NPM, perhaps, was based on too narrow a set of assumptions and values. Broader
and more inclusive is the set of principles and practices encapsulated by “governance”.
“Governance” is a catch-all word that entered common usage during the 1990s. The term was
first coined in the 1989 World Development Report where it referred mainly to financial
accountability of governments. The meaning of this term was later re-conceptualized by
UNDP, defining “governance” as the exercise of political, economic and administrative
authority to manage a country’s affairs. An important objective of governing institutions,
according to UNDP, is to promote constructive interaction between the state, the private sector
and civil society. Later, in World Bank and donor discourse, it became a call to arms for
advancing a new agenda of development assistance, the perception being that financial or
technical assistance would not be put to good use until such concepts as transparency and
accountability, due process, probity and efficiency were institutionalized in the systems of
government of recipient countries.