【Text by Busani Ngcaweni, Translation by Whale Life】
There is an extremely profound crisis of public values quietly spreading within the governance systems and state apparatuses of the Global South. We all recognize this, but often attribute it to weak institutions or policy failures. However, behind this lies a more serious reality we are unwilling to face: despite witnessing countless policies aimed at creating a better future, they have never actually driven real change. This gap reflects a huge disconnect between power and implementation, as well as a rupture between the moral mission of public leadership and the necessary capacity to implement it.
We are often quick to propose solutions, but rarely seriously question the root causes of the crisis. Our thinking always oscillates between "lack of political will" and "insufficient implementation capacity," while ignoring the intrinsic connection and mutual reinforcement between the two. This is not just an academic problem, but a hidden danger that spans the entire Global South and relates to the survival of nations. It stems from a governance paradigm that, under the banner of modernization and "government re-engineering," systematically undermines national capacity.
The private sector is seen as the best practice model for this form of governance, which takes various forms, with relatively moderate ones including competitive approaches to managing public institutions. In more extreme manifestations, it evolves into what is called "new public management," a paradigm that was widely introduced into developing countries during the era of neoliberalism. Its core ideas are often implemented through external conditions, emphasizing privatization, performance targets, and operational control. It brings about the tyranny of logical frameworks: simplifying governance to mechanical calculations of inputs and outputs, while ignoring specific situations, implementation capacity, or the political and economic ecology behind projects. It promises efficiency and accountability mechanisms, but leaves behind more hidden harms.
In many African countries, the large-scale adoption of so-called "government re-engineering" has led to the outsourcing of core governance functions. South Africa's complex government procurement system is a typical example of this trend: in addition to widespread abuse of power, the most critical consequence is that the government has been fragmented into several relatively independent institutions, resulting in reduced policy coordination and limited collective implementation capacity. Main ministries are encouraged to create various entities, which, under the guise of a "more sustainable private integration model," minimize political interference and maximize economic benefits for a few individuals.
Next to an upscale private estate in Cape Town, informal settlements dominated by Black people can be seen. Thirty years after the end of apartheid, land and spatial inequality still plague South Africa. Reuters
This transformation has hollowed out the institutional capacity of the state, reducing capable leaders to contract managers, even becoming beneficiaries of the very systems they were supposed to govern. Many talents have become bureaucrats in service processes, losing confidence, agency, and core competitiveness. The real work is outsourced to the private sector. Many saw this trend coming, but few anticipated its breadth and depth. As bureaucratic procedures take root and spread, corruption proliferates along the path outlined by Abhijit Banerjee in his article "A Theory of Misgovernance."
We are now reaping the bitter fruits of the hollowing out of governance capacity: as the global landscape changes rapidly, public institutions are increasingly unable to respond effectively. Mariana Mazzucato and Rosie Collington, in their book "The Big Con," sharply point out that the public sector has become "infantilized," especially in the Global South. It no longer actively leads and shapes the market, but passively responds to it; an obsession with compliance has replaced strategic vision; innovation functions have been outsourced to private companies that focus on cost-cutting and profit-seeking from public value-oriented policies. Public leadership has become a ritual of risk avoidance — clean audits have become a prevailing trend, more favored than any other standard of public value. In the eyes of contemporary and next-generation generations, the consensus on national values is experiencing a deep collapse.
We are witnessing the collapse of a governance spirit.
The late African scholar Thandika Mkandawire, a Malawian economist and former Chair of the African Development at the London School of Economics, reminded us that post-independence African states were envisioned as ambitious agents of change. Though imperfect, they were full of political confidence. Neoliberalism eroded this confidence, replacing it with managerialism, cost-cutting, and the illusion of "private sector efficiency." Mkandawire emphasized that the current challenge is to reverse this trend, re-establishing the state as a driver of change, not as an abstract ideal, but as a pragmatic, responsible, and adaptive system.
As power becomes increasingly decentralized and development paths are no longer clear, the state's strategic implementation capacity and the will of its leaders are more important than ever. Unfortunately, our hesitation before crises has led to African leaders (whether elected or appointed) being gradually absorbed by the system, losing the imagination, tools, and determination needed for effective governance. Many simply preside over a bureaucracy that cannot inspire or exert control. In the vacuum of lost leadership, technocrats and consulting agencies continue to grow, politics becomes a routine process, and governance degenerates into a showy performance of passive responses. What remains is often a group of sycophants who desperately maintain the position of the top leader — the art of governance has long disappeared.
Between political will and implementation capacity, there exists a crucial concept: the art of governance. It relies on a clear vision, a consistent system, and the courage to act, enabling us to move beyond tired complaints of "lack of political will" or "insufficient leadership." To revive the art of governance, it must be understood as a unified force of leadership rooted in strategic capability, professional expertise, and moral mission. It requires the ability to coordinate long-term visions, institutional design, bureaucratic coordination, and policy tools to achieve effective governance in complex environments.
On September 1st, China proposed a global governance initiative at the "Shanghai Cooperation Organization+" meeting, which received a warm response. Source: Kremlin website
The root cause of the current decline in African leadership is decades of political marginalization, institutional fragmentation, and erosion of public ethics. Public ethics, in this context, refers to a shared value orientation that combines power with a sense of mission.
Regarding the art of governance, retraining capabilities is not merely a technical fix, but a multidimensional transformation. It requires enhancing cognitive abilities such as systemic thinking, up-to-date governance, and scenario planning, as well as cultivating ethical qualities based on justice, integrity, and a service-oriented approach; it also demands skills in managing institutional ecosystems, political bargaining, and complex policy environments. This dual political and educational mission aims to equip public leaders with technical proficiency, reflective spirit, and a moral compass.
This idea aligns with the governance model advocated by Professor Mashupye Maserumule, a professor of public policy and executive dean of the Faculty of Humanities at Tshwane University of Technology in South Africa. He advocates a governance paradigm rooted in the "Ubuntu" spirit and post-colonial thought of Africa. In his view, the root of the African governance crisis lies not only in weak institutions but also in the lack of leadership grounded in local values, a sense of community responsibility, and moral commitment. Therefore, revitalizing the art of governance is not only about building capacity, but also about fostering a value ethics that emphasizes dignity, service orientation, and historical awareness. This ethical system stands in sharp contrast to the "government re-engineering" model dominated by the private sector, which emphasizes a traditional dual mission of intellect and morality for leadership — rooted in the lived realities and collective visions of the people (yes, the people, not market representatives).
The concept of "democratic developmentalism" proposed by Guy Mhone, an economist from Zambia and Malawi, provides a strong theoretical framework for this revitalization. He calls on African countries to overcome their "enclave-like" characteristics through the development of integration, democratization, and developmental governance. This means regaining space for policy formulation, conducting strategic planning, and integrating public leadership into a broader struggle for social inclusion.
Effective governance must be transformative, balanced in terms of distributive justice, and politically grounded. Cultivating public leadership itself is a form of strategic capacity building. Neo Boon Siong and Geraldine Chen, in their book "Dynamic Governance: Embedded Mechanisms of Culture, Capacity, and Change in Singapore," argue that strategic capacity involves coordinating vision, resources, and institutions to address complex challenges. The experiences of Singapore and other Asian economies show that efficient governance is not accidental, but stems from forward-looking leadership development, institutional learning, and merit-based mechanisms. Francis Fukuyama has made insightful comments on this in his essay "The Pattern of History."
Even the most capable leaders must deal with resistance from the system. As Samuel Bacharach wrote in "The Agenda Setter": leadership is not just about proposing ideas, but about implementing them through institutions, coordinating stakeholders, and overcoming obstacles. Therefore, leaders not only need a vision, but also the strategic tools to realize it.
Examples of such revitalization abound. In the reforms following the end of Suharto's era, Indonesia cultivated a new generation of leaders with political and policy-making capabilities. To serve national development plans, the Vietnamese Communist Party implemented a "five-year cycle" leadership training mechanism. Rwanda invested in data-driven execution mechanisms and disciplined bureaucracies. India's digital public infrastructure demonstrates how strategic interventions can unlock development potential.
In the Gulf region, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have introduced governance innovations, reflecting their determination to advance strategic capacity transformation in the post-oil era. China, with its long-term vision, has achieved unprecedented industrial development and poverty reduction. Kenya's "Huduma Centers" highlight the importance of digital infrastructure and a spirit of public service.
Surveys show that China has a 60% favorability rating in Africa, ranking first. "Africa Rain Gauge"
Looking at South Africa's ongoing challenges, such as policy shifts, institutional chaos, and rent-seeking, clearly expose the dangers of the absence of strategic capacity development. The growing contradictions between governors and the governed are unsustainable. These international examples are not ready-made blueprints, but important inspirations: institutional inertia is not destiny, governance is never passive, but a proactive expression of collective will.
In a recent (April 2025) dialogue hosted by the South African National Academy of Leadership and Fudan University in China, Professor Kishore Mahbubani, author of "Asia's 21st Century," urged African leaders to retrain and acquire governance capabilities — as a dual dimension of intellectual and moral cultivation. His call is timely: our future depends on whether we have leaders who are skilled in strategic thinking, decisive in action, and committed to moral governance. This requires bold capacity reshaping — not returning to dogma, but forging a new path rooted in African traditions, comparative learning, and a clear understanding of global realities.
The future work is not only about institutional reform, but also about reaffirming public interest as the core organizing principle of governance. Achieving good governance means thinking, planning, and acting in an ethically appropriate way. There is an urgent need to rebuild the infrastructure of public leadership — this is not the task of technocrats, but part of a broader political project to restore national dignity, reclaim the power mission, and rediscover the soul of governance.
Based on the above discussion, three cutting-edge directions can be summarized as conclusions: national and regional/international development must advance along three key dimensions: (1) cultivating effective decision-making capacity, emphasizing the mastery of the art of governance, and moving beyond formalism; (2) building resilient institutional systems (including hardware and software), ensuring that development plans are faithfully implemented; (3) constructing domestic and international agreements, resolving conflicts at the national and geopolitical levels. All of this depends on whether the Global South can cultivate a group of developmental elites — men and women who are committed to development and determined to pursue substantive change.
As an African proverb says: Ultimately, effective governance is not just about following rules, but making rational and moral choices for the greatest good of society. History tells us that the characteristics of an effective government lie in diligently managing public affairs and courageously fulfilling a society's desire for economic justice and social cohesion.
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