Mergers and divisions of ministries and departments are a common practice in state bureaucracies, especially in authoritarian and populist regimes.
In Russia, instead of the previous Ministry of Education and Science, two were created: the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education and Science. Such mergers and divisions in the history of the USSR and Russia, as well as in the post-Soviet republics, have occurred many times, including not so long ago.
In the eighties of the last century, three Ministries were merged: the Ministry of Higher Education and Secondary Specialized Education, the Ministry of Education and the State Committee for Vocational Education. Mergers and divisions of ministries and departments are a common practice of state bureaucracy. It occurs according to the establishment, which I call the "Law of the Pendulum". In my opinion, this is one of the fundamental laws of any bureaucratic system, but it is especially evident in authoritarian and populist regimes.
The pendulum has swung in one direction - ministries or departments must be merged. Justification: optimization of management, strengthening of connections, better coordination, elimination of duplication, reduction of staff and other management costs, etc.
The pendulum has swung in the other direction - it is necessary to separate, create autonomous structures. Justification: better profile specialization in management, greater target orientation, close connection with the primary link, reduction of bureaucratic procedures, etc.
And then everything is the other way around again, the cycle repeats. Many bureaucratic systems cannot do without this "Pendulum". And the real autonomy of the entities involved in this and the effectiveness of their management activities are unlikely to be of particular concern to them.
I published this many years ago. Since 2018, the same thing has been happening in Armenia. We know how many ministries have been merged. Now the same story with the so-called Akademgorodok.
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