LIST OF PANELS

General Objective

The object of the research is to explain how inefficient bureaucracies help undermine the delivery of public services in Sub-Saharan Africa. It will trace the historical trajectories and extant dynamics of administrative structures of the African state in order to identify the political forces and processes that sustain bureaucratic inefficiency in public institutions. The research will thus identify the linkages between the various manifestations of bureaucratic inefficiency – labour management, graft and corruption, cost structures– and the deleterious consequences of such inefficiency on the delivery of public services, ranging from education and health to infrastructure and other public goods. Furthermore, it will identify opportunities for systems with the view to improving service delivery and governance in the subregion.

Research Questions

1. How did inequality of effort in the administration of public service provision in Sub-Saharan Africa historically become a source of its failure?

2. What is it, about the institutional makeup of bureaucracies, such as corruption, red-tape or political interference, that leads to low levels of efficiency prevalent in Sub-Saharan Africa?

3. How does poor governance in the form of inefficient bureaucracy impede vital public services, such as health, education and infrastructure development in nations in Sub-Saharan Africa?

4. How much do lost productivity and cumbersome service delivery cost the state and society, and to what extent does this problem diminish the fiscal and administrative capacity of central and local authorities?

These and other related questions continue to be under-researched. Unfortunately, the issues in seminar rooms will not simply vanish. Failing to address this issue would be a colossal waste – literally.

What institutional strategies or reforms can be undertaken to improve the efficiency and quality of public service delivery by bureaucracies in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Scientific Relevance

This research holds significant scientific relevance for several reasons.

Filling intermittent research lacunae: Though there is a substantial body of literature on governance, corruption and economic challenges for Sub-Saharan Africa, there is a critical gap in our understanding of how bureaucratic inefficiency leads to public service delivery failure. By focusing on managerial challenges to labour management and cost considerations, this line of query opens new ground for exploration in an understudied area of African governance.

Historical and Institutional Lesson: Since the historical development of labour management in Sub-Saharan Africa illustrates how taxation, labour exploitation, and state-administered labour: 1) led to the descent of well-situated labourers into abject poverty while existing outside the political sphere, and 2) decreased economic efficiency and induced wasteful consumption, comprehending these features can inform us why public administration is presently so dysfunctional and what is needed to reform these practices.

Policy Implications: In addition to generating insights of theoretical interest, this research also has direct policy relevance. Sub-Saharan Africa faces great difficulties in delivering basic services to its citizens. The goal of this research is to inform the policies toward bureaucratic reform that have the potential to enable significant improvements in constructive citizen engagement in public service delivery, governance and the quality of state performance.

Contribution to Development Studies: Effective support for development relies on the provision of public services. Determining whether bureaucracy facilitates or impedes sustainable development on the African continent, as Africa moves closer to meeting its development objectives, is a vital empirical question for the development studies literature generally and for the growing body of literature on the relationship between the nature of governance and the role of public administration and economic growth.

In short, there are strong academic reasons for conducting this study, as well as practical ones aimed at improving governance and service delivery throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. The findings from this study can help to inform decision-makers, streamline administrative processes and build a better future for millions of African citizens.

Call for Papers on The Role of Inefficient Bureaucracy in the Failure of Public Service Delivery in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Please submit an abstract for a research conference on the topic ‘The Role of Inefficient Bureaucracy in the Failure of Public Service Delivery in Sub-Saharan Africa’. The conference is designed to investigate the role of bureaucratic inefficiency in the failure of public services like healthcare, education, infrastructure and good governance in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Key areas of focus include:

Historical and contemporary perspectives on bureaucratic inefficiency in African governance.

Comparative studies of bureaucratic structures and their impact on public service delivery.

The multidimensional effects of inefficient administration on taxation, labor systems, and fiscal revenues.

Mini-cases on the inefficiencies of a bureaucratic public sector, for example, as reflected in healthcare, educational institutions or infrastructure.

Policy recommendations for enhancing bureaucratic efficiency and improving service delivery.

We invite submissions across disciplines from scholars, policymakers and practitioners on the complex interfaces between the non-delivery syndrome, governance and public service failure. Papers could provide theoretical insights, empirical analyses or practical suggestions for administrative reforms that will improve service delivery in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Submission Guidelines:

Abstracts (300 words max) should be submitted by 11/15/2024.

When submitting full-length papers (6,000-8,000 words), please use APA style and send them in by 11/15/2024.

Send submissions to segunaisinkin@aol.com.

This conference is part of the debate on how to improve governance and public service delivery in African countries by examining the causes of and pathways for reform of bureaucracies. We hope you will join us.