Localizing Land Governance,Strengthening the State: Decentralization and Land Tenure Security in Uganda

Decentralization of land governance is expected to significantly improve land tenure security of small‐scale farmers in Africa, through ensuring better protection of their assets and reducing land‐related conflicts. This paper, however, cautions not to have too high expectations of transferring responsibilities for land administration and dispute resolution to local government bodies. Field research in Mbarara District in south‐western Uganda brings out how decentralization has limited impacts in terms of localizing land services provision. Nonetheless, local land governance has transformed in important ways, as decentralization adds to institutional multiplicity, and fuels competition among state and non‐state authorities, and about the rules they apply. Rather than strengthening local mechanisms for securing tenure, the reforms introduce new forms of tenure insecurity, fail to transform local conventions of dealing with land disputes and delegitimize local mechanisms for securing tenure. In practice, decentralization has had limited effects in securing tenure for the rural poor, yet reinforces the presence of the state at the local level in diverse ways.     

Business services,the new engine of French regional growth

This article analyses the evolution of employment in the French regions, putting the accent on business service firms. A ‘shift and share’ type of analysis shows that a primary decentralisation in tertiary activities seems to emerge in the 1990s, essentially pertaining to ancillary producer services. An explanatory analysis backs up the general validity of the regional economic base theory: the basic activities, to which business services can quite legitimately be attached, certainly play a leading long-term role on global employment dynamics. Finally it shows that over the past 20 years, the regional offer of services to businesses has been the major discriminating variable between regions, greatly influencing the evolution of basic employment and thus confirming the vital driving force of this sector in regional dynamics.     

The Neighbourhood Policy of the European Union

The European Neighbourhood Policy aims at creating a ring of stable, friendly and democratic countries surrounding the European Union. While this aim is generally accepted across the Union, major differences persist as to how it should be achieved. Where does the ENP stand today? What is its profile, potential and perspective?     

国际制度变迁与东亚体系和平转型——一种制度主义视角分析

受新制度经济学关于制度变迁的学理启发,作者提出了国际制度变迁的理论分析范式,并以此探讨国际制度变迁如何影响东亚体系的和平转型。未来和平转型后的东亚体系将呈现一种嵌套交叠式制度联系模式,在这种模式中,东亚多边合作体系与美国双边同盟体系互相交叠、兼容共存。多边合作体系既不能化解美国双边同盟体系,美国双边同盟体系也不能主导多边合作体系。在这种情况下,中国外交的现实做法是从兼容美国双边同盟体系的这一路径出发,在东亚地区积极开展多边外交、推动建立多边合作体系。     

Analysis of the Changes in the Growth of Japan’s Direct Investment in and Trade with China

I. Relative Drop in the Proportion of Japan’s Direct Investment in ChinaCompared with the United States and the EU, Japan’s direct investment in China hasslowed down since 1999, with the relative real size of investment dropping. Table 1 shows that Japan’s direct investment in China was slightly more than that of the USA and much more than that of the EU before 1998. But in the ensuing five years from 1999 onward, the situation was reversed. The US direct investment in China rose …     

An Overview of China’s Bond Markets

I.Introduction China's success in developing a fully functioning capital market depends in large part onwhether it succeeds in establishing a thriving market for bonds.The government has,untilrecently,restricted the types of bonds that can be issued in China.But China has realizedthat there are powerful financial reasons to promote the expansion and deepening of theChinese bond market.Among the most important are,first,that bonds would be desirableadditions to the portfolios of Chinese insur…     

Analysis of South Korea’s Direct Investment in China

I.General Situation of South Korea’sDirect Investment in ChinaSouth Korea’s investment in China has increased dramatically since1992,when the twocountries formallyestablished diplomatic relations.According to China’s statistics,in1992,South Korea’s direct investment in China was only US$119million.By2002,it reachedUS$2.721billion–a26.78percent annual growth on average.This was much higher thantheaverageannual growth ofinvestmentby other countries in China,which stood at10.87 pe…     

There Is No Food Crisis in China

In1995LesterR.Brown wrote abook entitled Who willfeed China?(Brown,1995),whoseerroneous contentcaused great losses to China’s economy.The Chinese government tookMr.Brown’s argument at facevalue,and encouraged peasants to overproduce by setting aprotectively high price.Over time,this has used up several hundred billion yuan to pay thedifferencebetweentheofficialpriceand marketprice.Tostorethesurplusfood,thegovernmentappropriated several more billion yuan to build warehouses.However,there …     

The EU’s Medium-term Financial Perspective and Turkey’s Potential Slice of the Cake

The issue of Turkey’s membership in the EU remains controversial, and the arguments for and against are not only economic. Nevertheless, the potential economic impact of Turkish membership does play an important role. How much financial support is Turkey presently receiving under existing pre-accession programmes and what changes could be expected in the case of full membership?