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32. Budget Brief: Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0
- Author:
- Avani Kapur, Tanya Rana, and Ritwik Shukla
- Publication Date:
- 02-2023
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for Policy Research, India
- Abstract:
- In Financial Year (FY) 2021-22, the Government of India (GoI) restructured the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), POSHAN (Prime Minister’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nourishment) Abhiyaan, and the Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG) into Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, also known as Poshan 2.0. This brief uses government data to analyse: ■ Required funds, allocations, and releases; ■ Governance, including human resources; ■ Changes in coverage; and ■ Outcomes
- Topic:
- Governance, Budget, Public Policy, Human Resources, and Child Development
- Political Geography:
- South Asia and India
33. Kosovo COVID-19 Management
- Author:
- Plator Avdiu, Donika Elshani, and Shpat Balaj
- Publication Date:
- 03-2023
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Kosovar Centre for Security Studies (KCSS)
- Abstract:
- The purpose of this research is to provide a general overview of the manifestation of the COVID-19 pandemic in Kosovo and the overall management of the pandemic by relevant institutions. The analysis is based on data collected through publicly available information, national statistics, news articles, as well as research reports by local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and international organizations and missions in the country. The COVID-19 pandemic of the novel coronavirus was first identified in Wuhan, China in December 2019. It quickly spread to other parts of the world, leading to the World Health Organization declaring a pandemic on March 11, 202012. Countries across the globe implemented various measures to control the spread of the virus, including lockdowns, travel restrictions and mask mandates. The COVID-19 vaccine was soon developed, and the vaccine roll out began in the first months of 2021, with many countries still being in the process of vaccinating their populations. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on Kosovo, as it has had in many countries around the world. The first cases of COVID-19 in Kosovo were reported in March 202014, and since then the country has implemented measures such as lockdowns, mask mandates, and travel restrictions to try to control the spread of the virus. Kosovo faced many challenges in its efforts to control the spread of the virus, including limited healthcare resources, vaccine hesitancy, political instability and economic hardship, to name a few.15 The COVID-19 vaccine roll-out in Kosovo began in the first months of 2021 and was implemented with a phased approach, whereby some groups, such as healthcare workers, the elderly, and persons with underlying conditions, were given priority, before vaccinating the rest of the population. AstraZeneca and Pfizer BioNTech were the two vaccinees administered in Kosovo. These vaccines were secured through various sources, including through the COVAX facility.
- Topic:
- Public Policy, Public Health, Vaccine, and COVID-19
- Political Geography:
- Eastern Europe and Kosovo
34. Learning from KfW’s Ex-Post Evaluations? How Conflicting Objectives Can Limit their Usefulness
- Author:
- Nicola M. Dörrbecker
- Publication Date:
- 01-2023
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
- Abstract:
- The effectiveness of development cooperation (DC) is a topic of extensive debate in this policy field. Yet despite numerous review and evaluation formats designed to promote learning processes and hence enhance effectiveness, it is often impossible to document these improvements. Against this backdrop, the present paper aims to analyse the usefulness of ex-post evaluations (EPEs) by KfW Development Bank – both within KfW Development Bank and at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), from which it receives its commissions. Research indicates that EPEs are conducted with great care. Moreover, EPEs can contribute to the legitimacy of (financial) DC, as project results are considered and presented in a structured manner. Nevertheless, the people interviewed for this study regard EPEs as (highly) subjective assessments and believe that these evaluations may under certain circumstances not be comparable with one another. Yet EPEs need to be comparable, because their overall ratings are used to calculate the success rate, which is currently around 81%. This in turn affects KfW’s reporting on its performance to BMZ and to the public. The data from the interviews shows that trade-offs during the production and use of EPEs appear to limit the usefulness of this format. EPEs are designed to deliver accountability to the public and to BMZ and to promote learning within KfW. These are conflicting objectives, however, as they would each require a different approach. According to those interviewed at KfW and BMZ, EPEs are seldom read or used. Interviewees explain that EPEs are rarely relevant to people working in operational areas, as the evaluations are not published until several years after the project concerned has been completed and only occasionally contain information that is relevant to current projects. The evaluations cannot be conducted sooner, however, as otherwise they would not be able to assess the sustainability and development impact of a project. Moreover, interviews and evidence from other studies indicate that EPEs are of limited relevance to political steering at BMZ, even in aggregated form. Nonetheless, the author believes that it would not be an option to no longer conduct EPEs, as they are the only way to review the development impact and sustainability of a representative number of projects in an affordable way, thus forming the basis for delivering accountability. Reconciling the conflicting goals of learning and accountability is challenging. For the learning component, it would appear to be a good idea to make greater use of cross-sectional analyses and to establish a central support structure for all implementing organisations and BMZ with a view to compiling all the key information from the evaluations and forwarding it to both BMZ and KfW and to the partner countries in a form tailored to meet their needs. For the accountability component, transparency also needs to be enhanced by making completed evaluation reports available to the public promptly and in full. In addition to an evaluation of international research literature, this paper particularly draws on empirical interview data. A total of 13 specifically selected experts from the German DC system were interviewed. This interview data thus forms an illustrative but not representative sample.
- Topic:
- Development, Public Policy, Transparency, and Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Germany
35. A Strategic Framework for Helping Prevent Massa Atrocities
- Author:
- Lawerence Woocher
- Publication Date:
- 09-2023
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Abstract:
- The Simon-Skjodt Center’s “Lessons Learned in Preventing and Responding to Mass Atrocities” project aims to understand better how policy makers, across all levels of government, can take effective action to prevent mass atrocity crimes and protect civilian populations in situations in which they face serious threats of group-targeted, systematic violence.1 This document is designed to support policy makers and advocates in thinking through the types of strategies that are most relevant to preventing mass atrocities—that is, instances of large-scale, systematic violence against civilian populations.2 It does not argue for or against any particular strategy or tool, but suggests that more systematic consideration about strategies should yield more effective responses.
- Topic:
- Public Policy, Civilians, Atrocity Prevention, and Protection
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
36. Community Living for People with Disabilities in Public Housing: Evaluating the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of 2010
- Author:
- Sawyer Rogers, Rosalyn Impink, and Alison Ziegler
- Publication Date:
- 05-2023
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
- Institution:
- School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
- Abstract:
- The Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of 2010 created a federal program to advance community living for people with disabilities. [1] This program’s enactment followed the Supreme Court’s 1999 ruling in Olmstead v. L.C. which categorized unnecessary institutionalization and segregated living of people with disabilities as discriminatory. In the intervening years, amid the continued fallout of the Great Recession, the COVID-19 pandemic, and an ever-challenged affordable housing stock, it is prudent to evaluate the Melville Act’s effectiveness in achieving its goals from a national and programmatic perspective. We find that while the Melville Act successfully promoted mixed community living on a programmatic scale, it lacked a national-level impact due to under-resourcing, was not as cost-effective as predicted, and recipients were less satisfied with their housing than other programs. We recommend that actors in the policy design process advocate for the allocation of more resources to public housing programs with community living for people with disabilities and incorporate the principles of the “Nothing About Us Without Us” movement into the policy development and implementation process. [2]
- Topic:
- Discrimination, Disability, Legislation, Public Policy, Housing, and Public Housing
- Political Geography:
- North America and United States of America
37. Using Real-Time Google Search Activity to Target Emergency Fiscal Stimulus
- Author:
- John Kearns
- Publication Date:
- 05-2023
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
- Institution:
- School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
- Abstract:
- In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Congress transferred nearly $1 trillion USD to state and local governments between April 2020 and March 2021 to support vaccination efforts, keep schools open, and sustain economic recovery. As of March 2023, much of this money remained unspent, raising questions about the underlying process of determining the size and distribution of aid. This paper explores how Google search data and machine learning models can work in real-time to assist policy makers in evaluating fiscal policy proposals. These results are among the first pieces of evidence that economic models can feasibly integrate alternative sources of data to provide real-time estimates of economic activity at the state level. The author’s models provide reliable and accurate estimates of state and local fiscal need and indicate the states that need relief the most months ahead of official estimates. The more tailored models presented in this paper could lead to more equitable and effective outcomes at a fraction of the cost to taxpayers when used to inform emergency fiscal stimulus distribution in the future.
- Topic:
- Economics, Public Policy, Fiscal Policy, and COVID-19
- Political Geography:
- North America and United States of America
38. Governing in Hard Times: Urgent Questions for the Centre-Left
- Author:
- Colm Murphy and Farah Hussain
- Publication Date:
- 10-2023
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
- Abstract:
- Leading speakers from politics, policymaking, and academia provide Starmer and his team with not only questions that they must address ahead of next year’s likely election, but also some potential answers.
- Topic:
- Government, Public Policy, Labour Party, and Keir Starmer
- Political Geography:
- Britain, United Kingdom, and Europe
39. Infrastructure Challenges in the Alaskan Arctic
- Author:
- Henry Lee
- Publication Date:
- 08-2023
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
- Abstract:
- Infrastructure in northern Alaska requires special attention. Challenging weather conditions— including cold temperatures, remote conditions, limited transportation and logistical support, and inadequate technical capacity—result in higher costs and less reliability. These challenges are exacerbated by climate change. Permafrost thaw undermines the stability of foundations, causing building subsidence. Portions of roads are sinking, pipelines are being damaged, and utility poles are toppling over. In addition, climate change is accelerating the disappearance of sea ice, resulting in storm-caused tidal surges that erode and flood the land, causing buildings to collapse and people to lose their homes. Before discussing the current and future challenges caused by climate change, it is useful to briefly discuss the patterns of development in northern Alaska. Most of the population lives in small villages either on the coast or along small rivers. The largest “cities”—Nome, Kotzebue, and Barrow (Utqiagvik)—have populations of around 3,000 people.1 Most of the villages are not connected by roads, and there is no interconnected electricity transmission, water, or sewerage system. Transportation between villages for both goods and people is by boat or plane—the latter can be quite expensive. Hence transporting materials and equipment for infrastructure assets can add significantly to the costs of the services that they provide. The absence of regional electric grids means that each village must rely on either mini-grids or self-generation, which are neither efficient nor cheap. The primary source of energy is diesel fuel. Except for larger coastal communities, diesel oil must be flown into villages, increasing fuel costs to more than double the cost of similar fuels in the lower 48 states. Providing adequate water and sanitation services is a major challenge due to the inability to bury pipes. There is a wide range of sanitation services. Some villages have relatively modern systems, while others are dependent on primitive systems which haul away sewage in buckets. The cost of installing adequate water and sanitation services in northwest Alaska can be several times higher than installing similar systems in the southern part of the state.
- Topic:
- Environment, Science and Technology, Natural Resources, Infrastructure, and Public Policy
- Political Geography:
- North America, Alaska, and Arctic
40. Arctic Shipping: Trends, Challenges and Ways Forward
- Author:
- Andrey Todorov
- Publication Date:
- 08-2023
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
- Abstract:
- The Arctic is continuing to warm three to four times faster than the global average and the sea ice extent is declining precipitously during all months of the year. Due to these trends, shipping activity in the region has expanded significantly over the past two decades. This brings new challenges to maritime safety, sensitive ecosystems, and local people.
- Topic:
- Security, Science and Technology, Natural Resources, Governance, Geopolitics, Public Policy, and Shipping
- Political Geography:
- Arctic