Principles of Good Governance

Only when citizens trust that public policies will be effectively implemented, will they engage in policy making processes. According to different sources, such as United Nations Development Programme [1], to enhance that trust, state institutions should abide by 8 principles of good governance that make them (1) accountable, (2) transparent, (3) responsive, (4) effective and efficient, while endorsing (5) equitable and inclusive (6) participatory, (7) consensus-oriented processes and solutions, that follow (8) the rule of law. The Council of Europe made an extended version with 12 principles, which you can check if you want to deepen into this topic.

In a nutshell, the promise of good governance is that: those who manage and implement policies will be called upon to answer queries from those whose lives are shaped by those policies. In case of poor performance and unsatisfying results responsible parties will bear the consequences. 

References:

[1] United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2011). Sustaining MDG Progress in an Age of Economic Uncertainty. United Nations Development Programme, Bureau for Development Policy.