The changing nexus of power in the new public sector management of Trinidad and Tobago

Examines the extent to which the introduction of a “new” model of management in the public sector has led to a realignment in the roles, responsibilities, and relationships between the policy‐makers, the bureaucracy and civil society in Trinidad and Tobago. Suggests that the introduction of new public management in the public services of Trinidad and Tobago has led to changes in the structure, culture and functioning of the public sector. Argues that while there were tensions between the politician and the administrator during the post‐independence period these were, to a large extent, kept in check by the rules and regulations that were part and parcel of the traditional method of administration. The introduction of principles of new public management in 1991 and the stress on greater autonomy and a more “fluid” bureaucratic arrangement, however, have fundamentally altered the power relationships between the politician and the administrator so that the division between the political sphere and the administrative sphere has become increasingly blurred. With respect to the civil society, concludes that with the exception of certain non‐governmental organizations, the wider civil society continues to have a minimal input in either policy formulation or execution.