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Ministry (government department)
 
 
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A ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government
Government

Government is the body within any organization that has the authority to make and the power to enforce laws, regulations, or rules. Typically, the government refers to a civil government -- local, provincial, or national -- but commercial, academic, religious, or other formal organizations are also administered by governing bodies....
 public administration
Public administration

Public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of branches of government public policy. The pursuit of the public good by enhancing civil society and social justice is the ultimate goal of the field....
, sometimes led by a minister, but usually a senior public servant
Civil service

The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* Branch of governmental service in which individuals are hired on the basis of merit which is proven by the use of competitive examinations....
, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory, managerial or administrative organisations.

Ministries are usually subordinate to the cabinet, and prime minister
Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of Cabinet in the Executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. The position is usually held by, but need not always be held by, a politician....
, president
President

President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, company, trade unions, university, and country. Etymology, a "president" is one who Wiktionary:Preside, who sits in leadership ....
 or chancellor
Chancellor

Chancellor or chancellour is an official title used in countries whose civilization has arisen directly or indirectly out of the Roman Empire....
. A government will usually have numerous ministries, each with a specialised field of providing public service
Civil service

The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* Branch of governmental service in which individuals are hired on the basis of merit which is proven by the use of competitive examinations....
.






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A ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government
Government

Government is the body within any organization that has the authority to make and the power to enforce laws, regulations, or rules. Typically, the government refers to a civil government -- local, provincial, or national -- but commercial, academic, religious, or other formal organizations are also administered by governing bodies....
 public administration
Public administration

Public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of branches of government public policy. The pursuit of the public good by enhancing civil society and social justice is the ultimate goal of the field....
, sometimes led by a minister, but usually a senior public servant
Civil service

The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* Branch of governmental service in which individuals are hired on the basis of merit which is proven by the use of competitive examinations....
, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory, managerial or administrative organisations.

Ministries are usually subordinate to the cabinet, and prime minister
Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of Cabinet in the Executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. The position is usually held by, but need not always be held by, a politician....
, president
President

President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, company, trade unions, university, and country. Etymology, a "president" is one who Wiktionary:Preside, who sits in leadership ....
 or chancellor
Chancellor

Chancellor or chancellour is an official title used in countries whose civilization has arisen directly or indirectly out of the Roman Empire....
. A government will usually have numerous ministries, each with a specialised field of providing public service
Civil service

The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* Branch of governmental service in which individuals are hired on the basis of merit which is proven by the use of competitive examinations....
. National ministries vary greatly between countries, but some common ones include Ministry of Defence
Defense (military)

Defence has several uses in the sphere of military application.Personal defence implies measures taken by individual soldiers in protecting themselves whether by use of protective materials such as armour, or field construction of trenches or a bunker, or by using weapons that prevent the enemy approaching them to initiate close combat....
, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
International relations

International relations represents the study of foreign affairs and global issues among states within the international system, including the roles of states, international organization , non-governmental organizations , and multinational corporations ....
, Ministry of Finance
Finance

The field of finance refers to the concepts of time, money and risk and how they are interrelated. Banks are the main facilitators of funding through the provision of credit, although private equity, mutual funds, hedge funds, and other organizations have become important....
, and Ministry of Health
Health care

File:Ear surgery on a patient.jpgFile:Monoclonal antibodies3.jpgHealth care, or healthcare, refers to the treatment and management of illness, and the preservation of health through services offered by the Medicine, pharmaceutical, Dentistry, clinical laboratory sciences , nursing, and allied health professions....
.

Examples


United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, all government organizations which consist of civil servants (and which may or may not be headed by a government minister or secretary of state
Secretary of State (United Kingdom)

In the United Kingdom, a Secretary of State is a Cabinet of the United Kingdom Political minister in charge of a Departments of the United Kingdom Government ....
) are considered as departments
Departments of the United Kingdom Government

Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom contains a number of Minister s and Secretary of State . These members of the Cabinet are supported by civil servants in Ministerial Departments....
; although the term "ministry" has been retained for the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)

The Ministry of Defence is the Departments of the United Kingdom Government responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
 and Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)

The Ministry of Justice has been a department of the Her Majesty's Government since 2007. It was created on 9 May 2007 by merging the Department for Constitutional Affairs with parts of the Home Office responsible for criminal justice policy, sentencing policy, probation, prisons and prevention of re-offending in England and Wales....
.

Canada

In Canada
Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
, some provincial-level government departments are called "ministries" (such as in Ontario
Ontario

Ontario is a Provinces and territories of Canada located in the Central Canada part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest, after Quebec, in total area....
, British Columbia
British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
, and Alberta
Alberta

Alberta is one of Canada Canadian Prairies Provinces and territories of Canada. It became a province on September 1, 1905.Alberta is located in western Canada, bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S....
) but most, along with their federal analogues, are termed "departments." Their heads are referred to as "ministers" in both levels of government, however. The specific tasks assigned to a minister is referred to as his or her "portfolio".

Other countries

Some countries such as Sweden
Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic countries on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden has land borders with Norway to the west and Finland to the northeast, and it is connected to Denmark by the ?resund Bridge in the south....
, Norway
Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a constitutional monarchy in Northern Europe that occupies the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula....
, Switzerland
Switzerland

Switzerland is a landlocked Swiss Alps country of roughly 7.7 million people in Western Europe with an area of 41,285 km?. Switzerland is a federal republic consisting of 26 states called Cantons of Switzerland....
, the Philippines
Philippines

The Philippines, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines, is a country in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. It comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean....
 and the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 do not use the term "ministry" for their government departments, and instead simply call them departments. In Hong Kong
Hong Kong

Hong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located in Southern China in East Asia, bordering the province of Guangdong to the north and facing the South China Sea to the east, west and south....
, the term "bureau
Bureau

Bureau may refer to:*Office**Public office**Government agency**News bureau*Desk*Chest of drawers*The Bureau, English New Wave soul group...
" is used, while in Mexico
Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
, ministries are referred to as secretariats. The government departments of the Soviet Union
Government of the Soviet Union

Council of Ministers of the USSR was the Soviet government?the highest executive and Administration body of the Soviet Union. Between 1922 and 1946 it was named Council of People's Commissars of the USSR ....
 before 1946 were named "People's Commissariats". In the European Union
European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 European Union member state, located primarily in Europe. It was established by the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993 upon the foundations of the pre-existing European Economic Community....
, departments are termed Directorate(s)-General
Directorate-General

A Directorate-General is Ministry in the institutions of the European Union. They are headed by a Director-general and, in the European Commission, by a political head: a European Commissioner....
 with the civil servant in charge called a Director-General
Director-general

The term director-general is used worldwide to signify the highest executive officer within a governmental, statutory, NGO, third sector or not-for-profit institution....
 (in the European Commission
European Commission

The European Commission is the executive of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Treaties of the European Union and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
, the political head of the department is one of the European Commissioner
European Commissioner

A European Commissioner is a member of the 27-member European Commission. Each Commissioner within the college holds a specific portfolio and are led by the President of the European Commission....
s).

Fictional ministries

The term "ministry" has also been widely used in satire and parody to describe fictional departments.
  • Ministry of Sound
    Ministry of Sound

    Ministry of Sound , now MSHK Group, is the home of the best known dance music and lifestyle brands, the largest independent record company and the most famous nightclub in the world ....
    , a nightclub
    Nightclub

    A nightclub is a Alcoholic beverage, Dance and entertainment Music venue which does its primary business after dark. People who frequent nightclubs are known as clubbers....
  • Ministry of Silly Walks, a sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus
    Monty Python's Flying Circus

    Monty Python?s Flying Circus is a BBC sketch comedy programme from the Monty Python comedy team, and the group's initial claim to fame. The show was noted for its surreality, Wiktionary:risqu? or innuendo-laden humour, sight gags, and sketches without punchlines....
  • Ministry of Magic
    Ministry of Magic

    In J. K. Rowling's fictional universe of Harry Potter, the Ministry of Magic is the Government for the Harry Potter universe. The government is first mentioned in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and makes its first actual appearance in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, with #Cornelius Fudge as the Minister for Mag...
     in the Harry Potter
    Harry Potter

    Harry Potter is a Heptalogy fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the eponymous adolescent wizard Harry Potter , together with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, his friends from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry....
     series
  • Ministries of Truth
    Ministry of Truth

    The Ministry of Truth is one of the four ministry that govern Nations of Nineteen Eighty-Four#Oceania in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four....
    , Love
    Ministry of Love

    The Ministry of Love is one of the four ministry that govern Oceania in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four.The Ministry of Love enforces loyalty and love of Big Brother through fear, torture, and brainwashing....
    , Plenty
    Ministry of Plenty

    The Ministry of Plenty is one of the ministry from George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four that governs Oceania . The other ministries are the Ministry of Truth, the Ministry of Peace and the Ministry of Love....
     and Peace
    Ministry of Peace

    The Ministry of Peace is one of four ministry in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. Along with the Ministry of Truth, the Ministry of Love and the Ministry of Plenty, the Ministry of Peace governs in the Oceania province of Airstrip One....
     in Nineteen Eighty-Four
    Nineteen Eighty-Four

    Nineteen Eighty-Four is a classic utopian and dystopian fiction by English author George Orwell. Published in 1949 in literature, it is set in the eponymous year and focuses on a repressive, totalitarian regime....


See also

  • Cabinet
  • The Ministry
  • Ministerial responsibility
    Ministerial responsibility

    Ministerial responsibility or Individual ministerial responsibility is a constitutional convention in governments using the Westminster System that a Cabinet minister bears the ultimate responsibility for the actions of their ministry or department....
  • Ministry of Police
    Ministry of Police

    Ministry of Police may refer to* List of Police Ministers of France* Ministry of Police of Imperial Russia...
  • Departments of the United Kingdom Government
    Departments of the United Kingdom Government

    Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom contains a number of Minister s and Secretary of State . These members of the Cabinet are supported by civil servants in Ministerial Departments....