Individual Ministries Research Articles

Introducing ‘ministerial politics’: Analyzing the role and crucial redistributive impact of individual ministries in policy‐making

AbstractPolicy‐making is a complex business. While scholars have studied the politics of policy‐making for decades, we know surprisingly little about the role of individual ministries. We argue that and why individual ministries crucially shape policies' content, particularly their distributive profiles. We explain that it matters whether for example, a Ministry of Labor, of Finance, or of Home Affairs designs a policy. First, we systematically review existing literature on the factors that influence preferences of ministries and their power in policy‐making. Second, we develop a theory explaining that and why ministries have substantive policy impact and introducing a typology of three different ministerial ideal‐types: ministries follow a “social logic”, an “efficiency logic”, or a “law‐and‐order logic”. Third, we offer systematic empirical evidence: Using the least likely case of Germany, we introduce a novel content‐coded dataset on all social policies in the Bundestag since 1969, showing that ministries shape policies' distributive profiles, even when controlling for rival explanations, such as the partisan affiliation of ministers, the policy field, or cabinet type. We conclude by developing a research agenda on ministerial politics and highlight important implications for representation and responsiveness.

СOMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE POLITICAL MODERNIZATION OF GEORGIA AND SINGAPORE

The article is devoted to the research of comparative analysis of the political modernization of Georgia and Singapore. The relevance of this subject is due to experience of successful development in the political and economic spheres of Georgia and Singapore, which was facilitated by the dynamic formation of political institutions. Political modernization in these states took place in an accelerated and “compressed” format.It is specified, that these countries are passing through rapid economic growth. Singapore, in particular, was part of the “first wave of Asian tigers” (along with Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea). Georgia, in turn, continues to demonstrate annual GDP growth, despite domestic political and regional instability.It is stated that Singapore is a prime example of economic transformation under authoritarianism. Singapore’s economic success was influenced by many factors, both political (effective governance, professionalism and competence of political leaders, political stability), geographical (a small island state located at the crossroads of sea routes), and cultural (Asian values). The achievements in the socio-economic sphere as a result of political changes were so amazing that they even interested the main reformer of the PRC, Deng Xiaoping. Many Chinese officials and intellectuals see Singapore as a possible benchmark for China.As for Georgia, in applying authoritarian forms of transformation, the leaders of the young post-communist Georgian democracy largely imitated the modernization that took place in Southeast Asia, including Singapore. The authors come to the conclusion that era of Mikheil Saakashvili clearly demonstrates the powerful modernization leap of the Caucasian republic, which was not afraid of temporary authoritarian measures to accelerate political evolution.The Georgian experience of reforms became so successful that the fifth President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko (2014-2019) invited a Georgian landing of reformers to Ukraine to transform individual ministries – the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Health.

«КОГДА ЗОЛА ПЕРЕСТАНЕТ БЫТЬ ЗОЛУШКОЙ?»: УТОПИЧЕСКИЙ КОНСЕРВАТИЗМ ПОЗДНЕСОВЕТСКОГО ЭКОЛОГИЧЕСКОГО РЕГУЛИРОВАНИЯ

The paper analyzes the features of the late Soviet environmental regulation using materials from the Department of Nature Protection of the State Planning Committee of the USSR. The author argues that despite the absence of a special environmental agency, environmental regulation in the Soviet Union was systemic, being integrated into na-tional economic planning through the “economy of approvals” framework. The author distinguishes utopian con-servatism as one of the key features of Soviet environmental regulation. On the one hand, the utopian horizon of So-viet environmental regulation was a radical restructuring of nature management that would turn all waste into re-sources for the economy. On the other hand, the implementation of the environmental program became part of Brezhnev’s conservative reforms, which did not imply a redistribution of power and resources between economic agents, but only “improved the mechanisms of planning and economic incentives” within the existing balance of power. The first part of the paper explores the institutionalization process of the Department of Nature Protection of the State Planning Commission and its operation principles. The author shows that while the did not set itself the task of detailing all environmental measure, it played a crucial role as a key node facilitating relationships among various agents within the “economy of approvals”. The second part of the paper presents a case study that reconstructs the interaction between the party elite, the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the State Planning Commission, and indi-vidual ministries on the issue of using waste from the petrochemical industry and power plants for vanadium produc-tion. The specialists from the Department of Nature Conservation of the State Planning Committee of the USSR sought to set up relations between individual ministries to convert waste of one ministry into resources for another one, but it required much deeper restructuring of Soviet environmental management.

Social Farming in Czechia, Actors and Barriers

Abstract The article deals with the state of social farming in Czechia, which is obviously in its infancy. The main barriers to development are the character of Czech agriculture, which is radically based on large-scale production and deliveries to large customers, insufficient cooperation of individual ministries and too narrow conception of the problem as care farming. At the same time, we can expect increasing demand for this type of management in the future. Some ideas for improving the situation are presented, the most important of which is the recognition of social farming by the public administration and the creation of a legal framework for its development.

Формирование подразделений по управлению проектами в федеральных органах власти России в 2016-2021-х годов

The article reveals the process of formation and functioning of structural divisions of project management bodies in the federal authorities of the Russian Federation. In the 2010s, experiments were carried out to introduce project management technologies in individual ministries and regions. Project management standards have been developed. Since 2014, a series of regulations has been adopted that introduced project management into the system of government bodies. The new system, borrowed from developed countries, takes root with great difficulty. Since 2016, the development of project management has moved into the campaign stage. The leadership of the Russian state attaches great importance to the introduction of modern management technologies in the state system, including Project management. Therefore, despite the periodic slowdown of the campaign, the implementation of project management methods in the state administration continues.

Analysis of the higher education institutions network and the problem of its financing

The problem of the quality of specialists training and the issue of financing the training of higher education seekers in Ukraine at the expense of budget funds and the funds of individuals and legal entities are examined. The purpose of the study is to identify ways to increase the efficiency of the use of budget funds to finance the training of students while ensuring the proper quality of this process. During the research, the Data Science toolkit has been used to work with large arrays of Big Data information. In combination with the application of a set of empirical methods, the research enables to put forward a hypothesis about the existence of an irrational distribution of budget funds among higher education institutions (HEIs) to finance the training of students in certain specialties. The article reviews the dynamics of the development of the network of HEIs of Ukraine during the period of independence of state-owned, communal and private forms of ownership and departmental subordination. A comparative analysis of the network structure in relation to the number of higher education seekers has been carried out in comparison with the corresponding structure of the network of educational institutions in European countries and in the USA, which confirms the relevance of the optimization of the network of HEIs and its structure. The presence of artificially created HEIs, which are subordinate to individual ministries and state services with privileged operating conditions, gradually reduces the quality of training in the absence of internal competition, which leads to a gradual decrease in the efficiency of the use of budget funding. The work quantitatively substantiates the state’s financial losses from the irrational distribution of the state order among HEIs for the training of specialists with higher education. HEIs with a high proportion of incomplete groups, that are unable to ensure high quality of specialist training, are unable to attract external sources of funding for specialist training as a result of non-competitiveness in the market of educational services, are only spending budget funds without proper results. According to the research results, generalized optimization criteria of the network of HEIs of Ukraine are proposed, which can be used by the governmental bodies of Ukraine

Poland’s Policy in the Space Sector: The Institutional Dimension Since Joining the European Space Agency

Abstract This paper discusses Poland’s policy approach regarding the space-sector. The paper covers the period from 2012 to the end of 2019, i.e. the period of Poland’s membership in the European Space Agency. It tackles the institutional development of the sector. The paper’s main thesis is that positive developments occurred during the analysed period supporting development of the Polish space sector, which however has not resulted in transparent responsibility-division or their concentration in a single ministry. On the contrary, competence disputes have intensified. These disputes do not strengthen the position of the space sector, nor the evolution of the Polish Space Agency. The statutory changes have actually led to the degradation of the significance of the Polish Space Agency and its transition from a space policy integrator to the expert support structure of individual ministries. Therefore, there is no strong entity capable of effective coordination and promotion of Polish space policy in the country and abroad.

Hashtag Diplomacy and Its Use in Africa

"Hashtag diplomacy or ‘Twitter’ diplomacy, sometimes referred to as twiplomacy, is an emerging tool used by international policy actors, such as heads of state and diplomats, to conduct public diplomacy and to reach out to worldwide audiences. In a 2018 study of government Twitter users around the world, 951 Twitter accounts were identified as belonging to state leaders and foreign ministries in 187 countries. Therefore, close to 100% of United Nations members states (193 members) consider Twitter to be a valid enough tool to employ on a frequent basis. These users have a combined audience of close to 490 million followers. But what of Twitter’s value for individual diplomats, foreign ministries and heads of state and government in Africa? Can this tool be of use in the management and implementation of public diplomacy in a continent where internet penetration is 40% of the combined population and if so, what are these foreign policymakers using it for? This chapter intends to address these questions by exploring the use of hashtag diplomacy in Africa, and other regions, in reference to select examples. It will begin by situating this type of diplomacy under the umbrella of public diplomacy and it will then move on to consider feasibility and reach of this social media platform in Africa. Keywords: hashtag/Twitter diplomacy; Africa; social media "

COMPONENTS OF COOPERATION OF CRISIS INTERVENTION

Introduction: This scientific study provides an insight into the cooperation of individual social services in connection with several methods and techniques of crisis intervention. Given the diversity of the work of crisis intervention, it brings scientific results concerning the of field social workers in social and legal protection of children and social guardianship. It is the field of social workers which cooperate and manage cooperation between individual ministries and activities of individual crisis intervention services.
 Aim: The main objective of the research was to investigate the cooperation of social workers with other institutions and the use of diversity techniques in dealing with different types of social problems.
 Methods: The research was conducted using a quantitative strategy by distributing a questionnaire of our design to social workers in Slovakia operating within the socio-legal protection and guardianship. The subject of the research was social workers of social protection. The number of respondents whose questionnaire applied to the research objectives was 56. We used statistical analysis for the phase of data processing and evaluation.
 Results: In the first research question, we investigated which social problems the respondents are facing in their practice most often. We can conclude that they often encounter problems solutions in the redevelopment of families, tackling crime, divorce, delinquency, and addictions. In the second research question we focused on with which institutions the workers cooperate in solving individual social problems.
 Conclusion: Social protection workers in their everyday practice face a wide range of problems. In solving the issues, they cooperate with other professions respectively organizations. Depending on what problems social workers usually deal with, it depends not only on their experience but on their future education.

ACTS OF LEGAL NORMS INTERPRETATION:

The paper is aimed at determining the concept and legal nature of acts of interpretation; generalization and critical understanding of the legislator’s approaches to determining the role and significance of interpretation acts in the legal system of Ukraine. The main methods for studying the problem are: dialectical, formal-logical, systemic. In particular, the systemic method was used to identify connections and ratio between different acts of interpretation. Based on the analysis of regulatory material, it is concluded that there is no single agreed approach regarding the procedure for issuing interpretative acts, determining their legal force, the procedure for applying and appealing in Ukraine. The authors pay special attention to the lack of legislative regulation of the powers of individual ministries and other agencies to engage in interpretive activities. In their turn, these judicial activities are more streamlined, although they require improvement and modernization. Basing on the analysis of the normative material, the authors outline the main problematic issues regarding the legislative regulation of the question on interpretative acts and make specific proposals for improvement of the existing legislation in that field. The conclusions and suggestions made can be used in the research sphere for further elaboration of problems of legal interpretation, in the sphere of practical activity – while generalizing the legal norms interpretation practice.

Experimental Use Of a Market-Based Approach to the Efficient Allocation of Resources within the Government Budget

The aim of this article is to test the possibility of a more efficient allocation of resources using market tools when proposing the government budget. The tool is the distribution of ownership rights when designing individual chapters of the budget at the specific stage of the government budget finalisation. The assumption is that the exchange of ownership rights between the individual chapters would lead to a more efficient allocation of resources than mere negotiation. The precondition is the correct setting for such negotiation. For this reason, the article uses an economic experiment in which three budget chapters of expenditure (industry, education, transport) can exchange ownership rights with allocated funds for the following areas: salary expenditure, investment, current expenditure. The design of the experiment is based on a review of relevant studies and literature; illustrative data used in the experiment correspond to the current reality. The article shows these innovative possibilities based on the conducted experiments where the roles were divided between the group of participants representing the individual ministries while the needs and possibilities of the ministries to exchange resources were defined within a set framework of the experiment rules and using the government budget of the Czech Republic for 2020 as the example. The article also implies the possible applications of this method. This method is generally applicable under the proper method design.

Analysis of national human resource development (NHRD) policies of 2016 in South Korea with implications

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore ways to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of national human resource development (NHRD) policies led by South Korean central government agencies, identifying what policy decisions have been made and how they were implemented.Design/methodology/approachThe authors collected data from the 2016 NHRD policy budget plans of the ministries and used content analysis. The unit of analysis was the fourth level, a sub-task, in each ministry’s policy budget plan. All coded policy contents were analyzed in terms of the centralized NHRD model, as well as through the perspective of developmental task theory.FindingsThe study yielded the following policy and implementation problems. First, the current system of NHRD policies established and implemented by individual ministries risks hampering the validity and effectiveness of the policies. Second, the structure of NHRD policy execution may cause similarity and redundancy across policies, thereby hindering the efficiency of the policies. Third, it is problematic when NHRD policies focus on solving short-term problems to the exclusion of long-term ones.Originality/valueThis study provides public recommendations to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of NHRD policies created by South Korea’s Central Government. If such an analysis has been made internally by the government, it has not been made publicly available. It also offers practical insights that might help to improve state-led human resource development policies for other countries – especially developing countries – that are planning to introduce central government-led NHRD or to improve existing NHRD policies.

What makes a good coordinator for implementing the Sustainable Development Goals?

Abstract Member nations that signed up to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals agenda designated a coordinator to promote meaningful participation of the ministries. This study applies the concepts from responsive regulation to policy coordination. The framework provides four types of responsiveness, supporting the analysis of 53 interviews in Finland, Germany and Czech Republic. It was found that they were minimalists at heart, and therefore would do just enough (pyramidal), care from a distance (meta), and influence through the peers (networked). They would control matters that are more procedural and temporary (e.g. inter-ministerial working groups) and not those more substantive and permanent (e.g. setting of performance targets). Moreover, the centre of government rather than the individual ministries is most suitable for responsive coordination due to its perceived neutrality. The whole-of-government strategy on sustainable development is the result of artful coordination that is responsive and neutral. Future research might explore when would responsiveness and neutrality in coordination cease to be beneficial.

Administrative Justice of France and Ukraine: a comparative legal analysis

The article is devoted to a comparative legal analysis of the administrative proceedings in France and Ukraine. The structure of administrative justice of France, its similar and distinctive features from Ukraine is considered. It was proposed to take over to Ukraine the positive experience of France in the field of consulting by the highest judicial authority – the government, individual ministries and other central executive bodies in the area of management decision-making, including sub-legal regulatory acts.The comparative legal analysis made it possible to conclude that the model of administrative justice of Ukraine has both common and distinctive features with the administrative justice of France. At the same time, one can not speak about their absolute identity. In our opinion, the practice of advising a higher judicial authority - the government, individual ministries and other central executive authorities in the sphere of the adoption of management decisions, including bylaws of normative ones – is a positive and possible one that can be borrowed from administrative court proceedings of Ukraine from the model of administrative legal proceedings of France. -legal acts. This will reduce the number of lawsuits against administrative courts over appeals against decisions, actions or omissions of executive authorities

Can Centralized Performance Budgeting Systems Be Useful For Line Ministries? Evidence From Chile

Many governments that have implemented performance budgeting systems have followed a centralized, top‐down approach that makes them foreign to the needs of line ministries. In this study, the author analyzes the case of Chile, which despite its top‐down approach, is often regarded as successful. Our findings suggest that while top‐down performance budgeting systems often fail to meet the needs of individual ministries and are prone to principal‐agent issues, under certain conditions—such as involving third‐party experts and having a professional civil service—the performance information from those systems might still be useful and/or might generate positive spillovers for line ministries.

Operational-Efficiency Improvement of Public R and D Management Agencies in South Korea

Public R and D management agencies have been taking on key roles in the national R and D ecosystem. The purpose of this study is to suggest ways to improve the operational efficiency of public R and D management agencies based on analysis of their current status. We approached this study from a life-cycle perspective as it applies to the plan-management evaluation of R and D. Data-collection sources included documents, surveys, and interviews with staff members in agencies responsible for national R and D management. Based on the analysis results, we present suggestions for improvement in three areas: (a) unification of R and D planning and evaluation of individual ministries; (b) establishment of a panministerial management system for public R and D management agencies; (c) improvement and development of public R and D agencies’ expertise and management services. Finally, we discuss possible improvements and the limits of this study.

Analysis of Substance Use and its Relation to the Tax Policy of the Czech Republic

BACKGROUND: Addictive substances have been part of our lives since historical times. For the Czech Republic, this is especially true of the consumption of cigarettes and alcohol. It has long since been proven that these substances are harmful for the human organism and addiction to such substances has farreaching impacts on the social and economic life of people. On the other hand, revenues to state budgets arising from the taxation of these substances are significant in every country around the world, and to find a balance between the prevention of their use and the revenues of the state is a problem faced by every government. AIM: The aim of this paper is to focus on the consumption of alcohol and cigarettes in the Czech Republic and ascertain its impacts on the revenues of the Czech Republic. METHODS: The sources of data for this research were publicly available from individual ministries of the Czech Republic and from the Czech Statistical Office. Statistical methods were used for the data analysis and interpretation of the findings, including quantitative research, in which basic types of dependency were demonstrated and basic hypotheses were tested. RESULTS: The results have shown that there is a dependency between the number of smokers and excise tax on cigarettes and that there is a dependency between tax revenues from beer and the average wage in the Czech Republic. CONCLUSIONS: This shows that the amount of excise tax does not affect substance use in the Czech Republic and these prevention policies are not effective in the Czech setting. On the other hand, a single significant increase in the excise tax rate would perhaps help in the area of prevention but it would not benefit the state treasury of the Czech Republic, as the impact of a higher tax rate on state revenues would be cancelled out by a drop in consumption.

Twitter and the Challenges of Digital Diplomacy

Social media has an increasingly important role to play in international politics. An overwhelming proportion of UN member states and individual Ministries of Foreign Affairs have Twitter handles, demonstrating how the speed and accessibility of information through digital tools is a necessary part of conventional diplomatic strategies. Yet the centrality of Twitter to diplomacy, and to digital diplomacy more specifically, is often overlooked. Tweets and images posted on Twitter can provoke strong online and offline reactions, potentially inciting or exacerbating political crises. Paying greater attention to these complex dynamics would provide insight into the political consequences of state exploitations of social media platforms. Doing so is especially important given the rise of digital disinformation campaigns, which digital diplomacy strategies must now confront.

Strategic technology roadmapping for inter-ministry R&D cooperation

Since the 2008 global economic crisis, South Korea has actively invested in R&D for technological competitiveness and new market access. Systematic strategies and cooperation between government departments investing in R&D are needed for maximum impact of these investments and efficient use of limited government financial resources. However, technology roadmaps established by individual ministries of the Korean Government lack linkages with national goals and do not provide clear guidance. Additionally, existing technology roadmaps provided by the Korean Government include only technology trees and timetables, but no other technology-supporting measures. This paper provides a strategic technology roadmapping process for inter-ministry R&D cooperation and offers selection criteria for the roadmap's target technologies and supporting measures such as improved legal systems, professional personnel training, and infrastructure replenishment for commercialisation of the target technologies. Finally, the paper presents a process to align national technology roadmaps with the government's R&D programs and budget allocation.

Strategic technology roadmapping for inter-ministry R&D cooperation

Since the 2008 global economic crisis, South Korea has actively invested in R&D for technological competitiveness and new market access. Systematic strategies and cooperation between government departments investing in R&D are needed for maximum impact of these investments and efficient use of limited government financial resources. However, technology roadmaps established by individual ministries of the Korean Government lack linkages with national goals and do not provide clear guidance. Additionally, existing technology roadmaps provided by the Korean Government include only technology trees and timetables, but no other technology-supporting measures. This paper provides a strategic technology roadmapping process for inter-ministry R&D cooperation and offers selection criteria for the roadmap's target technologies and supporting measures such as improved legal systems, professional personnel training, and infrastructure replenishment for commercialisation of the target technologies. Finally, the paper presents a process to align national technology roadmaps with the government's R&D programs and budget allocation.