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YUGOSLAVIA |
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YUGOSLAVIA |
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE CONTENTS OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION PROGRAMMES
1. Serbia
University of Belgrade, Faculty of Law
Undergraduate studies at the law faculty of the University of Belgrade consist of four academic years divided into eight semesters. Beginning with the third year of study, students select one of eight streams, one of which is administration. The curriculum includes general legal subjects, six in the third and seven in the fourth year, and three subjects each year from the selected major stream. The entry requirement for the major in public administration, administration stream (Upravno - pravni smer), is the successful completion of second year courses.
For academic year 1999/2000, the public administration major (Upravno - pravni smer) included the following courses: sectoral administrative law, management science and sociology of law (third year), and political systems, political and legal theories and the philosophy of law (fourth year). Students are required to take one elective course, e.g., informatics, rhetoric, statistics, autonomy law, environmental law, political sociology, church law. All students, regardless of their major, graduate with a general "Bachelor’s of Law" (LLB) degree (Diplomirani pravnik) that does not mention the area of specialisation.
Postgraduate studies offered by the Faculty of Law, Belgrade University, include specialisation courses, and master’s and doctoral degree studies. Specialisation courses are aimed at training law graduates in eight majors with a wide variety of required and elective courses. The course duration is one year and it leads to the professional title of Specialist of Law in a particular discipline. The entry requirement is the completion of the Faculty of Law. Candidates from faculties other than law are obliged to pass several required exams from the law school’s basic curriculum.
In 1997, a program for specialists in European law (Specijalista za Evropske Pravo) was introduced. The curriculum was created in cooperation with the European University Centre in Nancy. Standards for admission are stricter than those of other programs, and all applicants must have completed their law degree at a law school in Yugoslavia or a foreign law school with equivalent standards. Proficiency in English or French is required. Applicants are selected on the basis of their grade point average and two recommendations from professors.
The specialisation in European Law is based on a two-semester program, leading to a “specialist” diploma. However, students interested in a master’s degree program may continue their studies in the LLM program in European law under favourable conditions.
Master’s studies at the law faculty of Belgrade University are two-year programs with a variety of majors. The only graduate level public administration major that is offered every year is administrative law and public administration. Mandatory courses include administrative law and management science (Upravno pravo i Nauka o upravljanju). Optional courses change each year; and, in academic year 1999/00, included data protection in computerised information systems (Zastita podataka u informacionim sistemima), harmonisation of administrative law with EU law (Harmonizacija upravnog prava sa pravom Evropske Unije) and administrative acts and administrative contracts (Upravni akti i Upravni ugovori).
Master’s degrees can also be obtained in related fields such as public management and management of public enterprises, informatics and law and ecology and environmental protection, among others. Successful completion of the requirements and defence of a master’s thesis qualifies a student to receive the degree of master’s of Law (LLM). This includes the master’s in public administration and administrative law.
As with specialisation courses, an entry requirement for the masters' degree is a LLB degree or bachelor degree from some other arts or social sciences faculty provided required exams from the regular law school curriculum are passed.
Doctoral degree studies in administrative law and pubic administration are offered each year through a special program. A protracted and somewhat cumbersome procedure is required for the selection of themes for doctoral theses and the assessment of a candidate’s ability. The doctorate is required or an advantage for those aspiring to join academia in teaching positions or for researchers in scientific institutions. However, doctoral programmes also enroll practitioners, administrative officials, judges, attorneys or simply those interested in research in the field of administrative law and public administration. The faculty assigns a faculty mentor - sometimes two - for each candidate. After defending their dissertations, candidates are admitted to the degree of doctor of administrative law or doctor of public administration. The entry requirement for enrolling in a doctoral course is the completion of a master’s degree.
University of Belgrade
Faculty of Political Science
Studies at the Faculty of Political Science are four years in duration (eight semesters). The following programs are offered: general political science, journalism, international relations, social work and social policy. Graduates receive a bachelors degree with a major in public administration. Courses taught in the general political science program cover sociology, political economy, introduction to law (in the first year), contemporary political systems, cybernetics and informatics, management (in the second year), social and political ecology, political sociology, theory of culture (in the third year) and local government, political anthropology and public administration (in the fourth year).
2. Montenegro
The situation in Montenegro differs greatly from that in Serbia. The turbulence caused with transition, ethnic tensions in Southeastern Europe and the reaction of the international community has created a heightened awareness of the need for accelerated political, economic and institutional change in Montenegro. The ruling Democratic Socialist Party (DPS) split from traditionalists who are adhering to the policies of the regime in Serbia, led by the former president and reformers led by the former prime minister. In the March 1998 elections, the program of reform and the European-oriented, ethnically tolerant coalition won.
The new Montenegrin government immediately embarked on a new course based on market-oriented economic and social strategies, sought and established good relations with a number of countries in Europe and in the West. Popular support for a market orientation has since grown. Double burdens are imposed on the newly elected government of Montenegro, stemming from conceptual differences with the Serbian government, the dominant federal government of Yugoslavia and the adoption of major reforms which has severely taxed the management capacity of the Montenegrin public service.
The Europeanisation of education and training in public administration is a top government priority. The new, internationally supported Project of Central, Local Administrative and Legal Reform is designed to assist the government of Montenegro in reaching its strategic objective of introducing a market economy in a developing civil society. Its activities include government reorganisation and restructuring, decentralisation and improve local decision-making. Legal reforms reflect basic European trends.
In the reform-oriented Montenegrin environment, the training of policy makers, public managers and professionals responsible for reform programs is strategically important. The project recognises that successful implementation will require dedication and stable, unwavering commitment from the political leadership and the creation of an “enabling environment” for a market economy through a revised legal framework for civil service, the judiciary and local government. These needs require intensified retraining in legal drafting and implementation as elements of the legal reform program.
The Context for Administrative Reform in Montenegro
Administrative reform is supported centrally and locally, institutionally and internationally, and the general public strongly supports administrative change and public sector development. Renewing cooperation with international organisations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations, and joining other international specialised agencies or professional organisations is considered an issue of prime importance for Montenegro.
Controlling the public deficit is another strategic objective of the Republic of Montenegro. Due to differences with the federal government and the government of Serbia, there is no alternative for Montenegro except to orient itself towards the European Union and the West to develop a market-oriented economy. This requires harmonisation with European law (Acquis Communautaire), the recognition of universally adopted values of civil societies and the adoption of European standards and policies.
The government of Montenegro finally adopted the Outlines for the Project: Administrative and Legal Reform in December 1998. A comprehensive reform strategy was developed, a donors conference organised and international technical assistance solicited and received. An intensive retraining programme for managerial and professional personnel at the central and local level is now underway. Internationally recognised experts already have taught courses in Montenegro and the first group of twenty-two senior public officials were trained at the Civil Service Staff College in Sunningdale, Great Britain. There were also other activities organised by international donors: Conrad Adenauer Stiftung, etc.
Legal Reform and its Relation to Public Administration
Under the Legal Reform Project, a number of laws will be revised, including those that regulate the civil service and local administration. In addition, a specific training strategy will be implemented. Legal reform will be based on the following legal and organisational principles:
- coherence, consistency and balance between competing policies;
- stability and predictability of regulatory requirements;
- ease of management, monitoring mechanisms and responsiveness to political direction;
- transparency and openness to citizens;
- consistency, fairness and due process of law in implementation;
- adaptation to changing circumstances based on equality and fairness;
- regulatory-impact analysis (RIA) and cost-benefit analysis.
Institute for Public Administration, Local Government and Law of the Republic of Montenegro (IPALGAL)
Administrative and legal reform must be based on adequate training to promote change and achieve sustainability. A specialised, independent institution is considered necessary to organise public service research, training and consultancy, and IPALGAL was organised to implement training programmes based on administrative and legal reform strategies and an extensive training needs analysis applied in government structures and the judiciary. IPALGAL’s selection of training programmes, curricula and teaching methods are based on international standards, and the institute is in the process of establishing international cooperation with other organisations in the field.
As of January 2000, the institute will have three centres: the Centre for Public Administration, the Centre for Local Government and the Centre for Legal Reform. The institute is staffed by a complement of full-time national trainers, most of whom were or will be trained abroad.
The reform project of the government of Montenegro has directly supported IPALGAL from the beginning as its activities will be essential to implement administrative and legal reforms. Relevant experience and findings from transition countries stress the key role that similar institutions have in introducing and maintaining the process of change. In Montenegro, this is of even greater importance as there is no other institute for public administration in Yugoslavia. By government decree, the Yugoslav Institute for Public Administration, the Serbian Institute for Public Administration and the Institute for Public Administration in Vojvodina were closed in 1992. The statute, internal organisation, the role of international experts and trainers, the selection of trainees, training programmes and curricula, research and laboratory capacity are already decided or will be finalised soon.
This description of the administrative reform strategy benefited from direct dialogues with top political leaders and was drafted jointly with senior officials from the Ministry of Justice, an agency that carries the major burden of administrative and legal reform in Montenegro. The strategy reflects the flexibility of the government of Montenegro in considering and efficiently adopting change-oriented ideas. Static, “final” solutions are often unrealistic or unfeasible. Therefore, in Montenegro, many reforms reflect the indigenous environment, culture and tradition. To a great extent, the project is the result of close cooperation between international aid agencies and the government of Montenegro. The project provides a framework and a systemic set of policies to build national capacity for institutional and managerial development leading to an thoroughly retrained, efficient and responsible public service.
In the foreseeable future, the Montenegro public administration training situation will be greatly improved. It could either create additional friction within Yugoslavia or prove an excellent motive and impetus for change in Serbia.
3. Other Relevant Training Activities in Montenegro and Serbia
In the last two years, several international technical assistance programs were launched in Montenegro. Occasional courses in new public management, civil service and administrative reform were organised by the British Know-How Fund and were held in the capital, Podgorica, and twenty-two public managers and officials were trained in Sunningdale, Great Britain in 1999. Activities are also organised by international aid organisations at the local level in Serbia and Montenegro, in opposition led counties and municipalities. Training programs were organised in areas of local management, centre-periphery relations, financial management, etc. NGOs such as AAOM, the Network of Independent Scholars, organise courses, seminars and workshops related to research in Europeanisation or to mutually agreed upon themes in cooperation with international aid organisations.
Comparative European public administration research and training activities seem to be grossly inadequate, although there is a group of academics and scholars that participates in a variety of international activities related to Europeanisation. Experts are engaged by the United Nations and other international organisations in missions related to administrative reform and reorganisation. Yet, to date these individuals have not been able to assist their own country in a meaningful way. Some advanced lectures and courses are offered at universities and through NGOs, but all of this is basically irrelevant for the practice of public administration, except in Montenegro.
Serbia and the federal government of Yugoslavia are adrift in uncharted seas of self-indulgence and isolation. It appears that the worst has happened: sanctions on Yugoslavia and the isolationist tendencies of the regime block the direct exchange and dissemination of ideas. Some new initiatives related to the institutionalisation of public administration research, training and consultancy, such as the forthcoming establishment of the Institute for Public Administration in Podgorica, might have a positive impact on this situation.
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