Good Governance in Egypt
“ Suggested areas for Improvement “
Dr. Mahmoud Gebril
Napoli May 17-21/2004
Good Governance
•There is no single definition of what “Good Governance”
is, as well as there are differences of opinion as to the
norms and criteria for its measurement.
•Values such as accountability, transparency, participation,
and equality are to some degree or another common in
literature and writings in that subject.
According to the World Bank:
•“Good Governance is exercising that authority in ways that respect the integrity, rights, and needs of everyone within the state”
• The good governance relations should be studied within a framework based on two global values of special importance in the Middle-East region, namely; Inclusiveness and Accountability.
•While Inclusiveness relies on mechanisms that define and respect the basic rights for all, Accountability relies on transparency and quality of information.
•Although the values of accountability and equality in
treatment under law are not alien to the culture and
heritage of the people of middle-eastern countries, it is
found that those countries are noticeably poor in that
regard and lie at the tail of the list (rating countries of the
world on good governance).
Evaluation of Good Governance in Egypt
• Accountability mechanisms are Missing in Egyptian government
performance. Consequently there exist multiples of modes of
corruption such as misuse of public funds, bribes, tax fraud,
misuse of power and authority ,favoritism and ascription in
selecting government leaders and in providing government
services.
International Reports indicate the following:
• The bureaucratic establishment suffers from massiveness and
rigidity that frequently hinders attempts of modernization and
improvement, moreover the executive authority is severely
centralized.
• Lack of reliable statistical data, fuzziness of information and hiding
it from society.
• N.G.Os and civil society organizations are still inactive in political
and developmental activities. their role is still charitable at large.
Source: The Arab World Competitiveness Report 2002Source: The Arab World Competitiveness Report 2002--20032003
4.54.54444CorruptionCorruption
1.81.87575Red TapeRed Tape
4.74.73434Rule of LawRule of Law
3.13.14343Quality of GovernmentQuality of Government
ScoreScoreRankRank(out of 75 Countries)(out of 75 Countries)
EgyptEgypt
Source: Transparency International, Global Corruption Report 200Source: Transparency International, Global Corruption Report 2004.4.
3.03.07878LEBANONLEBANON
4.34.35050GREECEGREECE
6.96.92323FRANCEFRANCE
3.33.37070EGYPTEGYPT
2.62.68888ALGERIAALGERIA
ScoreScoreRank (out of 133 Rank (out of 133 countries)countries)CountryCountry
Corruption Perceptions Index 2003Corruption Perceptions Index 2003
Source: World Bank.
Percentile Rank (0Percentile Rank (0--100), 2002100), 2002
43.855.256.750.52736.4TURKEY
6761.353.671.65322.7TUNISIA
47.443.816.53338.95.6SYRIA
89.784.587.689.277.387.9SPAIN
58.259.355.261.339.540.4MOROCCO
76.88381.485.697.888.9MALTA
24.7184.61831.94.5LIBYA
45.95137.143.327.631.8LEBANON
76.375.883.580.47383.8ITALY
83.581.479.983.514.167.2ISRAEL
73.274.282.576.378.981.3GREECE
89.287.685.690.770.888.4FRANCE
47.957.738.146.934.122.2EGYPT
79.976.885.18357.877.3CYPRUS
31.435.13432.59.720.2ALGERIA
Control of CorruptionRule of LawRegulatory
Quality
Government Effectivenes
s
Political Stability
Voice and Accountabilit
yCountry
Government-The Transfer to the e
In response to the need for adapting to global changes towards
knowledge-based societies, in attempt to bridge the digital gap, and
due to international pressure calling for democracy, participatory,
and good governance , the Egyptian government started its project
of delivering its services to individual citizens, business persons and
investors through the internet:
• In October 1999 the Ministry of Communication and Information was established.
• In July 2001 the electronic government project was officially started, it is expected to end by 2007. The project is implemented in collaboration with Microsoft and Oracle in several directions asfollows:
• To establish the Information Infrastructure, which encompass the laws and regulations that govern the different aspects of the electronic work.
• Establishing the government web site which represents the official portal for handling requests and delivering services.
• Some services were put into action such as payment of telephone and utility bills.
• Automation of government financial and administrative applications.
Which started by applications of the Ministry of Communication and
Information will be applied in other ministries and government offices.
• Development of local government services to reduce the need to travel
to the capital or to large cities, this initiative was started in the
Governorate of the Red Sea and in the Governorate of Alexandria.
• Establishing and updating economic and commercial databases.
• Encouraging the acquisition of PCs by families and individuals by
establishing a credit sale mechanism where installments are collected
in conjunction with the telephone bills for the benefit of PC selling
companies.
• In January 2004 Egypt’s Government Services Portal started officially offering information to tourists and receiving complaints, payment of bills, acquiring official documents such as birth anddeath certificates, Ids, renewal of vehicle license, and the like.
• In April 2004 the law of electronic signature was passed by the Egyptian parliament.
• In May 2004, the high speed internet service was offered at a reduced price making it widely affordable by individuals and companies.
• Facilitating the logging to the internet service for individuals and small companies.
• Investigating solutions for problems that face electronic payment since most Egyptians do not use credit cards.
Priorities for Intervention
Policy and system Oriented approach.
Strategic Grass- Rooted Cultural approach
Two broad areas for intervention:
Priorities
• The introduction of accountability mechanisms. Government officials should develop the feeling of being accountable to the society. There should be criteria for good governance that are in line with the culture.
• Transparency and quality of data, without these virtues, accountability shall be difficult to apply since weaknesses and deficiencies can not be exposed and corrective actions cannot be taken.
• Introduce major changes in the bureaucratic machine to facilitate the improvement efforts.
• Facilitate the establishment of non-governmental organizations and remove the obstacles facing their effective participation in social and economic developmental initiatives and in preparing the individuals for political participation.
• Continuous education and training should become an approved mechanism supported by the government for continual development of individuals for active participation in a knowledge-based society .
There are five priority items, which are more or less on the same level of significance: