The relationship between democracy and performance Essay

The relationship between democracy and performance - Essay Example To some governments, democracy helps improve performance, allowing for the free exchange of commerce and greater transparency in the administrative processes. However, for others, there is a strong belief that other forms of government would be better options in securing improved performance. This paper shall now discuss the relationship between relationship and performance using concepts relating to economic performance, political stability, and other elements of governance. Body A realistic assessment of the workings of democracy indicates that the impact of civil liberties in a country is significant in relation to the performance of a government and its investment activities (Pritchett and Kaufmann, 1998). Such finding supports the idea that the extent to which citizen are able to express their opinions in the public sphere has a crucial impact on how accountability would apply in relation to government and its efficacy. To some analysts, there is no clear association between the elements of electoral governance or democracy and the performance of government activities (Isham, 1996).... Indicators for success in projects include the economic rate of return which is based on the accomplishment of the project, and the rating on whether the project was able to fulfil its project goals. Data on success of bank-supported activities are considered determinants of borrower countries and their efficacy (Isham, 1996). This is because the projects supported by the World Bank are carried out by the borrowing country and its government which then implements the project. As such, there may sometimes be comparisons on ex post success in relation to how well governments undertake projects they opt for, rather than evaluating what projects they actually select. Data on bank-supported projects also provide a specific classification on project success based on comparative elements for different countries (Pritchett and Kaufmann, 1998). Most countries do not often assess their own projects, and most of them do not allow their own assessments to be evaluated based on the determinations made by other countries. Although there may be inaccuracy in terms of project evaluation, the evaluations gained are generally reliable elements in indicating success or failure. As the World Bank is a global institution with specific rules and consistent policies which all apply to borrowers, it is not likely for differences between countries in relation to Bank-supported activities to be primarily the result of inconsistent decisions from the WB (Pritchett and Kaufmann, 1998). The measures of democracy in this essay focused on different cross-national determinants. One of these determinants is based on rankings made by Freedom House where the firm ranks countries yearly using a checklist which includes the lack of media censorship, open discussions in public,