Evaluating the governance of structural funds programmes: The case of community economic development in South Yorkshire

Methods for evaluating regional and urban policies have become increasingly sophisticated in recent years. However, this paper argues that the evaluation of Structural Funds programmes has systematically underplayed the effect of governance on both programme design and implementation. This paper uses the role of voluntary and community sector organizations in promoting community economic development initiatives within the European Union's Structural Funds programmes in South Yorkshire as a case study. An argument is made for extending evaluation methods, especially theory-based evaluation, through using multi-level governance as a “theory of change”. A key finding is that to explain how programmes work, evaluators need to consider formal partnership and management arrangements, their traditional focus, but also wider governance structures and the importance of informal policy networks. Such a focus allows for a consideration of issues such as resource mobilization and power.     

Respondent Understanding of the 1999 Referendum Question on a Reform of the New Zealand Justice System

A referendum question at the 1999 New Zealand general election resulted in a 92% 'Yes' vote in favour of reform of the New Zealand justice system. However, even supporters of the referendum conceded the question was poorly designed and open to different interpretations. To examine these interpretations, we deconstructed the referendum question into five constituent questions and tested these on a sample of potential voters. Support for the constituent questions ranged from 70% to 95%, and subsequent probing revealed that respondents' understanding and interpretation of the key concepts varied considerably. These findings emphasise that survey professionals need to be involved in designing referendum questions and that proposed questions need cognitive pre-testing to ensure they convey their intended meaning and can be understood by voters. A poorly designed question reduces the credibility of the referendum process and threatens the outcome of specific policy initiatives.     

Welfare Reform and Economic and Housing Capacity for Low-Income Households, 1997–1999

The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) marked the continued devolution of social policy to state and local government in addition to restructuring an ailing welfare system. Despite concerns that welfare recipients would find greater obstacles to economic stability as a result, declining welfare rolls have been accompanied by declining poverty rates over the past seven years. An important question is whether low‐income families have gained greater employment and housing capacity following welfare reform. Moreover, does capacity vary across states with different welfare policies? In addition, do families face greater economic vulnerability with respect to food scarcity and health care? This article uses the data from the 1997 and 1999 waves of the National Survey of America's Families to systematically assess differences in capacity and vulnerability among lower income families across different policy regimes. Using two measures of capacity for housing and employment, and quality of life, findings suggest that more stringent welfare rules are related to greater job and housing attainment but a reduced quality of life.     

戊戌前後諸政事(上)

本文根據"張之洞檔案"中的若干機密文件,揭開戊戌前後諸政事的內幕:劉坤一查辦張之洞被彈劾案,容閎、李提摩太、劉鶚在戊戌前後的表現,張之洞與李鴻藻的關係,岳州自開通商口岸,張之洞與日本政界聯手驅逐康有爲出日本,獎勵廣東紳士"報效"逃亡西安的清廷以及廢黜"大阿哥"溥儁等事件。這些雖非重大的政事,但對戊戌前後的清朝政治起到了相當重要或非常微妙的作用。本文分上下篇刊出。     

Sovereign wealth funds and national security: the Great Tradeoff

One of the most striking financial developments in recent years is the emergence of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs)—large publicly owned investment portfolios, which are growing rapidly in both number and size. In a global environment already roiled by a prolonged credit crisis, SWFs raise tricky and potentially controversial new questions for international financial regulation. One issue of concern to many in host countries is the possibility that some SWFs might be used for overt or tacit political purposes, posing a challenge for global monetary governance: a Great Tradeoff between the world community's collective interest in sustaining the openness of capital markets and the legitimate national security concerns of individual host countries. Can some balance between the two be found that will be both stable and acceptable to all concerned? Individually as well as collectively, recipient countries have begun to address the regulatory challenge directly. To date, however, accomplishments have been slight and have failed to stem a noticeable drift towards financial protectionism. A review of some recent proposals suggests that there is no foolproof solution to the Great Tradeoff. But the potential for controversy could be significantly reduced by a negotiated agreement among host governments addressing three key issues: definitions, risk assessment and dispute resolution. The most logical venue for such an exercise would be the OECD, building on its already extensive experience with international investment issues.     

建国初期华北农村婚姻制度的改革

中华人民共和国成立时 ,封建主义婚姻制度在华北农村占主导地位 ,严重阻碍了社会进步 ,改革封建婚姻制度已成当务之急。 1 95 0年 5月我国颁布并施行《中华人民共和国婚姻法》后 ,在华北农村开展了一场广泛深入的婚姻制度改革 ,经过大力宣传贯彻《婚姻法》和建立婚姻登记制度 ,最终实现了从封建主义婚姻制度向新民主主义婚姻制度的嬗变。     

俄国1861年改革后农民赋役负担探析

俄国1861年农民改革废除了农民的封建人身依附关系,农民成为法定的自由人,同时可以获得土地所有权。但是改革后的赋役负担制约了农民自由权利和土地所有权的实现。政府仍奉行严厉的赋税政策,农民想尽各种办法筹集税款,却终难摆脱欠税的命运。农民承担的劳役租、代役租和混合租在改革后均转变为代役租,加之担负着各种实物义务,农民的经济负担愈益沉重。繁重的赋役负担迫使大量农民破产,严重阻碍了农民经济的发展。     

民国时期甘肃改土归流后土司辖地的归属纠纷

民国时期改土归流政策的推行,使土司辖地被纳入与内地一致的省县体系当中.这一过程在解决历史遗留问题的同时,也激化了新的土司辖地的归属纠纷,促使甘肃省政府展开界务调整,但实际勘划并不完全与相关勘界法规相符.狄道赵土司辖地乔家沟以耕种土地租户的籍贯为标准而划归渭源;河州何土司辖地何家堡则在甘青省界调整的过程中被划归永靖;卓尼...     

新中农的崛起:土改后农村社会结构的新变动

土地改革后,中国农村社会结构发生了重大变动,其中最突出的现象是大多数贫雇农上升为新中农,农村普遍出现了中农化趋向,农村社会结构从“下边大上边小”的“宝塔式”结构,转为“中间大两头小”的“纺锤形”结构,这种社会结构变动对中共阶级政策产生了深刻影响。     

Labour after Land Reform: The Precarious Livelihoods of Former Farmworkers in Zimbabwe

What happens to labour when major redistributive land reform restructures a system of settler colonial agriculture? This article examines the livelihoods of former farmworkers on large‐scale commercial farms who still live in farm compounds after Zimbabwe's land reform. Through a mix of surveys and in‐depth biographical interviews, four different types of livelihood are identified, centred on differences in land access. These show how diverse, but often precarious, livelihoods are being carved out, representing the ‘fragmented classes of labour’ in a restructured agrarian economy. The analysis highlights the tensions between gaining new freedoms, notably through access to land, and being subject to new livelihood vulnerabilities. The findings are discussed in relation to wider questions about the informalization of the economy and the role of labour and employment in a post‐settler agrarian economy, where the old ‘farmworker’ label no longer applies.     

试述晚清戶部银库制度与庚子之后的变革

清代的户部银库事关中央财政的出纳,执行着类似国库的功能.本文拟从外省银两的解缴、人员设置、银钱的收发、存储等角度对银库制度作一梳理,并详述庚子之后该制度发生的变化,以期明晰清代银库制度的得失和清末新政时清政府财政体制的变化.     

试析1999年澳大利亚共和表决失败之原因

1999年11月6日,澳大利亚就实行共和制还是君主立宪制举行了全民公决。在总共6个州中,只有墨尔本所在的维多利亚州以50．1％的选民为2001年在澳大利亚实行共和制投了赞成票,其他各州仍旧钟情于现行的君主立宪制。至此,长达一个半世纪的共和运动以46％的赞成比票比54％的反对票失败。澳大利亚共和派搭乘新世纪共和列车的愿望也随之落空。     

论九一八后行政院的机构调整与改革(1932-1937)

九一八事变后,国民政府行政院为应对危机,在内部动力与外在压力之下进行了机构调整与改革。主要内容是机构调整与人员裁并,目标是提高行政效能,树立政府威信。行政院的机构调整与改革具有延续性,以谋求稳定的政治局面为取向。在派系矛盾严重的政治环境中,这一时期的行政院机构调整与改革未能深入进行,但为抗战时期的机构改革建立了一定基础。     

陕西神木新华遗址1999年发掘简报

新华遗址位于陕西省神木县西南大保当镇新华村附近一个名叫“彭素圪塔”的土丘之上,当地老百姓又称之为“油房梁”。遗址中心分布于彭素圪塔南坡上,长约250米,宽约120米,总面积近30000平方米。     

Veiqati Vaka Viti and the Fiji Islands Elections in 1999

ABSTRACT

The question of demographic decline in the Marquesas Islands is here reinvestigated through an integrated approach to the particular case of Ua Huka. We first attempt to propose a new population estimate for the period prior to European contact, thanks to an archaeologically based method that relies on the length of sleeping areas available in the housing structures recorded in the valleys. From this estimate, we then use ethnohistorical accounts to reassess local demographic evolution throughout the 19th century. This leads us to partly nuance the impact of Westerners, especially the introduction of diseases, which on Ua Huka appears to have been less critical than other factors such as sociopolitical conditions, including intense warfare, linked to unfavourable environmental conditions.