The lack of meritocracy in the Italian public administration has resulted in a diminished appeal of the public sector for highly qualified professionals and a demotivated workforce.
Whenever certain governments have attempted to cautiously introduce the concept of merit within the public sector, they have been blocked by strong resistance from trade unions and civil servants themselves. The idea of fostering internal competition to tackle bureaucratic inefficiencies and operational dysfunctions has been widely opposed by a large portion of public officials, who continue to favor supplementary salaries distributed indiscriminately among employees and economic progression based solely on seniority.
The Italian Court of Auditors has also highlighted significant flaws in the public administration’s reward system, describing a pathological “upward levelling of staff evaluations” and the indiscriminate allocation of bonuses, irrespective of meritocratic principles. However, to date, Italy’s 3.3 million civil servants have consistently resisted any merit-based reform.
Added to this is the alarming data from a recent OECD report, which found that over one-third of Italian adults suffer from functional illiteracy—meaning they struggle to understand complex texts or apply basic concepts. This endemic functional illiteracy significantly affects the ability of public sector employees to perform their duties effectively, thereby decreasing the quality of services provided to citizens, who, on the one hand, face extremely high taxation and, on the other, receive subpar public services.
It is evident that the absence of meritocracy and the prevalence of functional illiteracy fuel each other: inadequate evaluation systems and the lack of merit-based incentives inevitably discourage professional development and the acquisition of advanced skills among public employees.
Italy should take inspiration from Finland, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. According to the “Meritometer”—an index developed by the Meritocracy Forum—Scandinavian countries excel in meritocratic performance, standing out for their high-quality education systems, administrative transparency and ability to attract top talent.
Conversely, the “Meritometer” places Italy at the bottom of the European ranking, once again highlighting its chronic shortcomings in areas such as transparency, education quality and equal opportunities. This disheartening reality places Italy alongside many developing countries, where corruption, a lack of resources for effective evaluation systems and nepotism have hindered the establishment of a merit-based public administration.
The entrenched inefficiency of Italy’s public administration also has a massive impact on the country’s ability to generate GDP, wealth and employment. A study by the Research Office of the CGIA of Mestre quantifies the cost of public sector waste and inefficiencies at an astonishing €200 billion per year. Adding to this the annual burden on businesses—including €57 billion in administrative procedure costs, €53 billion in delayed payments to suppliers, €40 billion lost due to the sluggish judicial system and €40 billion in logistical and infrastructural deficiencies—the overall financial impact is staggering.
Another OECD report emphasises that improving the efficiency of Italy’s public administration is a crucial priority for economic recovery. Yet, the issue receives little attention in the media, on television, within the government, or in Parliament. Faced with this indifference towards one of the most detrimental systemic flaws in Italy—while the country behaves as if it were Denmark (ranked best globally in the 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International)—one cannot help but be perplexed.
A radical change is needed, which can only be achieved through a concerted effort between the executive, legislative and judicial branches. These institutions must recognise the urgency of this cultural shift and stand firm against the resistance from those who ideologically and vehemently defend the status quo.
