UNIT ONE

INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC
MANAGEMENT

By: Zigiju Samuel

Unit one: Introduction to PM
 Public Administration
 Evolution of Public Administration
 What is public administration?
 Politics and Public Administration
 The Politics-Administration Dichotomy
 The Characteristics of Public Administration
 Pillars of Public Administration
 The distinction b/n Public and Private Admin.
 The Institutional setting of public administration
 The Environment of Public Administration
 The history of Ethiopian public administration
 Reflective questions
Unit outcome
After completing this unit, students are expected to:
 Define public administration;

 Distinguish the characteristic features of public and private

administration;
 Recognize the differences and similarities between politics and

public administration;
 Explain the pillars of public administration;

 Be aware of the institutional setting of public administration;

 Identify the types, forms and systems of government;

 Analyze the features of public administration in developed and

developing countries;
 Examine the environment of public administration; and

 Appreciate the history of Ethiopian public administration

Evolution of PA

The origin of public administration as an academic



discipline is traced to the publication in 1887 “the study

of public administration” by Woodrow Wilson.

Until recent years, has not been widely written and



documented until.

professional attention to the field was almost entirely



lacking until the end of the 19th century.

Evolution…

 The first systematic approach focused on:

studying PA through law.
 Later on, attention has been given to
administrative system
 The scientific management movement
gave great impetus to the study of PA.
Evolution…
 Emergence of the concept of welfare
state shifted the scope of state functions
to promotion of social welfare.
 Public administration has become the

chief instrument of social welfare.

 The movement of administrative
reform in the USA in the19th century
regarding the problems of civil service
Definitions

What do you think is public

administration?
Definitions
Administration is:
 A cooperative human effort
 An obvious part of a government

Public Administration
 Deals with the machinery and procedures of

government activities
 Species of administration which operates within a

specific political setting

 A channel through which policy decisions made

by the political decision makers are carried out

Definitions…
Public administration is what government does:
 trash collection to space exploration
 regulation of complex economies to move
beyond subsistence farming
 biomedical technologies to census taking
 the ‘Public’ aspect gives it a special character

 PA relates to government administration

focusing on public bureaucracy.

Definitions…

Political Legal

Managerial Occupational
Definitions…

How can we define Public Administration

from a political perspective?

Political: Public Administration is …

 A phase in the policy-making cycle

 Implementing/interpreting the public

interest
 Doing collectively which cannot be done so

well individually
Definitions…
How can we define “PA” from a legal perspective?

Legal: Public administration is …

 created and bound by law
 the law in action
 the execution of a public law
 every application of general law is an act of administration
 Ethiopia: Constitution of 1995
 regulation
 rules and regulations
 redistribution
Definitions…
How can we define “Public Administration” from a
managerial perspective?
Managerial: Public administration is ...
 a management specialty

 middle management: Execution and

Interpretation
 an art and a science

 judgment, panacea and common sense

 technical skills
Definitions…
How can we define PA from an occupational perspective?
Occupational: Public administration is…
 an occupational category
 whatever public employees do: All public
employees are administrators
 public administration is a profession
 body of academic and practical knowledge
 measured by serving the needs of society
 code of ethics / appropriate sanctions
Features of PA
 The definitions reveal that public administration has
the following important features.
Hence, Public Administration is about …
 decision making and planning

 formulating objectives and goals

 gaining public support and funds

 directing and supervising employees

 providing leadership

 determining work methods and procedures

 functions performed by government executives and

supervisors
Features of PA…
Public administration …
 is the action part of the government
 is the means by which the purposes and goals of the
government are realized
 is part of executive branch of government
 is related with the activities of the state
 carries out the public policies
 realizes the aspirations of the people as formulated
and expressed in the laws
Politics and PA Dichotomy

 This distinction is made between

policy making(realm of politics) and
policy execution (realm of PA)
 Proponents:
 Woodrow Wilson, considered politics and
administration as separate processes
 Frank Godnow: "politics - policies;
administration - execution of these policies".
Politics and PA Dichotomy…

Politics and PA are differentiated on the basis

of their institutional locations.
 The location of politics is identified with the

legislature(higher echelons), making major

policy-decisions
 the location of administration is identified

with the executive arm of government-the

bureaucracy.
Dichotomy-Effect of politics on
administration

Politics affects administration in different ways.

 Administrative officials are subjected to control

of the political executive (cabinet and the

Parliament).
 Administration of the country is held accountable

to the electorate through its politically elected

heads
 Officials are also responsible for the

implementation of policies and control civil

servants.
Difficulty to differentiate politics from
administration
 Public administrators should know the r/n ship between politics and
PA.
 Administrators
 are career officials (civil servants)

 are not expected to involve in partisan politics

 professionals have to be free from politics.

 Politicians,
 interested in policy making

 realizing the interest of the electorate.

 give order to the administration and control their work.

 Therefore,
 it is sometimes difficult to differentiate politics from administration.

 policy implementation and policy formulation are highly

Discussion

 What are the major explanatory factors

for the evolution of public
administration?
 What is administration? What is public

administration?
 What are the differences and

relationships between politics and public

administration?
PA- can be seen from its:

Role Scop

Characteristics Pillars

Environment
Properties of PA: Role
What is the role of Public Administration?
Role of Public Administration
 Basis of government
 Instrument of change in the society
 Plays vital role in the life of the people
 Instrument for executing laws, policies and programs of the state
 Stabilizing force in the society
 Instrument of national integration in a country
 Responsibilities in terms of nation-building and shaping the
future society
Properties of PA: Scope

What is the scope of PA?

Scope of Public Administration
 Executive branch of government
 Formulation and implementation of public

policies
 Human behavior, cooperative group effort

 Production of public goods or services

 Distinctive from private administration

Properties of PA: Nature

Nature of Public Administration

 Serving the public
 Based on law, rules and regulations
 Public inspection
 Public censure or legislative scrutiny
 Complexity and network of allied organizations
 It is identified by Promoting ‘publicness’
Other Concerns of the Discipline
 Policy sensitivity
 Implementation Capability
 Shared understanding of social reality
 Administration as a learning experience
 POSDCoRB, summed up by Gullick, denotes
 Planning,

 Organization,

 Staffing,

 Directing,

 Coordinating ,

 Reporting and

 Budgeting.
Pillars of Public Administration

Three E’s or the three pillars of PA are:

 Efficiency – the r/n ship b/n inputs and

outputs.
 Effectiveness – achievement of the objectives.

 Economy –acquiring resources at the lowest

cost while maintaining the objectives

 Many have argued that the fourth pillar

stands for equity or social equity, fairness,

justice, and equality
The Environment of PA

 Internal environment:
 the organization itself
 groups and individuals within the organization
 the material, financial, and other resources
 External environment
 outside the control of the administration
 having major impact in shaping the features and
 determining the success or failures
Discussion

 What are the major characteristics and pillars

of public administration?
 What are the implications of these pillars and

characteristics of public administration for

contemporary public administrators?
 What are the internal and external

environments of PA? How do they affect it?

 The Distinction between Private and PA

Criteria Public Administration Private Administration

Purpose  Serves the general public,  Serves private owner, profit.
welfare
Mode of  According to the law, rules and  Relatively free and flexible to
operation regulation adopt
Control  Continuous gaze by public  Not so by the public but by the
owners
Public  Impartial and even handed  Openly discriminatory (unequal)
relations (equal to all)
Involvem  Complex, many pulls and  Well-knit and single minded
ent pressures, many minds involved operation
Politics  Needs political direction, at the  Needs less of that, profit is at the
core of public administration heart of business administration
 The Distinction between Private and PA

Criteria Public Administration Private Administration

Law, rules  operate strictly  relatively free from such
according to law, constraints of law and
rigidity regulations, but general laws
Discriminatio  consistent and  discrimination is freely
n impartial practiced due to competitive
& partiality demands

Complexity  especially at higher  less complexity in

levels of government, organization and operations
is complex
Environment  operates within  decided the course of action
political environment on the basis of cost-benefits
analysis
Other distinctions
 Nature of functions
 Accountability
 Efficiency
 Legal safeguards
 Service and cost
 Consistency of treatment
 Anonymity (secrecy)
 External financial control
 Monopoly
Discussion
 What major criteria are used to make
distinction between public and private
administration?
 What are the external and internal factors that

public administrators should know?

 Why is it important for public administrators

to understand and analyze the external and

internal factors? Which one do you think is
more important? Why?
The Institutional setting of PA

State, Government and

Society as a General
Setting
State, government and society
 Public administration operates in a given state, run
by a government and serves a defined society.
 State refers to a set of institutions that possess the
means of legitimate coercion exercised over a
defined territory and its population or society.
 composed of people living together,
 a defined territory having an international

recognition,
 a government which is responsible for the

administration of its people and sovereignty.

State, government and society…

 Government refers to the body having

the responsibility of exercising power.
 Society is a broad grouping of people

who live in a common environment and

have common traditions, institutions,
activities and interests.
The organs of the state
 Powers of government are often divided
into three sets:
 The legislature (whose role is to make the
law);
 The executive (sometimes referred the
government) which is responsible for
implementing the law;
 And the judiciary (responsible for
applying and interpreting the law).
The Government and its
Machineries
Executive Branch
 It is the branch of government that administers laws, and

implements the rules of the legislators.

 It includes the political apex such as:

 the president in the USA,

 Cabinet in the Great Britain and

 Ministerial Council and other institutions under the

supervision of Prime Minister.

 Is charged with the execution of the laws, foreign relations

and direction of military affairs, budget and personnel

matters.
Executive Branch …
 This branch functions through executive
department like:
 ministers, commissions, agencies, authorities...
 This branch of government includes:
 Political executives: those politically appointed
ministers and
 the prime minister
 and non-political (administrative) executives
(civil service): those permanent public servants.
The Legislative Branch
 The primary role is to make laws.
 It is the parliament, which could be bicameral (two
chambers) or unicameral (a single chamber).
 The legislature is often the highest organ of power of the
state.
 The legislature have legitimacy
 are elected in a free and fair context through the secret
ballot.
 The members are candidates of political parties, but
 individuals also compete for a parliamentary seat.
 Those who win the majority of the seats in parliament
become the government
Parliamentary Parties
 In any given life of a parliament, there can be
several parties.
 If two or more parties form a government,

that is called a coalition government.

 Examples of the legislature include:

 The House of Peoples Representatives of

Ethiopia,
 U.S. Congress, and
 the British Parliament, etc.
Legislative Branch –role
 deliberating, debating, and passing laws
 Investigation of actions and decisions of government
officials
 Approval of national budgets
 Conducting hearings on pressing issues, interest
groups, political parties, general public (electorate), etc
 Confirm executive appointees to courts and ministries.
 Legitimizing government policy
 Legislators must work within the democratic ethics of
tolerance, respect, and compromise to reach agreement
The Judiciary Branch
 Independent and professional judges
 Independence mean judges can make lawful decisions not
decisions based on personal preferences.
 independence from political pressures of elected officials and
legislatures guarantees the impartiality of judges.
 A fair, impartial, and constitutionally guaranteed
system of courts
 Judicial rulings should be impartial-based on the facts of a case,
individual merits and legal arguments, and relevant laws.
 These principles ensure equal legal protection for all.
 The power of judges to review public laws and declare
them void or not void - check and balance
Reflection

 What are the three bodies of the

government?
 Can you mention, perhaps, the fourth

one?
 How do you explain their roles,

responsibilities and power

relationships?
Forms of Government

There are three major types of government.

 Monarchy (rule by one person) – is a type of

government headed by a hereditary, lifelong ruler.

 Aristocracy (rule by an enlightened few) – is a type of

government in a society with highest ranks rigid class

distinction/nobility.
 Democracy(rule by all the people) – is a type of
government with majority rule (i.e. people rule
themselves either directly or indirectly via electing
their representatives to form a government on their
behalf)
Forms of government
Systems of Government
Parliamentary vs. presidential - Compared

Issues Parliamentary System Presidential System

The candidate has no his own position Members of legislature are not
Voting rather it is the party’s position beholder to their parties at all times.
More flexible (easy to pass laws) Relatively not flexible because every
Efficiency because the government is composed to party member may oppose their parties
the majority seats. proposal as regard to pass laws.

The public is relatively assured to get Members of legislature may cross

Party what it had been promised party-lines after election and vote with
performance the opposition party after promises had
been given to the public.

Stability More of unstable Relatively stable

Members of parliament wear two hats; There is strong basis for check and
Separation of they are both legislatives and balance on every level of government.
power executives, therefore, the power of each
branch is unchecked in each case.
Decentralization

 Decentralization refers to the transfer of

legal, administrative, and political authority
 Decentralization has been undertaken for:

 Organizational effectiveness
 Making public administration /more

responsive to the citizens

 Promotion of national development by

facilitating local self-government for its

villages and rural districts.
Forms of decentralization
Decentralization – summary
 Decentralization depends on three characteristics
of the decisions made at lower levels:
 Frequency of decisions
 Breadth of decision –the scope of decisions
 Extent of control over decisions
 In conclusion, decentralization is the transfer of at
least three things:
 power and authority,
 resources, and
 functions and responsibilities
Advantages of Decentralization

 Allows for more rapid decision making

 Allows for the development of professional managers

 Allows for the effective use of top- management

resources
 Realizes the participative management process,

 Creates a competitive environment decentralized units

 Allows for improved controls and performance

measurements
 Local needs and problems are best handled by local

people who are familiar with the local conditions.

Local Government Administration
Local government
 is a part of government dealing with local matters.
 undertakes its work through local councils and

financed by a mix of local taxes.

Local governments have the following functions:
1. Rulemaking at the local level
 elected boards or councils or local legislative

make rules that apply to the local matters over

which the central government has delegated
them the authority to rule.
Local Government Administration
2. Rule application at the local level
 There are great variations in how local rules are carried out

and by whom.
 The chief executive at the local level may be a traditional

chief entitled to his post by his place in the kinship system.

 A manager elected by the people or by the rule-making

council;
 a city manager hired by that council, or

 a civilian or military administrator appointed by the

national government can lead local governments and

apply local rules.
Local Government …
3. Rule adjudication at the local
level(negotiation ) - arbitration
 No question of local government is more
sensitive than the resolution of disputes. For
example, local governments must resolve
when:
 crimes are committed
 reputations are degraded
 contracts are violated
Reflections
 What is decentralization?
 What are the major forms of

decentralization?
 Why has decentralization got much

attention in this era of public

administration?
 What are the challenges of

decentralization?
PA in DCs and LDCs
PA in developed countries:
 The bureaucracy - high degree of specialization
 Recruitment of personnel - based on merits
 Laws and political decisions - rational
 Public policy making - effectively made by professional PAs
 Administration - all-encompassing functions
 High correlation - political power and legitimacy (legality)
 Holders of political or governmental offices - considered as
lawful or reasonable holders, and
 transfer of power and positions tend to occur in accordance
with prescribed rules and procedures.
Roles and challenges of PA in DCs
 The bureaucracy in developed countries these
states mainly perform three types of functions:
 Regulatory and preventive functions - enforcing laws,
collecting revenue, and protecting the state against external
aggression.
 Service functions - providing services like education,
health, culture and recreation, social insurance,
unemployment relief, housing, transportation, and
communication.
 Entrepreneurial (commercial) functions - operating
industrial enterprises, loaning funds and so forth in order to
maintain or increase economic growth and development of
their respective societies.
PA in developing countries
The following are indicative patterns of LDCs
PA.
 Imitative (copied) rather than indigenous

(original).
 The bureaucracies are deficient (lacking) in

the:
 skills necessary for development programs,
 trained administrators with management capacity,
developmental skills, and technical proficiency are
extremely in shortfall.
PA in developing countries…
 Emphasis to non-productive orientations
 Much bureaucratic activity is channeled

towards the realization of non-

developmental goals.
 Thus, there is always a surplus of employees

in the public services.

 Extensive (huge) discrepancy or
disagreement between form and reality
Reflection

 What are the strengths of developed

countries’ public administration?
 What are the drawbacks of developing

countries’ public administration?

 What lessons can developing countries

learn from developed countries in order to

improve their public administration system?
 How can these lessons be learned?
Public administration in Ethiopia

Reflection
 How could you define Public
Administration in the Ethiopian context?
 What special features could you find in

your definition?
Recent Genesis of Ethiopian PA

Monarchic Socialist Current

al Era Era Situation
Discussion

 Compare and contrast PA of Ethiopia during the three

regimes in terms of nature, ideology and other
relevant factors.
 Identify weaknesses and strengths of the three
regimes, particularly form the PA point of view.
 What is your suggestion to improve the challenges of
the entire PA of contemporary Ethiopia?
Recent Genesis of Ethiopian PA
Ethiopia's public Administration:
 Prime mover in promoting

development
 Operational arm (apparatus) of the

government
 Many achievements

 Much still to be accomplished

Ethiopian PA …
Early Development
 Period Zemene Mesafint: dark age

 Emperor Tewodros: reformist tendency

 Creation of national army

 Restraining church’s privilege of tax exemption
 Land reform

 Yohannes IV

 Border conflicts – less reformist, outward

looking
Ethiopian PA …
Early Development - Menelik II
 Aimed at creating an orderly and
efficient government
 Introduction of modern administration

 Appointed nine ministers on October 25,

1907
 Minister of Justice, Defense, Interior, Trade and
Foreign Affair, Finance, Agriculture, Pen, Public
works and Minister of Palace Administration
Ethiopian PA …

Early Development - Menelik II

 Founded foreign mission in Addis Ababa

 Issued Guidelines

 Warned ministers against any form of corruption

 Promised salary to the ministers
 Urged to employ people who are diligent and

sympathetic to the poor

 Land, legal system and system of inheritance

 Changed existing system of appeal

Ethiopian PA …
Early Development – E. Zewditu
 Council of ministers continued to operate during the
early days
 Weakened slowly due to power struggle between
different factions
 Lately, the government was run by the empress, Ras
Teferi and Fitawrari Habtegiorgis
 Advisory council was formed a year after the
ministers were removed
Ethiopian PA …
Early Development – HaileSelassie
 The ministerial system was reconstituted
 The emperor modernized the civil service:
 Established more and more schools
 Modernized legal system, health system and administrative
apparatus
 Legislation was issued reforming the taxation system
 Customs department was reorganized
 Civil servants hired, budget allocated, offices built
 Ministries were given legal power through constitution
Ethiopian PA …
Early Development – HaileSelassie
 Modernization interrupted by Italian invasion
 Government had a number of accomplishments
 Problems of the monarchial regime:
 not working for citizens (working against public interest)
 Cronyism/favoritism
 discretionary interventions
 prevalence of political clientelism
 Focusing on individual and group interests of the nobility
Ethiopian PA Dergue (Socialist Era)

 Emphasis on the socialist (central-planning)

ideology
 politicization of the civil service

 requirement on all civil servants and political

appointees to undergo re-education to acquire

the proper socialist orientation
 meritocracy was eroded

 pay differences were minimized and pay

increase was totally abandoned

Ethiopian PA Dergue (Socialist Era)

 the civil service institutions were taken as a

relief point for the ever growing jobless citizens
 institutional, manpower and statutory

adjustments were not addressed

 implementation of new decisions within the

context of old regulations

 eviction of skilled and experienced civil

servants and their replacement with new

recruits and political supplicants
Ethiopian PA Dergue (Socialist Era)

 Running the civil service party

functionaries led to:
 downplaying of merit and professionalism
 corruption, inefficient service delivery and
increased neglect of due process of law in
matters of public concern
 gross failure in delivering the "public
good”
Ethiopian PA the current situation

 The civil service in the country

 has only 100 years of age
 mainly engaged on keeping peace and
enforcing law and order in the country
 hardly contributes in fighting poverty and
backwardness
 Its legal frameworks and regulation were
developed in the mid 1960s
Cont’d
 The civil service at the end of the
military regime was characterized
by:
 Poor structure, lack of skilled
manpower and inappropriate working
systems
 Corrupted staff, officials and systems
 Centralized, inefficient
During Transition
The Transitional Charter
 a commitment to a peaceful resolution of

conflicts
 the recognition of the right of nations,

nationalities and peoples

 full respect of human rights

 right to engage in unrestricted political activity

and
 a commitment to holding national and local

elections
After 1994 – The Constitution

Key changes how government is organized and

operate I Reconstituted the Ethiopian state on a
federal basis
 Institutionalized the sovereignty of the people as

the ultimate source of power

 Established a democratic system of government

based on periodically held free and fair elections

 an independent judiciary
 Guarantee the protection of citizen’s basic human

and democratic rights

After 1994 – The Constitution
Key changes how government is organized
and operate II
 Sovereignty and the right of self

determination of nations, nationalities and

peoples of Ethiopia
 Gender equality
 Separation of state and religion
 Division of power between the federal and

regional governments . . . etc

Reforms
 The civil service in the country was evaluated by a
task force
 Nationwide civil service reform programs were
designed
 To renovate the backward government civil

service
 To have the civil service transparent, responsive,

accountable, ethical, and free of corruption

 To enhance the economic and social
development of the country
PA and Local Government in Ethiopia

 The process of decentralization exhibits the following

features:
 Disperses power, both geographically and

institutionally
 Creates new responsibilities for inexperienced actors
 Can disperse scale economies (expertise) groups
 Introduces more levels into the state
 Creates a tension between local autonomy and

national standards
 Can increase administrative costs
Reforming Public Administration in Ethiopia

 Public administration is a continuous

process
 Good government = efficient and

effective civil service

 Civil service is machinery
 that governments rely on to design, formulate
and implement its policies, strategies and
programs
 that helps government to discharge all routine
government functions
Ethiopian Civil Service
 Challenges
 shortage of skilled manpower
 high turnover within the public service
 demanding situations to ensure development

and good governance

 attitudinal problems within the civil servants
 institutional capacity problem
 lack of improved systems and procedures
 rent seeking behavior and practices
Issues that trigger continuous change in Ethiopia

 National values
 Changing roles and functions of the

State
 Environmental change

 Resource availability

 Rigidities

 New technologies
Discussion Questions

 What specific challenges and opportunities

could you identify with the new Regional
set-up (decentralization) of Ethiopia in recent
years?
 How can the country benefits from these

opportunities and which challenges do you

think will continue in the future?
 What remedies can you see for the
problems?
 Rent Seeking: A Challenge for Ethiopian Public Administration

 Critical challenge which impede the democratic

and developmental endeavor
 Rent seeking in the entire system

 The behavior of an individual, company, or

government attempting to make a profit without

making a product, producing wealth, or other-
wise contributing to society
 Rent is income obtained when parties are

excluded from otherwise accessible transactions

Cont’d

 Forms of rent-seeking behavior

 lobbying
 decision making that promote self interest and

personal gain
 bribery and corruption (petty and grand)

 Rent-seeking public officials

 developmental state
 influenced by the role of government in the

economy
Discussion Questions

 How do you evaluate the fight against rent seeking in

Ethiopia at present time?
 What do you think are the most critical tasks of the
Ethiopian leadership to sustain developmental
thinking in the entire public administration echelon
across the country?
 Why do you think it is said that developmental states’
officials and professionals are prone to rent seeking
behavior and practices?
Future Government
The Future of Government: FAST

 Government must be flatter I

 Citizen engagement
Reduce distance between governors and
the governed
 Administrative efficiency
Reduce hierarchies between top
management and the frontline operators
(use management tools)
The Future of Government: FAST
 Government must be flatter II
 Decision-making processes
 Provide information where it is needed
 Intergovernmental and cross-sectoral collaboration
 Create networks between government, private and civil
society
The Future of Government: FAST
 Government must be agile(alert)
 flexibility in regulatory and legal structures

 Organize and re-organize itself as may be required

 Have highly skilled manpower

 Government must be streamlined( effcient and rational)

 Have an optimal civil service size

 Using shared services, labor and other resources

The Future of Government: FAST
 Government must be tech-enabled
 Policy, legal and regulatory frameworks and processes must

be redesigned to align with the dynamics of the networked

world.
 Information infrastructures must support new modes of

collaboration, information and intensive governance.

 Discussion Questions
 What gaps could you identify to make
Ethiopian Public Administration FAST?

 Do you think public administration is always

found in the policy making process? How?