Paradigms of public financial administration in the evolution of papua new guinea

Abstract In the evolution of Papua New Guinea from dependent territory to independent entity, public financial administration has experienced a series of changes. Each historical group of changes may be represented by a characteristic paradigm which identifies the nature of the underlying concepts and their essential dynamics in the context of the political, economic and social environment. From the early days of Australian settlement, public financial administration was dominated by the colonial paradigm as the two constituent territories—initially separately and then jointly—relied almost exclusively on Canberra for the provision of funds, supply of expertise and formation of policies. More recently, since national independence, legislative and staffing changes have occurred in public financial administration but there have been no infrastructural innovations in response to current needs and priorities. Australian support of the recurrent budget and other foreign aid have not abated, while the forms and institutions involved in public financial administration continue to reflect strong metropolitan influences which militate against the formation of an indigenous paradigm consonant with national aspirations, development goals and cultural values.