A government is a system of people and laws that defines and controls a country. A country’s national government consists of a president or prime minister, a legislature or parliament, courts, a civil service and armed forces, among many other formal institutions. A government’s role is to enforce laws and to protect the rights of its citizens. It is also responsible for providing goods and services such as education, health care, law enforcement, roads and infrastructure, and social welfare programs. Governments come in a variety of forms, and each type has its own advantages and disadvantages.
It is difficult to know exactly why governments came into being, but it appears that they evolved to provide protection and law. They also have the power to tax and therefore create a structure by which people can share in certain public goods such as education and health care. Without these functions, it would be very difficult for society to survive.
The word government comes from the Latin verb gubernare, which means “steer a ship” or “manage a state.” Governments vary greatly in their form and function, but they all share some common characteristics. They are usually formed by a political movement, such as one-party states or constitutional republics, and they often have some kind of constitution that establishes their fundamental principles and philosophy. Governments may be based on socio-economic theories, such as democracy, capitalism or communism, or they may simply be an elected monarchy or dictatorship.
Governments also have a complicated relationship with business. On the one hand, they create and enforce consumer-protection, worker-safety and other laws that create barriers to entry for businesses. On the other hand, they can help business by providing financial and advisory services.
For example, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates new drugs, but it has been criticized for delaying their approval by demanding additional or more extensive clinical trials. This can be a huge burden on pharmaceutical companies and the cost of these studies may prevent them from developing effective treatments for certain conditions, even though they are life-saving.
In some cases, these problems are caused by corruption and special interest groups that influence the way a government operates. These types of issues are called regulatory capture, and they can lead to a situation where the agency that is supposed to be protecting consumers actually benefits those industries that it regulates by creating barriers to entry and using its authority to direct public funds to bail out favored firms. This is a very serious problem that is not always easy to address. Fortunately, a number of solutions are being developed.