The note shows how Thailand's efforts to ease budget controls, can complement efforts to strengthen the capabilities of government agencies. The country's budget reform strategy, while seeking to retain the benefits of tight central control, aims at avoiding its costs, by transferring control...

In 1999 the Bank began conducting Institutional and Governance Reviews (IGRs), adding to its tools for economic and sector work. IGRs trace the institutional roots of weak government performance and offer practical recommendations for improving government operations and development strategies....

About 90 percent of the world's nearly 200 sovereign states have national legislatures or parliaments. With the spread of democracy and the rise of multiparty political systems, these bodies are playing larger roles in government. Increasingly, legislatures and their members perform four...

The note assesses how the volume, distribution, structure, and objectives of Bank lending for civil service reform have changed in recent years. Bank operations in civil service reform usually refers to interventions that affect the organization, performance, and working conditions of employees...

Increasing awareness of the importance of governance has been accompanied by an increase in the number of commercial firms and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) producing broad indicators of the quality of governance and public institutions. First generation governance indicators, e.g.,...

The note addresses the role of ombudsman offices, and what ensures its effectiveness. Good administration requires much more than acting legally, which include constitutional, and human rights abuses, mismanagement, as well as illegal practices. An ombudsman's independence from other branches of...