Parliament, Accountability and Good Governance

1. Parliament, Accountability and Good Governance Linkages between Parliaments, NEPAD, the African Union and the Pan African Parliament Ted Dreger World Bank Institute http://www.worldbank.org/wbi

2. Overview of Presentation: • Good Governance • Role of Parliament • African Parliaments • Challenges to Accountability • Parliaments and NEPAD objectives

3. Good Governance – what do we mean? • The traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised for the common good. This includes • (i) the process by which those in authority are selected, monitored and replaced, • (ii) the capacity of the government to effectively manage its resources and implement sound policies, and; • (iii) the respect of citizens and the state for the institutions that govern economic and social interactions among them

4. Strategy for Good Government • Accountability of Political Leadership: • Disclosure of parliamentary votes • Transparency in party financing • Asset Declaration, Conflict of Interest • Rules • Checks and Balances: • Independent and effective judiciary • Parliamentary Oversight • Civil Society Oversight: • Freedom of information • Public hearings of draft laws • Monitoring by media/NGO’s Good and Clean Government • Competition & Entry : • Competitive restructuring • of monopolies • Regulatory simplification • Public Administration and Public Finance: • Meritocratic civil service • Transparent, monetized, adequate remuneration • Accountability in expenditures (Treasury, Audit, Procurement)

5. Role of Parliament • Differs according to constitution • Parliament one “pillar” of governance and should not to be looked at in isolation • Holding government to account for use of public funds, but increasingly implementation of policies • Ensuring transparency in decision-making and use of resources • Representing / giving “voice” to citizens and facilitating participation in policy process

6. Not all Parliaments are all alike: • Enormous Variation inParliaments Worldwide • Performance of Public Sector and Parliaments in a country appear to be closely correlated • Where executive is well governed, parliament has high probity • But if executive is corrupt, parliament not exempt… • Needs to look at all key institutions, and not as Parliament as island • Role of Parliament as part of the solution (and not perpetuating it as part of the problem) For details on the empirical research on state capture, on diagnostic surveys which is background to this presentation, visit: http://worldbank.org/wbi/governrnance

7. Legislatures emerge as a “stronger” and potentially “strong” institutions The political authority of some African legislatures grows following the second or third round of multiparty elections, Not all legislatures become more powerful as a function of increasing political liberalization and democratization. African legislatures since the end of the 1990s

8. Strong legislatures perform all six functions • Representation • Constituency service • Passing laws—legislating in the narrow sense • Policy making—legislating in the broader sense (amending legislation & regulatory framework). • Exercising oversight of the executive (policy implementation). • Political recruitment

9. Challenges to Accountability: • Parliaments remain marginalized from the budget and policy process despite mandate • Parliaments lack resources • Limited use of “coalitions” of accountability and participation in many African countries • Exceptions include Zambia, South Africa that use civil society coalitions, emphasize participation • Growing emphasis on decentralization, regionalization, continental institutions

10. Parliaments and NEPAD: • NEPAD emphasizes improved accountability, transparency and participation for good governance • Gives emphasis to the role of parliaments at the national level • Regional /continental systems only improved through change at the national level • Commitments by Executive mean Parliament should review given national implications • Stresses the need for new approaches to accountability that involve multiple governance stakeholders and ‘coalitions’

11. Main Conclusions: • African Parliaments generally remain weak and face many challenges – “coalitions” address some challenges • Despite challenges, parliaments have vital role to play – accountability, transparency, participation • Challenges at national level transferred to regional and continental levels – SADC, PAP • Stronger national, regional and continental parliaments – as institutions of governance – are vital to NEPAD political and economic governance objectives • Parliaments needed as examples of good governance