In many countries worldwide, inter alia in the US, and the UK, surveys became a popular instrument for policy-makers to gather information about the public service. These surveys aim to deliver information necessary for performance measurement, to identify challenges for the administration as well as reform needs, and the long run to improve the efficiency of the public administration. Moreover, they provide researchers with empirical evidence about the status quo and the performance of the public administration and therewith deliver the data-base for reform recommendations.

In the countries of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), research that is focusing the public administration and particularly the views and attitudes of the civil service is relatively rare, compared e.g. with the US or Europe. Hence, surveying the civil service is also the rare exception in these countries. Our research project targets this gap against the backdrop of two goals:

•First, its aim is to produce scientific publications that are informed by the views and experience of public servants in the Middle East and North Africa.
•Second, it targets practical needs of senior managers in the administration or on the political level to get actual and relevant information about the administration. This seems even more important with a view on the ongoing transformation process in many countries.