Performing Good Governance: The Aesthetics of Bureaucratic Practice in Malawi

Abstract

Based on ethnographic research carried out in Malawi, this article discusses some bureaucratic procedures that are implemented with enthusiasm, even though they do not produce the effects they are designed for. These procedures seem to be more meaningful as aesthetic expressions rather than being the result of instrumental considerations. They create an image, albeit temporary, of a ‘legible’, well-organised society and a knowledgeable, caring state. That image may not reflect current realities in Malawi, but it points towards a future form of statehood towards which the country is progressing. The case study from Malawi is used as a basis for a discussion of the role of aesthetics in bureaucratic practice and some of its implications, including mediating between seemingly incompatible norms, and between local and abstract social realities.