Citizens and Public Administrations: Focus on Human Relations Rather Than Trying to Rehumanize Procedures

Ethical conduct and postures are essential in relations with citizens, users, and customers of public services. Recent developments in public services, particularly in France, are contributing to a decline in citizens’ confidence in the State and its administrations, which are no longer embodied by agents, replaced by digital procedures. The State cannot just be a platform. Democracy needs relationships between citizens and public officials, and to mobilize ethics as a framework for action.