What are public goods and who provides them?
Answer (2)
Public Goods are goods or services that everyone can use, and one person’s use does not reduce another person’s ability to use them. These are typically provided by the government because private businesses would not profit from providing them.Examples of Public GoodsStreet lightingNational defenseClean airPublic parksFlood control systemsKey Features of Public GoodsNon-excludable - You can't stop people from using it.Non-rivalrous - One person's use doesn't reduce its availability to others.Because of these features, private companies won't sell public goods—they can't charge every user. That’s why the government provides them using taxes.In the Philippines, services like free public education, road maintenance, and police protection are considered public goods. They benefit everyone and help build a safer, more functional society.
Public goods are goods that are non-excludable and non-rivalrous. This means,Non-excludable - No one can be prevented from using the good.Non-rivalrous - One person’s use of the good doesn’t reduce its availability to others.Examples include things like clean air, national defense, and public parks.Because private companies often don’t provide these goods adequately (since they can’t easily charge people for their use), public goods are typically provided by the government or the public sector to ensure everyone benefits. Sometimes, nonprofits or international organizations may also provide public goods.
