EVALUATION OF GOOD GOVERNANCE IN THE NIGERIAN PUBLIC SECTOR

EVALUATION OF GOOD GOVERNANCE IN THE NIGERIAN PUBLIC SECTOR

A CASE STUDY OF NIGERIA PUBLIC SERVICE, ABUJA

ABSTRACT

This study evaluates the impact of good governance in the Nigerian public sector using the Nigeria public service, Abuja as a case study. The main focus of the study is to assess within the context of good governance and reveal any visible gap between performance and expectation arising from mismanagement of resources in light of the five core good governance principles; participation, effectiveness and efficiency, transparency and accountability. In the methodology, the study used primary data generated through the use of questionnaire administered to randomly selected staff of 5 public service organizations. Using frequency distribution and simple percentages to analyze respondents’ demographics and views on key issues raised in the course of the study, the correlation statistical technique was used to test the hypothesis formulated. The study found that institutions assessed have not been perfectly effective in majority of the four good governance indicators used in the study, buttressing the point as proposed in the test of hypotheses that there is a significant relationship between good governance and an organization’s decision making and quality of performance. The study therefore recommends that governance assessment, a method different actors of governance use in the processes of achieving good governance, be effectively employed in the public service organizations to further enhance quality of performance and productivity.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The concept of governance is neither a new nor fresh issue, yet it has emerged as a popular agenda of development literature and appeared in the discussion about social organization since the 1980’s (Aminuzzaman, 2007; SHRDC, 2004). From then, consensus has not reached on among different stakeholders around a single definition of governance (Plumptre and Graham, 1999). However, despite the wide array of definitions of governance by different authors and organizations, one cannot conclude that there is a total lack of definitional consensus in this subject. This is because most definitions of governance accept the importance of a capable state operating under the rule of law (Kraay, 2003).

But what do we mean by governance?  There is a temptation to use governance and government interchangeably. Government is said to derive from the Greek word “kyberman” which means to steer. Then we can agree to define a government as a collective body of elected and/or appointed institutions empowered to legislate and adjudicate for the good of society, while governance is conceptualized as the processes and systems by which a government manages the resources of a society to address socio-economic and political challenges in the polity. Thus, a government is elected or appointed to provide good, effective and efficient governance.  According to Kaufmann (2005), governance embodies the traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised for the common good.

Governance has been variously defined as "the management of society by the people" (Albrow,2001) and "the exercise of authority or control to manage a country's affairs and resources" (Schneider,1999). A synthesis of current definitions from monetary agencies such as World Bank, International development agencies such as United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and multilateral donors yields a more complex definition, which is set out in a 1997 UNDP policy document entitled “Governance for Sustainable Human Development” as thus:

The exercise of economic, political and administrative authority to manage a country's affairs at all levels. It comprises of the mechanisms, processes and institutions, through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their differences (UNDP, 2007).

Hence, Governance is about how government and other social organizations/institutions interact, how they communicate with citizens and how decisions get taken in an increasingly complex world. Commission on Global Governance on its part describes governance as the totality of ways and means individuals and institutions, public and private handle their own common affairs. It is an ongoing process by which various and conflicting ideas may be accommodated and cooperative actions may be taken. It encompasses formal institutions and regimes as well as formal/informal arrangements that people and institutions either have reached on common consensus or perceive to be in their interest (Commission on Global Governance, 1995) in (UNESCAP, 2009).

The term “Good Governance” has been extensively used in the last two decades and is mainly of a political and technocratic term which is different from governance and suggests that governance should be “good” not “bad’. It is a term that symbolizes the paradigm shift of the role of government (Holzer & Byong-Joon, 2002; Ladi, 2008). Governance can be said to be good when it deals out and manages resources to respond to collective problems, i.e. when an institution competently provides public goods of necessary quality to its nationalities; and good governance is an evaluative term which implies that a number of desirable qualities, including transparency, inclusiveness, professionalism and effectiveness should be included in decision making processes, and a number of desired effects such as respect for civil and political rights, economic development, poverty reduction, political stability and individual security ought to be achieved by policies.

Though governance in Africa has been debated since the 1960s following the independence of many African countries from western colonization, it was recently that has become the leading socio-political agenda of the continent and that democratic politics and better governance have taken a significant leap in Africa since the last two decades. Competitive political parties have come to power in many African countries and the political space has been gradually liberalized though still numerous challenges regarding political governance are widely observed in many African countries (ECA, 2005).

Nigeria recently celebrated her golden jubilee on 1^st Oct, 2010, to mark her 50 years of Independence from Britain. There is a general impression in Nigeria that political independence has not really translated into development, hence improvements in the quality of lives of the citizenry; and that there is an urgent need to remedy this unacceptable situation. Interestingly, Nigerian government in a bid to ensure good governance in the country had in, the 1999 Nigerian constitution in Section 16 (1) a, b, c, and d, and Section 16 (2) entrenched some of the principles of Good Governance as a possible criteria for governance in the country. Despite these constitutional provisions, as well as the enormous financial resources, and huge potentials of the country, including the social and economic policies that have been implemented by successive administrations good governance continues to be elusive to Nigeria (Dunu, 2013).

Thus, this study is trying to evaluate good governance in the Nigerian public sectors using the Nigerian Public Service, Abuja as a focus base for the public sector institutions.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The question of good governance has captured the attention of international institutions, including the World Bank and several inter-governmental organizations like the G-8. Both institutions have made this issue a critical prerequisite in their aid and donation policies to countries with poor records on governance. According to Oke (2010), upon Nigeria’s return to democracy, Nigerians heaved a sigh of relief that at last they are liberated from the shackles of unilateralism and arbitrariness that characterized military rule. However, the envisaged opportunities and hope seem to have given way for illusion and bewilderment for more than a decade after the experimentation with democracy. This is accounted for by crude politics, corruption, selfishness and greed of the political leadership. For instance, despite her energy wealth, Nigeria is often mired in the dark; and despite her abundance human resource her economic and political affairs cannot be effectively managed. This is reflective in the on-going political cannibalism that is crippling the economy in deference to the unhindered citizen participation, tolerance of opposing views, abhorrence of arbitrary rule and unilateral decision making that political democracy involves. Since 1999, the polity has witnessed an increasing build-up of authoritarian structures and institutions and human rights abuses.

TOPIC: EVALUATION OF GOOD GOVERNANCE IN THE NIGERIAN PUBLIC SECTOR 

Chapters: 1 - 5
Delivery: Email

Number of Pages: 85

Price: 3000 NGN

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