Public Employment and Governance in Middle East and North Africa

Government wage bills have been growing across the world, but are exceptionally high in the MENA region relative to countries’ state of development, whether measured as a share of GDP, or of government revenue and spending (World Bank, 2004). Across the region government wage bills threaten fiscal sustainability. There are many drivers behind the large wage bills, whether of central government alone or of general government. Government employment numbers also seem to grow inexorably, in many areas faster than required to deliver services in line with population growth. Other factors have been weak staff control systems, the authorization of new recruitment outside budget frameworks, and laxly applied staff performance assessment systems, in addition to absenteeism, and the difficulty under public service rules of disciplining and ultimately terminating poorly performing staff. This paper takes a look at government wage bill growth, alongside current approaches to recruitment, staff performance assessments and promotions, with particular emphasis on Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. These country examples are complemented by a broader regional analysis to illustrate overarching trends in public sector employment.The objective is to identify the various forces at work, how they interact, and thereby document and understand better the dynamic of public sector wage bill expansion in the Middle East as well as potential linkages to public sector performance. The paper also looks at reform efforts, extracts lessons and identify potential reform options to better control wage bill growth and the unbalancing effects it has had on the efficiency and effectiveness of government spending generally. Furthermore, while the paper does not present a comprehensive overview of the nature of public employment in MENA, it aims to identify potential areas for further research in this domain.

Bibliographic Details

Main Author:	World Bank
Format:	Report biblioteca
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2016-05
Subjects:	PUBLIC OFFICIALS, JOBS, EMPLOYMENT, PUBLIC SECTOR WAGE, ECONOMIC GROWTH, RETIREMENT, INFORMAL SECTOR, FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, FISCAL DEFICITS, INCOME, PUBLIC SECTOR JOB, TOP MANAGEMENT, PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, PUBLIC SECTOR, GOVERNMENT SPENDING, SPENDING, LABOR FORCE, SERVICES, PRIVATE SECTOR JOB, PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT, PUBLIC SERVICES, REVENUES, JOB, EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS, SERVANTS, LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION, REAL WAGES, TEMPORARY WORKERS, INFLATION, EARLY RETIREMENT, PUBLIC FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, PUBLIC SECTOR WAGE BILLS, PUBLIC HEALTH, YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT RATE, DRIVERS, JOB SEEKERS, POVERTY REDUCTION, SERVICE EMPLOYMENT, HUMAN RESOURCE, PUBLIC POLICY, TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY, WAGE BILL, ADMINISTRATIVE REFORM, PUBLIC SECTORS, EMPLOYMENT POLICIES, REGULAR JOBS, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, PUBLIC SECTOR JOBS, PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYEES, UNEMPLOYED, PUBLIC WAGE, DEBT, OPERATING EXPENSES, LOCAL GOVERNMENT, DEFICITS, LABOR, TOTAL EMPLOYMENT, FINANCE, PUBLIC, PUBLIC INVESTMENT, FEMALE LABOR, FIRST- TIME JOB SEEKERS, UNEMPLOYMENT, PUBLIC SERVANTS, PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH, PUBLIC SECTOR WAGE BILL, WORKERS, TRANSPARENCY, UNEMPLOYMENT RATE, PROVISIONS, PUBLIC PAY, PARTICIPATION, HIGH EMPLOYMENT, BUDGETS, GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES, WAGE PREMIUM, OCCUPATION, PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYMENT, PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM, JOB CREATION, EMPLOYMENT GROWTH, PRIVATE SECTOR, PUBLIC SECTOR PAY, REGULATION, PUBLIC DEBT, SECRETARIES, SKILLED LABOR, MANAGEMENT, ROADS, GOVERNANCE, PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYMENT, PUBLIC RESOURCES, LICENSES, DISMISSAL, REFORM PROGRAMS, PUBLIC SECTOR PRODUCTIVITY, WORKING CONDITIONS, WORKFORCE PLANNING, HUMAN RESOURCES, PUBLIC SECTOR PERFORMANCE, PUBLIC CONSULTATION, CREATING JOBS, MINISTRIES OF FINANCE, FEMALE LABOR FORCE, LABORERS, PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, EMPLOYEE, FISCAL BALANCE, WAGE NEGOTIATIONS, REVENUE, PUBLIC SERVICE REFORM, BORROWING, JOB SECURITY, PUBLIC SERVICE MANAGEMENT, YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT, LABOR MARKETS, PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, PUBLIC SECTOR MANAGEMENT, GOVERNMENTS, PUBLIC SERVICE, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT, POLITICAL LEADERS, ABSENTEEISM, EMPLOYEES,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/05/26420285/public-employment-governance-middle-east-north-africa http://hdl.handle.net/10986/25181
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