Coordination in Sweden (1980–2005)

Abstract

The Swedish public sector has particular features which distinguish it from other European or Western models. In Sweden the Constitution requires collective decision-making, producing a system ‘which is collective in the extreme and individual ministers may decide themselves only in exceptional circumstances’ (Larsson 1995). The government — not individual ministers — issues directives to administration, although the individual minister can take some decisions concerning the intemal organization and staffing of his department (Hustedt and Tiessen 2006). Moreover, Sweden has a dual administrative structure, with rather small government offices — mainly focusing on policy design, planning and coordination — and a large number of independent executive agencies. Moreover, there is a high level of decentralization with substantial responsibility located at the level of local authorities. The Swedish administrative culture has been described as ‘cooperative, consensus seeking, problem oriented and pragmatic and is characterized by a high degree of informality, bridging organizational borders and hierarchical levels’ (Hustedt and Tiessen 2006: 38).