Australia and New Zealand School of Government Pacific Executive Program

1. Overview of the Pacific: Challenges and Constraints for Public Managers26th August 2008Graham HassallSchool of Development Studies and Governance University of the South Pacific Australia and New Zealand School of Government Pacific Executive Program

2. Outline • Governance for Human Development >Linking public service to human development • Embracing innovations in public service goals and methods in the context of small island states • Adopting new communication and information technologies • Leadership > Leading positive change • Ethics >Enhancing professionalism and integrity

3. Challenge 1: Linking public service to Human Development Outcomes

4. Managing for human development "The basic purpose of development is to enlarge people's choices. In principle, these choices can be infinite and can change over time. People often value achievements that do not show up at all, or not immediately, in income or growth figures: greater access to knowledge, better nutrition and health services, more secure livelihoods, security against crime and physical violence, satisfying leisure hours, political and cultural freedoms and sense of participation in community activities. The objective of development is to create an enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy and creative lives.“ - Mahbub ul Haq (on the web at http://hdr.undp.org/hd/default.cfm:)

5. Human Development Index for Pacific Island Countries UNDP, 3rd Pacific Human Development Report (forthcoming)

6. Human Development Index for Pacific Island Countries

7. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Economic Growth • The Pacific islands grew at 3.1%. The two largest economies, Papua New Guinea and Fiji Islands, both enjoyed faster expansion, lifting the average… Overall in the Pacific, outcomes remain largely unimpressive and are constrained as much by economic mismanagement and ineffective institutions as by the disadvantages of small size and remoteness. – ADB Asian Development Outlook 2007

8. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Economic Growth > food or energy?

9. Human Development and the Pacific Plan: Sustainable Development

10. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Sustainable Development • Poverty is becoming a significant issue in many PDMCs. Previously mitigated by social safety nets in rural villages, it today manifests itself most often as hardship in meeting basic needs rather than in absolute or food poverty; it lurks in unplanned and unserviced peri-urban settlements filled with migrants seeking nonexistent jobs, and among those populations left behind on outer islands. - ADB Pacific Strategy 2005-09: responding to the Priorities of the Poor

11. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Sustainable Development > the challenge of implementation The challenge for the majority of the Pacific island governments is to facilitate private sector-led and more self-reliant economies that can generate employment. Constraints to private development include governance problems, policy uncertainty, investment restrictions, and traditional communal land ownership. Regional initiatives like the Pacific Plan, approved in October 2005 and endorsed by 13 Pacific island governments, will support development objectives of the national authorities. The Pacific Plan pursues the goals of sustainable development, economic growth, and good governance, and an action plan has been formulated to achieve these goals. However, the subregion is struggling to implement many of the proposals, partly because of limited public service capacities. There is a risk that countries with mineral resources come to depend on incomes from exporting those resources, and neglect sectors such as agriculture and small and medium business development. Global prices for energy and minerals are not guaranteed to remain at high levels. Moreover, resources are depleted over time. Sustained growth cannot be based solely on exports of minerals. Implementing structural reforms, sustainable fiscal policies, and prudent monetary policy will be necessary to facilitate faster economic growth and to generate employment. - Asian Development Outlook 2007

12. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Sustainable Development > Climate Change and the Environment

13. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Sustainable Development > Solid Waste Management

14. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Governance > 3 clusters • countries where governance quality has been improving over the past decade (Cook Islands, Fiji Islands, Samoa and Vanuatu); • countries where governance quality has improved only marginally (Papua New Guinea and Tonga); and • countries where governance quality has deteriorated severely (Solomon Islands).

15. 0.60 0.55 0.50 0.45 Cook Is. 0.40 Fiji PNG Index Numbers 0.35 Samoa Solomon Is. Tonga 0.30 Vanuatu 0.25 0.20 0.15 0.10 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Year Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Governance > Governance Indicators

16. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Governance > Governance Indicators Rule of Law • Sub-dimensions • Political freedom – Freedom House rankings for political rights and civil liberties; female parliamentary participation • Political stability – frequency of regime change; number of political parties; frequency of major civil disturbances such as coups and riots • Judicial effectiveness – expenditure on the judiciary; expenditure on public order and safety • Media independence – Freedom House rankings for freedom of the press; proportion of Internet users Government Effectiveness • Sub-dimensions • Bureaucratic efficiency – proportion of telephone mainlines; national government budget balance; expenditure on education; expenditure on health • Economic management – central government debt; exports/GDP ratio • Extent of corruption – economic services expenditure/total government expenditure; national government recurrent expenditure/total government expenditure Regulatory Quality • Sub-dimensions • Strength of financial institutions – money and quasi money (M2)/GDP; Contract Intensive Money ratio; domestic credit to the private sector; domestic credit provided by the banking sector; interest rate spread • Extent of competition – availability of electricity; relative size of government

17. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Security > Global Human Security: Core Elements

18. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Security > Pacific Plan, CROP agencies, and Human Security (I)

19. Human Development and the Pacific Plan > Security > Pacific Plan, CROP agencies, and Human Security (II)

20. 2. Embracing innovations in public sector goals and methods in the context of small island states

22. Innovations in Public Sector coming from > • Globalization • Markets – labour, capital, goods and services • Actors – governments, private sector, regulators, • Mobility • Shift from villages to urban areas • Outward migration • Modernization • traditional to formal education > greater citizen awareness & agency • transformed information and communications > power relations etc • transformed economic relations > money economy, contracts • technological environment > energy, food production, materials, building of houses, boats, transport, etc • All these factors combine to present • Rapid social change • New strategic leadership and management challenges • New systems of values and new ethical challenges

23. Innovations in the Public Sector >three models of Public Administration

24. Innovations in the Public Sector >shift from government to governance • From ‘state-centred’ to partnerships • From ‘hierarchical’ to ‘horizontal’ • From ‘ruling’ to ‘steering’ • From command to consultation • From ‘silos’ to ‘whole of government’ • From ‘privilege’ to ‘service’

25. innovations in the public sector > “Whole of Government” drivers • Problems are ‘cross-cutting • not limited to just one sector: poverty, wealth creation, social exclusion, the environment, peace-building • Eg “informal settlements” – land, agriculture, health, education • Need for ‘seemless’, personalised services - eg: ‘cost of doing business’ – barriers to establishing a new business, investment, etc. • Increased expectations of partnerships • Between government agencies • Public-private partnerships • Marriages with technology, responding to market failures, etc. Communicative governance • Network governance • Policy engagement

26. Innovations in the public Sector > Establishing effective partnerships • Dialogue and Networks • Partnerships within government • Whole of government policy coordination • Information management • Partnerships With civil society • Planning, monitoring and evaluating, communicating • Partnerships with private sector • Public-private partnerships – health, education, transportation, communications, • Partnerships with intergovernmental and international agencies • Development assistance coordination • Policy coordination

27. 3. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and eGovernance • Information Management • Records management • Eg, Human Resources • Births, deaths, marriages, census, etc. • Financial reporting • Decision-support • Democratic processes • Eg, election administration • Web portals • Policy documents • Public outreach See the Pacific Islands information and communications technologies policy and strategic plan > http://www.pacificplan.org/

28. 4. Leadership Leaders give vision, meaning, direction and focus to their organization “The process of influencing the activities of an organized group in its efforts toward goal setting and goal achievement” (Stogdill, 1950, p. 3) Three key components to this definition - an interpersonal process between one person and a group - can’t have ‘leaders’ without ‘followers’ - criterion for effective leadership = goal achievement

29. Leadership > Forum Principles of Good Leadership (2003) • Key principles of good governance which we hold to be fundamental to good leadership: • RESPECT FOR THE LAW AND SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT • RESPECT FOR CULTURAL VALUES, CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS • RESPECT FOR FREEDOM OF RELIGION • RESPECT FOR PEOPLE ON WHOSE BEHALF LEADERS EXERCISE POWER • RESPECT FOR MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC • ECONOMY AND EFFICIENCY • DILIGENCE • NATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY • RESPECT FOR OFFICE

30. Leadership > Leadership and culture > the GLOBE Project (Universally effective behaviours)

31. Leadership > Relating leadership to management Questioning the fundamental paradigm Running current routines without questioning the fundamental paradigm

32. Leadership > Leading policy cycle implementation

33. 5: Ethics • Ethics prescribes ‘the right thing to do’ • Ethical practices evolve over time through practice • Ethical dilemmas emerge from contexts that are new, from situations that are novel. • Ethical solutions require consideration of the interests of all parties who are involved in the situation

34. Ethics > Achieving results with justice • The challenge is in implementation of public policy in a manner that is deemed to be fair and just. “Implementation failure” requires further investigation. • justice is a central concept in identifying the aims and objectives of public policy and also in deciding on the instruments that are appropriate in pursuing the chosen ends. Ideas of justice can be particularly crucial for the cogency and reach of public policy… - Sen – Development as Freedom, 274

35. Ethics > current ethical challenges • Office-holders abusing public office • The extent of state participation in the economy • The role of customary authorities in contemporary governance • Balancing authority between local, national and inter-governmental bodies • Reforming or retaining constitutional frameworks • Sharing information appropriately (eGovernance – the limits to ‘freedom of information’). • protecting national rather than regional interest • declaring personal interests • prioritizing competing needs and interests – (eg: health or infrastructure?) • Expansion of leadership codes to include MPs, political parties, etc • Politicisation of the public service • Arbitrariness in public sector appointments (clientalism) • Undue influence of interest groups in decision-making

36. Ethics > Ethics and Leadership > some areas of current need • Human Development (esp. health and education) • Human Security (esp. personal security, food, energy, etc) • Decentralized Governance – including provincial and local levels • Accountability and Transparency • Information Technology (IT) • Business Regulation and Trade • Urban Environment and Management • Disaster risk reduction • Peace-building, conflict resolution, reconciliation and post-conflict rehabilitation • Human Rights promotion and protection • Democracy – electoral administration, parliament, media development and access to information • Public Service Performance and Reform • Aid and Development coordination

37. Summary > public sector challenges • accountability • transparency • policy articulation • leadership development • sectoral networks • service delivery • regulation and enforcement

38. Three questions: • Do small island developing state constitute a special case? • As a leader, who are your most important network partners? Do you have good communication with them? • Given my role and responsibilities as a public servant, what do I need to be good at? What would constitute ‘success’?

39. Pacific Islands Governance Portal and Network www.governance.usp.ac.fj