Presentation Presentation r2 - Public Policy Ppt-Policy Tradtions and Paths in Ethiopia pps5011

policy_tradtions_and_paths
in_ethiopia_pps5011
Public policy
Public Policies: are decisions, actions and choices
made among alternatives by governments
Policymakers: government (with its three

branches L,E,J)
- interest groups
- individual citizens
- the general public Policy
Actors
Public policy
 The interaction of all actors (government, interest groups,
individual citizens, the public), creates what is known as
policy communities.
 Sound public policy is participatory. Citizens’ policy

participation is a right and important for its effective
implementation.
 The level of policy participation depends on the positions

and knowledge or experience the actors have. They may be
categorized as “high politics” or “low politics”
Public Policy
Public policy practice/tradition
General:
o Public policy may be thought of as old as human beings
or as old as human beings began to live in an organized
manner (as old as the emergence of nation-states).
o Because any sate (government) has to make decisions,

act and make choices among the alternatives.
o Modern systematic policymaking process, however, is a

recent phenomenon (since mid 1960s and 1970s).
Public policy
Public policy practice/tradition/in Ethiopia
Public policy (concept, rationale, stakeholders, etc) is
 Little known
 Little studied (for many years, it has not been in the list of higher learning
institutions despite many development policies were designed at various times
in history).
 Discourse over the concept “policy” is not widespread even among the
educated citizens, leave alone the larger public.
 Open policy dialogue is not frequented even today unless public bodies
organize it when a policy has nearly entered in the implementation phase.
 The “world” of policy domain is often confined to the elites (political and policy
elites), while many of the policy stakeholders are rarely consulted.
Public policy
 Policy research and outputs are scanty and inaccessible
to the larger public including the academia (Dessalegn
2008).
 From this brief background, it may be inferred that

many of the public policies in Ethiopia have not been
transparent enough to the stakeholders and their
active scrutiny.
Public policy
Brief historical glimpse:
 Systematic public policy is said to have began towards the end of 1950
to early 1960s, having relations with the Public Service Order of 1961
which established the well known Central personnel Agency (CPA). It
also ushered in a centralized/top-down policy in the country.
 The First-Five Year Development Plan was characterized as first

systematic plan in the history of the nation (Alemayehu 2004)
 The trend continued to Third Five-year Development Plan (1970s) but

there was a break due to popular uprisings from the mid of 1970s.
 Such centralized policy system continued till the fall of the military
rule0
Public policy
 The year from mid 1970s to early 1990s was the era of the
military government with an alien ideology (socialism).
 Public policies had to be oriented towards the new

ideology. This was considered the first time the ancient
country was forced to deviate from its semi-domestic
policy traditions to that of a totally alien one.
 Policy centralization, more than the previous imperial

regimes, was a prominent strategy employed and all policy
ideas used to emerge from the center (e.g. the Central
Economic Plan).
Public policy
 After the end of the 17 iron-fist-rule, the military
government gave the way to the present government in
1991.
 The change government has brought about a

historical policymaking departure with multiple
policy venues and actors.
 Federalism and decentralization of power to the

lower level of governance changed the way policies are
conceived, designed, implemented, evaluated,
changed or terminated
Public policy
o Constitutional policy provisions to both federal as well as the state
governments have shaped the modus operandi of public policies
operating in the country (see FDRE Constitution, Articles 50 (3), 51 (2),
52 (2c).
o The FDRE Constitution and all of the subsidiary rules and regulations
inform the governments and the citizens that the country exercises both
self- and shared rule, the true essence of federalism.
o The constitution also gives rights to all citizens to participate in all

development policies that affect them. As per art.89, sub art.6,
government has the duty to enhance the participation of citizens….
o Hence, public policymaking in Ethiopia is multi-level (federal, state and

local governance(Woreda) and with multi-actors (government, non-
government, interest groups,individuals, the public, media, etc.
Public policy
Some Issues to be raised:
 Are policymaking processes decentralized and the

actors are fully engaged in its process?
 What do some scholars say ?
 What do real practice show?
 Have policy processes shown a clear departure from a
previous centralized practice or tradition?
Answer: It needs a comprehensive study.
Public policy
What do some scholars say?
 Policymaking traditions did not change much

 It is still largely centralized and top-down
 stakeholders’ participation is generally low
 Government (specially the central government) assumes
overall policy stronghold in the country.
 Policy roles are mixed with other governance roles
 Few elite decide on most public policies
 Concerns for popular participation comes into government
minds towards the implementation phase.
Visualizing Public Policy Paths In Ethiopia
HPRs POLICY MINIST

(Parliament) APPROVAL RIES
PMO COUNCIL OF
MINISTERS
POLICY
MINISTRY PROPOSALS TO
THE PMO (CoMs)
INSTITUTION/AGE PRELIMINARY
NCY/DEARTMENT
???????????????????????????????????????
POLICY IDEAS
?????????????????????????????????????
FROM EXPERT
?????????????????????????????????? COMMITTES
?????????????????
GRASSROOT POLICY ??????????????????
SUBSYSTEMS (DOMESTIC
Public policy
What should be done?
While all of the concerns and policy perceptions from different corners need
to have to be verified through critical evaluative researches, some tips are
important to be considered:
 Enhance citizens’ all-out participation at all levels

 Use a mix of bottom-up and top-down approaches to
ensure policy consensus among the policy actors (it
serves for effective policy implementation).
Public policy
 Develop policy capacity through short- and long-term
education and training. This is critically important for
especially front-line policy coordinators and implementers.
 Creating practice of open policy network vs “closed

network”.
 Establish a policy research think-tank that can advise and

support policymakers and the public at large. This helps
any public policy is a common knowledge for any average
citizen rather than emerging as a surprise to the same.
Public policy…
For Your reflections:
 How can we ensure greater policy participation in Ethiopia?

 What are some of the past policy traditions still affecting current popular
policy participation?
 What should the role of citizens look like (be)?
 How much do your think is the role of state governments in FDRE’s
constitution article 52, “C” is realized?
 How do you assess the role of the lawmaking (policymaking) body
legislature)?
 In your view, what factors affect the role of the parliament (lawmakers)?
 How do you compare the role of the legislature with that of the executive?

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policy_tradtions_and_paths

Policymakers: government (with its three

 Sound public policy is participatory. Citizens’ policy

 The level of policy participation depends on the positions

o Because any sate (government) has to make decisions,

o Modern systematic policymaking process, however, is a

Public policy (concept, rationale, stakeholders, etc) is

 From this brief background, it may be inferred that

 The First-Five Year Development Plan was characterized as first

 The trend continued to Third Five-year Development Plan (1970s) but

 Public policies had to be oriented towards the new

 Policy centralization, more than the previous imperial

 The change government has brought about a

 Federalism and decentralization of power to the

o The constitution also gives rights to all citizens to participate in all

o Hence, public policymaking in Ethiopia is multi-level (federal, state and

 Are policymaking processes decentralized and the

 Policymaking traditions did not change much

HPRs POLICY MINIST

 Enhance citizens’ all-out participation at all levels

 Creating practice of open policy network vs “closed

 Establish a policy research think-tank that can advise and

 How can we ensure greater policy participation in Ethiopia?

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