Regional Centre in Bangkok

Public Administration Reform and Anti-Corruption in Asia and the Pacific

An efficient, responsive, transparent and accountable public administration is a central part of democratic governance. It is also the basic means through which government strategies to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) can be implemented.

The Asian region offers several examples of countries that have made substantive progress through development strategies implemented by a robust public administration. While the public administration used to be seen primarily as a means of supporting economic and social development there is now a paradigm shift towards more inclusive and participatory governance, acknowledging the role that the public service has to play in the democratization of society. This requires a major reorientation of bureaucratic culture and the bureaucracy’s relationship with society. As mismanagement of scarce resources remains one of the main obstacles to delivering equitable development in the region, increased attention is also being paid to the problem of corruption in government and society as a whole.

The support provided by the Regional Centre in Bangkok in this service line is aimed at the creation of an enabling environment to support the development of accountable, transparent and inclusive government. This is done through three main areas of activity:

• Civil Service Reform
• Enhancing Accountability and Transparency in Governing Institutions
• Promoting Participation in Government

These activities are primarily funded through RCB's Asia Regional Governance Programme (ARGP).

UNDP Anti-Corruption Public Service Announcements

UNDP (2008): Supporting UNCAC Implementation: Country experiences in the Asia-Pacific Region

From 13-15 October 2008, anti-corruption practitioners and policy-makers from 18 countries in Asia and the Pacific region came together to discuss implementation of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption. The report of the three-day Technical Training organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Centres in Bangkok and the Pacific in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime is now available online. Resource persons from the Asian Development Bank and the Pacific Forum Secretariat also participated in the workshop.

UNDP (2005): Trends and Challenges in Public Administration Reform in Asia and the Pacific

This report provides an overview of developments in public administration reform in most countries in the Asia-Pacific region. It looks at the particular role that UNDP has played in this sector and then draws a series of conclusions on UNDP’s comparative advantage in this service line. The report thus aims to add to a better understanding of UNDP’s contribution to this large sector in particular in light of a renewed attention to the performance of the public administration in pursuing the achievement of the MDGs.