Accountability and Transparency and their impact on Public Administraion

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Accountability, Transparency Their impact on
Public Administration By Md. Shamsul Arefin A
member of Bangladesh Civil Service belonging to
84 Batch (Admin)
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Crossing the Boundary between Traditional Public
Administration and Postmodern Public
Administration
Modern Public Administration
Traditional Public Administration
Inclusiveness of Civic Society
Governing for the betterment of Society
Bureaucracy
State
Diverse groups, pluralism
High Performance
Oppositional Civil Society

• Dialectical Exchanges
• Trust

Citizen
Public Officials
Social issues
Citizen
Active participation Democratic Inclusion
Corporatism

• Open
• Honest

• Shared Decision
• Collaborative Discussion

• Governing State
• Hierarchical relationship
• Direct, Command

State Democracy
Election
vote
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• Accountability
• Accountability refers to the obligation on the
  part of public officials to report on the process
  of public resources answerability for failing
  to meet stated performance objectives.
• Obligation
• Answerability
• Require to answer with reason

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Accountability
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Transparency Transparency is about the sharing
of information about government decisions and
activities, good records management and access to
information etc. There is emerging potential for
new forms of conflict of interest involving an
individuals private interests and public duties.
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Five Factors of Transparency Measure
Timely
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Transparency Transparency is introduced as a
means of holding public officials accountable and
fighting corruption. When government meetings are
open to the press and the public, when budgets
and financial statements may be reviewed by
anyone, when laws, rules and decisions are open
to discussion, they are seen as transparent and
there is less opportunity for the authorities to
abuse the system in their own interest. Transpar
ency is the opposite of privacy an activity is
transparent if all information about it is open
and freely available.
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• Transparency accountability
• in public administration
• Citizens expect public servants to serve the
  public interest with fairness and to manage
  public resources properly on a daily basis.
• Fair and reliable public services and predictable
  decision-making inspire public trust and create a
  level playing field for services
• The transparency and accountability in public
  administration are a prerequisite to public
  trust.
• Corruption and maladministration in this
  context could be seen as not only individual acts
  but also the results of systemic failure
• Publicized corruption and administrative failure
  cases have had a major negative impact on trust
  in public.

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Public Trust Create more institutions to reduce
corruption . increasing citizen access to
information about government programs, activities
and performance and informing citizens of their
rights and responsibilities An important
component of this function is involving more and
better training the press to report on integrity
and accountability of public sector
entities. Gaining and keeping public trust must
be approached holistically, as the threads of
integrity, transparency and accountability
together uphold all public trust. Integrity
refers to honesty or trustworthiness in the
discharge of official duties, serving as an
antithesis to corruption or the abuse of
office.
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The Mountain of Public Administration Purpose
PUBLIC TRUST
Legality
Integrity
Fairness
Dependability
Effectiveness
Involvement
Transparency
Efficiency
GOODSELL, C.T. (2006). A New Vision for Public
Administration." Public Administration Review
66(4) 623-635.
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Corruption

• Bid collusion, inflated invoices, kickbacks
  to influence award of contracts, theft or misuse
  of project assets, abuse of official discretion,
  disclosure of privileged information to assist
  friends/ relatives, falsification of accounts,
  audit anomalies etc.

Corruption hurts the poor disproportionately
by diverting funds intended for development,
undermining a governments ability to provide
basic services, feeding inequality and injustice,
and discouraging foreign investment and aid
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Transparency in Public Works In the context
of transparency mechanisms, Construction is the
most corrupt sector, according to TIs 2010 Bribe
Payers Index. The size of the sector is globally
US 3.2 trillion per annum. Construction
infrastructure accounts for a high percentage of
government investment budgets in all countries.
Therefore, tackling construction can have a high
overall impact on corruption.
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Corruption in Public Works Corruption in
construction raises cost and lowers quality of
infrastructure. It leads to bad investments,
damages the environment, leads to deaths (through
ignoring building codes), undermines economic and
sustainable development Risks for corruption in
construction exist throughout design, planning,
preparation, contracting and implementation.
Risks include bribery, collusion, deception and
abuse of unexposed conflicts of interest. To
curb financial, environmental and human damage
from corruption in construction, government must
assure transparency of preparation, procurement
and execution process and enforce all relevant
laws. Civil society and the media should
monitor public construction projects.
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Impact of Corruption Unethical practices,
bribery, and fraud have a very real human
cost. whether it be in the lives and health of
people who are robbed of quality health care and
medicines or children who are not properly
educated. The financial and even public safety
costs of corruption are astonishing. A lack of
public trust undermines and even destroys
political stability. Corruption remains the
single most significant obstacle to achieving the
development of the country.
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GOVERNMENT
Legislative Body
Executives Offices
Judiciary
People
Public Agency
Input
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Concept of Good Governance
Good governance provides a platform that enables
the Government to operate efficiently,
effectively and transparently and to be
accountable to the public. Primary Principles of
Good Governance include

• Public participation in Government
• Respect for the rule of law
• Freedom of expression and association
• Transparency and accountability

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People

• Free information
• Organizational loyalties
• Efficiency
• Time bound
• Commitment
• Competition
• Satisfactory Service

Press Electronic Print Media
Good Governance
1) Citizens Report Card 2) Social Audit 3)
Community Awareness 4) Parliamentary
oversight 5) Anti corruption Initiatives
Civil Society CBO, NGO,
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GOVERNANCE

• Governance means the process of decision-making
  and the process by which decisions are
  implemented (or not implemented).
• (UN ESCAP)

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GOVERNANCE

• Governance as the manner in which power is
  exercise by the government in the management of a
  countrys social and economic resources - (CIDA)
• Governance as the exercise of economic, political
  and administrative authority to manage a
  countrys affairs at all lever (UNDP)

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GOVERNANCE

• Therefore governance is viewed as comprising the
  mechanisms, processes and institutions through
  which citizens and groups
• articulate their interest
• exercise their legal rights
• meet their obligations and
• mediate their differences

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Process of GG
Preparation of Policy
Result Oriented Budgeting
Ministries
External Monitoring
Internal Monitoring
Strategic Planning
Performance Measurement
POISTER, T.H., Streib, G.D. (1999). Strategic
Management in the Public Sector concepts,
Models, and Processes, Public Productivity
Management Review, 22(3)318.
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Good Governance

• Pillars of Good Governance
• Transparency
• Accountability
• Participation

Good governance is integral to economic growth,
the eradication of poverty and hunger, and
sustainable development. The views of all
oppressed groups, including women, youth and
poor, must be heard considered by governing
bodies because they will be most negatively
affected if good governance is not achieved
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Source World Banks report
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Features of GOOD GOVERNANCE
UNDPs Definition
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Features of Good Governance

• UNDP identifies the principle characteristics of
  effective governance as
• Political legitimacy accountability
• Freedom of association and participation
• A reliable legal system
• Accountability of public service
• Freedom of information expression
• Effective efficient management of the public
  sector
• Freedom of expression the role of media

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Good Practice Good Governance Framework
ELEMENTS ISSUES
1. PROCUREMENT Ensure transparent and efficient procurement at national, provincial commune levels
2. FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Ensure strong internal controls at central, provincial, district commune levels External/ internal audit capacity Minimize cash transactions Adoption of Merit-Based Performance Incentive by project.
3. DISCLOSURE Minimize possible conflicts of interest among project staff Enhance transparency through public disclosure of project information
4. CIVIL SOCIETY ROLE Provide for greater involvement by Civil Society Organizations
5. COMPLAINTS REMEDIES MECHANISM Provide overall complaints and grievances mechanism covering all aspects of project
6. CODE OF ETHICAL CONDUCT Require all staff to adhere to Code of Ethical Conduct
7. SANCTIONS Reinforce Code of Ethical Conduct with sanctions for fraudulent/ corrupt activity by project staff, contractors, suppliers consultants.
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In Short Good Governance

• Enabling Peoples Satisfaction
• Ensuring accountability and transparency
• Ensuring participation of public in governance
• Eliminating corruption
• Empowering people

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Good Governance allows people to access any

• Information pertaining to any of public
  authorities
• Photocopies of Government contracts, payment,
  estimates, measurements of engineering works,
  drawings, records books and registers etc.
• Samples of materials used in the construction of
  any Government project like roads, drains,
  buildings etc.

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What is Civil Society?
Civil society or civil institutions can be in
totality referred to as voluntary, civic and
social organisations or institutions which form
the basis of a functioning society as opposed to
the force backed structures of a state
(regardless of that state's political system).
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Conceptual Model of Approaches to Civic
Engagement
Civil Society Approach
People
Electoral
Information Exchange
Civil Society
Bureaucracy
Enhancing Government Trust in citizens
Enhancing Government Legitimacy
Citizen-Centered Collaborative Public Management
Enhancing Government Responsiveness
Enhancing Citizen Efficacy
Enhancing Citizen Trust in Government
Enhancing Government Competence
COOPER, T. L., T. A. Bryer, et al. (2006).
"Citizen-Centered Collaborative Public
Management." Public Administration Review 66(1)
76-88.
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Basic Elements of a Production Process
Understanding of Effectiveness
Effects
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
effectiveness
efficiency/productivity
Effects (outcome) are nor part of the production
process they refer to the impacts on society
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Management System Concept A Model
Process in Good Governance
INPUTS
OUTPUTS

• services

PROCESSES or PROCEDURES

• Mission requirement
• Workload
• Resources
• Programs, plans and schedules

FEED BACK PERFORMANCE
U.S. Army Management Engineering Training Agency
(1973). Special Studies of Measurement Problems,
2, Rock Island, Illinois.
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Communication as an Early Outcome of Performance
Measurement Implementation
Performance Achieved
Long-term outcomes
Improved program quality, responsiveness, and
effectiveness
Better management of programs and public
organizations more informed fiscal allocation
decisions
Intermediate outcomes
Changed/improved communication among
program/ agency staff and with external
stakeholders and policymakers
Initial outcomes
Communication of performance information
about programs and activities
Outputs
Performance measurement development and
integration into existing and new decision
processes and systems
Activities
MELKERS, J. (2006). On the Road to Improved
Performance Changing Organizational
Communication Through Performance Management,
Public Performance Management Review, 30(1)
73-95.
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Social Audit
Social Audit is an independent and participatory
evaluation of the performance of a public agency
or a programme or scheme. Social Audit enables
the Civil Society to assess whether a public
authority lives up to the shared values and
objectives it is committed to.
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Principles of Social Audit
Complete transparency in the process of
administration and decision-making Right based
entitlement for all the affected persons to
participate in the process of decision making and
validation. Immediate and public answerability
of all representatives functionaries of a
public authority to affected people on relevant
actions inactions.
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Internal check external monitoring
In Primary Health Services

• Attendance of medical officer and other staff
• Field visits supervisory visits of the PHC
  staff
• Stock registers and inventory of medicines
• No. of Outpatients treated
• No. of Surgeries conducted and their success rate
  
• Inspection of immunisation registers cold chain
• Inspection of other relevant registers
• Samples of medicines being supplied to patients.

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Internal check external monitoring
In Primary Education

• Teacher Attendance Registers
• Pupil Attendance Registers
• Teaching standards in the schools (Curriculum and
  daily lessons)
• Enrollment and drop-out rate of students
• Student performance (Progress reports)
• Implementation of Mid-Day Meal Programme
• Infrastructure standards in schools (Class rooms,
  black boards, teaching aids, toilets etc.)

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Conclusion

• Good governance is an ideal which is difficult to
  achieve in its totality.
• Very few countries and societies have come close
  to achieving good governance in its totality.
• Transparency Accountability will always be
  there with sustainable human development and good
  governance.