Given Hapunda

266 Introduction The dawn of the 21 st century has put a focus and considerable discussions on governance, and good governance at all levels. Consequently, the significance of good governance as a critical condition for human development can no longer be ignored (Sebudubudu, 2010). Taking this as a departure point, this chapter will define governance and its importance in development, the role of M&E in governance is also presented and discussed, possible actions needed to encourage M&E in public service with examples of countries that are making efforts to apply M&E to enhance their governance performance are also covered. What is Governance and its Importance in Development? The word governance has become a ‘hot’ topic in international and national development discourse, but in most cases this word is under-discussed in connection with M&E. Defining what governance is can be quite challenging, since different perspectives exist on what it is. What is governance : “Governance refers to the exercise of political and administrative authorities at all levels to manage the country’s affairs. It compromises mechanism, process, institutions, through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their interest,” (United Nations, 2012). Therefore, governance is simply a process through which citizens and established governance institutions interact in formulating public policies, strategies and service delivery. It is not what was done, but how it was done that matters most, for example, was the process consensus-oriented, participatory, inclusive, transparent, responsive, etc. Importance of Governance in Development Governance is important in getting the business of development done, either at community or national levels, by ensuring the following: 1. Citizens’ confidence in central and local governments : Citizens have confidence, feel secure and trust governments to conduct public affairs in the best interest of society as whole rather than for the privileged few. This makes citizens feel more confident that public authorities will act in the public’s overall interests, regardless of the differing opinions. 2. Rule of law in development processes: The development processes are conceived, developed, implemented, monitored and evaluated within the established rules. This helps both central and local governments to adhere strictly to the established rule of law in delivering development to their citizens. However, only if the development processes are open and citizens are able to follow, the more likely that both the central and local governments will adhere strictly to the rule of law,