The neo-Weberian state and the neodevelopmentalist strategies in Latin America: the case of Uruguay

Abstract

This article seeks to contribute to the development of the neo-Weberian theory of public administration by making it travel to the Latin American context. We argue that this model of public administration reform, identified in continental European states, tends to be present in some Latin American countries that have followed neodevelopmentalist models of economic development. The neo-Weberian political strategy promotes a public sector modernization that enhances its steering and coordination capacities which is functional to a neodevelopmental view that aims to rebuild the state’s central role in leading economic growth and social cohesiveness. Yet, the public management model that is implanted resembles an ‘imperfect’ neo-Weberianism due to the institutional deficiencies of these countries and the difficulties in providing a clear reform script. We provide this link by decoding the main outlines of the public management model in Uruguay in the context of the reforms implemented by the Frente Amplio. Points for practitioners The article demonstrates two central points. First, that the processes of public sector reform are usually linked to other broader development strategies and to calculations of political feasibility. This can explain to some extent the options taken by politicians. Second, public sector reforms are often a combination of multiple administrative doctrines. This poses the risk of being unsystematic, incoherent or even contradictory.

A Brief Story of Latin American Public Administration: A Particular Model

“…Within this context of performance management centrality, some countries have slowly started to develop a public administration model that resembles a Neo-Weberian State. This model does not constitute a complete breakdown with NPM postulates but recovers administrative rationality and the role of the public sector as the steering force in society (Ramos & Milanesi, 2020).…”

State Capacities and Policy Work in Brazilian Civil Service

“…A Weberian delimitation of civil service, identified in the Organization for Economic Co-operation Development (OECD)'s countries and some developing countries, involves the category of public civil servants that are under a merit-based system which provides some level of standard regulations and procedures regarding servants`selection, appointment and discretion' (Evans 2008;Ramos & Milanesi 2018).…”

Implementación de un programa público de salud mental escolar en Chile en el contexto de la nueva gestión pública

“…En el escenario planteado, los gobiernos delegan poder decisional a unidades y funcionarios de niveles más bajos, separan decisiones estratégicas de operativas, y sustituyen el control burocrático por la supervisión y el monitoreo ( Milanesi y Ramos, 2017;Osborne y Gaebler, 1994, Ramos y Milanesi, 2018.…”