THE LOGICAL LIMITS OF BEST PRACTICE ADMINISTRATIVE SOLUTIONS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Developing countries are pressured to adopt administrative solutions that the international community considers best practice. Some claim that these practices do not fit such contexts. How could one assess the fit or relevance of a best practice? This article suggests a basic answer: Look at the degree of difference between the proposed adoption context and the context in which such practice emerged as ‘best’. This answer emerges from a discussion on the basis of the new institutional ideas about change and diffusion. An empirical analysis of public financial management reform in African countries suggests support for this answer: Good practices are most evident in countries least different to the developed nations where practices originated and least evident in countries most different to these developed nations. The article contributes to a literature on best practice and yields fundamental messages for development, including the point that best practices are limited as administrative solutions in many developing countries. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

STATE-CIVIL SOCIETY NETWORKS FOR POLICY IMPLEMENTATION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES1

The emphasis in this article is on the trends which speak of governance rather than government. Governance refers to the role of citizens in the policy process and how groups within a society organize to make and implement decisions on matters of great concern. The focus is on democratic governance as taking place through networks in developing countries. These networks are referred to as state-civil society networks and are defined as cross-sectoral collaborations in which the view is not of individuals, per se, but rather of individual actors who are seen as a connected and interdependent whole. Three case studies of such state-civil society networks provide some preliminary lessons which suggest four situational variables for the emergence and success of these networks. These include: regime type, level of trust, legal framework and regulations, and the nature of the policy to be implemented. They also suggest some effective mechanisms and processes based on ad hoc vs formalizedmechanisms, initiation of the network and coordinating linkages.     

LOCAL TAXES AND LOCAL EXPENDITURES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: STRENGTHENING THE WICKSELLIAN CONNECTION

Many countries are decentralizing in various ways. Decentralization is often intended at least partly to make government more efficient, flexible, and responsive. Many studies have evaluated the effects of decentralization on the provision of such services as health and education as well as on corruption, stability, and growth. Because what governments do and how well they do it is inseparably entangled with the question of how they are financed, this article outlines why and how a key element in a sound decentralization program should be to strengthen the linkage between local expenditures and local revenues—called here the Wicksellian Connection. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

THE ADMINISTRATION OF FRENCH NATIONAL ECONOMIC PLANNING: LESSONS FOR AUSTRALIA

"We are therefore giving priority to setting up economic planning machinery with industry and employee co-operation to restore strong but balanced economic growth."—E. G. Whitlam, The Australian , 14th May, 1973.     

THE IMPLICATIONS OF HIGH LEVELS OF PUBLIC SECTOR DEBT FOR ECONOMIC POLICY-MAKING: THE CASE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Abstract: The relatively small and open South Australian economy has been facing the difficulties associated with the structural adjustment of its industry for over 15 years. In addition, the South Australian public sector has been contending with financial difficulties largely as a result of a reduction in grants from the commonwealth before the failure of the State Bank of South Australia. This paper reviews the growth and current level of government indebtedness in South Australia and discusses which group(s) is likely to bear the main burden of such debt. The main consequences of high levels of state public sector debt, including budgetary inflexibility, are also examined. The paper suggests that it will be necessary for relative wages and prices to adjust more freely if the negative impacts of an inevitable state government budgetary consolidation are to be minimised. If wages and prices are not free to adjust then unemployment will continue to take the brunt of the adjustment process. In addition, out-migration of businesses and people from South Australia will accelerate, leading to a further erosion of the taxation base. The State Bank indemnity arrangements and consequent levels of public sector debt incurred will require the state government to reduce the level and quality of services provided by the state public sector, sell state public sector assets and further improve efficiency and effectiveness. However, there are a number of important arguments why taxation should be an important means by which the South Australian government moves to retire public sector debt as soon as practicable. Not the least important of these arguments is the need to ensure accountability by elected representatives of government for their expenditure decisions.     

PREDICTORS OF ELECTORAL TURNOUT: AN INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON*

Voter turnout in the United States is much lower than in almost all other democratic countries. This has been interpreted as a symptom of popular alienation from the political system, suspicion of politicians, and pessimism about the consequences of political activity. When these perspectives are measured directly, however, it is clear that Americans score very low on almost every item. Indeed, there is no relationship between political con- tentment and turnout. Turnout does not reflect international variations in acceptance of politicians or the political system. Rather, it responds to variations in the bureaucratic steps required to cast a ballot. The United States is one of a handful of countries that require a separate step–registra- tion–before the citizen can vote; and with the partial exception of France it is the only country in which the individual rather than the state bears the responsibility for registration.