Process of Public Policy

M. Ali Kemal
 Introduction
• Politics
• Institutions
• Norms
• Informal Constraint
• Formal Constraint
• Actors
 What is ‘Policy’?

“Policy is a decision-making framework or

course of action to achieve a desired effect
or change.” In the context of the public
sector, policies support political purposes by
Government or administrative directions by
organizations in response to the changing
world around them.
 What is ‘Policy’?
 Policies are distinct from procedures and
guidelines, which are operational instructions or
processes for applying a policy decision.
 Operational procedures interpret policy and
define activities that must be carried out to
implement the directions and goals set by
policies. They are designed to achieve outputs.
 To reach consistent results, they place boundaries
on how much individual discretion is permitted
when interpreting policy.
 Process
Problem
Identification

Agenda
Evaluation
Setting

Implementation Policy
Making

Budgeting
 Public Policy Process
Problem Identification
• Either public opinion or elite opinion expresses dissatisfaction with a
status quo policy.
• The problem is defined and articulated by individuals and institutions such
as mass media, interest groups, and parties.
Agenda Setting
• The definition of alternatives is crucial to the policy process and outcomes.
• Before a policy can be formulated and adopted, the issue must compete
for space on the agenda (list of items being actively considered).
• An idea must make it through several levels, including the broad political
system agenda, the congressional and presidential agendas, and the
bureaucratic agenda.
• Key actors in agenda setting include think tanks, interest groups, media,
and government officials.
 Public Policy Process
Policy Making
• From the problems that have been identified and have made it onto the
various agendas, policies must be formulated to address the problems.
• Those policy formulations then must be adopted (authorized) through the
congressional process and refined through the bureaucratic process.
• Of course, a non-decision (inaction, or defeating a proposal) is, itself,
policy making.
Budgeting
• Each year, Congress must decide through the appropriations process how
much money to spend on each policy.
• Generally, a policy must first be authorized (adopted) before money can
be appropriated for it in the annual budget.
 Public Policy Process
Implementation
• Executive agencies (the bureaucracy) carry out, or implement, policy.
• Implementation could include adopting rules and regulations, providing
services and products, public education campaigns, adjudication of
disputes, etc.
Evaluation
• Numerous actors evaluate the impact of policies, to see if they are solving
the problems identified and accomplishing their goals.
• Evaluation looks at costs and benefits of policies as well as their indirect
and unintended effects.
• Evaluation frequently triggers identification of problems and a new round
of agenda setting and policy making.
• Role of PIDE and other think tanks
 WHO MAKES ECNOMIC POLICIES: THE PLAYERS BEHIND THE SCENE
A. R. Kemal
Occasional Paper Series at LEADS – Pakistan 2001

• The poor performance of Public Sector Development Programs owes to

three factors.
– The directive of the Prime Minister, the insistence of donor community on
certain programs and the involvement of various ministries and constituencies
is the first element.
– Large projects such as motorways and energy projects never went to the
relevant fora and instead councils that never met and paid no heed to the
relevant ministries is the second element.
– The poor quality of project preparation and appraisal is the third factor.
• Those who dared to oppose the politically motivated projects had to face
the wrath of those in authority and became OSD.
• The Parliament is the supreme body for policy making but most of the
powers are delegated to the Cabinet and various sub-committees of the
Cabinet. Even where the Parliament approved certain economic measures
such as Finance Bill, the ECC modified the decision in such a way that the
essence of the policy is lost. The Ministries exercising their discretionary
power to the maximum have led to problems even further.
 Comparative Public Policy
• Where to Compare: Selecting Countries
• How to Compare: The Use of Case Studies
• What to Compare: The Purpose of
Comparison
 General Guidelines for Changing
Policies and Choosing Tactics:
• 1. Preparation: Prepare well for changing policies.
Conduct the necessary research to get to know as
much as possible about the issue.
• 2. Planning: Plan carefully for policy change. To
ensure that your overall strategy makes sense, and
that changing policies is a necessary and appropriate
part of it, strategic planning is essential.
• 3. Personal contact: Establish or maintain contact
with those who influence or make policy.
Personal relationships, even with opponents, are
the key to successful advocacy of all kinds, and
changing policy is no exception.
• 4. Pulse of the community: Take the pulse of the
community of interest to understand what
citizens will support, what they will resist, and
how they can be persuaded. You will have a far
greater chance of success if you set out to change
policies in ways the community will support, or at
least tolerate, than if you challenge people’s basic
beliefs.
• 5. Positivism: Where you can, choose tactics
that emphasize the positive.
• 6. Participation: Involve as many people as
possible in strategic planning and action. Try
to engage key people, particularly opinion
leaders and trusted community figures, but
concentrate on making your effort
participatory. That will give it credibility.
• 7. Publicity: Use the media, the Internet, your
connections, and your imagination to keep
people informed of the effort and the issues,
and to keep a high profile.
• 8. Persistence: Policy change can take a long
time. Monitor and evaluate your actions to
make sure they are having the desired effect,
and change them if they are not.