PUBLIC POLICY AND ADMINISTRATION

The course intends to bring the learner to a deeper understanding of public policy, and the entire public policy making process; right from the time an issue is conceived as a public problem, to the time when a public policy to solve the problem is implemented and evaluated. The course looks at the conception of public administration from variegated angles and gives a good analysis and critique of the different perspectives to come to the real essence of public policies. The different approaches to be considered are to mention a few; public administration as a phase in the public policymaking cycle, public administration as implementing public interest, public policy as doing collectively what cannot be done individually, public policy as regulation, and public policy as law in action. The course explores the different theories of public administration with a critical stance. The course also looks at the role of public administration as well as the public budget in policy implementation. As public administration is applied social science, the course will include some opportunity for learning by doing in which students will engage with the community in looking at the theories forwarded in the course in relation to the reality of policy implications and consequences in the communities.