LONDON: Around 92% of all public officials worldwide believe there is a room for governments to improve the impact they achieve for their citizens.
Global leaders convened online on Thursday to discuss whether there is a crisis in government effectiveness and if so what can be done about it.
The Centre for Public Impact released on Thursday the striking results of its global Impact Imperative survey.
It surveyed responses from over 1,000 public officials from 25 countries across five continents, to shine a light on how well those on the inside think governments deliver for their citizens and on the key challenges governments face.
“45% of public officials believe there is significant room for governments to improve the impact they have.”
Non-policy and junior staff were found to be even more negative than their policy and senior counterparts when it came to assessing the impact of government.
Respondents identified a number of key barriers to achieving public impact. Poor coordination was cited as the greatest challenge to governments, while a lack of funding, leadership and the need to balance political considerations were also highlighted as big obstacles.
On average only 21% of respondents use agreed metrics to measure the impact of all their projects. Remarkably, a full quarter of public officials do not use such metrics on any of their projects.
“The results of the Impact Imperative survey show that governments all over the world need to act now to put delivery at the top of the agenda. This is one of the greatest challenges they will face in the 21st century,” Sir Michael Barber, Co-Chair of the Centre for Public Impact, said.
The Centre for Public Impact will be launched in London on Tuesday June 16. Funded by The Boston Consulting Group but operating as an independent not-for profit organisation, it will focus on helping governments get better at delivering impact for their citizens.
Through its global network, the Centre will connect governments with leading impact thinkers from around the world. It will work in partnership with governments, not-for-profits, the private sector and academics to share insights on public impact. It aims to be a global forum where leaders can learn, share ideas and inspire each other to turn policies into practical reality.
Speaking ahead of the panel discussion, the Centre’s Executive Director Adrian Brown highlighted the need for governments to focus more on delivery.
“Recent findings from the OECD suggest that only 40% of citizens trust their government. Our global Impact Imperative survey provides key insights on why this might be, by highlighting the serious obstacles that governments face when attempting to deliver meaningful and measurable impact for their citizens.
“More than nine out of every ten public officials worldwide think governments could do more to achieve impact for their citizens. This needs to change, and that is why the Centre for Public Impact was created.”