June 27, 2008 -- Botswana is among over a dozen developing countries showing great progress in governance issues. This, according to the 2008 updated version of the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) compiled by World Bank researchers.
The WGI shows many developing country governments making important gains in control of corruption, and some of them matching rich country performance in overall governance measures.
"Some countries are making rapid progress in governance, including in Africa, showing that a measure of 'Afro-optimism' is called for," said Daniel Kaufmann, co-author of the report and director of Governance at the World Bank Institute.
Kaufman acknowledged that the data also shows large variations in performance across countries, and even among neighbors within each continent.
"Progress reflects reforms in those countries where political leaders, policymakers, civil society and the private sector view good governance and corruption control as crucial for sustained and shared growth," he said.
Good governance can be found at all income levels, with some emerging economies matching the performance of rich countries on key dimensions of governance. Over a dozen emerging countries, including Botswana, Slovenia, Chile, Estonia, Uruguay, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Mauritius, and Costa Rica, score higher on key dimensions of governance than industrialized countries such as Greece or Italy. And in many cases these differences are statistically significant.
Botswana: Setting the Example
Botswana scored well in the areas of political stability and absence of violence, as well as the control of corruption.
"Botswana continues to set the example for other countries on the continent, particularly as control of corruption and political stability are measured," said Lead Operations Officer for the World Bank in Botswana Dirk Reinermann, commending the country. "It is a mature democracy with deeply rooted standards of good governance."
Since independence, Botswana’s presidents have led the country’s transformation from one of the poorest African countries with a US$80 per capita income, to an upper middle income country today with US$5,600 per capita. The remarkable growth has been fuelled by the diamond industry and anchored in democratic governance and political and macroeconomic stability.
The Impacts of Good Governance
Better governance helps in the fight against poverty and improves living standards. Research over the past decade shows that improved governance raises development, though development has not been shown to improve governance.
The Indicators suggest that where there is commitment to reform, improvements in governance can and do occur. Over the past decade from 1998-2007, countries in all regions have shown substantial improvements in governance, even if at times starting from a very low level.
Good governance has also been found to significantly enhance the effectiveness of development assistance, in general, and of World Bank-funded projects in particular.
Governance Around the World
Over 2002-2007, the Indicators show sharp improvements in governance, along with reversals. Examples include strong improvements in Voice and Accountability in countries such as Ukraine and Haiti; improvements in Political Stability and Absence of Violence/Terrorism in Argentina; and improvements in Control of Corruption in Georgia and Tanzania.
But despite governance gains in some countries, overall quality of governance around the world has not improved much over the past decade. Coinciding with countries that have done well, a similar number have experienced deteriorations in several governance dimensions, including Zimbabwe, Cote D'Ivoire, Belarus, Eritrea and Venezuela. In many other countries, no significant change in either direction is yet apparent in recent years.
The WGI do not reflect the official views of the World Bank, its Executive Directors, or the countries they represent. The WGI are not used by the World Bank Group to allocate resources.
The Indicators suggest that where there is commitment to reform, improvements in governance can and do occur. Over the past decade from 1998-2007, countries in all regions have shown substantial improvements in governance, even if at times starting from a very low level.
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