OECD: Greece is Incapable for Structural Reforms (+nice video)

The report of OECD on Greece must be breathtaking – for our lenders, not for us. Then the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development comes to conclusions known to every Greek since decaces. Even a little child, even a stray cat can tell you ” Reforms we hear, reforms we do not see”. In a 127-page long report with title “Greece: Review on Central Administration” the OECD blasted the Greek bureaucracy and indicated in a polite tone: The state apparatus is unable to implement the much needed structural reforms.

The problems found in Greece’s central administration, says the OECD, are the result of decades of clientelism and the sheer volume of the laws and regulations that govern competencies within the ministries. The report found 17,000 such laws, decrees and edicts.

Ministries do not communicate, officials do not keep records and oversight is virtually nonexistent. The only thing that might help, OECD is a “big bang.”

“It is not clear how existing and new entities of (the government) will work together in order to secure the leadership needed for reform, including the necessary strategic vision, accountability, strategic planning, policy coherence and collective commitment, and communication,” reads the damning report.

Such reform, however, is urgently necessary. Theheavily indebted country remains dependent on aid from Brussels to keep its head above water. Should it ever wish to regain its financial independence and be able to borrow money on the bond markets at reasonable prices, vast adjustments are essential, affecting virtually every area of public life in the country. But even as many reforms have been passed by the government in Athens, implementation has been spotty, the OECD report says.

‘Neither the Capacity nor the Ability’

“For the first time, we wanted to show — systematically and with proof — what isn’t working at the administration level and what is preventing Greece from making progress on structural reforms,” Caroline Varley, OECD senior policy analyst and co-author of the report, told the German daily Die Welt. “So far, Greece’s central governmental apparatus has neither the capacity nor the ability to undertake large reforms.”

It found that communication among the country’s 14 ministries was appallingly paltry. Furthermore, the huge number of departments within ministries — many of them consisting solely of a department head and others with just one or two subordinates — results in widespread inefficiency and lack of oversight.

“Administrative work is fragmented and compartmentalized within ministries,” the report writes. “Ministries are not able to prioritize … and are handicapped by coordination problems. In cases where coordination does happen, it is ad hoc, based on personal initiative and knowledge, and not supported by structures.”

Shoddy Record-Keeping

Were such coordination even to take place, the report indicates that administrators do not have access to the necessary data, nor does such data exist in many cases. “The administration does not have the habit of keeping records or the ability to extract information from data (where available), nor generally of managing organizational knowledge,” the report found.

The problems found in Greece’s central administration, says the OECD, are the result of decades of clientelism and the sheer volume of the laws and regulations that govern competencies within the ministries. The report found 17,000 such laws, decrees and edicts.

How, then, should Greece solve the problem? The OECD proposes a “big bang approach” — meaning a massive administrative restructuring. And, co-author Varley says, it needs to happen quickly. “Greece has only a small window of time to change and reform itself,” she told Die Welt. “And it is getting smaller.” (OECD report excerpts in EN: Spiegel Online)

The report was commissioned by the Greek Ministry of Administrative Reform and E-Governance and provides a detailed examination of the state of central administration in the government. It focuses on efficiency and effectiveness as Athens struggles to introduce necessary reforms.

PS I’m sure the OECD investigators did not see the piles of dusty files standing around, preferably in corridors… If they did, then they would understand why there is a lack of recording data. We need archive shelves, guys!

Below is a video of a Perfect German  Civil Servant

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