ESADEGov Expert Urges Stronger Public Administration for Future Challenges

Professor Francisco Longo, a public governance expert at ESADEGov, urged stronger public administration to meet current and future challenges during a breakfast colloquium hosted by the Andorran Employers' Federation (EFA) in Andorra la Vella. His presentation, titled "A Modern Administration with Values," highlighted the need for political investment in the public sector amid "challenges of a scale never seen before."

Longo explained that governments often neglect such investments due to limited social pressure and results that emerge only over the medium to long term. A robust public sector remains essential, he said, because "without a good public sector, countries do not function." He predicted the public sector would face even greater demands in a future defined by major changes and uncertainty.

On administrative reforms, the professor warned against copying experiences from other countries, which "never yields good results." Many initiatives fail, he noted, by transferring external models without proper adaptation to local contexts. Instead, leaders should examine effective services already in place domestically, as "sometimes we fail to see what works because we focus on what doesn't."

Discussing pension systems in light of ongoing debates, Longo declined to advocate specific models for any nation. He pointed out that existing systems cannot be fully redesigned owing to high costs, while pay-as-you-go approaches depend on intergenerational pacts that must be upheld. Achieving sustainability calls for reforms with "a certain depth."

For Andorra, Longo offered no specific advice, given his limited knowledge of local circumstances. He praised the Principat as "an economic success story" even amid challenges facing all economies.