STATE CAPACITY

State Capacity in International Policy Making



State Capacity

Introduction

State capacity, at present is considered to be one of the most pressing problems in the world community, and perhaps have acquired significant attention globally. It is said that no international policy or document related to strategy can be completed without considering state capacity as one of the prime objective. State building is the name given to the process of enhancing state capacity (www.councilofnonprofits.org).

State capacity can be defined as the capacity of a government or administration to administer its state and territory effectively. It can be regarded as a characteristic that can define political system of a country (Kocher, 2010 p. 139). In the world at present, four basic parameters are of prime importance as far as survival and proper functioning of a political system is concerned. Firstly, the ability of a government to extract financial and other resources from the society and use it in the areas which are regarded as areas of national interests. Secondly, the ability of the government to steer the development of conditions and processes of national interest in a way so as to achieve the desired outcome and to monitor the socio economic growth. Thirdly, the ability and the power to formulate rules and regulations in order to run the affairs of the nation and the country in a better way. Lastly, the power and capacity of the government to impose its decisions and regulations by force, whenever required, so as to promote peace and integrity.

Although all of these four sounds different from one another, but careful examination and analysis of them reveals that they all are interrelated with each other. For example, if the performance of the government is up to the mark and according to the will of the people, then no major issue related to the legitimacy of the government is likely to arise. It means that if the administration is doing whatever it expresses or promises to its subjects, and is able to deliver according to the hopes and requirements of the government, then the people also repose confidence in such government and are willing to cooperate with the government for the betterment of the country. If the conditions are otherwise, i.e. the government or the administration is not performing up to the mark, or it is not able to deliver whatever it promises to its subject, then definitely legitimacy issues regarding the efficiency of the government of the country will start to rise. People would become despondent with the passage of time, and finally start to demand a change of government. Let us consider state capacity in some detail.

Discussion

If the affairs of the country are running smoothly, then it becomes easier for the government to manage the overall growth and development of the country, and it does not feel the necessity of imposing its decisions and regulations by using force. On the other hand, if the government is unable to deal with the affairs of the country efficiently and according ...