Elements of Effective Governance: Measurement, Accountability and Participation is one of the first books to explore the relationship between accountability, government performance, and public participation. It discusses two main assumptions: greater accountability leads to better performance; and the more the public is involved in the measu

The international aid community has advocated governance reforms as a necessary complement to economic aid to developing countries. The resultant Good Governance Agenda has been criticised for its ahistorical bias. The empirical case studies reported in this book further illustrate the limitations by showing the complex logics of governance reforms and their relations with development in the Asian context. The analysis highlights the importance of taking full notice of the Asian reform experiences in the ongoing reflection over the global institutional and development agenda. The message is not to deny the need for governance reforms, or the utility of international learning and sharing of experiences. Global development will benefit, however, from a better understanding of the linkages between governance reforms and the diverse historical conditions they are embedded, in both developing or the advanced economies. This book was published as a special issue of Journal of Contemporary Asia.

This book is the first to provide a critical investigation of EU better regulation from the perspective of EU contract law. The Commission's 'New Deal for EU Consumers' is one of the first EU contract law initiatives to implement both the newly revised Better Regulation Guidelines and the newly introduced combined evaluation of multiple Directives in the form of a 'fitness check'. This offers an opportunity to explore difficulties and best practices at a national level, as demonstrated by experience with the EU's Unfair Terms Directive. Both the fitness check and the impact assessment accompanying the New Deal should facilitate critical reflection on the design of EU contract law. This book addresses key questions. Do impact assessments favour business interests at the expense of a high level of consumer protection? Is the evaluation of EU contract law and the analysis in impact assessments in line with scientific standards? Has the fitness check revealed difficulties and success stories with EU measures at national level, and thereby facilitated an in-depth scrutiny of the design of EU contract law? Ultimately, is the potential of better regulation being realised?

This new edition is completely revamped and reorganized to reflect the change in standards and regulations and to include all new topics related to organizational sustainability and risk management. The role that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) play within the realm of organizational sustainability is one of many new topics. Organizational Sustainability and Risk Management: A Practical Step-by-Step Guide, Second Edition will continue to remind all stakeholders how organizations work through a measurement transformation that affects everything they do including following the International Organization for Standardization’s (ISO) Guide for Sustainability and climate change. The book is enriched with a discussion on life cycle thinking that has been introduced in the ISO high-level structure. Discussions on a fundamental change in how organizations approach sustainability and how we view organizational sustainability are covered. This book offers a platform for managing all activities, products, and services tailored to the needs of the organization and presents how important environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards are to determine the potential for increased financial growth of organizations that have implemented organizational sustainability. The book is for professionals and can be used in continuing education sustainability courses as well as company-provided short courses where the new regulations for sustainability and ESG reporting are addressed.

In our data-rich era, extracting meaningful insights from the vast amount of information has become a crucial challenge, especially in government service delivery where informed decisions are paramount. Traditional approaches struggle with the enormity of data, highlighting the need for a new approach that integrates data science and machine learning. The book, Machine Learning and Data Science Techniques for Effective Government Service Delivery, becomes a vital resource in this transformation, offering a deep understanding of these technologies and their applications. Within the complex landscape of modern governance, this book stands as a solution-oriented guide. Recognizing data's value in the 21st century, it navigates the world of data science and machine learning, enhancing the mechanics of government service. By addressing citizens' evolving needs, these advanced methods counter inefficiencies in traditional systems. Tailored for experts across technology, academia, and government, the book bridges theory and practicality. Covering foundational concepts and innovative applications, it explores the potential of data-driven decision-making for a more efficient and citizen-centric government future.

This book aims to show that a strong and achieving public service is a necessary condition for a competitively successful nation. The concept of good governance is linked with institutionalised values such as democracy, observance of human rights and greater effectiveness of the public sector.

Ocean—a source of life, has been overused and heavily polluted. While the traditional approaches might not be able to solve the complexity of the ocean governance issues, there is a need to adopt a new way of thinking in order to deal with the current problems. This book emphasises the importance of law and policy while generating ocean governance initiatives. “Good Ocean Governance” as a new way of thinking, needs to be supported by legislation and decision makers. It is, therefore, necessary to examine whether the idea of good ocean governance exists within the international legal system and is subsequently subject to transfer into the domestic law. During this transaction process, a number of examples provided from the United States, Canada and Australia help to demonstrate the broad picture. Also included are discussions on the governance of marine resources, ship recycling and marine pollution, the impact of maritime clusters as well as social and culture impact of ports. The ultimate aim of this book is to tease out more new ideas and discussions on ocean governance issues.

The European Union (EU) support for good governance reforms has been the cornerstone of its conditionality and funding policies and contributed its role as a transformative power. This book re-evaluates the EU’s governance promotion capacity both within the EU and beyond its borders in light of the simultaneous decline in democracy in Europe in particular, and across the whole world in general. The book is divided into three parts. Part I focuses on the EU’s good governance transfer to member and accession countries. Part II examines how and to what extent the EU’s governance promotion strategies travel beyond its borders and focuses on neighbours, partners, and aid recipient countries especially in Africa. Part III turns to other regional and global actors and discusses the implications of illiberal contesters such as China and Russia on the future of EU’s good governance promotion efforts. The findings of the book bring fresh insights for the scope and depth of the EU’s governance transfer capacity.

Economic development depends heavily on the growth of social sectors like education, healthcare, gender equality, as well as factors like income, consumption, investment and trade. This book examines the interlinkages between development, good governance and spending on social growth. The book focuses on different areas of social growth, public welfare and poverty reduction including managing human resources, corruption in public institutions and public spaces as well as health and welfare measures. The chapters in the volume highlight the role of government interventions in boosting human development – particularly in developing countries in Asia and Africa and many developed countries in the post-COVID scenario. The book also examines the foundations of government spending on development and effective governance while underlining the impact which social growth has on the economy. Rich in theoretical and empirical perspectives, this book will be useful for students and researchers of economics, sociology, political studies, public finance, development studies as well as for policymakers and think tanks working in the areas of human development.