Key issues
- E-Government
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The enabling role that Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can play in facilitating and accelerating socio-economic development (ICT4D) is now being recognized by most African governments. A growing number of national and local governments are setting up national ICT policies, putting critical information online, automating administrative processes and interacting with their citizens through online services, yet the great opportunities offered by these new technologies remains largely unexploited.
- Law and governance
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Although there is agreement that the ‘rule of law’ (the principle that government should act both through law and according to law) ought to be the cornerstone of any democracy, in practice this poses significant conceptual challenges for development interventions. This guide focuses on the role of law and legal processes in developing governmental institutions and policies that are both accountable to citizens and promote economic growth and development.
- Informal institutions
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Are customary institutions or informal institutions, as they are known, detrimental to the development process? Do these institutions have any relevance in the modern society? Do they matter for development at all and how? What is the relationship between the formal and informal institutional set-up? This key issue guide addresses these questions. It discusses the prevalance of informal institutions in many developing countries and examines their role in development and the associated challenges. The author notes that formal institutions alone do not shape human behavior, but that much of what goes on can be better understood by a closer examination of informal institutions that are grounded in and emanate from a society’s culture.
