Governance and administration in Sri Lanka: trends, tensions, and prospects

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the status of governance and administration in Sri Lanka in light of current crises and the impact on the quality of governance.Design/methodology/approachThe mixed method approach is employed to explore the problem based on secondary data and results from two major surveys.FindingsThis paper shows political and administrative commitment and quality of governance are two basic ingredients for rapid development and fighting administrative malpractices. Sri Lanka’s system of governance is a mixture of paternalism and alliance developed through political dynasty, kinship, ethnicity, caste, religion, and elitism.Originality/valueThis study fills the research gap as few studies have examined the recent crises of Sri Lanka’s governance and the impacts on governance quality.Policy implicationsOnly by implementing administrative and policy reforms will not improve governance quality in the absence of strong political and bureaucratic commitment. Moreover, global anti-corruption measures are unlikely to work in the Sri Lankan context.