Governance Capacity Research Articles

The state as a market maker: The rise (and fall) of Brazilian securitization in the 21st century

This paper analyses housing securitization in Brazil during 2007–2020 and provides three contributions to debates on the relations between the state and financialization in emerging markets. First, we highlight that the Brazilian state has gone far beyond the common role of market enabling, characterized by regulatory rollout and fiscal incentives. Instead, by acting as a market maker on the demand and supply side, it has provided the required liquidity and depth for the emerging segment of residential securitization. Unlike the financial disintermediation through private market makers such as brokerage houses and individual traders that provide risk-reduction, Brazilian securitization has unfolded through the issuance and acquisition of securities by the state’s housing bank and its associated social housing fund. Second, unlike the speculative Minsky type of booms and busts that characterize privately-driven markets, state market making generates a trajectory that is associated with the capacity of governments to roll-out markets for residential securitization. While the social-developmental stance of the Lula and Dilma administrations have boosted securitization, the market-oriented austerity politics of the Temer and Bolsonaro administrations have quickly dried up secondary markets. Finally, while securitization was initially a means to the end of social housing, it seems increasingly the other way around. More specifically, considering that thick and consolidated secondary markets ultimately depend on the quality and stability of the underlying loans and income streams that originate operations, stricter risk reduction and guarantees clauses have gradually penetrated the social housing segment and threaten to undermine the right to secure tenure.

Extent of global decarbonization of the power sector through energy policies and governance capacity

During the 2007-2008 global financial crisis, many countries enacted clean energy policies as a part of their economic stimulus packages. These policies are believed to have contributed to a significant reduction in the CO2 intensity of electricity. Here we conduct a retrospective overview and evaluation of energy policies’ effectiveness in reducing the CO2 intensity of electricity. We utilize governance capacity as a measure of policy implementation stringency, and the interaction between governance capacity and the number of categorized policies to adjust policy variables for governance effectiveness. We distinguish between the short- and long-term effects of these policies to investigate the impacts of policy instruments on CO2 mitigation. The results suggest that the increased policy efforts, when executed with effective governance, have led to long-term cumulative effects. Our findings provide insights into the spatiotemporal dynamics of energy policies in CO2 mitigation, serving as a reference for policymakers in the post-COVID-19 era.

The Evolution and Institutionalisation of Business–Government Relations: Public–Private Partnerships in Khon Kaen, Thailand

How does the nature of business–government relations shape the capacity of local governments to accomplish their development objectives? How do different patterns of business–government interaction affect the quantity and quality of public services and the ability of citizens to hold policymakers accountable for their performance? This article attempts to answer these questions in the context of one municipality in Thailand, Khon Kaen City. We argue that the political economy of business–government relationships in Khon Kaen can be divided into three eras, each defined by a different model of business–government interaction: the government-led model, the contracting model, and the public–private partnership model. We describe how the character of business–government relationships has changed across these different models, focusing on three dimensions: (1) the degree to which ties are formalised or institutionalised, (2) the extent to which local businesses coordinate, cooperate, or collude amongst themselves, and (3) the distribution of power between the local government and businesses. We also analyse the drivers behind the shift from one model to another and consider the implications of each for local development and service provision, patterns of rent-seeking, and levels of accountability and participation.

Societal interaction plans—A tool for enhancing societal engagement of strategic research in Finland

Abstract In this paper we investigate the practices and capacities that define successful societal interaction of research groups with stakeholders in mutually beneficial processes. We studied the Finnish Strategic Research Council’s (SRC) first funded projects through a dynamic governance lens. The aim of the paper is to explore how the societal interaction was designed and commenced at the onset of the projects in order to understand the logic through which the consortia expected broad impacts to occur. The Finnish SRC introduced a societal interaction plan (SIP) approach, which requires research consortia to consider societal interaction alongside research activities in a way that exceeds conventional research plans. Hence, the first SRC projects’ SIPs and the implemented activities and working logics discussed in the interviews provide a window into exploring how active societal interaction reflects the call for dynamic, sustainable practices and new capabilities to better link research to societal development. We found that the capacities of dynamic governance were implemented by integrating societal interaction into research, in particular through a ‘drizzling’ approach. In these emerging practices SIP designs function as platforms for the formation of communities of experts, rather than traditional project management models or mere communication tools. The research groups utilized the benefits of pooling academic knowledge and skills with other types of expertise for mutual gain. They embraced the limits of expertise and reached out to societal partners to truly broker knowledge, and exchange and develop capacities and perspectives to solve grand societal challenges.

Can government digitalization promote the urban–rural equalization of basic public services? Evidence from double machine learning

ABSTRACT Information technology, as an important tool for realizing the modernization of national governance system and capacity, has brought new opportunities for improving the government’s capacity to deliver basic public services (BPS). Taking the information benefiting people pilot policy as an exogenous shock, we use the double machine learning model to examine the impact of government digitization on urban – rural BPS equalization based on panel data of prefectural cities in China from 2006 to 2021, which overcomes the limitations of the linear setting of traditional causal inference models and maintains estimation accuracy under high-dimensional control variables. The findings suggest that government digitization can significantly contribute to urban – rural BPS equalization, and this conclusion holds after a series of robustness tests. Mechanism test reveals that government digitization promotes urban – rural BPS equalization by improving the efficiency of BPS supply and the efficiency of fiscal transfer payment. Moreover, for cities with low fiscal pressure, high fiscal transparency and low economic growth pressure, government digitization will have a stronger driving effect on urban – rural BPS equalization. This study provides valuable theoretical insights and policy ideas for promoting BPS equalization through digital governance.

Tobacco industry strategies to influence the regulation of new and emerging tobacco and nicotine products in Latin America and the Caribbean.

To document tobacco industry strategies to influence regulation of new and emerging tobacco and nicotine products (NETNPs) in Latin America and the Caribbean. We analyzed industry websites, advocacy reports, news media and government documents related to NETNPs, focusing on electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products. We also conducted a survey of leading health advocates. We applied the policy dystopia model to analyze industry action and argument-based strategies on NETNP regulations. Industry actors engaged in four instrumental strategies to influence NETNP regulation - coalition management, information management, direct involvement in and access to the policy process, and litigation. Their actions included: lobbying key policy-makers, academics and vaping associations; providing grants to media groups to disseminate favorable NETNP information; participating in public consultations; presenting at public hearings; inserting industry-inspired language into draft NETNP legislation; and filing lawsuits to challenge NETNP bans. The industry disseminated its so-called harm reduction argument through large/influential countries (e.g., Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico). Industry discursive strategies claimed NETNPs were less harmful, provided safer alternatives, and should be regulated as so-called harm reduction products or have fewer restrictions on their sale and use than those currently in place. Our analysis provides a better understanding of industry strategies to undermine tobacco and nicotine control. To help counter industry efforts, health advocates should proactively strengthen government capacities and alert policy-makers to industry attempts to create new regulatory categories (so-called reduced-risk products), provide misleading information of government authorizations of NETNPs, and co-opt so-called harm-reduction messages that serve the industry's agenda.

Living with elephants: Analyzing commonalities and differences in human-elephant conflicts in China and Tanzania based on residents' perspectives

Humans and elephants inevitably encounter competition over resources in the elephant habitat. Due to different social development conditions, there may be differences in how humans and elephants coexist in different regions, mainly reflected in the attitude toward elephant conservation and the ability to cope with conflicts. By comparing human-elephant conflicts in different regions, it helps to explore the long-term coexistence path between humans and elephants. This paper selects the Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in China, the habitat of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus), and the Nyerere-Selous-Mikumi region in Tanzania, the habitat of African steppe elephants (Loxodonta africana), as the study area, and assesses the current situation of human-elephant conflict in the study area through semi-structured interviews and questionnaires, to understand the residents' perception of the conflict and the willingness of residents to protect elephants, and empirically analyze the factors affecting the residents' willingness to protect. The results showed that the types of human-elephant conflicts in the Xishuangbanna (China) and the surrounding areas of the Nyerere-Selous-Mikumi ecosystem in Tanzania were similar, and the respondents in the Xishuangbanna region (China) suffered more losses but had a stronger willingness to protect elephants. Besides, residents that are less impacted by conflict, have higher household incomes and more diversified livelihood sources are likely to have a stronger willingness to protect the elephant. This study emphasizes the role of socioeconomic development and governance capacity enhancement in mitigating human-elephant conflict, providing a richer perspective on the governance of human-elephant conflict.

Resilient urban turnaround in migration governance studies

AbstractToday, cities are under multiple pressures because they must provide responses to global migration challenges, but have limited governance capacity. This is placing chronic stress on physical infrastructures, basic resources, and urban planning, which most often cities must face alone. There is a rising awareness that doing nothing may increase instability and social conflict, giving rise to more segregation, and racism. Focusing on the crucial tension between what cities might do (sovereignty) and what they can do (constraints), this article seeks first to incorporate ‘urban resilience thinking’ into the current ‘local turn’ literature on migration governance. In order to achieve this theoretical advancement, a fourth‐pronged approach is followed. First, the article proposes that ‘urban resilience’ captures the emerging but dispersed patterns of pro‐active cities, and urges for an analysis of the development of migration governance capacities. Second, a transformative approach to urban migration governance resilience is proposed, and its conceptual consequences explored. Subsequently, the article's focus is on demonstrating the distinctive characteristics of urban resilience when applied to migration governance research, with a particular emphasis on the potential novel contributions that may arise. Finally, in light of the novelties of this research area, the main empirical environments of urban resilience are specified. The concluding remarks close the argumentation by returning to the place of urban resilience thinking within the local turn literature, while also pointing to its normative and methodological potentialities.

The Role of International Trade Agreements in Shaping Labor Standards and Worker Rights

Purpose: The aim of the study was to examine the role of International Trade Agreements in Shaping Labor Standards and Worker Rights Methodology: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. Findings: The study revealed that trade agreements have both positive and negative impacts on labor standards depending on the specific provisions, implementation strategies, and contextual factors. While some agreements contribute to the convergence of labor standards and promote improvements in areas such as workplace safety and environmental regulations, others may lead to downward pressure on labor standards due to intensified competition and weakened enforcement mechanisms. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Neo-liberal theory, dependency theory & institutional theory may be used to anchor future studies on the international trade agreements in shaping labor standards and worker rights. Enhance the capacity of international organizations and national governments to monitor and enforce labor standards effectively within the framework of trade agreements. This includes investing in robust inspection systems, implementing transparent reporting mechanisms, and providing adequate resources for enforcement agencies. Embed comprehensive social clauses in trade agreements that prioritize the protection of labor rights and promote decent work for all. These clauses should encompass core labor standards as defined by the International Labour Organization (ILO), along with provisions for non-discrimination, gender equality, and social protection.

Analysing Economic Convergence Across the America: A Survival Analysis Approach to Gross Domestic Product Per Capita Trajectories

Machine learning algorithms, and economic interpretation, integrated with survival analysis, are used to examine the temporal dynamics associated with achieving a 5% increase in purchasing power parity-adjusted GDP per capita over a period of 120 months (2013-2022). The comparative investigation reveals that DeepSurv effectively captures non-linear interactions, though standard models exhibit comparable performance under certain conditions. The weight matrix evaluates the economic implications of vulnerabilities, risks, and capacities. To meet the GDP per capita objective, the findings emphasize the necessity of a balanced approach to risk-taking, strategic vulnerability reduction, and investment in governmental capacities and social cohesiveness. The policy guidelines advocate for individualized approaches that account for the complex dynamics at play in decision-making processes.

Enablers and obstacles for designing and implementing intersectoral health policies: Lessons from Mexico

AbstractBackgroundThis study analyzes how national intersectoral public policy experiences have been adopted and implemented using a Health in All Policies (HiAP) approach in the past two decades. It seeks to provide evidence on enabling factors that triggered three effective intersectoral public policies to improve population health in Mexico by improving nutritional, educational, and healthcare access conditions, reducing road traffic injuries, and addressing obesogenic feeding practices.MethodsWe followed a qualitative approach to analyze the three intersectoral public policies selected as case studies. First, we designed an analytical framework to assess how intersectoral public policies are adopted, implemented, and sustained. The proposed framework is based on peer‐reviewed articles and gray public policy literature. Second, we used information from eleven semi‐structured interviews with key stakeholders conducted in previous research to identify more specific enablers and barriers of the three intersectoral policies selected according to predefined analytical categories used in the questionnaire.ResultsThe analysis showed three overall key findings. First, sound empirical evidence is essential for adopting a HiAP approach. Second, effective intersectoral mechanisms enhance implementation feasibility. Third, results‐based monitoring and evaluation contribute to the continuity of the analyzed intersectoral public policies. Finally, political support is needed throughout the policy process to maintain governance capacity and deliver results.ConclusionWe drew five global policy lessons that may be applicable in similar public policy settings in other countries. First, both technical and political enablers help set the intersectoral agenda. Second, effective communication is instrumental in convincing all stakeholders to address public health‐related policy issues. Third, political support at the highest level possible and the federal government's capacity are essential to implement sound policies. Fourth, several enablers exist for enhancing collaboration between ministries during implementation. Finally, monitoring and evaluation results are necessary for sustaining intersectoral policies beyond administrations.

Evidence of community health workers’ delivery of physical rehabilitation services in sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review

ObjectivesTo map the evidence and scope of physical rehabilitation services delivered by community health workers (CHWs) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).DesignScoping reviewData sourcesPubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Central and databases within the EBSCOhost...

Integrating Stability Maintenance into Comprehensive Governance: The Burgeoning “Safe China” Behemoth

This article examines the Xi Jinping–era stability maintenance behemoth called “Safe China.” Safe China is a regime of activities that integrates “public order” policing and surveillance with “social governance.” It is linked to the Chinese Communist Party’s “Overall National Security Outlook” and its main task is “political security.” Our analysis of Safe China recognizes integration as its main animating principle. Three elements of Safe China—its ideological rationale, its on-the-ground public order and social governance mechanisms, and the party’s absolute leadership over its operation at the grassroots—are conducive to this integration process. Ultimately, through Safe China, the party is seeking to modernize its own governance capacity and embed its leadership more fully into grassroots society, to ensure long-lasting “peace and safety,” not only for the nation but for itself.

Greening the Change: Macro-Micro Perspectives in Sustainability Challenges in Indonesian Capital Relocation

This paper assesses the government's capacity and local people's readiness to address sustainability challenges in developing a new Indonesian capital in East Kalimantan Province. Although the overall national advancement in sustainable development is deemed inadequate, the province chosen for the location of the new capital city exceeds the national average in attaining Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Household surveys indicate limited local knowledge, attitudes, and practices in sustainable development, yet the community's openness to migrants is identified as an advantageous characteristic in facing urbanization. Skepticism is raised regarding the effectiveness of the new capital's development in addressing sustainability concerns, emphasizing the need for government commitment to integrating sustainability measures. Ongoing support is crucial for locals to navigate challenges and capitalize on opportunities arising from the urbanization of their villages, leading to improvements in livelihoods.

Data Scaling: Implications for Climate Action and Governance in the UK

Local actors have growing prominence in climate governance but key capacities and powers remain with national policymakers. Coordination between national and local climate action is therefore of increasing importance. Underappreciated in existing academic and policy literature, coordination between actors at different scales can be affected not only by politics and institutional arrangements, but also by methods of data analysis. Exploring two datasets of GHG emissions by local area in England—one of consumption-based emissions and the other of territorial emissions—this paper shows the potential for a data scaling problem known as the modifiable areal unit problem and its possible consequences for the efficacy and equity implications of climate action. While this analysis is conceptual and does not identify specific instances of the modifiable areal unit problem or its consequences, it calls attention to methods of data analysis as possible contributors to climate governance challenges. Among other areas, future analysis is needed to explore how data scaling and other aspects of data processing and analysis may affect our understanding of non-state actors’ contribution to climate action.

Democratizing the monetary provisioning system to enable social-ecological transformation

Any society must undertake economic activities, which are embedded within social systems, to generate the flow of goods and services to provide for the material means of life, including the provisioning of money. The economic ideology of money as a “neutral” medium of exchange obfuscates the sociopolitical nature of the monetary provisioning system. In contrast, we ground our analysis in the understanding of money as a social relation, and we apply the lens of social provisioning to the monetary system. This view makes clear that the monetary system is embedded within, and reinforces, existing hierarchies and power structures and evolves through processes of political contestation. First, our analysis traces how changes in the monetary system have shaped the institutional structures of early capitalism such that the monetary system was seemingly depoliticized. Second, we apply this historical analysis to generate a deeper understanding of current monetary contestations. We apply a discourse analysis of the European Union’s fiscal rules to reflect these debates. The monetary system as it has taken shape through the financial crisis of 2007–2008 and the COVID-19 pandemic has brought the political nature of money back into the public imaginary. Accordingly, we highlight the role and power of the state as guarantor of the functioning of the monetary system. A full acknowledgement of this governmental capacity could create renewed space for monetary contestations and democratization. Our analysis reveals that these are both necessary elements to ensure the financing and macroeconomic stability of a social-ecological transformation.

Research on the Challenges and Countermeasures of Online Public Opinion under Generative Artificial Intelligence

With the widespread application and sustained impact of AIGC (Artificial Intelligence Generated Content) technology, exemplified by Chat GPT, the ecology of online public opinion in the field of news communication is undergoing profound changes. The new characteristics of online public opinion, such as massive data, multimodal information, precise dissemination, content confusion, and efficient rate, present challenges including more complex information, emotional dissemination, intricate fields, and difficult judgment and analysis. To address these, responses can be formulated from macro, meso, and micro levels, including accelerating legislative standardization, identifying responsible entities, and enhancing personal literacy, thereby improving the governance capacity of public opinion.

Reflections on the Use of Big Data Analysis to Enhance the Level of Grassroots Supervision Work in the Construction of Smart Customs -- Research on Supervision Scenario Innovation in Digital Government Construction

In the construction of smart customs, how to use the idea of digital government to strengthen the supervision and control of grassroots power has become a new mode indispensable for customs to improve its governance capacity in the era of big data. I study the significance of big data analysis on supervision in the construction of smart customs, the main structural characteristics, the current problems and measures, so as to make a better combination of big data analysis and grass-roots supervision, so as to establish a more efficient and more perfect supervision system, so that the supervision mechanism can run better, and to build a good cage of power.

Progress in Digital Climate Governance in China: Statistical Measurement, Regional Differences, and Dynamic Evolution

The capacity for climate governance is crucial for sustainable advancement, with data elements being a pivotal production factor in contemporary governance. This study examines the trajectory and strategy of digital transformation in climate governance, creating a three-dimensional dataset encapsulating 11 primary and 36 secondary indicators to facilitate the assessment of digital climate governance. Employing spatiotemporal analysis and coupling coordination models, this study evaluates the digitalization levels in climate governance across 30 regions in China, examining how to progress digital integration from governmental and market perspectives. Findings reveal a consistent improvement in China’s regional digital climate governance, bolstering economic and social progress. Nonetheless, regional disparities and developmental lags persist, with convergence analysis indicating a divergence trend in provincial climate governance capabilities. Moreover, kernel density and Markov chain analyses suggest an ongoing evolution in regional digital climate governance efforts, aiming at achieving a higher development plateau. The study emphasizes the dual role of government and market dynamics in boosting digital governance levels, deducing from two-stage regression that effective government-market interplay is vital for elevating governance quality and fostering new productive forces, recommending an integrated governance mechanism for optimal synergy.

Governance capacity, social justice, social security, and institutionalized political participation in China: A moderated mediation model

The significance of political participation in social governance and development is increasingly prominent. Citizens’ institutionalized political participation stands as a primary symbol of realizing people’s ownership. Public trust in government, a crucial emotional element of political participation, serves as a bridge for institutionalized political participation. This study formulates a moderated mediation model, encompassing public cognition, emotions, attitudes, and political behaviors. The model aims to elucidate the attributional paths of governmental governance capacity, social justice, and social security on public trust in government and political participation. The findings underscore three pivotal antecedents of public trust in government: citizens perceptions of governance capacity, social justice, and social security foster political participation behavior through public trust in government, subsequently influencing overall political participation. Political efficacy plays a moderating role, influencing the strength of the mediating effect from public trust in government to institutionalized political participation. This addresses a gap in prior research on the intrinsic motivation of citizens’ political engagement. The study emphasizes the role of political efficacy in facilitating and motivating individuals for “orderly political participation,” providing a practical foundation for enhancing the stability of social governance and democratic development.