Development Administration
The dictionary meaning of “development” is
teleological, that is, goal-focused.
Development as a process is generally referred
to as an attempt leading to growth into higher,
fuller, and mature conditions.
In contemporary parlance,
Development is interpreted to be a process of
desirable changes in the achievement of a
multiplicity of goals
For a political scientist, political
development involves increase in the levels of
political participation, greater progressivism and
rationality in the legislative process, more
progressive and effective judicial system and more
effective political and administrative executive. It
also assumes a mature media, independent election
machinery, dynamic political parties and
enlightened pressure groups.
To an economist,
On the other hand, development means a higher
level of economic development and a greater
concern for economic justice. Further, a sociologist
looks at development as a process involving greater
stratification of structures and a more forward-
looking educational, health, and other societal
systems. Thus, the term development has a
common philosophy despite variegated foci of
content.
development administration views
development as the dynamic change of a
society from one state of being to another
without positing a final mature condition.
Development administration
• In the literature, the term “development administration’ has been
used in two interrelated senses.
First, it “refers to the administration of development programs, to
the methods used by large-scale organisations, notably governments,
to implement policies and plans designed to meet their
developmental objectives (Riggs, 1970).
Second, it “by implication, rather than directly, involves the
strengthening of administrative capabilities” (Ibid). These two
aspects of development administration, that is, the administration of
development and the development of administration, are
intertwined in most definitions of the term.
the essential characteristics of
development administration
• Change-Orientation
Development Administration is change-oriented
administration. Change involves the movement of
system or a structure from one point to another.
The reverse of ‘change’ could be status quo (current
situation)or inertia( remain unchanged). Thus, a
development administrative system would be
dynamic and not ‘static’.
There is an in-built philosophy of development
administration that values change.
`
• Goal-Orientation
• Development administration, as defined by
Weidner, is a ‘goal-oriented’ administration.
And these goals, as Weidner points out, are
progressive in nature. Thus, development
administration is concerned with the
achievement of progressive political,
economic, social and cultural goals.
• Progressivism
The element of ‘progressiveness’ of goals is an
accepted feature of development administration.
What is progressive for one society may not be so
for another. Nevertheless, there appears to be a
broad consensus on the nature of progressiveness
of these goals in most of the countries, particularly
those that are ‘developing’ societies.
• Development Administration, thus, is, an
administration designed to achieve progressive
political, economic and socio-cultural goals.
• Planning
• Planning is not a prerequisite to development
administration, but it is the most helpful aid to the
whole process of goal-oriented change.
• Innovation and Creativity
• Development administration is not dogmatic and
traditional in its approach to problem solving. Instead,
it stresses upon identification and adoption of new
structures, method procedures, policies, plans,
programmes and projects, which would help, achieve
the developmental objectives with the greatest
possible facilitations.
• Flexibility in Organisational Processes
Development-oriented administration
requires an optimum flexibility of operations,
which would allow an administrator the
required autonomy to apply rules with
discretion to certain unique and significantly
distinctive administrative situations.
• Higher Level of Motivation
Motivated personnel are the backbone of any
organisation designed to achieve certain
progressive goals. A development
administrative system needs a set of highly
motivated personnel at top, middle and lower
levels
• People-orientation
A development administrative system is a client-
oriented (in new parlance, ‘customer-oriented’) or a
beneficiary-oriented administration. It aims at
providing maximum benefits of its services and
products to the very people for whom the
organisation is designed. In other words,
Development administration is “people-centred”
administration, which accords primacy to the needs
of its beneficiaries and tries to tune its policies,
programmes and actions to these needs.
• Participation
• Effective Integration
Bringing together a host of groups and
authorities for the achievement of common
developmental goals would require a high
degree of integrative capacity in an
administrative organisation.
