Mexico investment deal will have limited success

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Feasibility Studies ◽  
Business Leaders ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Physical Infrastructure ◽  
Investment Agreement ◽  
Infrastructure Investments ◽  
The Government

Subject Infrastructure aims. Significance The government on April 5 announced energy infrastructure investments as part of a post-COVID-19 economic recovery plan. These are believed to be second-phase projects from a previously announced infrastructure investment agreement with the private sector. The agreement aims to boost investment in physical infrastructure by the equivalent of 5% of GDP by facilitating private sector construction projects. The first phase of the agreement, unveiled in November, consists of 147 projects amounting to some 859 billion pesos (37 billion dollars). These are mostly transport, telecommunications and tourism infrastructure works, to be carried out in 2020-24. The second phase involves the energy sector and is believed to consist initially of 137 projects worth between 97 and 100 billion pesos. Impacts If feasibility studies for first-phase projects do not advance soon, investments could fail to materialise. The COVID-19 pandemic will strain government-business relations as AMLO has been criticised for his handling of the situation so far. AMLO is unlikely to ease up on his polarising rhetoric when disagreements emerge with business leaders, perpetuating uncertainty.

Determining and assessing the significant barriers of transferring unfinished construction projects from the public sector to the private sector in Iran

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hadi Sarvari ◽  
Hala Nassereddine ◽  
Daniel W.M. Chan ◽  
Mohsen Amirkhani ◽  
Norhazilan Md Noor
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Face Validity ◽  
Government Policies ◽  
Private Company ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Government

Purpose The government sometimes lacks sufficient financial, management and technical capabilities to deliver construction projects. As a result, it has recognized the need to introduce private sector capital and expertise to complete unfinished construction projects. This outsourcing paradigm is known as a public-private partnership, a form of privatization. This study aims to identify the barriers associated with the transfer of unfinished construction projects to the private sector in Iran and grouped them into areas that were ranked to shed light on where the risk lies. Design/methodology/approach After a thorough and comprehensive literature review, a questionnaire was developed and distributed to 67 experts in the public and private sectors in Iran. The survey included 37 barriers grouped into seven areas and measured on a five-point Likert scale. Face validity, content validity and structural validity of the collected data were confirmed. The reliability of the questionnaire was also tested and validated using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Findings The survey findings indicated that private company laws, national constitution, government policies, lack of sufficient regulations, one-sided regulations and lack of balance, the regulations of other organizations and taxation laws were perceived as the major barriers to the transfer of unfinished public sector construction projects to the private sector in Iran. The ranking of the seven areas produced the following top three ranked barriers areas: taxation laws, government policies and one-sided regulations and lack of balance of importance. Originality/value The elicitation of this study can be useful to both private and public sectors for the development of infrastructure construction projects.

South African government’s GBV plans may disappoint

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
South African ◽  
Foreign Investment ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Structure ◽  
National Strategic Plan ◽  
The Government ◽  
Gender Based

Significance Although President Cyril Ramaphosa has publicly committed to increase funding to combat what he calls South Africa’s “second pandemic”, there is a lack of transparency in how the government disburses funds linked to its National Strategic Plan (NSP) on Gender-based Violence and Femicide. Impacts Civil society groups will increase pressure on the government to make expenditure on GBV programmes more transparent. A new private-sector fund to contribute to the NSP has received strong early support, but its management structure is opaque. High levels of GBV will not only have significant humanitarian and social costs but may deter much-needed foreign investment.

Burundi's security outlook will remain fragile

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Infrastructure Investments ◽  
The Government

Significance The government denounced the attacks as acts of terrorism and claimed to have killed one assailant and arrested five others. However, no information has been released on the alleged perpetrators and no group has claimed responsibility. Impacts Although growth is recovering slightly, the government is unlikely to meet its (already modest) 2021/22 budgetary targets. To boost the economy, the president desperately needs the kind of stimulus that infrastructure investments can provide. Though official case numbers are low, a slow vaccine rollout means Burundi will remain at high risk of further COVID-19-related disruptions.

Impact of Mandatory Medical Insurance on Construction Contractors in Saudi Arabia

2010 ◽  
Vol 163-167 ◽  
pp. 4529-4534 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah M Alsugair
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Medical Insurance ◽  
Company Performance ◽  
Medical Needs ◽  
Medical Facilities ◽  
Comprehensive Development ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

The comprehensive development in Saudi Arabia forced the private sector to bring foreign employees to assist in accomplishing this development. The number of foreign employees reached to six million people according to the late statistics. This huge number of people exerted pressure on the public free medical facilities that forced the government to issue a decree that instructs private sector to use private medical facilities for their foreign employees. The private sector dealt with this decree in different ways according to the perception of the company from providing full medical coverage for their employees to providing nothing. This has created a problem to many foreigners in which they have to pay for their medical needs. The government, then, issued a new decree that is the mandatory medical insurance. This decree requires the private sector to provide full medical coverage for their foreign employees. This decree will have an impact on the construction companies (contractors) and the cost of the construction projects. This paper presents results of a study conducted to identify the impact of the mandatory medical insurance on the construction contractors in Saudi Arabia. The methodology used was to prepare a questionnaire that investigates the objectives of this study and distributes it to the contractors. The questionnaire includes many aspects among them the impact of this decree on the company performance and the competition between contractors; how this extra expense being dealt with; and the impact on the employee. The questionnaires were distributed to 150 construction contractors and 90 questionnaires were collected. Results of the study reveal the impact of the mandatory medical insurance on the construction contractors in general and according to their classifications. In addition, the study presents the current practice implemented by contractors to provide medical care for their foreign employees.

The impact of open government data on accountability and transparency

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 204-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuti Saxena ◽  
Irfan Muhammad
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Open Government Data ◽  
Government Data ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Accountability, citizen participation and transparency are the three pillars on which open government data (OGD) is based. As such, OGD implies that the government shall provide data freely via the internet so that the same may be re-used for diverse purposes. It is hoped that by re-using government data, public value shall be co-created and government services might be improved upon with the involvement of different stakeholders. The purpose of this paper is to underline the impact of OGD on accountability and transparency in the context of Pakistan where OGD initiative is taking roots for quite some time now. In the present study, the authors seek to investigate the challenges being faced by the professionals in the private sector and nongovernment organizations (NGOs) in Pakistan. Besides, the authors also seek inputs from the respondents in the manner in which OGD initiative of Pakistan has impact on ensuring accountability and transparency. Design/methodology/approach For conducting the review of the national OGD portal of Pakistan, the authors invoke documentary analysis wherein the authors investigate the features of the national OGD portal of Pakistan. Furthermore, the authors conducted structured interviews with 49 senior management representatives from private sector and NGOs in order to gauge the challenges encountered by them in tapping OGD from diverse online public sources. Findings Respondents aver that robust statistical analysis is not feasible via the data sets being shared by the online sources. More initiatives are required on the part of the government bodies to release the data sets which have remained confined in silos. Government should institutionalize an OGD policy and promote the re-use of OGD by the professionals from diverse backgrounds. At present, only educational data are being shared by the OGD portal of Pakistan and it is important that more data sets are being released in the public domain. Furthermore, the respondents perceive that in a bid to be more accountable and transparent, the government bodies should release data sets via the online channels which are user-friendly. Research limitations/implications The present study conducted a qualitative research where the number of respondents was relatively less. Further research is required by adopting quantitative approach in order to accommodate more respondents and lend reliability to the study. Nevertheless, the study holds implications for academicians and practitioners in the sense that while it is needed that further research be conducted on the OGD initiative of Pakistan, it is imperative that policy makers get involved in institutionalizing the OGD initiative of Pakistan at national and local levels. Social implications Professionals might be better involved in creating and co-creating products and services by tapping OGD. Originality/value Given that OGD initiative in Pakistan is in a nascent stage and research is wanting in exploring the nature and scope of Pakistan’s OGD, the present study seeks to contribute toward the existing OGD literature.

Assessing vulnerability of informal floating workers in Bangladesh before and during COVID-19 pandemic: a multi-method analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shafiqul Alam ◽  
Ziaul Haq Adnan ◽  
Mohammed Abdul Baten ◽  
Surajit Bag
Keyword(s):  
Social Protection ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Working Environment ◽  
Mental Wellbeing ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Decent Work ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Informal Workers ◽  
Work Concept ◽  
The Government

PurposeGlobally, a myriad of floating workers is in grave jeopardy due to the ceasing of employment opportunities that resulted from the mobility restriction during the Covid-19. Despite the global concern, developing countries have been suffering disproportionately due to the dominance of informal workers in their labour market, posing the necessity to campaign for the immediate protection of this vulnerable population. This paper analyses various dimensions of the vulnerability of urban floating workers in the context of Covid-19 in Bangladesh. In reference to International Labour Organization's (ILO) “Decent Work” concept, this paper endeavours to examine floating workers' vulnerability using the insider-outsider framework in context to Covid-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe study was conducted in two phases. In the first phase, data were collected before the pandemic to assess the vulnerability of the informal floating workers. Later, we extended the study to the second phase during the Covid-19 pandemic to understand how pandemic affects the lives and livelihood of floating workers. In phase one, data were collected from a sample of 342 floating workers and analysed based on job security, wages, working environment, psychological wellbeing and education to understand the vulnerability of floating workers. In phase two, 20 in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted, followed by thematic analysis to explore how the pandemic affects the existing vulnerability of floating workers.FindingsVarious social protection schemes were analysed to evaluate their effectiveness in reducing the vulnerability of floating workers facing socio-economic crises. The study has found that the pandemic has multiplied the existing vulnerability of the floating workers on many fronts that include job losses, food crisis, shelter insecurity, education, social, physical and mental wellbeing. In response to the pandemic, the Government stimulus packages and Non-government Covid-19 initiatives lack the appropriate system, magnitude, and focus on protecting the floating workers in Bangladesh.Practical implicationsThis paper outlines various short-term interventions and long-term policy prescriptions to safeguard floating workers' lives and livelihood from the ongoing Corona pandemic and unforeseen uncertainties.Originality/valueThis paper is the first of its kind that aims at understanding the vulnerability of this significant workforce in Bangladesh, taking the whole picture of Government and Non-government initiatives during Covid-19.

The supply-side of corruption: a review of scenario, causes and prevention measure

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurfarizan Mazhani Mahmud ◽  
Intan Salwani Mohamed ◽  
Roshayani Arshad
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Theoretical Understanding ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Preventative Measures ◽  
Prior Literature ◽  
The Government ◽  
High Level

Purpose This paper aims to provide a proper understanding of corruption in the private sector, also known as the supply-side of corruption. It also presents the causes of corrupt practices and points out the corporations’ actions to mitigate corrupt behaviour in the business environment. Design/methodology/approach This study reviews the prior literature on the phenomenon of corruption in the private sector, its causes and the preventive measures that should be implemented. Findings Corruption in the private sector was associated with a firm’s interaction with the public sector, and the most common corruption in the private sector is grand corruption, which is improper contribution made to high-level public officials and politicians. The causes of corruption in the private sector can be explained from several dimensions: economy, psychosocial and legal and regulation. Preventative measures encompass both internal strategies, which are endogenous to business and external strategies like exogenous legislation and restrictions enforced by the government or outside organizations. Originality/value The efficient strategies in combating corruption need active cooperation and participation from the supply-side of corruption. Thus, this study contributes to the literature on the theoretical understanding of the corruption problem from the supply-side and responsibility play by the private sector in global anti-corruption initiatives.

Family friendly policies and the Omani Labour Law

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 315-348
Author(s):  
Shweta Belwal ◽  
Rakesh Belwal ◽  
Suhaila Ebrahim Al-Hashemi
Keyword(s):  
Women Workers ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
Substantial Part ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
Family Friendly ◽  
Workplace Policies ◽  
The Government

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to take cognisance of the work–life balance (WLB) challenges facing working women in Oman, make a review of the family-friendly policies (FFPs), related provisions in labour laws of various nations, and identify and suggest some FFP-based solutions for attracting women to private sector jobs. Design/methodology/approach Initially, desk research was used to review the labour laws of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and some pioneering countries known for their workplace policies using the major electronic databases and official websites. An exploratory approach was used to understand the lived experience of participants using 46 in-depth interviews. The data were analysed and the findings were explained and contextualised in terms of the Arab culture, wider social processes and consequences related to WLB. Findings The interviews revealed that the majority of women in the private sector are not fully aware of the labour laws and FFPs, and are not satisfied with the existing policies, as they do not provide the right WLB. Women in the private sector demand flexible working hours, privacy at work, reduced work hours and certain other benefits akin to the government sector. Omani Labour Law needs a review of FFPs in line with the best global practices and Oman’s diversification initiatives. The provision, awareness and implementation of FFPs in the workplace are necessary to attract Omani women to private sector jobs. Research limitations/implications This research focusses on Oman in particular and GCC countries in general in its coverage of Omani women workers. The outcomes would be important for the specific segment but would have limited potential to generalise. Practical implications The study of WLB and FFPs is of interest for both academia and industry globally. In its strategic vision 2040, Oman aims to encourage, support and develop the private sector to drive the national economy. To retain and boost the socio-economic development in the post-oil economy, the success of the private sector will depend on the participation of the Omani workforce. The role of working Omani women will be pivotal, for they form a substantial part of the skilled human resources inventory. Social implications Women working in Oman are influenced by labour laws, organisational culture, traditional attitudes and societal values and influences. The voices of women working in the private sector indicate a great need to create awareness of existing policies, ensure their compliance and devise additional workplace policies to enable women to contribute to the labour market. Originality/value There is a dearth of studies examining work policies and employment of women in the context of Oman in particular and the GCC Countries in general. Even in the extant literature, the sectoral imbalance between the government and private sector has not been explored from the perspective of WLB and FFPs. This study presents a unique approach and findings in this regard.

Analyzing bidding competitiveness and success rate of contractors competing for public construction projects

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad M. Alkhateeb ◽  
Khaled Hesham Hyari ◽  
Mohammed A. Hiyassat
Keyword(s):  
Success Rate ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Project Size ◽  
The Government ◽  
Public Construction ◽  
Classification Category ◽  
Novel Model

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze and evaluate bidding competitiveness and success rate of contractors bidding for public construction projects (PCPs). Additionally, this research determines the effect of work sector, contractor’s classification category (experience), project size and number of bidders on contractors’ bidding competitiveness, and the influence of work sector and classification category on their success rate. Design/methodology/approach The data were collected through 2,296 bidding attempts for 289 tender projects that were announced by the Government Tenders Department in Jordan between 2013 and 2016. The research uses bid competitiveness percentage (BCP) to evaluate contractors’ bidding competitiveness. Pearson correlation is used to investigate the correlation among variables. Hypothesis testing using ANOVA was conducted to evaluate the effect of the abovementioned factors on contractors’ bidding competitiveness, and their success rate. Findings The results of the analysis indicate that contractors’ average BCP and success rate in Jordanian PCPs are 83.8% and 13.3%, respectively. The analysis also reveals that work sector, contractor’s classification category, project size and number of bidders significantly affect contractors’ bidding competitiveness, whereas classification category and work sector do not affect bidding success rate. Therefore, experience of contractors affects their bidding competitiveness, but does not affect their success rate. Originality/value The present research uses contractors’ bidding success rate as a measure to evaluate their bidding competitiveness for PCPs. The novel model of this research can be applied in any country, after considering local regulations, to measure and evaluate contractors’ bidding competitiveness, and success rate when bidding for PCPs. Also, contractors cannot depend on their experience (i.e. classification category) or increasing bidding attempts to win bids and improve bidding success rate, rather than enhance their bidding strategy.

United Kingdom to strengthen cybersecurity nationally

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Public Private Partnerships ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Strategy ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
A Priority ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Naming And Shaming

Subject The United Kingdom's new cybersecurity strategy. Significance The UK government on November 1 published its Cybersecurity Strategy for 2016-21. The new strategy doubles the previous investment in cyber to 1.9 billion pounds (2.4 billion dollars) during a time of government cutbacks, making it clear that the government regards cybersecurity as a priority. Impacts Despite serious investment, the government will still face a challenge in recruiting those with the required cyber skills. Given the expertise in the private sector, public-private partnerships will continue to be vital for protecting UK networks. ‘Naming and shaming’ cyber aggressors may become more prevalent as states seek to deter further cyberattacks. Governments may also increasingly focus on developing offensive cyber tools that can be used to counter-strike.

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