieve its goals
Reich
Chain of means and ends in the publicness of public administration
Public organisation to public policies and programs to public goods and services to public interest
Main values of public administration are
- Managerial values
- Democratic values
Managers across all sectors are involved in the managerial process and functions an example of these functions are
Organisational design, the allocation of scarce resources, and the management of people.
The main three differences between public administration and business are
- Ownership and funding
- The ultimate ending Goal
- Functioning/context
The ultimate ending goal of an organisation is either
Private interest and public interest
The functioning of an organisation is characterized by.
- Ambiguity
- Pluralistic decision making
- Visibility
Traditionally, the primary distinction between public and business administration was mainly concerned with
Making profit, while public administration is concerned with delivering service or regulating individual or group behaviour in the public interest
Nowadays why is the traditional distinction between public administration and business administration doesn’t persue
As many public organisations are persuing enhanced revenues
What is the most important criteria to distinguish between business and public administration
It is the ultimate ending goal
What is the ultimate ending Goal for private enterprises
Pursuing private interests
What is the ultimate ending goal for public organisations
Pursuing public interests
Non-profit management is characterised by
Ambiguity, pluralistic decision-making and visibility
In the context of public and nonprofit management the characteristics of its objectives are
Much more ambiguous and difficult to be measured
What type of administrators operate with much more greater visibility
Public administrators
Due to the increasing engagement in providing public service, many corporations are finding it important to
Open their decision making process to public scrutiny and involvement
The 3 approaches of public administration
1.Mangerial approach
2.Political approach
3.Legal approach
The definition of public administration in the book is based on
Action orientation
Attempts to theorize public administration had to consider the
values, the culture, and the social and political environment within which the operational activities of public administration are carried out.
The substantive Fields within which public managers work range across
1.From Defence and national security to social welfare and environmental quality
2.From The design and construction of roads and bridges to exploration of space
3.From taxation and financial administration to human resource management
The scope of public administration can differ from context to another
These different contexts are
1.Global context
2.National context
Public administration in the national context are in terms of
1.Role of the state
2.Size of government
3.Political and economic system
4.Societal values
5.Cultures
Global context of public administration includes
1.International organisations
2.Foreign relations
3.Global NGOs
4.Multinational companies
5.International conventions and treaties
List the factors that enabled the world’s countries become more interconnected
1.Construction of global market place: free movement of capital
2.Changes in the social and political structures: global society
3.Role of the nation state and sovereignty in managing internal and foreign affairs has been challenged
4.Central power has shifted in favour of local and supra/trans-national authorities
5.Complexity in public & nonprofit sector
Different types of skills needed by public managers
1.Technical skill
2.Human skill
3.Conceptual skills
Skills needed by first-line supervisors
1.Technical skills
2.Human skills
3.Conceptual skills of less importance
Skills needed by Middle managers
1.Human skills
2.Technical skills of less importance comparing to first line managers
3.Conceptual skills of less importance comparing to top level managers
Skills needed by Top-level managers
1.Conceptual skills
2.Human skills
What are the satisfaction that public managers draw from their work
1.Contributing to the solution of social problems and making a difference in people’s live
2.Improving quality of life for people
3.Promoting democratic values and ethical standards in using the powers of government
4.Serving the public goods and pursuing public interests
Materialisation of public administration values, roles and principles are in the form of
Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy refers to
A way of organising work
Characteristics of Bureaucratic model
- Specialization and division of labour
- Hierarchy of authority
- Explicit written rules and regulations
- Impersonality and neutrality
- Technical qualifications
One of the main issues and concerns in public administration is to
Operate efficiently in a way that consistent with the democratic values
The three main democratic values are
1.Individualism
2.Equality
3.Freedom
What is Individualism?
Suggests that the individual is the primary measure of human value in which achieving the fullest potential of each individual is the primary goal of a democratic system
What is equality?
Suggest that differences in wealth status or position should not give one group preference over another
Freedom includes
1.Freedom of choice
2.Freedom of action
Contrast the following democratic values with the corresponding bureaucratic values
1.Equality
2.Individualism
3.Freedom and participation
1.Hierarchy
2.Group or organisation
3.Top-down decision making
Examples of Pure public goods/services
1.Law enforcement
2.National defense
3.Access to clean air
Examples of quasi-public goods
1.Public transportation system
2.Public healthcare
3.Public education
4.Road Construction
5.Electricity
6.Subsidies
Inductive approach of public administration involves
1.Analyzing the phenomenon in the real world
2.Reaching a theory
3.Examining the Theory
David Rosenbloom connected the managerial approach of public administration to
The executive function
David Rosenbloom connected the legal approach of public administration to
Judicial function
David Rosenbloom connected the political approach of public administration to
Legislative function
In public administration, service objectives is said to be
ambiguous
Effeciency means
Getting things done quickly and at least cost
Responsiveness means
Attentiveness to the demands of the citizens
Public administrators are usually referred as
Bureaucrats
Why is the Extent to which public adminstration can get involved in policy making involves a dichotomy?
On one hand, elected officials are responsible for setting policy priorities while on the other hand, public administrators are responsible for implementing polcies and providing advice for elected officials.
According to woodrow Wilson:
The Dichotomous approach
Administration should be separated from politics and its corrupting influences
According to who:
Administrative questions are not political questions
Woodrow Wilson and other early scholars
According to Woodrow Wilson:
Policies were to be debated and decided by
Politicians
The phrase city council-manager form of local government refer to
Type of local government structure in which a city council is responsible for setting policy priorities and making policy decisions, while a professional city manager is responsible for implementing policies and managing day to day operations
The city council consists of elected officials that hire a city manager
According to the interactive approach:
Why this distinction was increasingly broken down
Distinction between politics & Administration
Public Problems have become increasingly complex needing a certain level of technical skills that adminstrators posses
The Power of specialized knowledge and expertise is involved in which approach
The interactive approach
Forms of bureaucratic power
- Information and expertise of agency personnel
- Discretion in interpreting and providing detailed rules of vague legislations
- Flexibility in implementation
due to newly discovered conditions
Bureaucratic power refers to
The administrative capability to successfully carry out the intent of the legislature that created it.
Give an Example
Bureaucrats getting involved in policy-making
In civil service
* Advises government on the implementation of a policy and is responsible for implementing agreed policy
* It helps prepare and draft new legislation
* Helps the Government to run the country according to the legislation passed by the Oireachtas
In CIvil service:
Each department of state has a permenant staff consisting of
Administrative, professional, specialists and technical employees
In the civil service:
The head civil servant of each department is recommended by
The head civil servant of each department is the secretary General
The minister of that department
Appointed for about 7 years
In civil service
Below the secretary general there are
A number of Assistant Secretaries and below them are many officials at varying levels of seniority
Officials are graded according to their seniority
Sources of bureaucratic power is divided into
- External factors
1. Public opinion support
2. Support from clientele groups,
3. Critical issue of Sub-government - Internal factors
1. Information and expertise
2. Agency’s cohesion
3. Strong and effective leadership
The concept ‘policy’ in general refers to
A statement of goals and intentions with respect to a particular problem that is often accompanied by a more detailed set of plans, programs, or instructions for pursuing those goals
Public policies are authoritative statements made by
Legitimate governmental actors or nongovernmental actors
Governmental actors such as (the chief executive, the legislature, public agencies) and nongovernmental actors such as (nonprofit organizations, private corporations)
The stages of policy process
- Agenda setting
- Policy formulations
- Policy legitimation
- Policy implementation
- Policy evaluation and change
Process of developing public policies:
Agenda setting is about
Giving priority to the most important issues that need action
The agenda setting process can be viewed as the junction of three events:
- Policy recognition
- Policy generation
- Political action
Process of developing public policies:
Different actors who play vital role in setting the agenda:
- president
- legislators
- executive branch officials
- political parties
- interest groups
- policy entrepreneurs
- media
- general public
Who are:
Policy entrepreneurs
Those who are willing to invest personal time, energy and
often money in pursuit of particular changes, or they can involve themselves in major
institutions
Major institutions such as media, political parties or interest groups that provide access to decision-makers
Example on policy entrepreneurs
- الموقف المصري
Process of developing public policies:
Policy formulation:
Involve the development of formal policy statement that are viewed as legitimate
Development of formal policy statement include legislation, executive orders, administrative rules, budget proposals
In the process of developing public policies:
Where does the legislative process & bureaucratic expertise play a major role?
Policy formulation
Process of developing public policies:
Policy legitimation means
Legitimizing and justifying policy decisions and actions through giving it legal force on one hand, and making it acceptable by the broader public on the other hand
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies:
Policy implementation is
set of activities directed towards putting a policy/program into effect
Process of developing public policies
Policy evaluation
about assessing the efficiency, effectiveness and responsiveness of public policies
Types of public policies
- Regulatory
- Distributive
- Redistributive
- Constituent
Give an Example on:
Regulatory framework
- Control or coordination over all matters relating to Pharmaceutical industry by the regulatory authority in South Sudan
Give an Example on:
Regulatory agencies in Egypt
Consumer protection Agencies
It is a government Agency established in accordance with Egyptian law No. 67 for the year 2006 and affliliated to the ministry of supply and internal trade
Give an example on:
Implementing regulatory policies in Egypt
The Egyptian parliament has approved the law number 1/2017 establishing National food safety Authority
Public administration and the ongoing involvement in the process of policy making lead to
- Sub-government
- Techocratization
- Public accountability
Technorization and bureaucratization refers to
The increasing role of bureaucrats in political decision-making processes, which can lead to a shift in power from elected officials to unelected bureaucrats. On the other hand, “politicization of bureaucracy” refers to the increasing influence of political considerations on bureaucratic decision-making processes.
Public accountability involves questions like
- How to hold unelected bureaucrats accountable to the public?
- Principal-agent or independent
agents?
To ensure public accountability:
What measures are emphasized
- Professional standards
- Codes of ethics
- More substantial legislative review and supervision
- Public participation in the administrative process and surveys of public opinion
Give an Example:
The nature, structure, size and role(s) of public administration vary from context to another
The context of a particular country influences how public administration is structured and managed
The political context of PA refers to
The form of power-sharing in the society in terms of the structure and organization of governing power horizontally and vertically
In addition to the values and rationality underlie such forms of power-sharing
Horizontal power-sharing refers to
Relations between the three branches of government at one level, and their relations with nongovernmental and other social organizations and groups in the society at another level
Vertical power-sharing refers to
Various forms of power relationships at the sub-national levels
i.e. relations between national government and sub-national governments
The political context of public administration includes
The branches of the government
- Executive branch
- Legislative body
- Judiciary
- Non-governmental organisation and civil society
Analyzing the political context of any administrative system:
we need to address questions like the following:
- To what extent the political system is a democratic one?
- To what extent is it de/centralized?
- Who is allowed to get involved in the policy making processes? And how?
- How governing power is structured and organized within the different branches of
government?
Other questions include How does each branch of government shape and influence the structure, operations,
roles and functions of public administration? what are the mechanisms and tools that they do use?
What are the tools that the chief executive have to influence the structure and management of PA?
- Executive orders/ laws by decree
- High level appointees
Executive order refers to
A presidential mandate directed to and governing,with the effect of law, the actions of government officials and government agencies
The executive order is a chief instrument of presidential power.
Ex: president Obama used one of his early executive orders (no.13507, April 8,2009) to create the White House Office of Health Reform to coordinate his
administration’s efforts to reform the nation’s health-care system
High-level appointees (czars) are assigned responsibility for
Specific policy issues.
These appointees have the president’s trust thus the ability to effect significant change on the important policy task to which they have been assigned
Why a lot of critics charge that czars hold too much power
Because they are not subject to parliament approval and report only to the president
The Cheif executive officer exercises power over an enormous and wide-ranging set of public organizations:
List these types of organisations
- The executive office of the president.
- The cabinet-level executive departments
- A variety of independent agencies, regulatory commissions, and public corporations
- Administrative agencies that support the work of the legislature and the judiciary
e.g. ministries
Legislative supervision over public agencies and public programs can take the forms of
- Structural control
- Oversight
- Casework
Legislative supervision over public agencies and public programs:
Structural control
Any public agency is a creation of the legislature, and its programs are always subject to the legislature’s review, alteration, and even termination
Legislative supervision over public agencies and public programs:
Although legislation is usually intentionally vague at some point and somewhat limited as a device for controlling the day-to-day activities of public organizations, but it can be used as a
Control Device
Structural control:
Tools of legislative structural conrol
- Sunset laws
- Sunshine laws
- Agency conduct
- Legislative veto
Devices or tools of legislative structural control:
Sunshine laws refer to
The laws that automatically terminate the agency or a program it establishes unless the legislature expressly renews it
Sunset laws:
What is the purpose of specifying a particular life span for a program
To force careful evaluation of the program at some future point.
Sunset laws aims to ensure
Effeciency, effectiveness and responsiveness
Devices or tools of legislative structural control:
Sunshine laws
require various agencies, especially regulatory agencies, to conduct business in public view
under specific conditions, e.g. legally protected matter currently under investigation
Sunshine laws:
How agencies should conduct thier operations in public view
- Meetings must be open to the public
- Reasonable notice of such meetings must be given
- Minutes of the meetings must be taken and accessed by the public
Sunshine laws aim to
guarantee transparency and public accountability
Exmaple of sunshine law from England
The freedom of act
Devices or tools of legislative structural control:
Agency conduct
Legislative bodies formally exert control over administrative agencies through passage of broad legislation to govern agency conduct
E.g. Freedom of Information Act (sunshine laws)
Such legislation might affect administrative procedures, contracting or
purchasing arrangements, human resources management, etc.
Devices or tools of legislative structural control:
Legislative veto refers to
A legal provision by a legislative body that invalidates an action by the executive branch (or administrative agency), usually
within 30-90 days
In the American context, the legislative veto was declared unconstitutional at the federal level by the United States Supreme
Court in the 1983 case Immigration and Naturalization Service
(INS) v. Chadha.
Legislative supervision over public agencies and public programs:
Legislative oversight over public agencies and program
To hold the executives accountable for their actions, and to ensure that their implementation of public policies is complied with the laws and the budget passed by the parliament
In legislative bodies, who are charged with overseeing the activities of all government agencies
Operations committee
e.g. plan and budget committee, constitutional and legislative committee in Egypt
Legislative supervision over public agencies and public program:
Other specialized committees exercise oversight on
Particular area of interest and expertise
e.g. defense, health, welfare, etc.
Legislative oversight over public agencies and program:
Oversight and communication activities include:
- Holding hearings
- Commities of inquiries
- Budjet oversight
Holding hearings can be an opportunity for the administrative officials to tell their side of the story and gain support
Legislative supervision over public agencies and public programs:
Legislative casework refers to
The legislator’s intervention on behalf of individuals or groups that need assistance with, or access to, government agencies.
Casework humanizes bureaucracy, meanwhile increases possibilities of
Political influence
Define Ombudsman
Permanent office that receives complaints and acts on behalf of the citizens in securing information and requesting service, or pursuing grievances
Relations between the administrative system and judicial branch:
The judiciary plays an important role in checking on public agencies by reviewing
- Agency Actions
* Interpreting legislative mandates and delegation to agencies
* Reviewing the appropriateness of agency actions - Agency discretion
* To make sure that agency discretionary power is used appropriately and not abused.
Relations between the administrative system and judicial branch:
Agency actions
Public agencies action include
1. Quasi-legislative actions
2. Quasi-judicial actions
Agency Actions:
Quasi-legislative actions:
are the actions that involve rule making as they elaborate the details of legislation.
Quasi-legislative actions:
Rule making is concerned with
establishing general guidelines that would apply to a class of people or a class of actions in the future
Quasi-legislative actions:
Why there is a considerable room for interpretation and discretion of legislation by the administrators
As most legislation is necessarily and intentionally general
For example, setting the safety standards for nuclear-powered electric utilities. In
such cases, the agency determine appropriate standards and then develop rules to govern implementation of the legislation
Agency Actions:
Quasi-judicial actions:
They entail judgment on particular matters (adjudication). They involve proceedings that produce orders relating to individual cases
E.g decision regarding meeting safety standards for particular plant, or decision regarding eligibility of a specific individual for workers’ compensation
Quasi-judicial actions:
A type of adjudication can be
Administrator making decisions that determine one’s status under the law
Agency discretion:
What is the ‘adequate’ amount of discretionary authority to be given to public administrators?
Not too much and not to little since excessive discretion can lead to arbitrariness and the violation of individual rights, while too little discretion can result in inflexibility
In many cases, this discretionary power is accorded by law
Judicial Review of administrative actions and discretionary power:
When does the judicial review take place?
When a party is suffering legal wrong because of agency action, or adversely aggrieved by agency action
Judicial Review of administrative actions and discretionary power:
How does the court review the case?
In light of constitutional, statutory, and executive provisions and determine the appropriateness of the administrative action
Types of policies
Distributive polcies
It is the policies that tend to distribute a good or granting some sort of benefits to some segments of the society.
Which type of polcies is the most common form of government policy
Distributive policy
examples of distributive polcies
- Farm subsidies
- National spending on local infrastructure
- Spending on schools
- Health and public service
Usually the benefits of these policies are distributed during the budget making
process
Which type of policy involve little conflict
Distributive polcies
Unlike regulatory policy, and due to the actual or assumed benefits to particular
people without any counter groups seeking to stop spending
Which type of policy wher in some cases, the good is provided for all , in other cases, some citizens will use the benefits and others will not
Distributive policy
Redistributive policy
is the policy that gives a benefit to one group by seeming to impose a discernable cost on another group
– It take taxes from certain groups and give them to another group.
Examples of redistributive polcies
- Income stabilization policies
- Social welfare
- Health care programs
- Aid to poor cities or schools
E.g progressive taxes
Types of polcies:
Constituent policy:
Types of polcies:
Constituent policy:
serve the government (legislation affecting the structure and function of government agencies, polices governing their operations
E.g. reorganization of the personnel system
Examples of Constituent policy
Foreign and defence policies
The term intergovernmental relations refers to
Complex and interdependent relationships among various levels of government as they seek to develop and implement public policies and programs.
Vertical structure and organization of governing power:
In democratic and decentralized countries, there are different possible types to organize local governments, such as:
- (1) the mayor-council,
- (2) the council-manager,
- (3) the commission (elected commissioners to form a council).
Efficiency, effectiveness and responsiveness of public administration at the local levels depend on
Great extent on the form of division of power among levels of government (i.e. degree of decentralization)
Decentralization means
Full decision making and implementation authority is transferred to local governments which are accountable only to its own constituents
Three dimensions of decentralization
- Administrative
- Political
- Fisical
Political decentralization
Means that local councils should be constituted through free elections not political appointments. Hence, local councils are held accountable to
the local citizens
Administrative decentralization
Is the transfer of certain administrative and
implementation functions and responsibilities to field units of government (local service offices).
It is argued that administrative decentralization should improve efficiency and responsiveness by locating the providers of public services and regulation closer to the citizens receiving them
Fiscal decentralization
Is the transfer of certain spending responsibilities and revenues raising authorities to sub-national governments. So, they can levy taxes, set their spending priorities (i.e. budget) and spend money independently from the center.
In some countries, sub-national authorities are merely agents of the central government that represent
De-concentrated administrative units of the center
In other countries, sub-national governments are autonomous and have full responsibility of public decision making.
One of the most common categorization of centralized/decentralized systems is that
of ____________ states.
Unitary, confederal and federal
In the context of Centralisation/Decentralisation:
It is argued that federal countries are more ________ than unitary countries
Decentralised
Confederate Structure
Constituent units grant powers to the central government but do not allow it to act independently
Federal Structure
Division of power between the federal gov. and state governments. Local governments exist under the legal framework of the states.
Unitary Structure
All powers reside with the central government and various units derive their powers from it.
Why the distinction Between Unitary states and Federal states are debatable
There are many unitary states that are quite
decentralized (e.g. UK & South Africa), while there are some federal states in which national (federal) governments possess great powers (e.g. India during the 1970s and 1980s
Which type of System:
The regional authorities (e.g. states) tend to
possess constitutionally guaranteed prerogatives
Federal systems
Which type of System:
central government possesses the right, at least legally, to recentralize
Unitary system
Complete the sentence:
Some argue that it is better to define and categorize government systems according
to a scale of decentralization regardless of
Being Unitary or Federal
Fiscal decentralization
Significant indicator of the degree of decentralization and independence of sub-national governments in developing public policies. It entails concrete and tangible indicators that measure the autonomy of local governments vis-à-vis central government
The patterns used to fund public programs is a key to
Understanding intergovernmental relations in any given country
Degree of fiscal decentralization is measured by
- Sub-national governments’ control over budgets and expenditures.
- Possession of considerable revenue raising authorities that include levying taxes; defining tax base and rate, borrowing powers.
- Degree of dependency on intergovernmental transfers to fund local expenditures, and their pattern
Why Dependency on central government transfers does not necessarily result in centralized system of governance
It depends mainly on their design that varies in the degrees of transparency, certainty, and guaranteed local autonomy
Which is more transparent:
A transfer system that is driven by set rules or by discretionary political decisions
Driven by a set of rules
Intergovernmental transfers depend mainly on
The design of the intergovernmental transfer system and to the extent it helps the local governments delivering various goods and services efficiently and responsively
Classifications of intergovernmental transfers according to:
- discretion of the recipient
- how they made available or allocated
- the purposes they serve
- requirement of matching funds
Discretion of the recipient/local autonomy (conditional/unconditional):
Categorical or project grants (conditional) vs. block grant (semi-conditional) and revenue sharing/and tax sharing (unconditional)
How they made available or allocated
As a part of classifications of intergovernmental transfers
Formula grants , revenue sharing, ad-hoc transfers, Project grants
As a part of /classifications of intergovernmental transfers:
The purposes they serve
Entitlement grants, operating grants, capital grants
As a Part of /classifications of intergovernmental transfers:
Requirement of matching funds:
Matching and non-matching grants
Intergovernmental fiscal transfers play distinctive roles in most countries, such as:
- Ensuring a minimum standard of local public services in all jurisdictions.
- Equalize fiscal disparities among sub-national governments due to differences in tax capacities and/or expenditure needs.
- Addressing externalities at the sub-national level because of the spill-over effects of some services.
- Encouraging fiscal efforts to raise and collect local revenues.
What are the forms of local to local relations?
Form of competition and cooperation.
What do sub-national governments compete for?
Economic development and acquiring central government’s grants.
In what forms do sub-national governments cooperate?
- Seeking advice concerning policy alternatives or new administrative arrangements.
- Sharing information and expertise in specialized areas like personnel, budgeting, purchasing, health, social welfare and so forth.
- Collaborative actions to solve common policy problems that transcend the borders of one jurisdiction, e.g. the common interests of people in several municipalities sharing the same underground water supply.
- Networking and partnership
What is the main difference between traditional public administration and the current system involving policy making and service delivery?
Unlike traditional (classical) public administration, many actors get involved in the various processes of policy making and service delivery.
What are nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and what roles do they play in the policy process?
NGOs include nonprofit, and for-profit organizations. For the last few decades, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have been playing increasing roles in the policy process. They can be found at all levels of governance and in a variety of policy areas.
How have NGOs been involved in the policy process in recent decades?
They are increasingly involved in raising issues to the agenda setting, lobbying for a particular policy alternatives, and guiding political and administrative decision making.
What is the role of NGOs in the implementation of public programs and the delivery of public services?
They have a leading role in the implementation of public programs and the delivery of public service.
How do relationships among various organizations affect the efficiency and effectiveness of public programs?
The efficiency and effectiveness of many public programs depend on the quality of the relationships among various organizations (e.g. public, private, and nonprofit).
Why is it important to understand the inter-organizational context of public administration?
For better understanding of the functionality of public administration in performing its various roles
What is the purpose of nonprofit organizations?
Nonprofit organizations represent a third or an independent sector that is located between the public sector and private sector.
Are nonprofit organizations allowed to make a profit? If so, what must be done with the profit?
Although nonprofit organizations can make profit, but they are prohibited by law to distribute this profit to its members. Rather, this profit must be used for fulfilling the purposes of the organization.
What are the major objectives of nonprofit organizations?
Mainly, their major objective is to meet the needs of the public at large or a particular portion of the public, or the needs and interests of their own members.
Where is the public orientation of nonprofit organizations reflected?
The public orientation of nonprofit organizations is reflected in their legal structure and tax-exemption status.
How is the public orientation of nonprofit organizations reflected in their legal structure?
The public orientation of nonprofit organizations is reflected in their legal structure and tax-exemption status.
Why is an understanding of the various types of nonprofit organizations, their structure and management needed?
In order to have more effective inter-organizational cross-sectors relations, an understanding of the various types of nonprofit organizations, their structure, and management is needed.
According to NGOs sources of financial support
List the Various types of NGOs
- Charitable Organisation
- Advocacy Organisation
- Mutual Benefit Organisation
What are charitable or public benefit organizations?
They aim to serve the public at large, or some segments of the public. They may receive fund from the government and private contributors
Examples: Save the Children, Mersal
foundation, Resala, Magdi Yacoub Heart Foundation
Give an example of an advocacy organization.
The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights and the Egyptian Centre for Women’s Rights.
What are mutual benefit organizations?
Organizations that produce benefits primarily for their members, such as labor unions and professional organizations (syndicates).
What are Advocacy organisations?
groups that support a particular cause and seek to lobby for that cause whether through direct lobbying or grassroots.
Structure and management of nonprofit organizations
- Staff (serve as a base)
- Operational Leadership
- Non-profit board
What is the role of a board in a nonprofit organization?
The board represents the final decision-making body in a nonprofit organization.
Why are boards important in effective nonprofit management?
Boards are important in effective nonprofit management because they are responsible for setting strategic plans, developing operational structure, and overseeing fiscal and programmatic operations.
What are the responsibilities of a nonprofit board?
The responsibilities of a nonprofit board include presenting the organization in the external community, formulating and developing the organization’s mission and vision, setting strategic plans, hiring an executive director, and overseeing fiscal and programmatic operations.
What is the difference between a mission and a vision for a nonprofit organization?
The mission represents the purpose of the organization that will serve its community, while the vision is the guiding image of what members want the organization to become in the future.
Managing a nonprofit organization involves various aspects such as
Operational leadership, board-staff relations management, resource development, and financial management.
Managing a nonprofit organization involves various aspects such as
operational leadership, board-staff relations management, resource development, and financial management.
What is the Interorganizational context of public administration?
Relations between the administrative system and nongovernmental organizations
How important of a role do NGOs play in the process of policy making and public service provision?
NGOs play very important role in the process of policy making and public service provision.
What is the ideology behind greater involvement of NGOs in the delivery of public service?
According to the liberal and neoliberal ideologies, in concomitant with New Public Management and Reinventing
Government movements, government should be steering the society and the economy rather than rowing
According to the ideology, what is the meaning of the government steering the society and the economy rather than rowing?
Each sector (public, private, nonprofit) should provide the goods and services that it can produce and deliver most efficiently and effectively whether separately or collaboratively.
What is the shift in authority relations that is seen in today’s public contract relationships?
The shift is from traditional authority-based relations (hierarchical vertical model) to negotiation relations (horizontal model).
What is the current approach to the development and implementation of public policies and delivery of public services, according to the interorganizational context of public administration?
The development and implementation of public policies, and delivery of public services are managed through networks of agencies and various forms of privatizations and partnerships at the national and subnational levels, rather than being limited to the executive branch of government and its public agencies.
What is the concept of Policy Networks?
Policy Networks refer to a set of relatively stable relationships of non-hierarchical and interdependent nature among actors from various sectors, who share common interests regarding a policy and exchange resources to pursue these shared interests in the best possible cooperative manner.
What are the four types of policy and service delivery networks?
- Service implementation network.
- Information diffusion network.
- Problem solving network.
- Community capacity building network
What is the difference between full privatization and privatization in a narrow sense?
Full privatization or privatization in a broader sense refers to efforts to remove government from any involvement in either the design or conduct of a particular service, e.g. direct sale of public assets to private firms. While, Privatization in a more narrow sense refers to various devices through which a gov. retains a policy role regarding a particular service, but engages someone else to actually deliver the service;
e.g. partnership
What is partnership and how is it different from public procurement or full privatization?
Unlike the once-off transaction involved in public procurement (where government buys goods and services like offices, vehicles and computer maintenance) or full privatization (where government sells assets to the private sector), Partnership involves locking in long-term collaboration between parties, through contractual arrangements, to share the costs, rewards and risks of projects.
What are public-private partnerships (PPPs) or public-private nonprofit partnerships (PPNPs) and in what scenarios do they take place?
Take place where the private or nonprofit party performs a function usually carried out by government, such as providing water or maintaining a road; or where the private party acquires the use of state property for its own commercial purposes; or a hybrid of the two.
Payment could involve the institution paying the private party for the delivery of the service; or the private party collecting fees or charges from users of the service; or a combination of these.
How do both government and private/nonprofit organizations benefit from PPPs/PPNPs?
Both sides stand to benefit from the contractual agreement. Government earns revenue by leasing state-owned assets or alternatively pays the private sector or nonprofit organizations for improved infrastructure and better service delivery.
Why is it believed that the private sector can provide better service provision in PPPs/PPNPs?
This is because it is believed that the private sector can do the job more efficiently, which can lower prices and improve service provision. The private operator gets reimbursed either by government or consumers for doing its work, at a profit
What is contracting out in the context of privatization/partnership?
Contracting out involves government working with NGOs or businesses under a contract to deliver services. Examples of this include contracting with private firms to provide computer programming or contracting with nonprofit organizations to deliver services to welfare recipients. Public officials are responsible for administering the contracts and ensuring standards for service quality.
E.g contracting with private firms to provide computer programming
Sometimes, main contractors can sub-contract with other NGOs to handle actual
service delivery.
What is a franchise in the context of privatization/partnership?
A franchise can be awarded to a private firm to perform a certain service. The firm charges citizens directly for the service it provides.
E.g. concessions like B.O.T and B.O.O.T.
What is the B.O.T model in the context of privatization/partnership?
The B.O.T model stands for Build, Operate, Transfer. In this model, a private party or concessionaire retains a concession for a fixed period from a public party for the development and operation of a public facility. The concessionaire secures a return of investment by operating the facility and pays annual fees to the public entity during the concession period.
The development consists of the financing, design and construction of the facility, managing and maintaining the facility adequately, and making it sufficiently profitable.
What is the B.O.O.T model in the context of privatization/partnership?
The B.O.O.T model stands for Build, Own, Operate, Transfer. In this model, a public authority makes an agreement with a private company (concessionaire) to design, build, own, and operate a specific piece of infrastructure. The private party achieves income from the facility under a concession period of approximately 15-25 years before transferring it back into public ownership through a single organization or consortium (BOOT provider).
In BOOT agreements, the private party do not pay any fees to the public entity during
the concession period.
What are grants and subsidies in the context of privatization/partnership?
Grants and subsidies are provided to NGOs performing needed public services. They are a form of governmental support for activities that benefit the community but the government, for particular reasons, does not wish to operate on its own.
What are vouchers in the context of privatization/partnership?
Vouchers are coupons that citizens redeem for goods and services. They allow individuals to choose both the supplier and the items to be purchased (within stated limits).
Mechanisms of Privatization/partnership:
- Contracting out.
- Franchise
- Grants and subsidies.
- Vouchers.
What is one motive for involving NGOs in service delivery and public programs?
Restrictions on government spending and a resulting effort to find more efficient ways to conduct the public’s business.
Why is it believed that NGOs are more attentive to clients’ needs and preferences?
NGOs are often more specialized and have a closer relationship with the communities they serve.
How does privatization enhance competition among service providers?
Privatization creates competition among service providers, which ensures higher quality provision at a lower cost.
Why do private firms operate more efficiently than public agencies?
Private firms have greater flexibility, different labor costs, and economies of scale.
When might goods not be appropriate to be provided by the public sector?
Some goods may be better suited to the private sector, such as those requiring specialized expertise or involving high risk.
What are some of the moral issues that may arise in partnership arrangements?
Moral issues: lowering expenses at the cost of personnel, favortisim for companies that already have contracts with the gov., preference for large firms over small ones, and corrupt behavior of the government officials.
Challenges of partnership:
- Traditional mechanism of control and accountability may not work.
- Maintain democratic values of equity and responsiveness.
- Managerial challenge of creating appropriate inter-organizational policy network.
Requirements of successful privatization/partnership:
- Training of public officials to be contract managers.
- Good planning.
- Effective monitoring and accountability system.
- Adequate competition.
- Good interagency coordination.
What are categorical grants and project grants, and how do they differ from block grants?
Categorical grants or project grants are used for a limited purpose, while block grants can be used for various purposes within a specific functional field.
What is a formula grant?
A formula grant employs a specific decision rule indicating how much money any given jurisdiction will receive. Typically, the decision rule is related to the purpose of the grant (for example, money for housing might be distributed to qualified governments based on the age and density of residential housing).
What is a project grant?
A project grant makes funds available on a competitive basis. Those seeking aid must submit an application for assistance for review and approval by the granting agency.
