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1. The Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index 2024

Author:
Anthony Kamande, Jo Walker, Martin Matthew, and Max Lawson
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
Now in its fifth edition, the Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index (CRI) assesses the commitment of 164 countries and regions to fighting inequality. The CRI 2024 offers powerful new evidence on whether governments are acting to reduce inequality through policies on public services, fair taxation and labour rights. It reveals negative trends in the vast majority of countries since 2022. Four in five have cut the share of their budgets going to education, health and/or social protection; four in five have backtracked on progressive taxation; and nine in ten have regressed on labour rights and minimum wages. Nine out of ten countries have backtracked in one or more area, meaning without urgent policy actions to reverse this worrying trend, economic inequality will almost certainly continue to rise in 90% of countries. Despite some progress, the IMF and the World Bank could do far more to prioritize the fight to reduce inequality. This report assesses their actions across the three CRI pillars of public services, taxation and labour rights. It makes recommendations for how the IMF and World Bank should stop promoting policies that increase inequality and instead support those policies that reduce it, as a matter of urgency.
Topic:
Inequality, Tax Systems, Public Service, Wages, Jobs, and Social Protection
Political Geography:
Global Focus

2. The state of the UK economy 2024

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
The state of the UK economy is always an important matter, but it is all the more so in what looks likely to be an election year. This UK in a Changing Europe report takes stock of the UK economy in order to assess how it can break from the current economic and political ‘doom loop’. The report provides a constructive framework to address the need for a longer-term, joined up approach in policy areas, ranging from education to immigration, to public services and artificial intelligence. It shows that there is no single silver bullet for the problems facing the UK economy, however a number of themes have emerged. The UK has long been plagued by short-termism and political instability which needs to be addressed. Edited by Senior Fellow Professor Jonathan Portes, it brings together leading UK academics on the economy from universities across the UK, the Migration Observatory, the Institute for Fiscal Studies and other research institutions.
Topic:
Education, Industrial Policy, Migration, Economy, Tax Systems, Macroeconomics, Trade, Artificial Intelligence, Housing, Labor Market, Public Service, Productivity, and Net Zero
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

3. THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE PROCESS OF INFORMING THE PUBLIC ABOUT DISASTER RISKS

Author:
Vladimir M. Cvetkovic, Aleksandra Nikolic, and Aleksandar Ivanov
Publication Date:
07-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:
Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:
Social media informs the public about the most important events and conveys important information. Before, during, and after disasters, social media are used to disseminate information about disasters and collect data relevant to the implementation of preparedness, response, and recovery activities and measures. Social networks are effective in disseminating information and warnings, as well as in educating the public. The subject of the research is examining the influence of demographic factors on the effectiveness of social media in informing the public about the risks of disasters. Using an online survey questionnaire and according to the snowball principle, a survey of 247 respondents was conducted in 2022. The research results show no statistically significant relationship between the respondents’ education level and the assessment of the effectiveness of social media reporting on disasters. Using social media can improve communication between stakeholders in disaster management and facilitate coordination of efforts, fostering communication and allocation of resources. To effectively use social media in disaster management, decision-makers in the disaster management system must be aware of new technologies, their disadvantages and advantages, and ways to collect and analyze data from social networks.
Topic:
Social Media, Risk, Disaster Management, Public Service, and Information
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Serbia

4. The Future of Civilians in National Security: Challenges and Opportunities

Author:
Katherine L. Kuzminski, Nathalie Grogan, and Celina Pouchet
Publication Date:
08-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for a New American Security (CNAS)
Abstract:
Imagine you’re a high-achieving college student, interested in serving in a national security role in the federal government. You invest years in learning a critical language—perhaps of an ally, perhaps of an adversary—a language for which the federal government has a high demand and a limited workforce. You’re selected for not one, but two prestigious overseas government-sponsored fellowships and are encouraged to participate in both. After returning to the States, you move to Washington, D.C., to pursue a graduate degree at a competitive policy school. You apply for opportunities to serve in a national security position. But because you had fellowships abroad—administered by the federal government—the hiring process takes more than two years.CNAS Focus Group, March 11, 2022.1 The national security workforce is full of stories like this one—which is the experience of someone who successfully navigated into the system. Many others decide not to pursue government service in the first place, whether because they believe the option isn’t open to them, or because the hiring process is so onerous that they lose interest or pursue more readily available options. To meet the challenge of protecting the country and its national interests, the federal government must attract, recruit, and retain experienced, educated individuals with skills specific to national security, including foreign language proficiency, regional knowledge, legal expertise, or a background in engineering, computer science, or data analytics. It also needs people who can lead, manage, and communicate. Fortunately, there are highly motivated Americans—from undergraduate college students through senior-level professionals—who are developing the education, experience, and credentials required for work in national security departments and agencies. This population has a strong interest in serving the country even as other opportunities present themselves. But challenges such as opaque hiring practices, long clearance processes, and limited access to professional networks hinder people’s chances at employment in the federal government. As a result, the government is unable to fill critical national security roles, while individuals with the necessary skill sets and desire to serve are sidelined from a federal career. To attract, recruit, and retain those with the required qualifications and interests, departments and agencies must understand the motivations of the next generation and the challenges they face when seeking government careers in national security. As part of this project, CNAS researchers organized focus groups and conducted a survey to identify the motivations, priorities, and skill sets of those interested in government service, along with the challenges, barriers, and opportunities in taking this path. The project examines the current civilian national security talent pipeline and explores the problems associated with the recruitment and retention of civil servants in national security departments and agencies. What did we find? Improvements to the federal hiring process and the clearance timeline, greater access to talent beyond Washington, D.C., and expansion of initial pathways into government service could ensure that the federal government has the employees it needs to secure the nation. These improvements require action from the executive branch and Congress.
Topic:
National Security, Employment, Public Service, and Skills
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

5. The Role of US Diplomacy in a Changing World

Author:
David Satterfield
Publication Date:
08-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
American Diplomacy
Institution:
American Diplomacy
Abstract:
In the 1933 movie Dinner at Eight, Jean Harlow’s character notes to her society grande dame hostess that she had read an author who asserted technology would soon take the place of every profession. The hostess eyes her platinum blonde guest and responds with the classic line “My dear, that’s something you need never worry about.” And neither do we in our line of work. There is an enduring critical role for diplomacy—personal and institutional—in a world that is always changing. Today’s diplomacy is facilitated by technology in terms of access to information and communication within Washington, from Washington agencies, between DC and overseas posts, and among our missions to an extent unimaginable when I entered the Foreign Service in 1980. The days of the airgram are long past, of waiting for encrypted teletype messages to be deciphered and printed, of mastering Wang computers and the art of producing documents on daisy wheel printers—and good riddance to all!
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, and Public Service
Political Geography:
Global Focus and United States of America

6. Making It Work: Institutionalising Social Audits in Meghalaya in India

Author:
Rajika Seth, Sidharth Santhosh, Avani Kapur, Neeha Susan Jacob, and Pritika Malhotra
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
In April 2017, Meghalaya enacted the Meghalaya Community Participation and Public Services Social Audit Act, 2017. The Meghalaya Society for Social Audit and Transparency (MSSAT) is responsible for implementing the Act. This legislation is the first of its kind in the country. This policy note aims to unpack how social audits have been institutionalised in Meghalaya. By identifying strategic action that the State government took to pass the Act, the policy note presents reflections on the current state of affairs on social audits. It thus identifies core areas that the State government and the social audit unit can strengthen to ensure that efficient audits are conducted, thereby meeting the Act’s objectives.
Topic:
Domestic Policy, Public Service, Audit, and Local Government
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

7. Richard A. Clarke | 'Taking the Edge Off the Middle East' Ep. 2

Author:
Brian Katulis
Publication Date:
06-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:
A series of casual conversations with leading policy professionals on the most important happenings in the Middle East today - hosted by MEI VP for Policy Brian Katulis. After a decade of leadership, Richard A. Clarke recently retired as chairman of the Board of Governors of the Middle East Institute. He chats with Brian about what originally got him into public service, his 30 years working in U.S. government national security agencies (including the Pentagon, the State Department, and the White House National Security Council), and his recent move into writing fiction.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, National Security, and Public Service
Political Geography:
Middle East

8. The politics of policy reform: Experimental evidence from Liberia

Author:
Wayne Aaron Sandholtz
Publication Date:
07-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Nottingham Interdisciplinary Centre for Economic and Political Research (NICEP)
Abstract:
Public service reform often entails broad benefits for society and concentrated costs for interest groups. These groups’ political responses determine whether electoral incentives exist to improve public services. This paper examines the electoral effects of a randomized Liberian school reform which increased student learning but antagonized teachers. On average, this policy reduced the incumbent party’s presidential vote share by 3 percentage points (10%). It had no significant impact on legislative races, consistent with correct attribution by voters; information experiments with candidates and voters further suggest a well-informed electorate. The policy also reduced teachers’ job satisfaction by 0.18σ and lowered their participation in political activity by 0.22σ. I use the policy’s pairwise randomization to study how its electoral effects varied across the (orthogonal) distributions of treatment effects on student learning and teacher political activity. The policy increased vote share more where it caused greater student learning, and reduced vote share more where it caused greater political disengagement of teachers. (Treatment effects on student learning and teacher political involvement were uncorrelated.) Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the policy could have won votes on net if the floor on learning effects had been the 27th percentile, and the floor on teacher political involvement effects had been the 30th percentile. This paper shows empirically that electoral rewards correlate with the size of public service improvements, but that politically feasible reforms must balance voter rewards with the costs of alienating interest groups.
Topic:
Reform, Elections, Public Service, and Political Participation
Political Geography:
Africa and Liberia

9. Governing in Hard Times Conference: Public Services

Author:
Elizabeth Simon, Jonathan Slater, Clare McNeil, Andrew Harrop, and Adam O'Brien
Publication Date:
06-2023
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:
With increasing dysfunction in public services and education across England (and the United Kingdom as a whole), this panel considered how a new government might solve the staffing and employment crisis in schools, nurseries, hospitals, and care homes. The panel considered the future of Higher Education, the merits and demerits of greater decentralisation across England, as well as how a National Care Service could be established. Chair: Dr Elizabeth Simon (Postdoctoral Researcher in British Politics at the Mile End Institute) Panel: Jonathan Slater (Visiting Professor at the Mile End Institute and Former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Education) Clare McNeil (Associate Fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Researcher) Andrew Harrop (General Secretary of the Fabian Society) Andrew O'Brien (Director of Policy and Impact at Demos)
Topic:
Education, Governance, Employment, and Public Service
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, and England

10. Can cities cope?

Author:
Francis Kibirige, John Martin Kewaza, Ronald Makanga Kakumba, Stevenson Ssevume Male, Muhammad Ssenkumba, George William Kayanja, Fred Male, and Pius Tibaingana
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Afrobarometer
Abstract:
On 1 July 2020, less than a year before January 2021 presidential and parliamentary elections, Uganda’s minister of local government, acting under the Local Governments Act and with the approval of Parliament, elevated 10 of the 15 earmarked municipal councils across the country to city status (Parliament of the Republic of Uganda, 1997, 2020). City status, equal in stature to district local government status, is the highest level that local government units can attain under the current law and is synonymous with near-autonomy, including significant political influence and more control over resource mobilisation and use. Residents in the newly elevated city environs celebrated this administrative milestone amid surging expectations of immediate upgrades of public-services infrastructure and jobs. But the respective administrations awoke to the realities of over-stretched, outdated services infrastructure, and inadequate funding incapable of meeting the heightened level of demand. Can these new cities fulfil their mandate – even in the face of COVID-19-related impacts on the economy and personal living conditions – and cope with soaring public expectations? Evidence from the 2022 Afrobarometer survey suggests that it will not be easy, as the public mood, engagement with elected local leaders, and public service-delivery ratings are on the decline while mistrust, perceptions of official corruption, and resentment toward paying taxes are on the rise.
Topic:
Education, Health, Governance, Leadership, Institutions, Social Services, and Public Service
Political Geography:
Uganda and Africa