“Pragmatic model for sustainable energy policy: Networking between the

government and key players in Bahrain”

AUTHORS Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2625-444X

Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky (2021). Pragmatic model for sustainable energy

policy: Networking between the government and key players in Bahrain.
ARTICLE INFO
Problems and Perspectives in Management, 19(1), 387-396.
doi:10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33

DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33

RELEASED ON Friday, 26 March 2021

RECEIVED ON Wednesday, 25 March 2020

ACCEPTED ON Wednesday, 17 March 2021

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 Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky (Bahrain)

Pragmatic model
BUSINESS PERSPECTIVES for sustainable energy
LLC “СPС “Business Perspectives”
Hryhorii Skovoroda lane, 10,
Sumy, 40022, Ukraine
policy: Networking
www.businessperspectives.org
between the government
and key players in Bahrain
Abstract
To fill the current literature gap, this paper strives to empirically determine the net-
working process between the government of Bahrain and the key players in the formu-
lation and implementation of sustainable energy policy. The literature review divulges
that policy network approach represents a useful tool for the analysis of public policy,
since this approach permits a thorough explanation of the interaction between the
network’s members. A questionnaire was distributed to key decision-makers involved
in the elaboration of sustainable energy policy in Bahrain. The results of this paper
Received on: 25th of March, 2020 revealed that the government of Bahrain has adopted successful policies of sustain-
Accepted on: 17th of March, 2021 able energy in reaching the intended results. Nevertheless, the current structure of
Published on: 26th of March, 2021 networking might be described as a “Clientelist Network”. This paper proposed a prag-
matic model for sustainable energy policy to reinforce the networking process between
the government and the key players into a rational approach of “Pluralistic networks”.
© Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky, 2021
In this network, formal associations have to be established to embrace the industry, en-
ergy and environmental sectors. Accordingly, this type of networking will ensure direct
and strong frequent ties. Also, this pluralistic network will provide further comparative
Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky, Dr.,
advantages in terms of the power of control over resources and the flow of information
Professor of Public Policy and among all key actors.
Administration, Sadat Academy
for Management Sciences, Cairo, Keywords sustainable energy, sustainable development, policy
Egypt; Department of Management formulation, public policy networks, 2030 vision
and Marketing, College of Business
Administration, University of Bahrain, JEL Classification Q38, Q48
Bahrain.

INTRODUCTION
At the national level, in its 2030 Economic Vision, the government
of Bahrain has a strong focus on sustainable energy policy (From
Regional Pioneer to Global Contender – Our Vision – the Economic
Vison 2030 for Bahrain, p. 22). At the international level, the Kingdom
of Bahrain is dedicated to achieving Goal 7 of the United Nations
Millennium Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (SEU, 2018, p. 6).
To formulate a reliable framework of sustainable energy policy, the
government focused on three leading pillars: the regulatory frame-
work, the policy framework, and the institutional framework.

To elaborate the regulatory framework, the government went through

a consistent process of consultations with key players. The regulatory
This is an Open Access article, body is represented by the National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA)
distributed under the terms of the (www.noga.gov.bh/). The significant public energy company in
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International license, which permits Bahrain is the Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) (http://www.
unrestricted re-use, distribution, and ewa.bh/en).
reproduction in any medium, provided
the original work is properly cited.
Conflict of interest statement: The National Monitoring Committee was established to formulate the
Author(s) reported no conflict of interest energy-efficiency policies (SEU, n.d. a). The policy framework of sus-

http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33 387
Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

tainable energy is rooted in the Government Action Plan (2015–2018) to enhance the utilization of
electricity and water (SEU, 2018, p. 6). Furthermore, the Action Plan of the National Energy Efficiency
and the National Renewable Energy were elaborated in 2016 to reach the national target of energy ef-
ficiency policy between the years of 2017 and 2025 (SEU, n.d.). The National Energy Efficiency Action
Plan (NEEAP) embedded two foremost national initiatives: “The EWA Energy Efficiency Action Plan
2015–2020 (EWA-EEAP)”, and the “Kingdom of Bahrain Energy Efficiency Program (KEEP)” (SEU,
2017, January, p. 32).

The Sustainable Energy Unit (SEU), officially recognized in November 2014, represents the institutional
framework of the sustainable energy policy. Its principal goal is to endorse all practices of energy-efficien-
cy through an adjacent relationship and steady networking with the key players in Bahrain (SEU, n.d. a).

A literature review reveals the fragmentation of the energy sector, vulnerability of policy framework and
little inducements to attract investments of private sector, represent concrete challenges facing sustain-
able energy in Bahrain (SEU, 2018, p. 4). This gap in the formulation and implementation of sustainable
energy policy in Bahrain highlighted the importance of this research paper, which strives to empirically
explore the networking process existing between the government of Bahrain and the key players, in ad-
dition to proposing a pragmatic model to strengthen these networking processes.

The paucity of empirical research and the recent emphasis by scholars on the subject matter of this re-
search paper, especially in the Gulf region, clarify the importance of the study.

Contemporary literature review shows that a public policy network approach represents a paradigm
shift in the analysis of public policy. Hence, relying on this approach to analysis makes it possible to
grasp the subject of this study using a different approach compared to previous studies.

1. LITERATURE REVIEW Public policy network enables us to understand

and explore the relationship between key actors
Public policy network approach appears to be one and the influence of their ideas, interests, and
of the most dynamic frameworks of public poli- values during the process of decision-making
cy analysis (Ouimet & Lemieux, 1999). Rhodes and policy formulation (Atkinson & Coleman,
(1997) has exposed that policy networks are im- 1992, 1996; Kooiman, 1993; Rhodes, 1997;
portant in defining the roles of key players; also, Marsh, 1998).
through specific rules of the game, the networks
determine the actors’ behavior. Hence, depending Policy network provides a significant frame-
on a reliable analytical framework of policy mak- work to study the interaction process between
ing makes it possible to study and understand the the government and key actors of the society,
diversity of aspects related to the policy process and also to examine their governance struc-
(Howlett et al., 2015). ture in confronting contemporary problems in
a shared vision to lead the change (Börzel, 1998;
In general, the literature divulges that the public Muller & Surel, 1998; Lieberman, 2000; Greer,
policy networks approach is characterized by pro- 2002; Kenis & Raab, 2003).
found divergences over the definition and opera-
tion of networks. Nevertheless, the advocates of this This approach provides a systematic framework
approach agree that networks represent the “sub- to explore the formulation process of a specific
systems” where public policy is formulated through public policy. It presents an exhaustive descrip-
the interaction between different state and civil so- tion of the context where public decisions are
ciety actors (Walker, 1974, 1977; Katzentsein, 1978; taken. Hence, the study of the networks’ struc-
Richardson & Jordan, 1979; Rhodes, 1981, 1986; Le ture allows understanding their significant im-
Galés & Thatcher, 1995, p. 39). pact on the elaboration of public policy (Klijn,

388 http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33
 Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

1996; Kickert et al., 1997; Knoepeel & Kissling- In their study, Ouimet and Lemieux (1999, pp. 22-
Näf, 1998; Pemberton, 2000; Kopperenjian & 23) attempted to examine public policy networks
Klijn, 2004; Klijn & Koppenjan, 2016, 2000). in terms of the “power of control over resources”,
as well as the “flow of information” in public pol-
On the one hand, the public policy network pro- icy networks. The authors stated that their pro-
poses a thorough examination of both formal and posed model represented an attempt to configure
informal networking processes between key play- the networking process between the government
ers throughout the development of public policy and the key players of civil society. The model is
(Rhodes & Marsh, 1992; Börzel, 1998). likely to be elaborated further with more empiri-
cal studies to be conducted by other scholars.
On the other hand, public policy network provides
not only an understanding of how institutional Ouimet and Lemieux (1999) were stimulated by
arrangements influence the formulation of public the work of Granovetter (1973) and Burt (1992).
policy, but also a description of the cognitive ap- Granovetter (1973) focused on the dissemination
proach of key players to understand how their ide- of information and the mobilization of resources
as and interests affect public decisions (Laumann in individual and institutional arrangements. The
& Knoke, 1989; Sabatier & Jenkins-Smith, 1993; author disclosed that there was a special strength
Knoke et al., 1996; Marsh, 1998). of weak ties, which enabled actors to access strong
networks, nevertheless, strong ties were reinforc-
For Börzel (1998) and Kenis and Schneider (1991), ing connections that might create general division
policy networks represent a non-hierarchal struc- (Granovetter, 1973, p. 1378). In the same vein, Burt
ture of interactions between the public and the (1992) presented the notion of “Structural Holes”,
private spheres, where the collaborative approach where the is no close connections between actors
takes place to oppose the traditional distinct gov- but, instead, there will be a comparative advan-
ernance approaches of bureaucracy and markets. tage for a “Broker” and “Mediator” to get access to
exhaustive information.
In this endeavor, several contemporary re-
searchers introduced the notion of “Hollow Hence, Ouimet and Lemieux (1999) presented
State” (Milward, 1993, 2000; Rhodes, 1994, three significant structures of public policy net-
1996; Laforte, 1997, p. 173; Peters & Pierre, 1998, work: “clientelist”, “corporatist”, and “pluralist”.
pp. 223-224; Howlett, 2001). This notion focuses In the clientelist network, the government estab-
on the new interactive structure where the gov- lishes client relationships with intermediaries and
ernment is not the only actor for public policy subordinates. These links are weak because they
elaboration. However, instead, many other civil are not frequent even if they are close, therefore,
society actors currently play a significant role in a structural hole may exist. In the corporatist net-
the process of decision-making. work, intermediaries have weak ties with each oth-
er and with the government, but the links between
Likewise, Peters and Pierre (1998, pp. 223-224) the subordinate and their intermediary organi-
stated that the government today has a new role to zation are relatively strong ties. In the pluralistic
play to manage the network structure and to influ- network, there is a mixture of diverse ties which
ence the players of networks during the process of represent the characteristics of pluralism (Ouimet
decision-making and problem-solving in contem- & Lemieux, 1999, pp. 22-23).
porary governance arrangements.
Ouimet and Lemieux (1999) stated that the links
Ouimet and Lemieux (1999) presented one of the between actors were strong or weak. Strong ties
substantial frameworks to demonstrate the de- are generally transitional, frequent and close,
velopment of public policy networks in strong or while weak ties are frequent without being close or
weak “ties” between key players, in addition to the close without being frequent. Moreover, an actor
presence or absence of “structural hole” (Ouimet is in a better situation within a network once he
& Lemieux, 1999; Lemieux, 1999, 2000, 2002; has contacts because the number of connections
Lemieux & Ouimet, 2004). measures the size of his social capital. Besides,

http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33 389
Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

strong links allow an actor not to be locked in 3. METHODS

“structural holes”. Nevertheless, the weak links put
an actor into these structure holes then will enable A questionnaire, including six structured ques-
him to lock other actors (Ouimet & Lemieux, 1999, tions, was formulated to reach the purpose of
pp. 22-23). this research paper (Appendix 1). The question-
naire was distributed to 40 decision-makers who
To conclude, a public policy network has flour- were participating in the Conference of Bahrain
ished to the extent that this approach nowadays Future Energy organized by Bahrain Small and
represents a significant framework for public pol- Medium Enterprises Society (Bahrain SMEs) in
icy analysis. the capital Manama taking place on two days
and running on the 4th and the 5th of December
2018. The interviewees were from the government
2. AIMS and non-governmental sectors who are basical-
ly involved in the formulation and implementa-
The aim of this research is to explore the network- tion of the sustainable energy policy in Bahrain.
ing process existing between the government of The selection of interviewees was random and
Bahrain and the key players for the formulation anonymous.
and implementation of the sustainable energy pol-
icy. This study was inspired by the work of Ouimet After data collection, the responses of interview-
and Lemieux (1999) who presented one of the ees were analyzed using the software SPSS that al-
significant models to illustrate the formulation lowed studying the relationship between the vari-
of public policy networks. In specific, this study ables of this study. The conceptual framework sug-
intended to investigate the networking process in gested in this paper permitted the organization of
terms of the “power of control over resources” and the qualitative data in various patterns for analysis
the “flow of information between key actors”. purposes.

United Nations
Central Bank
Development (UNDP)
of Bahrain
UNDP)
World Council of Energy/Bahrain
National Committee
Sustainable Bahrain Association
nergy Unit (SEU) of Banks (BAB)
Supreme Committee for Natural
Resources and Economics Security
Electricity and Water
Tamkeen
Affairs (EWA)

Ministry of Electricity
National Action Plan and Water Affairs
Research Institutions
Committee (NAP)

Association Association Association

of Energy of Industry of Environment

En1 En2 I1 I2 En1 Ev2

Figure 1. A pragmatic model for sustainable energy policy: Networking between

the government of Bahrain and key players

390 http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33
 Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

4. RESULTS ernment of Bahrain and the key actors for the

formulation and implementation of the sustain-
After the analysis of the data collected, it was con- able energy policy. The study suggested adopt-
cluded that the structure of networking existing ing the following “Pluralistic network”.
between the government of Bahrain and other key
players might be described as “Clientelist Network”. This network supports the fact that direct and
strong frequent ties between the World Council
This type of Clientelist network’s structure af- of Energy-Bahrain National Committee and the
firmed that the government of Bahrain enjoys a Supreme Committee for National Resources
relatively comparative advantage in terms of the and Economic Security are crucial. Accordingly,
power of control over resources and the flow of Bahrain’s sustainable energy policy will be in
information. The government of Bahrain and the line with international standards and the United
key actors affiliated to the industry, energy and en- Nations Millennium Sustainable Development
vironmental sector have direct ties; however, these Goals. Moreover, direct and robust frequent ties
ties are considered not frequent. have to embrace the office of the Minister of
Electricity and Water Affairs in this networking
Moreover, the results confirmed that the key play- process.
ers belonging to the industry, energy and environ-
mental sector have less comparative advantage Concerning the formulation and implementa-
in terms of the power of control over resources tion of the sustainable energy policy, it is im-
and the flow of information. The principal cause portant for the United Nations Development
of this relatively less comparative advantage sit- Program (UNDP), the Sustainable Energy Unit
uation might be vindicated, since formal asso- (SEU), the Electricity and Water Affairs (EWA)
ciations of industry, energy, and environmental and the National Action Plans Committee
sector are not established. The key players allied (NAP) to develop further direct and strong
to these sectors face a “structure hole”, since their frequent ties with the office of the Minister of
ties with the government and other key players Electricity and Water Affairs.
might be described as mostly to be informal and
not frequent. Regarding the financial framework, the Central
Bank of Bahrain and the Bahrain Association
The results revealed the importance of adopting of Banks (BAB) along with Tamkeen govern-
the “Pluralistic Network” approach through the ment agency have to build robust networking.
proposed pragmatic model for sustainable energy These entities have to elaborate more direct and
policy (Figure 1). In this model, the establishment strong frequent ties with the office of Minister
of official associations from the industry, energy of Electricity and Water Affairs to formulate an
and environmental sector must be fully taken into evidence-based policy to provide the significant
consideration to secure direct and strong frequent funding necessary for the industry, energy and
ties and to attain further comparative advantages environmental sector.
with regard to the power of control over resourc-
es and the flow of information between key play- For the technical framework, the pluralistic
ers. Moreover, the model anticipated the pluralis- network supports that the research institutions
tic networking process to embrace the financial of Bahrain might elaborate further direct and
framework and the technical framework in order strong frequent ties with the office of Minister
to ensure the vital funding and the evidence-based of Electricity and Water Affairs. This network-
practices to the network’s members. ing will provide necessary significant academic
support for the industry, energy, and environ-
mental sector.
5. DISCUSSION
The pluralistic network approach showed that
This paper attempted to investigate the net- it is central to create formal associations for
working process taking place between the gov- the industry, energy and environmental sector

http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33 391
Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

to be managed by the office of the Minister of tions have to embrace further direct and strong
Electricity and Water Affairs with the primary frequent ties inside the same association, among
goal to deliver the vital technological, financial its members, as well as outside the associations
and technical support. These formal associa- among each other.

CONCLUSION
Sustainable energy policy is a fundamental challenge for policymakers around the world to meet the
UN-SDGs. In this research paper, a public policy network approach permitted to explore the interaction
process that exists between key actors.

The results of this paper show that the government of Bahrain has made substantial efforts to elaborate
an effective sustainable energy policy in order to achieve the goals of Bahrain 2030 Economic Vision.
Nevertheless, the structure of the current networking might be described as “Clientelist Network”. This
type of Clientelist network’s structure affirmed that the government of Bahrain enjoys a quite relative
advantage in terms of the power of control over resources and the flow of information. However, the key
players belonging to the industry, energy and environmental sector have less comparative advantage. The
results revealed that there is informal networking, not formal relationships. Also, the study disclosed that
formal associations are not yet entirely established to systematize the relationship between key actors.

This study attempted to illustrate the networking process taking place between the key actors in Bahrain.
The paper proposed a model for rational sustainable ene7rgy policy between the key players in a dynam-
ic “Pluralistic networks” approach. In this model, the study stressed the importance of developing offi-
cial associations from the governmental and non-governmental subdivisions belonging to the industry,
energy, and environmental sectors in order to enhance the funding processes and improve the exchange
of empirical-academic researches of sustainable energy policy. Hence, the networking process would
be more reciprocal pluralistic networking through shortest and consistent connections to increase the
effectiveness and efficiency of the sustainable energy policy in Bahrain. Moreover, such a pluralistic
networking will provide better advantages in terms of power over resources and the circulation of sig-
nificant data among network members in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Future research
Further empirical research could be undertaken to increase the efficiency of sustainable energy policy
in the Kingdom of Bahrain. These empirical studies have to examine the networking process between
the government of Bahrain and the industry, energy, and environment sectors with the primary goal to
reinforce the networking process in a reciprocal beneficial system between key policy actors.

Further evidence-based research might be elaborated to study the networking process regarding the
power of control over resources and the flow of information that exists between the government of
Bahrain and the industry, energy, and environment sector in the Kingdom.

It would be important to explore other structures related to public policy networks in order to describe
a new networking process between key actors contributing to agenda-setting, formulation, implemen-
tation, and evaluation of sustainable energy policy in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS
Conceptualization: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Data curation: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.

392 http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33
 Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

Formal analysis: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.

Investigation: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Methodology: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Project administration: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Resources: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Software: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Supervision: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Validation: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Visualization: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Writing – original draft: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.
Writing – review & editing: Naglaa Fathy El Dessouky.

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Problems and Perspectives in Management, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2021

APPENDIX A
Questionnaire
Analysis of the networking process between the government of Bahrain and
key players for sustainable energy policy
1. There is direct and frequent networking between the government of Bahrain and the industry, en-
ergy, and environmental associations.

Yes (with which frequency?) No

2. There is direct and frequent networking between the government of Bahrain and the members of
industry, energy, and environmental associations.

Yes (with which frequency?) No

3. There is direct and frequent networking between the industry, energy, and environmental
associations.

Yes (with which frequency?) No

4. There is direct and frequent networking between the industry, energy, and environmental associa-
tions and their members.

Yes (with which frequency?) No

5. There is direct and frequent networking between the industry, energy and environmental associa-
tions, and other associations’ members.

Yes (with which frequency?) No

6. There is direct and frequent networking between the members of industry, energy, and environ-
mental associations.

Yes (with which frequency?) No

Please provide any additional information:

396 http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(1).2021.33