Giuseppe Sandro Mela.
2016-05-08.
A quanto sarebbe dato di sapere, in Arabia Saudita sarebbe in corso un grandioso programma di trasformazione.
Se il lato più appariscente di questo piano è quello economico e finanziario, che prevedrebbe un progressivo distacco da un’economia dipendente dal petrolio con un conseguente impegno sul settore finanziario tramite la costituzione di un fondo di investimento da almeno duemila miliardi di dollari, d’altro canto sembrerebbe essere di ben maggiore ambizione la mutazione di mentalità.
Infatti, a ben ragionarci, nessun cambiamento diventa stabile se non condiviso e supportato, e questo comporta una previa trasformazione del modo corrente di pensare.
Arabia Saudita e Mercato Nero.
Arabia Saudita. Potrebbe essere costretta a vendere 750 bn$ in Treasury.
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«While examining Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, spearheaded by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, there are several challenging long-term and short-term commitments that must be assessed»
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«When it comes to cutting down government bureaucracies, in terms of reducing big government and easing the roles in which administrative systems play at, will inevitably lead to a reduction in wasted time, helps in mobilizing efforts and spare some costs»
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«I do not imagine any of the Vision 2030 objectives can be achievable without firstly reforming structures and doing away with lengthy bureaucracy»
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«The state’s institutions are now preoccupied with adopting procedures and protocols instead of focusing on specific goals and objectives they were set out to achieve.»
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«So many of these long-drawn administrative structures don’t go hand-in-hand with the modernizing philosophies of the government»
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Il problema dei problemi.
Il nuovo corso saudita si scontrerà inevitabilmente con quello che è il maggiore problema di ogni qualsiasi governo che intenda innovare le strutture dello stato.
Ogniqualvolta un governo emana una legge, la sua attuazione necessita di un apposito corpo di funzionari e burocrati che la applichino e che la facciano rispettare. In altri termini, ogni legge, norma o regolamento tende ad ipertrofizzare il sistema burocratico.
Quasi di norma, per innovare non si richiede tanto di varare nuove leggi, quanto piuttosto di abrogare, o variare in modo significativo, quelle vigenti.
Ma ciascuna di queste operazioni si scontra contro una realtà consolidata: le abitudini all’uso delle vecchie leggi, le resistenze attive e passive del sistema burocratico che si sente minacciato nella sua propria esistenza, la difficoltà oggettiva di preservare una burocrazia ancora fedele dopo che sia stata decimata.
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La questione non è quindi soltanto saudita, bensì davvero molto più generale, e come tale dovrebbe essere impostata e studiata.
La storia ci indica come questo sia il problema in cui sbattono la faccia tutti i tentativi di innovare uno stato.
Il caso da manuale è rappresentato dalla situazione francese a fine millesettecento.
La Francia si era formata nei secoli agglomerando una miriade di piccoli o grandi sistemi feudali locali, ai quali era stata garantita la conservazione delle proprie leggi, costumi e, soprattutto, esenzioni fiscali.
La Francia settecentesca era ricca e prospera perché lo stato centrale era semplicemente impossibilitato a riscuotere le tasse. Si pensi soltanto che ogni legge in tal proposito avrebbe dovuto tener conto di oltre 120,000 legislazioni ed esenzioni locali.
In una situazione così perversamente intricata fu presa l’unica soluzione possibile: l’abrogazione in massa di tutti i diritti precostituiti. È facilmente comprensibile come solo il largo dispiego di ghigliottine abbia permesso una simile transizione.
Ci si pone quindi una serie di domande.
– Fino a qual punto lo stato centrale possa avocare a sé stesso la gestione delle finanze a discapito delle realtà periferiche? Non poniamo questa domanda dal punto di vista teorico, filosofico, bensì da quello empirico: come trovare un punto di equilibrio che soddisfi tutte le esigenze senza conculcarne alcuna. Ossia, che massimizzi i benefici in rapporto ai costi.
– Quali dovranno essere le competenze del futuro stato post-industriale? Politica estera, difesa ed interni saranno o potrebbero essere sufficienti?
– Come procedere al processo di deburocratizzazione?
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Sono problemi sul tavolino.
A personale parere dello scrivente, l’unica via di uscita potrebbe essere un empirismo scettico, scevro di archetipo alcuno e, soprattutto, ben conscio dell’importanza di una accorta gestione del fattore tempo.
→ Al Arabiya. 2016-05-08. Advancing Saudi Arabia’s government structures
While examining Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, spearheaded by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, there are several challenging long-term and short-term commitments that must be assessed.
Establishing a huge logistics center linking three continents by air, sea and land is a strategic and ambitious project that will require a lot of time, effort and money, as well as plans to attract 30 million pilgrims a year by 2030.
When it comes to cutting down government bureaucracies, in terms of reducing big government and easing the roles in which administrative systems play at, will inevitably lead to a reduction in wasted time, helps in mobilizing efforts and spare some costs. If done in the right way, it would help widen the circle of stakeholders involved.
The process of developing efficient working systems should not take much time and costs but rather requires good management to follow through. Reorganizing will help overcome obstacles and introduce the necessary reforms to the systems and modernize them.
I do not imagine any of the Vision 2030 objectives can be achievable without firstly reforming structures and doing away with lengthy bureaucracy.
Reorienting the structures
The late Saudi politician, Ghazi El Kasaybi, was one of the foremost critics stifling bureaucracy and considered it one of the main obstacles in governance. He even wrote a famous book about it title “Life in management” based on his deep experience in facing bureaucracy.
I once asked him whether bureaucracy was from the fault of the government employee or vis-à-vis the environment said government employee was working under. He replied with a smile on his face: “Not everyone is like Ghazi.” This revealed his own unique character in fighting impediments, which is something that we don’t always see in others who simply follow the system and can’t find alternative pathways to get things done.
«Through huge economic entities, Saudi Arabia will be able to move to the next stage that will enable it to rehabilitate the society to a more productive one that can compete with today’s modern demands.» [Abdulrahman al-Rashed]
The Saudi government has been functioning now for more than half of a century. Back then, it started operating with simple measures; a small piece of paper was enough for past finance ministers to get things through instantly. Today, the same formality would take days.
The state’s institutions are now preoccupied with adopting procedures and protocols instead of focusing on specific goals and objectives they were set out to achieve. So many of these long-drawn administrative structures don’t go hand-in-hand with the modernizing philosophies of the government.
Contrary to popular beliefs, officials in the public sector spend time more than their counterparts in the private sector just to achieve one task.
Therefore, it is quite necessary that the mindset has to change as the role of the state evolves. This has to be done as the state now plays a role in the daily life of the Saudi citizen – from birth to retirement, from home permits to his child’s education.
Half a century later, modern-day life has placed more burdens on the citizen’s shoulders and hence, leading to higher expectations demanded of the government to perform.
Before, the population could be counted in millions. Now, the population accounts for more than 24 million inhabitants. Because of all this, the old ways don’t cut it anymore.
Enabling the private sector
The government has initiated ways in which the private sector plays its part by employing citizens and providing them with the basic services. The Vision 2030 is set to create new opportunities for the private sector to invest in more vital areas like education and health and promises to reform the system and legislation.
But I don’t envision the government solely relying on the capacities of the private sector, which might not be ready to take on the burden. I think it will slowly move to establishing huge economic entities to plug the holes and bridge the gaps and eventually, limit the economic slowdown.
This would be a great opportunity for Saudi Arabia because reorienting its economy to big institutions, as opposed to heavily populated countries like Egypt, will need to further break down its sectors on a wider scale.
Through huge economic entities, the country will be able to move to the next stage that will enable it to rehabilitate the society to a more productive one that can compete in today’s modern demands.
In Saudi Arabia, some sectors have been able to break away from big governance like the petrochemical and communication ministries, banking companies and businesses like dairy giant ‘Al Maraai. So no doubt that small businesses have stayed vulnerable and suffered with the failure to provide adequate training and nationalization efforts to see it succeed.
The government will lead the change in the markets during the first phase, by the privatization of some of its services like the health ministry.
The path to privatization will inevitably face doubters to its path to potential success. I can recall a similar case in the 1990’s when there were demands for full privatization of the telecommunications sector by the state.
The ministry of communication opposed the idea citing two reasons: the high incomes of the phone sector that represented a second source of income for the country after oil, and secondly, the question of security. But after the telecommunication industry was privatized, the government’s income doubled threefold and did not pose threat the country’s national security.
Saudi Arabia needs to move from the Rentier state mentality to one embracing the free economy market.
This is where re-structuring the systems to do away with bureaucracy will help jumpstart the expansion efforts toward developing a freer and bigger economy.
SenzaNubi 