When one speaks of development, it is obligatory to look at the numerous factors that have contributed to this experience. Development, by whatever indicator is measured, is largely determined by the institutional set-up of a country or region. In a democratic system, the administrative structure is ultimately the expression of the different tastes and preferences of the electorate.
Such preferences are not constant. They change as society evolves. What was deemed undesirable yesterday might be desirable today. What is not deemed a priority today might very well be considered so tomorrow. It is the politician’s duty to be sensitive to such changing preferences and wants.
Gozo’s regional identity is a fact of life. It is accepted by all stakeholders and general policy is formulated around it. What is less certain is the degree to which this regional identity should impose its imprint on the level of decentralisation of Gozo.
Traditionally, the discussion on Gozo identity has centred around the political and administrative decentralisation and rarely, if any, on fiscal decentralisation. This is also reflected in history: from the privileged Roman municipality of ancient times to the role of Governor of Gozo in the 16th century, from the self-administration of the 1960s to the present Ministry for Gozo.
One also ought to keep in mind that decentralisation is not only limited to a ministerial level, with the Ministry for Gozo acting as its most visible standard-bearer. There is already an additional level of decentralisation – that of local councils. These have a very important role to play and during the last two-and-a-half years they have received the full backing of the authorities, both financial as well as operational support.
One thing is certain: the effectiveness of an administrative set-up does not depend on how complex the structure is. Neither does it depend on the number of additional layers, nor the amount of parallel structures in place that very often serve no other purpose but to duplicate efforts without generating any incremental output. At the very best, additional unnecessary layers serve only to consume the already limited resources at our disposal.
What makes an administrative set-up efficient is the way it responds to the needs of the common citizen and business in general. The shorter the distance between the citizens and the policymaker, the better it is. Adding more cumbersome structures will distort the flow of information and render the whole process ineffective.
I’m confident that Gozitan families and businesses prefer to see the administration continuing to concentrate on bread-and-butter issues rather than focusing on erecting more bureaucratic structures to satisfy a partisan agenda. People already have enough experience of responsibility shifting. 30 months, the Ministry for Gozo has proved well to be the catalyst behind the improvement in the wellbeing of Gozitans. We have formulated our vision through the direct input of stakeholders and have kept them on board all the way. We trusted them and they trusted us. We proved willing to bend over backwards to listen. We have been responsive to their needs and have been receptive to businesses and enterprises concerns. We showed that we cared about them.
Is there scope for improvement? Of course there is. We are well aware of this and we are determined to see this improvement. However, we are convinced that this improvement can be attained by being closer to the common citizen and by making our responsibilities more clear.
While some prefer to channel energy and resources by building more firewalls, we prefer to be more pragmatic and direct. We aim to shorten the distant between you and us. This, we believe, will sustain the progress registered in the past two-and-a-half years.
Dr Refalo is Minister for Gozo