CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND VOUCHER BUY-OUTS IN RUSSIA

This paper examines the issues which may create pressures and incentives to introduce efficiency-enhancing governance structures in enterprises which are privatized through voucher schemes in Russia. These pressures emphasize the need to view buy-outs created on privatization as transitory organizational forms with a three-stage process being suggested as the most feasible for developing governance mechanisms which produce efficiency gains, The paper uses illustrative case studies of the first major enterprises to experience post-privatization ownership changes.     

a fire inspector calls

Mike Fisher, an Institute of Economic Affairs' trustee and director of Whale Tankers, explains what happened when the fire inspector called on the home of the great British whale.     

Governance,media and the quality of environmental disclosure

Given the rising emphasis on environmental disclosures and the expressed importance of ‘good’ governance in determining the extent of information disclosure in general, we examine the relation between specific aspects of governance and media coverage and the quality of voluntary environmental disclosure (VED). Using a sample of 127 firms over a 6-year period (2000–2005), we empirically test characteristics of governance and media in relation to VED. Our results suggest that VED quality is positively associated with environmental media coverage, negative environmental media and board attributes of independence, diversity, and expertise. Results from supplemental analysis suggest that institutional investors exert influence over managerial decisions on environmental reporting only in the face of negative environmental media. Additionally, results from longitudinal analyses indicate that the quality of environmental disclosures increases over time. Our conclusion discusses the implications of these findings.     

Project Management Learning: A Comparative Study Between Engineering Students’ Experiences in South Africa and the United Kingdom

This study explores how engineering students studying project management perceive their learning experiences. To facilitate an understanding of the constituent components of engineering students’ experiences and to understand how these experiences influence preferred learning styles, a comparative study of university students studying engineering in South Africa and the United Kingdom is conducted. The study finds no significant demographic differences in learning experiences across the two student cohorts. However, the South African cohort reports higher levels of overall experiences. They also report higher usage of online learning materials but lower levels of blended learning and individual critical evaluation skills experiences.     

Public Knowledge and Financial Regulation: Two Post Crisis Periods

Abstract:

Since at least the days of Adam Smith there has been the recognition of essentially two forms of capitalism: in their theoretical extremes, one in which private companies determine the conditions of the social provisioning of credit and money, and one in which the State representing the general interest does. As we argue, the zeitgeist of the 1930s was a high water mark in the popular understanding of money and banking and its relationship with society. In contrast, today the general population is woefully ignorant on these points. As we argue, the relationship between financial governance and those governed hinges on the knowledge of the latter. Today’s public discourse reveals a widespread ignorance over financial matters that must accompany a likewise extreme moment of private control over nations’ money and credit. As we argue, the first steps towards a capitalism at the service of humanity and under public control, the first priority is publicly diffused knowledge.     

Can integrated infrastructure investment plans contribute to more effective public spending? The case of Mozambique

All countries, especially developing countries with limited financial resources, face difficult decisions in prioritising public funds for investment projects in the face of multiple demands in order to achieve strategic public goals. Effective investment often requires coordination between different institutions and the management of political pressure to divert investment in support of private interests. It also requires the identification of appropriate sources of funds for different purposes. The preparation of an integrated infrastructure investment plan (IIIP) that uses structured approaches to review investment proposals has been suggested, and adopted in some cases, as an instrument to address these challenges and bridge the gap between national planning and sectoral budgeting. This article considers the experience of Mozambique in deploying an IIIP as well as some recent events and concludes that the instrument may be helpful as part of a system of investment planning and allocation but that it has significant limitations.