Reforming Africa S Institutions

There is not a single African country that did not attempt public sector reforms in the 1990s. Governments no longer see themselves as sole suppliers of social services, frequently opting for partnerships with the private sector. Efficiency and choice have entered the language of the planning and implementation units of Africa's line ministries, while privatization is no longer the controversial subject it was a decade ago. There have also been moves towards more open and democratic governments. Reforming Africa's Institutions looks at the extent to which reforms undertaken in Sub-Saharan Africa in recent years have enhanced institutional capacities across the breadth of government. To what extent have reforms been internalized and defended by governments? The authors also look specifically at the impact of public sector reforms on these economies and pose the question whether 'ownership can be attained when countries continue to be heavily dependent on external support. The volume is presented in three parts. The first focuses on the issue of reform ownership; on the issues of governance, the political economy of reform ownership, and the contradictions inherent in using aid as an instrument for enhancing domestic reform ownership. Part two examines the nature of incentives in the African civil service and the reforms undertaken in recent years to raise public sector efficiency in Africa. The third part discusses issues related to institutional capabilities in Africa and how they have been affected by the reforms undertaken in the 1990s, including privatization and movement towards political pluralism.

Reforming the African Public Sector: Retrospect and Prospectsis an in-depth and wide-ranging review of the available literature on African public sector reforms. It illustrates several differing country experiences to buttress the main observations and conclusions. It adopts a structural/institutional approach which underpins most of the reform efforts on the continent. To contextualize reform of the public sector and understand its processes, dynamics and intricacies, the book examines the state and state capacity building in Africa, especially when there can be no state without an efficient public sector. In addition, the book addresses a number of theories such as the new institutional economics, public choice and new public management, which have in one way or another influenced most of the initiatives implemented under public sector reform in Africa. There is also a survey of the three phases of public sector reform which have emerged and the balance sheet of reform strategies, namely, decentralization, privatization, deregulation, agencification, co-production and public-private partnerships. It concludes by identifying possible alternative approaches such as developing a vigorous public sector ethos and sustained capacity building to promote and enhance the renewal and reconstruction of the African public sector within the context of the New Partnerships for Africa's Development (NEPAD), good governance and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Uses the public choice theory to explain why Africa failed in its post-independence development effort and to examine institutional reform.

A significant contribution to the debate on poverty alleviation in Africa, Professor Mbaku offers practical policies for economic growth. He argues that the most important contributor to poverty and deprivation in Africa is the absense of institutional structures that enhance indigenous entrepreneurship and wealth creation. He explains that these are so vital that living standards will continue to deteriorate unless these building blocks are put in place.

South Africa has achieved a lot on its path of socio-economic transformation since the end of Apartheid in 1994. While many challenges remain to foster inclusive growth to address the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty, and inequality, some innovative approaches have been used to build more inclusive public institutions. These have helped to expand service delivery, strengthen quality, and improve the lives of millions of South Africans. Although much is known about the motivation and nature of the policies and institutional changes that drove this transformation, very little is known of the manner in which they were executed. With this book, Making It Happen, From Policies to Implementation, we offer a selection of twelve case studies to illustrate how policies and institutions were developed and implemented to improve specific public services. Done through interviews with senior policy makers, the book captures the how to of executing these policies in a variety of areas including increasing budget transparency, developing an intergovernmental fiscal system, strengthening tax administration, developing a modern performance monitoring and evaluation system, expanding HIV/AIDS treatment, reforming the social transfer system, strengthening statistics, creating a modern national identity system, developing a system for the management of biodiversity, modernizing the national road network management, developing the framework for renewable energy, and the formulation of the country’s much lauded constitution. Tracing a twenty year journey of transformation, this book places particular emphasis on recording the design of these reforms and endeavors to shed some light on the decision-making processes. In particular, it attempts to provide insight on the trade-offs policy makers faced, and the sequencing and complementarities among the various reforms. It finds leadership at different levels, adoption of pragmatic and innovative solutions, and the focus on results as among the key drivers in implementing these changes. This book is primarily intended to enhance knowledge exchange by exporting South Africa’s development experience to the world. It is a product of the country’s Knowledge Hub, developed in partnership with the World Bank Group, to provide evidence-based solutions for enhancing service delivery.

* Written by prominent scholars and practitioners of African development policy * Describes recent governance changes in Africa * Analyzes consequences of these changes for institutional reform * Highlights challenges of capacity building for economic liberalization and democratization This is an ideal volume for both students and scholars of African development, as well as anyone interested in the current issues of African governance. Published in association with the African Capacity Building Foundation, this book answers such questions as: What is the relationship between governance and institutional reforms? What is the impact of these reforms on public policy processes? And, what is the link between economic governance and policy research?

There is not a single African country that did not attempt public sector reforms in the 1990s. Governments no longer see themselves as sole suppliers of social services, frequently opting for partnerships with the private sector. Efficiency and choice have entered the language of the planning and implementation units of Africa's line ministries, while privatization is no longer the controversial subject it was a decade ago. There have also been moves towards more open and democratic governments.Reforming Africa's Institutions looks at the extent to which reforms undertaken in Sub-Saharan Africa in recent years have enhanced institutional capacities across the breadth of government. To what extent have reforms been internalized and defended by governments? The authors also look specifically at the impact of public sector reforms on these economies and pose the question whether 'ownership can be attained when countries continue to be heavily dependent on external support.

Over the past three decades, African countries have been reforming their public sector with a view to improving efficiency, effectiveness, accountability and transparency as part of efforts to improve the delivery of public services. Reform actions have included privatisation, public/private partnerships, commercialisation and adoption of private sector approaches in managing public organisations. This book, put together by OSSREA, reviews measures by African countries in that regard, the extent to which the measures have achieved their intended results, as well as the factors behind the failure to achieve those results, where this was the case.