Browse by: "2007"

Post-public employment is one of several variations of the broad concept of conflict of interest, that is, the use of public office for private gain.1 Most post-employment offences occur when public officials use, or appear to use, information or contacts acquired while in government to benefit themselves, or others, after they leave government. However, despite use of the term post-public employment, these offences can actually occur before officials leave government. For example, a serving public official can give preferential treatment to a business firm with a view to obtaining employment with that firm after leaving government. If the official is successful in obtaining that employment and leaves government, he or she can then commit post-employment offences. For example, the official can use confidential information obtained while in government to the benefit of his or her new employer. Thus, a post-employment offence can arise both from the use of one’s current public office for private gain and from the wrongful exploitation of one’s previous public office. For the most part, however, the focus of this paper is on the behaviour of former public officials in their relations with government. Based on the experience of leading OECD countries, the paper will support the development of a state of the art handbook by covering all relevant aspects of a sound and comprehensive framework for preventing conflict of interest in post-public employment...

This study deals with "instruments used to address mercury emissions to air", by which is meant all legislation, regulation and other measures intended to control or reduce anthropogenic, atmospheric mercury emissions. As the links are complex between actual inputs of mercury to society (consumption for intended use and mobilisation of mercury-impurities via industrial processes) and the final release sources, all types of measures addressing any phase in the life-cycle of mercury which may ultimately lead to atmospheric mercury emissions are included here. Due to its volatility, most forms of mercury released or discarded as waste - as vapour, as liquid elemental mercury, as compounds, as integrated in products, consumer waste or flue-gas cleaning residues - may lead to emissions to air.

This document provides an unofficial translation of legislation on lobbying in Poland, Hungary and Lithuania.

The present report presents the case studies made of instrument mixes addressing non-point sources of water pollution in agriculture in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Denmark and in the Chesapeake Bay area of the United States. While all these case studies discuss instruments addressing nutrient run-off, the UK and the Danish case studies also discuss instruments addressing the use of pesticides in the agriculture sector.

The OECD, via its Ethics Infrastructure concept and Integrity Assessment Framework, is in the forefront as efforts to check corruption shift from diagnosing problems and prescribing countermeasures to the institutionalization and assessment of integrity. In such an effort OECD possesses significant resources: a generation’s worth of anti-corruption expertise; unparalleled networks, information and data resources; and strong credibility based both on anti-corruption and integrity instruments (such as the OECD Convention on Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, 1998 OECD Recommendation on Improving Ethical Conduct in the Public Service and the 2003 Recommendation on Guidelines For Managing Conflict Of Interest in the Public Service) and a half-century of effective dealings with the world’s major economies. But it also faces significant challenges, made all the more difficult by the fact that in some ways it is venturing into unknown territory. A key challenge is to assess anti-corruption progress in valid, reliable, and reasonably precise ways, using objective evidence to provide credible, easily understood feedback and guidance to officials, reform groups, and citizens...

The present report presents the case studies made of instrument mixes addressing household waste in the United Kingdom and in the Netherlands.

Social inequality with regard to education seems to be mainly the result of two factors: the reduced success of certain socio-economical categories within the education system and distinct educational requirements once the compulsory education period is over. In this article, we shall focus on the inequality stemming from the choices and personal decisions of individuals by highlighting the influence of social origins as a factor capable of inducing an under-investment in education. Thus, we shall examine how an auto-selection process contributes to the iniquity of the education system. This analysis is based on the theoretical framework of human capital investment developed by Gary Becker (1964) and principally underlines the effects of expectations, uncertainty and cost perception in the differences in evaluations of the profitability of education according to social background. It brings to light reflections on the educational policy.

L’exigence d’évaluation des agents publics est de plus en plus grande au sein des fonctions publiques européennes. Dictée notamment par des impératifs budgétaires et des soucis d’amélioration de la performance, elle tend à s’imposer dans toutes les administrations. L’un des secteurs d’application les plus délicats est sans conteste l’enseignement supérieur. Les traditions d’indépendance et d’autonomie des personnels universitaires ont tendance à se heurter à la volonté de l’État de rénover sa gestion des ressources humaines grâce à l’outil d’évaluation. Cette étude porte sur la mise en place d’une procédure d’évaluation des agents publics dans l’enseignement supérieur en France et en Finlande, à partir de l’observation de deux établissements. L’étude s’intéresse en particulier au rôle des organisations syndicales dans cette réforme. Les comportements des différents acteurs sont analysés à l’aune de quelques approches sociologiques classiques.

L’inégalité des chances face à l’éducation semble résulter majoritairement de deux phénomènes : d’une réussite moindre de certains milieux socio-économiques au sein du système scolaire et de demandes d’éducation distinctes, une fois la période de scolarité obligatoire achevée. Dans cet article, nous nous intéressons à l’inégalité provenant des choix et décisions privées des individus en désignant l’influence du milieu d’origine comme un facteur capable d’induire un sous investissement éducatif. Ainsi, nous envisageons de quelle manière un processus d’auto-sélection participe à l’iniquité du système éducatif. Cette analyse s’appuie sur le cadre théorique de l’investissement en capital humain développé par Gary Becker (1964) et met principalement en perspective les effets des anticipations, de la perception de l’incertitude et celle des coûts, dans les écarts d’évaluation de la rentabilité de l’éducation selon les milieux. Il en ressort des réflexions en termes de politique éducative.

The requirement to assess public employees is increasing within European public services. Dictated by budgetary imperatives and performance improvement concerns, it is becoming the norm in all administrations. One of the most sensitive areas of application is undoubtedly higher education. The traditional independence and autonomy of the academic personnel tends to clash with the state’s desire to revamp its human resources management using the assessment tool. This study relates to the implementation of a procedure designed to assess higher education public employees in France and Finland, based on the observation of two institutions. It focuses in particular on the role of trade unions in this reform. The behaviour of the different players is analysed in relation to several traditional sociological approaches.

This study provides an analysis of the functions, structure, status within the government, and capacity of the central public procurement bodies of Member States. It does not attempt to evaluate their respective advantages/disadvantages or to recommend particular institutional arrangements. Twenty-two separate overviews of public procurement systems in the 22 participating Member States were produced on the basis of national responses to a detailed questionnaire. An in-depth review of these country system overviews provided the comparative analysis portion of this study, which discusses the various models in place in Member States, in particular the background and rationale for the use of a particular institutional model.

The main objective for the establishment of a public procurement complaints review and remedies system is to enforce the practical application of substantive public procurement legislation. Such a system gives this legislation its “teeth”: the possibility of review and remedies serves as a deterrent to breaking the law and thus encourages compliance. Moreover, violations of the law and genuine mistakes can be corrected. Therefore, a functioning public procurement review and remedies system may ultimately contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the substantive rules, such as non-discrimination and equal treatment, transparency, and value for money. The public procurement review and remedies systems of EU Member States need to comply with the requirements of European Community law: the EC Treaty, the EC Public Sector Remedies Directive 89/665/EEC and the EC Utilities Remedies Directive 92/13/EEC...

This report summarises the major lessons learnt from the experience with debt-for-environment swaps (DFES) in selected transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia. It presents the key steps in designing, negotiating and implementing DFES in low-income countries that have accumulated significant external debt and face challenges with servicing this debt. The report draws primarily on the experience of Poland, Bulgaria, Georgia and the Kyrgyz Republic but relevant cases and lessons from other countries in the world are included, as appropriate.

The publication sketches a realist portrait of the municipal waste management sector in EECCA based on field work, presents lessons learnt from the financing strategy case studies, as well as on the methodology (see Annex 1), and proposes recommendations on policies which could be implemented in EECCA countries to promote the financial sustainability of the municipal waste sector. The recommendations also build on lessons learnt in EU accession and candidate countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Turkey), and on the experience of the OECD.

The tension between political advisors and civil servants is inherent in democratic administrative structures. How do countries define appropriate roles for political advisers and civil servants as rooted in their history? What regulations govern their respective functions? How do political advisers and civil servants cooperate? What are points of contention and how are disagreements resolved? Are there national innovations, also with regard to training? The aim of this questionnaire-based study is to present a variety of national traditions regarding the roles and responsibilities of political advisers and civil servants, as well as the institutional arrangements put into place to mediate inbuilt sources of conflict.

This paper argues that the sustained provision of adequate financial resources for the environment is a prerequisite for addressing environmental challenges in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia (EECCA) and South-Eastern Europe (SEE). It sets out options for how optimal use could be made of the various available sources of environmental finance, including domestic public expenditure, private sector participation and official development assistance. Recommendations are provided for Ministers on priority actions for ensuring that financial resources are made available for the environment. EECCA and SEE governments need to continue to prioritise the environment in policy and public expenditure frameworks, and make better use of incentive-based instruments. They also need to create a suitable climate for the private sector to participate in environmental financing. The international community must ensure that IFI loans for environmental investments are more accessible, especially for low-income countries, including by providing adequate grant co-financing. Finally, EECCA and SEE countries should strengthen their capacity to prepare environmental investment projects, with effective support from IFIs and donors.