Government at a Glance: A Lighthouse for our Public Services

With the fifth edition of Government at a Glance, it is timely to reflect on the role of the publication, its progress over time and how it is different from other datasets on public governance. It is all the more timely as we witness new developments in the role of evidence in policy making. On the one hand, there is the rational approach, where evidence is used to know where we are and where we want to go. Policies and reforms are – or aspire to be – evidence based. On the other hand, there is a backlash against using scientific evidence, and in some extreme cases fake “evidence” has been created.