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Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > Political structure & processes > General
This book is authored by some of the renowned scholars in Africa who take on the task to understand how Kenya is governed in this century from a public policy perspective. The book's public policy approach addresses three general and pertinent questions: (1) how are policies made in a political context where change is called for, but institutional legacies tend to stand in the way? (2) how are power and authority shared among institutional actors in government and society? and, (3) how effective is policymaking at a time when policy problems are becoming increasingly complex and involving multiple stakeholders in Africa? This book provides an updated and relevant foundation for teaching policy, politics and administration in Kenya. It is also a useful guide for politicians, the civil society, and businesses with an interest in how Kenya is governed. Furthermore, it addresses issues of comparability: how does the Kenyan case fit into a wider African context of policymaking? 'This volume is a major contribution to comparative policy analysis by focusing on the policy processes in Kenya, a country undergoing modernization of its economic and political institutions. Written by experts with a keen eye for the commonalities and differences the country shares with other nations, it covers a range of topics like the role of experts and politicians in policymaking, the nature of public accountability, the impact of social media on policy actors, and the challenges of teaching policy studies in the country. As a first comprehensive study of an African nation, Governing Kenya will remain a key text for years to come'. -Michael Howlett, Burnaby Mountain Chair of Political Science, Simon Fraser University, Canada 'A superb example of development scholarship which sets aside 'best practice' nostrums and focuses on governance challenges specific to time and place while holding on to a comparative perspective. Useful to scholars and practitioners not only in Kenya but across developing areas. I strongly recommend it!' -Brian Levy teaches at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, USA, and the University of Cape Town, South Africa. 'This book is an exploration of important deliberations - of interest for those of us interested in deepening the understanding of public policy theories and their application within a specific African setting'. -Wilson Muna, Lecturer of Public Policy, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya 'This collection of think pieces on public policy in Kenya gives the reader theoretical and practical hooks critical to the analysis of the implementation of the sovereign policy document in Kenya, the 2010 Constitution'. -Willy Mutunga, Chief Justice & President of the Supreme Court, Republic of Kenya, 2011-2016 'Governing Kenya provides a comprehensive analysis of public policymaking in Kenya. The book integrates public policy theory with extensive empirical examples to provide a valuable portrait of the political and economic influences on policy choices in this important African country. The editors have brought together a group of significant scholars to produce an invaluable contribution to the literature on public policy in Africa'. -B. Guy Peters, Maurice Folk Professor of American Government, University of Pittsburgh, USA
This book addresses the necessary developments and adjustments that can be regarded as a promising starting point for making accrual accounting a more practice-relevant for the public sector entities. Specifically, the main focus is on Reshaping the application of accrual accounting principles and assumptions to fit the context of public sector entities; Developing a practice-relevant holistic accounting approach for governmental capital assets, which has been based on developing and reshaping the assets recognition criteria; Scope of general purpose financial reporting from an accountability perspective; Suggesting a sustainable accounting approach for reporting on the long-term fiscal sustainability; Developing a dynamic model for making public sector accrual accounting a more user practice relevant; and finally, Developing a theory of accounting information usefulness, which explains how cognitive aspects do influence the use/non-use of accounting information by the politicians. Fundamentally, the book has tackled these necessary developments and adjustments from both the producer's and the user's perspectives.
This book tackles the question of how to characterise and account for recentralisation in Colombia between central and lower levels of government across a 26-year period. Around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has once again put the distribution of responsibilities, resources, and authority between different levels of government at the heart of political debate. This book brings this issue to light as a topic central to the study of public administration.Drawing on extensive fi eldwork with more than a hundred interviews with former presidents, ministers, members of congress, governors, local mayors and subnational public offi cials, as well as documentary sources, it begins with a historical account of recentralisation processes in the world. It then proposes a theoretical framework to explain these processes, before tracing and carefully comparing recentralisation episodes in Colombia using theory-guided process tracing.
Public Value Co-Creation: A Multi-Actor & Multi-Sector Perspective addresses a fundamental gap in the scholarly field of Public Management relating to the advice and strategies available on what public managers can and/or should do to co-create public value. Alessandro Sancino offers a timely and unique approach providing a map with the main actors and their relative domains (public organization; inter-organizational; civic/community) to help guide the strategic thinking of a public manager for designing and leading processes of public value co-creation. The book discusses the concept of public value co-creation from a multi-actor and multi-sector perspective as an opportunity for transforming the public sector, for transitioning business models towards sustainable development and for rejuvenating democracy. Public Value Co-Creation: A Multi-Actor & Multi-Sector Perspective is a great aid to researchers and practitioners committed to achieve public value.
Political responses to climate change are shaped by beliefs and ideas. How does discourse on climate action and its contestation affect policy-making? Addressing this question, the book compares EU and US policy-making since the Paris Agreement and its framing by key political institutions. The empirical part analyses the structure, linkages and contestation of frames to evaluate the contrasting spaces of climate politics in both systems. As the first direct comparison of EU and US climate governance since the Paris Agreement, the book advances current research on the politics of climate change, the politicization of multi-level governance and the role of discourse for policy change.
This collection addresses key issues in the critique of Eurocentrism and racism regarding debates on the production of knowledge, historical narratives and memories in Europe and the Americas. Contributors explore the history of liberation politics as well as academic and political reaction through formulas of accommodation that re-centre the West.
This handbook comprehensively explores the European Union's institutional and policy responses to crises across policy domains and institutions - including the Euro crisis, Brexit, the Ukraine crisis, the refugee crisis, as well as the global health crisis resulting from COVID-19. It contributes to our understanding of how crisis affects institutional change and continuity, decision-making behavior and processes, and public policy-making. It offers a systematic discussion of how the existing repertoire of theories understand crisis and how well they capture times of unrest and events of disintegration. More generally, the handbook looks at how public organizations cope with crises, and thus probes how sustainable and resilient public organizations are in times of crisis and unrest.
The Convention on the Future of Europe served to galvanize debate about the nature and future developmental trajectory of the European Union. More specifically, it engendered discussion over the degree to which the process resembled that which had occurred in Philadelphia some two hundred years earlier, and, more broadly, over the extent to which the European Union does, or should, resemble the United States. Partly as a consequence of such debates, comparative federalism is now an important topic, with scholarly work comparing the US and EU proliferating rapidly. The present volume seeks to build on and contribute to this growing literature, by developing a systematic comparison of the institutions, policies and developmental patterns of the European Union and the United States.
This book analyzes recent advances, trends, challenges and potentials of the role of media in disaster risk reduction. Collaboration, co-design and co-delivery with other stakeholders in science technology, private sectors, and civil society are found to be effective in reaching people and communities.The media is considered to be of utmost importance in all phases of disasters, before, during and after, with different types of media having different proactive roles to play in disaster risk reduction. Before disasters, they play essential roles not only in bringing early warning to people but also in enhancing their perception of the need to take action. At during- and post-disaster response recovery phases, community radio and social media are the key. These necessitate a resilient media infrastructure as the core of uninterrupted coverage. Media literacy has become an important issue for several stakeholders, including governments. In addition, more focus is placed on media governance to look at the priorities of disaster risk reduction initiatives within the media. All of these are considered to lead to trust in the media, which further improves people's disaster response actions based on information from the media, before and during disasters. Covering different aspects of media, this book is a valuable source for students, researchers, academics, policy-makers and development practitioners.
Recent political science research into the American legal academy has been 'captured by conservatism'-this research has framed the institutional and ideological developments occurring within the law schools over the past forty years solely through the prism of modern conservatism. As a result, political scientists have ignored the political struggles of one of the most important legal reform movements of the 1980s and overlooked the hope for leftist reform that existed within American law schools during this period. Critical Legal Studies and the Campaign for American Law Schools tells the story of the critical legal studies movement. This formidable movement sought to fundamentally reconstruct law schools, train a new generation of leftist lawyers, and replace the dominant form of legal consciousness governing the American legal system. Instead of projecting a fatalism onto leftist reform, this book relies on extensive archival research and interviews to illuminate the radical potential that lived in the American legal academy of the 1980s. The critical legal studies movement was a towering presence in the law schools, and its legacy continues to hold out political possibilities and reform lessons for leftist legal scholars today.
The world is changing at a fast pace, so is the Government and Governance style. Humans are bound to go for Algorithmic strategies rather than manual or electronic ones in different domains. This book introduces the Algorithmic Government or Government by Algorithm, which refers to authorizing machines in the Public Sector for automated decision-making based on Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, and other technologies. It is an emerging concept introduced globally and will be considered revolutionary in the future. The book covers concepts, applications, progress status, and potential use-cases of Algorithmic Government. This book serves as introductory material for the readers from technology, public policy, administration, and management fields.
Big data and its accompanying technological ecosystems have had a dramatic impact on business, politics and society. At the same time, the very nature of big data, a term that originates from computer science discourse, often remains opaque to research communities in other disciplines as well as to practitioners. Considering the pervasive impact of big data across a number of issues and domains, clearer insight into its functions and practical application is needed. Through a unique blend of case studies and critical analysis, Big Data and Decision-Making: Applications and Uses in the Public and Private Sector examines how big data influences contemporary societies in decision-making processes, strategy setting and overall performance. Covering topics ranging from data privacy to AI, big data in healthcare, SMEs, tourism and smart cities, contributors offer a critical appraisal of lessons learnt in the process of harnessing the promise inherent in big data. Big Data and Decision-Making: Applications and Uses in the Public and Private Sector breaks down the concept of big data to reveal how it has become integrated into the fabric of both public and private domains, as well as how its value can ultimately be exploited. To this end, its contributors call for the building of bridges between the computer science-driven debate on big data and research taking place in social sciences and management.
Labor law in state and local government is often characterized as a patchwork of inconsistent and contradictory statutes. The purpose of this book is to present the labor law in state government in a concise and understandable manner. To date, there has been no systematic treatise on the subject that is generally applicable. The authors have collected and analyzed the laws of each state that have enacted collective bargaining statutes. Comparisons are drawn with the National Labor Relations Act and the evidence suggests that there is a significant area of consistency, suggesting that many jurisdictions have modelled their statutes after the federal law; making only those modifications necessary to local conditions. Rather than focus on minute details of specific statutes, the authors have presented a general analysis of the major aspects of the state collective bargaining laws. The book begins with an introduction and overview of the states' labor laws. An analysis of why states must act if collective bargaining rights for public employees are to be protected is presented together with an analysis of the political and economic reasons for inconsistent treatment of public sector employees collective bargaining rights. The discussion then turns to the structure and functions of administrative law agencies, the rights of employers and employees, the scope of bargaining, bargaining in good faith, impasse resolution and its impact, and contract enforcement and administration.
This book details the relationship between culture and the language used by public figures, including politicians, political candidates, and government officials, in the broad context of political behavior and communication. Employing a variety of perspectives, theoretical, conceptual, methodological, and analytical approaches, chapters focus specifically on the question of HOW cultural factors (such as religion, history, economy, majority/minority relations, social structure, and values) shape the content, nature, and characteristics of the rhetoric that public figures utilize in selected countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East. The chapters enable comparison of the cultural effects on the different structures, styles, and contents of public speaking in societies from West to East. That is, of WHAT leaders say, HOW they say it (e.g., degree of openness, directness, usage of metaphors and slogans, xenophobic and racial expressions), under WHICH specific circumstances (e.g., National Days addresses, national or local assemblies' debates, during election campaigns appeals, press conferences' briefings, and in international meetings' speeches), and for WHAT specific audiences (e.g., supporters and voters, media representatives, or the global community).
A Short History of the Labour Party is the classic account of the rise of the Labour Party from its foundation through to Tony Blair's second term as Prime Minister. Thoroughly revised and updated, it describes the events that led to the inception of the party, the role of the trade unions within the party, the successes and failures of the twentieth century and the revival of the party's fortunes under Kinnock, Smith and then Blair. It closes with an analysis of the current crisis that the Party faces over its foreign policy choices since 9/11 including the war in Iraq. This book thus provides the essential background for an understanding and appreciation of today's political debates.
Managing Socialism challenges the theoretical underpinnings of Cuban Studies--the elite/mass perspective. It offers a major reinterpretation of the revolutionary process which focuses on the rise and fall of different types of social actors at the intermediate level of Cuban society. Frank Fitzgerald identifies intermediate level types: the prerevolutionary middle class; the old cadres who in the 1960s attained administrative positions with political credentials; and the new professionals who primarily since 1970 enter these same occupations on the basis of education. Fitzgerald focuses on the transitions from one type to the next and uncovers conflict/cooperation patterns between the three strata of Cuban society. His study offers new insight into the early exodus from Cuba, the problem of scarce skills, and Cuba's educational expansion. Managing Socialism's previously unexplored subject matter and its challenging theoretical approach make it required reading. Focusing on the relationship between social stratification and politics broadly conceived, Fitzgerald examines major changes at the intermediate level of Cuban society resulting from and in turn influencing the Cuban revolutionary process. Thereby dismissing the elite/mass perspective theory, Fitzgerald begins his analysis with an examination of factors leading to the scarcity and misallocation of skills in the 1960s. Leadership responses to this problem are then analyzed as important links to the crisis of 1970 and the emergence of new professionals. The post 1970 rectification process is explored and a study conducted of the decline of the old cadres and rise of the new professionals. A chapter is then given to the problem of bureaucratic centralism and typical patterns of conflict and cooperation between social types. A discussion of the 1986 rectification campaign and a summary of major findings conclude Fitzgerald's provocative work.
Has male dominance in political life been broken? Will gender balance in elected assemblies soon be reached? Around 100 years after women's suffrage was gained, and in spite of much effort, most countries are still at some distance from this goal. In 2013, the average representation of women in the world's parliaments was around 20 per cent. This book analyses the longitudinal development of women's political representation in eight old democracies, where women were enfranchised before and around World War I: Denmark, Iceland, Germany, The Netherlands, New Jersey (USA), New South Wales (Australia), Sweden, and the United Kingdom. These countries/states have all followed an incremental track model of change in women's position in political life, but have followed different trajectories. This slow development stands in contrast to recent examples of fast track development in many countries from the Global South, not least as a result of the adoption of gender quotas. Furthermore, the book discusses in four separate chapters the common historical development in old democracies, the different trajectories and sequences, the framing of women politicians, and the impact of party and party system change. In this book an innovative model of male dominance is developed and defined in terms of both degree and scope. Four stages are identified: male monopoly, small minority, large minority, and gender balance. The book then reconceptualizes male dominance by looking at horizontal and vertical sex segregation in politics, at male-coded norms in the political workplace and at discourses of women as politicians. According to the time-lag theory, gender balance in politics will gradually be achieved. However, this theory is challenged by recent stagnation and drops in women's representation in some of the old democracies. A new concept of conditional irreversibility is developed in the final discussion about whether we are heading for gender balance in politics.
This book examines developments in governance reform in Britain, with a particular focus on the period since 2010. We argue that the experiences of the past decade mean that public value-based ideas are required to inform governance reform for the coming years. This needs to be prioritised due to the twin challenges of managing the aftermath of Brexit and navigating through the recovery phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. The volume outlines key themes, issues and debates relevant to contemporary public sector reform including: modes of state governance, evidence-based policy-making debates, the challenges and possibilities of public sector innovation, accountability issues, and the implications of Brexit. The overall conclusion of the book is that the coming decade presents an opportunity for more paradigmatic changes to UK governance but, for this to happen, political leaders need to prioritise a 'reinventing government' agenda underpinned by public value-based thinking and approaches. This book will be of particular interest to students of politics and public administration and relevant for those with general research interests in British governance and public policy.
Nationalism has played a uniquely powerful role in Argentine history, in large part due to the rise and enduring strength of two variants of anti-liberal nationalist thought: one left-wing and identifying with the "people" and the other right-wing and identifying with Argentina's Catholic heritage. Although embracing very different political programs, the leaders of these two forms of nationalism shared the belief that the country's nineteenth-century liberal elites had betrayed the country by seeking to impose an alien ideology at odds with the supposedly true nature of the Argentine people. The result, in their view, was an ongoing conflict between the "false Argentina" of the liberals and the "authentic"nation of true Argentines. Yet, despite their commonalities, scholarship has yet to pay significant attention to the interconnections between these two variants of Argentine nationalism. Jeane DeLaney rectifies this oversight with Identity and Nationalism in Modern Argentina. In this book, DeLaney explores the origins and development of Argentina's two forms of nationalism by linking nationalist thought to ongoing debates over Argentine identity. Part I considers the period before 1930, examining the emergence and spread of new essentialist ideas of national identity during the age of mass immigration. Part II analyzes the rise of nationalist movements after 1930 by focusing on individuals who self-identified as nationalists. DeLaney connects the rise of Argentina's anti-liberal nationalist movements to the shock of early twentieth-century immigration. She examines how pressures posed by the newcomers led to the weakening of the traditional ideal of Argentina as a civic community and the rise of new ethno-cultural understandings of national identity. Identity and Nationalism in Modern Argentina demonstrates that national identities are neither unitary nor immutable and that the ways in which citizens imagine their nation have crucial implications for how they perceive immigrants and whether they believe domestic minorities to be full-fledged members of the national community. Given the recent surge of anti-immigrant sentiment in Europe and the United States, this study will be of interest to scholars of nationalism, political science, Latin American political thought, and the contemporary history of Argentina.
This text analyzes the changing nature of centre-province relations in China in a period of rapid economic change. It aims to show how leadership conflicts over the nature and scope of economic change gave rise to an incremental and reactive reform process. The resulting partially reformed economic system not only gave many provincial leaders the ability to ignore central economic commands, but the perceived consequences of reform also increased the desire of some local leaders to assert their independence.
This book combines theoretical and practical knowledge about key actors and driving forces that help to initiate and advance open data governance. Using Finland and Sweden as case studies, it sheds light on the roles of key actors in the open data movement, enabling researchers to understand the key operational elements of data-driven governance. Examining the most salient manifestations of related networking activities, the motivations of stakeholders, and the political and socioeconomic readiness of the public, private and civic sectors to advance such policies, it will appeal to e-government experts, policymakers and political scientists, as well as academics and students of public administration, public policy, and open data governance.
This work will provide an authoritative and illuminating overview of the U.S. Congress, from the history of the Senate and the House of Representatives to the rules, procedures, and traditions that govern its operations and lawmaking. This volume provides a comprehensive survey of the history and inner workings of the United States Congress, the legislative branch of the federal government. It will explain its relationship to the other two branches of government (executive and judicial), detail the unique structures, responsibilities, and procedures of both houses of Congress, discuss major historical events and controversies, highlight particularly influential leaders in Congress from the earliest days of the Republic to the present, and show readers how the priorities of the U.S. Congress shift depending on whether it is held by the Democratic or Republican party. This book is part of ABC-CLIO's Student Guides to American Government and Politics series. Each volume in the series provides a student-friendly introduction to a distinct component of American governmental institutions and processes and shows how it pertains to American politics and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Offers a complete and authoritative overview of how Congress works, from distinct responsibilities of the Senate and House of Representatives to how committee assignments are distributed Explains how Congress functions in the wider world of American politics, including in campaigns and elections Details important events and developments in the history of Congress in a chronology Includes a bibliography of valuable and student-friendly resources for further study
As the relationship between the United States and Latin America becomes an important focus of world attention, The Politics of Colombia is a welcome study of this South American country. A comprehensive analysis of the international influences on Colombian politics, as well as of the country's policymaking processes, this book will introduce the reader to one of the more important, yet least known, countries of the hemisphere. |
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