Why Governance in crisis? what are the elements required of excellent service oriented governance in punlic service delivery?

Today, although man possesses the resources and the technology to create a poverty-free world 

in the period of one generation, about a quarter of the human population on earth continue to 

live in extreme poverty. 

Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has said: “Poverty is not simply the lack of income. It is also the lack 

of a voice, of a responsive local administration that can redress local needs; the lack of a system 

of governance that is transparent and accountable to people it supposedly exists to serve”.

growing restlessness with the systems and instruments of Governance. Available evidence suggests a continuous decline in the quality of governance in most developing countries.

Decline in the quality of governance in 

most developing countries are due to 

1)Dichotomy between the political and executive wings of governance.

2)Breaking down of existing institutions 

3)Corruption in the polity and economy 

4)Lack of societal involvement in governance.

The key indicators of governance,They  are: 

Voice and accountability, which includes a number of indicators that measure various aspects of the political process, civil liberties and political rights.

Political stability and absence of violence, which consists of several indicators that measure the 

chances that a government will be overthrown by unconstitutional means.

Government effectiveness is about the quality of public service provision, the bureaucracy and 

its competence and independence and, most critically, the credibility of the government’s 

commitment to policies.

Rule of law includes several indicators that “measure the extent to which agents have 

confidence in and abide by the rules of society. These include perceptions of the incidence of 

crime, the effectiveness and predictability of the judiciary, and the enforceability of contracts.”, 

and

Control of corruption which is about all the things we know and could set up world-class 

universities in. It includes the tendency of the elite to engage in “state capture”.

The Elements Of Good Governance

“Good Governance means eliminating poverty by empowering the poor, unprivileged and the 

exploited. Good Governance means a system and a structure that are democratic, transparent, 

clean, efficient, equitable, sensitive and accountable.

Good Governance requires, “not so much additional resources as better personnel policies and sound delivery mechanism. Unless teachers attend schools and teach, unless doctors attend 

health centres and provide health care, and subsidies reach the poor, mere increase in the social sector expenditure would only result in further leakage…” 

To understand the roots of governance we need to first look at the elements of excellent service 

oriented governance . If we treat the recipients of the service (i.e., citizens) as customers, and 

also look at the state as another stake holder, the dimension of Good Governance could be listed 

as under:

Empathetic orientation towards citizens / customers:The Administrators’ ability to understand the customers’ need and requirements, from their perspective, and realistically appraise whether or not something is doable.

Commitment to excellence:Individual commitment to help citizens in achieving their goals objectives within the given resources.

Responsiveness:Administrators taking responsibility for creating a delightful experience for citizens / customers and solving their problems.

Reliability and trustworthiness:

The administrators ability to generate trust and win the confidence of customers / citizens.

Creative problem solving ability:

The administrator’s ability to come up with innovative solutions to customer problems within 

the given constraints.

Timeliness:

An administrator’s ability to accomplish things within time constraints and deadlines.

Tolerance for pressure:

An administrator’s ability to maintain control and poise in the face of adversity and political 

pressures.

Service recovery mind-set:

An administrator’s ability to undo the bad service experience of a citizen / customer by taking 

the required corrective action there and then itself.

In a nutshell, good Governance is all about:

1. Accurate and sensitive understanding of peoples’ needs, and 

2. Creative responses to these needs with a resourceful mind.

Gita sums up good Governance:

Yatra Yogesvarah Krsna

yatra Partho dhanur-dharah;

Tatra srih, vijayo, bhutih,

dhruva nitih matir mama –

Whatever (there is the spirit) of Krsna, the master of yoga (The master of vision), (and) 

wherever (there is the spirit of) Arjuna, the wielder of the bow (the hero of action), there, I am 

convinced, wealth, victory, welfare, and unshakable justice (shall prevail)’.