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The hidden formula for success: What factors promote effective collaborative governance?
In today's society, the concept of governance has expanded beyond the framework of traditional government to incorporate the role of communities and the private sector in the management of countries, regions and cities. Collaborative governance came into being in such a context. It emphasizes communication and collaboration among governments, communities and the private sector, aiming to achieve goals that cannot be achieved by a single sector. According to Ansell and Gash (2008), effective collaborative governance requires certain conditions to be met, as they state: “The ultimate goal is to develop a collaborative, emergent approach that highlights the effectiveness of collaborative governance in policy making and public administration. ”
Collaborative governance encompasses both informal and formal relationships in problem solving and decision making.
Collaborative governance requires three main elements: support, leadership, and forum. The support component identifies policy issues that need to be addressed, while the leader brings different sectors together to form forums and promotes collaboration among members to develop policies and solutions. Collaborative governance takes many forms, such as consensus building and collaborative networks. Consensus building is a process where stakeholders reach consensus on a specific public policy issue, while collaborative networks seek to achieve better alignment between community needs, service agency strategies, priority outcomes, and resource allocation.
History
Over the past two decades, collaborative governance approaches have developed in many areas, including urban and regional planning, public administration, natural resource management, and environmental management. Collaborative governance emerged in part as a result of the failure of government policy implementation, high regulatory costs, and the need for alternatives to adversarial approaches. The focus of public administration has gradually shifted from bureaucracy to cooperation in a networked society. Although bureaucratic systems still exist, public managers are beginning to realize that more can be achieved through collaboration and networking.
Collaboration and partnership are not new in the political sphere, but the widespread use of this leadership style has gained momentum in recent years.
Definition
Ansell and Gash (2008) define collaborative governance as: "a governance arrangement designed to allow one or more public institutions to directly engage non-state stakeholders in a formal, consensus-oriented, deliberate collective decision-making process. process aimed at developing or implementing public policy or managing public projects or assets.” This definition involves six criteria, including that the forum is initiated by a public agency, non-state actors are involved, participants actively participate in decision-making, the forum is formally organized, and it seeks to The decision-making process of consensus and cooperation is focused on public policy or management.
Emerson, Nabatchi, and Balogh (2012) offer a broader definition that emphasizes the processes and structures of public policy decision-making and management, involving constructive participation across public institutions, levels of government, and between the public, private, and citizen sectors. , designed to carry out public goals that would otherwise be unattainable.Advantages
The purpose of collaborative governance is to improve the overall practice and efficiency of public administration. Effective collaborative governance enables stakeholders to reach a better consensus on complex issues involving multiple parties and facilitates their joint efforts to reach solutions. This can help policymakers identify and address problems more effectively and increase community acceptance of policy solutions. Stakeholders who participate in the development of solutions tend to have a higher level of acceptance of the decisions made.
Challenges
While collaborative governance has significant advantages, it also presents some challenges in addressing complex issues. This process is relatively time-consuming and may not lead to consensus. Furthermore, the relevant government agencies may not implement negotiated solutions as expected. When multiple entities work together, individual roles can become blurred and cause confusion, and governance challenges become even more apparent when large projects involve many stakeholders.
Social Applications
Collaborative governance has been used to address many complex social, environmental, and urban planning issues, including flood crisis management in Australia, community visioning in New Zealand, and public engagement in the reconstruction of the Ground Zero area in New York City, USA. In the UK, the US and European countries, governments are trying to shift their focus to various forms of co-creation to increase citizen participation in order to address the inefficiency of traditional hierarchical governance. This process has been practiced in various places. In India, for example, the city of Mumbai has partnered with the nonprofit SNEHA to improve nutrition programs in the city’s informal settlements, demonstrating the promise of successful collaborative governance.
In large-scale urban governance, flexible collaboration and ongoing dialogue are key to overcoming complex challenges. As globalization and social demands continue to grow, must we think about how to promote deeper and more effective collaborative governance among various stakeholders so that future policies can better reflect the actual needs and challenges of society?
