La création des Autorités Administratives Indépendantes (AAI) en Grèce depuis la fin des

années ‘80 n’a pas constitué une nouveauté grecque, leurs éléments personnels et

fonctionnels, ainsi que leurs pouvoirs ont été tirés des caractéristiques établies

progressivement par l’expérience internationale dans des applications institutionnelles

précises, qui ont été reconnues en tant qu’organes administratifs. La mise en relation des AAI grecques avec l’expérience étrangère et surtout française a eu pour effet que la

problématique de la doctrine juridique nationale sur la mesure dans laquelle les nouvelles formes institutionnelles s’intègrent dans le système juridique s’est presque identifiée à la réflexion juridique continentale correspondante. Brièvement on a parlé d’un aliud juridique, d’un quatrième pouvoir etc.

Le fait de créer les AAI en vertu d’une prérogative d’indépendance, sans qu’elles aient été préalablement classées dans une catégorie juridique déterminée par le législateur, suscita de fortes confrontations au niveau de la recherche des motifs de leur création comme à celui de leur compatibilité avec les principes fondamentaux de la Constitution. En effet, l’acceptation de la nature des AAI en tant qu’organes de l’administration publique n’étant pas soumis au modèle hiérarchique de l’organisation de cette dernière s’est accomplie en Grèce à travers un long processus d’échanges d’arguments forts qui portaient surtout sur la responsabilité politique et sur la légitimité démocratique du pouvoir exécutif, ainsi que sur le principe de séparation des pouvoirs. Au contraire la jurisprudence grecque a d’emblée classé ces nouveaux organes dans le cadre du pouvoir exécutif.

Malgré le nouvel équilibre institutionnel qui a été formé après leur adoption en Grèce en tant que formes modernes d'administration, le débat doctrinal les concernant a ravivé dans les années 2000 - à savoir si elles étaient compatibles avec l’ordre constitutionnel établi -, maintenant orientée vers le renforcement de leur fiabilité et du contrôle parlementaire exercé sur elles. De plus, l’attachement au principe démocratique a été confirmé suivant la doctrine française presque de la même époque. Au cours de la crise de la dette en Grèce, une réorientation s'effectue du débat doctrinal du fait de la creation de nouvelles AAI servant à renforcer la crédibilité, entre autres, des structures administratives traditionnelles elles-mêmes. Dans une approche parallèle, on analyse la doctrine sur les AAI - qui n’est plus depuis longtemps seulement juridique - en France dans les années 2010: une riche littérature apparaît qui sera étudié dans cette communication.

Les AAI constituent désormais un acquis institutionnel pour l’ordre juridique grec. La question fondamentale qui reste posée est de savoir si les AAI, avec les moyens dont elles disposent, peuvent réellement réguler de manière efficace leur champ d’action. Et ce, parce que leur assimilation dans l’ordre juridique et dans le système politique, en dépit de leur spécificité institutionnelle, est en relation directe avec leur fonctionnement réussi qui constitue à son tour un moyen de re-légitimation étant donné que la prévision des privilèges d’indépendance qui les rendent légitimes ne saurait suffire sans la confirmation de leur fonctionnement « réel ».

The effectiveness of regulatory policy in many areas depends on citizens adhering to the advice and decisions of regulatory bodies. For example, central banks aim to affect citizens’ borrowing and saving behavior to ensure financial and monetary stability; energy regulators encourage citizens to adopt renewable energy sources as part of broader energy transitions; and pharmaceutical regulators play a major role in the fight against infectious diseases, among others, through the certification of vaccines’ safety and efficacy, critical to vaccine uptake by populations at large. Citizens’ compliance to regulatory recommendations depends on whether they perceive these as credible. One of the biggest threats to the credibility of regulatory advice is the concern that recommendations are tainted by short-term political interests. Consequently, regulation literature argues that endowing regulators with independence provides the answer to securing regulatory credibility, and thus enhancing citizens’ compliance. However, extant research provides us with little evidence for this theoretical assumption, pointing at need for thorough empirical investigation.

We put this assumption to rigorous empirical testing, utilizing a case that is a prime example of reliance on the credibility in regulatory decision-making: the conditional marketing authorization of the first COVID-19 vaccine in the European Union (EU), following the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) risk assessment in December 2021. We pre-registered and conducted a large survey experimental study among 4,000 citizens in four EU countries. We conducted the study shortly after EMA’s approval of the vaccine. We hypothesize that citizens’ perception of the credibility of the decision to approve the vaccine and their willingness to get vaccinated are shaped by their perceptions regarding the independence of EMA. We examine this hypothesis both observationally and experimentally. We find a positive correlation between citizens’ perception of EMA’s independence and the credibility of its scientific assessment, as well as their willingness to take the vaccine. Yet, these correlations are relatively weak, not entirely consistent across all country samples, and do not ‘survive’ the experimental tests. We further examine the moderation of these effects by individuals’ prior perceptions regarding vaccines.

These results indicate that the empirical basis for the widely held assumption that independence should result in enhanced regulatory credibility may not be as evident as previously thought. This would mean that we cannot rely on independence alone to secure citizens' willingness to comply with crucial regulatory advice such as taking a life-saving vaccine.

This paper explores the evolution and impact of New Public Management (NPM) on global public administration, with a particular focus on the concepts of agencification and de-agencification. NPM's influence led to the fragmentation of public sector entities into smaller agencies, a trend seen globally, particularly during the 1990s. However, the past two decades have witnessed a reversal of this trend, particularly in European countries, where consolidation of agencies has become prevalent. Indonesia serves as a case study, demonstrating both the adoption of NPM principles and the subsequent institutional proliferation, particularly through the formation of Public Service Agencies (BLU) and State Auxiliary Bodies (LNS). The paper delves into the specific cases of two Indonesian LNS: the Civil Service Commission (KASN) and the Victim and Witness Protection Agency (LPSK). Despite their shared origins under NPM-inspired reforms, these agencies face divergent futures—KASN is set for dissolution under new civil service laws, while LPSK's role is being strengthened. The paper argues that these outcomes highlight the complexities and challenges of agency autonomy, accountability, and political influence within the NPM framework. The analysis is grounded in the 'trilemma proposition,' suggesting that agencies often face trade-offs between autonomy, efficiency, and political responsibility.

Recent legislation on the so called ‘Executive State’ established a reformed regulative framework concerning better policy conditions for setting laws and other legal tools. The aim was to defeat aspects of overregulation and legislative provisions of poor quality. Similar initiatives have taken place in various countries members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the European Union.

Domestically the policy for better regulation was initiated by a primeministerial Order (Circular) in 2006, that provided for a number of steps and measures to that end. Subsequently this policy took the form of a respective law set in force in 2012 raising the level of relative requirements. A new legal framework was set up in 2019, in the context of the ‘Executive State’ with the expressed purpose to make the whole policy more effective under the guidance of the Presidency of the Government.

The present paper purports to critically examine the need for such a change of the institutional framework regarding better regulation, explain the objectives of the policy reform, assess the degree and extent of the implementation process thereof, evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of the newly established tools at the level of Central Government practice.

Conclusions will be drawn on the experience of relative policy reform that took place during the last two decades (2006-2024); to that end policy design documents (e.g. explanatory reports) to respective sets of legislation will be studied. Also, a number of available case studies will be taken advantage of in order to evaluate the impact of the analysis of the consequences of relative legislative choices as well as the process of public consultation.

On the basis of the above one may expect that certain aspects of the pathologies of Greek bureaucracy will be brought to light; namely, the limited degree of implementing legislative reforms. As it will be seen taking into account concrete examples, during the last five year period since the new Act of Parliament on the Executive State took place, the overall size of excessive legal production has failed to be contained, and the quality of respective legal provisions continues to be poor. Regulative inflation and poor legislation remain among the main problems, as far as Greek maladministration is concerned, despite the fact that new and modern provisions have been established for their reform.

Obviously surrounding social and cultural conditions have their share for this result. Another factor which needs explaining is whether the necessary political will is always equally steady and wholeheartedly devoted to the above objective (regulative policy reform).

The contemporary national and global landscape is characterized by intense competition and demands, driven by globalization, the pervasive use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), and the emergence of the Knowledge Society, fundamentally reshaping societal dynamics (Komseli & Bourbouli, 2022). Consequently, nations face escalating challenges as citizens' expectations rise and societies advocate for increased investments in education, healthcare, and social welfare, all while maintaining tax levels (OECD, 2005). To facilitate the swift adaptation of Public Organizations to this dynamic environment, structural, procedural, functional, and cultural transformations are imperative (Tolici, 2021). Human resources emerge as pivotal in enhancing organizational performance (Tolici, 2021), necessitating strategic initiatives such as cultivating a conducive culture, effective leadership, a supportive work environment, continuous employee training, and fostering change and innovation (OECD, 2005).

Education and lifelong learning serve as pivotal tools for nurturing both leadership and human resources, fostering skill acquisition and professional development (OECD, 2005). Based on these premises, Greece's public administration implemented a novel institutional evaluation framework centered on nine key skills, with corresponding Training Programs (TPs) designed by EKDDA's scientific teams. Recognizing the complexity of adult learning, the design and organization of TPs aim to address the specific needs of adult trainees (Pavli-Korres & Leftheriotou, 2020). Adult training programs, as highlighted by Cervero and Wilson (1994), have far-reaching impacts, influencing individuals, their supervisors, their units, and ultimately, the broader public sector and citizens.

The design of these programs hinges on analyzing the educational requirements of the target audience and aligning them with project objectives (Rogers, 1999). For skills-focused TPs, design considerations include identifying skill gaps based on established standards (Vergidis, 2008). This paper emphasizes the anthropocentric dimension of the system, outlining the fundamental principles of adult education guiding program design, as well as proposing training methodologies and techniques aimed at enhancing experiential learning to bolster skill development (Leftheriotou, 2014). Additionally, preliminary results from trainee evaluations are presented.

The research inquiries are centered on the approach of the new evaluation system, the foundational principles of design, the methodologies employed, and the reception of TPs by civil servants. This study underscores the significance of an anthropocentric approach, evaluation, program design, and adult education in fostering skill development within the public sector.Our research questions will be focused on:

 What is the approach of the new evaluation system?

 On what principles is the designing based?

 Which training methodology is followed?

 What was the civil servants' acceptance of the TPs?