scholarly journals Improved Project Management via Advancement in Evaluation Methodology of Regional Cooperation Environmental Projects

2013 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 57-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Zvingule ◽  
Silvija Nora Kalnins ◽  
Dagnija Blumberga ◽  
Julija Gusca ◽  
Marija Bogdanova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Activity Level ◽  
Evaluation Methodology ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
Environmental Projects ◽  
Development Evaluation ◽  
The Baltic ◽  
The Impact

Abstract The financial mechanism within the European Union that is accessible for environmental issues is a tool by which it is possible to maintain and improve the state of the environment in the Baltic Sea region countries. However, the accessibility and use of finances cannot be considered indicators which mark the success of a programme. There are various evaluation types which can be conducted, such as ex ante to assess the impact desirable to help gauge what projects best to support. Ex post evaluations can also be applied to pool lessons learned to make recommendations for further development. Evaluation is important for checking progress, to further support successful initiatives and to avoid financing activities which do not produce results. Evaluation of environmental projects can be particularly difficult due to their diversity in approaches and applied technologies, however currently there is a risk to limit the assessment of projects to the activity-level (what outputs have been produced, such as number of seminars and publications or campaigns, technologies installed), rather than on the primary goal - specific impacts made on the environment. The goal of this research is to develop a methodology and set of indicators for the evaluation of environmental projects to improve the evaluation of project efficiency, impact and sustainability. Regional Cooperation Environmental Projects are selected and an evaluation is conducted on these projects.

scholarly journals Times of change in complex environments - Evaluating hospital co-payments in Palestine refugee camps

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
S V Valente de Almeida ◽  
H Ghattas ◽  
G Paolucci ◽  
A Seita
Keyword(s):  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Policy Change ◽  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Average Length ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Policy Impact ◽  
Average Length Of Stay ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
The Impact

Abstract We measure the impact introducing a of 10% co-payment component on hospitalisation costs for Palestine refugees from Lebanon in public and private hospitals. This ex-post analysis provides a detailed insight on the direction and magnitude of the policy impact in terms of demand and supply for healthcare. The data was collected by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and include episode level information from all public, private and Red Crescent Hospitals in Lebanon, between April 2016 and October 2017. This is a complete population episode level dataset with information from before and after the policy change. We use multinomial logit, negative binomial and linear models to estimate the policy impact on demand by type of hospital, average length of stay and treatment costs for the patient and the provider. After the new policy was implemented patients were 18% more likely to choose a (free-of-charge) PRCS hospital for secondary care, instead of a Private or Public hospital, where the co-payment was introduced. This impact was stronger for episodes with longer stays, which are also the more severe and more expensive cases. Average length of stay decreased in general for all hospitals and we could not find a statistically significant impact on costs for the provider nor the patient. We find evidence that the introduction of co-payments is hospital costs led to a shift in demand, but it is not clear to what extent the hospitals receiving this demand shift were prepared for having more patients than before, also because these are typically of less quality then the others. Regarding costs, there is no evidence that the provider managed to contain costs with the new policy, as the demand adapted to the changes. Our findings provide important information on hospitalisation expenses and the consequences of a policy change from a lessons learned perspective that should be taken into account for future policy decision making. Key messages We show that in a context of poverty, the introduction of payment for specific hospital types can be efficient for shifting demand, but has doubtable impact on costs containment for the provider. The co-payment policy can have a negative impact on patients' health since after its implementation demand increased at free-of-charge hospitals, which typically have less resources to treat patients.

scholarly journals Prospects of Croatian initiative “The Baltic – Adriatic – Black Sea”

2017 ◽  
pp. 37-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. A. Samoylovskaya
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central Europe ◽  
Black Sea ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Cultural Development ◽  
Southeast Europe ◽  
Geographical Position ◽  
The Baltic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

In January 2015 K. Grabar-Kitarovic was elected as President of Croatia. She identified the integration of Southeast Europe countries into European and Euro-Atlantic institutions and strengthening the cooperation between the countries of Central Europe as a national strategic interest. In her opinion the 12 European member countries of the EU located between the Adriatic, Black and Baltic seas have great potential for regional cooperation in the framework of the EU and the transatlantic community. This potential depends on the geographical position and features of common economic and cultural development. In the presented work is described the evolution of the concept of “the Baltic-Adriatic-Black Sea” and the prospects of its promotion in the countries of Eastern Europe. Special attention is paid to the impact of the initiative on the economic and strategic interests of Russia in Eastern Europe.

scholarly journals FORECASTING THREATS TO THE BALTIC SEA REGION COOPERATION SECURITY IN THE PERIOD OF LITHUANIA INTEGRATING INTO NATO AND THE EU

2004 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-50
Author(s):  
Antanas Makštutis
Keyword(s):  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Life Quality ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
National Market ◽  
Baltic Sea Region ◽  
World Markets ◽  
Methodological Principles ◽  
The Baltic

The work deals with the global economic factors of the world that have an impact on the development of the country's economy and national market as well as on the regional cooperation security under the conditions of Lithuania's integration into NATO and the European Union (EU). Methodological principles of research of internal threats of the regional cooperation security, methodics and methods of their implementation are provided. Forecast is made of the tendencies of human activity efficiency in dependence upon which a description is given of the human life quality and the rational use of resources, the GDP changes and tendencies of competitiveness in the national, EU and world markets. The internal environment for the regional cooperation security in time and space is modelled.

scholarly journals THE LESSONS FROM THE EURO EXPERIENCE

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 15-34
Author(s):  
Richard Griffiths
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Monetary Union ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Economic And Monetary Union ◽  
Customs Union ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

Twenty years ago, amid a great fanfare of enthusiasm, the Treaty of Maastricht created the European union and inaugurated the process for creating a single European currency for most of the then members (except the UK and Sweden, and later Denmark, that were given a temporary exemption) and all future members. Twenty years later, the anniversary of the treaty passed almost unnoticed (European Policy Centre, 2012). On that day, however, the impact of the treaty was never far from the headlines, as had also been the case for almost every day over the previous months. The Lehman brothers bankruptcy in September 2008 not only triggered a financial crisis that threatened to engulf the world, but it set in motion a series of shocks that have since reverberated through the Euro-area. It is fair to say that the crisis-management has not been an example of stream-lined efficiency, and there are lessons to be learned from that experience.However, the development of the Euro, and the crisis that has subsequently engulfed it, holds lessons in another direction. The European Union has long been held as a model, or an inspiration, for other experiments in regional cooperation and integration, including Mercosul, ASEAN and SADC. The model embodied an sequence of steps leading to ‘ever closer union’ that moved from a free trade area through a customs union and a single market and culminated in economic and monetary union. With the signing and implementation of the Treaty of Maastricht, the European Union had embarked on the penultimate step in this progression. But only half of it – a monetary union without a fiscal union. The Euro-crisis has now called that achievement into question and, in the process, undermined the authority of those espousing a European route towards closer integration, both for themselves as well as for other nations. As a convinced federalist, myself, I would not recommend abandoning the European example altogether, but if there is a lesson to be learned from this sorry episode, it is this: “if you are going to do it, do not do it this way”.This article examines the European experience with economic and monetary union from three perspectives – the design, the implementation and the management of the euro – before exploring the implications of the current crisis.

scholarly journals Macro-regional Strategies, Cohesion Policy and Regional Cooperation in the European Union: Towards a Research Agenda

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Gänzle ◽  
Dominic Stead ◽  
Franziska Sielker ◽  
Tobias Chilla
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Union Member ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Policy Coordination ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Cohesion Policy ◽  
Regional Strategies ◽  
The Baltic

Since 2009, the European Union has developed strategies for the Baltic Sea, Danube, Adriatic-Ionian and Alpine macro-regions. These macro-regional strategies represent a new tool of European Union governance that seeks to combine the community’s territorial cooperation and cohesion policy repertoire with intergovernmental ‘regional cooperation’ involving European Union member and partner countries. By establishing comprehensive governance architectures for cross-sectoral and trans-boundary policy coordination in areas such as transport infrastructure and environmental protection, macro-regional strategies seek to mobilise European Union member and non-member states alike in promoting and harmonising territorial and trans-governmental cooperation. Both the macro-regional strategies and the macro-regions themselves have been met with increasing interest across several disciplines, including geography, regional planning, political science and public administration, triggering questions and debates on issues such as their impacts on existing practices of territorial cooperation and their relation to previously established forms of regional cooperation. Authored by scholars based in the above-mentioned fields of study, this contribution seeks to take stock of research on the subject to date, reflect on conceptual starting points and highlight new directions for future research in the political sciences.

scholarly journals Evaluation Indicators of Green Economic Development: The Case of the Baltic Countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 150-163
Author(s):  
Rokas Alekna ◽  
Eglė Kazlauskienė
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Structural Characteristics ◽  
Evaluation Research ◽  
Green Economy ◽  
Evaluation Methodology ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Baltic Countries ◽  
The Baltic

AbstractResearch purpose. The green economy may become a solution to the existing problems. The European Union must implement solutions related to the green economy in order to solve the existing ecological, economic and social problems in the region, such as pollution in the Baltic Sea region, inequality, greenhouse gas emissions, climate change and so on. It can be assumed that green economy evaluation research conducted in the scientific community does not always reflect the real situation, due to the lack of indicators or limited evaluation methodology. The aim of this article is characterized by academic literature to identify green economic development indicators and evaluate green economic development indices in three Baltic countries: Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.Design/Methodology/Approach. The article uses analysis of scientific literature, systematization, comparative analysis, generalization and data normalization methods.Findings. The analysed scientific literature and reports of international organizations, resolutions and conference agreements allow to compile a list of indicators for the evaluation of green economy development. The results showed that in all the analysed countries, a strong growth of green economy development indices can be seen; in Estonia, they remained the best among the three Baltic countries during the analysed period. An analysis of which individual indicators are most important in the development of the green economy and have the greatest significance for the index has shown that their estimates and position have changed significantly in less than two decades.Originality/Value/Practical implications. The identification of green economy indicators provides a new approach to the structure of green economy components. Indicators measured over time describe the structural characteristics and quantitative changes of the green economy, and provides a new understanding of the opportunities and directions of green economy development. In the framework of this study, fifteen indicators were selected for the analysis of green economy in the Baltic States. The normalization and further evaluation of these indicators from the point of view of the green economy allowed to determine the significance of individual social, economic and environmental dimensions for the overall green economy index and to show the changes over a period. The collected data also form the basis for further in-depth prognostic studies.

scholarly journals The European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region and accomplishments

Baltic Region ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 138-152
Author(s):  
Tadeusz Palmowski
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Baltic Sea ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Baltic Sea ◽  
Inherent Feature ◽  
Baltic Sea Region ◽  
Development Plans ◽  
Common Goals ◽  
The Baltic

The sea and inland hinterland of Baltic Europe form a unique macro-regional unit. Strong collaboration links, and competition in the Baltic Sea region, are an inherent feature of the region from the beginning of its civilization development. Since 2004, the Baltic Sea has become an internal sea of the European Union. This fact no doubt strengthened the cooperation of the countries in the region. In many spheres, these ties take the form of networking. The EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region is an important stimulus for further integrations. The objective of the article is to identify changing trends and the structural transformation in the Baltic integration process instigated by the implementation of this strategy. The document contains common goals, which strengthen cooperation and draw on the Baltic Sea potential. Three main pillars are outlined in the Strategy: marine protection, better interconnection of the region and growing prosperity. The essence of cooperation involves joint development plans on various levels: governmental, regional and local with the participation of research institutions, regional cooperation infrastructure, operational programmes, as well as the private sector. Political stabilisation and economic development may transform, in a longer time span, the emerging transnational Baltic Europe into a new economic and cultural European centre. The choice of research methodology applied in the study derives from the nature of collected data, i.e. literature regarding scientific accomplishments in the Baltic cooperation, analysis of working documents and reports drawn up by public institutions, the European Commission, and EU national and regional strategic documents.

scholarly journals ASSESSMENT OF NATIONAL INNOVATION PERFORMANCE OF THE BALTIC COUNTRIES

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bahman Peyravi
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Investment ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Positive Relation ◽  
Baltic Countries ◽  
Main Factors ◽  
Favorable Tax Policy ◽  
Small Economy ◽  
The Baltic ◽  
The Impact

This paper’s aim is to assess national innovation performance of Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia) based on European innovation scoreboard results. The paper leans on the performance on each indicator and analyses the main factors behind the development in innovation performances in each country. The main underline of the paper is to explore the main factors which have been developed after being member of the European Union. The results of the paper indicates the inability achieve the standard of human capital, the impact of small economy. Estonia has higher innovation performance among other Baltic states; successful attraction of the foreign investment can be seen as the main cause. Furthermore, the positive relation with Nordic states and favorable tax policy in notable force for higher innovation performance in Estonia.

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