"Government vs Governance"

“A system of social control under which the right to make laws and right to enforce them, is vested in a particular group in society; is called government.”                                                                                                                                                       

A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, often a state. In case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, administration and judiciary. Government is a means by which state policies are enforced, as well as a mechanism for determining the policies.

Government as an institution of the state may be defined as a machinery through which the will of state is formulated, expressed and attained. Although all types of organizations have governance, the word government is often used more specifically to refer to the approximately 200 independent national governments on earth. Scope of a government can be majorly classified into five categories-

1)Public Welfare-Public welfare is something which is independent of type of government and comprised of health, employment, sanitation, education, environment, food, shelter and sustainable development. Governments focus on these areas as per their electoral promises. Most importantly, public welfare is something that consist of very basic requirements of human beings which can’t be ignored thus all governments are accountable for public welfare.

2)Public service delivery- Public service delivery organization is responsible for execution of public policies, programs and schemes. This organization helps with public administration to enforce public policies and procedures. If public service delivery organization is efficient at execution and corruption free; it can take state to a very next level.

3)Public Regulation- Public regulation system take care of implementation of laws and regulations without any prejudice and partiality. It is first and foremost for any government to enforce law and order and make sure that ‘Justice prevails’. There must not be any discrimination on basis of cast, color, creed, gender or demography within a state.

4)Taxation-This vertical take care of revenue generation and expenditure. Here it is very important to understand that it must not be exploitation of resources or citizens. Every citizen has rights to question taxation and expenditure policies. On the other hand, it is duty of every citizen to pay taxes properly within stipulated times.

5)Equality and security-This category is crucial because it is important in all above discussed aspects. It is responsibility of a government to ensure equality among its citizens i.e. no discrimination on any basis. Also, responsibility of safety of its each and every citizen lies with government whether it is internal or external. Everyone must feel safe and treated with equality; this gives a significant push for progress of country.

Government is equally important as well as relevant for all kinds of governing systems whether that is autocracy, democracy or monarchy. One thing that separates a democratic government from other forms of government is the emphasis on public interest and leading role citizens play in shaping the nation. The best and most substantial definition explains public interest as “Those goals on which there is a consensus.” Importance and relevance of democratic government (Like India) can be understood in below mentioned points-

1)Law making, strategizing and policy making 

2)Protection of lives and property

3)Administration and Justice

4)Internal and external security

5)Economic functions

But the point noteworthy here is ‘governance’ which make any government successful. Let’s understand what governance is and why it is that important?

Governance is all of the processes of governing, whether undertaken by a government, market or network, whether over a family, tribe, formal or informal organization or territory and whether through the laws, norms, power or language of an organized society. Thus, governance is the way the rules, norms and actions are structured, sustained, regulated and held accountable. The degree of formality depends on the internal rules of a given organization and, externally, with its business partners. As such, governance may take many forms, driven by many different motivations and with many different results. For instance, a government may operate as a democracy where citizens vote on who should govern and the public good is the goal, while a non-profit organization may be governed by a small board of directors and pursue more specific aims.

Good governance has 8 major characteristics as discussed below-

1. Rule of Law- Good governance requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced by an impartial regulatory body, for the full protection of stakeholders. 

2. Transparency- Transparency means that information should be provided in easily understandable forms and media; that it should be freely available and directly accessible to those who will be affected by governance policies and practices, as well as the outcomes resulting therefrom; and that any decisions taken, and their enforcement are in compliance with established rules and regulations.

3. Responsiveness- Good governance requires that organizations and their processes are designed to serve the best interests of stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe.

4. Consensus Oriented- Good governance requires consultation to understand the different interests of stakeholders in order to reach a broad consensus of what is in the best interest of the entire stakeholder group and how this can be achieved in a sustainable and prudent manner.

5. Equity and Inclusiveness- The organization that provides the opportunity for its stakeholders to maintain, enhance, or generally improve their well-being provides the most compelling message regarding its reason for existence and value to society.

6. Effectiveness and Efficiency- Good governance means that the processes implemented by the organization to produce favorable results meet the needs of its stakeholders, while making the best use of resources – human, technological, financial, natural and environmental – at its disposal.

7. Accountability- Accountability is a key tenet of good governance. Who is accountable for what should be documented in policy statements. In general, an organization is accountable to those who will be affected by its decisions or actions as well as the applicable rules of law.

8. Participation- Participation by both men and women, either directly or through legitimate representatives, is a key cornerstone of good governance. Participation needs to be informed and organized, including freedom of expression and assiduous concern for the best interests of the organization and society in general.

Good governance is an ideal which is difficult to achieve in its totality. Governance typically involves well-intention people who bring their ideas, experiences, preferences and other human strengths and shortcomings to the policy-making table. Good governance is achieved through an on-going discourse that attempts to capture all of the considerations involved in assuring that stakeholder interests are addressed and reflected in policy initiatives that is what makes a government very important specifically in democratic contexts. 

We need to understand the differences between government and governance AND to recognize that the intersection is a very important place to look for some systemic changes that may help manage the governance of our modern society. Here we can conclude that the foremost objective of any government must be good governance and the funniest part is, government can’t enforce governance; so, it becomes responsibility of each and every citizen to contribute towards one common goal of good governance. The best contribution of any government towards governance is ‘minimum government and maximum governance’.