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Showing papers on "Government published in 1999"


Book
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: Powers of Freedom as mentioned in this paper is an approach to the analysis of political power which extends Foucault's hypotheses on governmentality in challenging ways and argues that freedom is not the opposite of government but one of its key inventions and most significant resources.
Abstract: Powers of Freedom, first published in 1999, offers a compelling approach to the analysis of political power which extends Foucault's hypotheses on governmentality in challenging ways. Nikolas Rose sets out the key characteristics of this approach to political power and analyses the government of conduct. He analyses the role of expertise, the politics of numbers, technologies of economic management and the political uses of space. He illuminates the relation of this approach to contemporary theories of 'risk society' and 'the sociology of governance'. He argues that freedom is not the opposite of government but one of its key inventions and most significant resources. He also seeks some rapprochement between analyses of government and the concerns of critical sociology, cultural studies and Marxism, to establish a basis for the critique of power and its exercise. The book will be of interest to students and scholars in political theory, sociology, social policy and cultural studies.

5,627 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors investigated empirically the determinants of the quality of governments in a large cross-section of countries and found that countries that are poor, close to the equator, ethnolinguistically heterogeneous, use French or socialist laws, or have high proportions of Catholics or Muslims exhibit inferior government performance.
Abstract: We investigate empirically the determinants of the quality of governments in a large cross-section of countries. We assess government performance using measures of government intervention, public sector efficiency, public good provision, size of government, and political freedom. We find that countries that are poor, close to the equator, ethnolinguistically heterogeneous, use French or socialist laws, or have high proportions of Catholics or Muslims exhibit inferior government performance. We also find that the larger governments tend to be the better performing ones. The importance of (reasonably) exogenous historical factors in explaining the variation in government performance across countries sheds light on the economic, political, and cultural theories of institutions.

5,555 citations


Book
28 Oct 1999
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the fundamentals of electronic commerce and its terminology, describing what it is and how it is being conducted and managed, focusing on the major opportunities, limitations, issues, and risks impacting the market place around the world as we enter the second millenium.
Abstract: From the Publisher: This book presents the fundamentals of electronic commerce and its terminology, describing what it is and how it is being conducted and managed. It also focuses on the major opportunities, limitations, issues, and risks impacting the market place around the world as we enter the second millenium. Chapter topics include retailing, consumer behavior and market research, advertisement and publishing, services, intranet and extranet application, payments, corporate strategy, public policy, and infrastructure. For anyone interested in network and Internet transactions — especially managers and professional in any functional area of the business world, and people in government, education, and health services.

2,095 citations


Book
03 Jan 1999
TL;DR: In many countries, public sector institutions impose heavy burdens on economic life: heavy and arbitrary taxes retard investment, regulations enrich corrupt bureaucrats, state firms consume national wealth, and the most talented people turn to rent-seeking rather than productive activities as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: In many countries, public sector institutions impose heavy burdens on economic life: heavy and arbitrary taxes retard investment, regulations enrich corrupt bureaucrats, state firms consume national wealth, and the most talented people turn to rent-seeking rather than productive activities. As a consequence of such predatory policies--described in this book as the grabbing hand of the state--entrepreneurship lingers and economies stagnate. The authors of this collection of essays describe many of these pathologies of a grabbing hand government, and examine their consequences for growth. The essays share a common viewpoint that political control of economic life is central to the many government failures that we observe. Fortunately, a correct diagnosis suggests the cures, including the best strategies of fighting corruption, privatization of state firms, and institutional building in the former socialist economies. Depoliticization of economic life emerges as the crucial theme of the appropriate reforms. The book describes the experiences with the grabbing hand government and its reform in medieval Europe, developing countries, transition economies, as well as today's United States.

1,254 citations


Book
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: In Inventing the Internet, Janet Abbate unfolds an often twisting tale of collaboration and conflict among a remarkable variety of players, including government and military agencies, computer scientists in academia and industry, graduate students, telecommunications companies, standards organizations, and network users.
Abstract: From the Publisher: In Inventing the Internet, Janet Abbate focuses on the social and cultural factors that influenced the Internet's design and use. She unfolds an often twisting tale of collaboration and conflict among a remarkable variety of players, including government and military agencies, computer scientists in academia and industry, graduate students, telecommunications companies, standards organizations, and network users.

983 citations


Book
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: The authors examined the East Asian experience to show how the developmental state involves a combination of political, bureaucratic, and moneyed influences that shape economic life in the region, and compared the experiences of East Asian countries with those of France, Brazil, Mexico, and India.
Abstract: Developmental state, n.: the government, motivated by desire for economic advancement, intervenes in industrial affairs. The notion of the developmental state has come under attack in recent years. Critics charge that Japan's success in putting this notion into practice has not been replicated elsewhere, that the concept threatens the purity of freemarket economics, and that its shortcomings have led to financial turmoil in Asia. In this informative and thought-provoking book, a team of distinguished scholars revisits this notion to assess its continuing utility and establish a common vocabulary for debates on these issues. Drawing on new political and economic theories and emphasizing recent events, the authors examine the East Asian experience to show how the developmental state involves a combination of political, bureaucratic, and moneyed influences that shape economic life in the region. Taking as its point of departure Chalmers Johnson's account of the Japanese developmental state, the book explores the interplay of forces that have determined the structure of opportunity in the region. The authors critically address the argument for centralized political involvement in industrial development (with a new contribution by Johnson), describe the historical impact of colonialism and the Cold War, consider new ideas in economics, and compare the experiences of East Asian countries with those of France, Brazil, Mexico, and India.

973 citations


Book
26 Jul 1999
TL;DR: The theory of privatization: basic characteristics of goods and services alternative arrangements for providing goods and service Part 3 The practice of privatisation: why and how to privatize the results of privatization contracting for public services divesting enterprises and assets public-private partnerships for infrastructure reforming education and privatizing the welfare state overcoming opposition to privatization the future of privatization.
Abstract: Part 1 Background of privatization: introduction the growth of government Part 2 The theory of privatization: basic characteristics of goods and services alternative arrangements for providing goods and services Part 3 The practice of privatization: why and how to privatize the results of privatization contracting for public services divesting enterprises and assets public-private partnerships for infrastructure reforming education and privatizing the welfare state overcoming opposition to privatization the future of privatization

900 citations


Book
01 Jun 1999
TL;DR: In this article, the United Nations' reaction to the murder of hundreds of thousands of Tutsi in Rwanda is investigated, including expatriates being rescued whilst Rwandans were left to their fate.
Abstract: Who did the planning for the murder of hundreds of thousands in Tutsi? Has was mass murder organised in such a short time? Why was the French state supportive of the former government? Did their arms sustain this regime? This report looks at the United Nations' reaction - were expatriates rescued whilst Rwandans were left to their fate?

822 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors check whether the predictions of the Grossman-Helpman model are consistent with the data and, if the model finds support, to estimate its key structural parameters.
Abstract: The Grossman-Helpman "Protection for Sale" model, concerning the political economy of trade protection, yields clear predictions for the cross-sectional structure of import barriers. Our objective is to check whether the predictions of the Grossman-Helpman model are consistent with the data and, if the model finds support, to estimate its key structural parameters. We find that the pattern of protection in the United States in 1983 is broadly consistent with the predictions of the model. A surprising finding is that the weight of welfare in the government's objective function is many times larger than the weight of contributions.

739 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is concluded that the creation and maintenance of a relatively stable set of key actors with aligned interests related to the GIS technology had not been achieved in any of the districts studied by the end of the research period.
Abstract: This paper describes a research study, carried out over the period 1993-95, of the efforts made in India to develop and use geographical information systems (GIS) to aid district-level administration. We give a detailed description of our research approach, drawing from contextualism as a broad research methodology and using actor-network theory for analytical purposes. The main section of the paper provides an in-depth analysis of a major GIS initiative from a particular Indian government ministry. We conclude that the creation and maintenance of a relatively stable set of key actors with aligned interests related to the GIS technology had not been achieved in any of the districts studied by the end of the research period. Our analysis leads to implications for future action that go beyond traditional prescriptions, such as improved participation or better training, toward the need for higher level-interventions in such areas as educational processes and administrative structures. We then turn to criteria for judging the merits of an intensive research study and illustrate to what extent this study satisfies the criteria. Finally, we draw conclusions on the contribution of this paper to the promotion of intensive research and to the opening up of new fields of IS research.

714 citations


Book
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: The history and reality of the residential school system are discussed in detail in this paper, showing that the residential system was chronically underfunded and often mismanaged, and documents in detail and how this affected the health, education, and well-being of entire generations of Aboriginal children.
Abstract: "I am going to tell you how we are treated. I am always hungry." - Edward B., a student at Onion Lake School (1923)""[I]f I were appointed by the Dominion Government for the express purpose of spreading tuberculosis, there is nothing finer in existance that the average Indian residential school." - N. Walker, Indian Affairs Superintendent (1948) For over 100 years, thousands of Aboriginal children passed through the Canadian residential school system. Begun in the 1870s, it was intended, in the words of government officials, to bring these children into the "circle of civilization," the results, however, were far different. More often, the schools provided an inferior education in an atmosphere of neglect, disease, and often abuse. Using previously unreleased government documents, historian John S. Milloy provides a full picture of the history and reality of the residential school system. He begins by tracing the ideological roots of the system, and follows the paper trail of internal memoranda, reports from field inspectors, and letters of complaint. In the early decades, the system grew without planning or restraint. Despite numerous critical commissions and reports, it persisted into the 1970s, when it transformed itself into a social welfare system without improving conditions for its thousands of wards. A National Crime shows that the residential system was chronically underfunded and often mismanaged, and documents in detail and how this affected the health, education, and well-being of entire generations of Aboriginal children.

Posted Content
TL;DR: This paper investigated empirically the determinants of the quality of governments in a large cross-section of countries and found that countries that are poor, close to the equator, ethnolinguistically heterogeneous, use French or socialist laws, or have high proportions of Catholics or Muslims exhibit inferior government performance.
Abstract: We investigate empirically the determinants of the quality of governments in a large cross-section of countries. We assess government performance using measures of government intervention, public sector efficiency, public good provision, size of government, and political freedom. We find that countries that are poor, close to the equator, ethnolinguistically heterogeneous, use French or socialist laws, or have high proportions of Catholics or Muslims exhibit inferior government performance. We also find that the larger governments tend to be the better performing ones. The importance of historical factors in explaining the variation in government performance across countries sheds light on the economic, political, and cultural theories of institutions.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated hypotheses generated by the veto players' theory and found that an increase in the number of veto players and their ideological distance from one another will reduce the ability of both government and parliament to produce significant laws.
Abstract: This article investigates hypotheses generated by the veto players' theory. The fundamental insight of this theory is that an increase in the number of veto players (for all practical purposes, in parliamentary systems the number of parties in government) and their ideological distance from one another will reduce the ability of both government and parliament to produce significant laws. In addition, the number of significant laws increases with the duration of a government and with an increase in the ideological difference between current and previous government. These propositions are tested with legislative data (both laws and government decrees) on working time and working conditions identified in two legislative sources: the NATLEX computerized database in Geneva (produced by the International Labour organization) and Blanpain's International Encyclopedia for Labour Law and Industrial Relations. The data cover fifteen West European countries for the period 1981–91. The evidence corroborates the proposed hypotheses.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a simple multitask career concern model was used to analyse the incentives of government agencies' officials, and it was shown that professionalization creates a sense of mission for the agency, and that specialization of officials raises their incentives.
Abstract: The paper uses a simple multitask career concern model in order to analyse the incentives of government agencies' officials. Incentives are impaired by the agency pursuing multiple missions. A lack of focus is even more problematic in the case of fuzzy missions, that is when outsiders are uncertain about the exact nature of the missions actually pursued by the agency. Consequently agencies pursuing multiple missions receive less autonomy. The paper further shows that professionalization creates a sense of mission for the agency, and that the specialization of officials raises their incentives. Last, the paper compares its predictions with the stylized facts on Government bureaucracies. © 1999 The Review of Economic Studies Limited.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors studied the effect of personal service on firm value and found that such linkages with the government positively affect firm value, indicating that firm-specific benefits may result from political strategies.
Abstract: Firms employ a variety of political strategies (e.g., lobbying, contributions) in an attempt to gain influence or access to the public policy process. A variety of benefits may accrue to firms that are successful in creating a linkage with the government: information, access, influence, reduced uncertainty and transaction costs, etc. However, the direct benefits of such strategies are difficult to observe. One political strategy is studied here—personal service (having a firm representative serve in a political capacity). Event-study methodology results show that such linkages with the government positively affect firm value. These findings indicate that firm-specific benefits may result from political strategies. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Journal ArticleDOI
Joe Soss1
TL;DR: This article explored the link between welfare participation and broader forms of political involvement and found evidence that policy designs structure clients' program experiences in ways that teach alternative lessons about the nature of government.
Abstract: This article explores the links between welfare participation and broader forms of political involvement. Adopting a political learning perspective, I present evidence that policy designs structure clients' program experiences in ways that teach alternative lessons about the nature of government. Through their experiences under a given policy design, welfare clients develop program-specific beliefs about the wisdom and efficacy of asserting themselves. Because clients interpret their experiences with welfare bureaucracies as evidence of how government works more generally, beliefs about the welfare agency and client involvement become the basis for broader political orientations. I conclude that the views of government that citizens develop through program participation help explain broader patterns of political action and quiescence.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Performance measurement has been part of the lexicon of public administration in the United States for several decades, but rhetoric has outdistanced practice by far in this area, as reflected in legislative mandates and administrative initiatives as well as considerable conference and training activity and a revived stream of books and articles on the subject as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Performance measurement has been part of the lexicon of public administration in the United States for several decades, but rhetoric has outdistanced practice by far in this area. Currently, however, there is a renewed interest in performance measures as an essential element of the results-oriented management movement that is sweeping the field, as reflected in legislative mandates and administrative initiatives as well as considerable conference and training activity and a revived stream of books and articles on the subject. Nevertheless, the extent to which performance measurement has taken hold in a meaningful way in public agencies is still an open question, particularly with respect to local government. Based on a survey of U.S. cities with populations of 25,000 and over, this article explores the extent to which performance measures are used and how they are used in contemporary municipal government. The Quest For Performance Measurement Performance measurement is an old idea that has taken on renewed importance. Measuring workload and worker efficiency was clearly part of the scientific management approach at the turn of the century, and the International City Management Association produced a publication on measuring municipal activities as early as 1943 (Ridley and Simon, 1943). In more modern times concern for measuring the performance of public programmatic entities arose with the interest in program budgeting in the 1960s and program evaluation in the 1970s. Harry Hatry and colleagues at the Urban Institute began publishing materials that promoted the use of performance measures and provided instruction on how to develop and use them (Hatry and Fisk, 1971; Waller, et al., 1976; Hatry, et al., 1977), while other authors talked about how to incorporate them in larger management processes (Altman, 1979; Epstein, 1984; Steiss, 1985; Wholey, 1983). A related but different stream of articles focused on performance measures as they play into the budgeting process (Grizzle, 1985; 1987; Brown and Pyers, 1988). Yet it has generally been understood that the promise and potential of performance measures greatly exceed their actual usefulness in practice. Indeed, one of the underlying premises of Downs and Larkey's The Search for Government Efficiency (1986) was that for a variety of reasons most governmental jurisdictions did not have the capability of measuring the performance of their programs. Performance Measurement in an Era of Public Management Reform A number of forces in the field of public administration have led to a renewed, or reinvigorated, interest in performance measurement in the 1990s. Taxpayer revolts, pressure for the privatization of public services, legislative initiatives aimed at controlling "runaway" spending, and the devolution of many responsibilities to lower levels of government have generated increased demands to hold government agencies accountable to legislatures and the public in terms of what they spend and the results they produce. In addition, the reinventing government movement initiated by Osborne and Gaebler in 1992 and Vice President Al Gore's National Performance Review in 1993 have called for a new way of thinking about how public agency performance is defined and measured. Driven in part by these external pressures and in part by their own motivation to provide cost-effective public services, public managers have been using a variety of approaches to strengthen the management capacity of their organizations, most notably through strategic planning (Bryson, 1995; Berry and Wechsler, 1995), through more encompassing strategic management processes (Eadie, 1989; Koteen, 1991; Vinzant and Vinzant, 1996), through quality management programs and reengineering processes (Berman and West, 1995; Cohen and Brand, 1993; Davenport, 1994; Hyde, 1995; Kravchuck and Leighton, 1993), and through benchmarking practices (Bruder, 1994; Keehley, et al. 1997), as well as reformed budgeting processes (Joyce, 1993; Lee, 1997). …

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined the growth of government during this century as a result of giving women the right to vote using cross-sectional time-series data for 1870-1940 and examined state government expenditures and revenue as well as voting by U.S. House and Senate state delegations.
Abstract: This paper examines the growth of government during this century as a result of giving women the right to vote. Using cross‐sectional time‐series data for 1870–1940, we examine state government expenditures and revenue as well as voting by U.S. House and Senate state delegations and the passage of a wide range of different state laws. Suffrage coincided with immediate increases in state government expenditures and revenue and more liberal voting patterns for federal representatives, and these effects continued growing over time as more women took advantage of the franchise. Contrary to many recent suggestions, the gender gap is not something that has arisen since the 1970s, and it helps explain why American government started growing when it did.

BookDOI
Stephen Knack1
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed links between social capital and government performance, using data for the United States, using survey measures of citizen confidence in government as well as subjective indicators of bureaucratic inefficiency.
Abstract: Social capital - in the form of general trust and strong civi norms that call for cooperation when large-scale collective action is needed - can improve government performance in three ways: 1) It can broaden government accountability, making government responsive to citizens at large, rather than to narrow interests. 2) It can facilitate agreement where political preferences are polarized. 3) It is associated with greater innovation when policymakers face new challenges. Consistent with these arguments, Putnam (1993) has shown that regional governments in the more trusting, more civic-minded northern, and central parts of Italy provide public services more effectively than do those in the less trusting, less civic-minded southern regions. Using cross-country data, La Porta and others (1997), and Knack and Keefer (1997), obtained findings consistent with Putnam's evidence. For samples of about thirty nations (represented in the World Value Surveys), they found that societies with greater trust tended to have governments that performed significantly better. The authors used survey measures of citizen confidence in government as well as subjective indicators of bureaucratic inefficiency. The author further analyzes links between social capital and government performance, using data for the United States. In states with more social capital (as measured by an index of trust, volunteering, and census response), government performance is rated higher, based on ratings constructed by the Government Performance Project. This result is highly robust to including a variety of control variables, considering the possibility of influential outlying values, treating the performance ratings as ordinal, rather than cardinal, and correcting for possible endogeneity.


Book ChapterDOI
01 May 1999
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of information systems in public sector reform, including practical guidance and analytical insights, is reviewed, drawing on case studies from the US, UK, Europe and developing countries.
Abstract: From the Publisher: This work reviews the role of information systems in public sector reform, including practical guidance and analytical insights. It discusses key topics, drawing on case studies from the US, UK, Europe and developing countries.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Wilson et al. as discussed by the authors examined the possible link between volunteering and "leading the good life" and found that volunteers are more civic minded and more likely to take an active role in political life.
Abstract: JOHN WILSON [*] MARC MUSICK [**] I INTRODUCTION To most people, a "volunteer" is someone who contributes time to helping others with no expectation of pay or other material benefit to herself. However, this does not mean that volunteer work is of no consequence for the volunteer. Indeed, it is widely believed that helping others is as beneficial for the donor as it is for the recipient. "Research studies show that most people do in fact hold the belief that helping others is a good way to gain fulfillment for yourself." [1] In this article, we review some of the research on the supposed benefits of volunteering and describe briefly some of the results of our own work in this area. We first examine the contribution volunteering is thought to make to a society's social capital, its supply of the generalized trust and norms of reciprocity that make democratic politics possible. Are volunteers more civic minded and more likely to take an active role in political life? Next, we examine the possible link between volunteering and "leading the good life." Are vol unteers less likely to engage in anti-social behavior? We then consider the contribution volunteering might make to both physical and mental health. Is there any evidence to suggest that volunteering can make people healthier or contribute positive feelings of well-being? Finally, we examine the contribution volunteering makes to occupational achievement. Is there any empirical evidence to support the notion that volunteering is either a direct path to good jobs or indirectly provides the self-confidence and skills needed to secure good jobs or to do well in the jobs we have? II CITIZENSHIP For a number of reasons, the possibility that volunteering is useful for building and maintaining civil society--a sphere of activity where people feel free to organize groups, engage in public debate, and in which norms of mutual respect and toleration protect the voices of majority and minority alike--has recently been undergoing fresh scrutiny. Part of this renewed interest stems from the collapse of the Soviet Union and the task faced by newly democratizing countries trying to build, or re-build, the infrastructure of participatory politics. How do people acquire the skills and aptitudes necessary for the give-and-take of democratic government? Some of this renewed interest also stems from concerns expressed in established democracies that fewer and fewer people are taking the time to vote, run for local office, or support political organizations with their time and money. Ever since de Tocqueville's mid-nineteenth-century analysis of American democracy, it has been assumed that a healthy voluntary secto r is vital to the survival of democratic politics. [2] De Tocqueville believed that voluntary associations were essential intermediary bodies between the mass of individuals and their institutions of government. [3] Active membership in a voluntary association created the generalized trust--a trust that extends beyond the boundaries of kinship and friendship--on which democratic political life depends. If the habit of "joining" were allowed to die, so too would democracy. Robert Putnam, who found substantial variation in the performance of Italian governmental institutions across different regions, has recently revived this idea. [4] His explanation for this variation centered on the concept of social capital. Putnam defined social capital as "features of social organization, such as trust, norms, and networks, that can improve the efficiency of society by facilitating coordinated actions." [5] His theory, redolent of de Tocqueville, is that active membership in voluntary associations generates the trust necessary for people to organize effectively and act collectively. The associations need not be political to have this beneficial effect, although those that were organized "horizontally," where members could easily participate in running the organization, would be more likely to produce it. …

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The public sector faces increasing demands to run government like a business, importing privatesector concepts such as entrepreneurism, privatization, treating the citizen like a "customer" and ma... as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The public sector faces increasing demands to run government like a business, importing privatesector concepts such as entrepreneurism, privatization, treating the citizen like a “customer,” and ma...


Book
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on the key area of skill creation in advanced industrial countries and provide a unique approach to education and training within the broader political and economic environment, which will appeal to students, teachers, and practitioners concerned with vocational training, human resource management, industrial relations, and the sociology of the economy.
Abstract: This study of vocational education in advanced industrial countries contributes to two different areas of debate. The first is the study of the diversity of institutional forms taken by modern capitalism, and the difficulties currently surrounding the survival of that diversity. Rather than analysing economic institutions and governance in general, the authors specifically focus upon the key area of skill creation. The second theme is that of vocational education and training in its own right. While sharing the consensus that the advanced countries must secure competitive advantage in a global economy by developing highly-skilled work forces, the authors draw attention to certain awkward aspects of this approach that are often glossed over in general debate: 1. The employment-generating power of improvements in skill levels is limited: employment policy cannot depend fully on education policies; 2. While the acquisition of skills has become a major public need, there is increasing dependence for their provision on individual firms, with government action being restricted to residual care for the unemployed, rather than contributing at the leading edge of advanced skills policy. Covering France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Sweden, the UK, and the USA, this book provides a unique approach to education and training within the broader political and economic environment. As such, it will appeal to students, teachers, and practitioners concerned with vocational training, human resource management, industrial relations, and the sociology of the economy.

BookDOI
31 Jul 1999
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on decentralization, referring to the process of returning the political, fiscal, and administrative powers, to sub-national units of government, and examine the decentralization transformation of government structures in Latin America, which, since 1983, has largely transferred power, resources, and, responsibilities, to the local level.
Abstract: The study focuses on decentralization, referring to the process of returning the political, fiscal, and administrative powers, to sub-national units of government. It examines the decentralization transformation of government structures in Latin America, which, since 1983, has largely transferred power, resources, and, responsibilities, to the local level. Eight cases are reviewed, within a framework for sub-national government, revising the functions, structures, and revenues assigned, and, the strategies to synchronize the elements of reform. The macroeconomic threat is addressed through hard budget constraints, analyzing the outcomes of major decentralized states in Latin America, as well as the subtle risk, that empowered local governments may use their political power to undermine national interests, in benefit of individual constituencies. Furthermore, the accountability of authority is examined, revising what is at stake with the decentralization of education, health care, and, infrastructure, under new municipal powers. It is further suggested, that successful decentralization is dependent on consistent political culture, thus, broad sets of rules affecting political behavior are analyzed, particularly on electoral systems and political parties.

BookDOI
01 Jul 1999
TL;DR: Digital Democracy as discussed by the authors examines the impact of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and their consequences for political institutions, and explores the relationship between ICTs and citizenship with chapters covering democracies online as well as ways to strengthen communities in the Information Age.
Abstract: From the Publisher: Is direct democracy in the age of remote communication possible? Examining the impact of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and their consequences for political institutions, Digital Democracy offers a critical assessment of the concept of an emergent electronic democracy. The international contributors discuss concepts and issues such as democracy and cyberspace, local democracy, global control and interactive ICTs. Investigating the impact of technology on government, they examine the implications of televising the British House of Commons, the effects of ICTs on political parties, and issues surrounding the use of closed-circuit television. Finally, they explore the relationship between ICTs and citizenship with chapters covering democracies online as well as ways to strengthen communities in the Information Age. text for diverse courses on the social and policy implication of ICTs." --Leslie Regan Shade, Univ. of Ottawa for Canadian Journal of Communication, Vol. 24, 1999

Book
01 Aug 1999
TL;DR: Mugabe et al. as discussed by the authors reviewed the entire education and training system at all levels and made a number of recommendations to the government to ensure 9 years of Basic Education for every child and the encouragement to extend education beyond this, from pre-school to tertiary and life-long.
Abstract: Zimbabwe stands at a special moment in its history. In 2001 the nation comes of age, celebrating 2l years of independence. That same moment in history will be the beginning of the Third Millennium. This heralds a new dawn for education and training in Zimbabwe. It is time for review and change. Great strides have been made in education since Independence. Educational access has increased significantly. Compared to 1980, there are now (1999) three times as many children in primary schools and twelve times as many in secondary schools. We now have 13 technical and vocational training colleges. About three thousand students graduate each year compared to three hundred who graduated in 1980. These massive improvements have been made as a result of bold policies and substantial investments by the government and the nation. They have produced a finn base for the future. That future will be challenging. We have to develop our inner strengths, our technology, economy and our social systems so that we can build our nation and can be competitive in the global village ofthe 21st century. However it has become apparent that the current education system is not capable of facilitating the achievement of these aspirations. In 1998, the State President, the Honourable R.G. Mugabe, established the Commission to review the entire education and training system at all levels. The Commission conducted a nation-wide consultation. In addition, it commissioned studies by specialists to cover certain key areas of education and training. Workshops and roundtable discussions were conducted with industry and commerce, religious groups and other stakeholders. This process gave a comprehensive picture of the strengths and weaknesses of the current system. Strong recommendations were submitted on urgent changes to the system of Education and Training. The Commission has analysed and discussed all views given and presents recommendations to the Government in this report. These recommendations are radical, perhaps contentious and in some cases, demanding • radical, because of the complete revamping of the system, with an outcomes based approach. • contentious, because of a proposed change in the education structure and the examination system. • demanding, because there will be need for more resources and funding to deliver quality education that is relevant. The central proposal is to overhaul the curriculum at all levels in order to make it relevant to the needs of the country and the individual learner. Among the major proposals are to: • guarantee 9 years of Basic Education for every child and the encouragement to extend education beyond this • provide access to education at all levels, from pre-school to tertiary and life-long education • develop good citizenship and the philosophy ofunhulubuntu • promote the development of indigenous languages • develop skills required to make the most of the information and communications technologies which is changing our lives and the way we do our work • promote practical skills in primary school; the introduction of vocational education followed by vocational training in secondary school, leading on to a range of qualifications in different occupation areas: professional, academic, practical and technical • provide guidance and counselling • give special attention to marginalised groups such as the girl child, the disabled and children in especially difficult circumstances • set up education structures which ensure good quality education and efficient management of resources

Book
09 Dec 1999
TL;DR: Regulation Inside Government as mentioned in this paper analyses the army of inspectors, auditors, grievance-chasers, standard-setters, and other bodies overseeing contemporary public organizations, concluding that there is a failure in contemporary public management to deploy each of these modes of control to their full potential.
Abstract: Regulation Inside Government analyses the army of inspectors, auditors, grievance-chasers, standard-setters, and other bodies overseeing contemporary public organizations. On the basis of a pioneering two-year inside study of British Government by a team of leading scholars, this book provides an original analytical perspective on regulation within government. Given the limitations of orthodox constitutional checks on executive government, the courts, and elected politicians, regulation inside government deserves more attention than it has hitherto received. As one of the first comprehensive accounts of regulation inside government, this book begins to fill the gap. The empirical data for the study sets out the full range of modes of control applied to the public sector. The authors examine the relationship between formal oversight, of the traditional regulatory sort, with other forms of control based on competition, mutuality, and contrived randomness. They conclude that there is a failure in contemporary public management to deploy each of these modes of control to their full potential.