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191. Institutionalized (In)Security: Exploring The Mens Region's Governance Crises

Author:
Andrea Cellino and Eleanore Ardemagni
Publication Date:
11-2021
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
Abstract:
After a decade of popular uprisings and civil wars, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is experiencing a deep governance crisis. The transformation, weakening or even the collapse of state institutions has changed the security framework, with direct implications for processes of Security Sector Governance and Reform (SSG/R). This report, produced in collaboration between ISPI and DCAF, explores multiple governance crises in the MENA region, providing case studies on Libya, Iraq, Tunisia, and Yemen. How can we effectively bring about meaningful SSG/R in hybrid security orders? In which way is “institutionalised insecurity” challenging traditional patterns of governance in vulnerable settings?
Topic:
Security, Governance, Reform, and Institutions
Political Geography:
Africa, Middle East, and North Africa

192. What Rule of Law for the European Union? – Tracing the Approaches of the EU Institutions

Author:
Justyna Maliszewska-Nienartowicz and Marcin Kleinowski
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Although the rule of law is a normative notion, it requires a multidimensional approach. It speaks to important issues of law and politics, and its respect is essential for both legal and social security. It can be observed within the European Union (EU) where the issue of respect for the rule of law by its Member States has gained particular importance. The main goal of our study is to contribute to the academic discourse concerning the EU rule of law. The analysis particularly considers the approaches adopted by the EU institutions to the definition of this concept. Consequently, the first part of the article concentrates on difficulties in defining the rule of law. The second part presents the evolution of the Court of Justice approach toward this concept. The next part contains the analysis of the attitudes presented by other EU institutions in their documents. In the conclusions, it is underlined that although the approaches of the EU institutions towards the rule of have evolved, and they have tried to define it and indicate its main components, certain issues require clarification, e.g., the relations of the rule of law with other values.
Topic:
International Cooperation, European Union, Rule of Law, and Institutions
Political Geography:
Europe

193. The Role of CSOs in Political Participation and Democratization in Jordan

Author:
Zaid Eyadat and Alakyaz Assadorian
Publication Date:
10-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Strategic Studies (CSS)
Abstract:
As the term 'civil society' nears the centennial of introduction to public debate, it is nigh time to reflect on the impact and challenges of the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Jordan. Despite noteworthy progress accomplished in the societal and political spheres, there is a number of challenges for CSOs in the current environment. Several crossroads ahead of the more effective and efficient role of the CSOs hinder their future role. The pervasive challenge for CSOs throughout the years has been the delineation of their roles in civic space. Throughout the upturns and downfalls of the last century, the absence of a specific legal definition, by which the local community, governmental and non-governmental institutions and scholars work, the influence of CSOs necessarily remains limited. The lack of a clear definition particularly challenges the impact on political participation and democratization. Over decades, the gap between a false sense of power granted and the actual impactfulness of CSOs in Jordan grew. The crucial challenge seems to remain the regime's effort to install a system of social control over associational activities rendering them easily predictable. Hence civil organizations were encouraged in the appellation of "political liberalization." Jordan essentially introduced a defense mechanism against instability and economic/political crisis. Hardly exceptional case in the region with similar systems, particularly in Egypt and Morocco. Today, CSOs continue to face these challenges, seriously hindering their role in instituting political reform in Jordan. Unable to mobilize grassroots movements on a large scale and rally a broad constituency, many CSOs are closing towards the regime-made glass ceiling. The lack of a clear, unified registration body for CSOs keeps the opportunity for cronyism in finance distribution by the dispersion of the decision-making process. Additionally, for political-oriented CSOs, the diffusion of their efforts and complicated alliance-building hinders their effectiveness in challenging regime democratization. Still, the present conditions to CSOs' governance are but one of several challenges, most important of which is funding related [3]. Even within the stipulated government-granted boundaries, many CSOs face the challenge of attracting financial backing for various reasons, from the lack of "professionalism" for foreign investors to the very niche nature of their purpose and pervasive cronyism. This study aims to help CSOs to help them to adjust and enhance their internal governance and capacities in reaching out to their target communities and improve self-presentation. Therefore, this project is introducing evidence-based data to identify possible gaps and assist in developing necessary capacities. In this paper, we discuss the position of Jordanian CSOs, how their role in political participation and democratization is shaped, what challenges obscure their participation potential in political change and peaceful democratic transition, and the means for activating and better engaging CSOs in the decision-making process.
Topic:
Civil Society, Democratization, Institutions, Civil Society Organizations, and Political Participation
Political Geography:
Middle East and Jordan

194. Building a Climate-Ready Indian State: Institutions and Governance for Transformative Low-Carbon Development

Author:
Aditya Valiathan Pillaj, Navroz K. Dubash, and Parth Bhatia
Publication Date:
06-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
This brief lays out a new approach to Indian climate governance. We suggest India’s institutional structure should be aimed at generating and adopting low-carbon development pathways. Doing so implies going beyond energy and emissions policies to also look at deeper economic structures such as patterns of urbanisation, industrialisation, and job creation. We propose a new, independent, non-executive, multi-stakeholder Low-Carbon Development Commission backed by law, to bring both analytical credibility and mechanisms to ensure policy relevance. We further propose the Commission interface with an enhanced set of bodies within the executive branch, interacting through a set of annual reporting requirements and incentives for climate action. By laying out a set of principles, institutions, and mechanisms for interaction, we suggest a path to analytical credible and policy relevant Indian climate governance.
Topic:
Climate Change, Development, Governance, Institutions, and Carbon Emissions
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

195. Responding to COVID: a Mobility Based Surge Capacity Framework

Author:
Shamindra Nath Roy, Partha Mukhopadhyay, Jishnu Das, and Yamini Aiyar
Publication Date:
06-2021
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
It would appear, based on the experience over the past year, that at a given point in time, CoVID-19 affects a part of the country and not the whole nation. What does this imply for the sharing of resources between more affected areas and less affected areas? What does it imply for where reserves of resources need to be maintained to meet sudden surges in caseload? This note looks at these questions, by examining the spatial pattern of the epidemic over time and the nature of the resources, i.e., the extent to which their supply can be increased, the ease with which they can be moved, etc., including, where possible and necessary, the movement of patients in addition to mobile resources. Our analysis based on current transmission dynamics, points out that there are a small set of areas permanently at risk for repeat surges. These are areas where health infrastructure may need to be augmented locally. For other areas, while increases in health infrastructure would be needed, inter-district and interstate coordination can ensure that additional critical services can be made available through resource sharing. However, such a mobility-based surge capacity framework, as we have proposed, requires enabling governance structures that builds trust and facilitates coordination across district and state administrations, based on real time data analysis as well as formal institutional structures.
Topic:
Health, Infrastructure, Governance, Institutions, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

196. Unlocking Climate Action in Indian Federalism

Author:
Aditya Valiathan Pillai, Navroz K. Dubash, and Parth Bhatia
Publication Date:
07-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
India’s highly centralized federal structure sits uneasily with the nature of the climate problem. While financial and bureaucratic capacities are concentrated in the centre, the locus of climate decisions lies largely in the states because they steer energy choices and respond to climate impacts. To unlock state action, the roles and capacities of the centre and states must be reimagined in the age of the climate crisis. This brief lays out the contours of an institutional redesign. We attempt to strike a delicate balance between flexibility, essential to innovative and opportunistic state actions, and the structure necessary for a coherent national policy trajectory. Specifically, we call for a specific focus on increasing specialized capacity to deal with climate change; coordination mechanisms; and financial incentives to motivate the states.
Topic:
Climate Change, Institutions, Federalism, and Coordination
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

197. The Two Sources of the Illiberal Turn in Brazil

Author:
Afonso de Albuquerque
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Brown Journal of World Affairs
Institution:
Brown Journal of World Affairs
Abstract:
In the early 2010s, the consolidation of Brazilian democracy seemed a well- established fact. Although far from perfect, the prospects for Brazil’s future looked bright. The economy was booming, and Brazil appeared to be on the verge of assuming a more prominent role in international politics. A few years later, Brazil’s fortune has reversed dramatically. In 2018, far-right politician Jair Bolsonaro won the Brazilian presidential election. Nostalgic for the military dictatorship that governed the country from 1964 to 1985, Bolsonaro has cham- pioned an anti-human rights agenda. Throughout his tenure, he has minimized the COVID-19 health crisis,1 denied the existence of climate change, and used his platform to spread disinformation.2 He often attacks the National Congress, Supreme Court, and press. Bolsonaro has even threatened these entities, argu- ing he has the Armed Forces and the people on his side. How did this happen?
Topic:
Democracy, Institutions, Jair Bolsonaro, and Illiberalism
Political Geography:
Brazil and South America

198. The Development of Post-Apartheid South Africa in Light of the Institutionalist Perspective: A Critical Review

Author:
João Paulo Davi Constantino, Robson Dias da Silva, and Georges Flexor
Publication Date:
08-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Brazilian Journal of African Studies
Institution:
Brazilian Journal of African Studies
Abstract:
This work aims to present a critical analysis of the impacts on the diffusion of new international institutional and governance standards in the economic development of South Africa (in its broad sense). The study was divided into four sections, besides the introduction and the final consider-ations. The second section addresses the association between institutions and economic development in recent academic literature. The third section presents the methodology applied to assess the development of democracy, private and intellectual property rights, financial institutions, tariffs and commercial protection in the country, as well as of welfare and labor pro-tection institutions. The fourth section briefly addresses the South African democratic transition period back in the 1990s, highlighting its institutional and political shift towards a neoliberal model capable of favoring monetary stability and "big business", despite the chronic inequalities yet observed in the country nowadays. The fifth section makes an in-depth analysis of each of these institutions in the South African context and investigates the extent to which they have resulted in economic growth, reduced inequalities and have enabled better quality of life for the South African population. It was possible concluding that the association between institutions and economic development is more complex than the one presumed by many economists and international organisms, since it does not present a simple and lin-ear correlation. Moreover, it was observed that developing countries need to implement structural transformations that are beyond the sole power of market mechanisms.
Topic:
Apartheid, International Organization, Markets, Governance, Democracy, Institutions, Economic Development, and Democratic Transitions
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

199. The Future is Green, Digital and Social: Europe’s new growth model and its Recovery Plan

Author:
Christina Kattami
Publication Date:
07-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Abstract:
The policy brief* outlines the agenda of the new Commission before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, and aims to analyse the ways in which the crisis has reinforced and strengthened key points of that agenda. It further outlines the Commission’s Recovery Plan proposal, and examines its links to the aspiring green and digital transition. Finally, it showcases the legal base and timeline of the Recovery Plan proposal and highlights the main points of agreement and contention across the Member States, outlining the July deal of the European Council and the ensuing resolution of the European Parliament. It overall argues for the need of a holistic recovery, that takes into account the unprecedented policy window brought by public and private funding, and ensures that the eventual indebtedness of the next generation is at least compatible with the aspirations and goals of an economy and society of the future.
Topic:
Science and Technology, European Union, Economic Growth, Institutions, Coronavirus, and Sustainability
Political Geography:
Europe

200. EU law in the time of COVID-19

Author:
David Edward, Robert Lane, and Leandro Macano
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
European Policy Centre (EPC)
Abstract:
The COVID-19 emergency has caused unprecedented legal challenges to the EU institutions and the member states across a wide spectrum of areas. The measures put in place to coordinate the immediate cross-border response to the outbreak are unlikely to lead to contentious legal problems. However, the Council, and especially the Commission, being also able to react to measures taken by member states, companies or firms, could prove to be potentially more intrusive. This paper deals with the powers governing the EU’s public health response to the COVID-19 outbreak and analyses the legal implications of actions taken by member states, companies and firms to mitigate the economic fallout of the lockdown and restrictions put in place to stop the spread of the virus.
Topic:
Law, European Union, Crisis Management, Institutions, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Europe