Public administration and governance in the EU’s eastern neighbourhood countries: Comparative approach and relevance for the european neighbourhood policy effectiveness

Abstract

Public administration and governance play a key role in ensuring socio-economic stability, growth, and resilience at national and local level. Assuming that there is “no single best approach” of public administration and governance systems, this chapter proposes a comparative study for the EU’s Eastern neighbourhood countries, highlighting the main characteristics of their administrative systems and governance practices and thus revealing their implications for the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) effectiveness. Based on our findings, we synthetize the main lessons and best practices that could have a highly normative relevance for policymaking. The value of this chapter rests on the comparative approach and proposed recommendations, useful for both the EU’s institutions and national authorities in analysed countries in order to strengthen their partnerships, regulatory frameworks, and public policies.