Public administrations in the Asia States have undergone dramatic reforms. Some states
have been successful in achieving the desired goals of public administration reforms, while
others have failed to achieve such goals. For example, Malaysia and Singapore have attained
tremendous social-economic and political progress through adoption of effective public
administration practices. On the other hand, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh continue to lag behind in
socio-economic and political progress due to failure in public administration. The disparities in
the effectiveness of the public administration in Asian States is attributable to contextual factors
such as political history, technology, constitutional law, citizen participation in decision-making,
and the state traditions (Samaratunge et al., 2008), Therefore, these paper will explore how state
traditions, political history, technology, citizen engagement and constitutional law impacts public
administrations in the in Asian States.
The source of Public Administration problems in Asian States
In majority of the Asian States, Public Administration continues to be guided by the
colonial ideology and post-colonial modernity that is fashioned and supported by the Western
nations. As the public administration becomes increasingly globalized, the Asian States have
adopted systems that are largely inconsistent with the indigenous social-economic and political
values (Haque, 2013). Public administration systems that are modeled on Western models of
administration and colonial governance system have in some instances aggravated societal
problems (Haque, 2007). In countries that have successfully infused effective Western values
and indigenous administrative practices, the transformation is evident in terms of social-
economic welfare, and the enhanced participation of the public in the management of public
affairs. The western public administration philosophy is likely to continue influencing the Asian
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN ASIA STATES 3
States administrative practices. Prominent scholars and public administration practitioners in
Asian States are trained in Western countries that are not conducive in the development of public
administration practices that are based on the Asian social-cultural and political context.
Therefore, it is important for the Asian States to do a retrospection focused on identifying
effective pre-colonial practices. Gain such insight will go a long way in informing the process of
creating home grown public administration practices that address globalization issues and local
social-economic and political values. It is necessary for public administration practitioner to
identify the subtle influences of colonial and post-colonial western modernization on the Asian
States public administration, and design practices that befits the region needs. Despite the
existing challenges, the Asian region underwent significant structural changes in public
administration, from State-centric functioning to business-like management practices (Haque,
2004). These changes have produced laudable improvement in the conditions of the region,
societies and individual citizens.
The political history of many Asian States is replete with oppressive political regimes,
whereby the function of the public administration had been reduced to political control over the
citizenry. After the departure of colonialist, neocolonialist political regimes to over the political
power, and inherited public administration system that was only accountable to the ruling class
(Cheung, 2005). Over-time and through political strives and processes the Asian States political
landscape have become more democratic, consequently prompting changes in public
administration. In countries where democratic ideals have become dominant in guiding the
political systems, public administration has been reformed based on western administrative
practices. However, colonial systems are still predominant in some of the countries such as
Bangladesh, leading to ineffective reformation of the public administrative systems. Progressive
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN ASIA STATES 4
political systems promote the adoption of accountability in public administration, and limit the
misuse of power for self-aggrandizement and enrichment.
Technology has a significant impact on public administration in Asia states. New
technology transforms the government and it makes more effective. For instance, the national ID
system makes tax compliance manageable and improves the provision of public services.
Through the system, India has registered 1.2 million individuals representing 99% of the adults
(Bhatnagar, 2014). Hence the government implements the systems to deliver services,
government subsidies and benefits. Due to the success of the ID system in India, other countries
in Asia have spurred interest. Recently Pakistan, Malaysia, and Indonesia have implemented the
national ID system. Technology also reduces corruption in Asian states. In India, approximately
$700 million bribes are paid to the land registration administrators (Bhatnagar, 2014). The
government of India is implementing block chain to fight corruption. Through the system, the
data of land ownership is encrypted, thus ensuring transparency. On the other hand, the various
governments in the Asia States are deploying technology to offer quality education and skills to
citizens. The Philippines government launched an initiative, CheckMySchool (CMS) that
improves quality education effectiveness through the crowdsourcing technology (Bhatnagar,
2014). In addition, CMS monitors public education services and produces reports that the
government uses to check on the effectiveness of the government education programs. Due to the
system, the government in the Philippines deals with issues affecting, students from classroom
repairs to lack of textbooks. In general, most Asian States have adopted technology intending to
transform public education.
In the context of health services, technology is a critical tool for healthcare delivery.
Thailand’s aim is to become Asia’s healthcare hub through technology. Hence the government is
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN ASIA STATES 5
working on a Personal Health Records system, which will ensure that patients and professionals
can access health information online. Hence patients can make doctor appointments without
having to visit the healthcare facilities. Another major aspect that technology influences public
administration is through transport and urban management. In Indonesia, most cities deploy
technology to improve services. The Jakarta Transport Authority is a system that collaborates
with Google Maps to analyze traffic schemes and reduce travel time (Bhatnagar, 2014). To
reduce response time, there are apps that citizens can use to report crimes and traffic. Overall,
technology has a great impact on the public administration of the Asian States.
The engagement of citizens is essential for Asia public administration. The role of the
human factor plays a crucial role in influencing governance (Batalli, 2016). Citizens’
engagement in public administration involves the individuals taking part in the decision-making
process. Most Asian nations pay attention to citizens when it comes to decision making. For
instance, the Philippines government has a system that tracks how effective the public education
program is to students. In that aspect, the government knows the challenges that the education
sector has and responds by solving the problems. Through the involvement of citizens, the
government identifies the feelings and thoughts of individuals. When citizens are dissatisfied,
then the public administration increases on the levels of transparency, efficiency and
responsibility. In democracy, citizen involvement in public administration is essential (Batalli,
2016). Asian States like Indonesia, India and Thailand allow people to vote for their political
leaders and through the voting system. Citizens can vote in new members if they feel like the
previous political leaders did not care for their needs. Through citizen participation, governments
can implement policies in citizen preference. For example, Cambodia has made impressive
progress through indulging individuals in decision making. The region deploys decentralization
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN ASIA STATES 6
to encourage citizen participation at the local level. In other regions, community meetings are
held with citizens to know some of their challenges. The local leaders gather the individuals and
listen to their opinions on the government and how the public administration can make
improvements in helping citizens. Overall, citizens’ engagement in decision-making has
improved the efficiency of public administration in the Asia States.
The constitutional law has influenced public administration in Asian regions positively.
In each state, the constitution forms the background of the democracy in the states. On the other
hand, constitutional laws bind the supreme law and represent the legitimacy of the governments.
Almost all states in Asia have constitutions, and constitutional amendment plays an important
role in the regions. The Charter of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a
body that ensures governments adhere to the rule of law (Ohnesorge, 2019). In addition, the
regional level body makes sure that there is good governance, and democratic principles are
implemented in the states. Furthermore, several regions in Asia have established constitutional
councils and courts to strengthen the constitution. The Rule of Law major objective is to support
constitutional jurisdiction. Each year, a conference is held in Beijing to discuss the constitutional
laws. In 2016, research was conducted by a group, Constitutionalism in Asia to discuss
constitution-making in Asia. Overall, the constitutional law has a great impact on the public
administration in Asia.
Conclusion
The Asian states’ public administrations play a vital role in the region. Some of the
factors that influence the governments in Asia include state traditions, political history,
technology, citizen engagement, and constitutional law. The factors have a positive impact on
public administration.
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN ASIA STATES 7
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