Implementing Public Policy

Sivumelwano Agreement Nyembe

• Public policy ideas that promise to solve many
of society’s problems
• Studies show that more than half of Public
Policies fail during implementation
– falling short of achieving their results
• What can be done to overcome challenges and
roadblocks so that we can achieve successful
policy outcomes more frequently and make real
change happen?
 Implementing Public Policy
• Implementing Public Policy is designed to equip
policymakers around the world with both the
skills to analyze policies, as well as the field-tested
tools and tactics to successfully implement them.
• The program is innovative, and practical.
• It builds on the traditional executive education
program experience through a seven-month
engagement that blends online, on campus and
applied action learning.
 The policy cycle
• Policy development and implementation are often described as
distinct and separate stages within policy cycles.
• The lines between policy development and implementation can
become quite blurred.
• In the policy development stage, both political and technical issues
have to be addressed.
• Political issues include getting buy-in, setting a vision and
managing opposition.
• Technical issues include gathering evidence and data of what
works, implementation planning and other mandatory steps
required in government policy development, including public
consultation.
 The policy cycle
•There is no good way to implement bad policy.
Poor policy design is a common reason for poor
implementation.
•A well-designed policy can be poorly implemented
(Gold, 2014).
•How policy will be implemented is an integral
feature of the policy development stage
•Policy makers and front line services need to be
involved in the entire policy process.
•Policy initiatives tend to be more effective when
they are designed with direct front line input.
•Policy professionals do not always have training
or direct experience in delivering frontline
services.
•Practitioners can provide a real world
perspective on the feasibility of a particular
policy initiative.
 Different Policy implementation
• Priorities and actions need to be clearly articulated during the
policy development process
• There is often a gap between the intentions of policymakers
and how a policy looks when services are delivered to citizens.
• Government policy is often articulated as high level goals and
objectives.
• A range of stakeholders are involved in implementation
– institutions, agencies, service providers and intermediary
organisations, before they have an impact on citizens.
• This makes policy implementation very challenging and diffuse
 Different Policy implementation
• Priorities and actions need to be clear and
during the policy development process, to
ensure that diverse stakeholders can interpret
and implement them consistently at a national
level.
Complex context for policy implementation

• The context for policy implementation is crucial.

• When implementing policy, many other implementation
efforts may be occurring at the same time in different parts
of the system. Coherence can help to create a climate for
implementation success.
• There may be synergies with, or divergence from other
government policies or strategies.
• Policies may interact with each other, producing new,
unplanned and sometimes unintended consequences. More
complex governance and accountability arrangements are
required to oversee policy implementation.
What enables implementation of policy?

• There are many similarities between

implementing policies and other types of
interventions.
• Implementation enablers are important for
policy implementation.
– Enablers are include leadership, communication
and feedback mechanisms.
 Leadership as policy implementation
enabler
• Leadership is needed at all levels of the system for policy
implementation.
• From a political perspective, the appropriate level of leadership is
needed to reshape mandates, resources, structures and programmes.
• Consistency in leadership has also been suggested as an enabler of
implementation, such as fixed-term positions for senior government
department officials, to ensure continuity and strengthen
relationships.
• The literature on leadership for policy implementation also points to
the need for a ‘craftsman’ style of political leadership, which has a
focus on building and sustaining relationships, managing complexity
and interdependence, and managing multiple and conflicting
accountabilities.
 Communication as policy implementation
enabler
• Communication plays an important role in facilitating
successful implementation of a policy and
• should be a core part of policy development from the
beginning and throughout the stages of
implementation.
• Systematic communications are important to share
information and feedback on how implementation is
progressing across sites, and to share wins and
important policy milestones to maintain buy-in and
motivation of stakeholders.
 Feedback mechanisms as policy
implementation enabler
• Feedback mechanisms should be established between
policymakers and front-line practitioners once
implementation has begun,
– to ensure the policy is being implemented as intended,
unplanned consequences are addressed efficiently and to
support the learning capacity of the system
• Feedback mechanisms can include regular, standardized
reporting arrangements from front-line services to
oversight structures for the policy, and policy reviews
carried out at key points in the policy life cycle, for
example mid-term reviews.