Integration in crisis: towards a new explicative model

هدف: رویکرد حکمروایی خوب روستایی با تأکید بر سه رکن اصلی دولت، بخش خصوصی و جامعة مدنی به حضور فعال و اثرگذار این ارکان در سایة مشارکت، شفافیت، پاسخ گویی، قانون‌مندی، عدالت، اجماع گرایی، مسؤولیت پذیری،کارآیی و توسعة انسانی تأکید دارد. هدف از این پژوهش، بررسی جایگاه مدیریت روستایی مبتنی بر رویکرد حکمروایی خوب در توسعة پایدار روستایی «مقایسة بخش مرکزی کوهدشت و بخش لواسانات شمیرانات» است. روش: پژوهش از نوع توصیفی- تحلیلی بوده و روش پژوهش از نظر هدف کاربردی و از نظر نحوة گردآوری داده ها، پیمایشی است. جامعة آماری؛ شامل خانوارهای روستایی دو منطقة مورد مطالعه با 27 روستای نمونه و 280 خانوار است. ابزار گردآوری داده ها از نوع پرسش نامه بوده که به صورت تصادفی در روستاهای نمونه تکمیل شد. به منظور تحلیل داده ها و آزمون فرضیه ها نیز از مدل ویکور و آزمون های آنوا توکی و رگرسیون چند متغیره استفاده شده است. یافته‌ها: مطابق یافته های مدل ویکور، مدیریت مبتنی بر رویکرد حکمروایی خوب و سطح پایداری سکونت گاه ها در دو منطقة مورد مطالعه از وضعیت بسیار متفاوتی برخوردار است؛ به طوری که در هر دو منطقه، روستاهایی که از وضعیت حکمروایی خوبی برخوردارند، پایداری بهتری نیز دارند. هم‌چنین، تحلیل رگرسیون چند متغیره، نشان دهندة تأثیر و ارتباط معنی دار بین مؤلفه های حکمروایی خوب و توسعة پایدار روستایی است. محدودیت ها: محدودیت های این پژوهش شامل وسیع‌بودن حجم نمونه و جامعة مورد مطالعه و تطابق مدل نظری پژوهش با مدل تجربی آن بود. راه‌کارهای عملی: درنظرگرفتن رویکرد حکمروایی خوب در نظام مدیریت روستایی می تواند موجب سرعت بخشی روند توسعة پایدار روستایی شده و از ناپایداری سکونت گاه ها جلوگیری کند. اصالت و ارزش: این مقاله ضمن مقایسة تطبیقی دو منطقه با نظام مدیریت، سطح حکمروایی و پایداری متفاوت، می تواند کاستی‌های موجود در ساختار مدیریت یک‌پارچة کنونی روستاهای کشور را واضح تر نشان دهد.

Institutional development for stakeholder participation in local water management—An analysis of two Swedish catchments

This dissertation takes the Center for Women’s Law Studies and Legal Services at Peking University as a case study and assesses explorative how a bottom-up social organization advocates for a better legal protection against DV, as example for advocacy to enhance gender equality. The analysis pays special attention to the contextual institutional arrangements which are fraught with difficulties as a result of ambiguous political and gender institutions as well as inner organizational developments, as crucial factors shaping the organization, its development and advocacy. To examine this, a twofold analytical approach was necessary. I suggest a gender-sensitive theoretical frame, combining the opportunity structure framework and substantiated with an organization perspective. To access the necessary data I applied methodological triangulation consisting of document analysis, semi-structured expert interviews, and participant observation. The analysis led to interesting findings with long term implications for future research on bottom-up social organizing, rights advocacy and gender activism but also unveiled limitations of the opportunity structure framework. Only a selection of the achieved findings can be included in this summary. Previous studies argued that the perception of an opportunity structure as supportive, even if the descriptions of the institutional arrangements appear quite restrictive, can open up space for actors (Shriver and Adams 2013; Kurzman 1996; Eitan Y. Alimi et al. 2006; Meyer 2004). However, this study has shown that this argument is not necessarily valid. Despite the Center’s member’s evaluation of the opportunity structure as moderately positive, or at least supportive enough for it to remain operational, it still lost its affiliation in 2010. This limitation of the opportunity structure framework relates to the insecurities arising out of an established authoritarian rule and an insufficient rule of law. To conclusively answer under which conditions a positive perception of an opportunity structure can open up additional opportunities it is suggested in the dissertation’s conclusion to compare cases study organizations working on the same issue area, however in different authoritarian regimes. The assumption of a multidimensional opportunity structure and a disaggregated analysis of the different dimensions revealed that institutional gender arrangements take a back seat to arrangements regulating bottom-up legal rights advocacy, at least during the period of analysis (1995–2012). The analysis suggested that any issue coupled with legal rights advocacy become a sensitive political topic. Moreover, the analysis unveiled that gender issues, formerly labeled as none-sensitive, have obviously became a sensitive topic in themselves. The organizational analysis revealed that formally, the Center appeared to be a progressive actor pushing for legal enhancements of gender equality; but its informal institutions, manifesting in staff members’ interactions and behavior toward third parties, showed that the legal staff in particular often followed normative guidelines associated with traditional perceptions of gender relations – perceptions in which male superiority partially remained and according institutions were even perpetuated. This finding mirrors current revelation in course of the “#MiTu” movement in the Chinese Charity sector initiated by the current sexual assault allegations against Lei Chuang, founder of a famous Chinese Charity organization. Basing on this finding I suggest in the conclusions practical training courses financed by supporters and conducted by independent experts in order to tackle widespread unequal practices and gender discrimination even in Chinese Charity organizations in general and gender rights advocacy organizations in particular. The disaggregated analysis of the opportunity structure revealed that the observed tightening of control of bottom-up social organizing, gender activism and rights advocacy under Xi Jinping, did not suddenly appear with his coming into power. Rather, the opportunity structure for bottom-up social organizing and legal rights activism actually started closing far earlier (the 1990s and the mid-2000s, respectively). Moreover, the current crackdown on gender and feminist activism, which is characterized by a closing of the opportunity structure for both gender and feminist activism started as early as the beginning of the new millennium. Through this finding the dissertation provides an important contribution to evaluate current Chinese state-society relations.

The European Union is facing multiple challenges. Departing from mainstream theory, this article adopts a fresh approach to understanding integration. It does so by taking two theoretical steps. The first introduces the structure–agency debate in order to make explicit the relationship between macro-structures, the institutional arrangements at European Union level and agency. The second proposes that the state of integration should be understood as the outcome of contestation between competing hegemonic projects that derive from underlying social processes and that find their primary expression in domestic politics. These two steps facilitate an analysis of the key areas of contestation in the contemporary European Union, illustrated by an exploration of the current crisis in the European Union, and open up the development of an alternative, critical, theory of integration.

Fiscal Devolution in East Asia

Institutional arrangements of health systems and the incentives they set are increasingly recognized as critical to promote or hinder performance in the health sector. Looking at complex health system interventions from an institutional perspective may contribute to better understanding what are the paths and processes that lead to the results of such interventions. In this article, we propose an analytical framework drawing from new institutional economics. This framework suggests seven dimensions to look at: institutions, enforcement mechanisms, property rights, incentives, interactions between extrinsic and intrinsic sources of motivation, behavioural changes and organizational performance. For illustrative purposes, we then apply the framework to the analysis of the institutional (re)arrangements of two performance-based financing (PBF) schemes in Burundi by carrying out an empirical comparison of case studies. We use mainly qualitative data from primary and secondary sources and analyse them with focus on the seven dimensions of the framework. The analysis of the case studies provides a comparative narrative of the two PBF schemes and highlights the differences in their operational design, the challenges faced during implementation and the adaptations made. From a methodological perspective, this article proposes a tool to analyse complex health system interventions, looking beyond the evaluation of the final effects to focus on the processes through which institutional (re)arrangements affected those results. Its application indicates, at an empirical level, that such analysis could help identify lessons regarding the design of health systems interventions, such as PBF schemes, and the process of reforming institutional arrangements.

The technical note and manual "Sibling Rivalry in the Financial Safety Net," authored by Atilla Arda and Jan Nolte, examines the governance structures essential critical for effective bank resolution and deposit insurance functions. Considering the vulnerabilities exposed during the 2008-09 global financial crisis, the note emphasizes the interconnectedness of these two critical functions, both of which aim to safeguard depositors and maintain financial stability. The authors discuss various institutional arrangements, highlighting the choice between integrating both functions within existing agencies or establishing new entities. The note then identifies potential conflicts of interest among resolution authorities, deposit insurance systems, other safety net participants such as central banks and supervisory agencies, and the financial sector. These potential conflicts underscore the necessity of robust governance frameworks to address these challenges and ensure autonomy, operational independence, and accountability of the two functions. The note emphasizes the need for strong legal protections for individuals in charge of resolution and deposit insurance, ensuring they can take decisive actions during crises. By exploring best practices and case studies, including Denmark's integrated framework, the authors provide valuable insights into optimizing institutional and governance arrangements by integrating the deposit insurance function within the resolution authority. This could support effective cooperation among authorities which is vital for creating resilient financial safety nets.

The aim of this article is to explore the linkages between institutional arrangements (IAs) of industrial relations and strategies of plant closure. I argue that IAs constrain or facilitate the discretion of plant closure, while the managerial strategy for plant closure is restricted by IAs. Through six case studies in Taiwan, the article concludes that the employers whose IAs are characterized as ‘authoritarian domination’ adopted strategies to close the plants down in an unlawful way, whilst those whose IAs are characterized as ‘paternalist bargaining and consulting’ closed their plants down in a lawful way.

Market innovation as an institutional reconciliation process: Two individual-level case studies

Water scarcity and security drive attention to water reuse in policy and business. However, water reuse may generate new water loops and challenge water governance with new and different types of water, risks, involved actors, and responsibilities. These challenges demand robust institutional arrangements related to water governance. This article assesses the institutional arrangements associated with four case studies in Spain, Italy, Croatia, and Israel. The findings reveal that the more diverse the water uses and users, the more challenges and risks, particularly those associated with institutional arrangements such as quality standards, sanctions, and conflict prevention, are likely to emerge. The weaknesses of governance models and regulations to deal with changes, uncertainties, and public resistance call for special attention to the design of the institutional arrangements before the adoption. Independent of the type of technology adopted, governance may be improved by ensuring internal and external water monitoring; integrating water management with spatial concerns; improving training, expert engagement, and civil society awareness; and reducing water reuse costs. In addition, alternative models that guarantee the efficiency of governance in attaining objectives and assuring the participation of new water users in the management of water reuse loops may also improve governance.

Understanding the sets of co-existing institutional arrangements and the role of different actors for transboundary conservation is not only paramount for migratory species survival but also for studying the transformation of international politics. We analyze the global environmental governance architecture for conserving migratory shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific. We ask, (i) how has the architecture emerged in relation to levels of governance, type of actors, formality, and topology?; and (ii) how does the topology and agency of actors vary across the architecture when accounting for different threats to these species (i.e., habitat loss and hunting)? We use a mixed method approach, based on qualitative data and quantitative network analysis, to characterize and examine the architecture, thereby extending the precision of singular approaches. We find that 28 institutional arrangements, involving 57 state and non-state actors, have emerged since the 1970s. The resulting architecture conforms to concepts and symptoms of institutional complexity, alternately exhibiting characteristics of a regime complex, fragmented governance, and polycentrism. Our results indicate increased interactions of actors across sectors of society and levels of governance, but do not support notions of state retreat and diffusion of power away from the nation-state. Instead, we show that actors beyond the nation-state have emerged as a complement to a nation state-centered architecture. Moreover, when we consider the subset of institutional arrangements for habitat conservation and hunting management separately, hunting management emerges as the exclusive domain of the nation-state. It remains unclear whether this difference is driven by differences in property rights or other sets of drivers.

COLIN FILER It is generally agreed that local government has been the weakest of the three main tiers of government in Papua New Guinea since it gained independence in 1975. The reasons for this have been documented in the literature on the decentralisation that was brought into effect by the Organic Law on Provincial Government 1977 (Ghai and Regan 1993; Peasah 1994; May and Regan 1997; May 1999). Although this law gave provincial governments the power to create forms of local government more appropriate to local social circumstances than the model previously advocated by the Australian colonial administration, few took advantage of this opportunity. Whatever the standing of individual councillors within their own communities, the councils themselves generally lacked the financial and human resources required for them to function effectively as organisations engaged in the delivery of public goods and services. This problem is still apparent in most parts of the country. I do not propose to discuss here what could have been done, or should now be done, to improve the performance of this third level of government. Instead, I wish to discuss an institutional arrangement, known as a Special Purposes Authority (SPA), which has been used to perform some of the functions of local government in specific local circumstances. My interest in this subject arose from my recent experience as a consultant engaged in the production of a sustainable development policy for the mining sector that would seek to improve the management of project benefits disbursed to local communities and mine-affected areas (PNG Department of Mining 2003). While one of my aims is to document the potential significance of SPAs for this particular policy framework, I also wish to consider the broader question of how such exceptional institutional arrangements might be an instrument of national policy outside of the mining sector.

The lack of public participation will cause engineering social issues, but the lack of institutional arrangements is the root cause. From the three aspects of the formal institutional arrangements, the informal institutional arrangements and the institutional enforcement, this paper analyzes the shortages of institutional arrangement of public participation in the construction project, and takes the Shanghai maglev as a study case to make an empirical analysis, and points out the flaws of institutional arrangement and institutional change in public participation. In order to improve the quality of public participation in the construction project, it is essential to reach the virtuous path dependence, perfect the formal institutional arrangement, value the informal institutional arrangement and secure the institutional enforcement.

To address the rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs), governments are now being urged to 'put forward a multisectoral approach for health at all government levels, to address NCD risk factors and underlying determinants of health comprehensively and decisively' [UN, 2011. Political Declaration of the High-Level Meeting of the General Assembly on the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (No. A/66/L.1). New York, NY: United Nations]. There is a global consensus that whole-of-government approaches (WG) can be particularly effective in regulating products such as tobacco, pre-packaged foods and alcohol, which are or can be major risk factors for NCDs. Despite the overwhelming push towards interagency arrangements for health policymaking and implementation, including in contemporary efforts to prevent and control NCDs, there has been minimal investigation into how countries have pursued WG and which types of institutional designs and arrangements offer particular utility to achieve health objectives. This article examines these issues through a case study concerning the interagency mechanism that the Philippine government currently utilizes to govern tobacco control, the Interagency Committee-Tobacco (IAC-T). We conducted key informant interviews (n = 33) with government officials, and representatives from civil society organizations, health professional associations and intergovernmental organizations. We targeted informants who have been involved in the work of the IAC-T and/or tobacco control policy more broadly. We also analysed public documents to contribute to our analysis of the structure, functioning and legal status of the IAC-T. Our findings highlight two salient challenges that arose in the Philippines case: (1) the inclusion of industry representation on the IAC-T and (2) the attempt to consolidate the responsibilities of the different departments through a policy of 'balance' between health and commercial interests. We analyse how health proponents navigated this challenging institutional arrangement and the various barriers they faced in achieving the intended health objectives. We draw from this case to discuss the lessons that can inform broad calls for WG to NCDs.

Road Safety is a pertinent national issue with 2,883 road traffic fatalities occurs in 2022. Nepal in compliance with global commitment in accordance with the United Nations Decade of Action...