Bureaucratic bungling : the development of the Fiji Public Service (1858 - 1995)

Abstract

…The study will attempt to describe and appraise the recent developments in the structures and processes of Fiji government administration since the country was first colonised by a foreign imperial power. It is not directly concerned with issues of public policy, that is, it does not examine in detail the changing content and outcomes of government activities, nor does it evaluate achievements and possibilities in particular policy areas although policies come into the picture because changing governmental structures both reflect and react upon changing policies. The study will show that administrative agencies in Fiji have developed in line with the political growth of a Third World country trying to keep pace with the technological, economic and social changes in the worlds outside its territorial limits. With the hasty changes in political structures in Fiji, the administrative arm had correspondingly doubled in the last three decades, putting an enormous strain on the resources of the country. The size of the FPS has grown because of the 'environmental changes in society which have compelled a much greater governmental presence irrespective of political preferences and processes; and because of the political processes themselves inflating government operations...

Date of Award	1995
Original language	English