Lessons of Russian in Afghanistan

The experience of Soviet involvement in Afghanistan (1979–1989) is considered through the prism of institutional transfers. Afghanistan has a long history of attempts to implement Muslim, Soviet and Anglo-Saxon institutional designs. Most of them have failed. This failure can be attributed to the lack of ‘elective affinity’ between traditional and new institutions imported from more developed countries. It is argued that a careful examination of the degree of elective affinity must precede any attempt of institutional transfers. An analysis of Ph.D. dissertations defended by Afghan students at Soviet and Russian universities complements logical arguments and references to historical facts.

Eyes wide shut? Reforming and defusing checks and balances in Argentina

How effective are autonomous audit agencies (AAAs) in curbing corruption and improving fiscal governance in emerging economies? AAAs are autonomous oversight agencies tasked with scrutinising government finances. However, they are not as effective as they could or should be, partly because of the political constraints they face and the political economy context in which they are embedded. This article assesses the performance and trajectory of the Argentine AAA. It suggests that AAAs can have only a limited impact when formal fiscal institutions are undermined by informal practices and undercut by adverse political incentives. It further highlights the limits of radical reform strategies based on the import of exogenous institutional models. This research has important research and policy implications for the reform and strengthening of AAAs in developing countries. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Political accountability,fiscal conditions and local government performance—cross‐sectional evidence from Indonesia

Why are some local governments more successful than others in managing resources and delivering services? And even more vitally, how can malfunctioning governments be reformed so that they perform their responsibilities more effectively? This article contributes to our understanding of theses overarching questions by exploring the interactions between political institutions and public sector performance in the context of decentralisation and local governance. It shows–both theoretically and empirically–that performance outcomes are determined by the extent to which people can hold their governments accountable through political institutions. The basic hypothesis underlying this research is that political accountability, either by encouraging sanctions upon non‐compliant public agents or simply by reducing the informational gap regarding government activities, will create forceful incentives for elected officials and civil servants to reduce opportunistic behaviour and improve performance. Using a cross‐sectional regression the hypothesis is empirically tested against evidence from newly empowered local governments in Indonesia. The empirical findings broadly support our hypotheses. Improved public services on the ground, both in terms of quantity and quality, require informed and well functioning decision‐making processes that allocate resources to priority areas that meet the demand of the broader community. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

城市群治理绩效何以差异化--基于三大城市群比较

城市群治理是有效化解城市群发展病症的必由之路。但是,从三大城市群治理演化实践来看,在基本趋同的府际合作中产生了差异化明显的治理效应。这是因为城市群有效治理不仅要求不断完善纵横结合的府际合作,而且要求实现府际合作与市场机制的二元配比驱动。要使城市群治理有效运作,必须超越府际合作从而使完善城市群府际合作和激发市场机制活力双管齐下。在此基础上,三大城市群应该分类治理,调适城市群治理中的府际合作与市场机制的配比。     

我国扩大内需的政策选择和效果评价

我国目前不具备实行凯恩斯理论的制度基础和政策条件 ,克服当前内需不足困难的关键是结合中国的经济实际 ,把短期手段和长期发展目标结合起来 ,把增加有效需求与增加有效供给结合起来 ,把宏观经济政策的调整和综合配套改革结合起来 ,这样才能有效解决当前国民经济运行面临的矛盾和中长期发展的问题。     

Poverty Among Small Farmers Under Frei and Pinochet, 1968–1986

Abstract — This paper draws on the results of a nation-wide panel study of small farm households interviewed in 1968 and 1986 to complement accounts of Chile's economic performance under the governments of President Frei (1964–1970) and General Pinochet (1973–1989). It is shown that in contrast to macroeconomic trends of increased inequality and impoverishment after 1973, the incidence of poverty in the sample declined slightly but significantly over the period. The result is robust both to the choice of poverty index and poverty line. It is all the more striking because the sample represented the poorest group in Chile during the 1960s. Nevertheless, the incidence of poverty in the sample remained extremely high. In 1967–1968, more than three-quarters of households could not meet their basic needs, while in 1985–1986 this proportion reached nearly two thirds. The fall in poverty may be attributed to a combination of increased coverage of the rural areas by targeted welfare programmes and the effects of the life cycle in increasing the proportion of panel household members eligible for, and dependent on public transfers between 1968 and 1986.     

Who benefits? Intergovernmental transfers,subnational politics and local spending in Ecuador

ABSTRACT

This paper looks at the intervening role that local political elites play to translate government transfers into effective public spending. We want to know whether mayors spend IGTs to provide basic public services or infrastructure works, and whether such investments are instrumental to secure their advantage as incumbents. To test these arguments, we use a combined dataset of local public finances between 2001 and 2015 and electoral results for the 2009 and 2014 municipal elections in Ecuador. We find that mayors do respond to political incentives and make strategic spending decisions to invest on public services and visible infrastructure projects. However, we find selective spending was insufficient to secure incumbency advantage in the 2014 election. We argue that the executive intervened to block or limit the impact of spending decisions at the local level, thus creating an incumbency disadvantage for mayors. Further research is needed to explain this.     

我国财税法治建设的破局之路——困境与路径之审思

环顾经济、政治现代化的时代背景,财税法治建设是新时期改革进路中的重要环节,也是开创新局面的有效关口。面对着此群体利益与彼群体利益、稳定性与变革性、代议制民主与行政高效率等多重矛盾,难免使我们对前路进行再度审思。要突破僵局,亟需从摆正财税法的性质定位、调整立法主体的结构、加快立法或修法的进度、理顺立法与改革的关系等角度切入,通过整体、全面的路径构建,强化全国人大的税收同意权和预算审批权,进而达致财税法律体系完善、法治观念融贯、法权配置协调的"良法善治"目标。     

A TRIO BANDS TOGETHER

正It’s time for Beijing to lose some economic weight and synergize with neighboring Tianjin and Hebei Province By Deng Yaqing JOINT RECRUITMENT:A talent exchange fair for the Jing-Jin-Ji region is held at China International Science and Technology Convention Center in Beijing on April 23     

Subnational Governments in the Negotiation of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014–2020: The Case of Spain

The negotiation of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014–2020 has been an outstanding topic on the agenda of the EU during the past few years, on which subnational units also tried to have a say. In this article we analyse the formal institutional framework available for the Spanish Autonomous Communities to participate in the negotiation of the Cohesion Policy 2014–2020 and the Common Agriculture Policy 2014–2020. By analysing this participation, this text explores how this institutional framework has evolved during the past few years and how the Autonomous Communities could represent their interests at the domestic and supranational level within these crucial negotiations.