Policy Directions Research Articles

REGIONAL HETEROGENEITY IN ADAPTING TO EXTERNAL CHALLENGES: METHODOLOGICAL FEATURES OF ASSESSMENT

In conditions of external challenges, each region reacts to changes in a special way, which determines the heterogeneity of adaptations. The aim of the article is to analyze the methodological features of assessing regional heterogeneity of adaptation to the impact of external challenges. Accordingly, the subject of the study is the consideration of the peculiarities of regional heterogeneity of adaptation to external challenges. Drawing on the analysis of scientific literature, the author systematizes and discloses the groups of approaches concerning various aspects of regional adaptation and assessment of its heterogeneity in terms of: adaptations to future changes as a result of digitalization and automation; economic development of regions and financial provision of the population's interests; spatial features of regional development; creation of conditions for population adaptation and implementation of adaptation opportunities. Based on the results of the study, the author identifies methodological features of the assessment, taking into account: the characteristics of the challenge of the external environment, the level of provision of territories with adaptive capabilities, the manifestation of new elements and structures that characterize the changing environment, their inconsistencies with the management context of regional development, the ability of the regional management system to cope with the relevant changes by optimizing regional management on the basis of a targeted impact on the priorities of the elements of the system. The author proposes the use of indicative assessment methods for the implementation of adaptation as a management function, based on the achievement of target development indicators (set by various development programs and projects), which would ensure the selection of priorities and the development of measures to increase the adaptive capacity of regions in order to improve the directions of the state policy of regional equalization. The results obtained may be in demand for further research concerning the study of regional processes and the substantiation of specific forms and mechanisms of adaptation, as well as the development of a methodology for assessing regional heterogeneity of adaptation.

Determining a future policy focus to support antimicrobial stewardship in community pharmacy: A modified Delphi study

BackgroundOver the past decade, the pharmacy sector's policy, academic and professional spheres have increasingly drawn attention to the opportunities to better leverage the untapped potential of the community pharmacy sector in contributing to global efforts to reduce antimicrobial resistance (AMR). While efforts are in train, progress is slow. ObjectiveTo draw insights from global experts in the field to identify a broad range of potential future policy directions to support community pharmacists' involvement in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). MethodsA modified Delphi technique, comprising two survey rounds to build consensus amongst global community pharmacy sector stakeholders and opinion leaders. In Round 1, participants rated their level of agreement with 28 statements across the three domains of policy design, implementation design, and monitoring and evaluation. Participants were also invited to contribute feedback in Round 1, which was reflected as new statements (n = 10) in Round 2. In Round 2, participants were asked to re-assess Round 1 statements in view of the group consensus and to rate the new statements. Results289 participants were invited to participate. 48/289 (17% response rate) completed Round 1, and 25/42 (60% response rate) completed Round 2. Consensus (defined as >70% agreement) was achieved for 79% (n = 30) of the statements across the three domains. ConclusionPharmacy sector experts agreed that acknowledging community pharmacists in AMS national action plans is an important component, signalling a recognition of the sector's contribution to whole-of-nation AMS efforts. Implementation components that achieved consensus reflect the profession's evolution to a professional service driven model, particularly in complementary AMS initiatives including infection prevention and control measures. Context-specific adjustments to support implementing these AMS measures will be required, in addition to striking the appropriate balance to support the pace of increased community pharmacists'involvement in AMS with building whole-of-profession buy-in.

Роль пропаганды в популяризации и сохранении общероссийской культурной идентичности соотечественников за рубежом

Introduction. As a result of the constitutional reform carried out in 2020, the basic law of the country was supplemented with new norms. They include the provisions of Part 3 of Article 69 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which enshrine guarantees of support for compatriots living abroad. This norm introduces a new category into constitutional legal circulation – “all-Russian cultural identity”, and its preservation is fixed as one of the areas of state activity. Propaganda is interpreted as one of the elements of the mechanism for preserving this identity. The study of all-Russian cultural identity, as well as propaganda in the context of its preservation, is the goal of this work. Theoretical analysis. The term “identity” has been steadily entrenched in domestic legislation and legal science. Its content varies depending on the characteristics of the identity bearer. It has been revealed that the functions of propaganda used to preserve his / her identity depend on the characteristics of the basis for recognizing a person as a compatriot. Еmpirical analysis. The article revealed that neither ethnicity nor citizenship relations are the basis of the nationwide cultural identity of compatriots abroad. The concept under study is based on the cultural (civilizational) code of Russia as a country with a centuries-old statehood, rich history and a multinational people. Propaganda is one of the ways to spread the Russian value and worldview model. Results. The role of propaganda is to form a positive image of the future among compatriots regarding Russia. The upward constitutionalization of relations to support compatriots is due to several factors: the priority of this direction of the Russian national policy; recognition of the identity under study as a legal fact; justification of the new category as confirmation of the civilizational essence of Russia at the constitutional level.

Assessment on the status, challenges and prospects of agricultural technologies intellectual property protection in Ethiopia

Intellectual property right (IPR) is a broad term which describes the protections granted to the creators of IP, and includes; trademarks, copy right, patents, industrial designs, plant breeder’s traderight and in some jurisdictions secrets. The objective of this review is to show the status, challenges, and opportunities for agricultural technologies intellectual protection in the Ethiopian intellectual property regime. There are many agricultural technologies that have the potential to be protected by intellectual property. The results of this review article shows that there are several challenges for the protection of agricultural technologies IPR, including lack of awareness on the concept of IP, lack of clear policy direction for the protection of plant varieties, absence of IP assets creation mechanism, low level of institutional linkage among stakeholders, agricultural IPRs are complex in nature, poor organizational structure to register, and lack of experienced and well-qualified IP officials. But there are also prospects for agricultural technologies IPR protection. Some legal frameworks are in the process of revision, an independent authority for the agriculture sector has established, the Ministry of Agriculture has prepared the draft regulation for PBRs proclamation, amendment of the agricultural and rural development policy has in the process, and the country’s WTO accession process shows some improvement. In conclusion, the status of IP protection for agricultural technologies has not been well-developed and the registration of agricultural technologies is still null.

Institutional Ownership and Concentration of Capital in Pharmaceutical Companies: Evidence from Iran

Background: Institutional owners influence the direction of policy and the performance of owned companies. This research was motivated by the presence of pharmaceutical companies in the Tehran Stock Exchange and the uncertainty surrounding the extent and influence of institutional owners on the policy direction and performance of the companies. Methods: This was a descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study. The descriptive phase of the study involved measuring sales figures, market value, and market share of pharmaceutical companies listed on the stock exchange. In the analytical phase, the network of shareholders' relationships was analyzed with Gephi version 0.1 and Microsoft Excel version 2016, followed by the calculation of the capital concentration index and market share. Results: Estimates indicated that approximately 45% of the pharmaceutical companies in Iran were publicly traded in stock exchange. In 2020, the total value of these companies in the Iranian capital market reached 9.79 billion USD. Out of this amount, 45% (equivalent to 4.4 billion USD) was offered in Tehran Stock Exchange. The concentration of final shareholders, with a Herfindahl–Hirschman index(HHI) index of 0.036, signified a monopolistic competition market. On the other hand, the pharmaceutical capital market could be classified as an oligopoly market (with a value of 58.3) when analyzing only the direct shareholders at level 2. Additionally, the six main holding companies at this level collectively possess 67% of the pharmaceutical capital market. Conclusion: Based on the results, the importance of institutional owners, such as the Social Security Organization (SSO), in the decision-making process regarding the Iranian pharmaceutical market can be acknowledged. The decisions about integration and supply chains which aimed at improving the productivity of the pharmaceutical market, need to be thoroughly examined by the institutions mentioned in this research.

Formation of the State Policy of Re-Emigration of Ukrainians: Problems and Prospects

The article examines the latest large-scale phenomenon on the territory of Ukraine - mass internal and external migration of the country's citizens, caused by the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation. The number and structure of migrations of citizens abroad, in particular by level of education, are outlined, and the directions of emigration are determined. The main problems faced by compatriots abroad and in case of returning to Ukraine are highlighted. The principles on which the future policy of re-emigration and reintegration of Ukrainians should be based are given. Incentives and tools that can encourage migrants to return to the Motherland are summarized. The main problems hindering the development of Ukraine have been identified, without solving which it is impossible to expect a mass return of citizens from abroad. The experience of the migration policy of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the international community, which joined in supporting this country and its citizens during the difficult times of the military conflict for the country, is presented. The main directions of the state policy of re-emigration are formulated based on the needs of returning citizens and the resolution of internal contradictions in the socio-economic development of Ukraine.

Drag story hour at public libraries: the reading child and the construction of fear and othering in Swedish cultural policy debate

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to produce new knowledge about the positions that public libraries both take and are given in the conflicts over politics and identity that play out in contemporary cultural and library policy debates. Using conflicts over drag story hour at public libraries as case, the study seeks to contribute to an emerging body of research that delves into the challenges that public libraries as promoters of democracy are confronting in the conflictual political landscape of today.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents an analysis of debates reported in news articles concerning Drag story hour events held at Swedish public libraries. Utilizing the analytical lenses of discourse theory and plural agonistics, the analysis serves to make visible the lines of conflicts drawn in these debates – particularly focusing on the intersection of different meanings ascribed to the notion of the reading child, and how fear is constructed and used as an othering devise in these conflicts.FindingsDifferent imaginings of the reading child and the construction and imagination of fear and safety shapes the Drag story hour debates. The controversies can be understood as a challenge to the previous hegemony regarding the direction and goals of Swedish cultural and library policy and the pluralistic democratic society these policies are meant to promote.Originality/valueThe paper offers new insights into the consequences of the revival of radical right politics, populism and societal polarization, and the different responses from public libraries.

Safety and Efficacy of Hemp-Derived Products in Animal Feeds – A Narrative Review

The current interest in hemp is not limited to the medicinal use for humans, it is also gaining attention as a valuable feed ingredient for animals. For instance, the processing of whole hemp seed (HS) for the extraction of the oil can result in various feed materials for animals, including HS hulls (HH), dehulled HS, HS oil (HO), and HS cake/meal (HC/HM). However, currently, HS-derived products are not approved as feed ingredients in Canada, in part, because the safety and efficacy of these derivatives, like other jurisdictions, require certification by regulatory bodies for their use in animal feeds. In this context, this document reviews previous studies testing the application of hemp-derived products in various animal feeds including poultry, swine, ruminants, as well as in aquaculture production to support their safety and efficacy. Furthermore, the document attempts to review available data on the transfer of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC; the psychoactive component) into animal products. Hence, the aim of this work is to support future policy directions and guidelines for the application of various hemp-derived products in animal feeds.

The Effectiveness of Government Policy on MSMEs Through Empirical Data Analysis in Lampung

The purpose of this study is to develop a model of policy synchronization between the central government and local governments and to project strategic goals and objectives to be achieved, as well as future policy directions. The research method used is a quantitative research method with descriptive analysis techniques. The research locus is the Central Government and Banten Province. The research time is May–July 2021. The research stages include primary and secondary data collection, data processing, primary and secondary data analysis, and projection analysis for the years 2021–2025. Based on the results of the analysis, the population policy synchronization model between the central and local governments can be implemented by focusing on government regulations and population control frameworks. This finding is expected to be the basis for stakeholders in synchronizing policies at the regional center so that there are no policy differences between the center and the regions. Central and Regional Government policies must be in line so that it can facilitate the implementation of population control policies in the regions. Keywords: policy synchronization, population, central government, local government

The basis of Russia's financial sovereignty

Subject. The article investigates the policy of the largest Russian financial institutions and countering the international sanctions. Objectives. The purpose is to analyze indicators that determine the stability of the Russian financial system. Methods. The study draws on methods of statistical analysis. Results. The paper determined that the basis of Russia's financial sovereignty is made up of enterprises, the production costs of which are reimbursed at the expense of proceeds from goods and services. Conclusions. The findings can be taken into account when determining the main directions of Russia's monetary policy.

Critical discourse analysis of North Korea's foreign policy in Kim Jong Un's speech in 2022

The purpose of this article is to explore the discourse on the direction of North Korea's foreign policy under the leadership of Kim Jong Un. This article uses the concept of critical discourse analysis to analyze North Korea's foreign policy through Kim Jong Un's speech in 2022. For data collection, validation and linguistic investigation using the NVivo 12 Plus application. The data sources used are literature reviews through e-books, news, journals and Google Scholar. The results of the data processing show interesting findings, where in his speech in 2022, Kim Jong Un renewed his Law to threaten military action by South Korea and the United States. In addition, make North Korea's nuclear arsenal the most powerful and absolute and the "most powerful strategic weapon in the world". By developing the National Security discourse presented in 2022, the North Korean government can protect the country, people and sovereignty from enemy influence and make North Korea a country with world-recognized military defense. This National Security Discourse then becomes the main focus of Kim's foreign policy instrument in 2022.The purpose of this article is to explore the discourse on the direction of North Korea's foreign policy under the leadership of Kim Jong Un. This article uses the concept of critical discourse analysis to analyze North Korea's foreign policy through Kim Jong Un's speech in 2022. For data collection, validation and linguistic investigation using the NVivo 12 Plus application. The data sources used are literature reviews through e-books, news, journals and Google Scholar. The results of the data processing show interesting findings, where in his speech in 2022, Kim Jong Un renewed his Law to threaten military action by South Korea and the United States. In addition, make North Korea's nuclear arsenal the most powerful and absolute and the "most powerful strategic weapon in the world". By developing the National Security discourse presented in 2022, the North Korean government can protect the country, people and sovereignty from enemy influence and make North Korea a country with world-recognized military defense. This National Security Discourse then becomes the main focus of Kim's foreign policy instrument in 2022.

Mothers, social capital and children’s physical literacy journeys in rural Australia

ABSTRACT In rural communities in Australia, the provision of sport and physical activities for children almost exclusively relies upon parents and their ability to access and contribute to facilities, funding, volunteers, and administration. This paper brings Putnam’s social capital framework to Whitehead’s conceptualisation of physical literacy as a journey to offer original insight into children’s sport participation and the opportunities arising for physical literacy development in rural communities in Australia. Changes in sport participation in Australia and directions in sport policy set an important context for the project, which is located in a small rural community in Western Australia. It was recognised that access to and engagement with both formal and informal sport environments were important to examine, particularly given participation trends and the need to consider issues of equity and inclusivity concerning the physical literacy opportunities for children in diverse rural communities. Narrative inquiry methodology enabled in-depth exploration of issues of access and opportunity created through rural mothers’ social resources and identity. Participants provided rich insights into the realities and complexities of the rural social landscape and how this impacts their children’s participation. Data illustrates the importance of conceptual links between social capital and physical literacy development. The paper provides new perspectives for policymakers and the local community to consider in seeking more significant equity in children’s sport participation and physical literacy development in rural communities.

Promatics of Sexual Violence Based On The Direction of Government Policy In Handling It

Cases of sexual violence are increasing from year to year, not only in Indonesia but also in several other countries, data from the National Commission for Women shows that cases of sexual violence continue to increase every year, as well as data from the Department of Justice , Office of Justice Program, Bureau of Justice Statistics, The National Crime Victims Survey shows a 68-second increase in Americans experiencing sexual assault. This shows that regulations regarding sexual violence are still weak. In Indonesia, even the Philippines, the Netherlands and the United States have regulated acts of sexual violence, but in substance it is still very lacking so that it has not been able to overcome the acts of sexual violence that have occurred so far. This study intends to analyze how the government should act in reducing the number of victims of sexual violence in Indonesia. Even though to date the government has issued laws and regulations related to sexual violence in 2022 which are issued through law, their implementation has not been optimal. Therefore, there is still a great need to improve government policy measures. Such as revising regulations relating to forms of sexual violence. Apart from that, the government must also be able to make derivative regulations for the Sexual Crimes Law so that they can be used legally.

Can EU Law Be Used to Challenge Better Regulation Practices That Do Not Lead to Better Health?

Legislation produced under the EU Commission's Better Regulation Agenda sometimes fails to achieve the Treaty obligation to ensure a high level of health protection in all EU policies and activities. Public health advocates have raised the question of whether EU law can be employed to challenge this apparent breach of Treaty obligations at the proposal preparation stage, compelling the Commission to amend prospective EU legislation so that it better protects health. This article will demonstrate that unfortunately this is not possible due to the justiciability of both Article 168 TFEU and the Better Regulation Agenda. However, this awareness can help public health advocates to re-focus their efforts on strategies that will likely have a greater impact in swaying the direction of EU health policy.

Trend Research on Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASSs) Based on Shipboard Electronics: Focusing on Text Mining and Network Analysis

The growing adoption of electric propulsion systems in Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASSs) necessitates advancements in shipboard electronics for safe, efficient, and reliable operation. These advancements are crucial for tasks such as real-time sensor data processing, control algorithms for autonomous navigation, and robust decision-making capabilities. This study investigates research trends in MASSs, using bibliographic analysis to identify policy and future research directions in this evolving field. We analyze 3363 MASS-related articles from the Web of Science database, employing co-occurrence word analysis and latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) topic modeling. The findings reveal a rapidly growing field dominated by image recognition research. Keywords such as “datum”, “image”, and “detection” suggest a focus on collecting and analyzing marine data, particularly with deep learning for synthetic aperture radar imagery. LDA confirms this, with “image analysis and classification research” as the leading topic. The study also identifies national and organizational leaders in MASS research. However, research on Arctic routes lags behind that on other areas. This work provides valuable insights for policymakers and researchers, promoting a deeper understanding of MASSs and informing future policy and research agendas regarding the integration of electric propulsion systems within the maritime industry.

Policy Advice and Decolonisation in Papua New Guinea

This essay examines a moment in Papua New Guinea's history when international advice about the country's future had particular weight. In placing rural areas and populations at the centre of policy prescriptions, the advice fitted neatly with the ambitions of the Indigenous politicians and business people who were taking hold of and shaping state power. Whether the outcome, an independent nation‐state following a policy direction which intended to keep the bulk of the population in the countryside, could reverse the unemployment and disorder which had appeared during late colonialism remained to be seen.

Human resources development: Evaluating perceptions against policy

The objective of sustaining smart, sustainable and cohesive inclusive growth, framed by the European strategy, is in line with the global commitments of the Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, an analysis of people’s attitudes towards social policy and perceptions of professional development in Poland against European development policy is crucial. The nationwide representative sample included 1000 respondents aged 18–64. The study used principal component analysis (PCA), an approach for the multi-response optimisation. The results indicate that respondents’ evaluations are in line with the direction of EU labour policy, where their decisions correspond to the planned priorities oriented towards inclusion and cohesion. The PCA analysis showed that employee competencies and priorities for individual standing can be considered strongly correlated. Competencies were also found to be important for the platform to support systemic development. However, the items included in the analysis that are beyond the scope of the ESF+ , although even correlated, are of lesser importance. The research results allow to expand knowledge on the perception of the development policy facets promoted by the EU, supplemented by themes of leadership or immigrants. The study may become a starting point for inclusive and cohesive working climate research.

ПОДХОДЫ ФОРМИРОВАНИЯ МОТИВАЦИИ К ВЕДЕНИЮ ЗОЖ И ПРОВЕДЕНИЮ ПРОФИЛАКТИЧЕСКИХ МЕРОПРИЯТИЙ ПО УКРЕПЛЕНИЮ ЗДОРОВЬЯ У СТУДЕНТОВ МЕДИЦИНСКИХ УНИВЕРСИТЕТОВ

The priority direction of educational policy within the framework of the Priority 2030 academic strategic leadership program is to provide the country's healthcare with qualified and motivated medical personnel, in connection with which the requirements for clinical knowledge and skills, as well as for the skills of a modern doctor, are growing. Research, innovation and project activities become mandatory elements of educational programs, which are implemented through an individual educational trajectory to train specialists who meet a high standard of competencies. One of the directions of the individual educational trajectory is the creation of additional educational programs that expand the opportunities for students to obtain additional competencies. Purpose. On the basis of a sociological survey, to study students' satisfaction with the additional educational program aimed at the formation of professional competencies for training doctors to perform new labor functions in the formation of preventive programs, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and giving up bad habits. Materials and methods. The study includes the development of an additional professional program "Strengthening Public Health" using digital technologies in the field of preserving and strengthening public health, for the training of health professionals. Based on the results of the course of the additional professional program, a sociological survey was conducted in an online format through the Google Forms resource. A link to the survey was sent via email and WhatsApp messenger. Results. The data obtained in the course of the study allow us to see the problem of motivation of students who adhere or do not adhere to a healthy lifestyle and to develop measures aimed at attracting medical university students to physical education, sports and the formation of a healthy lifestyle. Conclusion. The formation of motivation for a healthy lifestyle among students of medical universities is one of the most significant areas of professional training of medical specialists.

Tracking changes in CNCI: the complementarity of standard, collaboration and fractional CNCI in understanding and evaluating research performance

AbstractUsing a global set of ~ 300 institutions, standard, collaboration and fractional Category Normalised Citation Impact (CNCI) indicators are compared between 2009 and 2018 to demonstrate the complementarity of the three variants for research evaluation. Web of Science data show that Chinese institutions appear immune to the indicator used as CNCI changes, generally improvements, are similar for all three variants. Other regions tend to show greater increases in standard CNCI over collaboration CNCI, which in turn is greater than fractional CNCI; however, decreases in CNCI values, particularly in established research economies like North America and western Europe are not uncommon. These findings may highlight the differing extent to which the number of collaborating countries and institutions on papers affect each variant. Other factors affecting CNCI values may be citation practices and hiring of Highly Cited Researchers. Evaluating and comparing the performance of institutions is a main driver of policy, research and funding direction. Decision makers must understand all aspects of CNCI indicators, including the secondary factors illustrated here, by using a ‘profiles not metrics’ approach.

Income per-capita across-countries: stories of catching-up, stagnation, and laggardness

ABSTRACT The convergence/divergence debate and plausible explanations to the process of catching-up remain highly controversial research areas in growth economics. Recently, these issues have been the subject of questionable predictions with regard future prospect for backward countries, raising concerns about the right direction of macroeconomic policy. To explore these issues, a sample of 131 countries is studied over the 1950s–2010s to identify those that have managed to catching-up, remain stagnant, or keep lagging further behind. Time-distance to the frontier and productivity decompositions, based on non-parametric methods, suggest that some countries have successfully completed already the caching-up, and it would take between 27 and 194 years for others to do so in the most optimistic scenario. But many others would never do. Policy implications drawn from the comparative analysis suggests the need to strengthen local innovation in order to increase the ability to catching-up alongside widespread reliance on technology diffusion from abroad.