Introduction: Challenges of Governing Development

The literature on social sciences in general, and public policy and administration in particular, are replete with long lists of unattained objectives and failures of government policies and programs. Development has remained one of the most slippery concepts in social sciences for decades, and is yet to be defined precisely. The crises of development prompted the rethinking over existing knowledge and reassessment of development programs and priorities. In other words, "governance" stands between state and market in the organization of economic, political, and social life. Good governance has emerged as perhaps the most desired value among governments in recent years. The concept of governance attained ready acceptance across the developing world, mainly due to the unsuccessful attempts to achieve development by following the traditional models. Several factors contributed to the skewed outcome of developmental efforts in most countries. The chapter also presents an overview on the key concepts discussed in this book.