ABSTRACT
A chance remark made by a senior official of a major bilateral aid donor at a major international conference organised by the Commonwealth Association of Public Administration and Management in June 1996 provided the origin for the present work. The old assumed that the public sector was the principal vehicle for securing socio-economic development. Other major characteristics of the old public administration are the emphasis given to stability and continuity combined with a strong commitment to maintaining law and order. Presumably the idea being that the public sector no longer exists just to look after the people who work in it but to actually provide services to the people who pay for them in a more direct and accountable way. Some of the other more mainstream business schools which have provided management training for the public sector are also now much more active in these areas.
