Local Policy Implementation Research Articles

Ensuring Educational Continuity in the Midst of Crisis: Policy and Planning During the COVID-19 Pandemic

As the COVID-19 crisis disrupted schooling, recovery efforts in California included the adoption of Senate Bill (SB) 98, which mandated local educational agencies to complete Learning Continuity and Attendance Plans (LCPs). These plans act as critical snapshots of sensemaking and local policy implementation during crisis; however, their details have yet to be explored statewide. Through a multiphase, mixed methods approach, this study examines the legislative requirements of a state-level policy that orchestrated large-scale local planning. Results reveal that SB-98 recombined prior educational routines to fit the pandemic context. Moreover, district plans generally adhered to policy guidance and described a range of resources to support students. However, the limited details contained in most plans—particularly about the actions and services for students that may need additional supports—proffer suggestive evidence of local capacity and will during the global pandemic and the implications for those seeking to implement similar policy measures.

Implementation of Local Government Policies in Handling Elderly in Paul City

This research aims to determine the handling of the elderly in Palu City by looking at the implementation process of Minister of Home Affairs Regulation Number 60 of 2008. The approach used in this research itself is a qualitative descriptive approach. Qualitative research itself is a research that produces and manages descriptive data, such as interview transcripts and observations. While descriptive is a study that seeks to reveal a problem and situation as it is, for this reason researchers are limited to only stating facts and not using hypotheses. The results of this research itself show that the implementation of policies for handling the elderly through the Regional Elderly Committee in Palu City has not gone well. By using the theory put forward by Edward III (1980) as a research basis, it is known that all aspects are not working well. In the communication aspect, it can be seen that there are deficiencies in the transmission dimension and clarity dimension, proving that the communication carried out by the Palu City Regional Commission for the Elderly in implementing the policy for handling the elderly is not working as it should. In the resource aspect, it can be seen that there is a shortage of human resources and budget resources during the process of implementing policies for handling the elderly in Palu City. Meanwhile, in the disposition aspect, it can be seen that several informants did not delegate the handling of the elderly to the technical OPD who understand how to handle the elderly as they should, which shows that there is a lack of coordination among all the administrators of the Palu City Elderly Committee. As for the bureaucratic structure aspect, it can be seen that there is a mismatch between the resource aspect which is not running well and the bureaucratic structure aspect, where the essence of this aspect prioritizes the policy implementation process which must use mechanisms.

지방자치단체의 아동정책 이행현황에 관한 질적연구

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the implementation status of child policies in local governments and to derive improvement strategies.
 Method: The researchers conducted interviews with 23 local government officials responsible for the ‘Child Policy Impact Assessment’ and the ‘South Korean Child Policy Initiative’. The data was analyzed using a generic qualitative research approach.
 Results: The research results were categorized into two main themes: ‘Issues in the process of child policy implementation’ and ‘Alternatives for strengthening child policy implementation’. These themes were further subcategorized into ‘Alternatives for individual level ’, ‘‘Alternatives for organizational level’, and ‘Alternatives for implementation system level’. Furthermore, 18 concepts were identified according to the subcategories.
 Conclusions: Based on the research findings, the study discusses key issues that are centered around the local government's child policy implementation structure, policy targets, evaluation indicators, and implementation procedures. Additionally, suggestions for improvement are presented, including standardization and guideline establishment for the implementation structure, and an implementation approach that integrates the ‘Child Policy Impact Assessment’ and the ‘South Korean Child Policy Initiative’.

IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY OF STREET VENDORS ARRANGEMENT POLICY

The existence of street vendors (PKL) as one of the informal sectors that is recognized as having advantages compared to other sectors but the fact that the existence of street vendors (PKL) creates new problems such as traffic chaos and loss of the beauty of the city. This research aims at the implementation strategy of Street Vendor structuring policy in the Kadipaten Market of Majalengka Regency, knowing the factors that support or hinder the implementation of local government policies towards Street Vendors in the Kadipaten Market of Majalengka Regency and efforts in the Strategy for implementing the Street Vendor stage policy in the Majalengka Regency Duchy Market. The type of research used is the type of qualitative descriptive research. The informants in this study were the main informants, namely 2 Koperindag employees, the key informants, namely 5 Street Vendors (PKL) and supporting informants, namely 2 communities. Based on the results of the research conducted, the implementation of local government policies towards Street Vendors (PKL) in the Kadipaten Market of Majalengka Regency is still not fully in accordance with Regional Regulation No. 11 of 2010 concerning the arrangement of Street Vendors (PKL) in Majalengka Regency or in other words unsuccessful implementation. This is caused by several problems such as a less strategic place, lack of funds, the adaptation of a new place that emerged that made Street Vendors (PKL) choose to sell again was in the Kadipaten Market of Majalengka Regency, a less strategic place. Efforts in the implementation strategy include human resources, non-human resources, bureaucracy and cooperation.

Spatial Spillover Effect of Water Environment Pollution Control in Basins—Based on Environmental Regulations

The basin economy is essential in China’s high-quality development, which brings prodigious economic and social benefits. However, high industrialization and urbanization led to a significant escalation in water pollution within basins. The achievement of synergistic control of water environment pollution at the basin scale has emerged as a primary goal for governmental departments in developing environmental policies. This study constructs a “four-in-one” basin’s water environment regulation system comprising four categories: total, quality, project, and governance. Further, the spatial spillover effects of water environment pollution control in 27 Chinese provincial-level administrative regions spanning key river basins were analyzed. This study aims to provide evidence from China on the transfer of water pollution in basins worldwide. The results indicate the following conclusions: (1) A consistent upward trend in the environmental regulations and water environment pollution indexes across all provinces in the basin. Compared to 2006, in 2018, the mean value of the basin environmental regulation index was 0.21, which is an increase of 23.5%, and the mean value of the water environmental pollution index was 0.83, which is an increase of 29.7%. (2) Whether in the basin’s upper, middle, or lower reaches, the relationship between environmental regulations and water pollution follows a “U”-shaped pattern, with thresholds of 0.318, 0.331, and 0.390, respectively. (3) Under the neighbor weight matrix and water flow distance weight matrix, the impact coefficient of the water environment pollution index on the surrounding areas is significantly positive, implying that the implementation of local environmental policies will radiate to the neighboring areas in the short term and bring positive governance effects. (4) Regarding the time-lag effect, it is observed that the lag term associated with the water environment pollution index exhibits a statistically significant positive relationship. This finding suggests that the pollution of the water environment within the basin follows a cumulative and continuous pattern. (5) It is noted that long-term environmental regulation measures do not contribute favorably to the amelioration of water pollution in the neighboring regions. This implies the presence of a characteristic neighboring avoidance effect.

A grounded theory-based qualitative approach for examining local implementation of public health policies during crises

BackgroundCOVID-19′s emergence questions the agility of health policy deployment in a context of urgency. This exceptional pandemic offers a unique Implementation Science study opportunity. It reveals how actors adapt, coordinate, and mitigate an unknown global threat to safeguard populations from an initially mysterious virus. Limited research has explored how involved players act and adapt their practices to fulfil health protection missions during a global health crisis. Bridging the gap between public policy expectations and achievements requires a methodology for stakeholder identification and implementation practice description. ObjectiveFocusing on COVID-19 management in France's second-largest region, we investigate ministerial recommendation implementation and the emergence of new links, coordination modes, and practices. MethodsDue to the novel subject, we adopted grounded theory. Initial documentary data collection identifies stakeholders for subsequent interviews. Open-ended coding of collected discourse enables content analysis. ResultsFindings reveal a crisis-driven re-evaluation of stakeholder relationships. This research identifies three levels of implementation of health policies at the local level (administrative, organizational and operational) and reveals different types of coordination specific to each of these levels. Our results provide insights on how to better coordinate and implement healthcare policies in a period of crisis. Recommendations include real-life simulations of large-scale crises. ConclusionOur work establishes a methodological foundation for analysing coordination dynamics. Future research could compare these findings with other unpredictable health emergencies, such as episiotomic veterinary health crises.•The first step of the method is to analyse the guidelines of health policy implementation during the Covid-19 crisis and to identify the main stakeholders in charge of the local health policy implementation.•The second step consists of interviewing these stakeholders using a co-constructed sample and structural coding of their speech to reveal the forms of coordination between stakeholders.

Aural microsuction: an analysis of post-procedure patient safety incidents.

Aural microsuction can be associated with delayed syncopal and vertiginous events, which can lead to serious adverse patient safety incidents. This article highlights the serious risks associated with microsuction. We performed a retrospective review of the hospital risk database over a 2-year period. Three patients experienced severe adverse events post microsuction. Two patients fell down the stairs after microsuction, with one suffering a lower limb fracture. One patient experienced loss of consciousness and subsequent head trauma post microsuction. Whilst aural microsuction is universally accepted to be a low-risk procedure, subsequent serious morbidity can occur. Implementation and awareness of local safety policies are imperative to avoid post-procedure injury.

Local Gun Safety Enforcement, Sheriffs, and Right-Wing Political Extremism

An increasing number of U.S. sheriffs claim that they will not enforce gun safety policies from state and federal governments in their counties. As locally elected law enforcement with a unique institutional position and significant powers, sheriffs play a key role in local policy implementation. To better understand cooperation (or the lack thereof) between levels of government, we look at these sheriffs’ contentious relationships over firearm regulation. We argue that sheriffs mobilized to resist state and federal gun safety policies through right-wing extremist efforts, tracing the involvement of sheriffs in gun policy over time. Using two surveys of sheriffs (conducted in 2012 and 2021), we show that sheriffs’ preferences against gun safety measures relate to right-wing extremist attitudes, even with controls for political and demographic factors. We demonstrate relationships between sheriffs’ right-wing extremism and an expressed reluctance to support or enforce a wide set of gun safety policies.

Investigation of the impact mechanisms and patterns of meteorological factors on air quality and atmospheric pollutant concentrations during extreme weather events in Zhengzhou city, Henan Province

Quantitative analysis of the complex relationships between meteorological factors and atmospheric pollution under extreme weather conditions is of crucial importance for future climate change assessment and air pollution control policy implementation. In this study, we used a multi-factor generalized additive model (MGAM) to investigate the nonlinear interaction between meteorological factors and atmospheric pollutants during the “7–20″ extreme precipitation event (EP) in 2021 and the heat wave event (EH) in June 2022 in Zhengzhou City. The results showed that atmospheric pollutant concentrations decreased significantly (p < 0.05) relative to the baseline concentrations during the study period. EH events usually have lower humidity than EP events, so the negative effects of precipitation and relative humidity on pollutant concentrations were significantly higher during the EP than during the EH. In contrast, the effect of temperature on O3 concentration was significantly higher than that on other pollutants during the EH. The results of MGAM indicated the changes in pollutant concentrations were significantly nonlinearly influenced by multiple meteorological factors, both during the EP and EH periods. During the EP, O3 concentration peaked when relative humidity was below 70% and temperature was around 26 °C, and PM2.5 concentration was highest when relative humidity was about 80% and hourly precipitation was below 50 mm. During the EH, high temperature (>35 °C) and lower relative humidity (<35%) aggravated atmospheric pollution. Meanwhile, we found that O3 concentration peaked in when relative humidity was below 20% and temperature reached 40 °C. In addition, there was temporal heterogeneity in the interaction effects of different meteorological factors on atmospheric pollutants during the EP and EH. Our findings have implications for the continued implementation of stringent local air quality policies and the adoption of effective air pollution prevention and control measures.

Caught Between a Well-Intentioned State and a Hostile Federal System: Local Implementation of Inclusive Immigrant Policies.

In the United States, inclusive state-level policies can advance immigrant health and health care access by extending noncitizens' access to public benefits, workplace rights, and protections from immigration enforcement. Although state policies carry promise as structural population health interventions, there has been little examination of their implementation at the local level. Local jurisdictions play multiple roles in state policy implementation and possess distinct immigration climates. Examining the local implementation of state immigrant policy can address challenges and opportunities to ensure the health benefits of inclusive policies are realized equitably across states' regions. To examine the local implementation of state immigrant policies, we selected a purposive sample of California counties with large immigrant populations and distinct social and political dynamics and conducted and analyzed in-depth interviews with 20 community-based organizations that provided health, safety net, and other services. We found that there were tensions between the inclusionary goals of state immigrant policies and local anti-immigrant climates and federal policy changes. First, there were tensions between state policy goals and resistance from local law enforcement agencies and policymakers (e.g., Board of Supervisors). Second, because of the ongoing threats from federal immigration policies, there was a mismatch between the services and resources provided by state policies and local community needs. Finally, organizations that served immigrants were responsible for contributing to policy implementation but lacked resources to meet community needs while countering local resistance and federal policy threats. This study contributes knowledge regarding the challenges that emerge after state immigrant policies are enacted. The tensions among state immigrant policies, local immigration climates, and federal policy changes indicate that state immigrant policies are not implemented equally across state communities, resulting in challenges and limited benefits from policies for many immigrant communities.

Examining Youth Participation in Local Governance: The Case of Selected Districts in Ghana

The participation of Ghana’s youth in its democratic governance in recent times cannot be overemphasised. The youth have non-restrictive opportunities to be elected, exercise their franchise and subsequently involve in local and national development activities. The Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) have a stake in the development, implementation and coordination of local and national policies that inure to youth activities and development. The study examines youth participation in governance among three districts in Ghana adopting a mixed research method by combining qualitative and quantitative methods. It used survey questionnaires, focus group discussion and interview for its primary data collection. The research was conducted in three assemblies namely Yilo Krobo Municipal Assembly, Awutu Senya District Assembly and Ashaiman Municipal Assembly. In all, 220 persons were targeted as respondents for the quantitative data and 24 for the qualitative data. A total of 220 questionnaires were administered out of which 140 were completed and returned by respondents while the qualitative interviews were administered to all the 24 respondents. On development activities, 70 percent of the respondents do not know of any development activities for the youth in the districts. None of the three MMDAs has a tailor-made local policy and programmes on youth development. Consequently, the youth is challenged in relating with the assembly and do not contribute to the decision making and execution of local development plans. There is no specific unit or sub-committee in any of the districts that has the responsibility of overseeing youth development. District Assemblies should develop district specific youth policies or localize national youth policies in order to meet the orientation, aspiration, culture and the world view of the youth in their localities.

Tackling China's local environmental policy implementation gap: An evolutionary game analysis of China's environmental protection inspection system

Despite China's stringent environmental regulations, there has been a persistent policy implementation gap at local level, specifically due to local protectionism and inadequate enforcement measures. To address this issue, the Central Environmental Protection Inspection (CEPI) initiative was launched in 2016, replacing the Regional Environmental Protection Inspection (REPI) system. This study examines why the REPI failed to tackle the implementation gap and how the CEPI works. This is achieved by constructing a tripartite evolutionary game (EG) model consisting of the central government, local governments, and polluting enterprises. Using system dynamics (SD), the study simulates and analyzes the behavior and strategies of the three game players in two scenarios, namely weak and strong negative incentives. Then, this study analyzes the evolutionary process of environmental protection inspection (EPI) by means of a case study. The results show that: (1) the strategy adopted by polluting enterprises depends on the actual signal conveyed by the local governments. In addition, whether the strong regulatory signal of the central government can be effectively transmitted to polluting enterprises mainly depends on the attitude of the local governments. (2) The CEPI conveys a reliable commitment and provides effective external stimuli that adjust the incentive structure of local governments. Meanwhile, the REPI lacked significant punishment measures, which made it difficult for the central government's environmental regulatory signals to reach polluting enterprises in an effective manner. This study contributes to a better understanding of the evolutionary process and causes of the EPI system, as well as how the Chinese government tackles the local environmental policy implementation gap.

Local implementation of public health policies revealed by the COVID-19 crisis: the French case

BackgroundImproving health system performance depends on the quality of health policy implementation at the local level. However, in general, the attention of researchers is mainly directed towards issues of health policy design and evaluation rather than implementation at the local level. The management of the COVID-19 crisis, especially in Europe, has particularly highlighted the complexity of implementing health policies, decided at the national or supranational level, at the local level.MethodsWe conducted 23 semi-structured interviews with the main stakeholders in the management of the COVID-19 crisis in the second largest French region in order to identify the different actors and modes of coordination of the local implementation of health policies that this crisis management illustrates in a very visible way. Our methodology is complemented by a content analysis of the main guidelines and decisions related to this implementation.ResultsThe analysis of these data allows us to identify three levels of implementation of health policies at the local level (administrative, organizational and operational). Interviews also reveal the existence of different types of coordination specific to each of these levels of local implementation of health policies. These results then make it possible to identify important managerial avenues for promoting global coordination of these three levels of implementation.ConclusionsAlthough research on health services emphasizes the existence of several levels of local implementation of health policies, it offers little in the way of definition or characterization of these levels. The identification in this study of the three levels of local implementation of health policies and their specific forms of coordination contribute to a more precise characterization of this implementation in order to promote, in practice, its global coordination.

Modification of low temperature-related hospital admissions for cardiovascular diseases by multiple green space indicators at multiple spatial scales: Evidence from Guangzhou, China

Extreme temperatures have an adverse effect on the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Previous literatures tend to discuss the modification of CVDs occurrence by green space under high temperature. Relatively less attention is paid to the modification under low temperature. The variation of different attributes and spatial scales of green space in affecting CVDs occurrence are also overlooked. This study collected a total of 4364 first-time admission cases due to CVDs in a tertiary hospital in Guangzhou from 2012 to 2018, measured the scale of green space by greening rate (GR) and percentage of landscape (PLAND), the distribution of green space by patch density (PD), mean nearest neighbor distance (ENN_MN) and largest patch index (LPI), and the accessibility of green space by green patch accessibility index (GPAI). Using the time stratified case crossover design method, the modification of low temperature-related CVDs occurrence by the above green space indicators is evaluated in an area with a radius of 100-1000m which is further divided at an interval of 100m. We found high GR, high PLAND, high PD, low ENN_MN, high LPI, and low GPAI corresponds to low risk of CVDs occurrence, the optimal modification scale of each green space indicator, which is radius corresponding to the maximum risk difference between high and low indicator subgroups, is around 800m (GR), 600m (PLAND and PD), 500m (GPAI), and 300m (LPI and ENN_MN), respectively. As the temperature decreases further, the health benefit from low GPAI at the optimal scale is weakened, whereas the benefits from the others are strengthened. Low temperature related CVDs occurrence risk can be modified by multiple green space indicators, and these modifications have spatial scale effect. Our findings have important theoretical and practical significance for the formulation and implementation of local green space policies.

PROGRAM ORIENTATION OF MUNICIPAL BUDGETS

The purpose of the article is to show the necessity of developing program-oriented municipal budgets. The view of different authors on the subject is presented, as well as good practices of other countries. The existing practice of developing strategic documents and budgets in Bulgarian municipalities is described. A sociological survey was made of the opinion of business organizations as partners of local authorities, regarding their participation in the budget process and in the development of strategic documents for the development of municipalities. The results show a rather skeptical attitude towards the possibilities of business organizations to influence local policies and the development of budgets. A proposal is made in the national legislation and in the local normative base of the municipalities to establish the requirement for coordination of the strategies, plans and programs developed at the municipal level with the annual budgets. Program budgeting at the municipal level is not only possible, but also imperative, due to its efficiency, transparency, opportunity for wider citizen participation in the budget process and in the development and implementation of local policies.

How Does Environmental Regulation Affect the Development of China’s Pig Industry

(1) Background: The pig production sector is a cornerstone in China’s agricultural industry and it urgently needs a transition from a conventional sector to one that is efficient, sustainable, and of high quality. (2) Methods: This study examines the effects of environmental regulation (ER) on the development of the pig industry (DPI) between 2005 and 2019. From the perspective of the breeding, production, and consumption industry chain, a comprehensive evaluation index system is used to assess the progress of the pig industry. Furthermore, the effects of ER on the DPI and its mechanism were evaluated using the FGLS and system-GMM. (3) Results: According to the empirical findings, ER exhibits a U-shaped non-linear effect on DPI in both high- and low-pig-production zones. Technological innovation and large-scale farming would lessen the detrimental effects of ER on DPI. Additionally, according to the outcomes of the implementation of local environmental protection policies, LER and DPI have an inverted U-shaped relationship in major producing areas and a U-shaped relationship in non-major producing areas. (4) Conclusions: This essay offers several solutions and advice, including strengthening environmental regulation legislation and encouraging breeding industry advancements.

Institutional Framework and Capacities in Enhancing Local Content in Natural Gas Value Chain in Tanzania: Key Actors’ Perceptions

This paper investigated the institutional framework and capacities in enhancing local content in the natural gas value chain in Tanzania. It aimed to assess the regulatory framework, institutional preparedness, and readiness to facilitate the enhancement of local content in the natural gas value chain in Tanzania. The study established key actors’ perceptions about local content policy (policy statements, requirements, metrics; institutional/organizational structure). An exploratory relative research strategy was utilized by using a qualitative approach. The study uses documentation, archive records, and interviews to collect data. In total 60 interviews with respondents were conducted using the purposive sampling technique from the key stakeholders in the oil and gas sector in Tanzania. The study provides knowledge to all stakeholders in the upstream sector of oil and gas in Tanzania, which they can use as a guide to enhancing local content in Tanzania. The findings from this research show that the institutional framework and regulations have not yet made critical progress in enhancing local content in the natural gas value chain in Tanzania. Specifically, issues such as poor participation and contribution of the stakeholders in making the regulations and policies, political intervention, corruption, experience, and poor infrastructures hinder the capacities of the institutional framework and regulations in enhancing local content in the natural gas value chain in Tanzania. The study recommends government and the responsible institution must develop a public-private dialogue forum as a vehicle to build trusted relationships and close collaboration, and use this to jointly discuss key sector-wide development issues which will empower our regulatory framework for enhancing local content policy and proper implementation and framework development in promoting of the local content policy in Tanzania

A critical review of methods, principles and progress for estimating the gross primary productivity of terrestrial ecosystems

The gross primary productivity (GPP) of terrestrial ecosystems reflects the total amount of organic carbon assimilated by vegetation through photosynthesis per given unit of time and area, which represents the largest carbon flux in carbon budget and plays a fundamental part in the carbon cycle. However, challenges such as determining how to select appropriate methods to improve GPP estimation accuracy at the regional/global scale remain. Therefore, it is of great importance to comprehensively review the research progress on the methods for estimating the GPP of terrestrial ecosystems and to summarize their flaws, merits and application fields. In this study, we reviewed studies of GPP estimation at different spatiotemporal scales, and systematically reviewed the principles, formulas, representative methods (Ground observations, Model simulations, SIF based GPP, and NIRv based GPP) at different scales and models (Statistical/Ecological process/Machine learning/Light use efficiency models), as well as the advantages and limitations of each research method/models. A comprehensive comparison of GPP research methods was performed. We expect that this work will provide some straightforward references for researchers to further understand and to choose appropriate models for assessing forest ecosystem GPP according to the research objectives and area. Thus, critical and effective GPP estimation methods can be established for the terrestrial carbon cycle, carbon neutralization accounting and local carbon emission reduction policy formulation and implementation.

MULTIDIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT OF FOOD AND NUTRITIONAL INSECURITY OF THE URBAN POPULATION OF THE STATE OF TOCANTINS, BRAZIL

This article aims to present a multidimensional portrait of food and nutritional (in)security of the urban population of the state of Tocantins. A cross-sectional. population-based study conducted in the urban area of 22 cities of Tocantins. A total of 596 households were evaluated, divided from a systematic draw proportional to the size of the population. Conducted the survey of information referring to the cities. At home we applied a semi-structured questionnaire to head of the family, to obtain socioeconomic and demographic information, and the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale to assess food insecurity. Also we conducted the assessment of the nutritional status of the residents. The prevalence of food insecurity in the state occurred in 63.4% of the households assessed. Micro-regions with higher prevalence of food insecurity also present worrying conditions regarding social indicators and nutritional status. The factors assessed must be considered in order to understand the determinants and implications of food and nutritional (in)security, identify vulnerable families and to assist in the implementation of local public policies to reduce social inequalities and improvement of food and health conditions of the population.

Investment and economic growth: a dilemma in China

The correlation between China’s investment rate and economic growth rate has changed from positive to negative in recent years, and the topic of investment efficiency and overinvestment has regained attention. Based on China’s special institutional arrangements of promotion tournament and considerable discretion in local policy implementation, this article collects national and provincial panel data from 1978 to 2022 and establishes four main findings. First, the increase in investment rate stems in part from the pressure to ‘secure growth’. Second, the negative impact of capital user cost on investment is manifested only before 2007. Third, interregional interaction is very important for provinces’ investment behaviors. Finally, while high investment rate accumulates more capital, it has an adverse effect on the overall productivity. In summary, the Chinese experience of the ‘double-edged sword’ shows that investment in relation to economic growth should be maintained at an appropriate level.