Policy Implementation: How Plans, Policies and Projects are Put into Action in the Government

Catalog description

This course examines how government agencies implement plans, policies, and projects under real-world constraints. Government agencies are some of the largest and most consequential organizations shaping contemporary life, especially for the poor. Their importance is even more evident now, as governments around the world continue to mishandle the pandemic, slide towards authoritarianism, and abuse the rights of vulnerable people. Surprisingly, their outsized influence is rarely matched by an adequate amount of attention. Government agencies are grossly under-examined and often misunderstood. Worse, they are frequently dismissed as broken beyond repair. In contrast to this defeatist view, this course draws from a mix of theory and case studies from around the world to examine how government agencies can deliver remarkable results even when subjected to multiple constraints. The main learning objectives are twofold. First, students learn to identify the variables that can improve government performance. And second, they learn how to design plans, policies, and projects that are more likely to be properly implemented.