Suchergebnisse

Bringing Chinese scholars and political advisors and practitioners together with scholars who study China and the United States from a Western political scientific perspective, this book uncovers genuine areas of overlap between the politics of the two nations. Important topics covered include China's democratic prospects and the rise of local village elections, the role of interest groups, Chinese political and legal reforms and developments regarding intellectual property rights and environmental regulation, Western and Chinese political philosophy, and Sino-American foreign policy interacti

In recent years Uganda has consistently been one of the fastest growing economies in Africa, leading to a substantial reduction in poverty. This book looks at how the country managed to carry out this economic transformation in the wake of Idi Amin's rule and the civil war of the 1980s

This extremely thorough and broad-ranging study analyses the complex issues involved in the development of co-operative economic relationships between Russia and its Asia-Pacific neighbours.

Individual freedom of choice is a much heralded and cherished principle in democracies. Milton Friedman and colleagues at his alma mater, the University of Chicago, made this a cornerstone of their belief (Friedman & Friedman, 1990). The freedom of choice is the antidote to excessive government interference and an instrument which enables people to realize their goals and discipline agents and organizations. The call for freedom is getting louder as individualization of every life is becoming more and more visible and trust in institutions is eroding. Numerous sociologists of name and fame (Beck, 2002; Putnam, 2001) have documented this trend and predicted its dire consequences. Policy makers have translated this trend into privatizing tasks and services which were financed or provided on a collective scale. Of course, the question remains: do people really want to take the fate of their lives in their own hands? For simple products and services freedom can be safely entrusted to individuals, but for complex services with long lasting consequences freedom of choice may not be in the interest of citizens at all. This question will probably be at the forefront in debates about many reforms in social security, health care, pensions as governments are shifting risks from collective levels to the level of the individual.

This working paper provides an overview of Community Organising in England, in 2013. The research begins with a brief overview of the origins, and 'parallel histories' of, and approaches to, community organising and development, placing this within the context of continuity and change in UK Government policies for community engagement and social action. The findings and subsequent discussion provide a commentary on different community organising approaches and programmes in the 21st century. The primary focus of the paper is on the relatively neglected subject of rural community organising (as the literature and practice has been predominantly urban) in order to trigger discussion on how to organise in rural communities in the current policy environment. 'Rural communities' are defined - using a long-standing criterion of areas with settlements of less than 10,000 population (Defra, 2004 and Commission for Rural Communities, 2007). Although the detail and focus relate to rural England, many of the principles and themes will be of broader interest to urban practitioners both in the UK and internationally.

In this article, the authors discuss the impact of trade policy reforms and related policies on land allocation between several crops in an agricultural economy, with a focus on the degree of erosion caused by different crop types. The prediction of land use changes is complicated by the influence of the world market on agricultural exports and the policy distortions at the national level. Likewise, shifts in the agricultural sectors may have economy-wide repercussions through the factor and commodities markets. The authors quantify and evaluate the probable impacts of tariff reduction with an applied general equilibrium model in Sri Lanka. They also analyze the economic and environmental impact of technical progress in the cultivation of tea, a major agricultural export. Both lowering tariffs and enhancing technical progress increase the amount of land allocated to tea, which is environmentally and economically beneficial to Sri Lanka because tea is less erosive than most alternative crops.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress passed the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) to establish a single, overarching policy framework for the management of government information resources. The act established information resources management (IRM) as an approach governing the collection, dissemination, security, privacy, and management of information. The act also created the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) to provide leadership, policy direction, and oversight of governmentwide IRM. It further required OIRA to develop and maintain a governmentwide strategic IRM plan and charged that office with responsibilities for general IRM policy and information technology. Although OIRA designated the Chief Information Officers Council's strategic plan for fiscal years 2001-2002 as the governmentwide strategic IRM plan required by the PRA, this does not constitute an effective and comprehensive strategic vision. OIRA has issued policy and implementing guidance, conducted oversight activities, and taken various steps in each of the functional areas. GAO found that the documents cited by OMB during it's review did not, separately or collectively, meet the requirements for a governmentwide strategic IRM plan established by PRA."

"With the rapid increase in China's overseas investment and trade, China's global economic clout is increasing by the day. Does China's global economic reach make it an empire in the 21st century? What sort of impact will China's trade and investment have on its global counterparts? Chinese investment projects around the world, from railways in Africa and dams in Latin America to the acquisition of landmark buildings in the US, look to alter global patterns of influence and power. How would other countries react to China's rising international influence? The US government and many Americans deny their country is an empire, although the US status as the leading superpower makes it an empire in all but name. How will China coexist with the US, which has arguably been an imperialist power since the end of World War II? How will the incumbent neo-imperialist power, the US, deal with an emergent China? With its acute analysis of Sino–US relations, the book will interest readers who wish to understand the impact of China on various countries, its place on the world stage as well as the geopolitical implications for all in the 21st century. Sample Chapter(s)"--Publisher's website

El objetivo principal de este artículo es identificar los factores que explican el reciente dinamismo de los gobiernos locales mexicanos en los asuntos externos. El argumento principal es que los cambios recientes en el sistema internacional, los avances democráticos en México, la transformación del modelo de desarrollo económico a mediados de los años ochenta y las nuevas percepciones y preferencias personales de las autoridades gubernamentales son factores que explican un mayor interés de los actores subnacionales mexicanos para participar en actividades globales. El texto está dividido en cuatro partes. La primera define el concepto de paradiplomacia en perspectiva comparada con la política exterior. La segunda parte desarrolla los pilares que explican el nuevo dinamismo internacional de los gobiernos locales mexicanos. La tercera describe el marco jurídico mexicano que norma las relaciones internacionales de los gobiernos locales. La última parte examina el caso de Baja California, un estado mexicano fronterizo altamente activo en asuntos externos. ; The key objective of this article is to identify the main factors that explain the growing interest of Mexican local governments in external affairs. The main argument is that recent changes in the international system, domestic democratic developments, the transformation of the economic development model in the 1980s, and new perceptions and personal preferences of governmental authorities are factors that explain the growing interest of subnational actors to participate in global activities. The article is divided into four parts. The first one defines the concept of paradiplomacy and foreign policy. The second part analyzes the pillars that explain the new international dynamism of local Mexican governments. The next section describes the legal framework that regulates the international activity of local governments. Finally, the last part examines the case of Baja California, a border Mexican state that recently has been very active in foreign affairs. ; O objetivo principal deste artigo é identificar os fatores que explicam o recente dinamismo dos governos locais mexicanos nos assuntos externos. O argumento principal é que as mudanças recentes no sistema internacional, os avances democráticos no México, a transformação do modelo de desenvolvimento económico em meio dos anos oitenta e as novas percepções e preferências pessoais das autoridades governamentais são fatores que explicam um maior interesse dos atores subnacionais mexicanos para participar em atividades globais. O texto está dividido em quatro partes. A primeira define o conceito de paradiplomacia em perspectiva comparada com a política exterior. A segunda parte desenvolve os pilares que explicam o novo dinamismo internacional dos governos locais mexicanos. A terceira descreve o marco jurídico mexicano que norma as relações internacionais dos governos locais. A última parte examina o caso da Baixa Califórnia, um estado mexicano fronteiriço altamente ativo em assuntos externos.

El objetivo principal de este artículo es identificar los factores que explican el reciente dinamismo de los gobiernos locales mexicanos en los asuntos externos. El argumento principal es que los cambios recientes en el sistema internacional, los avances democráticos en México, la transformación del modelo de desarrollo económico a mediados de los años ochenta y las nuevas percepciones y preferencias personales de las autoridades gubernamentales son factores que explican un mayor interés de los actores subnacionales mexicanos para participar en actividades globales. El texto está dividido en cuatro partes. La primera define el concepto de paradiplomacia en perspectiva comparada con la política exterior. La segunda parte desarrolla los pilares que explican el nuevo dinamismo internacional de los gobiernos locales mexicanos. La tercera describe el marco jurídico mexicano que norma las relaciones internacionales de los gobiernos locales. La última parte examina el caso de Baja California, un estado mexicano fronterizo altamente activo en asuntos externos. ; O objetivo principal deste artigo é identificar os fatores que explicam o recente dinamismo dos governos locais mexicanos nos assuntos externos. O argumento principal é que as mudanças recentes no sistema internacional, os avances democráticos no México, a transformação do modelo de desenvolvimento económico em meio dos anos oitenta e as novas percepções e preferências pessoais das autoridades governamentais são fatores que explicam um maior interesse dos atores subnacionais mexicanos para participar em atividades globais. O texto está dividido em quatro partes. A primeira define o conceito de paradiplomacia em perspectiva comparada com a política exterior. A segunda parte desenvolve os pilares que explicam o novo dinamismo internacional dos governos locais mexicanos. A terceira descreve o marco jurídico mexicano que norma as relações internacionais dos governos locais. A última parte examina o caso da Baixa Califórnia, um estado mexicano fronteiriço altamente ativo em assuntos externos. ; The key objective of this article is to identify the main factors that explain the growing interest of Mexican local governments in external affairs. The main argument is that recent changes in the international system, domestic democratic developments, the transformation of the economic development model in the 1980s, and new perceptions and personal preferences of governmental authorities are factors that explain the growing interest of subnational actors to participate in global activities. The article is divided into four parts. The first one defines the concept of paradiplomacy and foreign policy. The second part analyzes the pillars that explain the new international dynamism of local Mexican governments. The next section describes the legal framework that regulates the international activity of local governments. Finally, the last part examines the case of Baja California, a border Mexican state that recently has been very active in foreign affairs.

AbstractCharitable food aid is gaining new relevance in mature welfare states: the number of beneficiaries increases while the subsidization by and collaboration with the state intensifies. We distinguish three rationales to this further institutionalization: poverty mitigation, and ecological and paternalistic reasonings. In this explorative study we assess the validity of these rationales in the actual set‐up of food aid in Belgium. Specifically, we apply three different in‐kind transfer valuation methods (production cost, market and recipient value) to robustly estimate the value of food aid. This mixed‐methods study builds on purpose‐collected field work data on distributed food aid packages, Household Budget Survey data on common consumption patterns, and a thorough document analysis into food aid spending data. The estimated value of food aid strongly depends on the valuation method: the annual total value of food aid in Belgium ranges from 57 to 148 million euros. Importantly, we observe a discrepancy between prevalent rationales and the actual set‐up of food aid. In contrast to the ecological reasoning of fighting food waste, large part of the total value stems from new food purchases, which involve paternalistic choices. Yet, the composition of food aid packages only partly complies with nutritional recommendations. Moreover, they do not fully meet recipients' preferences and needs, which generates a welfare loss. Food aid may nonetheless seem efficient from a policy perspective: a 'charity multiplier effect' appears to translate the government production cost in a higher market value. Still, its unpredictable and mismatched nature likely reduces its poverty mitigating effect.

AbstractFrom the 1990s onwards, fraud detection has become an increasingly important focus in the design and implementation of a variety of welfare schemes, including unemployment benefits, social assistance benefits, pensions, and personal care budgets. This culminated in the 2014 Fraud Act, which introduced a system of high sanction in all cases of benefit fraud, even if they were causes by administrative errors. In 2020 a parliamentary investigation committee concluded that the Dutch government had violated the foundational principles of the rule of law through the way suspected fraudsters with childcare allowances had been treated. This so‐called Childcare allowances affair undermined the support for the harsh approach to fraud and led to a series of proposals to reform the Dutch 'surveillance welfare state'. The Dutch Childcare allowances affair is an interesting case of a social policy crisis because its origins are not external events but lie in the regular implementation of policies that have been approved and supported rather widely by politicians, policymakers and street‐level bureaucrats. In this article, we define and apply the concept 'institutional implosion' to analyse the Childcare allowances affair and its consequences. Moreover, we argue that the implosion in this affair follows from an extension of the target group from 'non‐deserving' to 'deserving' citizens. Whereas the Fraud Act primarily was aimed towards recipients of unemployment, disability and social assistance benefits, a change in the system of childcare allowances extended the scope of the Fraud Act to an almost universal group of parents that use childcare facilities.

AbstractPrivate for‐profit home care providers have grown unevenly in Europe and through varied processes. Yet, more research focusing directly on private providers is needed to identify and explain European patterns in their growth and in their modes of operation. This paper examines the case of Ireland, where private providers have grown significantly in recent years and transformed the national landscape of domiciliary care. First, it is shown that the amount of public funding received by private providers increased from €3 million in 2006 to €176 million in 2019, in contrast to amounts allocated to non‐profit and public providers that have increased only slightly. Second, those trends are explained through policy analysis and by drawing on in‐depth semi‐structured interviews (n = 12) with private home care providers and government officials who have been central to the privatization of care. The paper gives a direct voice to key figures in private home care, and through a critical reading of interview materials, argues that the neoliberal nature of the Irish state has driven the growth of private provision, in particular, through policies of competitive tendering and fiscalization. Providers' own lobbying activities have also played a role, albeit a secondary one. Ireland has traditionally followed a laissez‐faire, family‐based system comparable to Southern European countries. Its experience is thus directly relevant to that region, but further research should also compare and contrast the development of private providers operating in other European long‐term care regimes.