The set of all entities and organizations that make up the state is known as public administration. However, there is not a single public administration in the strict sense, but rather there are many entities that constitute it. For this reason, the term is used in plural and the acronym is also used in its plural form AAPP or Public Administrations because there are a whole series of autonomous entities with their own legal personality.
Structure of the AAPP
Although each country has its own structure depending on its tradition, it is possible to speak of a general structure in most nations.
As a general criterion, public administrations are linked to the executive branch of the state and their purpose is the management of the interests that affect the citizens of a nation. In the management of these interests, the AAPP are governed by what is established in the legal framework and have the objective of defending the interests of the community.
Know More Meaning: A Posteriori Meaning – Definition & Synonyms
There are normally several levels of the AAPP. First of all, there is the state administration, which refers to the entities that represent the entire nation and has several sublevels: the central administration (for example, the government of a country and its hierarchical structure), the peripheral administration, which is the one that refers to the different territories of a nation (for example, the delegates of a government in each region), the consultative administration that is responsible for advising the different state agencies and, finally, the supervisory administration which focuses on the financial control of the state itself.
On a different level, there is an autonomous and local structure that, in general, has an organization similar to the state one but on a smaller scale.
Know More Meaning: A Priori Meaning – Definition & Synonyms
The idea of public administration is already found at the origin of ancient civilizations
The AAPP represents an organizational level that allows the different state organizations to relate to society as a whole. In this sense, in Ancient Egypt there was already an administrative structure that was responsible for managing the interests of society.
Those who gave a definitive boost to the administration were the Romans, who implemented a highly complex organizational model (the aediles were public officials who managed the municipalities, the praetors were dedicated to issues related to justice and the quaestors managed taxes and Public finances).
The current idea of AAPP dates back to the period of the French Revolution of 1789 when the state imposed submission to the law on itself and granted citizens certain rights that protected them from the administration.
Know More Meaning: A Cappella Meaning – Definition & Synonyms