Identifying the Model of Co-Governance in the Context of the Islamic Governance System

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Associate Professor, Faculty of Management and Accounting, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

10.22081/jgq.2025.77431

Abstract

The increasing challenges of governance at local, national, and international levels have highlighted the importance of collaboration, the utilization of all available intellectual and scientific capacities, and collective responsibility more than ever before. Co-governance, or shared governance, facilitates the integration of diverse perspectives and knowledge by distributing power, authority, and responsibility among governments, local communities, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and the public. This approach helps develop more adaptive and comprehensive solutions to governance challenges. This study aims to explore the relationship between co-governance and Islamic governance and to identify a co-governance model within the framework of the Islamic governance system. The research employs qualitative content analysis and the Soft Systems Methodology. Findings indicate that: (1) Co-governance and Islamic governance share both similarities and distinctions; (2) The role of various stakeholders in Islamic governance can be analyzed across different levels, roles, and domains;
(3) The core characteristics of co-governance—namely, its networked, multi-level, and polycentric nature—are meaningfully and dynamically interconnected with the key components of stakeholder participation in Islamic governance. These components include divine sovereignty, public oversight, the electoral system, councils (shūrā), enjoining good and forbidding evil, allegiance (bayʿa), separation of powers, participation in legislation, and the role of civil and professional institutions. This interconnection is represented within a conceptual model.

Keywords


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