Delivering on Open Government: The Obama Administration's Unfinished Legacy

This report examines progress made during President Obama's first term toward open government goals outlined in a comprehensive set of recommendations that the open government community issued in November 2008, titled Moving Toward a 21st Century Right-to-Know Agenda. We examine activity in the three main areas of the 2008 report: creating an environment within government that is supportive of transparency, improving public use of government information, and reducing the secrecy related to national security issues

Taking forward public procurement reforms in Ghana

The construction industry in Ghana, like many others worldwide, has had its fair share of damning independent reviews. Huge and unsustainable foreign debt, excessive budget deficits, huge contractual payment arrears, poor construction performance, corruption and pressure from international financial institutions, forced the government to commit to a reform of public procurement, which culminated in the passing of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663). The paper outlines the events leading to, and features of, the public procurement reform in Ghana and analyses its potential impact and the unique challenges it presents. Comparisons are also drawn from relevant scenarios in other countries. The paper concludes that while the Procurement Act sets out the legal, institutional and regulatory framework to secure fiscal transparency and public accountability, the sole reliance on traditional contracting and price-based selection limits the scope for the value for money achievable. Expanding the reforms to cover procurement and project delivery methods and strategies, with a focus on ‘best value’, will increase the potential and likelihood of achieving value for money in public construction in Ghana

Linking Research and Policy: Assessing a Framework for Organic Agricultural Support in Ireland

This paper links social science research and agricultural policy through an analysis of support for organic agriculture and food. Globally, sales of organic food have experienced 20% annual increases for the past two decades, and represent the fastest growing segment of the grocery market. Although consumer interest has increased, farmers are not keeping up with demand. This is partly due to a lack of political support provided to farmers in their transition from conventional to organic production. Support policies vary by country and in some nations, such as the US, vary by state/province. There have been few attempts to document the types of support currently in place. This research draws on an existing Framework tool to investigate regionally specific and relevant policy support available to organic farmers in Ireland. This exploratory study develops a case study of Ireland within the framework of ten key categories of organic agricultural support: leadership, policy, research, technical support, financial support, marketing and promotion, education and information, consumer issues, inter-agency activities, and future developments. Data from the Irish Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority (Teagasc), and other governmental and semi-governmental agencies provide the basis for an assessment of support in each category. Assessments are based on the number of activities, availability of information to farmers, and attention from governmental personnel for each of the ten categories. This policy framework is a valuable tool for farmers, researchers, state agencies, and citizen groups seeking to document existing types of organic agricultural support and discover policy areas which deserve more attention

The data chase : what's out there on trade costs and nontariff barriers ?

Trade costs and nontariff barriers are at the forefront of discussions on competitiveness and expanding trade opportunities for developing countries. This paper provides a summary overview of data and indicators relevant to these issues and has been informed by work underway at the World Bank on trade facilitation over the past several years to catalogue data sets and indicators. Although there has been progress in expanding data sets and developing policy-relevant indicators on trade costs and barriers, much more is needed. In order to assess progress toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals, evaluating the impact of development projects, and whether meeting Aid for Trade goals will be met, for example, a dedicated and expansive new effort to collect and assess data is needed. This paper attempts to highlight gaps in data on trade costs and provides insight into the type of new data that might be developed in the future.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Economic Theory&Research,Trade Law,Free Trade,Trade Policy

The Impact of Ownership Reform in Chinese Industry, 1995-2001

During the 1980s, the restructuring of Chinese industry was driven principally by the entry of new enterprises into the enterprise system and by the restructuring of managerial incentives. In 1993, China’s leadership formally inaugurated the shareholding experiment. This paper examines the impact on eight performance measures of the conversion of both state- and collective-owned enterprises to shareholding enterprises. The analysis distinguishes between the direct effect of conversion and the induced effect, involving the attraction of non-state investment, which reduces the proportion of state assets and state control rights. We find evidence for SOEs that both conversion and a decline in the share of state-owned assets motivate rising productivity and R&D intensity. While rising proportions of non-state assets motive lower employment and rising wages, the initial conversion effect is associated with higher employment and lower wages. These latter impacts may result from agreements with workers as part of the conversion process. The SOE conversion process exhibits selection bias in which SOEs with high rates of capital productivity and profitability, high tax burdens, and comparatively low wages and smaller labor forces are more likely to be selected for conversion. No similar selection bias is evident in the collective sector.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39927/3/wp542.pd

Maximizing Health Care Reform for New York's Immigrants

As New York State works to implement health reform, key opportunities exist to expand coverage options for immigrants. This NYSHealth-supported report, written by the New York Immigration Coalition in conjunction with Empire Justice Center, presents the choices New York State policymakers will need to make to preserve and promote immigrants' access to health care coverage and to mitigate disparities between citizens and noncitizens in health care.The report emphasizes the options in areas in which states have a high degree of flexibility, including eligibility classifications; documentation and verification policies and practices; marketing and outreach; and oversight and monitoring. It also includes recommendations for ensuring access to care for those immigrants who will remain uninsured even after health reform is implemented. Among the report's recommendations:Shape the State's eligibility classification to ensure the broadest possible inclusion of immigrants under the Affordable Care Act. Currently, immigration status definitions, and eligibility for public benefits, vary by federal and state program rules. The report recommends the cases in which New York can apply the more expansive eligibility standards.Develop mechanisms for verifying citizenship and immigration status while protecting confidentiality and due process. Enrollment into public insurance programs and the Health Benefit Exchange will require verification and documentation of status. The report recommends specific options for verification that also maintain privacy.Conduct tailored, active outreach and marketing to engage immigrants and enroll them in health insurance coverage programs. Given the tremendous racial, ethnic, cultural, and language diversity of the State's residents, a range of tailored approaches can meet the unique needs of immigrant communities.Secure the safety net and charity care programs. Undocumented immigrants and some others will remain uninsured even after health reform is implemented, so the safety-net system of care will remain important to New York State's health care infrastructure

Immigration: Visa Security Policies

[Excerpt] The report opens with an overview of visa issuance policy. It then explains the key provisions that guide the documentary requirements and approval/disapproval process. The section on consular screening procedures includes an analysis of trends over time in denying visas. Visa revocation, a reoccurring issue of concern to Congress, and the visa security program are discussed as well

Aid and development : issues and reflections

The paper has three main sections. The first is a review of two particular propositions which appear in Dambisa Moyo’s 2009 book Dead Aid which were not subjected to rigorous analysis in the reviews which appeared following its publication. The finding is that neither proposition survives serious scrutiny – that aid is responsible for most of sub-Saharan Africa’s economic woes and that the international bond market represents a viable alternative to foreign aid for the finance of development-oriented investment. The second questions some of the characteristics and uses of the World Bank’s Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA), particularly focussing on the use of an essentially ordinal measure in cardinal applications. The third subjects the UK Department for International Development’s Needs-Effectiveness Index to critical review, concluding that further consideration of its attributes is necessary

Pensions in World Bank lending and analytical work : FY2002-2007

This paper presents an overview of the World Bank's lending and knowledge building activities that have improved pension systems in client countries during the past two decades. The objectives of this report are: i) to describe the policy framework that has guided the Bank's work on pension related issues; ii) to present relevant information about the nature and extent of the Bank's lending and policy advisory work in this area; and iii) to discuss some of the results that have been achieved through this work as well as future policy directions. The overview covers the level and characteristics of all lending operations that included a component related to pensions during FY2002-07, as well as over a longer time period going back to 1984 when the Bank initiated a meaningful level of pension work. Thus, this report updates the portfolio review that was a central element of the Bank's Independent Evaluation Group's (IEG) review of pension work that covered the period from 1984 through early 2004. The update provides an overview of the World Bank pension lending trends by region, type of intervention, sector board and type of lending instrument. This report concludes with observations about the results of the pension work and the priorities for the future.,Debt Markets,Banks&Banking Reform,Emerging Markets,Pensions&Retirement Systems