Definition of governance

Introduction

Because governance is a broad concept, institutions and scholars define it differently, each emphasizing particular aspects. Knowing the main definitions helps to understand what governance includes and how it is measured.

Definitions by institutions

• World Bank (1992): governance is 'the manner in which power is exercised in the management of a country's economic and social resources for development'.
• UNDP (1997): governance is 'the exercise of economic, political and administrative authority to manage a country's affairs at all levels. It comprises the mechanisms, processes and institutions through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their differences.'
• Kaufmann, Kraay and Zoido-Lobatón (World Bank governance indicators): governance is 'the traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised', including how governments are selected, monitored and replaced; the government's capacity to formulate and implement sound policies; and the respect of citizens and the state for the institutions that govern their interactions.
• Asian Development Bank (1995): governance is 'the manner in which power is exercised in the management of a country's economic and social resources for development', resting on four pillars: accountability, participation, predictability and transparency.

Definitions by scholars

• R. A. W. Rhodes: governance refers to 'self-organizing, interorganizational networks', a new process of 'governing without government'.
• Gerry Stoker: governance refers to the development of governing styles in which boundaries between and within public and private sectors have become blurred.
• Anne Mette Kjær: governance refers to the setting of rules, the application of rules and the enforcement of rules, that is, the formal and informal rules of the game in political life.
• Mark Bevir: governance refers to all processes of governing, whether undertaken by a government, market or network, and whether over a family, tribe, organization or territory.

Dimensions of governance

• Political governance: the process of decision-making to formulate policy, including elections, legislatures and political parties.
• Economic governance: decision-making that affects economic activities and relationships with other economies, such as fiscal and monetary policy and regulation.
• Administrative governance: the system of policy implementation through an efficient, independent, accountable and open public sector.
• Some scholars add corporate governance (how companies are run) and global governance (how international problems are managed).

Actors in governance

• The state: legislature, executive, judiciary, civil service, military and local governments.
• The private sector: businesses, chambers of commerce, banks and investors.
• Civil society: NGOs, media, trade unions, professional bodies, religious and community organizations, and citizens themselves.
• International actors: donors, lenders such as the IMF and World Bank, and international organizations.

Levels of governance

Governance operates at every level: global (the UN, WTO), regional (SAARC, EU), national (the federal government), provincial, local (districts and union councils) and organizational (corporate and NGO governance).

Conclusion

Despite their differences, all definitions agree that governance is about how authority is exercised, by whom, and with what results. It is wider than government because it includes the private sector and civil society, and it is judged by its outcomes for people.