It was Karl Marx who applied a public administration principle to the study of the economy. The value of a commodity is not given simply in exchange, but in how it is produced. Political economy pays attention to the process ofhowthings are made; the conditions in the factory, the working hours, the wages paid. Strangely, we do not apply the same thinking when it comes to policy-making in government.
This article in the Daily Maverick is drawn from a new report on the governance of economic planning that is coming out shortly.