ESID Briefing No. 4. Why state capacity matters for the post-2015 development agenda and how we should measure it

Abstract

This briefing is an outcome of a workshop on Measuring State Capacity organised by the Effective States and Inclusive Development Research Centre (ESID) and the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in November 2013. The stark variation in MDG attainment calls for a better understanding of which forms of state capacity are needed by governments. Improved knowledge starts with measurement. Dimensions of state capacity which can be measured are: administrative competence, territorial inclusion, and the proactivity of the state’s relations with society