Biobanking and risk assessment: a comprehensive typology of risks for an adaptive risk governance

The African continent is likely to be highly affected by the consequences of climate change. The ensuing projected changes in the ecological system such as decreasing water availability and higher amplitudes of droughts and floods require responses from the social system, i.e. adaptation measures. Even though climate modelling is still plagued by high uncertainty, models suggest a reduction of precipitation and runoff for South Africa. This poses a major threat for South Africa, which depends heavily on surface water and whose water resources are already under stress. Adaptive governance has been proposed as an approach that provides a way to cope with rising uncertainty and environmental change. Against the background of decreasing water availability and in addition to technical solutions, adaptive water governance structures can serve as an important element for increasing water use efficiency, adaptive capacity and resilience of the water sector. The first part of the paper takes a conceptual approach towards adaptive water governance. It suggests characterizing adaptive water governance by referring to and merging elements of good governance, water governance and adaptive governance. In the second part of the paper, some of the elements of adaptive water governance are examined with regard to their relevance for South Africa’s water governance reforms. The paper concludes that, on the one hand, progress can be attested with regard to (1) a high level of flexibility built in the national water legislation, especially the National Water Act, (2) the provision of buffer capacities regarding institutions for solving water conflicts (redundancy), (3) the high level of participation of stakeholders at many levels and (4) the provision of equitable access to water. On the other hand, some (unintended) negative implications of these developments are documented. Among them are (1) the time-consuming processes of elaborating procedures and guidelines in the process of implementation, (2) the potentially negative effects of functional overlaps of CMA and regional offices of DWA, (3) effectively involving relevant stakeholders and (4) the lacking long-term sustainability of water infrastructure due to lack of capacity and capital.KeywordsAdaptationAdaptive governanceWater governanceGood governanceResilienceSouth Africa

The publication in 1983 of the National Research Council's report Risk Assessment in the Federal Government: Managing the Process was a milestone in the development of risk assessment and risk management practices and policies. The report quickly became known as the “Red Book” because of its vivid red cover. The Red Book's recommendations on how to improve institutional practice of risk assessment and management helped shape risk policy and practices at regulatory agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In commemoration of the Red Book's 20th anniversary, essays were solicited from members of the original Red Book Committee and other experts in risk assessment. The essays comprising this special issue of the Journal of Human and Ecological Risk Assessment provide a valuable historical record of the Red Book's development, import, and subsequent impact on the continuing evolution of risk assessment. The set of essays in this issue describe the Red Book's past and current impact on the evolution of cancer risk assessment, non-cancer risk assessment, ecological risk assessment, and risk assessment for occupational safety and health. In the aggregate, the essays express strong support for the positive impact of the Red Book, but also express concern about current risk assessment and risk management policies and practices. Perhaps the time has arrived for Red Book II.

The primary objective of this paper is to examine the market risk and liquidity risk management techniques and practices followed by the Indian scheduled commercial banks (SCB) consisting of public sector banks (PSBs) and private sector banks (PVSBs) for five years from 2016-17 to 2020-21. The other objective is to compare market and liquidity risk management practices between the public sector banks (PSBs) and private sector of banks (PVSBs). The other purpose of the study is to review the strategies adopted by the SCBs in risk management practices. To study the risk management practices, six largest banks each from PSBs and PVSBs are taken for sample study. This study finds that the SCBs are facing credit risk, market risk (Interest rate risk, foreign exchange risk, commodity price risk and equity price risk,) liquidity risk and operational risk. It also finds that the PSBs are better reporting and presenting their risk management practices in their annual reports than that of PVSBs in risk identification, risk assessment and risk analysis. The results indicate that there is no significant difference between the PVSBs and PSBs in the policies and practices of market risk and liquidity risk assessment, evaluation, monitoring risk controlling and risk taking. This paper will be relevant and value to those interested in research in the risk management banking industry. This is a descriptive research based on secondary data.

The focus of this study is to examine the effectiveness of the risk management process (understanding risk management, risk identification, risk assessment and analysis, and risk monitoring) on risk management practices among Islamic banks in Malaysia and Pakistan. The study also compares the risk management process and practices between the banks in both countries. The study found that Islamic banks in Malaysia and Pakistan are somewhat efficient in managing risk and that there is a significant difference between the banks in Malaysia and Pakistan in the practice of understanding risk management and risk identification. The results also indicate that risk identification and risk assessment and analysis are the most influencing factors in risk management practices in both countries.

Real estate development performance in Nakuru County continuously deteriorates, as evidenced by rising vacancy rates in outdated office buildings, restrained consumer spending due to the difficult economic climate, and competition from unofficial retail spaces in some submarkets. The study aimed at finding out how risk management practices influence the performance of real estate construction projects in Nakuru County. The research determined how technical risk management practices, financial risk management practices, market risk management practices and operational risk management practices affect the performance of real estate construction projects in Nakuru County. This research used a mixed-method study design with a population target of 45 ongoing and 25 completed real estate projects in Nakuru County. Using stratified simple sampling technique, a sample size of 25 ongoing and 15 completed real estate projects were selected. The study was affixed on strategic planning theory, Decision theory and risk/uncertainty bearing theory. The researcher used questionnaires to obtain data and suggestions from the respondentsA pilot study to assess the research instruments' accuracy and dependability was conducted in Nairobi County. The research utilized Cronbach's alpha to calculate the reliability coefficient of the questionnaires. Cronbach value greater than 0.7 was considered reliable. The gathered data was cleaned, coded, and accuracy checked for ease of analysis, and then subjected to descriptive analysis involving the calculation of mean, frequency distribution, and standard deviation. Using Pearson correlation analysis, the relationship between the dependent and independent variables was evaluated. Regression analysis was done using the analysis of variance technique (ANOVA). The study found that technical, operational, market, and financial risk management practices each had positive and substantial impacts, indicated by regression coefficients of 0.451, 0.313, 0.531, and 0.273, respectively. Further, the study established that these practices are crucial in managing various risks effectively, demonstrating their significant role in overall risk management strategies. . Constructed from the study findings, this study recommends that the Kenyan government should review all of the approvals that real estate developers need, formulate policies that regulate the construction sector by ensuring that real estate developers demonstrate their creditworthiness on their expected investments before granting any licenses. In addition, real estate developers should be encouraged to take advantage of staff empowerment through professional bodies that equips managers through risk management courses. Lastly, future studies conducted should concentrate on other risk variables not included in this study including legal and environmental risk management practices. Keywords:  Risk Assessment, Project Performance, Construction Management, Real Estate Development, Mitigation Strategies

Unlike the banking industry, the insurers’ risk management framework (RMF) is not governed internationally. For this reason, their risk management (RM) practices are not comparable. We surveyed insurance personnel regarding understanding risk and risk management (URRM), risk identification (RI), risk assessment and analysis (RAA), risk monitoring (RMON), and risk management practices (RMP). These insurance personnel were working at various hierarchical levels in life and non-life insurance. These insurers were operating in developed and emerging insurance market. We took USA and UK insurers as a proxy for developed insurance market. Meanwhile, Chinese, and Pakistani insurers were substituted for emerging insurance market. We analyzed the data through descriptive statistics and an ordered logit model. Our results showed that insurers’ RM is stronger, but large differences exist at the hierarchical, insurer type and country levels. Apart from policy implications, our findings suggest that to achieve sustained competitive advantage insurers should minimize these differences.

This study assessed the effect of enterprise risk management on the firm financial performance of Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises in Osun state Nigeria. Precisely, the risk encountered, the adoption of risk management practices, the implementation of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) practices, and the financial performance of micro, small and medium scale enterprises in Osun state Nigeria. Primary data was used for this study; a well-structured questionnaire was used to elicit data from 273 respondents. The study population consists of owners and managers of small and medium businesses in Osun state, Nigeria. Data were analyzed using descriptive analysis and was the inferential statistic used to test the hypotheses. The results showed that market (33.7%), strategic (57%), financial (46.9%), operational (34.2%), management (47.6%), and technological (45.4%) are risks prevalent to micro and small businesses, but most of the respondents disagreed that the relationship of their staff to the customer is poor. Risk acceptance with a mean score of (2.27 ± 1.21) is the most utilized risk management practice adopted by the MSMEs. The implementation of ERM practices shows that MSMEs more utilized setting of objectives (43.6%), risk identification (38.3%), risk assessment (36.2%), and control activities (31.2%) and the financial performance of the businesses was moderate (69.7%). The correlation analysis shows no significant relationship between the scale of business and the adoption of risk management practices. Also, the regression analysis shows that Risk identification (? = 0.388, p ?0.01) and Control activities (? = 1.096, p ?0.01) are the only ERM variables that significantly affect financial performance. The study concluded that the implementation of enterprise risk management practices has a significant effect on the financial performance of Micro, Small and Medium enterprises in Osun State, Nigeria.

The research describes the importance of identifying, analyzing and evaluating the risks contained in the process outsourced cleaning services in a public educational institution, in order to subsidize information to the organization so that they can prevent and mitigate constant failures in the process, from hiring to contract management. The theme is shown to be a significant issue today, as organizations increasingly seek effective process improvement, with due control of variables that may interfere with the execution of procedures. Thus, it is of great relevance to seek answers to the following questions: How to identify, analyze and evaluate the risks involved in the process of contracting and contract management cleaning services of IFMT and what is the best form of risk management applicable to this process? Thus, the general objective of the research address to develop a systematic procedure for risk management applicable to the process of contracting and contract management cleaning services of the institution that provides knowledge for the practice of risk management in the institution's processes. The study has an applied nature, proposes the generation of technological artifacts and has a qualitative approach. As to the objectives, the research was classified as descriptive and exploratory, as it proposes to identify, expose and describe the facts or phenomena of reality, providing greater contact with the problem situation. The techniques used in the research to reach its objectives were systematic review of the literature; documentary survey; participant observation; self-application questionnaire; structured “what if” technique; risk map of the institution; prioritization of risks; “5 whys” methodology; brainstorming; process risk matrix; and adapted FMEA. The risk management tools used are guided by ISO 31010. As for the scientific method, the research makes use of the hypothetical-deductive model, which allows the researcher greater support for decisions about his investigation, generating conjectures related to the objective and validating them (or not). Through the research, it was possible to perform the identification, analysis and assessment of risks in the process of contracting and contractual management of cleaning services at the institution. The completion of these steps allowed the elaboration of a risk matrix for the identified events and provided the application of a tool adapted from the FMEA of the most critical risks, generating knowledge and information for the institution. With the completion of the proposed stages of the study, a systematic procedure was then developed for the risk assessment process in the process of outsourced cleaning services of the institution. Therefore, the research provided subsidies to the institution for decision-making, and mainly provided contributions to the practice of the risk management process at the institutional level. The federal public administration has been increasingly required to demonstrate its actions with transparency and effectiveness. Risk management, established for the public administration through legal instruments, aims to assist in institutional processes, supporting efficient results. In view of the difficulties encountered in applying the regulations in the institution's day-by-day activities, there is a need for techniques to facilitate actions. Therefore, the proposal presented aims to demonstrate the risks that exist in the process, especially those that are most critical that can harm the process of contracting and contractual management of outsourced services, offering analysis and evaluation, contributing to the mitigation of some events and mitigation of failures during the process. The actions represent the effective and realistic performance of risk management in this process of the institution, causing an impact within the scope of the IFMT and in the Federal Public Administration as a whole. The proposal presents an original bias to the institution, which has been concerned in meeting the legal requirements of risk management for envisioning the qualities involved in this system. The research proposal manifested in the context of risk management effectiveness in public institutions, in order to make the actions of identification, analysis and assessment of risks something practical, simple, real and usual in the day-by-day of institutions, generating greater utilization of the benefits of this very important technique. Due to the familiarity of the research theme in other federal educational institutions, there is the possibility of replicating the techniques and approaches proposed by the research, as well as adaptations for application in similar processes in the institution itself and other entities. The contributions of this research fall within the line of scientific and technological action of Strategy and Operations. The technical/technological product elaborated by the research resulted in a systematic procedure for the risk assessment process in outsourced services processes, which aims to provide information to organizations for the risk treatment process. It classified in Axis 1 - Products and Processes of the Qualis Technical/Technological Summary, seeking the innovation criterion due to the applicability of appropriate risk management tools and approaches for use in administrative processes of public management, demystifying the complexity of the realization of methods applied to organizational reality.

This paper aims to assess the degree to which Somali banks use effective risk management practices (RMPs). Furthermore, the study has explored the level of risk management practices using the original components of risk management aspects, including understanding risk and risk management, risk assessment and analysis, risk identification, risk monitoring, and credit risk analysis, with the addition of perceived trust to the original constructs of risk management aspects. The study is based on a questionnaire survey of 423 banking staff from 13 licensed banks in Somalia. The researcher adopted a questionnaire that covers six aspects of risk management with perceived trust: understanding risk and risk management, risk assessment and analysis, risk identification, risk monitoring, credit risk analysis, perceived trust, and RMPs. This study found that the staff of Somalia have a clear understanding of risk and risk management and have efficient risk identification, risk assessment, risk monitoring, credit risk analysis, perceived trust, and risk management practices. In addition, the respondents also recognize that the banks do not have deposit insurance, which is a risk to the depositors if the bank goes bankrupt. The paper’s findings are limited to the risk management aspects of the bank industry, with additional perceived trust in Somalia. The paper explores the risk management practice in the Somali bank sector. The results can be used as valuable feedback for improving risk management practice in the banking industry. This study is the first research attempt to investigate risk management practice with additional trust.

Aquaculture is the fastest-growing food production technology, having surpassed wild catch as a source of seafood. Yet, modern aquaculture is one of the riskiest businesses to enter as entrepreneurs, farmers or investors. As a result, it is critical to understand how aquaculture companies perceive risks, as well as their most relevant risk sources and management practices, as these are necessary steps toward creating a better environment for aquaculture development. Using a mixed-methods approach, the current study examines the perceptions of risk sources and risk management practices by European aquaculture companies. Our findings suggest that risk sources are rated differently depending on the type of company, withdiseases risks beingthe most important for closed-system land-based companies and grow-out sea-cage farms, while land-based companies using open or semi-open systems rated higher environmental risks, and full-cycle sea-cage the market and financial risks. Similarly, results show that there are differences in the ratings of risk management practices among the types of companies. The findings also indicate that land-based companies using open or semi-open systems and full-cycle sea-cage companies were more willing to take risks than other types of companies, while all types of companies consider aquaculture to be a risky business.

This study evaluated the compliance of Philippine cooperative banks with the governance, internal control, and risk management standards established by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). A comprehensive assessment was conducted to examine corporate governance practices in terms of governance structure, board-level committees, and related party transactions; internal control mechanisms focusing on compliance frameworks, internal control frameworks, and internal audit functions; and risk management strategies and practices related to risk identification, risk assessment, and risk management evaluation. Furthermore, the study examined the relationship between corporate governance, internal control, and risk management, proposing a strategic improvement plan based on the findings. The findings revealed that cooperative banks generally adhere to BSP’s governance standards, demonstrating strong practices in governance structures, board-level committees, and related party transactions. Additionally, the banks maintain robust internal control frameworks and rigorous internal audit procedures. While risk management practices are generally effective, areas such as IT and social media risk management require further attention. A significant correlation was observed among corporate governance, internal control, and risk management practices, suggesting that improvements in one area can positively impact the others. Based on these findings, a strategic improvement plan is proposed to enhance the overall effectiveness of cooperative banks. The study recommends continuous improvement of governance structures, investment in advanced monitoring systems for internal controls, and prioritization of risk management improvements, particularly in IT and social media. Future research is suggested to explore the long-term impact of these recommendations on the sustainability and growth of cooperative banks in the evolving regulatory and technological landscape.

The primary objective of this paper is to examine the risk management techniques and practices of credit risk management followed by Indian commercial banks for the period from 2021-17 to 2020-21. The other objective is to compare risk management practices followed by the public sector banks (PSBs) and private sector of banks (PVBs). The study uses a sample of twelve banks consisting of six largest public sector banks (PSBs) and six largest private sector banks (PVBs) for the study. The sample accounts for 78 per cent of the banking business of the country. The study finds that the scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) are facing credit risk, market risk and operational risk. The study finds that the credit risk management process and practices include risk identification, risk assessment, risk analysis, risk evaluation, risk monitoring and risk control. The study finds that private sector banks (PVBs) have better credit risk management practices as compared to that of public sector banks (PSBs). The PSBs have more NPAs than PVBs whereas PVBs have better asset quality and better profitability ratios than PSBs during the study period.

Effective risk management plays a vital role in the successful implementation of pest control projects, offering benefits such as improved project quality, adherence to budgets, high stakeholder satisfaction, and timely completion. Despite these benefits, challenges in managing risks within pest control projects remain, highlighting the need for a structured and proactive approach to risk management. This study aimed to explore the influence of risk management practices, specifically risk identification, assessment, response, and review, on the successful implementation of organic pest control projects in Rwanda. This study will adopt Theory of Risk Perception and contingency theory and will use both descriptive and correlational designs, targeting an estimated population of 100 respondents from Agropy Ltd, including project managers, risk management officers, field officers, Laboratory Analyst and key stakeholders. Data was collected through questionnaires, interviews, and document reviews. A pilot test was conducted with 20 respondents to determine the instrument's ability to produce consistent results over time. The reliability of the research instrument (questionnaire) was assessed using Cronbach’s Alpha. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, including correlation and regression analysis. The findings for four hypotheses were tested at ?=.05 level of significance and the results were: risk identification (p = 0.000 < 0.05); risk assessment (p = 0.000 < 0.05); risk response (p = 0.000 < 0.05) and; risk review and control (p = 0.000 < 0.05), have no significant effect on performance of projects were rejected, confirming that all the risk management practices significantly affects the implementation of pest control projects. In conclusion, the study highlights the significant positive effect of risk management practices, including risk identification, assessment, response, and review in the successful implementation of pest control projects. It is recommended that organizations strengthen their risk management frameworks, involve stakeholders early in the process, prioritize comprehensive risk assessments, establish clear risk response strategies, and continuously monitor and adapt risk control measures. Future studies could explore the role of different stakeholders in pest control projects to further enhance risk management and project success.

This paper examines the process of risk assessment of criminal behaviour in Lithuania. It addresses the presentation of risk assessment concepts, international and national trends in risk assessment procedures, and analysis of common characteristics of risk assessment instruments adapted in Lithuania. The paper comprises, first, a presentation of positive and statutory innovations related to risk assessment instruments approbation in Lithuania. The authors admit that the Lithuanian correctional system is following new trends of risk assessment. Contemporary and worldwide known risk instruments such as OASys, HCR-20, SVR-20, SARA, B-SAFER, PCL: SV were approved in Lithuania and put into practice. The use of these instruments enables practitioners to provide the scientific, evidence-based risk assessment that is necessary for effective offender punishment and risk management planning. It should be noted, that great attention is provided to risk assessment data reliability and validity to scientific research, thus assuring the qualification of assessors in Lithuania. Secondly, the paper describes difficulties encountered by specialists implementing penal and supervisory reforms. Mostly the discussion is concentrated on the problems related to the application of risk assessment instruments and the interpretation of assessment results in decision-making process related to the offender punishment peculiarities. Though the Lithuanian Justice system is implementing risk assessment as an obligatory procedure, however, recently it is mostly concentrated on the general risk assessment; the specified risk (e.g., sexual, violent) assessment is applied more rarely. In result, the specified risk assessment is not emphasised in the social research conclusions of parole. Accordingly, the parole commission and court representatives have no possibility to consider this type of information in making their decisions. The attention should also be directed to the practitioners’ work overload problems. The increasing number of criminals is related to the increasing demand of risk assessment procedures and risk management planning. However, the number of specialists working in this area and offenders that should be assessed is disproportionate. It leads to the constant work overload and turnover of qualified staff. Lastly, the paper presents recommendations for practitioners on how risk assessment and management practices and processes could be understood, and gives directions for a more proficient risk application of risk assessment instruments. It is obvious that cooperation between scientists and practitioners would lead to a more effective application of assessment instruments.

This research investigates the impact of risk assessment strategies on research and development (R&D) projects in the defence sector. The researchers performed comprehensive analyses of risk management frameworks and practices employed by leading defence organisations globally, including the US Department of Defence, UK Ministry of Defence, Canadian Department of National Defence, and India's Innovation for Defence Excellence and critically analysed the key risk assessment factors and best risk management practices. This research developed a tailored risk assessment framework specific to Pakistan's defence R&D projects through extensive case study analyses and fifty semi-structured interviews with people working with defence organisations. The proposed framework comprises seven essential steps, from work breakdown structure development to continuous risk monitoring. This research aimed to provide a systematic and unified approach to risk management by addressing the gaps and investigating international and regional approaches.