Publication Year: within 10 Years / Topic: Government

1. Financial Autonomy of Decentralized Local Authorities and Local Development

Author:: Herve Ondoua, Bin Meh, Boris Andzanga Ndzana, and Jean-Cedric Kouam
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The Nkafu Policy Institute
Abstract:: The financial autonomy of Decentralized Territorial Collectivities (DTCs) is today considered as the foundation of local governance. It confers decision-making power in financial matters to municipalities and regions, as well as a certain level of independence in the management of the resources at their disposal. In Cameroon, the general principles of financial autonomy are defined in the law on the General Code of DTCs, in particular in the Fifth Book, which repeals the law establishing the financial regime of local authorities and that on the financial regime of the State. Thus, financial autonomy should enable DTCs to develop by using their own resources in improving the living conditions of their populations. Despite these powers, DTCs still depend for the most part on income from municipal taxes and income transferred by the State. However, DTCs in Cameroon have real economic and financial potential but not a degree of financial autonomy that would allow them to accelerate the development of their locality. This reflection is aimed at local elected officials, political authorities, government authorities and civil society, with the aim of examining the effectiveness of financial autonomy in the face of the economic and financial potential of DTCs and their ability to implement their own local development projects. This article relates financial autonomy and local governance, on the one hand, and shows how financial autonomy is a factor of valorization of local resources, on the other hand.
Topic:: Development, Government, Finance, Local, Decentralization, and Autonomy
Political Geography:: Africa and Cameroon

2. The Regional Administrative Structure in Cameroon

Author:: Ebenezer David Ngahna Mangmadi
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The Nkafu Policy Institute
Abstract:: Be it from a common law or a special status, a regional and local authorities[1] resulting from the constitutional reform of January 18, 1996[2], has an administration in charge of instructing and implementing the decisions taken by its executive organs. Under the authority of a secretary general who is appointed by the President of the Republic[3], it is implemented according to the standard organisation set out in decree n°2021/742 of 28 December 2021. It should be noted that this important legal text taken in application of article 496 of law n°2019/024 of 24 December 2009 on the general code of regional and local authorities (hereafter CGCTD), has greatly contributed to the acceleration of the process of establishing the regions initiated by the elections of December 6, 2020. The configuration of the standard model of regional administration that it suggests, highlights a complex combination of structures with diverse functions, the articulation of which may vary from case to case. This organisational scheme reveals the extent of the tasks that a regional administration must undertake, but it is not easy to access. As such, it deserves to be explained. This note is intended for professionals in the field of decentralisation, researchers and citizens seeking information. More clearly, the aim is to inform the reader about the subtleties of the structuring of the regional administration. To achieve this, it relies on an interpretive approach to the texts, mainly, the law n°2019/024 of 24 December 2019, and the decree of 28 December 2021. After presenting the different structures of the regional administration (I), the text will dwell on their articulation (II).
Topic:: Government, Local, Decentralization, and Regionalism
Political Geography:: Africa and Cameroon

3. The Seventh Dalai Lama's Residence in Kham with Yudru Tsomu

Author:: Yudru Tsomu and Gray Tuttle
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:: The Seventh Dalai Lama’s residence at Gartar Monastery (Mgar thar dgon, མགར་ཐར་དགོན། ), beginning in 1730, greatly affected the relationship between the Kham region and the Tibetan government as well as the Qing court’s control over Kham. The Dalai Lama’s interactions with various indigenous leaders, local monasteries, monks and lay people increased the influence of the Geluk school in Kham, and also inspired their support for the Dalai Lama. Measures adopted by the Qing court to protect the Dalai Lama, such as stationing troops and inspecting check-points, also strengthened Qing control of Kham. After the Dalai Lama left for Tibet in 1735, Gartar Monastery continued to serve as a religious and cultural center of northern Kham, having the function of “civilizing” and “enlightening” the neighboring regions that were far away from the political center. Successive abbots of Gartar Monastery—all the way up to 1920—came from Drepung Monastery in Lhasa; they and the monks of Gartar influenced, interfered and controlled the local affairs of Gartar and other regions in Kham. In particular, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Gartar Monastery, together with the Tibetan commissioner in Nyarong, was able to assist the Tibetan government’s efforts to extend its sphere of influence in Kham.
Topic:: Government, Religion, History, Buddhism, and Dalai Lama
Political Geography:: Asia and Tibet

4. Ecuador Headed for Early Elections After President Dissolves Legislature

Author:: Diana Guarnizo Peralta
Publication Date:: 05-2023
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: To head off an impeachment vote, Guillermo Lasso chose the nuclear option. Amid polarization and a protracted political stalemate, what comes next remains uncertain.
Topic:: Government, Elections, Domestic Politics, Political Crisis, Impeachment, and Guillermo Lasso
Political Geography:: South America, Latin America, and Ecuador

5. Anti-Government Demonstrations in Iran: A Long-Term Challenge for the Islamic Republic

Author:: Dana Sammy
Publication Date:: 04-2023
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: Iran was rocked by mass demonstrations triggered by the September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini — a young Kurdish woman — while in the custody of the Guidance Patrol (also known as the ‘morality police’) for allegedly violating the hijab dress code. Protests over the mandatory hijab rule soon coalesced around a wide range of grievances with the regime, with participants demanding protections for civil, political, and human rights and calling for an end to the Islamic Republic. Although street demonstrations have subsided for the time being, how the protest movement will evolve — and how it will impact the stability of the Islamic Republic — remains an open question. This report explores potential answers to this question by examining notable trends and implications of the wave of demonstrations that unfolded in the country between September and December 2022. It argues that several emerging aspects of the nationwide movement may pose a long-term challenge to the regime. The demonstrations following Amini’s death were not only unique in regard to their geographical spread and longevity, but also in the way they brought together different segments of society with both distinct and overlapping grievances. Moreover, amid a harsh crackdown by Iranian authorities, engagement in violence by demonstrators has trended upward: between mid-September and December 2022, ACLED records the highest number of violent demonstration events for any round of nationwide demonstrations in Iran since the beginning of data collection in 2016. The increased use of Molotov cocktails and the killing of dozens of security personnel are among the most significant trends in demonstration violence observed in the latest round of events. The demonstrations did not reach a critical mass necessary to pose an immediate threat to the survival of the regime. Yet, this latest round in a sequence of increasingly violent demonstrations is indicative of growing resentment in Iranian society against the ruling elites and a willingness to express it forcefully despite severe repression. As the regime refuses to reform, the growing frequency and intensity of demonstrations suggests that the government will find itself in an increasingly unstable domestic position and increasingly isolated in the international arena.
Topic:: Government, Human Rights, Women, State Violence, and Protests
Political Geography:: Iran and Middle East

6. Harnessing Public Employment Programmes' Potential: An Intervention Brief Focusing on Youth Inclusion in South Africa's Community Work Programme

Author:: M. Langa
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR)
Abstract:: Youth continue to be worst affected by social and economic issues such as unemployment, substance abuse and violence (ILO, 2021; United Nations, 2011). South African youth are no exception to this claim, experiencing the world’s highest rate of unemployment as well as some of the highest rates of homicide and gender-based violence (Clifford, 2020; Rebello, 2021). These challenges have gained increased recognition from stakeholders, such as the South African government, with the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative representing one of many recent initiatives. This intervention brief aims to contribute to conversations around how to better address the challenges faced by South African youth. It builds on research conducted by the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR), which focused on how public employment programmes, specifically the Community Work Programme (CWP), may contribute to youth social and economic inclusion, which may further assist in reducing the vulnerability of South African youth. This brief highlights how some youth have negative perceptions of the CWP, which primarily stem from the nature of the activities carried out by the CWP and a lack of accurate knowledge about the programme. Examples from four CWP sites highlight how youthoriented activities may attract greater interest in the programme among youth. It also highlights how youth have benefitted and can continue to benefit from the programme.
Topic:: Government, Employment, Youth, Unemployment, and Inclusion
Political Geography:: Africa and South Africa

7. The Effects of Differential Exposure to COVID-19 on Educational Outcomes in Guatemala

Author:: Andres Ham, Emmanuel Vazquez, and Monica Yanez-Pagans
Publication Date:: 05-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Center for Distributive, Labor and Social Studies (CEDLAS)
Abstract:: This paper studies the effects of differential exposure to COVID-19 on educational outcomes in Guatemala. The government adopted a warning index (ranging from 0 to 10) to classify municipalities by infection rates in 2020, which was then used by the Ministry of Education in 2021 to establish a “stoplight” system for in-person instruction. Using administrative panel data for all students in Guatemala, the study employs a difference-in-differences strategy that leverages municipal differences over time in the warning index to estimate the effects of the pandemic on dropout, promotion, and school switching. The results show that municipalities with a higher warning index had significantly larger dropout, lower promotion rates, and a greater share of students switching from private to public schools. These effects were more pronounced during the first year of the pandemic. The findings show differential effects by the level of instruction, with greater losses for younger children in initial and primary education. The results are robust to specification choice, multiple hypothesis adjustments, and placebo experiments, suggesting that the pandemic has had heterogeneous consequences.
Topic:: Education, Government, COVID-19, and Schools
Political Geography:: Central America and Guatemala

8. Proposals for Reducing the Size and Cost of Running Government

Author:: Kojo Asante and David Asante Darko
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Abstract:: Every other sector of the economy has had to incur substantive inconvenience or financial loss in efforts to return the sovereign debts to sustainable levels. Every other sector of the economy, except government itself. Against this backdrop, this paper reiterates some of the measures that have been proposed to reduce government spending and examines them in more detail. We delve into how the ministerial team might be reduced in size and thereby optimized to cut down government expenditure.
Topic:: Government, Budget, Finance, and Economy
Political Geography:: Africa and Ghana

9. Institutionalizing Downward Accountability: The Bangladesh Experience

Author:: Shaheen Anam
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: East Asia Institute (EAI)
Abstract:: In this issue briefing, Shaheen Anam, Executive Director at Manusher Jonno Foundation, explores the challenges of institutionalizing downward accountability and assesses how such difficulties are projected in development projects of various sizes. Anam argues that effective bottom-up planning requires expertise of stakeholders, strong political will from above, and most importantly, active participation of the local community. Through a Bangladesh case study, Anam offers a successful example of the civil society taking advantage of social accountability tools to channel its voice and improve the transparency of the authorities.
Topic:: Civil Society, Development, Government, Accountability, Institutions, and Transparency
Political Geography:: Bangladesh and South Asia

10. Why the Opposition Win in Barinas, Venezuela Matters

Author:: Ociel Alí López
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The victory of opposition candidate Sergio Garrido in the governorship race in the state of Barinas on January 9 changes the symbolic map of Venezuela’s internal diatribe. The result barely affects the country’s political-territorial map; the governing party swept the regional elections on November 21 with 19 of 23 governorships and 210 of 335 mayoralties. However, it does mark a tremendous change in the sensibility with which the opposition and the government have participated in a political environment that is, if you will, hospitable—for the first time in many years.
Topic:: Government, Elections, Domestic Politics, and Opposition
Political Geography:: South America and Venezuela

11. Political Prisoners to Ortega’s Narrative

Author:: José Luis Rocha
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In Nicaragua, the story of a government fighting against the U.S. capitalist empire exposes deep contradictions.
Topic:: Government, Prisons/Penal Systems, Domestic Politics, Political Prisoners, Empire, and Daniel Ortega
Political Geography:: Central America, Nicaragua, and United States of America

12. Peru: The Broken Dream of Transformative Government?

Author:: Alejandra Dinegro Martínez
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Though Pedro Castillo’s victory initially seemed like a glimmer of hope, the reality of the past eight months has been disappointing.
Topic:: Government, Elections, Domestic Politics, and Presidential Elections
Political Geography:: South America and Peru

13. Mexico’s Military Knew Ayotzinapa 43 Were Kidnapped, Then Covered It Up

Author:: Ñaní Pinto
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Following a new report, families of the 43 students criticized the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador for failing to follow through on promises to finally solve the case.
Topic:: Corruption, Crime, Government, Kidnapping, and Military
Political Geography:: North America and Mexico

14. La Encrucijada’s Dilemma: Greenwashing Oil Palm in Chiapas

Author:: Santiago Navarro F. and Aldo Santiago
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: On Mexico’s Pacific coast, the government and businesses are trying to legalize a huge area of illegally-cultivated oil palm by reducing the size of an environmental reserve.
Topic:: Environment, Government, Natural Resources, Business, Greenwashing, and Palm Oil
Political Geography:: North America and Mexico

15. Will Popular Power Survive?

Author:: María Pilar García-Guadilla and Ulises Castro
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Popular power was a cornerstone of the Bolivarian Revolution. Facing co-optation, crisis, and decline, its future remains in question.
Topic:: Government, Social Movement, Community, Nicholas Maduro, and Political Crisis
Political Geography:: South America and Venezuela

16. Who Leads China's 5G Technology Ecosystem? A Network Analysis of China's Cooperation on Association Standards

Author:: Won Seok Choi
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP)
Abstract:: This study suggests who is leading the ecosystem of China's 5G industry through analysis of the association standard network. Our study finds that the Chinese government think tank is in the most important position in the related network. Our study also suggests that it is important to monitor association standards in China and strengthen the standard cooperation of companies, scholars, and institutes in the Korean ICT industry.
Topic:: Government, Science and Technology, Think Tanks, and 5G
Political Geography:: China, Asia, and South Korea

17. HOW DO GOVERNMENTS DECIDE WHICH GROUPS ARE “TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS”?

Author:: Brian J. Phillips and Mirna El Masri
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Political Violence @ A Glance
Abstract:: US Senator Ted Cruz recently called for Yemen’s Houthis to be added to the Foreign Terrorist Organization list—again. The Iran-backed Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, were designated as terrorists by the Trump administration on January 19, 2021, criminalizing support of the group, but the designation was removed by the Biden administration the following month. Around the world, national terrorist group lists vary considerably, and change over time. Last fall, the UK government announced it would add Hamas to its terrorist list. Other countries, such as the United States, have long designated Hamas a terrorist group, while others, like Russia, have not. Why do some organizations end up on countries’ terrorist group lists? Why are some terrorist lists different than others?
Topic:: Government, Terrorism, Non State Actors, Conflict, and Islamism
Political Geography:: United States of America

18. Localising the SDGs in India: The Role of Government and Private Training Institutes

Author:: Sreerupa Sengupta and Avik Sinha
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
Abstract:: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) present a new and coherent way of thinking about diverse facets of development. Implicit in the framework of the SDGs is that the goals are interconnected and interdependent. To translate such critical ideas into reality, countries need new skills, perspectives and approaches to the implementation of policies and programmes. Capacity-building, in particular for the public sector, is therefore at the core of achieving the 2030 Agenda. Although all countries have designed their respective capacity-building strategies and undertaken various interventions for knowledge dissemination among government officials and other stakeholders on the SDGs, there are wide variations between countries regarding the progress on capacity-building initiatives. In many developing countries, the heterogeneity of the political, societal and economic structures poses one of the biggest challenges to capacity-building for the localisation of the SDGs. This discussion paper explores and maps the SDG training landscape for government officials in India. As a particularly heterogeneous country in political, economic and cultural terms, India is an interesting example to explore the challenges of capacity-building in many developing countries towards the achievement of the SDGs. Against this background, the study aims to achieve the following: a) to understand the role of government and private actors in building the capacity of government officials to respond to the 2030 Agenda b) to understand the resources required for capacity-building on the SDGs c) to identify the current shortcomings in capacity-building efforts d) to develop recommendations for a more coordinated and effective strategy that will strengthen the capacity-building initiatives of India This paper highlights the relevance of the evidence for creating better processes, even in the sphere of sensitisation, capacity-building and advocacy. A major contribution of the paper is to help India develop an evidence-based policy on SDG trainings. This paper will also assist other countries that are currently tackling similar kinds of challenges in the realm of capacity-building for the SDGs in designing a comprehensive capacity-building strategy for effective implementation of the SDGs.
Topic:: Development, Government, Sustainable Development Goals, and Capacity
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

19. Chinese Trust in Government: A Response Pattern Approach

Author:: Cary Wu and Yao Lu
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Abstract:: Chinese citizens have high trust in their government is well documented. Recent data show that this remains true during the COVID-19 crisis. Nonetheless, a long-standing debate is whether Chinese trust in government is genuine or simply a reflection of political fear. To offer further insights, in this article I adopt a response pattern approach that shifts the focus from how much people trust (the level of trust) to how people trust (the pattern of trust). Analyzing data from multiple sources, I consider the homogeneity and heterogeneity in how political trust is expressed among diverse populations (e.g., children vs adults) and in different situations (e.g., taped vs. not taped). I identify ten specific patterns that consistently suggest Chinese trust in government may not be simply reduced to a misrepresentation out of political fear. This study illustrates that examining the often-overlooked patterns of how people express their attitudes within different segments of the population and in different contexts provides a means to test whether the expressed attitudes are fake or genuine. This event is sponsored by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and cosponsored by the China Center for Social Policy.
Topic:: Government, Public Opinion, Citizenship, COVID-19, and Trust
Political Geography:: China and Asia

20. Government Internet Shutdowns Are Changing. How Should Citizens and Democracies Respond?

Author:: Steven Feldstein
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Governments worldwide continue to deploy internet shutdowns and network disruptions to quell mass protests, forestall election losses, reinforce military coups, or cut off conflict areas from the outside world. Data from the past few years show that incidences of global shutdowns have remained steadily high: 196 documented incidents in 2018, 213 incidents in 2019, and 155 in 2020. The first five months of 2021 recorded fifty shutdown incidents.1 Government-instigated internet shutdowns largely took place in relation to five event types: mass demonstrations, military operations and coups, elections, communal violence and religious holidays, and school exams. As Clément Voule, the United Nations special rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, pointedly observes: “Shutdowns are lasting longer, becoming harder to detect and targeting particular social media and messaging applications and specific localities and communities.”2 Events in Russia have put a finer point on internet shutdown trends. On March 4, 2022, Roskomnadzor, the Russian internet regulator, announced that it would block Facebook and Twitter and would ban new uploads to TikTok.3 On March 14, it added Instagram to the banned list.4 Russian authorities have also restricted access to a slew of news websites, including the BBC, Deutsche Welle, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and Voice of America. Roskomnadzor claimed these measures were enacted in response to new limits imposed by platforms on Russian propaganda outlets—accusing Facebook of “discrimination.”5 The Kremlin’s crackdown is an ominous signal about where the shutdown struggle is headed in authoritarian countries. Despite these bleak trends, there is a growing international consensus—at least among liberal democracies—that protecting internet access is integrally linked to freedoms of expression and association and forms a crucial part of the global democracy and human rights agenda. This paper picks up on this emerging norm and probes several key questions: What can citizens do to evade authoritarian controls and regain internet access? How can democratic governments support these efforts and push back against governments that shut down and block the internet? The short answer is that there is a multitude of responses available to democracies and civil society organizations to push back against internet blackouts and network disruptions. Democracies can exert meaningful pressure against repressive governments to ease internet blocks, and citizens are able to exercise creative options to circumvent internet controls. The paper walks through different tools available to citizens to evade internet controls. It examines where internet shutdown trends are headed and incentives for particular regimes to adopt new modes of censorship. It then presents a multifaceted strategy for democracies, civil society organizations, and technology developers and companies to counter internet shutdowns.
Topic:: Government, Science and Technology, Democracy, and Internet
Political Geography:: Russia and Global Focus

21. This is How to Think About and Achieve Public Policy Success

Author:: Matt Andrews
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: Officials working on public policies must answer questions like ‘What does policy success mean?’ and ‘How should I pursue policy work in order to achieve success?’ These are difficult questions, but there are ways to respond. One way draws on what I call the program logic of policy success, which suggests that: (i) Success requires efficiently meeting goals that stakeholders view as relevant, (ii) by doing work focused on impacting high-level objectives through programs that deliver promised time-sensitive outputs and outcomes according to a clear, logical plan. I believe this logic dominates the global public policy community, as ‘the way’ officials and organizations should think about and do policy work. This paper tests such belief, showing that officials do think in this way and that this thinking is influenced by common budgeting and evaluation mechanisms. I conclude by asking if this way of thinking poses any concerns, especially if it biases policy organizations to produce some kinds of policy success and not others.
Topic:: Government, Public Policy, and Policymaking
Political Geography:: Global Focus

22. Getting Real about Unknowns in Complex Policy Work

Author:: Matt Andrews
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: As with all public policy work, education policies are demanding. Policy workers need to ‘know’ a lot—about the problems they are addressing, the people who need to be engaged, the promises they can make in response, the context they are working in, and the processes they will follow to implement. Most policy workers answer questions about such issues within the structures of plan and control processes used to devise budgets and projects. These structures limit their knowledge gathering, organization and sense-making activities to up-front planning activities, and even though sophisticated tools like Theories of Change suggest planners ‘know’ all that is needed for policy success, they often do not. Policies are often fraught with ‘unknowns’ that cannot be captured in passive planning processes and thus repeatedly undermine even the best laid plans. Through a novel strategy that asks how much one knows about the answers to 25 essential policy questions, and an application to recent education policy interventions in Mozambique, this paper shows that it is possible to get real about unknowns in policy work. Just recognizing these unknowns exist—and understanding why they do and what kind of challenge they pose to policy workers—can help promote a more modest and realistic approach to doing complex policy work.
Topic:: Education, Government, and Public Policy
Political Geography:: Africa and Mozambique

23. The Israeli Government Falls: New Election and Implications for U.S.-Israel Relations

Author:: David Makovsky and Dennis Ross
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: Watch an expert webcast examining the collapse of the year-old coalition government, the impact on President Biden’s upcoming Middle East trip, and the potential consequences for broader U.S.-Israel policy.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, Bilateral Relations, and Elections
Political Geography:: Iran, Middle East, Israel, and United States of America

24. Scoring Iraq’s New Government: Metrics for Preserving U.S. Interests

Author:: Michael Knights
Publication Date:: 10-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: The protracted post-election process has been a step backward for Iraqi democracy, so Washington will need to closely monitor the new leadership’s actions and hold Baghdad to measurable benchmarks. Iraq’s stalled government formation process finally lurched forward on October 17, with new president Abdul Latif Rashid taking office more than a year after the 2021 election. Incoming prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani will now try to ratify his cabinet during a parliamentary session on October 22. If he succeeds as expected, Baghdad will finally close perhaps its most troubled electoral cycle yet—a chapter in which a clear popular vote nearly failed to produce a peaceful transition of power, and the losing factions spurred the biggest winner to abandon parliament through corrupt judicial rulings. Under these sad circumstances, the U.S. government and its partners need to quietly but insistently push for early, inclusive elections to restore legitimacy to the democratic process. Simultaneously, all of Iraq’s friends must watch the new government like a hawk to ensure that militias and corrupt politicians do not attempt to purge technocrats, conduct witch hunts against Western-leaning officials, cover up past graft, or initiate a new wave of “asset-stripping” via state institutions. After many false alarms, the survival of Iraq’s close relationship with the West is truly at stake right now, and only firm expectation-setting can ensure that the partnership continues.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Government, Terrorism, Reform, Democracy, and Military
Political Geography:: Iraq, Iran, Middle East, and United States of America

25. Meloni at the Helm: What Does Italy’s New Government Mean for Sino-Italian Relations?

Author:: Andrew R. Novo
Publication Date:: 12-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: China Brief
Institution:: The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:: Questions about the unity of Italy’s new government on several key foreign policy issues persist, ranging from the extent of its support for Ukraine to its commitment to various European Union institutions. However, on the issue of China, the new government of Prime Minister (PM) Giorgia Meloni appears united. This bodes well for transatlantic cooperation and could spell trouble for Beijing, which not too long ago entertained ideas of using Italy as a friendly counterweight in Europe. Under Meloni, Italian foreign policy, particularly toward China, is unlikely to chart a dramatically new course. This is largely because the current government has prioritized its commitment to NATO and needs to focus on domestic issues rather than risk upsetting the international arena. While openings remain for Sino-Italian cooperation in economic terms, such cooperation will be geared toward supporting Italy’s domestic challenges and is unlikely to provide Beijing with the significant foothold that it has long hoped to gain in Europe.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, Bilateral Relations, and Giorgia Meloni
Political Geography:: China, Europe, Asia, and Italy

26. Why Elections Won’t Happen in Libya

Author:: Asma Khalifa
Publication Date:: 12-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:: The 2021 agreement on holding elections was perceived by many Libyans as the light at the end of the dark tunnel of civil war and a reset to the political stagnation and the legal crisis. More than 2.5 million Libyans registered to vote, only for them to watch on the media a deliberate sabotage by those who were trusted in the process to commit to the agreement. While Libya is again setting the ground for future elections, this paper puts forward three points on why elections will not happen in Libya.
Topic:: Government, Democracy, Conflict, and Voting
Political Geography:: Africa and Libya

27. Tunisia's Economy

Author:: Intissar Fakir, Marwa Haddar, and Fadil Aliriza
Publication Date:: 07-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Intissar Fakir is joined by Marwa Haddar and Fadil Aliriza to discuss the economic issues Tunisia is facing, international financial institutions' role in the crisis, and the government's actions, or lack thereof, to help the country.
Topic:: Economics, Government, Finance, International Institutions, and Economic Crisis
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

28. Iraq's Deepening Political Crisis

Author:: Farhad Alaaldin and Robert Ford
Publication Date:: 08-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Ten months on from last October’s elections, Iraq still does not have a new government and faces a deepening political crisis. To understand the current situation's perils and what may be next for the future of the country, we are joined by Farhad Alaaldin, chairman of the Iraq Advisory Council, and Robert Ford, MEI Senior Fellow and former Ambassador to Syria and Algeria.
Topic:: Government, Elections, Domestic Politics, and Political Crisis
Political Geography:: Iraq and Middle East

29. Biden's First Year

Author:: Brian Katulis and Randa Slim
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Brian Katulis and Randa Slim join the program to discuss the Biden administration's Middle East policy one year in, and look ahead to the challenges it will face in the region in the year ahead.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, and Joe Biden
Political Geography:: Middle East

30. Israel & Palestine: Hot topics in Congress

Author:: Alistair Taylor, Khaled Elgindy, and Lara Friedman
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Host Alistair Taylor speaks with Khaled Elgindy and Lara Friedman about the release of their recently completed 2022 congressional briefing series on Israel and Palestine: Hot topics in Congress. The eight-part webinar series features an array of Palestinian and Israeli voices, weighing in on some of the most pressing and timely Israel/Palestine-related topics in Congress. Recordings of all eight sessions of the congressional briefing series can be found on the MEI and FMEP websites at www.mei.edu and www.fmep.org.
Topic:: Education, Government, and Conflict
Political Geography:: Ukraine, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and United States of America

31. A Conversation with Dr. Haider al-Abadi

Author:: Haider al-Abadi
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Former Iraqi Prime Minister Dr. Haider al-Abadi joins the program to discuss the country’s fight against ISIS, Iraqi politics and the challenges of reform. Dr. al-Abadi has a new book out, entitled "Impossible Victory: How Iraq Defeated ISIS" (Biteback Publishing, April 2022).
Topic:: Government, Reform, Islamic State, and Domestic Politics
Political Geography:: Iraq and Middle East

32. The National Flood Insurance Program: Solving Congress’s Samaritan’s Dilemma

Author:: Peter Van Doren
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: Who should pay for the damages caused by natural disaster? The American ethos has long called on personal responsibility and private charity, rather than broad public aid, to secure people’s welfare. Although public emergency services play a vital role during and immediately after a catastrophe, this ethos looks to private insurance and disaster‐oriented organizations, such as the Red Cross, to be the main modes of recovery from a flood or storm, as well as prior care in siting and constructing buildings to blunt the effects of wind and rain.
Topic:: Government, Natural Disasters, Public Policy, and Insurance
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

33. When Is Tinkering with Safety Net Programs Harmful to Beneficiaries?

Author:: Jeffrey Clemens and Michael J. Wither
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: The U.S. safety net has many moving parts. Redistributive transfers are made in cash and in kind, often come through regulation, and are implemented by multiple levels of government. Arrangements related to health care and health insurance are particularly complicated, as low‐income households must navigate eligibility for free care, Medicaid, subsidized coverage, and employer‐provided coverage.
Topic:: Government, Economic Policy, Labor Market, and Safety Net
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

34. Slippery Fish: Enforcing Regulation under Subversive Adaptation

Author:: Andres Gonzalez-Lira
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: Correcting market failures and improving economic efficiency often require curbing undesirable behaviors of market agents who act to maximize their private benefits. Examples include actions that affect ecosystems, such as deforestation, pollution, and overexploitation of natural resources; actions that affect community health, such as drunk driving and open defecation; or actions that undermine government performance, such as corruption and tax evasion. Enacting and enforcing regulations is the most direct strategy to deter such behaviors. Implementing this strategy requires strong institutions to enforce laws, plus sophisticated policing to track agents’ reactions to enforcement so that rules are robust enough to curb the undesirable behavior even when regulated agents try to game the new system.
Topic:: Environment, Government, Markets, Regulation, and Adaptation
Political Geography:: Global Focus

35. Big data and national security: A guide for Australian policymakers

Author:: Miah Hammond-Errey
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Lowy Institute for International Policy
Abstract:: Data abundance, digital connectivity, and ubiquitous technology now enable near complete coverage of human lives across the planet, often in real-time. The Covid-19 pandemic, by forcing more interactions online and greater social reliance on technology, has significantly added to the global pool of data. Advances in the scale, application, and commercial uses of data significantly outpace regulation of the big data landscape. Technical and analytical capabilities that are essential for the functioning of societies are increasingly concentrated in the hands of a small number of commercial entities. The implications of big data for surveillance, real or potential interference, and kinetic war are underappreciated in policy and public discussions. Identifying and protecting the uses of critical data should be a national security priority for government on par with safeguarding critical digital infrastructure.
Topic:: Government, National Security, Science and Technology, Surveillance, and Data
Political Geography:: Global Focus

36. Markets, Governments, and Crises in the Past and Future of the EU

Author:: Giuseppe Bertola
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Turkish Policy Quarterly (TPQ)
Institution:: Turkish Policy Quarterly (TPQ)
Abstract:: The common-market project, that after World War II aimed to prevent future wars among European Nations, evolved through crises into a complicated and unstable set of European Union policies and institutions. The COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine reinforced coordination and added common debt issuance to the supranational policy toolkit. But the NextGenEU program relies heavily on government subsidies rather than on market incentives, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shows that economic integration can at most move the boundaries of war to those of the integrated economic area, rather than of Nations. These developments weaken the crucial role of integrated markets as the principal instrument for growth, cohesion, stability, and peace in Europe.
Topic:: Government, Markets, Regional Cooperation, European Union, and Strategic Stability
Political Geography:: Europe

37. Governments as Regulators and Consumers of Ethical AI

Author:: Gabby Bush and Jeannine Paterson
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Turkish Policy Quarterly (TPQ)
Institution:: Turkish Policy Quarterly (TPQ)
Abstract:: Algorithmic Decision-Making (ADM) and Digital Technologies have created complex and multifaceted challenges for governments and the delivery of public services. Governments must operate simultaneously as the regulator and as a consumer, while maintaining public trust. The roll out of ADM systems has provided significant failures in public policy. For example, the Federal Government of Australia and the New South Wales State Government both deploying systems with significant flaws which led to serious outcomes for both welfare recipients and governments just in the last 10 years. Solutions to confront the failure of ADM systems can be addressed more effectively at a procurement and contract level as well as through the accountability and understanding within the public service. In order to ensure the fair use of digital technologies, governments must be willing to scrutinize their own purchase of technology, ideally through the lens of AI ethical frameworks, and address their own governance and procurement policies, thereby fulfilling their responsibility as service providers to citizens.
Topic:: Government, Science and Technology, Regulation, Ethics, and Artificial Intelligence
Political Geography:: Global Focus

38. Social Determinants and how they Influence Councillor Performance in District Local Government Councils in Uganda

Author:: Fred Kasalirwe, Jonas Mbabazi, Phoebe Atukunda, Oscord Mark Otile, Eugene Gerald Ssemakula, Rebecca N. Mukwaya, and Walter Akena
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE)
Abstract:: This paper analyses how social determinants influence councillor role performance in the district local government in Uganda. The extent to which elected local government leaders perform their roles is critical for the quality of social services delivered to citizens. In the analysis, social determinants are conceptualised as; the education level of councillors, political party affiliation, electoral terms served/experience, councillor category, gender, and geographical location of the constituency represented by a councillor. In the same analysis, councillors' roles were conceptualised to include; legislation, contact with electorate, participation in lower local governments, and monitoring service delivery.
Topic:: Government, Politics, Governance, Leadership, and Services
Political Geography:: Uganda and Africa

39. Foresight and its application in ministries of foreign affairs

Author:: Javier Ignacio Santander
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Argentine Council for International Relations (CARI)
Abstract:: Based on previous research regarding foresight capabilities of ministries of foreign affairs, this work focuses on the modern concept of foresight and of its application to foreign relations. Specifically, it aims to provide a summary of similiarities observed in the way in which foreign affairs ministries have developed foresight capacity.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, and International Affairs
Political Geography:: Global Focus

40. Local Self-0Government in a Crisis Caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Case of Serbia

Author:: Samed Karovic, Sinisa Domazet, and Jelena Jesic
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:: Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:: This research examined whether there is an elaborate system of protocols, protection, and prevention in place at the local self-government level in the event of a crisis caused by an epidemic or pandemic. The core idea of this paper was to evaluate the protocol's effectiveness at the local self-government. Analysis was conducted using responses of 16 local self-government authorities. During a crisis caused by an epidemic/a pandemic of infectious illnesses, surveys were done as a cross-section documenting and detecting the current state of local self-government functioning. Methods used in the study are defining the objectives of the research, conceptualization, analysis of legal regulations, economic analysis, and decomposition of the problem. Key results and arguments of this paper expanded existing research thus there are only certain empirical data from areas that have been affected by the infectious disease caused by the epidemic/pandemic. Data was collected, processed, and systematized to serve in model formulation. As a brief conclusion, this study suggested protocol effectiveness at the local self-government level representing the idea that emergency and crisis management should be organized to preserve the health and livelihood of the population in the area affected by the pandemic of infectious diseases and thus enable the functioning of economic activities and society as a whole.
Topic:: Government, Leadership, Local, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Europe and Serbia

41. The Emirati Lobby in America

Author:: Ben Freeman
Publication Date:: 12-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
Abstract:: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has exerted considerable influence in its region in recent years and has also been a major factor in U.S. foreign policy. The UAE military and its proxies fought for years in Yemen and still maintain significant influence there, despite a 2020 pledge to withdraw from the devastating conflict. The UAE and other Gulf states have normalized relations with Israel under the auspices of the Abraham Accords. The UAE also continues to receive billions of dollars worth of U.S. military equipment and weapons. On the soft power side, the UAE played host to World Expo 2020, also known as the Expo 2020 Dubai, a cultural event that brought together representatives from nearly every country in the world. A small army of U.S.–based lobbyists working on behalf of the UAE has played a role in all these events, and in nearly every aspect of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. Based on an exhaustive analysis of all Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) documents filed by organizations registered to work on behalf of UAE clients in 2020 and 2021, this brief offers a number of key findings regarding legal lobbying activities of the UAE in the United States.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, Soft Power, and Lobbying
Political Geography:: Middle East, United Arab Emirates, United States of America, and Gulf Nations

42. Does an effective government lower COVID19’s health impact? Evidence from Viet Nam

Author:: Duc Anh Dang and Ngoc Anh Tran
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: Government effectiveness has played an important role in tackling the crisis caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This paper discusses the different aspects of government effectiveness in explaining the variation in the COVID-19 confirmed cases and death levels in Viet Nam. We use the Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index in 2019 to measure the quality of government effectiveness at the local level. The findings show the importance of health system capacity in the battle against COVID-19. We find that increased government transparency is significantly associated with lower confirmed rates. For the impact of the level of participation, we find that provinces that have higher quality of village head elections or where people have more opportunities to participate tend to have lower infected cases, especially where people participate in the formal and informal association and have voted in the National Assembly election.
Topic:: Government, Health, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Vietnam and Southeast Asia

43. Does the adoption of peer-to-government mobile payments improve tax revenue mobilization in developing countries?

Author:: Abdoul-Akim Wandaogo, Fayçal Sawadogo, and Jesse Lastunen
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: Developing countries need to raise sufficient tax revenue to finance development. Revenue mobilization is often hampered by limited tax compliance, weak institutions, and technical problems with tax collection. One solution to these challenges is person-to-government (P2G) mobile phone payments, adopted in a number of developing countries since the early 2000s. This study assesses the causal effect of P2G adoption on tax revenue using propensity score matching. According to the matching estimates, countries that adopt P2G services experience a 1.2–1.3 percentage point boost in direct tax revenue as a share of GDP. P2G adoption increases revenue from both corporate and personal income taxes, with larger effects on the latter. The results remain robust to matching quality tests and alternative estimation methods, including function control, two-stage least squares, and system generalized method of moments. The average treatment effects are largest among lower-middle-income countries and countries characterized by limited tax compliance and corruption control, and by low levels of urbanization and domestic credit to the private sector. The findings suggest that developing countries, particularly those with poor institutions and low levels of financial inclusion, should promote the adoption and use of mobile money services for tax transactions.
Topic:: Development, Government, Finance, Economy, and Tax Systems
Political Geography:: Global Focus

44. Afghanistan: Where US-Iranian interests may yet intersect

Author:: Borzou Daragahi
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Atlantic Council
Abstract:: A new issue brief, Afghanistan: Where US-Iranian Interests May Yet Intersect, authored by Atlantic Council senior fellow Borzou Daragahi delves into the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and how the swift collapse of the US-backed government in Kabul last summer not only shocked the United States and its allies in the 20-year struggle in that country, but also Afghanistan’s influential neighbor, Iran. As refugees continue to stream into Iran, the government in Tehran has still not recognized the Taliban regime and remains worried about a further deterioration in Afghanistan’s economy and social cohesion, as well as the growing presence of Sunni Jihadi militants. As Iran-Afghan relations evolve, will US concerns about Afghanistan’s fragile state provide a basis for tacit cooperation between Washington and Tehran, similar to what existed when the Taliban was last in power?
Topic:: Government, Taliban, Geopolitics, Economy, and Strategic Interests
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, Iran, South Asia, and United States of America

45. Austrian Migration Policy and the Events in Afghanistan and Belarus

Author:: Łukasz Ogrodnik
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: The Polish Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: Contrary to the government’s rhetoric about restrictive migration policy, Austria remains open to the settlement of people from outside the EU. The takeover of power by the Taliban in Afghanistan in the summer of 2021 and the intensifying crisis on the border between EU countries and Belarus stimulated the Austrian government in international forums in the field of migration. The prospects for cooperation with the V4 countries in this regard were heightened after interior minister Karl Nehammer was elevated to Chancellor.
Topic:: Government, International Cooperation, Migration, European Union, and Borders
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, Europe, Austria, and Belarus

46. Germany in the Shadow of War and Inflation: Six Months of the Scholz Government

Author:: Łukasz Jasiński
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: The Polish Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: The coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), The Greens, and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) came to power with the intention of undertaking significant economic and social reforms. Their ambitious plans were symbolised by the title of the coalition agreement, “Daring to Make More Progress”. The war in Ukraine, though, has forced the government to take revolutionary steps in the areas of defence and energy security. The Chancellor’s vagueness about the supply of weapons to Ukraine has been causing his SPD’s ratings to fall and The Greens’ popularity to rise. To reverse this trend, the chancellor will pursue further social reforms.
Topic:: Government, War, Domestic Politics, Inflation, and Olaf Scholz
Political Geography:: Europe, Ukraine, and Germany

47. The effect of COVID certificates on vaccine uptake, public health, and the economy

Author:: Philippe Aghion, Guntram Wolff, Philippe Martin, Lionel Guetta-Jeanrenaud, Bary Pradelski, Miquel Oliu-Barton, Nicolas Woloszko, Patrick Artus, and Arnaud Fontanet
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Bruegel
Abstract:: In the COVID-19 pandemic, governments have, among other measures, mandated the use of COVID certificates to prove vaccination, recovery or a recent negative test, and have required individuals to show certificates to access shops, restaurants, and education or workplaces. While arguments for and against COVID certificates have focused on reducing transmission and ethical concerns, the incentive effects of COVID certificates on vaccine uptake, health outcomes and the economy has not yet been investigated. To estimate these effects, we construct counterfactuals based on innovation diffusion theory for France, Germany and Italy. We estimate that the announcement of COVID certificates during summer 2021 led to increased vaccine uptake in France of 13.0 (95% CI 9.7–14.9) percentage points (p.p.) of the total population up to the end of the year, in Germany 6.2 (2.6–6.9) p.p., and in Italy 9.7 (5.4–12.3) p.p. Further, this averted an additional 3,979 (3,453–4,298) deaths in France, 1,133 (-312–1,358) in Germany, and 1,331 (502–1,794) in Italy; and prevented gross domestic product (GDP) losses of €6.0 (5.9–6.1) billion in France, €1.4 (1.3–1.5) billion in Germany, and €2.1 (2.0–2.2) billion in Italy. Notably, the application of COVID certificates substantially reduced the pressure on intensive care units (ICUs) and, in France, prevented occupancy levels being exceeded where prior lockdowns were instated. Varying government communication efforts and restrictions associated with COVID certificates may explain country differences, such as the smaller effect in Germany. Overall, our findings are more sizeable than predicted. This analysis may help inform decisions about when and how to employ COVID certificates to increase vaccine uptake and thus avoid stringent interventions, such as closures, curfews, and lockdowns, with major social and economic consequences.
Topic:: Government, Economy, Public Health, Vaccine, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Europe

48. Laying Foundations for Civic Engagement and Government Accountability in Guinea (2011-2020)

Author:: Natural Resource Governance Institute
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Natural Resource Governance Institute
Abstract:: When President Alpha Condé took office after Guinea’s first democratic election in 2010, he promised to reform the country’s mining sector. Following decades of sector mismanagement and corruption, Guinea introduced a new mining code in 2011 (later amended in 2013) and, in 2012, the government committed to implementing the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) Standard and reviewed 19 mining contracts signed by previous administrations. This reform effort precipitated a significant expansion of the industry: investments picked up and bauxite exports rose, and mining revenues grew. Despite progress, and because of the speed of mining expansion, communities in mining areas experienced increasingly negative impacts from the industry. Their interests went unaddressed; the government had been slow to implement key regulations aimed at protecting them. As a result, 2016 saw uprisings in key bauxite-producing areas. In addition, civil society engagement on extractive issues was weak and fragmented; citizens, activists and journalists lacked crucial information and were ill-equipped to engage on key governance issues.
Topic:: Government, Natural Resources, Governance, Accountability, and Civic Engagement
Political Geography:: Africa and Guinea

49. The Indonesian Government´S Intervention in the Management Of Indonesian Migrant Workers´ Remittances: Natural, Technical and Ultimate Restrictions

Author:: Annisa Ayuningtyas and Mailinda Eka Yuniza
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Revista UNISCI/UNISCI Journal
Institution:: Unidad de investigación sobre seguridad y cooperación (UNISCI)
Abstract:: The constitutionally groundless intervention of Indonesian government towards remittances-the financial outputs categorized as private transaction generated from Indonesian Migrant Workers (IMWs) abroad-has occurred since 1983 until the enactment of Law No. 18 Year 2017 on the protection of IMWs. This Law imposes obligations for local and central governments to conduct financial protection through remittance management by involving domestic and IMW`s placement state`s banks or non-bank financial institution. Given to the limited constitutional basis, private nature of remittances and conditional impact of IWM`s state of origin, this article discusses the limits of Indonesian government intervention in the management of migrants' remittances. This doctrinal legal research found that due to natural and technical restrictions, the government intervention is extremely limited.
Topic:: Government, Migrant Workers, Remittances, and Intervention
Political Geography:: Indonesia and Southeast Asia

50. Public policy actors view success differently, and it matters

Author:: Matt Andrews
Publication Date:: 10-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: Literature tells us there are many dimensions of public policy success, and different actors in the policy process will likely focus on different dimensions. This paper asks how different actors in the policy process view policy success, and how much their views differ. It finds evidence that actors devising policy plans— designers—view success narrowly, as achieving near-term, programmed goals; whereas other actors involved in advocating for, authorizing, and implementing policies have a broader success perspective, paying more attention to non-program criteria like long-term impact, distributional and endurance success, and intertemporal gains that manifest in the way policies grow capability, political support, stakeholder satisfaction, and process legitimacy. Such finding raises a question about how policy objectives are determined when actors disagree, given that literature also tells us that policies are more likely to succeed when actors agree on what success is and how to achieve it.
Topic:: Government, Governance, and Public Policy
Political Geography:: Global Focus

51. Galvanising the Ship of the Indian State: An Agenda for Research and Dialogue

Author:: Saurabh Kumar
Publication Date:: 09-2022
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: India International Centre (IIC)
Abstract:: Three major tipping points affecting the future of the country vitally kick into play at about the same time, no more than a few decades from now: • reversal of the (currently favourable) youthful demography of the country (by 2055 or so); • danger of calamitous climate change globally beginning to affect the Indian subcontinent harshly; • likely disruptive impact of mainstreaming of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on the socio-economic order (and therefore on political stability) as a result of robots surpassing human capabilities and replacing all human labour in repetitive and routine tasks. The prospect of large sections of society finding themselves free of want (basic survival needs) but idle, and therefore terribly distraught, in other words— an ‘unknown unknown’ that would beat the classical recipe for breeding a fair crop of devil’s workshops hands down. Especially so in conjunction with maturing and convergence of other fourth generation technologies (digital, nano, bio and machine learning) and increasing fusion of cyber and physical spaces. This essay, a strategic take on the overall Indian situation, is premised on the reading that the latter two of these mega challenges (which can, without exaggeration, be characterised as existential ones) cannot be addressed adequately in ‘business as usual’ (BAU) mode within the ambit of the existing organisational structures of over a century inherited by the Indian Republic from the colonial State. The likely sweeping, 360-degree impact of these overarching trends makes for urgent review of the machinery and mechanisms of the Indian State in a pragmatic, strategic mindset aimed at bracing up for the new challenges.
Topic:: Climate Change, Government, Research, State, and Dialogue
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

52. Halting the Kleptocratic Capture of Local Government in Nigeria

Author:: Matthew T. Page and Abdul H. Wando
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Too often viewed as a monolithic state, Nigeria has complex subnational governance systems that can have outsized impacts on its trajectory. The state is covered with a vibrant but frayed political quilt, consisting of three layers: the federal government in Abuja, thirty-six state governments, and 774 local governments. Frequently overlooked, Nigeria’s local governments are disproportionately important; if they functioned well, they would be best positioned to meet people’s basic needs and to build their resilience to cope with everyday challenges. Matthew T. Page Matthew T. Page is a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. In reality, however, “no local government [in Nigeria] works for the people.”1 Instead, “every household is its own local government,” sourcing its basic needs—water, electricity, education, and healthcare—however it can.2 Exhausted by local government kleptocracy—a system in which those who govern steal from the governed—Nigerians understand that they must fend for themselves. While local government corruption is a global problem not unique to Nigeria, it is nevertheless crucial to address. It fuels democratic backsliding, communal conflict, and poverty. By hurting governance outcomes at the subnational level, local government corruption is quietly hobbling Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy and most populous nation.
Topic:: Corruption, Government, Domestic Politics, and Kleptocracy
Political Geography:: Africa and Nigeria

53. Engaging China on Strategic Stability and Mutual Vulnerability

Author:: George Perkovich
Publication Date:: 10-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: The United States and Chinese governments, for the foreseeable future, will have the resources to keep each other’s societies vulnerable to nuclear mass destruction. If these governments are not self-destructive, they will want to keep their competition from escalating into armed conflict that could lead to nuclear war. The constructs of strategic stability and mutual vulnerability can help significantly if both governments embrace them and interpret them similarly or even if the leaders of the two countries accurately understand how they differ in their perspectives on them. Unfortunately, to date, on these issues the United States and China are like a quarrelling married couple who tried therapy for one or two appointments, found it dissatisfying, and then alternated in making excuses for not trying again, perhaps with a different therapist or format. Each says they have tried and the other doesn’t listen or understand. Both suspect that the other isn’t saying what they really feel or want; what they really feel is hostility and distrust and what they really want is to get richer and more powerful without being hassled or attacked. It would be easier if they could just go their separate ways, but the property and wealth they depend on will be lost (or at least severely diminished) if they split up or do each other harm. This paper suggests that U.S. and allied interests require persistence in inviting China to dialogue on strategic stability; to demonstrate goodwill, the United States should acknowledge mutual vulnerability as a fact and necessary policy. The need for both moves is reflected in the fact that neither government has defined what it might mean by stability or mutual vulnerability. To help test intentions and prompt harder thinking, the paper plays the role of therapist and offers definitions of both concepts—strategic stability and mutual vulnerability—so that the two sides can critique them more freely and without recrimination. These definitions are broader and deeper than usual, reflecting the growing problem of managing escalation of conventional conflict to nuclear war, the scenario that drives U.S. and Chinese concerns and military posturing. Further, broader definitions are necessary to comprehend the dangers stemming from the entanglement of conventional, cyber, and nuclear weapons and command and control systems. The paper then sketches four benefits of declaring mutual vulnerability, contrary to opponents of the idea, before discussing steps that the United States and China could subsequently take to reflect and build each other’s confidence in such a policy. Finally, if perceived U.S. requirements in the future will be greater than the arsenal needed to deter or defeat Russia or China alone, how will Russia and China be persuaded not to try to build up to balance the additional U.S. force? In other words, if the United States is in two separate but interacting arms races (and deterrence relationships), how could each opponent (China and Russia) be persuaded to negotiate limits on their arsenal lower than the total the United States would insist on possessing to deter two nuclear opponents? Answers to these questions will affect strategic stability and mutual vulnerability of all parties but will take a long time to develop. To begin the process, the paper suggests asking Chinese leaders whether their silence on Putin’s nuclear first-use threats means that China has changed its own policy on nuclear use or that it never took a no-first-use policy seriously in the first place. Is China concerned that the capabilities that the United States and its allies may develop to strengthen defenses against Russia could be used against China too, and if so, might arms control be a wiser approach? Ultimately, the paper suggests that if China and the United States can sustain a process of serious dialogue, they will keep their relationship from worsening even if they cannot formally restrain their competition. And if dialogue leads one to ask the other for deeds to demonstrate goodwill, the paper has suggested some such deeds that could be undertaken with no security hazard and only slight political risk. No one should have the illusion that happiness is in this couple’s future. All this work would be to allow a nonviolent cohabitation that is better than the alternative of destitute divorce or murder-suicide.
Topic:: Government, Nuclear Weapons, Strategic Stability, and Vulnerability
Political Geography:: China, Asia, North America, and United States of America

54. How to Destroy an Investigation from the Inside: Ayotzinapa and the Legacies of Impunity

Author:: John Gibler
Publication Date:: 11-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Is the Mexican government's dubious new evidence part of another “historical truth?”
Topic:: Corruption, Government, History, Impunity, Memory, and Extrajudicial Killings
Political Geography:: Latin America, North America, and Mexico

55. Trust as state capacity: The political economy of compliance

Author:: Timothy Besley and Sacha Dray
Publication Date:: 11-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: This paper explores the link between trust in government, policy-making, and compliance. It focuses on a specific channel whereby citizens who are convinced that a policy is worthwhile are more motivated to comply with it. This in turn reduces the government’s cost of implementing a policy and may also increase the set of feasible policies. Thus, state capacity is greater when citizens trust their government. The paper discusses alternative approaches to modelling the origins of trust, especially the link to the design of political institutions. We then provide empirical evidence consistent with the model’s findings that compliance is increasing in trust using the Integrated Values Survey and voluntary compliance during COVID-19 in the UK. We also show that countries with high levels of citizen trust in government were more likely to implement policies requiring voluntary compliance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper suggests that trust in government can play a role in building and expanding state capacities.
Topic:: Government, Political Economy, Capacity, Compliance, and Trust
Political Geography:: Global Focus

56. Jawboning against Speech: How Government Bullying Shapes the Rules of Social Media

Author:: Will Duffield
Publication Date:: 09-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: Over the past two decades, social media has drastically reduced the cost of speaking, allowing users the world over to publish with the push of a button. This amazing capability is limited by the fact that speakers do not own the platforms they increasingly rely on. If access to the platforms is withdrawn, speakers lose the reach that social media grants. In America, government censorship is limited by the First Amendment. Nevertheless, seizing upon the relationship between platforms and speakers, government officials increasingly demand that platforms refrain from publishing disfavored speech. They threaten platforms with punitive legislation, antitrust investigations, and prosecution. Government officials can use informal pressure — bullying, threatening, and cajoling — to sway the decisions of private platforms and limit the publication of disfavored speech. The use of this informal pressure, known as jawboning, is growing. Left unchecked, it threatens to become normalized as an extraconstitutional method of speech regulation. While courts have censured jawboning in other contexts, existing judicial remedies struggle to address social media jawboning. Amid the opacity and scale of social media moderation, government influence is difficult to detect or prevent. Ultimately, congressional rulemaking and the people’s selection of liberal, temperate officials remain the only reliable checks on this novel threat to free speech.
Topic:: Government, Regulation, Social Media, Censorship, and Free Speech
Political Geography:: Global Focus and United States of America

57. Persistent Obstacles: Iraqi state’s prospects for forming a new government

Author:: FARAS
Publication Date:: 10-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: Head of the Sadrist Movement and powerful Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has announced that a truce reached to observe the Shia religious observance of Arbaeen was extended for another two weeks to mid-October to give political forces a chance to respond to his demands. The announcement coincided with the Iraqi parliament’s rejection of the resignation of Speaker of the parliament, Mohammed al-Halbousi on September 28. It also came while the Shi'ite Coordination Framework, the largest bloc in the parliament, claimed that, along with the Kurdisd and Sunni parties, it succeeded in establishing a new political coalition, reportedly named “Running-the-State Coalition.”
Topic:: Government, Domestic Politics, Muqtada al-Sadr, Coalition, and Parliament
Political Geography:: Iraq and Middle East

58. Russian Government Moves to Assert Increasing Control Over Internet

Author:: John C. K. Daly
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:: Amidst growing political dissatisfaction, the Russian government is grappling with the apparent vulnerabilities of the country’s internet. On February 1, Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairperson of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, acknowledged during an extensive interview with Russian media what foreign analysts have long suspected: disconnecting Russia from the internet is possible (TASS, February 1). And as if to provide a rationale for such potential action, the previous week, the Federal Security Service’s (FSB) National Coordination Center for Computer Incidents (NKTsKI) reported a threat of possible cyberattacks by the United States and its allies against Russia’s critical infrastructure (Interfax, January 22).
Topic:: Government, Internet, and Repression
Political Geography:: Russia and Eurasia

59. The 2021 Iranian Presidential Election A Preliminary Assessment

Author:: Albert B. Wolf
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: Whoever wins, the result will intimate deeper trends in Iranian society, such as public support for the regime and the Supreme Leader’s intentions for the country’s future. The Washington Institute has been sponsoring a series of discussions about sudden succession in the Middle East. Each session focuses on scenarios that might unfold if a specific ruler or leader departed the scene tomorrow. Questions include these: Would the sudden change lead to different policies? Would it affect the stability of the respective countries involved, or the region as a whole? What would be the impact on U.S. interests? Would the manner of a leader’s departure make a difference? The discussions also probe how the U.S. government might adjust to the new situation or influence outcomes. This essay, thirteenth in the series, assesses the situation in Iran, where a June election will determine the successor to President Hassan Rouhani. An IRGC-backed candidate such as Majlis speaker Muhammad Baqer Qalibaf or former defense minister Hossein Dehghan could ultimately prevail—but a history of election surprises in the Islamic Republic suggests no outcome is certain. Whoever wins, the result will offer clues about deeper trends in Iranian society, such as public support for the regime and the Supreme Leader’s intentions for the country’s future.
Topic:: International Relations, Government, Elections, and Domestic Politics
Political Geography:: Iran, Middle East, and United States of America

60. Protecting checks and balances to save the Rule of Law

Author:: Eric Maurice
Publication Date:: 04-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Robert Schuman Foundation (RSF)
Abstract:: For half a decade, the Polish government has been reshaping the country's judicial system in a process described by the European Union as a "threat to the rule of law". Despite numerous Council of Europe reports and resolutions, several infringement proceedings and decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ), and the unprecedented activation of the so-called Article 7 procedure of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), the transformation of the judiciary into relays of political power has continued and accelerated since the Law and Justice Party (PiS) won a new term in 2019 and the reelection of President Andrzej Duda in 2020, pushing Poland to the limits of the European legal order.
Topic:: Government, European Union, Courts, and Rule of Law
Political Geography:: Europe and Poland

61. Veteran Disability Compensation and the Army Profession: Good Intentions Gone Awry

Author:: Leonard Wong and Dr. Stephen J. Gerras
Publication Date:: 01-2021
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: The Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College
Abstract:: Previous studies analyzing disability compensation have decried its $76 billion annual budget or warned of its perverse ability to incentivize veterans not to work. This study focuses on the impact of this moral hazard on the US Army profession. If soldiers continue to capitalize on an extremely permissive disability system, the trust between society and the military may be threatened, and future Army readiness may be jeopardized should disability compensation be added to the marginal cost of a soldier. More importantly, many of today’s soldiers are rationalizing disability compensation as something owed to them—not for a debilitating injury, but for the hardships of service to the nation. This study uses US Army and Department of Veterans Affairs personnel files, soldier interviews, and discussions with senior leaders to support its conclusions. The intent of the study is to prompt the Army profession to act before the culture surrounding disability compensation becomes permanent. In the end, the essence of the entitlement—taking care of veterans—must remain sacrosanct. This call for reform is driven not by fiscal considerations, but by a desire for the Army to remain both an institution trusted by society and a profession marked by selfless service.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, Government, Disability, Army, and Veterans
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

62. Egypt, The US, And An Evolving Regional Landscape

Author:: Motaz Zahran, Joey Hood, Paul Salem, Gerald Feierstein, and Mirette F. Mabrouk
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: The Middle East has become a kaleidoscope of evolving relationships and developments. Following almost a decade of near chaos, Libya has just elected an interim government, paving the way for a new transition. Despite several new normalization treaties with Arab states, Israel remains deadlocked in perhaps the most urgent of its relationships with Arab states; that with Palestine. A decade of stressful and largely fruitless negotiations between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is threatening to become even more complicated by Ethiopia’s internal conflicts and the possibility of a civil war spilling over its borders, threatening a fragile transition in Sudan and possibility of stability in the Horn of Africa. Amid all these developments, relationships and alliances are being reformed and reevaluated. Where does Egypt stand on all of these issues? MEI held a private, on the record roundtable discussion with the Ambassador of Egypt to the United States Motaz Zahran and Acting Assistant Secretary of State Joey Hood. MEI President Paul Salem gave an introduction and Senior Vice President Amb Gerald Feierstein and Egypt Programme Director Mirette F Mabrouk moderated the discussion.
Topic:: International Relations, Government, Regional Cooperation, and Transition
Political Geography:: Libya, North Africa, North America, Egypt, and United States of America

63. State of the Nation Address by President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (September 1, 2021)

Author:: Kassym-Jomart Tokayev
Publication Date:: 12-2021
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Nowa Polityka Wschodnia
Institution:: Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń
Abstract:: State of the Nation Address by President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (September 1, 2021)
Topic:: Government, Politics, Domestic Politics, and Speech
Political Geography:: Central Asia and Kazakhstan

64. Speech of H.E. Mr. Nguyen Hung, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the Republic of Poland on the occasion of 76th anniversary of the National Independence Day

Author:: Nguyen Hung
Publication Date:: 09-2021
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Nowa Polityka Wschodnia
Institution:: Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń
Abstract:: Speech of H.E. Mr. Nguyen Hung, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the Republic of Poland on the occasion of 76th anniversary of the National Independence Day (September 2, 2021)
Topic:: Diplomacy, Government, and Speech
Political Geography:: Poland and Vietnam

65. “To Make Us Slowly Disappear”: The Chinese Government’s Assault on the Uyghurs

Author:: Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide
Publication Date:: 11-2021
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Abstract:: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide released a report in November 2021, “To Make Us Slowly Disappear”: The Chinese Government’s Assault on the Uyghurs. The Chinese government’s attacks on the Uyghur community are alarming in scale and severity. The report expresses the Museum’s grave concern that the Chinese government may be committing genocide against the Uyghurs, a Muslim community in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of northwest China. The report also details multiple crimes against humanity that the Chinese government is committing against the Uyghur population. These crimes include forced sterilization, sexual violence, enslavement, torture, forcible transfer, persecution, and imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty. The Museum’s findings, based on publicly available information, demonstrate that China is failing to uphold its responsibility to protect its citizens from genocide and crimes against humanity. The Chinese government must halt its attacks on the Uyghur people and allow independent international monitors to investigate and ensure that the crimes have stopped. The seriousness of the assault on the Uyghur population demands the immediate response of the international community to protect the victims.
Topic:: Genocide, Government, Human Rights, Minorities, State Violence, Atrocities, and Uyghurs
Political Geography:: China and Xinjiang

66. Fake Civil Society: The Rise of Pro-Government NGOs in Nigeria

Author:: Matthew T. Page
Publication Date:: 07-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Nigeria’s dynamic and expansive civil society is one of its greatest strengths and is crucial to maintaining what democratic space still exists in the country. Yet its independence, outspokenness, and unwavering commitment to democracy, transparency, and human rights have long antagonized the kleptocratic, power-hungry—but also image-conscious—ruling elites. To help protect themselves from domestic pressure and outside scrutiny, Nigeria’s top powerbrokers have cultivated a new generation of pro-government non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Like the fake grassroots groups bankrolled by past military juntas, these surrogate organizations masquerade as authentic civil society groups, singing the praises of top officials and attacking their critics. A symptom of the country’s more fundamental political ills, Nigerian elites’ growing use of civil society surrogates should set off alarm bells both domestically and internationally. It is both corrupting and corruptive, compounding the country’s downward democratic trajectory. Like many countries in Africa—and, for that matter, elsewhere in the world—Nigeria has recently experienced democratic backsliding that threatens its long-term stability and prosperity. The rise of pro-government NGOs is both a cause and a consequence of this backsliding and must be addressed as part of any effort to arrest and reverse it.
Topic:: Civil Society, Government, Democracy, and NGOs
Political Geography:: Africa and Nigeria

67. Chinese Mining and Indigenous Resistance in Ecuador

Author:: Cintia Quiliconi and Pablo Rodriguez Vasco
Publication Date:: 09-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Chinese mining companies were drawn to Ecuador by a strong interest in diversifying their sources of copper in Latin America. But Chinese mining operations in Ecuador, which could have contributed to Ecuadorian development, soon gained a negative reputation after these activities prompted a great deal of local pushback, especially from affected Indigenous communities. As a result, the major Chinese mining consortium that now controls Ecuador’s two main copper mines has taken adaptive steps to stabilize its mining investment and increase the security of its supply networks, steps that often have not produced the intended results. Working through two subsidiaries, the Chinese mining consortium has responded to this localized criticism with a blend of tactics that includes co-opting select local figures, colluding with national officials to sidestep environmental and sociocultural safeguards, and coercing inhabitants into relocating under the threat of force from accommodating Ecuadorian authorities. By turning Ecuadorian national elites against locals and using divide-and-conquer tactics among Indigenous communities, the Chinese-led mining projects have entrenched existing political cleavages, have undermined community cohesion, and ultimately have harmed Ecuador’s democratic fabric, especially the standing of civil society and Indigenous rights organizations. While Ecuador has welcomed Chinese capital and other sources of international investment, this infusion of financing has increased the risk of political abuses at the national and local levels. This paper explains the adaptive strategies employed by the Chinese consortium and its subsidiaries in charge of the Mirador and San Carlos Panantza mining sites, contrasting the differing results these tactics have produced in each case. Both projects are located in Ecuador’s so-called Copper Belt provinces of Morona Santiago and Zamora Chinchipe, which are part of a mountain range known as the Cordillera del Cóndor. They are embedded in an ecologically and culturally sensitive zone that includes territory of the Indigenous Shuar community in the Ecuadorian Amazon. In the case of Mirador, the Chinese mining consortium’s adaptive response helped its subsidiary overcome local resistance but only by crushing it. In the case of San Carlos Panantza, local resistance so far has not been overcome, so the Chinese consortium has remained unable to proceed with its project. Neither case, even the Mirador site where mining has moved forward, is a sign of success for future relationships between Chinese mining conglomerates and Ecuadorian communities. To understand why the Chinese consortium’s adaptive tactics were somewhat more successful in Mirador, it is important to focus on the differing composition of the inhabitants of the land where the two mines are located. Mirador sits on territory shared by Shuar and non-Shuar settler communities who have different bonds with the land. The non-Shuar settlers emphasize the productive and commercial value of the land over the spiritual and symbolic value that is key for many in the Shuar community. The Canadian-held and later Chinese-controlled companies active in Ecuador’s mining industry understood this difference between Mirador’s inhabitants and adapted accordingly: they managed to displace resistant residents despite widespread opposition through questionable and sometimes arguably illegal purchases of land. In San Carlos Panantza, a second subsidiary of the Chinese consortium chose to respond to local criticism with the same alleged practices of violence, occupation, and displacement used in Mirador. However, although the two projects are geographically near each other, the situation played out differently at the second would-be mine: ongoing opposition has prevented mining operations from beginning at all yet. Again, paying attention to the inhabitants of the land is instructive. San Carlos Panantza is in the heart of Shuar territory in Arutam, a region with few non-Indigenous settlers. The mining incursion by the Chinese-run subsidiary and the Ecuadorian security forces tasked with supporting it were seen as a threat to the area’s Shuar people, who have been strongly protesting and opposing the mining venture since late 2016. This state of affairs is likely to have far-reaching effects for Ecuador too. The apparent collusion between Ecuador’s national government and the Chinese consortium (and its subsidiaries) has crushed those who oppose mining, has upended the country’s policies on resource extraction, and has yielded documented violations of local communities’ human rights. These events have transpired because both the Chinese firms and the Ecuadorian state have tended to see local communities as an obstacle to the development of the country’s extractive industries. As a result, local social and environmental safeguards have been weakened, tenuous consultation processes have eroded, environmental licenses have been granted under dubious circumstances, and local communities have been forcibly displaced. This paper explores the implications of the adaptive tactics chosen by the Chinese mining subsidiaries that run the Mirador and San Carlos Panantza mines. It also addresses how Chinese companies have, in some cases, negotiated with local communities to begin mining exploitation, while also analyzing the ways the Chinese mining consortium has interacted with the Ecuadorian government and other players, such as the Canadian mining company it acquired and other peer companies that set up successful coalitions for mining development in Ecuador. Finally, the paper explores the effects the agreements between the Ecuadorian government and the Chinese consortium have had on local actors.
Topic:: Development, Government, Mining, Indigenous, and Resistance
Political Geography:: China, Asia, South America, and Ecuador

68. Building a Strong and Independent Iraq: Policy Guidance for the Biden Administration

Author:: Abram N. Shulsky
Publication Date:: 01-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Hudson Institute
Abstract:: Formulating US policy toward Iraq can be a fraught matter, given all the debate and disagreement concerning the actions that brought us to the current situation. However, our policy must be formulated in light of it, regardless of views about our past actions. Policy formulation should begin with the realization that Iran has gained a predominant political and military influence in Iraq. Despite efforts of past PM Adel Abdul Mahdi and current PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi, many of the militias comprising the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) still answer to Iran, not the Iraqi government. Iran exerts widespread influence throughout the political class. Economically, Iraq remains dependent on Iran for energy;1 religious tourism from Iran to the holy sites in Karbala and Najaf is an important source of revenue; and Iran has flooded markets with cheap food and consumer goods. Although Iraqi oil production has rebounded, the economy remains relatively moribund and the level of basic public services is poor. (That Iraq flares off its natural gas at the same time it is importing it from Iran to produce electricity2 highlights the economic disfunction.) Popular discontent boiled over in 2019, leading to widespread protests. The protests took on an anti-Iranian aspect, and Iran-aligned PMF units attacked the protestors.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Agriculture, Economics, Government, Politics, and Military Affairs
Political Geography:: Iraq, Middle East, and United States of America

69. Germany’s New Government Coalition: A Red, Yellow or Green Light for German-Turkish Relations?

Author:: Ekrem Eddy Güzeldere
Publication Date:: 12-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Abstract:: After the national elections of 26 September 2021, the SPD, Greens and FDP formed for the first time in German history a three-party coalition. The new chancellor is Olaf Scholz (SPD), while the minister of foreign affairs is a woman, Annalena Baerbock (Greens), for the first time. The coalition agreement mentions Turkey only as an “important neighbor of the EU” and speaks of “worrying domestic political developments and foreign policy tensions.” During the election campaign, the Greens and Baerbock spoke of a value-based foreign policy guided by human rights, ecological issues and democratic standards would be guiding principles. Baerbock has been critical of Turkey: after it left the Istanbul Convention, for instance, or over the refugee deal and “violations of human rights and the rule of law.” The Greens remain the only party in the Bundestag, which still views the revival of Turkey’s EU accession process as a possibility. The Greens, and the FDP in particular, want to intensify exchanges between the two countries with civil society and youth exchange programs. The new Bundestag is the most diverse ever, with more German-Turks in parliament than ever before (18/19), and a German-Turk holding a ministerial position (agriculture) for the first time. Greens and FDP voters expect a harsher stance on countries like Turkey: a pragmatic approach à la Merkel would disappoint them. The future of bilateral relations will also depend on how cooperative or confrontational a position Turkey adopts. A best-case scenario is also possible: the next elections put a reformist government in power in Turkey, which will then be supported by the new German administration.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, Bilateral Relations, and Elections
Political Geography:: Turkey and Germany

70. Making Sense of Cents: Parsing the U.S. Department of Defense’s FY 2022 Budget Request

Author:: Stacie L. Pettyjohn and Becca Wasser
Publication Date:: 05-2021
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Center for a New American Security (CNAS)
Abstract:: This report contextualizes the Biden administration’s discretionary funding request for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in fiscal year (FY) 2022, referred to as the “skinny” budget request. The report considers what this initial request—which has not yet been touched by Congress—may mean for the full FY 2022 Presidential Budget Request, given the identified priorities and available resources. The only detailed figure included in the defense budget request is the topline of $715 billion, which is higher than former President Donald Trump’s $705 billion FY 2021 budget request. However, when adjusted for inflation, it amounts to a flat budget. This report identifies several strategic objectives from the skinny budget request, the Biden administration’s interim national security strategic guidance, and the priorities publicly laid out by DoD leadership for which the U.S. government will need to allocate resources. These objectives have implications for ongoing departmental efforts and resourcing. The authors assert that: The continued prioritization of China means the DoD must simultaneously modernize its conventional and nuclear forces to strengthen deterrence. The budget prioritizes additional missions for the DoD, like countering transnational threats—particularly climate change and biothreats such as COVID-19—but it does not resource these missions. There will be fewer resources for modernization due to pressure from the growing military personnel budget, as well as the operations and maintenance budget. The department will undertake these activities with fewer resources and less budgetary flexibility since the overseas contingency operations account has been terminated. However, this move will enhance long-term planning and should make it easier to align future budget requests with the strategy. The FY22 defense budget request identifies a number of planned activities and areas of emphasis, but it does not specify how much money will be allocated toward each area. This report focuses on six key areas of interest—the Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI), long-range fires, naval shipbuilding, research and development for technological innovation and readiness, nuclear modernization, and transnational threats—where the United States will need to make the greatest investments or tradeoffs.
Topic:: Defense Policy, Government, Nuclear Weapons, Budget, Finance, and Strategic Competition
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

71. Building And Strengthening Public Trust In Government Policy Decisions And Institutions To Effectively Tackle Covid-19 In Cameroon

Author:: Dr. Asahngwa Constantine, Denis Foretia, Gobina Ronald, Wilfred Ngwa, Charlotte Bongfen, Odette Kibu, and Nkengafac Fobellah
Publication Date:: 01-2021
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: The Nkafu Policy Institute
Abstract:: In Cameroon the battle against COVID-19 is far from over as the disease still continue to claim many lives and aggravates the deepening poverty situation of Cameroonians. According to reports from the Ministry of Health (as from 8th of December, 2020), Cameroon has recorded 24,752 infected cases, 23,344 recoveries and 433 deaths. [1] The economic consequences of the disease remain preoccupying as many people have experienced a decline in their businesses. The government of Cameroon through the Prime Minister published a national response plan which aimed at combating the disease, highlighting preventive measures and effective management of confirmed positive cases. Some of these measures include the prohibition of mass gatherings above 50 persons, maintaining physical distancing, wearing of face mask in public places, frequent handwashing with soap or using hand sanitizers and isolation of infected persons. [2] These measures and others are currently being implemented since March, 2020. Although the government has been doing its best to bring this pandemic to an end, this has not been without challenges. One of the challenges is the decline of public trust in government’s policy decisions and institutions, which if not given sufficient attention may compromise all the efforts and resources already galvanize for this battle against COVID-19.[3] Drawing from published literature, we discuss the factors responsible for the decline of public trust, how the lack of trust can hamper interventions and control efforts and some suggestions how this challenge can be tackled to enhance effective interventions to combat COVID-19 in Cameroon.
Topic:: Government, Health, Institutions, Public Sector, Public Health, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Global Health
Political Geography:: Africa and Cameroon

72. Saudi Arabia: A Colossus with Clay Feets/Arabia Saudí: Un coloso con los pies de barro

Author:: Eugenia López-Jacoiste Díaz
Publication Date:: 10-2021
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Revista UNISCI/UNISCI Journal
Institution:: Unidad de investigación sobre seguridad y cooperación (UNISCI)
Abstract:: The political-religious foundation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is Wahhabism that marks its identity, society and politics. The Al Saud dynasty defends and expands Sunni Islam in the region and beyond its borders. In order to understand the interests and objectives of Saudi foreign policy, this article analyzes the main geopolitical elements at the service of the stability and hegemony of the Al Saud house in the most turbulent region of the Middle East. The Saudi government is developing a foreign policy, unsuspected in the past, to maintain its historic alliance with Washington, despite the ups and downs, and to transform the old rivalries between Riyadh and Tehran into new opportunities, including with Israel. This change in Saudi foreign policy is due to the controversial Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman who knows how to take advantage of the changing regional geopolitics and Saudi financial instruments, but also the military and technological in favor of a more proactive and modern Saudi Arabia, despite his weaknesses./El fundamento político-religioso del Reino de Arabia Saudí es el wahabismo que marca su identidad, su sociedad y su política. La dinastía Al Saud defiende y expande el islam sunní en la región y fuera de sus fronteras. Para poder entender los intereses y objetivos de la política exterior saudí, este artículo analiza los principales elementos geopolíticos al servicio de la estabilidad y hegemonía de la casa Al Saud en la región más convulsa de Oriente Medio. El Gobierno saudí está desarrollando una política exterior, insospechada en el pasado para mantener su histórica alianza con Washington, a pesar de los altibajos, y transformar las viejas rivalidades entre Riad y Teherán en nuevas oportunidades, incluso con Israel. Este cambio en la política exterior saudí se debe al controvertido Príncipe Heredero Mohamed bin Salmán que sabe aprovechar la cambiante geopolítica regional y los instrumentos financieros saudíes, pero también los militares y tecnológicos a favor de una Arabia Saudí más proactiva y moderna, a pesar de sus debilidades.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, Oil, Military Affairs, Geopolitics, and Wahhabism
Political Geography:: Iran, Middle East, Israel, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Persian Gulf, and United States of America

73. Successful Failure in Public Policy Work

Author:: Matt Andrews
Publication Date:: 12-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: It matters if public policies succeed in solving societal problems, but a dominant narrative holds that policies fail ‘often’. A large-sample study discussed in this paper suggests that this is not accurate, however. The most common policy result in this study is more ambiguous—what I call ‘successful failure’. Such result is achieved when a policy delivers enough low-level, short-term product to promise success, but ultimately (and repeatedly) fails to contribute to sustained highlevel, long-term impact (addressing the problems citizens care about). Such ‘successful failure’ is endemic to public policy work, and a more pernicious result than outright failure: It allows policy design and implementation actors to associate with incomplete near-run success but insulate themselves from future failure (which they blame on factors and actors beyond their control) and simultaneously enjoy repeated demand for work (because problems are never really solved.
Topic:: Government, Public Policy, and Problem Solving
Political Geography:: Global Focus

74. Milestones in Canadian Gender and Trade Policy

Author:: Judit Fabian
Publication Date:: 09-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI)
Abstract:: The progressive/inclusive turn in Canada’s trade policy has attracted significant attention since the advent of the Trudeau government. This is particularly true of its gender component. It is, however, only the most recent stage in a developmental arc that began with the negotiations for NAFTA in the early 1990s. “Trade and gender” is therefore not new, but is the continuation of a three decades-long developmental process that Canada has often led. The paper shows this by defining and describing the milestones of Canada’s role in incorporating gender in trade agreements since the 1990s, and how gender is incorporated in Canada’s trade policy at present.
Topic:: Government, Trade Policy, and Gender
Political Geography:: Canada and North America

75. The Financial Decentralization Of Local Governments Tested By The Principle Of Cash Flow In Cameroon

Author:: Theophile Nguimfack Voufo and Steve Tametong
Publication Date:: 07-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The Nkafu Policy Institute
Abstract:: In the face of the multiple socio-political crises that Cameroon is experiencing, the form of the state is now being debated, against the backdrop of the issue of governance. Seen in its political, administrative or financial dimensions, state governance has failed miserably in terms of socio-economic development issues. To remedy this, the public authorities recognize the need to complete the decentralization process. Is this commitment, which is regularly reinforced by the media, a way out of the crisis? From a legal point of view, the evolution of the decentralization process is marked by two fundamental requirements: the transfer of powers on the one hand, and the subsequent transfer of resources to exercise these powers on the other. Since 2010, the central executive has been committed to the transfer of powers to local authorities. However, the principles of complementarity, subsidiarity and even concomitance mark the return of the state, whereas decentralization implies a priority of action for the decentralized communities. In this respect, the transfer of powers is accompanied by the transfer of resources, in particular local taxation and allocations from the State budget. Local taxation, grants and own resources acquired by decentralized authorities constitute the basis of financial decentralization. It requires that the resources transferred to local governments be freely managed. This refers to the ability to mobilize these resources without being hindered by state bodies. This freedom remains an illusion in the presence of the principle of the unity of the treasury. This principle links the treasury of decentralized communities to that of the State, which can have several implications for the financial freedom of action of these communities. Given the current challenges of decentralization in Cameroon, the question arises as to whether the unity of the treasury is compatible with the financial decentralization of decentralized local authorities. Questioning the relevance of this principle allows us to verify whether this classic rule is not already obsolete in Cameroon. Analysis shows that the principle of the cash unit is incompatible with financial decentralization (I) and should be reconsidered (II).
Topic:: Government, Finance, Local, and Decentralization
Political Geography:: Africa and Cameroon

76. The Potential for Constitutional Devolution in South Africa

Author:: Martin van Staden
Publication Date:: 10-2021
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: The Cato Journal
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: The African National Congress (ANC) today rules South Africa, formally a federation, as though it were a unitary state. There has been increasing agitation in recent years for the secession of the Western Cape province, which since South Africa ended apartheid in 1994 has never returned a majority vote in favor of the ANC.
Topic:: Government, Constitution, Disputes, and African National Congress (ANC)
Political Geography:: Africa and South Africa

77. A Brief History of U.S. Immigration Policy from the Colonial Period to the Present Day

Author:: Andrew M. Baxter and Alex Nowrasteh
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: More than 86 million people have legally immigrated to the United States between 1783 and 2019. The legal regime under which they immigrated has changed radically over that time; the politics surrounding those changes have remained contentious, and past immigration policies inform the current political debate. Conflicting visions and piecemeal legislation have left the United States with an archaic and barely coherent immigration system with outdated policy objectives that is primarily controlled by the executive branch of government. We review the history of U.S. immigration policy, including the legal controversies that empowered Congress with its immigration plenary power and the historical policy decisions that still guide the U.S. immigration system, in order to contextualize the current political debate over immigration at the beginning of the Biden administration.
Topic:: Government, History, Immigration, and Immigration Policy
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

78. Industrial Policy Implementation: Empirical Evidence from China’s Shipbuilding Industry

Author:: Panle Barwick, Myrto Kalouptsidi, and Nahim Bin Zahur
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: Industrial policy has been widely used in developed and developing countries. Examples include the United States and Europe after World War II; Japan in the 1950s and 1960s; South Korea and Taiwan in the 1960s and 1970s; and Brazil, China, India, and other developing countries more recently. Industrial policies are now back in the spotlight in developed countries, such as Europe and the United States. Designing and implementing industrial policies is a complicated task. Governments seeking to promote the growth of selected sectors have a wide range of policy tools at their disposal, including subsidies on output, provisioning loans at below‐market interest rates, preferential tax policies, tariff and nontariff barriers, and so on. They must also choose the timing of policy interventions and whether to target selected firms within an industry.
Topic:: Government, Industrial Policy, Economic Policy, and Shipbuilding
Political Geography:: China and Asia

79. The Intended and Unintended Consequences of Disposable Bag Regulation

Author:: Tatiana Homonoff, Lee-Sien Kao, Javiera Selman, and Christina Seybolt
Publication Date:: 11-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: Many recent government and corporate policies aimed at reducing a variety of negative externalities include regulations that ban the provision of externality‐generating products. However, these policies often ban only a narrow subset of products associated with the underlying externality. For example, the U.S. Department of Justice banned bump stocks, which assist in rapid‐fire shooting, after a Las Vegas mass shooting rather than placing stricter regulations on all assault weapons. Similarly, Starbucks recently banned the distribution of plastic straws at its stores to reduce environmental waste, and New York City attempted to pass a restaurant ban on sugar‐sweetened beverages over 16 ounces to curb obesity.
Topic:: Environment, Government, Regulation, and Corporations
Political Geography:: Global Focus

80. Access and Use of ICT in Budget Transparency and Accountability in Local Governments

Author:: Florence Kuteesa, Susan Namirembe Kavuma, and Richard Ayesigwa
Publication Date:: 07-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE)
Abstract:: This study examined the levels of awareness, access and capacities of local Government administration to use ICT tools and e-government services in the budgeting process in the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pursuit of improved e-government services for budget transparency and accountability became the norm in Uganda. The Public Finance Management Act 2015, Section 12(2) mandates all stakeholders to promote and enforce transparent, efficient, and effective management of public expenditure.The findings of the study showed the potential of ICT to significantly enhance Budget Transparency and Accountability.
Topic:: Government, Science and Technology, Communications, Budget, Accountability, and Transparency
Political Geography:: Uganda and Africa

81. Enhancing the credibility of the public office holders asset declaration regime

Author:: E. Gyimah-Boadi
Publication Date:: 10-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Abstract:: A credible and effective asset declaration regime is an essential component of the ensemble of rules and structures necessary for democratic governance. It helps to: • Prevent abuse of power by holders of public office • Protect public assets and the public interest • Deter public corruption • Promote the integrity of public officials • Foster public accountability and trust as well as governmental legitimacy. A credible asset declaration regime is also good for public officials. It helps to: • Protect the private assets of public officials from wrongful and extra-legal confiscation • Protect public officials from undue suspicion, baseless allegations of wrongdoing, and all manner of calumny.
Topic:: Corruption, Government, and Reform
Political Geography:: Africa and Ghana

82. Constituting Committees in the Eighth Parliament: Harnessing the Opportunities Inherent in a Hung Parliament

Author:: Regina Oforiwa Amanfo Tetteh
Publication Date:: 11-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Abstract:: Since the incepon of the 4th Republic, governments in power have enjoyed majority, and in some cases, overwhelming majority in parliament, the only excepon being the current parliament aer the 2020 elecons. The first parliamentary elecon of the 4th Republic which the New Patrioc Party (NPP) boyco ed, the Naonal Democrac Congress (NDC) won 189 out of the 200 seats. The remaining 11 seats were picked by the Naonal Convenon Party, 8 seats, Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere (EGLE) Party, 1 seat and independent MPs, 2 seats. The 1996 parliamentary elecon produced an outcome that again gave majority to the ruling party (i.e. NDC, 131 seats; NPP, 63 seats; CPP, 5 seats; and PNC, 1 seat. This trend of majority MPs generally ge ng elected on the ckets of ruling pares connued through to the 7th Parliament of the 4th republic, even though in some cases it was a slim majority (e.g. 3rd parliament). In instances where there was a slim majority for the governing party, the pracce whereby MPs elected on the cket of smaller polical pares and those who contested the parliamentary elecon as independent candidates decide to do business with the majority side gave governments the numbers. The December 7 2020, parliamentary elecon, produced a legislature that departed from the norm. The main opposion NDC garnered 137 seats, exactly the same as what the governing party, NPP obtained with an independent candidate picking the remaining single seat. As usual, the independent MP, who is a die in the wool NPP but went independent because of some challenges with the party prior to the elecons pitched camp with the governing NPP. The outcome of the 2020 parliamentary elecon is therefore historic and very significant for the 4th Republic, especially as the country works towards strengthening and consolidang its young parliamentary democracy. Nevertheless, a number of Ghanaians and organizaons involved in parliamentary monitoring work may be wondering what this equal numerical strength means for parliamentary work, especially the substanve work at the Committee level.
Topic:: Government, Politics, Elections, and Parliament
Political Geography:: Africa and Ghana

83. Nepal’s Supreme Court Overturned PM K.P. Oli’s Decision to Dissolve Parliament

Author:: Pradip Pariyar
Publication Date:: 04-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: East Asia Institute (EAI)
Abstract:: Change has dawned upon Nepal following the declaration of the 2015 Constitution, yet the future of its government seems bleak. Pradip Pariyar, Executive Chairperson of Samata Foundation, states that the old game of parliamentary politics is being revived in Nepal through a series of questionable events that unfolded in the Nepalese parliament over the past few months. Prime Minister K.P. Oli’s controversial recommendation to dissolve the House of Representatives was followed by strong backlash from both his faction and rival factions. Amidst the two months of uncertainty following the dissolution of the parliament, Nepali people brought their dissatisfaction to the streets, protesting against the decision. While the Supreme Court ultimately decided against the dissolution, deeming it unconstitutional, it was revealed that there was internal support for Oli’s contentious decision, including backing from Chief Justice Cholendra. Despite the expectation that Oli would resign from the post due to the trouble he brought upon the government as well as his limited capacity to handle national matters amidst the pandemic, Oli remains in power today.
Topic:: Government, Oil, Democracy, and Parliament
Political Geography:: South Asia and Nepal

84. Populism and the Pandemic in Southeast Asia

Author:: Paul D. Kenny
Publication Date:: 09-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: East Asia Institute (EAI)
Abstract:: Southeast Asian countries that are within close proximity to China were immediately affected by the spread of COVID-19 virus. Paul D. Kenny, Professor at the Australian Catholic University discusses the role of populism in public health responses to the virus and the reciprocal effect of the pandemic on the fate of populists in the region focusing on the Philippines and Indonesian cases. He argues that while the two governments took different responses to the pandemic crisis, both measures led to similar results in terms of how it affected support for the government. While President Duterte responded aggressively towards the pandemic with the issuance of Proclamation 922, President Jokowi’s response was substantially less coercive than that of Duterte’s. Professor Kenny states that both countries, in their current state, have seen similar results — support for both presidents in their respective countries remain considerably high. Nonetheless, the author adds that the continuing decline in Philippines’ economy may hamper his efforts in securing presidency.
Topic:: Government, Economy, Populism, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: China, Indonesia, Philippines, and Southeast Asia

85. The curbing of the collective voices of workers in Ethiopia’s state-led industrialisation: The case of the garment sector

Author:: Mohammed Seid Ali
Publication Date:: 06-2021
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: African Journal on Conflict Resolution
Institution:: The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:: A state-led industrialisation drive inspired by the East Asian ‘developmental state’ ideology is at the core of Ethiopia’s industrial policymaking. Yet, scholarship on the implications of Ethiopia’s state-led industrialisation on the collective voices of local industrial workers is rare. Hence, this article argues that Ethiopia’s state-led industrialisation has firmly stood for strong business-state alliances, thereby curbing the collective voices of local industrial workers. Using qualitative empirical data, the article attempts to address the research gap and contribute to the existing debate by examining why and how the country’s state-led industrialisation has been operating in this context since 2005. Analysis of the findings indicates that facilitating industrial catch-up is at the centre of the country’s industrial development policymaking. Also that, the voice of the workers has been considered as a threat to foreign direct investment (FDI). As a result of the policy, the Ethiopian government employs diverse de facto or de jure labour control mechanisms, exceptionally against the associational rights of workers in the garment exporting industries across the country’s industrial parks (IPs). Moreover, employing industries have enforced various forms of administrative and punitive measures to subdue the collective voices of their workers. Hence, Ethiopia’s activist industrial policy must navigate a reasonable balance between facilitating industrial catch-up and ensuring labour standards for inclusive, peaceful, and sustainable industrial labour relations.
Topic:: Government, Labor Issues, Industrialization, and Garment Industry
Political Geography:: Africa and Ethiopia

86. The Tigray Crisis: The Ethiopian government’s incessant attempts to resolve the internal conflict militarily

Author:: FARAS
Publication Date:: 09-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: The conflict in Ethiopia continues despite international appeals to put an end to it. The government forces were able to slow down the progress of the forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front over the last two weeks, and to control some areas. However, the main areas of Afar and Amhara remained under the control of the Tigrayan rebels, who managed to form a broader alliance with other rebel groups.
Topic:: Security, Government, Conflict, and Crisis Management
Political Geography:: Africa, Ethiopia, and Tigray

87. Multiple gains: Saied’s Call for Changing the Tunisian Political System

Author:: FARAS
Publication Date:: 09-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: On September 12, during a tour of Habib Bourguiba Street, amid heavy guard, Tunisian President Kais Saied said that the new government would be formed “as soon as possible”, and hinted that Tunisia’s constitution may be amended.
Topic:: Government, Democracy, Constitution, and Domestic Politics
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

88. Rebuffing Accusations: Implications of Esmail Qaani to Iraq Following Attempted Assassination of al-Kadhimi

Author:: FARAS
Publication Date:: 11-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: Iraqi media outlets such as Dijlah, Al-Rafidain TV and Al-Sharqiya, on November 7, reported that Esmail Qaani, the commander of the Quds Force, a branch of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), had arrived in the Iraqi capital on November 7 on an unannounced visit. Qaani met with the chiefs of Shi’ite militant groups, as well as Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi and the Iraqi President Barham Salih. Qaani expressed rejection of the assassination attempt on al-Kadhimi. Qaani’s visit was part of Iran’s efforts to bring its Iraqi armed groups under control in exchange for giving their parties a share in the next government.
Topic:: Government, Non State Actors, Media, and Assassination
Political Geography:: Iraq and Middle East

89. Successive Setbacks: Can the United Front seize control of Addis Ababa?

Author:: FARAS
Publication Date:: 11-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: From October 31 to November 3, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) managed to achieve strategic gains at the expense of the Ethiopian government, as it continues to draw closer to the Ethiopian capital, especially after its seizing control of the cities of Dessie and Kombolcha. Meanwhile, contrary to regional and international appeals, the Ethiopian Prime Minister continues to mobilize citizens to fight, refusing a ceasefire and any negotiations with the Tigray Front.
Topic:: Government, Non State Actors, and Conflict
Political Geography:: Africa, Ethiopia, and Tigray

90. A New Settlement: Place and Wellbeing in Local Government

Publication Date:: 06-2021
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:: This event launched the report, 'A New Settlement: Place and Wellbeing in Local Government', in partnership with LGiU with support from Research England. The report outlines a new settlement for place in England built around the insights and the experiences of councils grappling with these challenges across the country.
Topic:: Government, Governance, Local, and Welfare State
Political Geography:: United Kingdom and Europe

91. Turks and Caicos Islands House of Assembly Elections: Technical Observation and Assessment Report

Author:: Anthony Banbury
Publication Date:: 04-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: International Foundation for Electoral Systems
Abstract:: The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) held elections for the House of Assembly on February 19, 2021. At the invitation of the TCI governor and funded by the UK government, an independent team of elections experts from the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) conducted an in-person technical observation and assessment. The IFES mission employed a modified version of IFES’ Technical Election Assessment Methodology, which allows for a broader assessment of the electoral process and context.
Topic:: Government, Elections, Voting, Election Observation, and Political Participation
Political Geography:: Caribbean, North America, and Turks and Caicos Islands

92. A Government Devoid of Strong Leadership: A Neoclassical Realist Explanation of Turkey’s Iraq War Decision in 2003

Author:: Samet Yılmaz
Publication Date:: 07-2021
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: All Azimuth: A Journal of Foreign Policy and Peace
Institution:: Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research
Abstract:: This study deals with Turkey’s Iraq War Decision that led up to the March 1 Parliamentary Motion Crisis in 2003 from the perspective of neoclassical realism, which analyzes the interaction between systemic and unit-level variables. The United States requested Turkey’s collaboration in the war against Iraq. The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government initially sought a peaceful settlement but eventually decided to align with the United States. Systemic and structural factors made cooperation with the United States an imperative for Turkey, which may be classified as a secondary state in the regional context. While the domestic political environment was favorable for the Turkish government to reach such a decision, it was hindered by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (GNAT). In this framework, the study has two primary purposes. The first is to prove that in restrictive international environments where opportunities and threats are clear and the decision-making process is constrained by time, domestic divisions may matter in foreign policy and prevail over the systemic imperative, contrary to conventional expectations. The second is to demonstrate that in a restrictive international milieu, strong leadership, a factor underappreciated by neoclassical realists, is essential even for single-party governments, which are normally expected to have greater autonomy in democratic parliamentary systems, to formulate foreign policy.
Topic:: International Relations, Government, Leadership, Domestic Politics, Iraq War, Political Parties, and Neoclassical Realism
Political Geography:: Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

93. Open Government in Education: Learning from Social Audits in India

Author:: Kiran Bhatty
Publication Date:: 06-2021
Content Type:: Case Study
Institution:: Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:: This study looks at the first social audit of education undertaken in India, under the aegis of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR). It was conducted as a pilot project across ten states of India. Social auditing is a powerful method for increasing open government, which relies on citizens as the primary agents. It is built on the principle that information increases engagement of citizens and helps to establish their priorities. Based on this, citizens can act as effective monitors of their entitlements.The study reviews two of the ten sites where social auditing has been implemented to learn from the different stakeholders what the achievements and challenges were. It argues that for such citizen-led monitoring to take place, tools and processes of engagement, as well as platforms for citizen-government interaction, are required. These are the elements that the social audit methodology strives to provide. In addition, as many communities may not be equipped to initiate and sustain such processes, a facilitating organization or agency is necessary, at least in the initial period, before social auditing can be institutionalized. In order to close the feedback loop, follow-up with the government is also essential. The analysis underscores the importance of citizens having direct access to information and to platforms that allow them to dialogue with the State. It demonstrates that accountability can be established through such processes and that they can lead to empowerment of marginalised social groups, such as women. However, they require investment in time and resources to get started and then to keep on going. A commitment from government agencies to pursue strategies that facilitate access to information and citizen engagement, as well as provide follow-up are, therefore, the core requisites for a successful social audit. At the same time, a non-confrontational approach that favours building bridges and working collaboratively with government actors also plays an important role in making social audits work.
Topic:: Education, Government, Accountability, Audit, Civic Engagement, and Monitoring
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

94. Child Protection Services (CPS) Scheme

Author:: Avani Kapur, Mridusmita Bordoloi, and Mohammad Hamza Farooqui
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:: Child Protection Services is Government of India’s (GoI’s) flagship programme to provide preventive and statutory care, and rehabilitation services to children in need of care and protection and those in conflict with the law as defined under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. This brief uses government data to analyse CPS performance along the following parameters: Trends in overall GoI allocations, releases and expenditures; State wise GoI releases and expenditures; Child Care Institutes (CCIs) and beneficiaries; Registered cases of crimes against children.
Topic:: Government, Children, Youth, and Social Services
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

95. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

Author:: Sanjana Malhotra, Vastav Irava, Meghna Paul, and Avani Kapur
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is Government of India’s (GoI’s) flagship scheme to provide at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a Financial Year (FY) to every rural household that demands work. To boost employment opportunities and cater to increased demand from an estimated 67 lakh returnee migrant workers, GoI launched the Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan (GKRA) in mission mode for 116 districts across six states of the country. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, this brief uses government data to report on: Trends in MGNREGS allocations, releases, and expenditures; Scheme performance with respect to wages paid and employment provided given the increased demand for work; and Trends in finances and employment generation under GKRA.
Topic:: Government, Labor Issues, Employment, Rural, and Allocations
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

96. Jal Jeevan Mission

Author:: Sanjana Malhotra, Vastav Irava, and Avani Kapur
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:: Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) is Government of India’s (GoI’s) rural drinking water programme to provide functional tap connections to every household for drinking, cooking, and other domestic needs on a sustainable basis by 2024. It subsumes the previous National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP). Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, this brief uses government data to report on: GoI allocations, releases, and expenditures; Component-wise trends; Progress on coverage
Topic:: Government, Water, Rural, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

97. Not for patching? Public opinion and the commitment to ‘build back better’

Author:: Karl Pike, Farah Hussain, Philip Cowley, and Patrick Diamond
Publication Date:: 03-2021
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:: Announcing the launch of a ‘Build Back Better Council’ in January 2021, bringing together various business leaders, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that ‘as we recover from this crisis it won’t be enough to just go back to normal – our promise will be to build back better and level up opportunity for people and businesses across the UK’. 1 The following month, the Leader of the Opposition, Keir Starmer, said he believed ‘there’s a mood in the air which we don’t detect often in Britain. It was there in 1945, after the sacrifice of war, and it’s there again now. It’s the determination that our collective sacrifice must lead to a better future’. 2 The historian and peer – and the Mile End Institute’s patron – Lord Hennessy similarly argued recently that the Covid-19 experience ‘has sharpened our sense of the duty of care we have one for another, that a state has for all of its people, to a degree we have not felt collectively since World War Two and its aftermath’. 3 These appraisals of the impact of the crisis, and political commitments to change, are giving rise to debate. Are we to experience a moment similar to that of postwar transformation? If so, what is the prospect for the Britain that emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic to be significantly different, in policy terms, from what preceded it? The latter question in particular animates this project – Not for Patching?, of which this report marks our earliest findings, based on an opinion survey.
Topic:: Government, Public Opinion, COVID-19, and Boris Johnson
Political Geography:: United Kingdom

98. Bottom-up Accountability in Uganda: Learning from People-centered, Multi-level Health Advocacy Campaigns

Author:: Angela Bailey, Vincent Mujune, and Prima Kazoora
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Accountability Research Center (ARC), American University
Abstract:: Uganda’s laws, policies and health sector strategies codify openings for citizen participation in planning and monitoring government services, yet these spaces are often inaccessible in practice. In response to this, a consortium of civil society organizations led by GOAL designed and implemented the Accountability Can Transform Health (ACT Health) program in Uganda from 2012 to 2018. This paper draws on program monitoring data, empirical evidence, and supplementary interviews to analyze how and the extent to which the ACT Health multi-level, people-centered advocacy campaigns strengthened accountability for health from the bottom up.
Topic:: Government, Accountability, Advocacy, and Public Health
Political Geography:: Uganda and Africa

99. Concrete Steps Toward a Feminist Foreign Policy

Author:: Stephenie Foster, Susan Markham, and Sahana Dharmapuri
Publication Date:: 01-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Our Secure Future
Abstract:: This paper seeks to do one thing: to make recommendations about how a feminist foreign policy could be operationalized within the US government. Main Recommendations: Diversify Representation; Prioritize Gender in Information Collection and Analysis; Ensure Input From Those Affected; Reform the Institutional Structure; Increase Accountability of Individuals and Transparency of Institutions; Increase Resources; Utilize Technology.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Government, Science and Technology, Feminism, Representation, Diversity, Accountability, Institutions, Transparency, and Gender
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

100. Rebuilding Constitutionalism and Rule of Law in Zimbabwe

Author:: Stephen Buchanan-Clarke and Sikhululekile Mashingaidze
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Good Governance Africa (GGA)
Abstract:: Recommendations to the Zimbabwean government Commit to a new, inclusive pathway for a mediated, citizen-centred national dialogue to align with and enact the principles set out in the Zimbabwe Constitution of 2013, to resolve the current constitutional crisis and legitimacy question. Comprehensive legal, political, and economic reform is critical. Commit to the drafting and passing of a comprehensive electoral law consistent with the 2013 Constitution that guarantees the independence of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), allows for the appointment of an independent ZEC chair from outside of Zimbabwe, and prevents government from interfering with the work of the commission. Ensure a comprehensive delimitation exercise, extend the voter registration process, and ensure there is a transparent and comprehensive verification process to develop a credible voters’ roll. This would include allowing independent interested stakeholders from civil society, the media, and opposition parties access to inspect the voters’ roll prior to elections. Promote a free and fair election campaign environment for all players, and actively guard against voter intimidation by establishing a special body to investigate complaints of political violence and allow external independent observers early access to all voting stations prior to election day. Restore independence and citizen trust in the county’s public institutions through, for example, the institution of an independent and impartial judicial committee tasked with restoring judicial independence and making recommendations for complete judicial reform, to eradicate judicial corruption, ensure the independence of judges and improve the functioning of the courts. End partisanship in the police force, starting with undertaking investigations into allegations of human rights violations against the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and other security sector agencies, and ensuring those responsible for such abuses are held accountable under the law.
Topic:: Government, Human Rights, Reform, Elections, Constitution, Rule of Law, Police, and Inclusion
Political Geography:: Africa and Zimbabwe

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COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS