SIGMA Papers No. 6 Internationalism of Policy- OECD making https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/5kml6g9fvmr4-en General Distribution OCDE/GD(96)45 THE INTERNATIONALISATION OF POLICY-MAKING INSTITUTIONAL AND ORGANISATIONAL OPTIONS TO INTEGRATE DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL ASPECTS OF POLICY MAKING SIGMA PAPERS: No. 6 ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT Paris 1996 31677 Document complet disponible sur OLIS dans son format d'origine Complete document available on OLIS in its original format THE SIGMA PROGRAMME SIGMA -- Support for Improvement in Governance and Management in Central and Eastern European Countries -- is a joint initiative of the OECD Centre for Co-operation with the Economies in Transition and EC/PHARE, mainly financed by EC/PHARE. The OECD and several OECD Member countries also provide resources. SIGMA assists public administration reform efforts in Central and Eastern Europe. The OECD -- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development -- is an intergovernmental organisation of 25 democracies with advanced market economies. The Centre channels OECD advice and assistance over a wide range of economic issues to reforming countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. EC/PHARE provides grant financing to support its partner countries in Central and Eastern Europe to the stage where they are ready to assume the obligations of membership of the European Union. Established in 1992, SIGMA operates within the OECD’s Public Management Service (PUMA). PUMA provides information and expert analysis on public management to policy-makers in OECD Member countries, and facilitates contact and exchange of experience amongst public sector managers. Through PUMA, SIGMA offers eleven countries a wealth of technical knowledge accumulated over many years of study and action. Participating governments and the SIGMA Secretariat collaborate in a flexible manner to establish work programmes designed to strengthen capacities for improving governance in line with each government’s priorities and SIGMA’s mission. The initiative relies on a network of experienced public administrators to provide counselling services and comparative analysis among different management systems. SIGMA also works closely with other international donors promoting administrative reform and democratic development. Throughout its work, SIGMA places a high priority on facilitating co-operation among governments. This includes providing logistical support to the formation of networks of public administration practitioners in Central and Eastern Europe, and between these practitioners and their counterparts in OECD Member countries. SIGMA’s activities are divided into six areas: Reform of Public Institutions, Management of Policy-making, Expenditure Management, Management of the Public Service, Administrative Oversight, and Information Services. Copyright OECD, 1996 Applications for permission to reproduce or translate all or part of this material should be made to: Head of Publications Service, OECD, 2, rue André-Pascal, 75775 Paris Cedex 16, France. Views expressed in this publication do not represent official views of the Commission, OECD Member countries, or the central and eastern European countries participating in the Programme. 3 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE ..................................................... 7 FOREWORD ................................................... 9 by Derry Ormond THE INTERNATIONALISATION OF POLICY MAKING ................ 11 by Jacques Fournier NATIONAL PREPARATION FOR INTERNATIONAL POLICY MAKING ... 29 by Les Metcalfe BASIC INSTITUTIONAL OPTIONS FOR NATIONAL EU COORDINATION .57 by Rolf Kaiser CONCLUSIONS ................................................ 67 by Jacques Fournier SUMMARY DESCRIPTIONS OF COORDINATION MECHANISMS ........ 73 prepared by participating countries Albania .................................................... 75 Bulgaria .................................................... 77 Czech Republic ............................................... 78 Estonia .................................................... 80 Hungary .................................................... 82 Latvia ..................................................... 84 Lithuania ................................................... 86 Poland ..................................................... 87 Romania ................................................... 89 Slovak Republic .............................................. 92 Slovenia .................................................... 95 5 6 PREFACE This publication is the product of the Workshop on the Internationalisation of Policy Making which SIGMA organised in July 1995 at the College of Europe Natolin, near Warsaw. The purpose of the Workshop was to provide an opportunity to senior practitioners from Central and Eastern European countries to discuss the implications of the internationalisation of policies for governmental systems, and to examine structures and processes for the integration of domestic and international aspects of policy making. Drawing on the experience of OECD Member countries, and of different "generations" of Member countries of the European Union, the Workshop enabled the participants to compare different types of coordination mechanisms, and to draw practical advice for the improvement of policy-making systems. 7 8 FOREWORD by Derry Ormond, Head of the Public Management Service, OECD One of the most important effects of internationalisation on government is to raise the stakes of effective policy making. For example, we observe in OECD countries that establishing a comparative advantage is highly rewarded, and that policy-making dysfunctionalities are heavily penalised, both directly and in terms of opportunity costs. We are also observing that the international system itself is evolving in response to global, not only European, change, and that, as a result, OECD countries are pushing ahead with reforms in many areas of public management. The implications of those observations for Central and Eastern European countries and others are that entry into, and partnership within the evolving global and Euro-Atlantic systems require thorough and continuous reform of public management. For Central and Eastern European countries, effective adaptation to internationalisation depends on an understanding (though not necessarily a copying) of Western systems, institutions and laws. It also depends on a major investment in people and knowledge-acquisition because, like Western countries, they must face the structural and administrative adjustments which are needed to deal with increasing interdependence. They need to find adapted solutions to the important problems all governments are facing in the new context: What new roles for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Finance Ministry? Where do line ministries fit in the overall process? What is the role of the centre of government? Is there a need for more horizontal structures? New coordination mechanisms? Most Central and Eastern European countries approach internationalisation issues from the perspective of European integration -- a central policy thrust for many of them. This provides a concrete, empirical focus on issues. But the focus on accession must not distract policy makers from the wider issues governments are facing in relation to the international context. Nor should it prevent them from seeing the opportunities which internationalisation opens, such as the exploration of joint solutions to policy problems governments cannot solve alone (eg, environmental protection, international crime), or intergovernmental exchanges on policy options (public management reform strategies in OECD countries show increasing evidence of cross border flows of reform ideas). What OECD policy makers are learning about globalisation confirms one of the fundamental tenets of public administration: that policy making is a politico-administrative system which can, and must be the subject of design, management and adaptation. This means that Central and Eastern European governments, which, like others, are now routinely confronted with conflicting pressures arising from the growing interpenetration of domestic and international issues, must focus their efforts in key areas: -- A strategic approach. Efforts to harmonize policies in the rapidly evolving and multi-faceted contemporary context require a strategic approach based on an overall perspective of the issues and on long-term objectives. A ranking of interests must be established. Priorities must be determined and pursued consistently, in order to reduce the risk of straying off course and pursuing contradictory objectives. -- A coordinated approach. It is of the highest importance that governments develop structures (eg, ministries, agencies) which are clearly responsible for well-defined policy areas. Only then can effective coordination mechanisms be established between all the actors involved in policy making and implementation. It is also important that there be a central focus of 9 coordination for complex policy areas involving many ministries, such as European integration. -- Improving legislative and regulatory management systems. Governments must continue to strengthen the institutions and processes that produce and implement legal instruments. This is a fundamental requirement for the development of public institutions that can sustain market economies and provide a base for democratic pluralist systems. It is also needed in order to support the approximation