Okuzeka
Public Administration vocabulary · Ministries and Agencies

Government agency

Meaning in public administration, with examples

nounCore term

In public administration, government agency means: A public organization set up to carry out a specific task, such as collecting taxes, issuing licences or managing roads, often with some independence from the ministry above it.

In Turkish: kamu kurumu, devlet kurumu, ajans

How it is used

Agency is a broad word: it can mean an executive agency in the UK, a federal agency in the US or a specialised body attached to a ministry. People often just say the agency. Agencies are set up, funded, merged and abolished.

Example sentences

  1. Several government agencies share responsibility for food safety.

  2. She applied for a data analyst post at a government agency in the capital.

Common collocations

  • federal agency
  • executive agency
  • regulatory agency
  • set up an agency
  • lead agency
  • ministryA central government body led by a minister and responsible for one area of policy, such as health, education, finance or transport.
  • regulatorA public body that sets rules for a particular sector, such as energy, banking or telecommunications, and checks that companies follow them.
  • mandateThe official authority and set of tasks given to an institution or person, usually by law, which define what it may and must do.
  • directorateAn administrative unit led by a director, usually part of a ministry or agency, such as a directorate-general at national level or a provincial directorate.

More terms: Ministries and Agencies

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