CHAPTER ONE

Introduction to Public Policy

Key Concepts
The Idea of Public
Meaning public Policies
Defining key terms
• Policy
• Public policy
• Policy analysis
• Policy advocacy
• Power
• Policy Management
• Policy inputs
• Policy output
• Policy outcomes
• Policy impacts
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 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC POLICY

Key Concepts
The Idea of Public
Meaning public Policies
Defining key terms
• Policy Decision
• Policy Alternatives
Sources and Determinants of Public Policy
o Internal Sources (Official Sources)
o External Sources (Unofficial)

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 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC POLICY

Key Concepts
Scope of Public Policy
Why we study public policy?

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The Idea of Public

It is first important to understand the concept of public for the discussion of public
policy. We often use such terms of public interest, public sector, public opinion, public
health, so on. The starting point is that public policy has to do with those spheres
which are so labeled as public as opposed to spheres involving the idea of private.

The concept of public policy presupposed that there is an area or domain of life
which is not private or purely individual, but held in common. Public dimension is
generally referred to ‘public ownership’ or control for ‘public purpose’. The public
comprises that domain of human activity which is regarded as requiring
governmental intervention or common action.

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Meaning public Policies
Public policies are the policies adopted and implemented by government bodies

and officials. Public policies are formulated by what Easton calls the “authorities

“in political system. These authorities may be Ministers, Parliament, Judiciary,

Local Councils, and other organs that have a legal mandate to make policies.

Public policies are not made in a vacuum but rather influenced by, social and

economic conditions, prevailing political values, public mood at any given time,

structure of government, and national and local cultural norms.

Nongovernmental actors however play a big role in public policy formulation.

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 Defining key terms
Policy like the idea of public ‘public ‘, the concept of’ policy ‘is not
precise term. Policy denotes, among other elements, guidance for
action it may take the form of:
a. A declaration of goals;

b. A declaration of course of action;

c. A declaration of general purpose; and

d. An authoritative decision

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Hogwood and Gunn (1984) specified ten uses of the term’
policy’:
1. As a label for field of activity;
2. An expression of desired state of affairs;
3. As specific proposals;
4. As decisions of government;
5. As formal authorization;
6. As a programme;
7. As output;
8. As outcome;
9. As a theory or model;
10. As a process.

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Chamber’s dictionary defines policy as ‘a course of action, especially
one based on some declared and respected principle. That
definition clearly sees policy as something more than simply a
decision: it embodies the idea of action – indeed a rational action-
inasmuch as some ‘principle is involved. In every speech we
sometimes say things like ‘my policy is always to….’

Policy can be broadly defined as a proposed course of action of an

individual, a group, an institution, or a government, to realize a
specific objective within a given environment.
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Policy is defined in the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary as “...a
definite course or method of action selected from among
alternatives... to guide and determine present and future decisions.”

Carl Friedrich regards policy as “a proposed course of action of a

person, a group, or government within a given environment
providing obstacles and opportunities which the policy was
proposed to utilize and overcome in an effort to reach a goal or
utilize an objective or a purpose”.

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James Anderson suggests that policy be regarded as “a purposive course of
action followed by an actor or set of actors in dealing with a problem or
matter of concern”.

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Public policy is that policy which is made by Government bodies or officials. Dye

(1995:4) has defined public policy as “what government chooses to do or not to do

about actual problem.

Policy analysis is the activity involving studying , gathering, processing ,ordering

and presenting specific information for policy making.Ukles (1977) has defined

policy analysis as the systematic investigation of alternative policy options and the

gathering and display of evidence for and against each option. Policy advocacy is

concerned with what government out to do, or bringing about changes in what

they do through discussion, persuasion, organization and activism.

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Power, in terms of public policy, can be defined as the capacity of an

individual, or groups, or holders of public offices to determine policy decisions.

Policy Management deals with management of policy making and policy

preparation process, to assure that it produces high quality policies.

Policy inputs are the demands made on the political system by individuals and

groups for action or inaction about some perceived problem.

Policy output is the actual decisions of the implementers. Examples of policy

output relate to such matters as education institutions built, taxes collected,

compensation paid, or curbs on trade eliminated.

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Policy outcomes are what is actually achieved or expected to be

achieved. Outcomes are real results whether intended or

unintended. The concept of outcome lays stress on what actually

happens to the target groups intended to be affected by the

policy .If the intended changes on the target group don not occur,

something is wrong.

Policy impacts these are consequences, negative or positive, that

will follow as a result of alternative(s) selected.

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Broadly speaking, the structure of public policy making
involves the whole political system. The ultimate
authority in policy making, planning, and budgeting rests
with those who hold the power to legitimize policies.

Policy Alternatives are the options or means available to

the policy or decision maker by which it is hoped, the
objectives can be attained. For example education,
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recreation, and establishing special children home may be alternatives for

a policy to tackle the problem of street children.

Policy Decision

This involves an action by an individual or body to improve, modify, or reject

a preferred policy alternative. If positive, it happens through enactment of
laws and issuing executive orders.

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Sources and Determinants of Public Policy
Public Policy is mainly derived from four major sources;
Government, Career bureaucrats or implementers, External bodies
and Professional and Academic institutions. Scholars have observed
that in Africa because political parties and pressure groups, and
civil society are generally weak, governments play the dominant
role of agenda setting. This observation not notwithstanding, as
noted earlier the situation is gradually changing as civil society and
private organization become more organized and focused.

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Sources and Determinants of Public Policy
This paradigm change is majorly attributed to the support and
conditionalities from International development partners IMF and
World Bank agreements and other bilateral agreements that have
made civil society and private sector engagement with
government in the policy arena almost compulsory.

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Internal Sources (Official Sources)
The initiation and formulation of public policy is through the institutions of
government namely, the legislature, executive and judiciary. These are the
official and legal policy making organs.
1. The Legislature

Legislators perform the task of law making in a political system. In

democratic system parliament is the supreme policy making organ. It passes
bills which are assented to

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1. The Legislature

by President before they become law. Parliament exercises its legislative

role throw Standing Committees whose role is to discuss and make
recommendations on all bills laid before parliament, to initiate any bill
within their respect areas of competence and to asses and evaluate the
activities of government and other bodies. Parliamentary committees also
carry out research in their areas of assignments. They finally submit reports
to planetary sessions of Parliament.

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1. The Legislature

The policies or decisions or laws the legislators make are

largely influenced by the bureaucrats who are the technical
people who draft policy documents. They are also influenced
by pressure groups such as environment activists and women
rights activists. Additionally they are very much influenced by
the parties the legislators are affiliated to and the political
ideology of the party particularly the party in the
government.
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1. The Legislature
The extent to which legislators are responsible for policies formulated

also depends on the political arrangement existing in particular country.

For example if there is one party system i.e. the members of parliament

are from the same political party and political ideology, the members will

have very minimal role in initiating and discussing policies. Similarly if the

government in power is authoritarian, the parliament may be used as a

rubber stamp. On contrary where there are strong parties in parliament,

discussion is more rigorous and members can originate policies or make

critical input in the policies tabled by the executive.

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2. The Executive
The executive initiates and make policies .Most modern
governments depends on the executive for formulation of policies.
In parliamentary countries policies must have the approval of the
executive and all important bills are introduced by the ministers
after they have been discussed and passed by the cabinet .It should
be noted that individual ministers and the cabinet have a prerogative
to give a certain policy directives without necessarily going to
parliament .For example the cabinet can give a policy directive
suspending the implementation of a government programme.
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2. The Executive
The executive in policy making must act in accordance with the
constitution, statutes, court decisions, and international law.

The executive performs its policy role directly through cabinet

ministers, or through the various organs of the executive the
technical staff through various ministers or agencies.

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Administrative Agencies or Bureaucracy
The bureaucrats are involved in policy formulation .They write
concept papers, draft policies, handle technicalities and carried out
implementation of approved policies during which they make policy
adjustments make policies implementable. The technicalities and
complexity of many policy matters, lack of adequate time and
information required to engage in policy formulation, have led to
the legislators delegating more discretionary powers to the
administrative agencies and bureaucrats to refine policies to make
them understandable and operational.
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Administrative Agencies or Bureaucracy
In summary, the bureaucrats play a key role in shaping public policy
both at design stage and implementation stage by doing the
following:

A) They supply facts and data, analysis about the feasibility (how
practical, will it work) of the policy to the ministers
/executive/legislature. They have technical knowhow and they
advise and influence the decisions of the cabinets and ministers and
the legislature.

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Administrative Agencies or Bureaucracy
B) They often initiate policy action to address a particular situation
because they understand because they understand the difficulties
of implementation and they are more in touch with policy
consumers that is those affected by the policy.

C) Due to the various constraints, including limited expertise, time

and finances, and lack of consensus, skeleton policies and leave
bureaucrats to work out the details. The bureaucrats make rules
and regulations and bye laws which are significant to policy making.

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 The Judiciary
The judiciary participates in policy making process indirectly
through exercise of the powers of judicial review and statutory
interpretation of cases that are brought before court. Judicial review
is the power of courts to determine the constitutionality of actions
of the legislature and the executive and either uphold them or
declare them null and void. When judge gives judgment, his/her
interpretations becomes policy .The judiciary can therefore overturn
the policy made the legislature or other organs of governments, or
give it a different interpretation which becomes the official policy.
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 External Sources (Unofficial)

Besides the official policy makers many other institutions participate in policy
formulation process; for example Civil Society Organizations, Interest
Groups/Pressure Groups, Political Parties, Individuals, and Media.

Individuals
The influence by individuals is generally minimal particularly in weak economies.
However in economies where there are people who wield financial power and
are well connected, they tend to influence policy making in an indirect way to
safeguard their interests.

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Pressure Groups
These are organizations with formal structures whose members share
a common interest. They strive to influence the decisions of
government without attempting to occupy political offices. They serve
as links between individual citizens and policy makers .To individual
citizen; pressure groups are the most important means of
communication and power. They aid them in communicating their
hopes to public officials by offering personnel and expertise in the
substantive matters and the procedures of policy making.

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Pressure Groups(continue…)
To policy –makers, the interest groups offer expertise and political
support as well as the intensity of view of large members of citizens
with some common interest.
It is possible to the resources of pressure groups which make the
legislators more effective in policy action.
Firstly, the pressure groups have the expertise in the relevant subject
matter. They shape the smaller questions into larger issues worthy of
legislative consideration.

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Pressure Groups(continue…)
They may provide the policy makers with much technical data for and
against a specific issue, and information about possible consequences
of policy proposal .Legislators find the expertise and data provided by
pressure groups attractive because of their limitations and
disinclination to accept the executive’s recommendations. The
executive personnel also look to the pressure groups for information
and opinion on policy issues.

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Pressure Groups(continue…)
Secondly,
The pressure groups have the funds and necessary resources for
policy influence. They sometimes give or donate money to help re-
elect the members of parliament or the state legislature who had
supported them on disputed bill. Sometimes, they sponsor candidates
in elections.
The pressure groups are also seen protecting the jobs of sympathetic
administrators who may have proved annoying to their senior heads.

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Pressure Groups(continue…)
Thirdly, Government has to rely on pressure groups for the
implementation of its policies. Many government programmes would
remain unimplemented without cooperation of vested interests. Such
interests can gain control in the formulation of policy as a price of its
successful implementation .Protection of human environment is an
example.
Hence, every policy programme has to be planned with the consent
of those groups which they themselves have to implement.

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Pressure Groups(continue…)
Fourthly, the successful groups are precisely those which have got access to
the different stages of policy making process. They are those which can
influence the executive and its department at the formulation stage before
a bill is drafted. Sectional interest groups, the groups that protect and
enhance the interests and needs of their members, are more likely to be in
position to exert influence than the promotional groups, and can exert
pressure on ministers and public officials, before the government has
decided to legislate. Similarly, groups may petition a minister or appear
before an enquiry committee or commission in an attempt to involve the
government in policy action.

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 Media
The media channel information between the citizen and the government. They
communicate the information to the citizens about the decisions the governments
have taken. In this way media helps shape their reactions to each other’s decisions.
By publicizing specific causes, the media act as the most important source of
information for the government on public’s reactions to contemporary issues.

Since media acts as channels of communications, it is important to

determine whether they are politically biased in their presentation of
information. If they are biased the way they present the decisions and
actions of governments to the public or public opinion to the government,
they may distort the very concept of democracy.

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 Media

When the media can influence opinions in a

situation where the government is seen to be
responsive and responsible to the public. Then they
are correspondingly influential in the determining of
policy.

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 Political Parties
Political parties are another means of enhancing the effect of public
opinion. Like pressure groups they serve as intermediaries between
citizens and policy makers. Political parties are regarded as important
agents for establishing popular control over government and public
policies. They play an important way in reflecting the issues at stake
and in setting value goals for society.

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 Political Parties(continue…)
According to Burke, “Political party is a body of men united for promoting
the national interest on some particular principles on which they are all
agreed”.

Since the political parties have an important role to play in the formulation
of public policies, these parties must meet the following conditions:

1) Parties must have a programme.

2) Each party’s candidate must be committed to its programme.

3) Parties must present their programme to the public.

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 Political Parties(continue…)
4) Opposing parties must present alternative programme.
5) There must be only two major parties.
6) People must vote for the programme and not individuals.
7) The party that receives the majority of the vote must take control of the
government.
8) The party that wins the election must have the internal internal cohesion and
discipline to carry out its programme.
9) The party that wins the election must implement its programme.
10) The government party must accept responsibility for performance of government.
11) The opposition party must be ready to take control of the government.

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 Donors

Donors use their financial leverage to influence or promote policies

that they consider to in their interests, or presumably in the interest
of the general public. For example World Bank and International
Monetary Fund have orchestrated liberalization policies and
structural adjustment policies in many countries.

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 Scope of Public Policy
Public Policies are made and implemented at different levels.

National Level or Macro Policies: Policies of national nature are related to

security, economy, fiscal activities, and taxes.

Sectoral Policies or Micro Policies: These are sector specific policies and
located with specific ministers. These policies are expected to be in line with
the main stream policies of government. 

Operational Policies: Implementing agencies and government departments

decide their operational policies from the policies of sectors under which they
operate.

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 Scope of Public Policy(continue…)

Local Level Policies: This embraces policy formulation at local, or at community

level. There must be designated institutions at local levels so that policy matters
are effectively handled. Examples are Local Councils, Local Governments, etc.

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Why study public policy?
To study politics: governmental institutions, that is, federalism, separation of
powers, checks and balances, judicial review, the powers and duties of
Congress, the president, and the courts, these institutional arrangements,
processes and the philosophical justification of government.

To describe and explain the causes and consequences of public policy: the
content of public policy, the impact of social, economic, and political forces
on the content of public policy, the institutional arrangements and political
process on public policy, an evaluation of the consequences of public policies
on society.

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To improve our scientific understanding: improve our knowledge of society,
help us learn about the linkages between social and economic conditions in
society, the responses and effects of government and their activities on these
conditions, the ideas and methods of economics, sociology, anthropology,
psychology, history, law, public administration, political science.

To produce professional advice: the solution of practical problems and the ills
of society, the professional advice to solve question and reach desired goals,
the application of knowledge about policy than the development of scientific
theory.

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To put forward policy recommendation: to ensure that the nation
adopts the right policies to achieve the right goals, to inform political
discussion, advance political awareness and to improve the quality of
public policy.

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