Institutional determinants of power sector reform in Pakistan

The electricity supply sector in Pakistan has performed poorly in recent years. Reforms were introduced in the mid-1990s to improve the sector, but progressed slowly with no significant impacts on pre-reform performance. This study uses new institutional economics as a theoretical basis to elucidate reasons for the failure of power sector reforms in Pakistan to make improvements. Interviews with 23 experts using Q-methodology generated 215 statements that were used as a Q concourse. Of these, 51 statements were selected for the Q sample and ranked by 34 respondents depending on their importance. Analysis revealed four important discourses on the determinants of power sector reform failure in Pakistan. These included weak governance structure, country and sectoral endowments, inefficient regulator and unspecified political institutions or unfriendly political contexts. The study recommends establishment of institutions that support a market based power supply sector and improvements to the contractual arrangements between stakeholders to reduce opportunistic behaviour

Fluoxetine Exerts Age-Dependent Effects on Behavior and Amygdala Neuroplasticity in the Rat

The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) Prozac® (fluoxetine) is the only registered antidepressant to treat depression in children and adolescents. Yet, while the safety of SSRIs has been well established in adults, serotonin exerts neurotrophic actions in the developing brain and thereby may have harmful effects in adolescents. Here we treated adolescent and adult rats chronically with fluoxetine (12 mg/kg) at postnatal day (PND) 25 to 46 and from PND 67 to 88, respectively, and tested the animals 7–14 days after the last injection when (nor)fluoxetine in blood plasma had been washed out, as determined by HPLC. Plasma (nor)fluoxetine levels were also measured 5 hrs after the last fluoxetine injection, and matched clinical levels. Adolescent rats displayed increased behavioral despair in the forced swim test, which was not seen in adult fluoxetine treated rats. In addition, beneficial effects of fluoxetine on wakefulness as measured by electroencephalography in adults was not seen in adolescent rats, and age-dependent effects on the acoustic startle response and prepulse inhibition were observed. On the other hand, adolescent rats showed resilience to the anorexic effects of fluoxetine. Exploratory behavior in the open field test was not affected by fluoxetine treatment, but anxiety levels in the elevated plus maze test were increased in both adolescent and adult fluoxetine treated rats. Finally, in the amygdala, but not the dorsal raphe nucleus and medial prefrontal cortex, the number of PSA-NCAM (marker for synaptic remodeling) immunoreactive neurons was increased in adolescent rats, and decreased in adult rats, as a consequence of chronic fluoxetine treatment. No fluoxetine-induced changes in 5-HT1A receptor immunoreactivity were observed. In conclusion, we show that fluoxetine exerts both harmful and beneficial age-dependent effects on depressive behavior, body weight and wakefulness, which may relate, in part, to differential fluoxetine-induced neuroplasticity in the amygdala

4MOST: Project overview and information for the First Call for Proposals

We introduce the 4-metre Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope (4MOST), a new high-multiplex, wide-field spectroscopic survey facility under development for the four-metre-class Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) at Paranal. Its key specifications are: a large field of view (FoV) of 4.2 square degrees and a high multiplex capability, with 1624 fibres feeding two low-resolution spectrographs ($R = \lambda/\Delta\lambda \sim 6500$), and 812 fibres transferring light to the high-resolution spectrograph ($R \sim 20\,000$). After a description of the instrument and its expected performance, a short overview is given of its operational scheme and planned 4MOST Consortium science; these aspects are covered in more detail in other articles in this edition of The Messenger. Finally, the processes, schedules, and policies concerning the selection of ESO Community Surveys are presented, commencing with a singular opportunity to submit Letters of Intent for Public Surveys during the first five years of 4MOST operations

Aanpassing van technologische veranderingen als klimaatuitdaging

Abstract niet beschikbaarThis report summarizes the findings of the MATRIC-project. Matric stands for 'Management of Technology Responses to the Climate Change Challenge'. The project empirically studied technological change and innovation to learn more about the contigencies conditioning and influencing these processes with the aim to recommend national technology oriented climate change policies. The social construction of technology implies that processes of technological change are guided by dynamics of their own, which follow from the way technology becomes embedded in society. Why and how technology changes is therefore not only decided by technological artefacts, new ideas about artefacts and the succes of R&D as the linear models assume, but in fact results from the dynamic interation between technologies and societal environment in which they operate. How and why innovations adapt is basically influenced by a contigent set of selection mechanisms operating in the social environment of technology. The influence of the societal environment of technological change and innovation turns out to be much more dexisive and significant than is assumed by linear models of innovation. This fundamental idea of social embeddedness of technology has been the analytical point of departure of Matric project.SG-NO

Economic implications of domestic natural gas allocation in Indonesia

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to provide to a better scientific understanding of Indonesia’s domestic gas allocation policy and its effects on the national economy and to answer the question of what best priorities can be set in allocating the natural gas for the domestic market to maximize the benefits for the national economy. Design/methodology/approach The authors apply a Computabled General Equilibrium (CGE). The Social Accounting Matrix 2008 is used to calibrate the CGE Model. There are two scenarios proposed, each is simulated with certain percentage of gas supply curtailment (50 MMSCFD, Scenario A), (100 MMSCFD, Scenario B). Findings It is confirmed that government’s current policy to give priority to oil production is not the optimum way to maximize added value of natural gas to Indonesian economy. While oil production generates state revenue, it is industry and petrochemical sector that induces high economic impacts because of strong backward and forward linkages. Research limitations/implications Due to the limited data availability, it is assumed that the data on the SAM 2008 are valid for describing the structure of Indonesian economy. Practical implications The paper provides recommendation to the government to revise gas allocation policy by changing the rank of consumers’ priority. Originality/value This paper provides instruments to measure the impact of Indonesia’s domestic gas allocation policy. Finding the best hierarchy of consumer priorities is essential for maximizing added value of natural gas for the national economy

The Economic Implications of Natural Gas Pricing Adjustment in Indonesia

International gas prices have increased rapidly in the last few years. However, the domestic gas price in Indonesia has not been adjusted accordingly, staying relatively low at almost one third of export prices. The low domestic gas price keeps gas producers from selling the gas to the domestic market, so price adjustments are necessary to provide an incentive for selling of gas to the domestic market. This paper explores the possible room for maneuver in making adjustments in gas price, and analyzes the consequences on the Indonesian economy. As in many other developing countries, Indonesian pricing policies have multiple objectives, including generation of government revenue, security of supply for the domestic market, and other social objectives. The present paper examines the macro- and microeconomic impacts of gas price adjustments in both the short and long term. The macro-analysis was conducted by applying the computable general equilibrium (CGE) model; while the micro-analysis was evaluated by utilizing the net back value. The present paper contributes to examination of constraints to setting gas prices for various economic sectors that are essential to both national economic development and which are major natural gas consumers. The modelling results show that it is possible to adjust the gas price in Indonesia without negatively affecting the economy

Environmental Policy and Environment-oriented Technology Policy in the Netherlands

This chapter presents an overview of the Dutch environmental policy (EP) and environment-oriented technology policy (ETP). The main aim is to give insights into some of the recent modifications and innovations in both EP and ETP systems, and to trace some of these changes back to the historical roots of EP and ETP in the Netherlands. The paper starts with an overview of environmental policy in the Netherlands, and a description of the standard EP system. This is followed by an introduction to recent developments in Dutch environmental policy. These involve the system of environmental planning, the focussing on target groups, the use of negotiated agreements, and stimulating the introduction of environmental management systems in companies. The next section focuses on environment-oriented technology policy. An overview of the development of ETP is provided by evaluating the main policy documents. Following this, the standard ETP system, the technology subsidy scheme, is reviewed. The main institutions and instruments are described in section 5.2 and the implementation of technology policy at the national and regional levels is explained. A number of new developments are then presented. The paper concludes with a review of the inter-policy co-ordination between EP and ETP in the Netherlands