National Level Activities Research Articles

초등영어교육정착여부와발전적방향에대한 다섯초등교사들의인식

The purpose of this study was to invite five elementary teachers to reflect on how established elementary English education is and to identify needed changes toward a well-perched elementary English education. The views of five teachers were collected through interviews and analyzed through thematic analysis. Previous studies in support of their views are presented, and they attest that these views are shared among teachers and researchers on a larger scale. The results of the study suggest that elementary English education fulfill its responsibility to ensure learners basic academic level proficiency, that the current practice of the specialist-teacher-based teaching system be replaced with the class teacher system, that sturdy phonics program be included in the national elementary English curriculum, and that means be taken in order for effective teaching know-hows and practices to be introduced and shared among teachers. The study reports on recent positive national level actions toward assisting learners securing basic academic proficiency and providing more ground in teaching phonics.

THE USE OF ANTIBIOTICS IN FOOD ANIMALS – A THREAT TO HUMAN HEALTH

Background: Antibiotics are widely used in food animals to prevent disease, promote growth and maintain productivity. Modern animal production practices involve regular use of antimicrobials, but abusive use can lead to harmful consequences. The aim of this review was to provide comprehensive information regarding the risk of regular application of antibiotics in food animals, the potential consequences and impact on human health, and options for the prevention of antibiotic resistance in the food chain. Review Results: Although organizations such as WHO, UN, and EU have taken steps to reduce and limit the use of antibiotics in animals, these are proving insufficient in developing countries. In many countries, the antibiotics used in animals appear to exceed that in humans. The abuse in food animals promotes the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and resistance genes that can be transmitted to humans through food consumption and direct contact with animal food or environment mechanisms. This can lead to human infections with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, causing treatment failure and, therefore, more severe and longer-lasting illnesses, increased hospitalization rates, more deaths and higher costs to society. Furthermore, as food animals and animal-derived foods are traded globally, they contribute to antibiotic resistance in countries far from where the problem originates. Conclusion: Overcoming the problem of antibiotic resistance requires a multidisciplinary approach with effective action coordination and information exchange between the agricultural, food, veterinary and health sectors. Through international cooperation, efforts should focus on reducing unnecessary antibiotics use and reducing the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but national-level action on antibiotic resistance and food safety is also essential.

From the history of the defense policy of Kazakhstan Republic (1991-1997)

Relevance. Through specific archival and historical data, this research article describes the purpose of the Republic of Kazakhstan's defense policy, which is based on the goal of peacekeeping, which dates back to the country's early days of independence, the course, results, and historical significance of this activity. In addition, a description and analysis of the fact that this national-level action was carried out in a variety of ways. Purpose. The aims and objectives of the state's defense policy were established and authorized on a legal basis in the first stage. The training strategy for national military experts in several fields has been designed and accepted. The issue of the Armed Forces' contemporary equipment has been addressed and implemented. Methodology. From this period, the Republic of Kazakhstan began to work to ensure the defense capabilities of the Armed Forces of the country, as well as to ensure stability and peace in Central Asia. In particular, the Republic of Kazakhstan became a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, founded by the CIS member states, and began to hold joint events. Results. In particular, cooperation in the field of joint defense with the Russian Federation was established and further developed. For this purpose, equal relations with the People's Republic of China have been ensured. From the first days of independence, the Republic of Kazakhstan has laid the foundation for multifaceted cooperation with the Republic of Turkey in this area. The work of the Republic of Kazakhstan carried out by mutual agreements of this content with the United States was remarkable. At the same time, attention was paid to the relations of independent Kazakhstan with NATO and its adoption was included in the “Partnership for Peace” Program. Conclusions. As a result of the concrete measures taken for this purpose, the capacity of the Armed Forces of the State has increased and has become a strong guarantee of the country's security.

Rewarding mobility? Towards a realistic European policy agenda for academics at risk

This article maps from a critical and comparative perspective how scholars at risk are currently being integrated into the European research infrastructure, as well as in various EU and non-EU Member States. The focus is on three countries ranging from older to newer EU members to one non-EU member state—Hungary, Romania and the United Kingdom—as well as on EU-level organisations. We draw on twelve in-depth interviews conducted with key stakeholders involved in the process of academic migration (non-governmental organisations, EU and national level actors) to identify key issues concerning academics at risk. Finally, we call for a robust EU-level response to an issue that is currently inadequately addressed by national governments, professional associations and NGOs. As we argue, the focus on mobility as a factor supporting research excellence in the regular European research infrastructure can have negative unintended outcomes for scholars at risk. For many of them, rewarding mobility can entail the threat of losing their legal status in temporary places of migration. What is needed is a nuanced approach for scholars at risk in a diverse range of situations, which should involve closer cooperation between international academic bodies and EU policy makers, and complement support for those who need to escape to third countries with the offer of remote work in the country where they are able to obtain a secure residence permit.

Solutions in search of a problem: Opening policy windows for Business Improvement Districts in the Nordic countries

Policy mobility literature invites us to consider the power-laden processes of how urban policies are exported, mimicked, and transformed in different urban contexts. However, recent critique has highlighted the need for a fuller understanding of urban policy context to understand where and when policies come to be implemented in new settings and how they are transformed. The purpose of this study is to explore understandings of urban policy context in a comparative study of policy mobility, and specifically relations between internationally packaged concepts, local pilot projects and national level actors. We develop a framework for understanding these relations in policy mobility based on case studies of BID policy development in Sweden and Denmark drawing on both Policy Mobility literature and a Multiple Streams Approach. The main finding is that local pilots play a key role in translating packaged policy concepts but also serve as ‘proof of concept’ for further institutionalization. The way these pilots are discursively situated in relation to ‘problems’ is therefore of central importance for further implementation. Furthermore, the study highlights the role of policy entrepreneurs that connect local pilots (and discursive problems) with national level actors, and political opportunities.

Individual interactions in a multi-country implementation-focused quality of care network for maternal, newborn and child health: A social network analysis.

The Network for Improving Quality of Care for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (QCN) was established to build a cross-country platform for joint-learning around quality improvement implementation approaches to reduce mortality. This paper describes and explores the structure of the QCN in four countries and at global level. Using Social Network Analysis (SNA), this cross-sectional study maps the QCN networks at global level and in four countries (Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Malawi and Uganda) and assesses the interactions among actors involved. A pre-tested closed-ended structured questionnaire was completed by 303 key actors in early 2022 following purposeful and snowballing sampling. Data were entered into an online survey tool, and exported into Microsoft Excel for data management and analysis. This study received ethical approval as part of a broader evaluation. The SNA identified 566 actors across the four countries and at global level. Bangladesh, Malawi and Uganda had multiple-hub networks signifying multiple clusters of actors reflecting facility or district networks, whereas the network in Ethiopia and at global level had more centralized networks. There were some common features across the country networks, such as low overall density of the network, engagement of actors at all levels of the system, membership of related committees identified as the primary role of actors, and interactions spanning all types (learning, action and information sharing). The most connected actors were facility level actors in all countries except Ethiopia, which had mostly national level actors. The results reveal the uniqueness and complexity of each network assessed in the evaluation. They also affirm the broader qualitative evaluation assessing the nature of these networks, including composition and leadership. Gaps in communication between members of the network and limited interactions of actors between countries and with global level actors signal opportunities to strengthen QCN.

Indonesia's Role in Preventing Transnational Cyber Pornography of Children in the Southeast Asian Region Viewed From a Political Law Approach

Indonesia, which is a member of the Southeast Asian region called the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), must have a duty and role to prevent Cyber Pornography of children in the Southeast Asian region. In this research, a normative juridical research method is used with a political law study approach. Indonesia's role in preventing Transnational Cyber Pornography of Children in the Southeast Asian Region Viewed from the Political Approach of Law is by ratifying the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography into Law Number 10 of 2012, then Indonesia also became a country that followed The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women and against Children, which was approved in 2013 which aims to encourage regional cooperation in supporting national level actions in ending violence against children, especially the crime of Cyber Pornography in ASEAN. Indonesia also followed the follow-up of The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women and against Children in 2013, namely the ASEAN National Action Plan on the Elimination of Violence against Children 2016-2025, held a 2012 Conference through ECPAT Indonesia's Agency on child protection attended by ASEAN countries. Indonesia was also represented by the Indonesian Child Protection Commission and ECPAT attended the German Southeast Asian Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG) Conference located at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University in Thailand, the purpose of this conference was to address the problem of child pornography and the conclusion of this conference required cross-country and cross-regional cooperation in combating child pornography. Suggestions that can be given are revamping the rules (making special international treaties) and the need for cross- border child pornography crimes to be designated as serious and extraditable crimes.

National-level key stakeholders' perspectives regarding intervention progression and emerging challenges within the national stillbirth reduction response in Uganda.

Implementation of evidence-based interventions was adopted to respond to the stillbirth burden from the global campaigns. However, new challenges emerge in the process of rolling out such interventions into routine services more so in the context of resource-limited settings. Since the scale-up of policy recommendations to address stillbirth in Uganda, the health system response has seldom been explored. This study was conducted among national-level key stakeholders to elicit their perspectives regarding intervention progression and challenges emerging from the implementation of the national stillbirth reduction strategies in Uganda. The study adopted an exploratory qualitative design with interviews conducted among a purposively selected sample of national-level actors drawn from the maternal and Child Health (MCH) policy networks. Respondents were primed with ongoing national-level stillbirth reduction strategies as a case and later asked for their opinions regarding intervention progression and emerging challenges. All interviews were conducted in English and transcribed verbatim. Atlas. ti was used to facilitate the coding processes which used a pre-determined codebook developed a priori based on the applied framework. A thematic analysis technique was used. Human resources as reflected in the slow recruitment of essential staff, motivation and attitudes of the available human resource, on and off-drug stockouts, and equipment interruptions posed challenges to the effective implementation of interventions to address the stillbirth burden. The policy translation process was sometimes faced with deviations from the recommended practice. Deviations from guideline implementation, inadequate managerial skills of the health workers and managers in stewarding the implementation processes, inadequate implementation feedback, loops in communication and working with a passive community also posed process-dependent bottlenecks. Outcome expectation challenges stemmed from the inability to deliver stillbirth reduction interventions along the Reproductive Maternal New born Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) continuum of care and the overconcentration of facility-level intervention with less focus on community/demand side interventions. In this exploratory study, national-level stakeholders perceive the adopted stillbirth reduction strategies as having the potential to address the burden. They, however, highlight potential challenges along the input-process-outcome continuum which ought to be addressed and opportunities to explore potential solutions befitting the national-level context.

Europeanization mechanisms in context: metropolitan development through integrated territorial investments in Central and Eastern Europe

ABSTRACT Europeanization affects policies in much of Europe, but has uneven impacts in different regions. The aim of this paper is to causally explain how and why actors reacted to the European Union (EU) policy. We tested the presence of social learning and coercion mechanisms and how their operation was conditioned by policy capacities (contextual factors). Europeanization is traced through integrated territorial investment (ITI) implementation, a new EU Cohesion Policy tool. The Ostrava Metropolitan Region case study in Czechia revealed that national-level actors had responded dominantly to ITI by social learning and local actors with coercion.

Local stakeholder perceptions of forest degradation: Keys to sustainable tropical forest management.

Land use policies and planning in Latin America have been partially successful in halting deforestation yet have not stopped forest degradation. Here, we study the different stakeholders' perspectives of the drivers of forest degradation. We use Colombia as a case study for understanding synergies and trade-offs of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and analyzed what the most important causes are, to whom it matters, and their regional contribution. We identified a common perception, but miscommunication and misunderstandings occur between local- and national-level actors in terms of their views on responsibilities and rates of change. The results are a call for action. Cross-scale governance is necessary to improve the design and implementation of policies for forest management at the subnational and local levels and to ensure that we move toward sustainable development without worsening existing inequalities. It is essential that countries provide the enabling conditions to develop a coherent governing framework.

Toward sustainable and linguistically responsive support measures for recently arrived language learners

ABSTRACT The number of immigrant students in Finland is increasing; thus, this qualitative case study investigates ways of providing targeted support measures for recently arrived Finnish language learners (RAFLLs) in Finnish lower secondary education. Focusing on linguistic responsiveness, the teaching arrangements and support measures are examined not only from a teacher perspective but also from the perspectives of municipality- and national-level actors by utilizing ecological systems theory. The findings revealed two themes, sustainability and holistic linguistic responsiveness, that reflect the core issues of the current challenges related to organizing teaching and support measures for RAFLLs. Sustainable support measures should be developed on and between all ecosystemic levels. Furthermore, measures for supporting RAFLLs must be developed with an all-encompassing linguistically responsive approach (LRA). The development processes require a more coherent dialogue between the schools, the municipalities, and the national-level actors.

Assessing the scalability of a health management-strengthening intervention at the district level: a qualitative study in Ghana, Malawi and Uganda

BackgroundThe scale-up of successfully tested public health interventions is critical to achieving universal health coverage. To ensure optimal use of resources, assessment of the scalability of an intervention is recognized as a crucial step in the scale-up process. This study assessed the scalability of a tested health management-strengthening intervention (MSI) at the district level in Ghana, Malawi and Uganda.MethodsQualitative interviews were conducted with intervention users (district health management teams, DHMTs) and implementers of the scale-up of the intervention (national-level actors) in Ghana, Malawi and Uganda, before and 1 year after the scale-up had started. To assess the scalability of the intervention, the CORRECT criteria from WHO/ExpandNet were used during analysis.ResultsThe MSI was seen as credible, as regional- and national-level Ministry of Health officials were championing the intervention. While documented evidence on intervention effectiveness was limited, district- and national-level stakeholders seemed to be convinced of the value of the intervention. This was based on its observed positive results regarding management competencies, teamwork and specific aspects of health workforce performance and service delivery. The perceived need for strengthening of management capacity and service delivery showed the relevance of the intervention, and relative advantages of the intervention were its participatory and sustainable nature. Turnover within the DHMTs and limited (initial) management capacity were factors complicating implementation. The intervention was not contested and was seen as compatible with (policy) priorities at the national level.ConclusionWe conclude that the MSI is scalable. However, to enhance its scalability, certain aspects should be adapted to better fit the context in which the intervention is being scaled up. Greater involvement of regional and national actors alongside improved documentation of results of the intervention can facilitate scale-up. Continuous assessment of the scalability of the intervention with all stakeholders involved is necessary, as context, stakeholders and priorities may change. Therefore, adaptations of the intervention might be required. The assessment of scalability, preferably as part of the monitoring of a scale-up strategy, enables critical reflections on next steps to make the intervention more scalable and the scale-up more successful.

Collaborative capability building for critical infrastructure resilience: assessment and selection of good practices

Accidental and intentional disruptive events affecting Critical Infrastructure (CI) systems dramatically increase on a global scale and put pressure on governments and CI operators to further improve technical and organizational capacities for securing the continuity of service. Experts in the field call for collaborative approaches to manage CI interdependencies and mitigate domino effects, which amplify the impact of disruptions over space, time and social functions. This paper presents an integrated framework for the classification, assessment and selection of Good Practices (GPs) in the Critical Infrastructure Resilience domain—‘CRAFTER’, from the perspective of collaborative Emergency Management (EM) capability building. The GPs mainly come from local and national level actions and programs, emphasizing the importance of fostering collaborative processes among stakeholders. The study identified 53 GPs through a systematic analysis of available scientific literature and research projects in the CI domain, which were used in the development of the CRAFTER framework. The framework was refined and validated through a questionnaire administered to CI experts, as a way to integrate theory-based and practitioner-based knowledge. The GPs were then classified and assessed according to their intended application context, the activities and functionalities covered, and the EM capabilities they support. The CRAFTER framework enables the assessment and benchmarking of GPs showing their strengths and weaknesses when used to build EM capabilities. It also supports practitioners in selecting a smallest effective bundle of GPS under different institutional and operational contexts, making sure that all the EM phases and capabilities are adequately covered.

Vaccinations for migrants during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic

IssueMigrants have suboptimal vaccination coverage compared to the general population in destination countries due to several factors -administrative barriers or lack of legal entitlements to health-health system barriers (language, lack of cultural sensitivity and community engagement capacity, vaccination costs)-lack of trust in the health system and misconceptions about vaccines due to misinformation or beliefs ProblemCountries should develop national policies and ensure an inclusive, free of charge and proactive vaccination offer to migrants, irrespective of their legal status; and to extend this approach beyond the current pandemic and the sole COVID-19 vaccineResultsTo achieve COVID-19 global herd immunity all population groups, including migrants, needs to access vaccination. Tailored vaccination strategies, once devised, shall be applied to routine national vaccination plan to tackle health inequalitiesLessonsThe following actions shall be implemented at national levelAction 1. Develop tailored and equitable approaches for PH vaccination services targeting migrants through: -free of charge access-decentralization and outreach capacity of the health system-innovative service delivery models (mobile clinics, combined health services, mass vaccination)-health personnel and migrants participatory approach and engagement strategies Action 2. Increase staff engagement through: -increasing health personnel's difference sensitivity-strengthening health personnel's communication capacitiesAction 3. Increase migrants' health and vaccine literacy through: -establishing vaccine literacy education programmes and strategies-offering health promotion educational interventions Action 4. Monitor progress of inclusive vaccination offer by: -setting strategic goals, targets and indicators for national vaccination plans-expanding immunization information systems to monitor vaccination coverage, with appropriate disaggregation by migration status core variablesKey messages Explicitly and proactively include migrants and displaced communities in vaccination plans and set up, test and implement new approaches in primary prevention and vaccination services.Extend this approach beyond the current pandemic and the sole COVID-19 vaccine in order to enhance preparedness to present and future health threats.

Science, Policy, and Conservation Management for a Critically Endangered Primate in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil

Long-standing concerns about the status of the world's endangered primates have stimulated significant international efforts, such as the primate action plans published by the Primate Specialist Group of the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Species Survival Commission. However, national-level action plans that bring together diverse scientific experts, non-governmental organizations, and governmental agencies to focus on improving the status of endangered species are generally rare. Here, we highlight one such plan published a decade ago, the Brazilian National Action Plan for the Conservation of Muriquis, which promoted the integration of scientific findings about the behavioral ecology, demography, and genetics of northern muriquis with conservation measures supported by the Brazilian government. This plan provided a holistic framework for the development of an effective national strategy that has contributed to significant advances in research and management applied to the conservation of this Critically Endangered species. We hope that this model for muriquis will stimulate conservationists around the world to pursue integrative national-level sponsorship of action plans on behalf of other endangered species.

Trends in National-Level Governance and Implementation of the Philippines' Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law from 2014 to 2020.

In 2012, the Philippines passed the Responsible Parenthood and Family Planning Law, a landmark legislation billed as a multisectoral and rights-based approach to further sustainable human development. This article is part of the first comprehensive evaluation of the implementation of the law by national-level actors. This evaluation is intended to assess the progress of implementers in the conduct of mandates, roles, and responsibilities described in the law and its implementing guidelines. Interviews with key national government officials and data from official documents and literature revealed 3 major trends in governance and implementation from 2014 to 2020. First, despite being a multisectoral policy, performance was siloed within individual units of implementing agencies, with limited interagency coordination. Second, although the law explicitly called for interventions to invest in human capital and address socioeconomic disparities for sustainable human development, performance focused on biomedical and health interventions, particularly in the area of family planning. Third, national-level governance for reproductive health interventions concentrated on programmatic and operational concerns. Overall, this case in the Philippines illustrates that fragmented implementation has contributed to the slow improvement of reproductive health outcomes. This study highlights the challenges of governance and multisectoral coordination to implement multidimensional interventions in a low- and middle-income country, and it provides potential areas for political and administrative reform in reproductive health governance in the Philippines. By creating a common narrative and onboarding multiple sectors, officials can better identify and address structural determinants with holistic policy solutions to improve reproductive health outcomes.

The EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility: A Next Phase in EU Socioeconomic Governance?

The European Semester (Semester) was implemented a decade ago. Ample research has addressed the Semester’s development, including some major changes in processes and content (Verdun & Zeitlin, 2018). The Covid-19 crisis seems to mark the next stage in the evolution of the Semester. It connects the Semester with the wider Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) and links its country-specific recommendations to conditional financial support. Thus, the next stage of the Semester suggests a stronger and more deliberate interlinkage of different EU tools that jointly guide national socioeconomic policies. It should support both national public investment and reforms while focusing on meeting the EU priority of moving towards a climate-neutral, digitalized, and resilient Europe (De la Porte & Dagnis Jensen, 2021). This article addresses the question of what room the new-style Semester gives to the involvement of national-level actors, such as national parliaments. Therefore, it expands existing analytical frameworks in order to assess the RRF in connection to the Semester, focusing on the degree of obligation, enforcement, and centralisation. Jointly, this outlines the room the RRF gives to the participation of national actors in the Semester. The article concludes that although the national parliaments are not mentioned in the Regulation establishing the RRF, they could claim a role both in developing national plans for accessing financial support as well as in amending and approving reforms.

Health systems strengthening to arrest the global disability burden: empirical development of prioritised components for a global strategy for improving musculoskeletal health

IntroductionDespite the profound burden of disease, a strategic global response to optimise musculoskeletal (MSK) health and guide national-level health systems strengthening priorities remains absent. Auspiced by the Global Alliance for...

The comparative effectiveness of populist rhetoric in generating online engagement

Worldwide, voters are supporting populist candidates who promise to upend “politics as usual.” Despite all we know about populism, we still do not know how individuals respond to populist content during campaigns, particularly compared to other common content in liberal democracies. This paper adapts framing theory to an online electoral context to argue that populist campaign messages will generate more online engagement compared to three alternative conceptions of the relationship between the people and the elites: pluralism, technocracy, and neutral messages. The paper adapts Snow and Benford's seminal 1988 theory of resonance to studies of populist communication and assess whether populism resonates more with online social media users. An original dataset using the campaign Tweets of 22 national-level actors across five countries is used to test the theory: Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Italy, and Spain (N = 1777). The findings suggest that citizens on Twitter engage with populism more than its alternatives in certain contexts.

When Participation Wins Votes: Explaining the Emergence of Large-Scale Participatory Democracy

Why are large-scale participatory institutions implemented in some countries but only adopted on paper in others? I argue that nationwide implementation of Binding Participatory Institutions (BPIs)-a critical subtype of participatory institutions-is dependent on the backing of a strong institutional supporter, often a political party. In turn, parties will only implement BPIs if they place a lower value on the political costs than on the potential benefits of implementation. This will be true if: 1) significant societal demand exists for BPI implementation and 2) the party's political opponents cannot take advantage of BPIs for their own gain. I test this theory through two detailed case studies of Venezuela and Ecuador, drawing on 165 interviews with key national-level actors and grassroots activists.