Comparing services: a survey of leading issues in the sectoral literatures

Abstract

This article locates the following sector articles in a review of recent research into government interventions in the non-state provision (NSP) of education, health, water and sanitation. Non-state providers (NSPs) are defined here to include all those existing outside the public sector, whether they operate for profit or for philanthropic purposes. Operators may be communities, NGOs, faith-based organisations (FBOs), private companies, small-scale informal providers or individual practitioners. The article prefaces this Symposium by discussing the extent of previous research and identifying gaps in the literature with regard to key issues regarding NSP. It deals with state intervention and the state/non-state relationship in service provision, considering the main aspects of this relationship that are covered in the sector articles: policy dialogue and government capacity to regulate and facilitate, and to contract NSPs. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.