Towards internal cohesion? The role of local government in economic development under the EU Single Programme in Northern Ireland

This paper focuses on the extent to which EU funding available under the Local Economic Development Measure of the Northern Ireland Single Programme (1994-99) has encouraged local government in Northern Ireland to adopt a new role in local economic development. It also considers whether the implementation of the Measure has effectively addressed its objectives of economic and social cohesion. It discusses the rationale for district council involvement and concludes that the local government structure in Northern Ireland requires adaptation to optimise the impact of the aid on offer.     

Integrated development planning or strategic paralysis? Municipal development during the local government transition and beyond

The launch of the Local Government White Paper in March 1998 provides a blueprint for the final form of local government in South Africa after its progression from apartheid structures, through the democratisation of councils, t.o the creation of developmental local government. According to the White Paper local government will centre on municipalities which will coordinate all development activities at national, provincial and local level, from private and public sectors. Municipalities will need to gain control over their devel opment resources, including land use. This article scrutinises the municipal planning legislation that has emerged since the end of apartheid in the form of the Development Facilitation Act (DFA) and the Local Government Transition Act, and argues that the Land Development Objectives (LDOs) of the DFA may not be an appropriate way to achieve developmental local government. The article argues that development tribunals could usurp the executive authority of municipalities to determine land use and therefore risk being both unconstitutional and counterproductive. It recommends that existing plan ning legislation is rationalised into an integrated framework that gives local government structures both legislative and executive authority over land‐use planning.     

地方金融工作与地方经济发展的关系探析

发展经济是地方政府工作的重中之重,地方经济的发展离不开地方金融的发展。实现地方经济又好又快发展的关键是做好地方金融工作。地方政府与金融业应建立起一种相辅相成、共同发展的关系,如何让地方金融变得更有效率,更有力的推动当地经济的发展,需要重新审视和研究地方政府金融工作与地方经济发展的关系。     

Strategies for understanding and changing local revenue policies and practices in Ghana's decentralization programme

The 1971 Local Administration Act is the basis for Ghana's attempt to decentralize development planning and budgeting from the centre in Accra to the 68 districts of Ghana. The Act allows District Councils to collect numerous revenues and to retain them as a financial base for implementing District development projects. In 1977 the Economic and Rural Development Management training programme was initiated to help improve revenue collection and the development planning and budgeting capacity of elected officials and civil servants at the district level. Participants worked in teams to determine the potential district revenue base for decentralized development planning, to understand local behavioural patterns in the revenue collection process, and to recommend procedures for improving district revenue administration. The training programme has resulted in dramatic improvements in district government revenue policies and practices leading to a larger financial base for the funding of projects identified and designed locally. Data indicating the positive impact of the training programme for improving local revenue are provided for Techiman District.     

环渤海经济圈区域经济一体化发展的优势与对策探析

环渤海经济圈地理位置优越,经济基础雄厚,但本区域发展仍然面临一些问题,有必要从国家、当地政府以及地方企业角度研究环渤海地区发展新战略。国家从宏观调控方面做好基础设施、区域产业结构以及核心城市的规划。地方政府转变地方政府职能,制定并完善区域经济的政策,加强区域间的协调合作。企业要提高自身竞争力,加强本地区中小企业之间的合作;提高产品附加值;加快吸引外资,促进产业优化升级。     

SDIs: Infrastructure,agglomeration and the region in industrial policy

This article reports on the initial findings of an Industrial Strategy Project Research Programme on a key current element of national industrial policy, namely Spatial Development Initiatives (SDIs). The ISP Research Programme is concerned with industrial investment. The operational industrial SDIs are examined against the backdrops of the pattern of contemporary industrial location in South Africa and the emergence of a regional industrial policy for the country; the long‐run experience with SDI‐type programmes internationally and in South Africa; and directions in current regional industrial development theory and practice, particularly those interventions aimed at strengthening the economies associated with regional/sectoral clusters or agglomerations typically embedded in metropolitan locations. The preliminary findings of research commissioned on long‐run industrial development in Richards Bay, and the current SDI processes under way in the Fish River SDI (Eastern Cape) and the West Coast SDI (Western Cape) are then presented These findings demonstrate that for the SDIs to meet their intentions in terms of maximising inward investment, creating jobs and catalysing durable regional economic development, the large opportunity present to use SDI processes to build the capacity and social infrastructure for economic development at local and regional level on — and between — both public and private sector sides should be grasped. To this end, it is also suggested that SDIs be closely linked to other government industrial promotion and support activities, notably the cluster initiatives and SMME support programmes, both of which may themselves need, at this point, far clearer regional focus.     

区域非均衡发展与地方政府适度干预——以江苏省实施“区域共同发展”战略为例

文章以江苏实施"区域共同发展"战略为例,对江苏省地方政府相应政策举措进行了梳理与评析。文章认为,地方政府的干预在推进区域均衡发展中具有积极作用,但同时也存在过度干预的倾向;地方政府应在加强对落后地区财政金融等支持的同时,注重政策的整体性、连续性与可操作性,强化区域间的协调互利和一致行动,摒弃"父爱主义"而更好地发挥市场的力量,强化公共服务以使其更有效率。     

“Enterprise boards and economic strategy”

Centre for Local Economic Strategies, undated: Enterprise Boards: their Contribution to Economic Development and Investment. Manchester: Centre for Local Economic Strategies, £2.50.

Cochrane, A. (editor), 1987: Developing Local Economic Strategies: Milton Keynes: Open University Press, no price stated.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this articles:
Urban Poverty and the Environment in the South Pacific Jenny J. Bryant
Foreign Direct Investment edited by Kenneth A. Froot
Labour Market Monitoring and Employment Policy: a study of Indonesia Martin Godfrey
Studies on Economic Reforms and Development in the People's Republic of China Edited by Tien-tung Hseuh, Yun-wing Sung and Jingyuan Yu
Trade, Industrial Restructuring and Development in Hong Kong Yin-Ping Ho
The Korean Economies: a comparison of North and South Eui-Gak Hwang
The Mechanism of Economic Deve1opmt: growth in the Japanese and East Asian Economies Ken-Ichi Inada, Sueo Sekiguchi and Yasutoyo Shoda.
World Bank Financing of Education: lending, learning and development Phillip W. Jones
Education in Asia: a comparative study of cost and financing Jee-Peng Tan and Alain Mingat
The Future of Asia-Pacific Economies: emerging role of Asian NIEs and ASEAN Edited by Fu-chen Lo and Narongchai Akrasanee
The Asia-Pacific Economies: a challenge to South Asia Edited by S. P. Gupta and Somsak Tambunlertchai
The Dawn of the Pacific Century William McCord
Strategic Processes in Monsoon Asia's Economic Development Harry T. Oshima
Burning Questions: environmental limits to energy growth in Asian-Pacific countries during the 1990s Edited by K. V. Ramani, P. Hills and G. George
Economic Reform and Social Change in China Edited by Andrew Watson
The Revolution in Asian Fertility: dimensions, causes and implications Edited by Richard Leete and lqbal Alam
The Politics of Finance in Developing Countries Edited by Stephan Haggard, Lee Chung H. and Sylvia Maxfield
Sustaining Rapid Development in East Asia and the Pacific: development in practice     

Greening the environment: National and local economic issues

Friends of the Earth (UK), 1989: The Environmental Charter for Local Government. London: Friends of the Earth, no price stated.

Association of Metropolitan Authorities, 1989: Action for the Future - Priorities for the Environment. London: AMA, £10.00.

Local Government Training Board, 1990: The Environmental Role of Local Government. Luton: LGTB, no price stated.

SEEDS (South East Economic Development Strategy), 1990: Green Plan — Interim Report. Stevenage: SEEDS, no price stated.

The Local Authority Associations, 1990: Environmental Practice in Local Government. London: Association of District Councils, £20.00 (£15.00 to local authorities).

Opschoor, J.B. and Vos, H.B. 1989: Economic Instruments for Environmental Protection. Paris: OECD, no price stated.     

A project management approach to the implementation of development programmes within the local government sphere: An empirical analysis

Local government constitutes that part of the public sector that is closest to the inhabitants and is therefore indispensable in its role of promoting their general welfare through, inter alia, undertaking various development initiatives. Furthermore, legislation imposes upon local authorities the obligation to promote the social and economic development of local communities and to participate in implementing national and provincial development programmes. The efficiency and effectiveness with which local government fulfils its developmental role will largely depend on the ability of local authorities to manage development projects. The purpose of this article is to investigate the application of a project management approach as a tool for implementing development programmes in the local government sphere. This is done by means of a comprehensive study of the relevant literature and empirical research based on a research questionnaire that was distributed among selected municipal officials in leadership posts throughout South Africa. The findings of the empirical study are utilised to make specific recommendations with respect to the application of a project management approach to service delivery and local government development initiatives.     

我国地方融资平台的困境与对策研究

地方政府融资平台在应对国际金融危机中发挥了重要作用,但也出现了很多问题,如地方政府融资平台与贷款规模增长的爆发性、平台使用效率低、违规关联担保多发及地方政府债务风险急剧扩大等。文章提出明确政府的职能和定位、明晰中央与地方的财权与事权、政府应作为理性信用担保者参与项目运作等化解地方融资平台风险的路径和办法,以期地方政府投融资平台走上健康的发展轨道。     

基于地缘政治视角的喀什经济开发区研究

喀什经济开发区是中央面对当前地缘政治形势做出的合理的地缘战略选择,是对西北地区地缘经济、政治的一种整合,具有重要的地缘战略意义。设立喀什经济开发区,有利于推动新疆经济发展,维护新疆社会稳定,有利于西部大开发战略的实施,有利于东中西部地区协同发展,有利于加强与中南亚国家之间的战略合作。本文基于地缘政治理论,阐述了建立喀什经济开发区的地缘战略意义。     

北京市南窖沟域产业转型发展路径研究

创新沟域经济建设模式,对资源型地区实现经济顺利转型和发展具有重要意义。本文通过对房山区南窖沟域深入调研,总结并阐述了在煤矿产业退出后,该沟域通过科技创新助力,构筑产业基础;依靠文化创意推动,培育产业融合关键节点;实施生态工程带动,优化人居环境及调动内外因素积极性,推动区域经济转型,实现了沟域经济发展和农民增收。尽管如此,南窖沟域面临经济下滑趋势、环境和基础设施薄弱、历史遗留事件未能有效解决等问题。应继续加大财政转移的支付力度、动员社会力量参与经济建设、巩固农业基础产业、强化政府服务职能,以促进沟域健康可持续发展。     

The Effects of Youth Job Seeker Allowance in South Korea

The severity of youth unemployment in South Korea has prompted the government to implement various preventive measures such as employment services and vocational training. Local governments implemented a Youth Job Seeker Allowance in 2016 as a new form of support, which was adopted by the central government in 2017. This study examines the impact of the Youth Job Seeker Allowance in South Korea on employment. It finds that the allowance had a positive effect on employment; recipients of the allowance have a higher probability of being employed. However, recipients took longer to obtain employment than non-recipients, corroborating previous studies that unemployment benefits lengthen the duration of unemployment. But, recipients of the allowance have more time to look for quality work. Therefore, although the Youth Job Seeker Allowance has the effect of demotivating recipients from looking for employment, its limited duration of three months obliges them to engage in job search activities. The study has implications for the introduction of Youth Job Seeker Allowance systems to support job search activities.     

外商直接投资对江苏产业结构变动的影响——基于第三产业的实证分析

本文基于江苏省第三产业外资利用的现状分析,依据C—D函数的扩展构建多元回归模型,对江苏省1999~2008年的FDI利用与第三产业发展之间的关系展开实证研究,结果表明江苏省第三产业利用外资数量和质量并不高,然后从政府、经济开发区和发展现代服务业三个方面对江苏省第三产业的外资利用提出了相应的对策建议。     

Development from below: Local Development Associations in the Yemen Arab Republic

The Local Development Associations (LDAs) of the Yemen Arab Republic illustrate how indigenous organizations led by local élites can promote participatory, widely beneficial rural development. LDAs reflect a tradition of community based self-help efforts. Today Yemen's six million people, from urban dwellers to those living in remote mountain areas, are served by nearly 200 LDAs. These associations are active in undertaking tasks the central government is not organized to perform. Supported primarily by their immediate constituencies and led by local notables, they build roads, schools, village water systems, and clinics. Over the past decade they have achieved dramatic development results and become important, nationally recognized institutions. This article documents the LDA movement. This example of succesfull local organization is particularly important because development experts often dismiss the potential of such movements on the ground that they are likely to be élite-dominated, probably to the detriment of the poorer members of the community. In describing the LDA movement, this article also consolidates for the first time the few published, frequently unavailable papers on Yemen's complex little-studied rural sector.     

关于推进地方招商引资工作的几点看法

招商引资作为推动各种经济资源的投入以促进地方经济振兴和发展的作用正逐渐被各地政府所认识,并成为各地推动经济发展所采用的重要手段。随着招商工作的日益开展,各地政府为推动招商引资穷尽方法,由此进入了招商引资的误区,出现了许多怪现象,造成了不好的影响。本文即是对政府在招商过程中出现的问题进行分析探讨,并提出一些改进的思路和方法。     

地方政府在县域经济发展中的作用研究——来自浙江省绍兴市的证据

实践表明,地方政府作用的发挥与县域经济的发展密切相关,地方政府可以促进县域经济的发展,也可以制约县域经济的发展。在县域经济的发展过程中重视地方政府的作用已成为广泛共识。文章在剖析地方政府在县域经济发展中作用机理的基础上,以绍兴市为例,通过回顾绍兴市县域经济的发展历程,从绍兴市政府本身、市场主体、市场客体、市场运行机制及市场配套服务机制等视角探究绍兴市县域经济快速增长的原因,并总结其经验及启示。     

我国县域经济开发区发展及对策研究

县域经济开发区的发展是推进县域农业产业化、工业化、城镇化和市场化的需要,也是中央政府和地方政府合力推动的结果。县域经济开发区促进了县域产业集群的形成和投融资体系的建设,也成为县域招商引资的重点承载体,更是县域经济融入更大尺度空间经济网络的重要支撑平台。我们必须加强县域经济开发区的规划工作,加强区域合作和企业网络的建设,适当扩大经济开发区的行政权力,建立更为多元的投融资体系,从而最大限度的提升产业园区的竞争力和发展潜力。