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PUBLIC POLICY ANALYSIS

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 Public Policy Analysis 323
CHAPTER
processes? These important questions constitute the

15 fulcrum of the nature, scope and processes of public policy

making. They are also instructive in an attempt to answer
the classical question of politics: “who gets what, when and
how” (Lasswell, 1936).
Politics, Administration and Public Policy
Public Policy Analysis From the foregoing comments, we could establish a
persuasive interconnection among the subject matters of
Ebenezer O. Oni politics, public administration and public policy. Politics, we
should note, concerns itself with what David Easton calls
the authoritative allocation of values in a political system.
Values, to Sambo (1999: 281), are the things people desire
Introduction and pursue with a fair amount of intensity. Values
represent the aggregate interests and pursuits of
T HE experiences of American political scientists after
the Second World War have called into question the
historical and descriptive method of studying and analysing
individuals and groups of individuals which define the
reason of their existence in the society. Notably, values vary
politics and political issues, and brought into the fore the from one individual or group to another. What becomes an
utility of an alternative approach. The decision-making issue is the scarcity of resources to meet the various
approach to the study of politics, which grew after the war, conflicting desires and interests of individuals and groups
thus expanded the scope of the study of politics and shifted in the society which shifts the burden of allocation to
attention from the focus on government and political politics, simply represented by government or what Easton
institutions to emphasise on the decision-making processes also calls authority. The outcome of a legitimate political
which shape the behaviour of government and political process could be referred to as public policy. The cumulative
institutions. This, therefore, popularised the study of public judgmental decision made by the authority in allocating
policy analysis as a distinct field in political science. values, which of course may be favourable to some and
unfavourable to others, is what Sambo conceives as public
What is intended in this chapter is to provide an policy (1999: 282). The conflicts arising from the processes
understanding to the study of public policy by answering are also resolved through the mechanism of politics.
the following pertinent questions: What is public policy?
In the same vein, public administration ensures the
What is the utility of analysis in understanding the subject
implementation of the values allocated. This includes
matter of public policy? How are policy decisions made and
ensuring that such wealth, rights and duties are distributed
in whose interest? Who are the actors in the policy decision
to individuals and groups in the society. It is imperative,
therefore, to make decisions concerning strategies,
322
324 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 325

techniques and modalities for executing the values means of achieving them within a specified situation where
allocated. This instructively points to the elements in the those decisions should, in principle, be within the power of
linkage between administration and policy. The picture of those actors to achieve (Jerkins, 1978).
the nexus among politics, administration and public policy
should be clearer at this juncture since public policy is what It is important to underscore the power dynamics of public
authorities do when they are involved in the political (and policies to avoid unnecessary conflicts in policy statements.
administrative) processes of sharing (and implementing) Public policy is a tool of resource allocation channelled
societal resources among competing values (Sambo: 1999). through meeting governmental goals and objectives. Thus,
Roberts and Clark (1982) submit that public policy is a
What is Public Policy Analysis? series of steps taken by a government to solve problems,
make decisions, allocate resources or values, implement
It may be more productive for foundational students of
policies and, in general, do things expected of them by their
politics to understand public policy analysis by isolating the
constituencies.
terms, since the literature is replete with definitions
without any form of consensus. Barret and Fudge (1981) However, it is not only decisions of government that
provide a lead on what public connotes when they argue constitute public policy option. In this sense, Thomas Dye
that public policy is conceived when a policy emanates from (1972) defines public policy as whatever governments
the public sector, including both the institutions of the choose to do or not to do. It is important to bear in mind that
central, local governments and state-created agencies such inaction is also an action; thus, failure to make decisions is a
as water or health authorities, commissions and public policy in itself since the resultant effect of
corporations….” Put differently, public represents government's inaction or refusal to make certain decisions
governmental bodies and officials (Anderson, 1975:3). The is felt by the public. Another critical point is that whatever
notion of policy can be appropriately captured in the words governments choose to do or not to do should not be borne
of Sharkansky (1978) as “a proposal, an on-going out of a critical analysis of the issues in relation to the
programme, other goals of a programme, major decisions or objectives and goals of government. This makes the subject
the refusal to make certain decisions.” matter of policy analysis compelling.
Elaborating further, Roberts and Edwards (1991), cited in Policy analysis simply aims at generating detailed
Olaniyi, (1998) posit that a policy is a set of decisions taken knowledge about proposed or actual policies. According to
by a political actor concerning the selection of goals and the Shafritz (1986), policy analysis is a set of techniques that
method of attaining them relating to a specified situation. seeks to answer the question of what the probable effect of a
The concern of policy is in the making of decisions regarding policy will be before it actually occurs. This is known as
a course of action to be followed by government in dealing “before-the-fact-analysis” (Olaniyi, 1998). The utility of this
with a problem or matter of concern. Consequently, public kind of analysis is that any negative probable effect,
policy is a set of inter-related decisions by a political actor or identified before the policy is implemented, gives room for
group of actors concerning the selection of goals and the early policy modification. Any policy analysis undertaken
326 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 327

when a policy is under implementation or has already been techniques such as planning, programming and budgeting,
executed is termed after-the-fact-analysis or programme game theory, and normative economics) and meta-policy (i.e.
evaluation (Olaniyi, 1998). the study of policies for improving policy-making). Their
detailed exposition paid attention not only to the contents of
George Kent refers to policy analysis as a systematic, the policy alone but also the ecology of the policy process, the
analytical and creative study whose primary purpose is to intrinsic values of political actors as well as the economic and
produce well-supported recommendations for actions in opportunity cost of each strategy to achieve desired goals.
dealing with creative political problems. The Rand
Corporation concept of policy analysis posits that policy Characteristics of Public Policy
analysis is an enquiry, the purpose of which is to assist Following Sambo (1999: 283) and Anderson (1975: 3), some
decision-makers in choosing a preferred course of action basic elements differentiate public policy from private
from among complex alternatives under certain conditions. policies and other forms of policies. These distinguishing
It is also in this sense that E. S. Quade posits that policy features include:
analysis is any kind of analysis that generates and presents
information in such a way to improve the basis for (1) Public policy is a purposive course of action or goal-
policymakers to exercise their judgments. What emerges oriented action rather than a random or chance
from the various definitions above is that political/policy behaviour.
actors are daily confronted with the dilemma of complexities (2) Public policy consists of courses or patterns of action by
of alternatives, albeit judgments, that is, decision-making government officials.
must be based on logical rules or reasons rather than
(3) Public policy is what governments actually do, not what
sentiments. Chandler and Plano (1988) summarise the
they intend to do or say they are going to do. However,
import of policy analysis thus: “an attempt to measure
this is still a subject of debate since future plans of
organisational effectiveness through an examination and
governments over certain matters of concern can be seen
evaluation of the qualitative impact of an agency’s
as a commitment to resolving such issues within the set
programme; a systematic and data-based alternative to
time. This also follows from Sharkansky's position that
initiate judgments about the effects of policy or policy option;
a policy is a proposal (1978).
it is used (i) for problem assessment and monitoring, (ii) as a
“before-the-fact” decision tool, and (iii) for evaluation.” (4) Public policy involves some forms of overt government
action to affect a particular problem; it involves a
Espousing the notion of analysis in public policy, Roberts decision by government officials not to take action, to do
and Edwards (quoted in Olaniyi, 1998) submit that policy nothing on some matter on which governmental
analysis is concerned with the study of the formulation, involvement is sought.
implementation and evaluation of public policy, the values of
(5) Public policy is based on law and is authoritative. In other
policy-makers, the environment of the policy-making
words, public policy has an authoritative, potentially
system, the cost of policy alternatives (e.g. by the use of
legally-coercive quality that the policies of private
328 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 329

organisations do not have. For instance, the monthly to solve practical societal problems makes it compelling
environmental sanitation exercise observed by many that expertise contributions of political scientists or
states in Nigeria has a legal and authoritative force public/development administrators, economists,
which attracts some kind of punishment for whoever sociologists, lawyers, industrial relations experts,
breaches its provisions. among others, are sought in analysing the viability and
feasibility of proposed policies that have direct
(6) Public policy is sometimes an outcome of bargaining and
consequences on the general populace, the economy and
compromise among political/policy actors and various
government itself.
interest groups in the policy process.
Types of Public Policy
Importance of Public Policy
The classification of public policy into different types
The relevance of public policy in the administration of state
enables us to critically understand the contents and the
can be summed up in the following terms:
purposes for which they are formulated. Olaniyi (1998)
(1) It is a mirror that guides government in its actions. This attempts a categorisation of public policy into two. First is to
is because a government without a definite plan of actions know the boundary where the policy problem emanates
is like a traveller without a destination (Chijioke, 1987: from. Following from this, policies are classified into:
5). He may cover many kilometres and yet not be able to Foreign policy and domestic policy.
say where he is going or how far he has gone. Public policy
thus helps government to reconcile the numerous public Foreign policies are those that shape the orientation and
demands and scarce resources based on priority. mode of interaction that takes place between a particular
country and other countries of the world. It is a potent tool
(2) It arouses in citizens public consciousness and critical
for achieving the national interests and/or objectives of a
minds to take up the challenge of assessing government-
country. Example includes Nigeria's foreign policy objective
planned activities and performance over time.
of promoting the total liberation of African countries from
(3) It provides the platforms to question the why of colonial rule which informed Nigeria's unrelented efforts in
government, i.e. why do governments do what they do? the liberation of South Africa from apartheid, Angola from
It seeks an understanding of the causes or determinants colonialism, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Sudan from civil
of political/policy actions. war. Domestic policies are formulated to respond to internal
(4) It provides the opportunity for various interest groups policy problems. These include educational policy,
and the general public to know government's responses industrial policy, tax policy, housing policy, and so on.
and reactions to their demands. Such reactions show the Second is to appreciate the number of people affected by the
pattern of action government adopts or intends to adopt. formulation and implementation of the policy. In this
regard, policies are classified into four, namely:
(5) It promotes professionalism in the art and science of
policy-making. Applying the knowledge of social science Distributive Policy: This type of policy is formulated by
330 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 331

government to allocate resources to the general public. It consequences in the society. It entails the making of rules
promotes equal access to resources because benefits are based on accepted terms, enforcement and adjudication in
distributed not at the expense of some other people. It is a cases of any breach. Regulatory policies mostly suffer from
win-win approach since every individual, irrespective of “low clientele supports” (co-operative behaviour), to borrow
status, is a beneficiary. The policy aims at achieving Olaniyi’s words, because of certain restrictions it places on
egalitarianism (i.e. equality in status) among members of a human conduct. Regulatory policies could be competitive or
political community. Examples of distributive policies in protective. It is competitive when it restricts the number of
Nigeria include the National Programme on Immunisation people who can provide certain public goods or utilities. It is
(NPI), National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), protective when it sets conditions for private or group
National Directorate of Employment (NDE) Act 1989, and activities. Generally, they protect the public against
Universal Basic Education (UBE) Policy. harmful activities. Regulatory policies include the National
Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) which regulates
Re-Distributive Policy: According to Olaniyi (1998), the the movement and use of hard drugs in and out of Nigeria;
policy is usually referred to as “social inter-transfer of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and
material resources”. The policy involves the allocation of Control (NAFDAC) which regulates the quality of foods and
resources by transferring such resources from one section of drugs processed and consumed by Nigerians, the Standards
the society to another. The policy aims at achieving Organisation of Nigeria (SON) which brings quality control
equilibrium, that is, a balance share of state resources or into manufactured products consumed or utilised in
access to them. The policy is premised upon the assumption Nigerian industries and households.
that some people enjoy public amenities in excess while
some do not have at all. It is therefore a zero-sum game Constituent Policy: This type of policy has a national
because the gain of one is the loss of another. Examples of orientation as it goes beyond serving individuals,
this policy in Nigeria include the different revenue organisations or sections of the society. The policy serves
allocation formulas which re-distribute the share of the nation as a whole by protecting and promoting certain
national revenue among the three tiers of government, activities that are vital to national security and survival.
Petroleum Trust Fund Decree No. 25 of 1994 which Examples include the 1976 Decree which sited the Federal
proposed the redistribution of excess funds generated from Capital Territory in Abuja for the purpose of promoting
crude oil sales to every sector of the economy such as health, national unity, Decree No. 24 of 1973 which established the
education and road maintenance, the Subsidy National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme as part of
Reinvestment Programme (SURE-P) of 2013. the 3Rs (reconciliation, reconstruction and rehabilitation)
of the Gowon administration to deal with the aftermath of
Regulatory Policy: This type of policy is formulated as a the civil war.
control measures in the conduct of human and societal
affairs. It involves setting of standards and rules to limit or Basic Terminologies in Public Policy Analysis
restrict certain behaviour or activities with undesirable Certain basic terminologies are constantly used in public
332 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 333

policy discourse. They simplify our understanding of the policies with regard to what government has actually
public policy process and make conversations on public done in pursuit of policy decisions and policy
policy issues more direct. Some of these terminologies are: statements. A policy is simply what government has
(1) Policy Demands: These are usually the values, actually done as against what it proposes to do. For
interests, benefits and claims people make upon instance, the number of roads constructed by
policymakers in the policy process for action or inaction government as distinct from the number projected, the
in order to solve perceived social problems. This is in number of schools built by government as distinct from
line with Chandler and Plano's (1988) position that the number proposed, etc.
public policy is the strategic use of resources to (5) Policy Outcomes: These are the overall manifestation of
alleviate national problems or government concerns. public policies in terms of the goals set for attainment.
Importantly, public policies respond to the need to This manifestation could be intended or unintended
satisfy policy demands and go into policy formulation consequences of policy for the society where the policy
processes as inputs. is implemented and this could be as a result of the
(2) Policy Decisions: The import of policy decisions is to give action or inaction of government. Policy outcomes
authoritative direction to policy actions. Policy demand involve appraising whether public policies achieve
can only receive action for implementation when public their set goals in terms of the successes recorded.
officials/policy-makers have given authoritative (6) Policy Studies: In simple terms, policy studies entail
approval to its contents and direction. Policy decisions the analysis of the policy process with emphasis on
include the decisions to enact statutes, make judicial policy formulation. They could be normative or
interpretation of laws on conflicting matters, issue analytical. A policy environment is normative when it
executive orders, issue administrative rules, and so on. critically studies how policy is made and how the
(3) Policy Statements: These are generally explained as the processes could be improved. It is therefore the study of
official or formal expression of public policy by the interdisciplinary nature of public policy: politics,
institutions of government, including legislative economic, operational research, organisational theory
statutes, presidential orders, decrees, regulations and and public administration. It is analytical when it deals
administrative rules. They also include speeches made with developing the models and explanation of the
by public officials indicating the position of government policy process.
on a particular policy issue as well as when and how it (7) Policy Science: This is the method of investigating the
will be achieved. Policy statements are often laced with policy process with the view to making the study of
ambiguity arising from the conflicting interests and decision-making process scientific. It is particularly a
competency of public officials making such statements. problem-solving approach that cuts across many
(4) Policy Outputs: These are described as the concrete, disciplines to deal with the most important social
measurable and identifiable manifestation of public decisions.
334 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 335

(8) Policy Environment: This is referred to as the and this informs the imperative of initiating public policies
prevailing circumstances, situations and factors that to solve the perceived or identified policy problems.
constantly shape and reshape policy orientation,
formation and implementation. They comprises factors The Policy Cycle
external to public policies. The policy cycle begins with the formal articulation of public
(9) Policy Advocacy: Advocacy is concerned with the policy by policymakers through statements made by public
activities of government designed to draw support and officials indicating the intentions and goals of government
promote a particular policy through several means, over a specified situation and what will be done to attain
including discussion, persuasion, and political activism. those goals. The policy cycle reaches the stage of maturity
It is also a means of creating awareness and sensitising with policy outputs which are the concrete manifestation of
the public on the orientation and contents of a policy. public policy vis-à-vis what government has actually done
in pursuit of policy decisions and statements. Policy cycle is
The Public Policy-Making Process completed with policy outcomes, that is, the intended or
unintended consequences of public policy that flow from
Graphically, policy-making is a sequential pattern of action
either action or inaction of government. It measures the
involving a number of functional categories of activities. To
impact of public policies. The policy cycle is another way of
Sambo (1999: 286), it is a complex activity involving a
referring to the policy process and this has three distinct
pattern of action, extending over time and involving many
stages that will be examined below.
decisions. Sambo further argues that, as a course of action,
it is useful to conceive of policy-making as an activity Formulation
involving a series of distinct stages which constitute the
policy cycle. It is useful to emphasise that public policies are
designed to solve and respond to social problems, perceived
or identified. Indeed, a certain problem usually triggers the Feedback/ Policy
Evaluation
making of a policy. This is termed policy problem.

According to Smith (1964), a policy problem is a condition or

situation which generates a human need, deprivation or Implementation
dissatisfaction, self-identified or identified by others for
Fig. 1: The Policy-Making Process
which relief is sought. Stressing it further, Egonmwan
(1991) posits that a policy problem is a “social situation Source: Egonmwan (1991: 4).
which many people consider adverse or intolerable in its
effect on a large number of people over time.” Therefore, such Policy Formulation Stage
situation is considered to require a constructive change. It is
Although this stage is usually preceded by agenda-setting,
in view of this constructive change that policy demands arise
which is the stage in the policy process when policymakers
336 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 337

attempt to narrow the number of issues which come to their adopted for action by public officials. Thus, policy
attention to a set which will actually become the focus of implementation is termed programme implementation. It is
their attention (Sambo, 1999:287), it is the exact point useful to distinguish a policy from a programme. A policy is
where government takes a decision on what to do and how it a broader, all-encompassing course of action taken by
is to be done. This stage, according to Egonmwan, involves government to respond to or solve a particular social
the following processes: problem while a programme is a small unit into which a
policy is divided for the purpose of issue-specificity,
(i) Problem identification;
administrative convenience, technical assurance in a bid to
(ii)Goal formulation;
achieve efficiency and effectiveness in the attainment of
(iii)
Agenda setting;
policy goals and objectives. Policy implementation involves
(iv)Developing alternatives and appraising such policy
the mobilisation and deployment of men and material
alternatives; and
resources to carry out stated organisational goals. This
(v) Policy choice.
stage is the most difficult in the policy process because it is
This can be sketched in a simple diagram as presented usually premised upon certain assumptions that are
below: generally made by policy formulators. These, according to
Olaniyi (1998), include:
Identify problem Set goals
objectives Determine (i) That the implementation agencies will faithfully
implement policy passed on to them without any deviation.
Select the best Estimate costs of Identify alternative (ii) That the policy adopted, formulated and passed down to
Alternative each alternative process
executing agencies is implementable. That is, the
resources (knowledge, financial, human and material)
Fig 2: The Policy Formulation Process
are readily available to implement a given policy.
Source: Olaniyi (1998:31).
(iii) That the implementation is directed at the original
Government is usually assisted in the policy formulation target group. That is, people or the population that will
stage by other policy actors such as civil servants/public be directly affected by a policy.
administrators, research institutes, and policy professionals/ (iv) That the change intended or envisaged is feasible.
consultants.
(v) That there is a standard operating procedure to
Policy Implementation Stage facilitate and not hamper implementation.
This stage is concerned with the translation of policy goals However, situations have shown that these assumptions
and objectives into practical reality and achievement may be unrealisable and this often creates a lag between
through various programmes. This mostly concerns public policy formulation and implementation capability.
administrators who carry out policies that have been
338 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 339

Policy Feedback/Evaluation Stage discussion. These actors and agencies would be discussed
under five categories, namely:
This stage concludes and restarts the policy process. It
ordinarily involves performance appraisal where a (1) The Legislature
comparison is drawn between intended outcome and the
actual achievements with a view to noting the level of This important institution of government is responsible
success(es) recorded. A policy is deemed successful for making laws, rules and regulations which form a
whenever an assessment reveals that there are little or no significant part of public policy. The contributions of the
discrepancies between expected and actual effects of such legislature in policy-making include the following:
policy. However, if there is a significant manifestation of (a) Makes or enacts laws for the good governance of a
discrepancies, it generally calls for a reformulation of such country, especially as it relates to the security and
policy based on evaluation. Evaluation therefore is an welfare of the citizenry.
attempt at measuring performance, identifying loopholes
(b) Approves the yearly appropriation bill as presented
and providing remedies to the errors to avoid adverse
by the executive after thorough deliberations,
consequences (Olaniyi, 1998). This again is premised on the
adjustments and re-adjustments.
feedback received. Feedback is the responses generated on
the impact of policies on the society. (c) Ensures oversight function is performed by
ascertaining that monies/funds appropriated for a
Actors/Agencies in the Policy Process particular project(s) are actually used for the same
Having understood the processes and stages involved in purpose.
policy-making, it is imperative to be acquainted with the (d) Ratifies any international treaty entered into by the
various actors and agencies involved in the process. This is government of the country with other nations or
because understanding the policy process without the bilateral/multilateral organisations.
knowledge of who is responsible for what makes the study
less productive. It is instructive to note that some actors The legislature in Nigeria is known as the National
involved in the policy process are hidden, hence cannot be Assembly and, so far in the Fourth Republic, is made up
properly analysed, yet their influences are noticeable and of the Senate (with 109 members) and the House of
have implications for the consequences of public policies. Representatives (with 360 members). Members of these
These are called the hidden clusters. Actors in the policy houses are the key actors in policy-making.
process are the officials who, by training or experience,
contribute to the different stages of policy-making. They (2) The Executive
have significant roles to play in the policy process. Most of The executive branch of government is responsible for
these actors belong to certain governmental and non- policy implementation. The key actors in this organ of
governmental agencies; therefore, both actors and government include the president, vice-president,
agencies would be given adequate attention in our ministers, special advisers and other appointed public
340 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 341

officials. The institution makes the following contributions Its contributions are so crucial that it is unofficially
to the policy process: constituted as the fourth organ of government in the
(a) Initiates and gives policy direction, i.e. identifies United States of America. The public administration is
what government intends to do, when and how. composed of career professionals who are saddled with
the day-to-day running of government businesses. The
(b) Makes budgetary provisions for activities and
public service makes the following contributions to the
programmes identified by government as necessary
public policy-making process:
for growth and development, peace and security as
well as the welfare of the citizenry. (a) Participates in policy formulation processes by
offering ideas, opinions and policy alternatives to the
(c) Implements policy directives and actions adopted for
political heads of their agencies.
action.
(b) Assists government in generating data required for
(d) Evaluates implemented programmes to determine
policy formulation.
whether or not expected results are attained.
(c) Ensures the implementation of policy directives by
(3) The Judiciary the executive arm.
This institution has the crucial role of law interpretation or
(d) Participates in evaluation processes and documents
adjudication. The judiciary mediates in conflicts arising
government activities for the purposes of continuity
from the application of existing laws between governmental
and references.
structures, individuals, groups and companies. Key actors
in this institution include members of the bench (judges) The public administration/service includes the core civil
and members of the bar (lawyers). The judiciary makes the servants in the ministries, research institutes,
following contributions to the policy process: universities, parastatals and commissions.
(a) Plays significant professional role in the making or
(5) Interest Groups
writing of the constitution or laws of a country.
Interest or pressure groups exist basically to influence
(b) Makes judicial pronouncements that validate or
government decisions in favour of their members or the
invalidate existing laws, thereby setting new general public. They make the following contributions to
standards for societal conduct. the process:
(c) Participates in and makes pronouncements on
(a) Sensitise their members and the general public on
electoral matters which have consequences on the contents of certain sensitive public policies, that
electoral policies and laws. is, awareness creation and public enlightenment.
(4) The Public Service/Administration (b) Make policy demands on behalf of their members or
As an important institution of government, its the general public which, in turn, go as inputs into
contributions have been understated in the policy process. policy formulation.
342 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 343

(c) Advise government on policy initiatives and directives interaction of the political system with environmental forces
that could have consequences for the general public. brought to bear on it. According to Easton (cited in Sambo,
1999: 290), a political system is that “system of interaction in
(d) Assist government generate feedback on public
any society through which binding and authoritative
policies and their impact on the society.
allocations are made.” Systems theory thus views public
Actors in this group are members of various non- policy as an output of the political system. Within the
governmental organisations, civil society organisations, systems analysis framework, inputs which take the form of
professional associations, including the Academic Staff demand and support are fed into the black box or conversion
Union of Universities (ASUU), Nigerian Bar Association box of decision-making to generate outputs. Outputs are
(NBA), Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), National authoritative decisions or policies made by public officials.
Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), among several Feedback mechanism which measures the impact of public
others in the case of Nigeria. policies is allowed within this framework.

Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Public Policy It needs be stressed that the support or lack of it that
government receives from the society is a function of the
Adapting political theories to the study of public policy has
extent to which government fulfils the demands of the
not only provided deep understanding of the policy process, it
people. Again, the flow of inputs into the political system is
has also helped in situating the linkage between politics and
regulated by gatekeepers (such as interest groups and
public policy. The import of the notion of theory in the public
parties) who collectively manipulate the system in favour of
policy-making process is to appropriately dissect the causes
certain demands or against others (Olaniyi, 1998).
and consequences of political and governmental actions as
well as appreciate specifically what and how policies ought to
G
be. Theories generally provide explanation for social Demand
a
Political Authorities
phenomena. Therefore, theoretical models of public policy Support System Decisions
t
analysis simplify and clarify our thinking and understanding e
of politics and public policy. Based on this, we shall briefly k
examine the dominant theories of public policies. e
e
p
Systems Theory
e
This theory, borrowed from the biological system's r
explanation of life processes interaction with each other and
with the environment to produce a changing but nonetheless Feedback and Evaluation
stable bodily state (Ham and Hill: 1985, 13), was adopted
and popularised by David Easton (1965a) for the analysis of Fig. 3: David Easton’s System Analysis
political life. Public policy is therefore a response of the Source: Olaniyi (1998:58).
344 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 345

Elite/Mass Theory The active elite are subject to relatively little direct
t

This theory is a reaction to the pluralist perspective of the influence from apathetic masses. The elite influence
distribution of power in society. The elite theory views the masses more than the masses influence the elite.
process of policy-making as a top-bottom approach where
The Group Theory
power is concentrated in the hands of a minority group
referred to as the elite to perform all political functions. The This theory holds that public policy is a product of group
elite are a small minority who wield control in crucial struggle and a negotiated agreement between government
governmental policies or a relatively small group of people agencies and pressure groups organised into political
who make decisions that are authoritative and binding in communities (Ham and Hill, 1985:27). It affirms the belief
the society. Viewed from the perspective of the elite theory, that interaction and struggle among groups is the central
public policy is a reflection of the values and preferences of fact of political life (Dye, 1976: 19). Therefore, groups on the
the governing elite who make policy decisions. basis of shared values and interests make claims upon other
groups in the policy process or governmental institutions.
This is always the argument of the masses or majority who Group, in simple political studies, can be construed to mean
the elite supposedly represent. The masses often contend a relatively persistent pattern of human activity and
that the elite protect the particularist interests of the interaction or an aggregate of persons who share a set of
minority ruling class to the detriment of the majority. characteristics (Olaniyi, 1998). Individual desire or opinion
Thomas Dye and Harmon Zeigler (1996) summarise the in the policy process is only relevant and meaningful to the
assumptions of the elite theory thus: extent that he acts through group interest.
Society is divided into the few who have power and many
t
The group theory can also be located within the pluralist
who do not. Only a small number of persons allocate
perspective of representational or liberal democracy which
values for society, the masses do not decide public policy.
holds that power is distributed among different groups in
The few who govern are not typical of the masses who are
t the society on the basis of which they pursue their interests.
governed. The elite are drawn disproportionately from Since politics is the struggle for power among different
the upper socio-economic strata of society. groups to influence public policies, conflicts cannot be ruled
The movement of the non-elite to elite positions must be
t out from this group interplay. Therefore, the concern of the
slow and continuous to maintain stability and avoid political system, according to Thomas Dye (1976: 20), is to
revolution. Only the non-elite who have accepted the resolve group conflict by (a) establishing the rules of the
basic elite consensus can be admitted to governing circles. game in the group struggle; (b) arranging compromises and
balancing interests; (c) enacting compromises in the form of
The elite share a consensus on the basic values of the
t
public policy; and (d) enforcing these compromises.
social system and the preservation of the system.
Public policies do not reflect demands of the masses but
t The Streams/Window Theory
rather the prevailing values of the elite. This theory, as propounded by Kingdon (1995), examines
346 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 347

the process of making policy by analysing the process itself. hidden clusters adopt the tool of persuasion as opposed
It identifies three essential streams in policy-making. to bargaining usually employed by the visible clusters.
According to the theory, each of the streams is independent
of the other but they are all important in the final output of a He points out that government policies are formulated
policy. The streams are: where and when these three streams converge. It is at this
level that we have a window. When there is an opening of
(a) Problem Stream: This involves the concentration of the the window, then there is either a change in government or
attention of the public and policy-makers on a social policies. Before these three streams converge, there is a
problem. A particular social problem could be defined softening phase in which trial balloons (ideas, suggestions,
and resolved by co-opting existing public policies to solve etc.) of the hidden clusters are considered.
it or allowing the problem fade away with time.
Models of Decision-Making
(b) Political Stream: This stream is the level at which
A number of models have been adapted to the analysis of the
governmental agenda is formulated. It is essentially the
decision-making process. Instructively, models/theories of
level at which the list of government policies is
decision-making are concerned with how choices are selected
developed. It is instructive to note that issues in the
among competing alternatives. Following this clarification,
problem stream may or may not make the political
four models/theories of decision-making will be examined.
streams. It is argued that before an issue can make
government agenda, such issues must have been agreed Rational Comprehensive Model
upon by the core participants at the political stream.
These core participants are referred to as visible clusters. Herbert Simon is closely associated with the exposition of this
Visible clusters are people that are visibly seen on the theory in his book Administrative Behaviour (1945). It is a
political stage, for example parliament members, model of analysis that is scientific in nature because of the
interest groups, media, practitioners, and bureaucrats. carefulness involved before selecting a policy choice.
The main instrument often employed by every member Essentially, it emphasises the primacy of human rationality in
of the cluster is bargaining. decision-making and, as a result, it believes that every decision
made is a product of careful logical reasoning. The model has
(c) Policy Stream: This stream involves the decision agenda five basic elements which a decision-maker, operating
of government, the development of different options or according to the rational comprehensive model, must follow to
alternatives that government may adopt to resolve arrive at a rational choice. These elements include:
policy problems or issues listed on government agenda.
Identification of the nature of the problem.
t
At this point, the activities of the hidden clusters become
significant. These are forces in the policy process that Goal setting on the basis of individual preferences.
t
influence the alternative government chooses Consideration of available options that may be employed
t
eventually, for example interest groups, the academia, to solve the problem.
and researchers. Kingdon argues that those in the
348 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 349

Analysis of the alternatives on the basis of efficiency,

t incrementalism or science of muddling through, arguing that
reliability, cost benefit, viability, etc. administrators muddle through in response to current events
Selection of the most acceptable option that can best
t
and circumstances rather than by the will of those in policy-
resolve the problem at the least cost. making positions (Olaniyi, 1998).

However, the model has been criticised as an idealistic way Bureaucratic Organisational Model
of decision-making which does not reflect the reality. As This is a model that combines two basic elements in policy
March and Simon (1958) indicate, actual decisions are made decision-making. Graham Allison (1971) is the major
under conditions of bound rationality, which explains the proponent of this model. He offers to explain the role of the
fact that decision-makers simply target meeting minimum organisational structure as well as the behaviour of
standard of satisfaction. bureaucrats in decision-making. Subsumed in the model
are two theories: organisational process theory and
Incremental Model bureaucratic politics theory.
The incremental model was popularised by Charles Lindblom (a) Organisational Process Theory: This theory attempts to
(1959) as a reaction to the propositions of the Rational explain the criticality of organisational structures in
Comprehensive Model. Lindblom argues that the rational policy decision. It argues that the values, assumptions
model is limited as a plausible way of decision-making and the pattern of behaviour in an organisation
because of its inability to accept man's limited capacities to determine, to a large extent, how decisions are made in
solve problems and the costliness of analysis of alternatives. that organisation. Every decision made is observably
As a model, incrementalism emphasises the fact that every seen as a reflection of the entrenched culture within an
policy that is made is a slight variation of an existing policy of organisation and this gives room for predictability.
government agenda. In addition, it argues that all policy- Organisational pressures also influence decision.
makers are too careful to undertake public policies that will be Culture here conjures an established pattern of doing
completely different from the existing ones for reasons of things. Noteworthy is the fact that the role of individuals
limited time, sunk cost and knowledge to evolve truly is suppressed in organisational decision-making.
different decisions.
(b) Bureaucratic Politics Theory: The theory highlights the
The model is a conservative approach to decision-making, impact of bargaining between employers and employees,
premised on the assumptions that new decisions are the personnel and their agencies on the decisions made
variations of past decisions, that decision-makers accept in an organisation. The model synthesises the role of the
existing decisions as satisfying and legitimate, and only make bureaucracy and the organisational culture and/or
small, incremental, marginal adjustments in their current pressure in policy decision-making.
behaviour (Sambo, 1999: 301). This forecloses the rigour
decision-makers undergo in canvassing and analysing new Belief System Model
alternatives. Lindblom dubs the model disjointed This model predicates changes in policy on the values,
350 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 351

perceptions and the ideology of the decision-makers. of public policies on matters of common concern. It appears
Essentially, the model advocates that decisions made are there is a plethora of policies on every single issue in Nigeria
influenced by the individual value system or orientation. but they either fail to achieve desired results or are not
Writers in this school include Paul Sabatier, Robert Jervis, implemented at all. The literature is replete with
Irving Janis and Kenneth Boulding. According to Paul highlighted problems militating against policy-making and
Sabatier (1988), changes in policy occur when there is the analysis in Nigeria, but this chapter examined three which
domination of one group or sub-system within the policy attempted to sum up the problems from the inception of
process. In the policy process, different individual groups or Nigeria to the contemporary era. Successive governments
sub-systems come together on the basis of shared belief or in Nigeria seem to see public policy issues as a matter of
interest to form advocacy coalitions (knowingly or political jamboree which can be played around with. Many
unknowingly). Within these systems are interest groups, promises are made by politicians, particularly during
the media, political parties, academics, civil society electioneering campaigns, and eventually find their ways
organizations, civil servants, etc., all of whom have into becoming public policies but government often lacks
influence on the policy process. Sabatier further states that the political will to ensure the execution of such policies.
there are three levels of belief systems that people could Policy statements are often made by public officials as a
share before forming advocacy coalition. These are: subtle way of calming the expectations and subsequent
(i) Deep-Core Belief System: This refers to the moral and agitations by the public but the lack of political will, to
philosophical belief of the people. implement such policies on the part of government, makes
them ineffective however lofty they may appear.
(ii) Near-Core Belief System: This infers the policy
preferences of the people. At another level, lack of requisite data needed for effective
national planning has constituted an albatross to policy-
(iii) Secondary Belief Level: This simply refers to the way a
making in Nigeria. For instance, the Nigerian government
policy is carried out or implemented.
recently celebrated the rebasing of the country's Gross
These belief systems put together are referred to as the glue Domestic Product (GDP) which consequently rated the
of politics which binds people of similar interest together in country as the largest economy in Africa as at 2014.
the policy process. Sabatier further points out that, at the However, it should be a matter of concern that the GDP was
level of deep-core belief system, people do not change, so it last rebased in 1991 which in itself is a serious challenge for
makes it sacrosanct. At the near-core and secondary belief policy-making, especially as it relates to national planning
systems, people change easily. because figures used in analysing Nigeria's economy and the
living standards of Nigerians between 1991 and 2014 do not
Conclusion: Problems of Policy-Making and represent the reality. Finally, corruption, which has almost
Analysis in Nigeria become an untreatable virus in Nigeria, has hampered policy
The major developmental challenges confronting Nigeria implementation. The recent embezzlement of about 23
from its formative years cannot be attributed to the dearth billion naira pension fund by a middle-level civil servant is a
352 Fundamentals of Politics and Governance Public Policy Analysis 353

serious problem for the pension policy and indeed pensioners Lasswell, Harold (1936). Politics: Who Gets What, When and
in Nigeria. Meanwhile, this is just one out of the outrageous How? New York: Whittlesey House.
cases of corruption that are not effectively investigated or Lindblom, C. E. (1959). “The Science of Muddling Through.”
prosecuted; neither are culprits appropriately punished if Public Administration Review, Vol 19.
March, J. G. and Simon, H. A. (1958) Organisations. New York:
they are investigated at all.
John Willey and Sons.
Olaniyi, Johnson (1998). Foundations of Public Policy Analysis.
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