Frugal innovation can empower governments to perform better with less

In my new World Economic Forum article, I show how governments can avoid austerity and adopt frugal innovation to deliver better public services by spending less.

Governments at national, regional and local levels can do “better with less” by following 3 principles:

1) Valorize all existing physical and immaterial resources

2) Build on existing solutions rather than reinvent the wheel

3) Address societal needs proactively

Being both Indian and French, I am proud to include inspiring examples of frugal innovation from India (Digital Public Infrastructure) and France (reconversion of unused wastelands) led by government agencies.

But my favorite example in this article is Accelerate Estonia, a government agency in Estonia that proactively removes regulatory hurdles to empower local startups to shape and lead disruptive new markets.

I looooove Accelerate Estonia’s tag-line: “We make illegal things legal”

I wish both India and France — two countries infamous for their kafkaesque bureaucracy and over-restrictive regulatory frameworks — had a visionary government agency like Accelerate Estonia.

If they had, Indian and French startups will rule the tech world. I can always dream :-)

Writing this article brought back fond memories — and some “closure”.

Exactly 30 years ago (1995), after finishing my studies in IT in France, I was animated by the desire (calling, actually) to help governments worldwide adopt technology to improve the delivery of public services.

My very first job in 1995 was an IT consultant for the National Computer Board in Singapore. I was part of a team that applied Business Process Reengineering (BPR) techniques to redesign and optimize public services workflows to make them more efficient. We helped the Singapore government waste fewer resources and maximize social impact.

In 1996–98, I worked as an IT consultant for the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) in Thailand: we frugally leveraged our limited resources to boost the science & tech infrastructure and enable innovation/entrepreneurship in Thailand.

I designed the public web sites and the Intranet system for NSTDA. The Intranet system was a finalist for the Computerworld Smithsonian Award in 1998.

Fast forward to 2025:

Today, in the US, DOGE is shutting down entire government agencies like USAID and slashing federal workforce in an attempt to make the US government “lean and mean”.

Rather than cut public spending indiscriminately, European and Asian nations like France and India show how wise governments can think and act frugally.

By creatively valorizing all available resources, building cleverly on existing solutions and responding proactively to societal needs, frugally innovative governments can deliver better public services with less.

Check out also my coauthor Jaideep Prabhu’s excellent book How Should a Government Be that shows how governments can apply frugal innovation to reduce waste and maximize social impact.