Does the WTO Government Procurement Agreement Deliver What It Promises?

AbstractWe examine the impact of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) on government procurement practices in the European Union (EU). We analyse empirically whether the WTO GPA is effective in promoting non-discriminatory, open, transparent, competitive, and cost-effective government procurement. To study this question, we use a unique data set recently released by the EU, covering more than three million tenders conducted in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and Macedonia during the years 2006–2016. We find that the WTO GPA promotes competition by increasing the probability of awarding a contract to a foreign firm. In addition, the WTO GPA significantly lowers corruption risk by decreasing the number of contracts with single bidders, and by decreasing total number of wins by a single firm. Finally, the WTO GPA fosters cost-effective public procurement by lowering the probability that the procurement price is higher than estimated cost.

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The Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Hepatitis C Screening for Migrants in the EU/EEA: A Systematic Review

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph15092013 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (9) ◽

pp. 2013 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Christina Greenaway ◽

Iuliia Makarenko ◽

Claire Abou Chakra ◽

Balqis Alabdulkarim ◽

Robin Christensen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Hepatitis C ◽

Lower Risk ◽

Linkage To Care ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Screening Tests ◽

European Economic Area ◽

The European Union ◽

Wide Range ◽

The Eu

Chronic hepatitis C (HCV) is a public health priority in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) and is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and liver cancer. Migrants account for a disproportionate number of HCV cases in the EU/EEA (mean 14% of cases and >50% of cases in some countries). We conducted two systematic reviews (SR) to estimate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of HCV screening for migrants living in the EU/EEA. We found that screening tests for HCV are highly sensitive and specific. Clinical trials report direct acting antiviral (DAA) therapies are well-tolerated in a wide range of populations and cure almost all cases (>95%) and lead to an 85% lower risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma and an 80% lower risk of all-cause mortality. At 2015 costs, DAA based regimens were only moderately cost-effective and as a result less than 30% of people with HCV had been screened and less 5% of all HCV cases had been treated in the EU/EEA in 2015. Migrants face additional barriers in linkage to care and treatment due to several patient, practitioner, and health system barriers. Although decreasing HCV costs have made treatment more accessible in the EU/EEA, HCV elimination will only be possible in the region if health systems include and treat migrants for HCV.

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The Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Screening for and Vaccination Against Hepatitis B Virus among Migrants in the EU/EEA: A Systematic Review

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph15091898 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (9) ◽

pp. 1898 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Daniel Myran ◽

Rachael Morton ◽

Beverly-Ann Biggs ◽

Irene Veldhuijzen ◽

Francesco Castelli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Hepatitis B Virus ◽

Hepatitis B ◽

Cost Effective ◽

European Economic Area ◽

The European Union ◽

Vaccination Programs ◽

B Virus ◽

The Eu

Migrants from hepatitis B virus (HBV) endemic countries to the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) comprise 5.1% of the total EU/EEA population but account for 25% of total chronic Hepatitis B (CHB) infection. Migrants from high HBV prevalence regions are at the highest risk for CHB morbidity. These migrants are at risk of late detection of CHB complications; mortality and onwards transmission. The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of CHB screening and vaccination programs among migrants to the EU/EEA. We found no RCTs or direct evidence evaluating the effectiveness of CHB screening on morbidity and mortality of migrants. We therefore used a systematic evidence chain approach to identify studies relevant to screening and prevention programs; testing, treatment, and vaccination. We identified four systematic reviews and five additional studies and guidelines that reported on screening and vaccination effectiveness. Studies reported that vaccination programs were highly effective at reducing the prevalence of CHB in children (RR 0.07 95% CI 0.04 to 0.13) following vaccination. Two meta-analyses of therapy for chronic HBV infection found improvement in clinical outcomes and intermediate markers of disease. We identified nine studies examining the cost-effectiveness of screening for CHB: a strategy of screening and treating CHB compared to no screening. The median acceptance of HB screening was 87.4% (range 32.3–100%). Multiple studies highlighted barriers to and the absence of effective strategies to ensure linkage of treatment and care for migrants with CHB. In conclusion, screening of high-risk children and adults and vaccination of susceptible children, combined with treatment of CHB infection in migrants, are promising and cost-effective interventions, but linkage to treatment requires more attention.

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Detecting authorities that manipulate public procurement

10.21203/rs.3.rs-144691/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Bedri Tas

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Regression Discontinuity ◽

Public Procurement ◽

The European Union ◽

Data Set ◽

Policy Makers ◽

Empirical Results ◽

The Impact ◽

Local Firms

Abstract Manipulative authorities can bunch tenders just below thresholds to implement noncompetitive procurement practices in public procurement. Here, I use regression discontinuity manipulation tests to identify this bunching manipulation scheme. I investigate the European Union public procurement data set that covers more than two million contracts. The results show that 10-13% of the examined authorities have high probabilities of bunching manipulation. I study the impact of manipulation by authorities on public procurement. I find that manipulative authorities are less likely to employ competitive procurement procedures. Local firms are more likely to win contracts from a manipulative authority. The bunching scheme increases the probability that the same firm wins contracts repeatedly. Empirical results suggest that policy makers can effectively employ regression discontinuity tests to determine manipulative authorities.

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Assessing the Impact of Trade Agreements on Trade

National Institute Economic Review ◽

10.1177/002795011623800113 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 238 ◽

pp. R31-R42 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Monique Ebell

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Bilateral Trade ◽

Trade Agreement ◽

Single Market ◽

Trade Flows ◽

European Economic Area ◽

The European Union ◽

Services Trade ◽

The Impact ◽

The Eu

One of the key issues facing the UK in the wake of the advisory referendum result to leave the European Union is the precise nature of its relationship with the European Union. At one extreme would be continued membership in the European Economic Area, including membership in the single market. Other options would be either no free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU at all or a less comprehensive FTA which stops short of single market membership. This paper compares the ability of EEA membership and less comprehensive FTAs to generate trade in goods and services. We investigate this question using empirical gravity model methodology and the most recent available data from 42 countries. We use recently developed econometric methods to deal with observations of zero trade flows and issues connected with endogeneity. The main finding is that while EEA membership is associated with substantial and statistically significant increases in bilateral services trade flows, membership in less comprehensive FTAs is not associated with any significant increase in bilateral services trade. For goods, EEA membership is associated with larger bilateral trade flows than are less comprehensive FTAs. These results suggest that it might be difficult to replace, on an exit from a European Union, lost trade flows with the EU by means of shallower FTAs with the EU or with third countries.

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Russia - European Union: The continuation ofthe sanctions standoff

Voprosy Ekonomiki ◽

10.32609/0042-8736-2017-6-114-127 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 114-127

Author(s):

M. Klinova ◽

E. Sidorova

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Economic Recession ◽

Economic Sanctions ◽

Current Data ◽

The State ◽

The European Union ◽

The Impact ◽

The Eu ◽

Year 2013

The article deals with economic sanctions and their impact on the state and prospects of the neighboring partner economies - the European Union (EU) and Russia. It provides comparisons of current data with that of the year 2013 (before sanctions) to demonstrate the impact of sanctions on both sides. Despite the fact that Russia remains the EU’s key partner, it came out of the first three partners of the EU. The current economic recession is caused by different reasons, not only by sanctions. Both the EU and Russia have internal problems, which the sanctions confrontation only exacerbates. The article emphasizes the need for a speedy restoration of cooperation.

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Tracking the Fate of Aluminium in the EU Using the MaTrace Model

Resources ◽

10.3390/resources10070072 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (7) ◽

pp. 72

Author(s):

Gabriela Jarrín Jácome ◽

María Fernanda Godoy León ◽

Rodrigo A. F. Alvarenga ◽

Jo Dewulf

Keyword(s):

Secondary Production ◽

Economic Importance ◽

Baseline Scenario ◽

Light Weight ◽

The European Union ◽

High Corrosion Resistance ◽

Product Categories ◽

The Impact ◽

Selective Collection ◽

The Eu

Aluminium is a metal of high economic importance for the European Union (EU), presenting unique properties (e.g., light weight and high corrosion resistance) and with applications in important sectors (e.g., transportation, construction and packaging). It is also known for its high recyclability potential, but relevant losses occur in its life cycle, compromising the amount of aluminium available for secondary production. A novel methodology that allows the identification of these losses and their impact on the aluminium flows in society is the MaTrace model. The objective of this article is to perform a dMFA of the secondary production of aluminium in the EU technosphere using the modified version of MaTrace, in order to estimate flows of the metal embedded in 12 product categories. Twelve scenarios were built in order to assess the impact of changes in policies, demand and technology. The flows were forecasted for a period of 25 years, starting in 2018. The results of the baseline scenario show that after 25 years, 24% of the initial material remains in use, 4% is hoarded by users, 10% has been exported and 61% has been physically lost. The main contributor to the losses is the non-selective collection of end-of-life products. The results of the different scenarios show that by increasing the collection-to-recycling rates of the 12 product categories, the aluminium that stays in use increase up to 32.8%, reaffirming that one way to keep the material in use is to improve the collection-to-recycling schemes in the EU.

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New Plant Breeding Technologies: An Assessment of the Political Economy of the Regulatory Environment and Implications for Sustainability

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13073687 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (7) ◽

pp. 3687

Author(s):

Vincent Smith ◽

Justus H. H. Wesseler ◽

David Zilberman

Keyword(s):

Political Economy ◽

Sustainable Development ◽

Development Policy ◽

Regulatory Environment ◽

The European Union ◽

Policy Makers ◽

International Policies ◽

Modern Biotechnology ◽

The Impact ◽

The Eu

This perspective discusses the impact of political economy on the regulation of modern biotechnology. Modern biotechnology has contributed to sustainable development, but its potential has been underexplored and underutilized. We highlight the importance of the impacts of regulations for investments in modern biotechnology and argue that improvements are possible via international harmonization of approval processes. This development is urgently needed for improving sustainable development. Policy makers in the European Union (EU) in particular are challenged to rethink their approach to regulating modern biotechnology as their decisions have far ranging consequences beyond the boundaries of the EU and they have the power to influence international policies.

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Non-Price Criteria for the Evaluation of the Tender Offers in Public Procurement of Ukraine

International Journal of Financial Studies ◽

10.3390/ijfs8030044 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (3) ◽

pp. 44

Author(s):

Alexander Baranovsky ◽

Nataliia Tkachenko ◽

Vladimer Glonti ◽

Valentyna Levchenko ◽

Kateryna Bogatyrova ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Procurement ◽

Well Being ◽

Gdp Per Capita ◽

Tender Offers ◽

Product Categories ◽

Per Capita ◽

The Government ◽

The Impact ◽

Over Time ◽

The Eu

Traditionally, public procurement has been associated with the measurement of achieving savings. However, recent research shows that the economic impact of public procurement is not limited only to savings, but by measuring the impact of four capitals—natural, human, social, and economic—on sustainable well-being over time. Ukraine is a country with a very low gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, which exacerbates the problem of the impact of public procurement results on the population’s welfare. Ukrainian public procurement legislation allows customers to apply non-price criteria (the share of non-price criteria cannot be more than 70%), which, together, are taken into account in the formula of the quoted price. The studies show that the effect of the use of non-price criteria depends on the relevance of the method of the evaluation of non-price criteria. The most important non-price criteria for Ukrainian customers by product categories and the methods of their evaluation are analyzed according to the Bi.prozorro.org analytics module. Therefore, it is concluded that the quoted price method, which is used in Ukrainian practice, is not relevant in comparison with the method used in the EU. A survey of the government buyers on the practice of applying non-price criteria was conducted, and the areas of their use were identified.

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The EU Influence on Norwegian Domestic Legislation for the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment

The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law ◽

10.1163/15718085-13320006 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 415-435 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Elise Johansen

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Marine Environment ◽

The Arctic ◽

European Economic Area ◽

The European Union ◽

Environmental Legislation ◽

Economic Area ◽

Domestic Legislation ◽

Marine Areas ◽

The Eu

Abstract In the last several decades, the European Union (EU) has demonstrated its intention to play an important role in supporting Arctic cooperation and helping to meet the challenges now facing the region. Norway, one of the five Arctic coastal states, and the EU have cooperated closely in this regard, particularly through the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement). This article examines how Norway’s domestic legislation applicable to its Arctic marine areas has been influenced by the development of EU environmental legislation. Specifically, this paper provides a discussion and analysis of the relevant Norwegian laws and mechanisms used to regulate how EU environmental legislation has been incorporated into Norway’s domestic legislation through the EEA Agreement.

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Europapolitik im föderalen Haus

10.5771/9783748925651 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Antonios Souris

Keyword(s):

Voting Behaviour ◽

Civil Protection ◽

The European Union ◽

Roll Call ◽

Investment Funds ◽

Data Set ◽

Ideal Types ◽

Policy Positions ◽

German States ◽

The Eu

The European Union (EU) Committee of the German Bundesrat takes centre stage in the constitutionally guaranteed mechanism that allows the 16 German states (Länder) to participate in EU affairs. Hence, the EU Committee is a key player when it comes to the formulation of and decisions on the states’ policy positions towards Europe. This study scrutinises the interests and conflicts of the Länder based on three ideal types of voting behaviour, consensus as well as territorial and partisan dissensus, and a new data set that comprises 6,220 roll call votes in the EU Committee. Case studies on three policy issues, EU civil protection, the European structural and investment funds, and crisis management in the eurozone, complement the study’s data analysis.

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