The concept of governance and its implications for AID"s development assistance program in Africa

This paper sets forth the A.I.D. Africa Bureau"s notion of democratic governance -- a form of public administration which combines the competence, predictability, and legitimacy of governance with democracy"s respect for human rights, political pluralism, and electoral choice -- and explores ways in which such governance can contribute to socioeconomic development in Africa. Specifically, the paper discusses how democratic governance: (1) improves public management effectiveness by improving management quality in any "public," including those normally thought of as nongovernmental organizations (NGO"s); (2) promotes the legitimacy of power by developing political consensus, applying laws and regulations more fairly, and making the entities which exercise power more responsive to their constituencies; (3) increases public accountability by supporting truly democratic elections; (4) promotes open access to information; and (5) accepts a plurality of public actors and promotes active cooperation among them. Tables listing ways in which A.I.D. programs can support democratic governance in Africa are appended.