A high degree of government centralization and authoritarianism characterized Paraguay’s history for most of the twentieth century. Beginning in 1954, one person (General Alfredo Stroessner) and one political party (the Partido Colorado) ruled the country for 37 years. Together they controlled almost all aspects of political, economic, and even social life. Essential to Paraguay’s transition to democracy in the early 1990s was the aim of creating strong democratic institutions able to deliver services effectively and efficiently. Years of authoritarian government have made public administration highly politicized, characterized by patronage and clientelism where loyalty to President Stroessner and his party was the primary requirement to be a civil servant. Many attempts to reform and to increase capacity have occurred under the auspices of, and partly funded by, multilateral organizations and cooperation agencies, sometimes in collaboration with national and foreign universities. However, these efforts have faced strong opposition from many stakeholders (including public administrators) and have not been able to fully achieve a more professional public administration.
