Islamic Governance: A Conceptual Formulation of the Roles of the State, Society, and the Private Sector Based on Shia Political Jurisprudence

This study develops a coherent conceptual model of Islamic governance by clarifying the roles and functions of three foundational actors—the state, society, and the private sector—on the basis of Shia political jurisprudence (fiqh al-siyasah). Although much of the literature on Islamic political thought has focused on the legitimacy and institutional structure of political authority, comparatively little attention has been paid to governance as a broader, multi-actor process involving both state and non-state actors. This study addresses this gap by examining Shia political jurisprudence not merely as a source of rulings on political authority but as a system-building intellectual tradition capable of generating an integrated theory of governance. It distinguishes conceptually between government, understood as the formal institutional apparatus of political authority, and governance, understood as the broader configuration of interactions among the state, civil society, and market actors in collective decision-making and the pursuit of public goods. The central research question is: How can the normative resources of Shia political jurisprudence—including relevant Qur’anic verses, Prophetic and Imami traditions, and the juristic tradition—be reconstructed to formulate a coherent and practically applicable model of governance in which the state, society, and the private sector function as complementary components of a unified normative order? The study adopts an analytical–documentary approach, drawing on conceptual analysis of primary religious sources and contemporary scholarship. The primary sources include relevant Qur’anic verses and hadiths concerning political authority, justice, public trust (amanah), consultation (shura), accountability, and economic conduct. These are examined alongside classical and contemporary works of Shia jurisprudence and political theory, including discussions
of wilayat al-faqih, hisbah, and bayt al-mal. The analysis first identifies the normative 
principles embedded in these sources, then organizes them around the three principal actors, and finally synthesizes them into an integrated conceptual model. The findings indicate that Islamic governance, as reconstructed from Shia political jurisprudence, is best understood as a networked and distributive system rather than a strictly hierarchical, state-centric model. Three complementary roles emerge. First, the state functions as a legitimate regulatory authority whose mandate rests not on unrestricted coercive power but on the responsibility to establish justice, protect the public interest, and regulate relations among social actors within the framework of Sharia. Second, society—including individuals, civil associations, and communal institutions—serves as an active participant in governance and exercises social oversight through consultation, public accountability, and participation in collective decision-making, rather than remaining passively obedient. Third, the private sector functions as a responsible, justice-oriented economic actor whose legitimacy depends not solely on market efficiency but also on fairness, the prevention of exploitation, and contributions to the public good. These three components are normatively interdependent: each actor’s legitimacy, responsibilities, and scope of action are defined in relation to those of the others. Together, they constitute a system of mutual accountability, reciprocal obligations, and shared responsibility for realizing justice ('adalah) as the overarching objective of Islamic governance. The study concludes that Shia political jurisprudence, when approached as a system-building intellectual tradition rather than a collection of isolated rulings, offers substantial conceptual resources for developing a comprehensive and internally coherent theory of Islamic governance. The proposed framework reconceptualizes relations among the state, society, and the private sector as a distributive, networked arrangement grounded in shared commitments to justice, accountability, and public welfare. Its principal contribution lies in recovering the system-building capacity of Shia political jurisprudence for theorizing governance and establishing a conceptual distinction between government and governance that accommodates legitimate actors beyond the formal state apparatus. The findings further suggest that the model combines theoretical coherence with jurisprudential grounding while remaining adaptable to contemporary requirements, including participatory decision-making, civic oversight, and accountable economic activity. Further research is recommended to operationalize the model through comparative institutional analysis and empirical assessment of its applicability, particularly within the governance structures of the Islamic Republic of Iran.