DEBATE ON GOOD GOVERNANCE SOME THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Abstract

Abstract

Traditional notion of market failure exists within the discourse of a democratic market economy. There are areas where market either does not deliver efficiently or not all. The textbook response is to look towards some agency of collectivity (e.g. the government) to fill in the vacuum left by the market mechanism. The Public Policy literature has tried to rationalize the role of the agency of the state to promote common good and sustainable development as popularly perceived --- the proverbial concept of welfare state. Of late however, the crisis of the welfare state has called into question the rationale for the welfare state framework. It is necessary to energize the welfare state model through social innovations like accountability, transparency, responsiveness and civil society participation. Bureaucratic hierarchy, empowerment of social organizations in decision making arenas, local identification of problems and the corresponding utilitarian solutions, etc. will be some of the highlights in this article.