Understanding Governance in South Asia

Good governance in South Asia faces challenges due to ethnocentricity, regional disparities, and rural-urban division. Concepts like decentralization and privatization may not work as effectively as in developed countries. Governance reform is needed to reduce poverty and ensure development. South Asian countries share similar objectives, structures, and value systems but have different forms of government due to the colonial legacy. They can learn from each other's experiences and develop indigenous models to address governance challenges.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 01 October 2020
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Good governance in South Asia faces significant challenges at the implementation level due to ethnocentricity, regional disparities, the division between poor and rich, and rural and urban divisions among the people. Concepts such as decentralization, citizen engagement, lean public service, privatization, autonomy, and public-private partnership may work well in developed countries but may not produce the same results in the region where the majority of poor people expect their government to fulfill their basic needs. Governance in South Asia needs to be reformed to ensure that poverty can be reduced, if not completely eradicated. Poor governance and the various means by which governance has fallen short have led to lack of development and continuance of poverty in South Asian societies. South Asian countries have more or less similar objectives, structures, value systems, cultures, and standards of governance despite different forms of government. The colonial legacy of the British administrative system had its impact on centralization, secrecy, elitism, rigidity, and social isolation, which is common to all South Asian countries. The post-colonial administrative system is built upon pre-colonial administrative traditions throughout the region. These countries can learn from each other's experiences and develop an indigenous model to find pragmatic solutions to the challenges of good governance. This book argues that countries in South Asia can achieve good results through good governance if they develop and adopt an indigenous model rather than simply borrowing models and ideas from the West. Please note: This title is co-published with Manohar Publishers, New Delhi. Taylor & Francis does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.

Weight: 494g
Dimension: 143 x 222 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367557904