Good governance requires that government institutions and policies are designed to serve the best interests of the people. This means that governments need to listen to the needs and concerns of the people and makes policies and decisions that address them. These policies should be implemented in a timely manner. Citizens should be able to seek justice and compensation for any abuses of their rights.

Parties can promote responsiveness in government by presenting viable alternatives to the incumbent government by designing alternative ideas, principles and policies for governing society.

Oppositional parties promote responsiveness by criticizing the government, scrutinizing it and put-up constructive alternatives. This can stop the ruling party from becoming complacent and presumptuous and make sure that government is always searching for alternatives to policies that are not meeting the needs of the people.

Some examples of specific measures that political parties can advocate for to promote responsiveness include:

• Increased use of public opinion surveys to inform policy decisions

• Increased use of citizen assessment mechanisms of public institutions, services to evaluate the degree to which these institutions and services are responsive to citizens needs and concerns.

• Cooperative definition of service and governance standards between diverse stakeholders from political parties, civil society and citizens.

Examples of Responsiveness as an Aspect of Good Governance

India
In recent Indian elections, the emergence of different parties increased the representation of two very different constituencies within the party system. The needs of the very poorest in society, which had been marginalized by the domination of the Indian National Congress Party, were given more prominent representation in the party system by the emergence of the BSP. At the same time, the rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party highlighted the policy concerns of Hindu nationalists, such as their desire to see the government adopt a more aggressive foreign policy, defend the country’s cultural characteristics, and strengthen India’s independence from other international and transnational players.