Aspects of Governance, Transparency and Accountability

Aspects of Governance

• The concept of “governance” has been in use since the medieval
• Simply put “governance” means: “The process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are being implemented”.
• Governance can be used in several contexts such as:-
  • Corporate Governance
  • International Governance
  • National Governance
  • Local Governance, etc.
• 10th Five Year Plan defines Governance as, “Governance relates to the management of all such processes that, in any society, define the environment which permits and enables individuals to raise their capability levels, on one hand, and provide opportunities to realise their potential and enlarge the set of available choices, on the other”.
• In 1993, the World Bank defined governance as the method through which power is exercised in the management of a country’s political, economic and social resources for
• The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) lays down the key components of governance as follows:
• The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), 1997, defined governance as “the exercise of economic, political and administrative authority to manage a country’s affairs at all levels. It comprises the mechanisms, processes and institutions, through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their ”
• Thus, governance focuses on the formal and informal actors and institutions involved in decision-making and implementing those

Governance and Good Governance

The concept of good governance is not a new concept, even though it seems to be the buzzword now for major organisations and aid-givers to evaluate whether aid should be given to countries or not.

• In India, the concept was talked about in the Arthashastra, authored by Chanakya. He mentions the characteristics of a good king thus, “In the happiness of his subjects lies his happiness, in their welfare his welfare; whatever pleases himself, he does not consider as good, but whatever pleases his subjects he considers as good.”
• Mahatma Gandhi had also given the term ‘Su- Raaj’ literally meaning good governance.
• Governance can be defined as ‘the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are implemented.’
• Governance refers to the decision-making and administration involved at any level, i.e., national, regional, local, corporate, family, etc.
• Government is a key actor in governance.
• Depending upon the level of governance talked about, other actors would be cooperatives, bodies, associations, unions, NGOs, religious leaders, influential landlords, industry, political parties, finance institutions, lobbies, think tanks, military, etc.
• In governance, all actors apart from the government and the military are called ‘civil society’.
• In some areas, organised crime syndicates such as the land mafia can also influence decision-making and hence, governance.
• An important point to note is that citizens are at the core of good governance. Hence, citizen-centric administration and good governance go hand in hand.

Good Governance Definition

• The World Bank defines governance as ‘how power is exercised in the management of a country’s economic and social resources for development.’
• According to a document released by the World Bank in 1992 titled, ‘Governance and Development’, good governance is an essential complement to sound economic policies and is central to creating and sustaining an environment which fosters strong and equitable development.
• Components of Good Governance (according to the World Bank):
  • Capacity and efficiency in public sector management
  • Accountability
  • Legal framework for the development
  • Information and transparency
• Because of the close link between corruption and poor governance, many international organisations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are preconditioning their aid to countries on the guarantee that the recipient countries undertake good governance practices.
• The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has defined governance as ‘the rules of the political system to solve conflicts between actors and adopt decision (legality).’
• The definition given by the Commission on Global Governance (1995) describes governance as ‘the sum of the many ways individuals and institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs. It is a continuing process through which conflicting or diverse interests may be accommodated and cooperative action may be taken. It includes formal institutions and regimes empowered to enforce compliance, as well as informal arrangements that people and institutions either have agreed to or perceive to be in their interest.’

Good Governance Characteristics

The United Nations (UN) has given 8 major characteristics of good governance. They are briefly described below:

Good Governance – Participation

• A vital cornerstone of good governance is participation by all sections of society.
• This includes men and women, vulnerable sections of society, backward classes, minorities, etc.
• Representative democracy does not necessarily translate into the representation of all people. This is where good governance comes into play.
• Participation also implies freedom of association and expression.

Good Governance – Transparency

• This means easy access to information to all concerned and especially to those being affected by the decisions made.
• This also implies information is available to the media.
• Another important facet is that all decisions are taken and enforced in such a manner that all rules and regulations are followed.

Good Governance – Rule of Law

• Rule of law warrants that fair legal frameworks are implemented impartially.
• It also means protection of human rights.
• This also requires an adequate and impartial judiciary and police force.

Good Governance – Responsiveness

• This implies that processes and institutions should serve all stakeholders within a reasonable time frame.

Good Governance – Consensus oriented

• Consensus oriented decision-making ensures that even if everyone does not achieve what they want to the fullest, a common minimum can be achieved by everyone which will not be detrimental to anyone.
• Good governance is consensus-oriented. A broad consensus should be reached by proper mediation.
• For this, a proper understanding of the society’s historical, cultural and social contexts is needed; along with sustainable human development.

Good Governance – Equity and inclusiveness

• Good governance assures an equitable society.
• In such a society, no one or no section feels left out and marginalized.
• Opportunities should be given to all irrespective of their backgrounds, and no one should be discriminated.

Good Governance – Effectiveness and efficiency

• Good governance implies that institutions and processes create results that meet the wants of society while making optimal use of resources at their disposal.
• This also encompasses the sustainable use of natural resources and the conservation of the environment.

Good Governance – Accountability

• This is a key trait of good governance.
• Accountability is not possible without the rule of law and transparency.
• Accountability should be there not just for the government, but also for citizens, the private sector, industry, NGOs, and all stakeholders.

Necessary Pre-Conditions For Good Governance

A study of the hindrances to good governance shows that many preconditions must be satisfied to make governance citizen-centric. A few of the preconditions are given below:

• Effective legal framework
• Sound and effective institutional mechanism for correct implementation of laws
• Competent employees manning these institutions and efficient personnel management policies
• Apt policies for delegation, decentralization and fixing accountability.

Also, several tools can also be used to make the citizen-centric administration. These are listed below:

• Re-engineering processes
• Adopting correct modern technology
• Right to information
• Citizens’ charters
• Independent services’ evaluation
• Grievance redressal mechanisms
• Active citizens’ participation – public-private partnerships

Concerns about Governance:

The Criminalisation of the political process and the unholy nexus between politicians, civil servants, and business houses are having a baneful influence on public policy formulation and governance. Political class as such is losing respect. The Indian State is facing a serious challenge to its authority from lawless elements. The jehadi terrorism in Jammu & Kashmir and its ad hoc but frequent spread to other parts of India, the insurgency in the North-East, and rapidly expanding base of naxalite movement in mainland India constitute grave challenge to democratic governance. Fortunately, one sees national consensus against jehadi terrorism and it is for the Indian State to deal firmly with this menace. Insurgency in India’s North-East is largely confined now to Nagaland, Manipur and Assam and these are being tackled by democratically elected state governments with full support from the Centre. Of late, one sees a political resolve to deal with naxalites as well. Dialogue process alone would provide the final answer but in every eventuality the State has to be continually firm in order that it discharges its basic responsibility of protecting life and property of its citizens. The more insidious threat to India’s democratic governance is from criminals and musclemen who are entering into state legislative assemblies and national Parliament in sizeable numbers. A political culture seems to be taking roots in which membership of state legislatures and Parliament are viewed as offices for seeking private gain and for making money. Such elements have also found place in Council of Ministers and a Prime Minister or a Chief Minister in an era of coalition politics can not take strong action for
that might lead to the fall of the government itself. The Gandhian values of simple living and self-less service to public causes are rapidly vanishing. The dictum that ‘howsoever high, the law is above you’ is sought to be replaced by rule of men. It is true that public is not a mute spectator to this phenomenon nor is the media. The process of judicial accountability has succeeded in sending several legislators and ministers to jail. But new methods have also been devised to fiddle away with the processes of law. Criminals facing prosecution get out on bail and even go scot-free. During the period of consideration of their bail petition as well as trial, the doctor invariably finds a serious ailment that enables the accused to escape discomforts of jail by admitting himself in a 5-star hospital.
15 The question staring all of us is how to close the gate of the portals of democracy for criminals. At the behest of the Election Commission, the Indian Parliament has enacted certain laws that makes it obligatory on the candidate contesting an election for Parliament or State Assembly to declare as to whether he is accused for any offence
punishable under law for two years or more, for which charges have been framed. Candidates would also have to disclose whether he has been convicted for any offence in which the punishment has been awarded for one year or more for the information of the voter. All these have created a favourable environment for curbing criminalization of politics. But it is necessary to move further to debar criminals from contesting elections. It is imperative, therefore, to amend Section 8 of the Representation of the People’s Act 1951 to disqualify a person against whom the competent judicial authority has framed charges that relate to grave and heinous offences and corruption. It is one of the marvels of parliamentary democracy in India that notwithstanding entry of criminal elements in the Lok Sabha and in Vidhan Sabhas we have a Prime Minister of high integrity and scholarship and several Chief Ministers whose honesty is beyond any iota of doubt.

Corruption:
The high level of corruption in India has been widely perceived as a major obstacle in improving the quality of governance. While human greed is obviously a driver of corruption, it is the structural incentives and poor enforcement system to punish the corrupt that have contributed to the rising curve of graft in India. The complex and nontransparent system of command and control, monopoly of the government as a service provider, underdeveloped legal framework, lack of information and weak notion of citizens’ rights have provided incentives for corruption in India. A conscious programme for strengthening of public awareness and also empowering the existing anti-corruption agencies would be required. The statutory right to information has been one of the most significant reforms in public administration. The Right to Information Act provides a strong national framework within which public awareness programmes could take place. Corruption takes place within a frame. Accordingly, basic reforms in file management, government rules and regulations, provision of public expenditure review could provide the concerned citizens the relevant knowledge to hold service providers accountable. This would ensure that the resources that belong to people are used in the right way. One of the recent source of corruption at political level relates to schemes of MPLADS and MLALADS and these need to be abolished. In any case these are nonlegislative functions.

Corruption and Electoral Reforms:
The hitherto laissez-faire system of funding of elections is the biggest countervailing factor in the emergence of democratic India as an honest state. It is widely agreed that state funding of elections/parties will provide a certain
degree of financial independence to parties and their candidates and that in turn will help reduce the incentives to raise party/election funds through corrupt means. Public financing holds great promise because it levels the playing field and gives candidates an incentive to accept spending limits. With public financing, poorer candidates can
challenge well-funded ones, enlivening the debate and opening up the system. Public financing should be accompanied by free media space. The state funding of elections regime should be accompanied by strict accounting
procedures including rules to internally democratise parties. All these will improve the image of political parties in the eyes of the public and help create a virtuous cycle of democratic competition within political parties for election nominations in which candidates exposed to be corrupt can expect to be weeded out over time. It will also encourage honest persons from various walks of life to join the electoral battlefield. The state funding of elections in India would also go a long way in reducing the clout of religious, ethnic and some business houses on the government.

Sound Legal Framework:

For any robust society to function efficiently, a sound legal framework is required.  ­The Constitution is one of the cornerstone of our legal framework. The Parliament has enacted a large number of laws to further the objectives enshrined in the Constitution. A dynamic society requires constant updating of existing laws as well as the enactment of such laws to meet emergent needs and challenges so that the welfare, protection and development needs of citizens is fully met.

Robust Institutional Mechanism for Establishing Rule of Law ­

The country has, over the years, created and sustained strong and effective institutional mechanisms to ensure that the rule of law is  followed while the rights of its citizens are well protected. The establishment of some of these institutions have been enshrined in the Constitution and others through statutes and executive orders. ­ A sound legal system and a robust institutional mechanism needs to be made stronger by ensuring that competent and motivated personnel run the system in order to provide a vibrant citizen-centric administration.

Subsidiarity, Delegation and Accountability

The Oxford dictionary defines subsidiarity as “a principle that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which cannot be performed at a more local level.”

The principle of subsidiarity stipulates that the functions of administration shall be carried at the smallest unit of governance possible and delegated upwards only when the local unit cannot perform the task. The citizen delegates those functions he/she cannot perform, to the community, functions that the community cannot discharge are passed on to local governments in the smallest tiers, from smaller tiers to larger tiers, from local government to the State Governments, and from the States to the Union. In this scheme, the citizens and the community are the centre of governance. In place of traditional hierarchies, there will be ever-enlarging concentric circles of government and delegation is outward depending on necessity.” Each unit to which task is at first assigned to or delegated to will be held accountable for its actions. With a proper system of accountability, these units will act even more responsibly in carrying out their duties to the full extent.

Adoption of Modern Technologies

Even in e-Governance projects, the focus has to be on governance reforms keeping the citizens at the centre stage and using the technological tools made available by the IT revolution to transform the interaction between the citizens and government. ­The Second Administrative Reform Commission (ARC) has already made wide-ranging recommendations on the subject in the light of both national and international experience.

Transparency and Right to Information

Transparency and Right to Information are an essential precondition for good governance. Access to information empowers the citizens to demand and get information about public policies and programmes, thus making the government more accountable and helps in the creation of citizen-centric governance. It enables citizens to keep themselves informed about the policies of the government, the rights that they have and what they should expect as service from the government. ­ These aspects have already been examined in detail by the ARC in its First Report on Right to Information. In that report, the Commission has made detailed recommendations on various aspects of the Right to Information Act and suggested various measures including changes in the Manual of Office Procedure, measures to strengthen the institution of Information Commissioners, the need for capacity building and awareness generation, etc, to facilitate the implementation of the Right to Information Act.

Accountability of Government Machinery

Accountability also means being held responsible for any actions taken by the government. It promotes transparency and reduces the chances of corruption in the government. The mechanisms that provide greater accountability of the government in question include citizens’ charters, service delivery surveys, social audits, citizens’ report cards and outcome surveys. Other mechanisms are as follows:

Focus on Outcomes – Evaluation and Monitoring

Monitoring and evaluation are important managerial functions in any organization. In government organizations, these functions assume special significance because of their large size in terms of the workforce coupled with their wide reach. ­The success of the laws, policies and guidelines – which are implemented by a large number of field organizations – depend on their effective administration.

Grievance Redressal Mechanisms

In a welfare State like India, citizens have a variety of interactions with the Government in its myriad forms – as a service provider, a regulator, as a provider of social and physical infrastructure etc. Meeting the expectations of the citizens is a challenging task for any Government. Sometimes, the task is compounded due to internal inefficiencies while at other times, despite the best efforts of the public agency, external constraints prevent them from meeting the expectations of the citizens. Addressing the grievances of those citizens whose expectations are not fulfilled is primarily the task of the Government agency concerned even though external accountability mechanisms, often having limited scope, do exist.

Good Governance Initiatives in India:

• India has to make big leaps to improve its governance records. Multiple steps have been taken in this regard. For example, the two biggest initiatives which have been taken in India for empowering common man and effective functioning of governance include Right to Information Act and E-governance
• Good governance initiatives can be summarised as following:
  • Decentralisation and People’s Participation – 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendment Act
  • Developing programs for weaker sections and backward areas
  • Financial management (FRBM) and budget sanctity
  • Simplification of procedures and processes – Single window system and online approvals
  • Citizen’s Charters
  • Sevottam model
  • Redress of Citizen’s Grievances – Lokpal and Lokayukta
  • E-Governance and use of ICT tools
  • Public service morale & anti‐corruption measures
  • Transparency and Accountability measures:
    • Right to Information
    • Social Audits

Good Governance Index:

• The purpose behind developing a comprehensive index is to create a tool which can be used uniformly across states and eventually district level to assess status of governance and impact of various interventions taken up by central and state governments including union
• The index is developed by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances. The index takes into consideration following sectors:

The National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG):

• The National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) is an autonomous institute under the aegis of Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Government of India. Its head office is at New Delhi and branch office at Mussoorie.
• The NCGG has been set up to assist in bringing about governance reforms through studies, training, knowledge sharing and promotion of good
• It seeks to carry out policy relevant research and prepare case studies; curate training courses for civil servants from India and other developing countries; provide a platform for sharing of existing knowledge and pro-actively seek out and develop ideas for their implementation in the government, both at the National & International
• The National Centre for Good Governance traces its origin to the National Institute of Administrative Research (NIAR). NIAR was set up in 1995 by the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) The Government of India’s apex training Institution for higher civil
• During its 19 years of existence it provided research and training support to the Academy in areas of public administration. NIAR was subsequently rechristened with an expanded mandate, as National Centre for Good Governance, which was inaugurated on February 24th,

Minimum Government, Maximum Governance Philosophy:

• It focuses on citizen friendly and accountable
• Simplification of procedures, identification and repeal of obsolete/archaic laws/rules, leveraging technology to bring in transparency in public interface and a robust public grievance redress system are some of it’s
• On these lines, Digital India has helped Ministry of Panchayati Raj move to 100% e-office.
• Ease of Doing Business’ also focuses on ease of governance. The emphasis has been on simplification and rationalisation of the existing rules and introduction of information technology to make governance more efficient and
• mygov@nic.in is citizen centric platforms to empower people to connect with the Government and contribute towards good
• PMO website also seeks expert advice from the people, thoughts and ideas on various topics that concern

Recommendations:

• Infusion of ethics into politics so that the political elite can demonstrate integrity and in still faith among subordinates about their fairness and impartiality:
  • The 2nd ARC has advocated for the cordial and hassle-free relations between Citizens and Personnel so as to create favourable opinion towards Public Services and public
  • 2nd ARC has suggested that Character Building is the most essential part of the Training of civil servants both at induction level and in-service
  • Healthy relation between the politicians and bureaucrats is also
• Simplifying the government
• Ensuring High Standards of Conduct among the top Personnel
• Bringing in Stability of tenure and guarantee against arbitrary punishment. This is essential if you want to get the best out of public
• The institutional arrangements like “whistle blowing”, should also be put in place to curb corrupt practices.
• To enhance accountability effective Implementation of Citizens Charters’ for monitoring service delivery and also effective enforcement of Right to Information Act is to be
• Civil Services Board:
  • The question of appointments, transfers and placements is not to be left to the discretion of the politicians or administrative bosses but be entrusted to independent and autonomous boards constituted (under the Constitution) on the lines of
• Technical and Managerial Competence –
  • Technical and managerial competence of civil servants is a factor of good
  • This may be less of a constraint than it used to be, as access to education has improved, but rapid changes require ongoing development of skills.

Transparency and Accountability:

Relationship between the transparency and accountability:

• Usually, transparency is considered as a pre-requisite of accountability as well. This is because for an action to be evaluated properly there should be access to all necessary information. If the access is denied, then accountability cannot be proven.
• Accountability and transparency can take different forms, and the relationship between them depends on the extent to which they are designed to support each other.
• Both transparency and accountability are viewed as necessary conditions for good management. This applies in a large variety of settings starting from the individual to organizations.
• In general, it is assumed that the existence of transparency would result in better governance, more accountability and less corruption
• In public services both transparency and accountability are must to ensure good governance. It is evident that transparency is a pre-condition of accountability.
• There is a direct link between transparency and accountability, and both strengthen each other.
• Thus accountability must accompany transparency as if a civil servant is not accountable for his decisions, transparency would not fulfil the purpose.

Importance of accountability with transparency:

• Accountability lead to the obligation of an individual or an organisation (either in the public or the private sectors) to accept responsibility for their activities, and to disclose them in a transparent manner. This includes the responsibility for decision-making processes, money or other entrusted property.
• Accountability result in answerability (the duty of an individual or organisation to answer to their decisions and actions) and punishments in case of malpractice.
• If citizens are to hold their government accountable, they must be able to find out what it is doing.
• High levels of corruption and poor quality of public services, especially in developing countries, enhanced the demand for accountability from the civil society.
• Social accountability has been highly valued to curb corruption, especially in countries with a systematic problem of corruption and weak institutional systems

Difference between Responsibility and Accountablility

Types of Accountability:

Accountability can be classified based on the type of accountability used and/or the person, group, or institution to whom the public official is accountable.

1.    Horizontal and Vertical Accountability

2.    Political and Legal Accountability

3.   Social Accountability

4.    Diagonal Accountability