ABSTRACT
How Pacific Island countries (PICs) develop into the new century will depend significantly upon how they are administered. Effective utilisation of slender resources will require systems of governance able to maximise limited human and social capital. Often viewed as no more than bit players on the world stage, PICs offer insights of international relevance regarding the calibration of development and public management. A balance that helps reduce vulnerability is worth emulating in other small island locations. An imbalance that buckles state integrity or causes social dislocation, furnishes lessons about what to avoid. Whatever path emerges, interactivity between domestic and international factors will assume a prominent role. This chapter investigates that interaction and the purpose is to ascertain PIC public sector capacity to formulate and sustain services meeting the needs of all citizens.
