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SGACA: The Rise and Paradoxical Demise of a Political‐Economy Instrument
Author(s) -
Hout Wil,
Schakel Lydeke
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
development policy review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.671
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1467-7679
pISSN - 0950-6764
DOI - 10.1111/dpr.12075
Subject(s) - demise , bureaucracy , politics , ministry of foreign affairs , corporate governance , foreign policy , language change , political economy , political science , economics , public administration , economic system , law , management , art , literature
This article discusses the Strategic Governance and Corruption Analysis (SGACA) introduced in 2007 by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a tool for political‐economy analysis of governance structures in aid‐receiving countries. It suggests an explanation of the paradox that SGACA was generally seen as a strong analytical instrument, yet was discarded within one 4‐year policy cycle. Drawing on the literature on policy innovations, it argues that there are three main causes of this demise: first, the collective‐action problems involved in getting innovations implemented in the apparatus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; second, the fact that the policy window opened for SGACA by the mid‐2000s did not stay open throughout the implementation process; and third, the bureaucratic politics played out in the environment in which SGACA had been developed.