Administrative capacity: definitions, measurement, policies and economic impacts

THE PROJECT

The event marks the conclusion of a two-year PRIN project developed with two partner universities: the Politecnico di Milano, Department of Architecture, Built Environment and Construction Engineering – DABC (coordinator), and the Università di Padova, Department of Political Science, Law and International Studies – SPGI.

The project analyzed various aspects of administrative capacity at the local level, mainly at the municipal scale, through an interdisciplinary approach integrating the fields of economics and political science.

THE EVENT

The final event is scheduled to take place at the Scuola Nazionale dell’Amministrazione (SNA), Via Maresciallo Caviglia 24 – Rome, and online, subject to registration.

The conference aims to foster a broad discussion on the challenges of administrative capacity at the local level, beginning with a presentation of the project’s main results, followed by contributions from expert policymakers and academics on the topic: “The administrative capacity of Italian municipalities before and after the PNRR: challenges and perspectives.”

Research findings will be presented, including analyses based on newly processed data drawn from open big-data databases and field research. These will be accompanied by theoretical reflections on the concept of administrative capacity, the difficulties in measuring it, its effects, and the interventions that can help improve it.

PROGRAM

9:30 | Welcome remarks: SNA

9:45 – 10:00 | Opening session

Ugo Fratesi, Politecnico di Milano; Laura Polverari, Università di Padova

10:00 – 11:00 | Session 1: New measures of administrative capacity

• A New Measurement of Administrative Capacity with Unexplored Open Data: Is administrative throughput the missing link between input and performance?
  Ugo Fratesi, Felipe Livert, Laura Polverari, Cristina Zerbinati
• Rule Compliance in Local Administrations: The Role of Institutions
  Ugo Fratesi, Felipe Livert
• Human Resources Quality and Local Administrative Performance
  Ugo Fratesi, Felipe Livert, Ila Maltese
• Land Consumption and Administrative Capacity
  Ugo Fratesi, Felipe Livert, Ila Maltese, Pietro Vicari

Discussant: Mara Giua, Università di Roma Tre

11:00 – 11:50 | Session 2: The Administrative Capacity of Italian Municipalities

• Are Italian Municipalities Fit for the Age of Permacrisis? Administrative Capacity Gaps and Capacity-Building Measures
  Laura Polverari, Cristina Zerbinati
• Local Government in Italy in Populist Times: Local Service Delivery and Public Administration Reform
  Laura Polverari, Cristina Zerbinati
• Self-Perceived Skills and Capacity-Building Needs of Italian Municipalities – Main Survey Results
  Laura Polverari, Cristina Zerbinati, Beatrice Carniato, Maria Tereza Zupcu

Discussant: Andrea Lippi, Università di Firenze

11:50 – 12:00 | Break

12:00 – 13:30 | Roundtable – The Administrative Capacity of Italian Municipalities Before and After the PNRR: Challenges and Perspectives

Chair: Laura Polverari

Speakers:

• Sauro Angeletti, Department of Public Administration (tbc)
• Sabrina Bandera, SNA
• Giovanni Crescenzi, MEF
• Pia Marconi, Former Head of the Department of Public Administration
• Alessandro Natalini, LUMSA
• Walter Tortorella, IFEL
• Ottavio Ziino, PCM

13:30 – 13:45 | Acknowledgements and Closing Remarks: Ugo Fratesi

Free and mandatory registration at the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/sDNcLTxSF0