Australian Development Gateway

The Australian Development Gateway (ADG) strives to support members of the development community in their efforts to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development in the Asia Pacific region. The site has been created with participation from members of government, private, academia and non-government organisations. User feedback mechanisms have been incorporated to guide future directions of the site. The site is optimised for low bandwidth access to enable the widest participation throughout the Asia Pacific region.

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Bilateral & Multilateral Approaches

Whole of Government: Does working together work? (pdf 185k)

The idea of whole-of-government processes as a pathway to more efficient and integrated government has risen in popularity in Australia over the past decade. Despite fairly widespread support for the principles of whole-of-government, a number of issues require serious consideration. The major areas of potential difficulty arise in relation to ensuring accountability for publicly funded activities, overcoming the silos created by departmentalism or vertical styles of management, and balancing inclusion in public policy development with the unwelcome effect of 'many hands', namely fragmentation and lack of coordination. In addition, and absent from much of the specific public administration literature on whole-of-government, is a consideration of the role of interpersonal relationships and individual behaviour as they impact on organisational values, ethics and culture.

 

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