Governance: Meaning And Concepts

(Academic year 2022-23) Class:- FYB.SC(COMPUTER SCIENCE) Div:-D Team:- FD61 To FD70 Faculty:-Prof.Shriram.N.Kargaonkar.

Meaning. Governance concerns mostly the rules of the game of political rule, and it is a conscious management of regime structures with a view to enhancing the legitimacy of the public realm(Goran Hyden,1992). State and public administrations are regarded as the basic actors and arenas of governance.

GOVERNMENT. A group of people that governs a community or unit. It sets and administers public policy and exercises executive, political and sovereign power through customs, institutions, laws within a state. A government can be classified into many types:- Democracy, Republic, Monarchy, Aristocracy and Dictatorship are just a few..

GOVERNANCE. Is the exercise of Political, Economics and administrative authority to manage a nations’s affairs. Governance embraces all of the methods –good and bad- that societies use to distribute power and manage public resources and problems. To govern to exercise power and authority over a territory system or organization..

Governance and government. Are synonymous in most dictionaries both denoting the exercise of authority in an organization, institution or state To better understand their distinction the author aimed to answer these through the following questions. 1) What activities are encompassed in the act of governing ? RULE ORCHESTRATE CONTROL LEAD MANAGE Government rules and controls but in a state of governance it orchestrates and manages.

Rule of Law. A cornerstone of good governance is adherence to the, that is, the impersonal and impartial applications of stable and predictable laws, statutes, rules and regulations, without regard for social status or political considerations Governance chooses management over control because its system is permeable, admits outside influences, assumes no omnipotence or omniscience on the part of the decision makes and subjects decisions to the evaluation and critique of all those with a stake in them. All governing is an act of leadership moving society towards a preferred direction..

ACTORS IN GOVERNANCE. State Civil society Market.

State. Sate is the enabler. To enable is to make changes in the law and incentive structure and to develop local capacity rather than to manage resources or to deliver services directly. Creation of a government which creates an enabling setting within which the people can be more effective in meetings those needs..

Civil Society. Civil society consists of the complex of citizens and groups outside government but working in a public area. Sometimes called non government organizations, or the non profit or voluntary sector. They attempt to represent the interest of the inarticulate and the excluded or marginalized to organize them to raise their voices on social issues and own their issues. They get organized and contest the power of the state to show alternative ways of service provision and policy formulation. NGO’s may engage in the critique of existing government policy and may challenge government by competing with government’s own delivery systems. NGO’s may likewise mobilize people to prove themselves eligible to receive government social services.

MARKET. This refers to the stakeholders or those who will benefit from the services given by government. The can also be referred to as those governed.

PROCESSES PUSHING FOR GOVERNANCE. Quest for growth and development The Environment Movement Globalization espouses a free market Consolidating Peace.

1. Quest for growth and development. Here the state became the principal planner, energizer and promoter and director of the accelerated development effort. The state has a role in planning for the whole economy and society and also create enterprise..

2. The Environment Movement. The concept of development from the exclusive focus on economic growth to the inclusion of distributional goals like reduction of poverty and inequality to the current battle cry for “sustainable human development”. Redefined public interest with nature as a recognized stakeholder. This movement underscores that that no one sector can manage the demands of society and the environment by itself.

3.Globalization espouses a free market. Creation of an international network with the use of e technology and the sourcing of products from the cheapest markets available. Most countries have to join the World Trade organization and restructure their laws to provide safety nets and bureaucracies to overhaul their regulatory governance mechanism. The World Bank and the United Nations likewise has roles to play in funding projects and ensure that the rights of people are respected..

4. Consolidating Peace. Need to consolidate peace in war-torn nations. This requires bringing together former adversaries beyond the discussion table to seek peace and reconciliation. It is impossible to buid a nation without peace. This also gives a chance for former rebels to go back to society and redeem themselves and be a part of the change..

CRITERIA FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE. Accountability and ethics in decision making and implementation. Transparency and predictability on decisions made. Rule bound decision Making and action. Responsiveness to the will of the people. Long term view of public interest..

Aims of good governance. Enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of administration Improving the quality of life of citizens Establishing the legitimacy and credibility of institutions Securing the freedom of information and expression Ensuring accountability Using IT –based services to improve citizen-government interface Improving or enhancing the productivity of employees.

Characteristics of Good Governance. The World Bank states six main Characteristics as following Voice and accountability that include civil liberties and poltical stability Government effectiveness, which comprises the quality of policymaking and public service delivery The quality of the regulatory framework The rule of law which includes protection of property rights Independents of judiciary Curbs on corruption.

CAPACITIES TO BE DEVELOPED TO ACHIEVE GOOD GOVERNANCE.

Good Governance. Good governance sets the normative standards of development. It fosters participation, ensures transparency, demands accountability, Promotes efficiency, and upholds the rule of law in economic, political and administrative institutions and processes. It is a hallmark of political maturity but also requisite for growth and poverty reduction, for there are irreducible minimum levels of governance needed for large-scale investment to occur and for social programs to be supported..

Public Service Delivery. The Anti-Red Tape Act (ARTA) of 2007 already requires national departments, agencies, and LGUs to set up their respective service standards known as Citizen's Charters (CCs), to simplify procedures, and to facilitate transactions. As of August 30, 2010, 74 percent of agencies (4,253 of 5,716) nationwide had complied with the drafting and promulgation of CCs. As a means to develop citizens' awareness of their rights vis-à-vis government and encouraging citizens' criticisms when aggrieved, this is one step towards cutting red tape and reducing corruption. However, This is unlikely to be sufficient..

Impersonal online services can reduce the face-to-face transactions that typically provide the occasion for extortion and corruption, and some agencies have provided such services. These include the Land Transportation Office (LTO), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). The government has also selected 120 LGUs to become "Sparkplugs for Governance and Economic Development" by, among others, streamlining their business permit and licensing system to reduce opportunities for bribery and other forms of corruption. These reforms need to be harmonized and welle stablished, however, for significant results to be achieved. Moreover, in the "Ease of Doing Business" index, the Philippines remained in the bottom fifth of the economies surveyed (rank 148 out of 183 economies surveyed).

Various initiatives have also been undertaken to provide a more competitive compensation system in the government to improve the economic wellbeing of civil servants and raise their morale, with a view to better service provision. The pay of government personnel covered by the Compensation and Position Classification under RA 6758, as amended, was adjusted in 2007 and 2008 through an additional 10 percent increase in basic monthly salaries. The integrity of the civil service has been perennially undermined by appointments based on political accommodation rather than on merit and fitness, a phenomenon that is partly an offshoot of the president's vast powers of appointment and discretion. This is true across the board but particularly in third- level positions and in the appointment of teachers, police, and treasurers. The eligibility requirement is only weakly enforced in the career executive service, in which 47 percent of the occupied positions are held by noneligible individuals..

Local governments confront rising public expectations regarding the delivery of services. Despite almost two decades of implementation of the 1991 Local Government Code (LGC), however, local governments still face various challenges in the exercise of their devolved service delivery functions. Foremost among these is the raising of sufficient funds for local development. A majority of the local governments still lack the ability or the will to raise adequate local revenues. LGUs have become unduly dependent on Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) transfers from the national government and have failed to manage their financial resources effectively and sustainably. Owing to loopholes in the LGC, as well as the lack of capacities of local governments in assuming devolved functions, national government agencies (NGAs) continue to deliver certain services despite the transfer of these services to the local governments. The confused and overlapping performance of functions compromises the lines of accountability for local services..

Citizens Participations. Citizens' participation has been one of the strengths of Philippine governance. Partnerships between government and CSOs facilitate the promotion of good governance. The government also partners with CSOs in promoting transparency, accountability and public participation in the preparation, authorization, execution and monitoring of the national budget. These efforts must be sustained and, in some cases, deepened. It is also noted that while citizens' participation in local development councils and special bodies is mandated, CSOs claim that most of these are either inoperative or nominal.

The actual practice of many citizens testifies to the highly uneven willingness or preparedness of government offices to provide information as well as the poor quality of the information provided, if at all. This is also seen from the country's low score for the 2008 Global Integrity Report under the category of Civil Society, Public Information and Media category, which even dropped one point from the 2007 score of 69. The proposed Freedom of Information Act is an important step towards addressing this problem..