Academic literature on the topic 'Civil service reform – Macedonia'

In the context of the local self-government system dynamic reform in Russia, the role of the municipal official is significantly increasing, the re-quirements not only for his professional education, skills and abilities, but also for ethics, business behavior and attitude towards service are increasing. In contradistinction from Western countries, where it is customary to con-sider the general institution of state service, the municipal service in the Rus-sian Federation is clearly separated from the state civil service. In the context of the research, we analyze the approach to the regulating issues of municipal official’s ethics and professional conduct of in the European practice of young democracies. We carry out a broad analysis of the codes provisions of official’s ethics and conduct in a number of former Eastern bloc countries: Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Macedonia. We establish that the domestic and foreign approaches are very similar to each other, and the main goal of adopting the relevant codes is the desire for transparency and the eradication of the communist era foundations. We establish that the domestic and foreign approaches are very similar to each other, and the main goal of adopting the relevant codes is the desire for transparency and the eradication of the communist era foundations. At the present stage, the document requires flexibility and a transition from formal to more informal and understandable for the municipal official.

Social care is an organised network of institutional and non-institutional facilities designed to meet the needs of citizens. The reforms that are taking place in social protection are influenced by modern trends in social work, expressed through decentralization, de-institutionalization, pluralism, strengthening of civil society and the possibility of providing private services, affecting and enriching the content of social work. These change the relationship to the client's position and improve the professionalism of social worker. Changes in social policy, resulting from diverting from central to local level, influence and give direction to the overall social activity. The paper describes the three components thereof (areas): the state of social work and social protection in the Republic of Macedonia, rights and services in the social protection system in the Republic of Macedonia and research part. Starting from the assumption that modern trends affect reforms in the social protection system of the Republic of Macedonia, this paper aims to determine the state of social protection in the Republic of Macedonia. The aim is to gain knowledge about the situation and the changes occurring in the social institutions of public character, influenced by modern trends. Also this paper makes analysis of the legislation in the Republic of Macedonia in the field of social protection. Ultimate goals of the implementation of reforms in the social protection are the welfare of the beneficiary, improving the quality of work and professional development of social workers.

This paper analyzes the recent reform initiatives of the civil service system in Korea. The modern civil service system was founded during the Park Jung-Hee Administration. The major characteristics of the system can be summarized as a merit-based, rank-oriented, closed career, and centralized managemetn system. The Korean civil service system was instrumental during the period of government-led growth. However, the 1997 financial crisis and the ensuring economic recession instigated the Korean government reform program, including civil service reform. As the package of civil service reform policies has been formulated and implemented during the Kim Dae-Jung and Roh Moo-Hyun administrations, the Korean civil service system is experiencing a paradigm shift from a rank-oriented, closed career, seniority-based, and centralized management system to a job-oriented, open-career, performance-based, and decentralized system. This article outlines three factors explaining the transformation. For Korean civil service reform to be successful, implementation is required for a certain period of time. The article discusses several tasks that are necessary for fully achieving the reform goals of the participatory government.

This thesis anatomises the high watermark of belief in administrative and institutional remedies to the deeply-felt relative economic and absolute military decline of Britain in the years after the Second. World War. It analyses the second half of the Macmillan years, the administration of Sir Alec Douglas-Home, the first two premierships of Harold Wilson (but not the period from 1974-76 which saw little reformist activity) and the three-and-a-half years that Edward Heath occupied No. 10 Downing Street. The approach has been to look at the prime ministers' plans, examine how these were embraced by the Civil Service and analyse the results. The period 1960-74 saw a great many major reforms to the machinery of government, all of which are analysed. Significant new findings include the struggle over the demarcation `concordat' between the Treasury and the Department of Economic Affairs in 1964; the way that the Prime Minister's Principal Private Secretary acted against the senior civil servant handling the reception of the Fulton Report; the fact that Harold Wilson developed a keen interest in the `hiving off' of parts of the public sector in 1969; how, after the Heath Government was elected in 1970, the Civil Service took the massive political planning undertaken prior to government and effectively cherry-picked what it wanted, turning the dynamism for reform to its own advantage; the remarkable lack of interest in Programme Analysis and Review; and the way that the Central Policy Review Staff was sidelined in Heath's last weeks.

This thesis examines civil service reform in Ireland from independence to 2012. Following independence, inexperienced and over-burdened Ministers gave the civil service, which was dominated by the Department of Finance, considerable autonomy. This creation of an impartial civil service remains one of the great achievements of the Irish State. The thesis finds that progress on administrative reform has been uneven and limited due to a combination of lack of political will and obstacles within the administration. Efforts to reform the civil service began with the 1935 Brennan Commission, and continued with the Devlin Report, 1969. This work examines the challenges faced by Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald and by John Boland, first Minister for the Public Service, in reforming the civil service. Later initiatives to reform the civil service are also analysed. The thesis finds that both political will and administrative support are required for administrative reform. Ireland’s economic collapse in 2008 transformed the approach to administrative reform through the Troika of the European Commission, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank. Administrative reform was a key element of the strategic response to economic crisis for the government which came to office in 2011. Reforms were therefore driven by external financiers who required that Ireland modernise its public administration. The establishment of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in 2011 highlighted this. Uniquely, this new department combined both expenditure and reform elements. Earlier lessons in relation to poor implementation of reform were learned, with a strong focus on implementation and delivery. The Public Service Reform Plan of November 2011 set out 70 recommendations and 200 actions across five areas. This plan emphasised ownership within departments, with dedicated reform teams working under a Cabinet committee. The plan also highlighted the importance of implementation with deadlines, dates and ownership. The Irish civil service made good progress in recent years in reducing costs, improving productivity, the online delivery of services, developing shared services and putting in place administrative reforms. By drawing on the lessons learned since independence, particularly from the most recent economic crisis, governments and policy-makers may be better prepared to implement future administrative reforms.

Administrative reform is a challenging endeavor for both developed and developing countries alike. For developing countries, the challenge is greater because numerous reforms are implemented concurrently sometimes under conditions of resource scarcity and political instability. So far there is no consensus as to what makes some reforms succeed and others fail. The current study seeks to fill that gap by offering an empirical comparative analysis of the administrative reforms initiated in Uganda and Tanzania since the early 1990s. The purpose of the study is to explain the similarities and differences, and give reasons for the successes and failures of the reform programs in the two countries. It focuses on four major areas; the size of the civil service, pay reform, capacity building, and ethics and accountability. Data were collected via in-depth face to face interviews with 35 key government officials and the content analysis of various documents. The results indicate that the reforms generated initial substantial reduction in the size of the public services in both countries. In Uganda, the traditional civil service was reduced from 140,500 in 1990 to 41,730 in 2004; while in Tanzania Ministries, Departments, and Agencies were reduced by 25%. Pay reform has generated substantial increases in civil servants’ salaries in both countries but in Uganda, the government has not been able to abide by the pay strategy while in Tanzania the strategy guides the increments. Civil Service capacity building efforts have focused on enhancing the skills of the personnel. Training needs assessments were undertaken in all ministries in Uganda and a training policy was formulated. In Tanzania, the training needs assessments are still under way and a training policy has not yet been developed. Ethics and accountability are great challenges in both countries, but in Tanzania, there is more political will and commitment to improve the integrity of the civil service. The findings reveal that although Uganda started the reform with much more rigor and initial success, Tanzania has surpassed it and has a more stable, consistent, and promising reform record. This is because Uganda’s leadership lacks political legitimacy. The country has since the late 1990s experienced a civil war in the northern and western parts of the country while Tanzania has benefitted from relative peace and high level political legitimacy.

In modern society, the model of organization and the method of police work derive from the legal system of the state based on the development of parliamentarism, democracy and the rule of law. In developed countries of common and continental law, the dominant model of police organization and work is community policing, according to which the police and community are working together, and the police is the service of citizens. Serbia and the ex-YU member states have accepted the same model as part of the police reform. Model of police organization and method of work is in the function of performing the delegated tasks and duties, for the benefit of the community and citizens, with respect for and protection of human rights and civil liberties. The report presents the legal and institutional framework for the organization and work of the police, in the form of international and national legal sources, among which the Police Law of Republic of Serbia takes a central place. In the function of service provision, "tools" for police work - powers, measures and actions are highlighted. Finally, the initial proposals de lege ferenda for improving the legislative framework have been presented and the importance of the police as a citizen service in the context of European integration has been highlighted.

Aim/Purpose: This paper provides the results of the preliminary analysis of the findings of an ongoing study that seeks to examine the social media use, cultural and political awareness, civic engagement, issue prioritization, and social activism of Gen Z students enrolled at four different institutional types located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The aim of this study is to look at the group as a whole as well as compare findings across populations. The institutional types under consideration include a mid-sized majority serving or otherwise referred to as a traditionally white institution (TWI) located in a small coastal city on the Atlantic Ocean, a small Historically Black University (HBCU) located in a rural area, a large community college located in a county that is a mixture of rural and suburban and which sits on the border of Maryland and Pennsylvania, and graduating high school students enrolled in career and technical education (CTE) programs in a large urban area. This exploration is purposed to examine the behaviors and expectations of Gen Z students within a representative American region during a time of tremendous turmoil and civil unrest in the United States. Background: Over 74 million strong, Gen Z makes up almost one-quarter of the U.S. population. They already outnumber any current living generation and are the first true digital natives. Born after 1996 and through 2012, they are known for their short attention spans and heightened ability to multi-task. Raised in the age of the smart phone, they have been tethered to digital devices from a young age with most having the preponderance of their childhood milestones commemorated online. Often called Zoomers, they are more racially and ethnically diverse than any previous generation and are on track to be the most well-educated generation in history. Gen Zers in the United States have been found in the research to be progressive and pro-government and viewing increasing racial and ethnic diversity as positive change. Finally, they are less likely to hold xenophobic beliefs such as the notion of American exceptionalism and superiority that have been popular with by prior generations. The United States has been in a period of social and civil unrest in recent years with concerns over systematic racism, rampant inequalities, political polarization, xenophobia, police violence, sexual assault and harassment, and the growing epidemic of gun violence. Anxieties stirred by the COVID-19 pandemic further compounded these issues resulting in a powder keg explosion occurring throughout the summer of 2020 and leading well into 2021. As a result, the United States has deteriorated significantly in the Civil Unrest Index falling from 91st to 34th. The vitriol, polarization, protests, murders, and shootings have all occurred during Gen Z’s formative years, and the limited research available indicates that it has shaped their values and political views. Methodology: The Mid-Atlantic region is a portion of the United States that exists as the overlap between the northeastern and southeastern portions of the country. It includes the nation’s capital, as well as large urban centers, small cities, suburbs, and rural enclaves. It is one of the most socially, economically, racially, and culturally diverse parts of the United States and is often referred to as the “typically American region.” An electronic survey was administered to students from 2019 through 2021 attending a high school dual enrollment program, a minority serving institution, a majority serving institution, and a community college all located within the larger mid-Atlantic region. The survey included a combination of multiple response, Likert scaled, dichotomous, open ended, and ordinal questions. It was developed in the Survey Monkey system and reviewed by several content and methodological experts in order to examine bias, vagueness, or potential semantic problems. Finally, the survey was pilot tested prior to implementation in order to explore the efficacy of the research methodology. It was then modified accordingly prior to widespread distribution to potential participants. The surveys were administered to students enrolled in classes taught by the authors all of whom are educators. Participation was voluntary, optional, and anonymous. Over 800 individuals completed the survey with just over 700 usable results, after partial completes and the responses of individuals outside of the 18-24 age range were removed. Findings: Participants in this study overwhelmingly were users of social media. In descending order, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, WhatsApp, LinkedIn and Tik Tok were the most popular social media services reported as being used. When volume of use was considered, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube and Twitter were the most cited with most participants reporting using Instagram and Snapchat multiple times a day. When asked to select which social media service they would use if forced to choose just one, the number one choice was YouTube followed by Instagram and Snapchat. Additionally, more than half of participants responded that they have uploaded a video to a video sharing site such as YouTube or Tik Tok. When asked about their familiarity with different technologies, participants overwhelmingly responded that they are “very familiar” with smart phones, searching the Web, social media, and email. About half the respondents said that they were “very familiar” with common computer applications such as the Microsoft Office Suite or Google Suite with another third saying that they were “somewhat familiar.” When asked about Learning Management Systems (LMS) like Blackboard, Course Compass, Canvas, Edmodo, Moodle, Course Sites, Google Classroom, Mindtap, Schoology, Absorb, D2L, itslearning, Otus, PowerSchool, or WizIQ, only 43% said they were “very familiar” with 31% responding that they were “somewhat familiar.” Finally, about half the students were either “very” or “somewhat” familiar with operating systems such as Windows. A few preferences with respect to technology in the teaching and learning process were explored in the survey. Most students (85%) responded that they want course announcements and reminders sent to their phones, 76% expect their courses to incorporate the use of technology, 71% want their courses to have course websites, and 71% said that they would rather watch a video than read a book chapter. When asked to consider the future, over 81% or respondents reported that technology will play a major role in their future career. Most participants considered themselves “informed” or “well informed” about current events although few considered themselves “very informed” or “well informed” about politics. When asked how they get their news, the most common forum reported for getting news and information about current events and politics was social media with 81% of respondents reporting. Gen Z is known to be an engaged generation and the participants in this study were not an exception. As such, it came as no surprise to discover that, in the past year more than 78% of respondents had educated friends or family about an important social or political issue, about half (48%) had donated to a cause of importance to them, more than a quarter (26%) had participated in a march or rally, and a quarter (26%) had actively boycotted a product or company. Further, about 37% consider themselves to be a social activist with another 41% responding that aren’t sure if they would consider themselves an activist and only 22% saying that they would not consider themselves an activist. When asked what issues were important to them, the most frequently cited were Black Lives Matter (75%), human trafficking (68%), sexual assault/harassment/Me Too (66.49%), gun violence (65.82%), women’s rights (65.15%), climate change (55.4%), immigration reform/deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) (48.8%), and LGBTQ+ rights (47.39%). When the schools were compared, there were only minor differences in social media use with the high school students indicating slightly more use of Tik Tok than the other participants. All groups were virtually equal when it came to how informed they perceived themselves about current events and politics. Consensus among groups existed with respect to how they get their news, and the community college and high school students were slightly more likely to have participated in a march, protest, or rally in the last 12 months than the university students. The community college and high school students were also slightly more likely to consider themselves social activists than the participants from either of the universities. When the importance of the issues was considered, significant differences based on institutional type were noted. Black Lives Matter (BLM) was identified as important by the largest portion of students attending the HBCU followed by the community college students and high school students. Less than half of the students attending the TWI considered BLM an important issue. Human trafficking was cited as important by a higher percentage of students attending the HBCU and urban high school than at the suburban and rural community college or the TWI. Sexual assault was considered important by the majority of students at all the schools with the percentage a bit smaller from the majority serving institution. About two thirds of the students at the high school, community college, and HBCU considered gun violence important versus about half the students at the majority serving institution. Women’s rights were reported as being important by more of the high school and HBCU participants than the community college or TWI. Climate change was considered important by about half the students at all schools with a slightly smaller portion reporting out the HBCU. Immigration reform/DACA was reported as important by half the high school, community college, and HBCU participants with only a third of the students from the majority serving institution citing it as an important issue. With respect to LGBTQ rights approximately half of the high school and community college participants cited it as important, 44.53% of the HBCU students, and only about a quarter of the students attending the majority serving institution. Contribution and Conclusion: This paper provides a timely investigation into the mindset of generation Z students living in the United States during a period of heightened civic unrest. This insight is useful to educators who should be informed about the generation of students that is currently populating higher education. The findings of this study are consistent with public opinion polls by Pew Research Center. According to the findings, the Gen Z students participating in this study are heavy users of multiple social media, expect technology to be integrated into teaching and learning, anticipate a future career where technology will play an important role, informed about current and political events, use social media as their main source for getting news and information, and fairly engaged in social activism. When institutional type was compared the students from the university with the more affluent and less diverse population were less likely to find social justice issues important than the other groups. Recommendations for Practitioners: During disruptive and contentious times, it is negligent to think that the abounding issues plaguing society are not important to our students. Gauging the issues of importance and levels of civic engagement provides us crucial information towards understanding the attitudes of students. Further, knowing how our students gain information, their social media usage, as well as how informed they are about current events and political issues can be used to more effectively communicate and educate. Recommendations for Researchers: As social media continues to proliferate daily life and become a vital means of news and information gathering, additional studies such as the one presented here are needed. Additionally, in other countries facing similarly turbulent times, measuring student interest, awareness, and engagement is highly informative. Impact on Society: During a highly contentious period replete with a large volume of civil unrest and compounded by a global pandemic, understanding the behaviors and attitudes of students can help us as higher education faculty be more attuned when it comes to the design and delivery of curriculum. Future Research This presentation presents preliminary findings. Data is still being collected and much more extensive statistical analyses will be performed.

In recent years, Indonesia has introduced reforms to its bureaucracy in response to critiques of the quality of government policy design and delivery. The Grand Design of Bureaucratic Reform strategy seeks to reduce the number of civil servants employed in administrative or managerial positions (structural appointments) in favour of skills-based recruitment into ‘functional’ positions. Specifically, the introduction of the ‘policy analyst’ position as a functional position in the civil service has sought to improve evidence-based policy making and the quality of policy outcomes, by incorporating merit-based recruitment, appointment and promotion. The role of functional policy analysts (Jabatan Fungsional Analis Kebijakan or JFAKs) is to assist policy makers in identifying policy issues, analyse evidence available on these issues, and ultimately make policy recommendations. This report overviews the recent experiences of different policy analyst cohorts since the role’s creation in 2015. It investigates these experiences to better understand the extent to which policy analysts are playing the role intended for them, and the factors enabling or inhibiting this.

Corruption risks in post-conflict reconstruction are high, notably due to the typically large influx of international aid coupled with weak/illegitimate governments and low state capacity. Combatting corruption in post-conflict settings is vital in the short- and medium-term to promote development and growth, and in the long-term to prevent renewed conflict. Anti-corruption efforts can focus on strengthening the rule of law; public financial management; civil service reform to promote meritocratic hiring, proper training and proper remuneration; promoting transparency and accountability – on the part of both donors as well as recipient governments; and promoting external accountability mechanisms of the media and civil society.

Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic required dramatic changes and new ways of working from civil services around the world. Within this, the immediate pandemic response and shift to remote work have captured most attention, but there has been less analysis of the other ways in which civil services adapted, or of how these changes have shaped the post-pandemic reform agenda. To gain insight on these questions, we interviewed 14 heads of civil service (or other similarly senior officials) from countries on all six continents to understand how they interpret the transformations that have occurred, what they are doing to institutionalise and deepen them, and what they perceive as the next frontiers for change. We find that the pandemic imposed a dual imperative on civil services: the need for greater speed, flexibility, and decentralisation of decision-making on the one hand, and for greater coordination and collaboration on the other. These two imperatives sat in tension with each other and led them to make a range of changes, many of which revolved around the common theme of questioning, unpacking, and remaking the traditionally hierarchical structures and norms of their institutions. The specific changes made varied across countries and spanned from the adoption of agile ways of working to the creation of new coordination mechanisms, the adoption of new modes and styles of leadership, and intensified training systems focusing on a broader scope of skills. Senior leaders viewed these changes mainly as an acceleration of pre-existing trends rather than as new ideas, and saw technology as an enabler but not a driver of change. Looking past the emergency response phase of the pandemic, leaders are not unanimous in their views on which of these changes are likely to be permanent. However, many perceive an urgent need to change structural aspects of people management and leadership development – from training to personnel evaluation and career management – in order to resolve the challenges and tensions that emerged in this process, and this effort dominates their thinking about institutionalising and continuing change in the medium- to long-term.