Introducing the Berggruen Governance Index III. Implications for theory and policy

Abstract

This article looks at some of the major implications for theory and policy that follow from the Berggruen Governance Index (BGI). After discussing the BGI's quality as an indicator in more general terms, the article explores two types of implications. The first are conceptual implications that relate to an improved understanding of governance, democracy and economic development. They illustrate the highly contingent patterns that emerge from the Governance Triangle—the basis of the BGI's conceptual framework—for high-, middle- and low-income countries as well as political regimes, and caution against any notions of simple causalities in how countries develop. Second, we address policy implications in terms of managing the tensions inherent in the Governance Triangle in view of longer-term sustainability and resilience based on insights that can be gained with the help of the BGI.