National and European Values of Public Administration in the Balkans

National and European Values of Public Administration in the Balkans

Author: Ani I. Matei

Publisher:

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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The current volume represents the outcome of the international conference “National and European Values of Public Administration in the Balkans,” organised in Bucharest on 15-16 July 2011. The conference has been organised by Jean Monnet research network dedicated to “South-Eastern European developments on the administrative convergence and enlargement of the European Administrative Space in Balkan states,” representing the third edition of the events organised under the above aegis. The research network, comprising the National School of Political Studies and Public Administration (NSPSPA), Bucharest, Romania, University of the Aegean, Mytilene, Greece, New Bulgarian University, Sofia, Bulgaria, University of Rijeka, Croatia and the European Public Law Organization (EPLO) with headquarters in Athens, Greece has developed and continues to develop studies and researches specific for the development of public administration in the Balkan states. The keynote speakers of the conference included Mw. Dr. Helena Raulus, EU Law Docent, Faculteit der Rechtsgeleerdheid, Erasmus Universiteit, Netherlands, Prof. Dr. Spyridon Flogaitis, Director, President of the BoD, European Public Law Organization, Greece and Prof. Dr. Lucica Matei, Dean, Faculty of Public Administration, National School of Politica Studies and Public Administration, Romania. The contents of the papers presented have been focused on the following topics: EU normative support for sustaining the process of administrative convergence; European Administrative Space principles - pillars for the mechanisms of evaluation of public administration reforms; Balkan priorities for European Administrative Space enlargement Other two sub adjacent topics have been added, aiming especially the doctoral students, emphasising the following themes: The process of administrative convergence at EU level; Efficiency, effectiveness and responsibility in the European Administrative Space; European Administrative Space. Priorities of the future. For the international conference, 88 abstracts were received, of which due to the first selection achieved by the Conference Scientific Committee, 56 papers were accepted After presentation, the papers have been improved and subjected to double review, so that there were accepted for publication 36 papers, having 46 authors from nine countries: Romania, Greece, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Albania, France, Croatia, Italy and USA and two European organisations: EPLO and EIPA. The general conclusion expected for the final of our conference could refer to the existence of a Balkan Administrative Space as part of the European Administrative Space. Even if the area of the Balkan Administrative Space is confined, we have to highlight the unity in diversity as a fundamental feature. The unity derives from the ideals of European integration of the Balkan states and the diversity derives from the national histories, cultural diversity and their national identity. The connections of the Balkan Administrative Space become day by day more powerful related to the European Administrative Space. They are determined by the development of the processes of convergence and administrative dynamics as well as by the internal developments induced by the administrative reforms in the mentioned states. In this context, we could assert that by means of the research proposed and achieved, our project has open new agendas of research, that partially have been expressed in our research reports, publications etc. At the same time, as remarked from the contents of this conference, the national and European values of the Balkan Administrative Space are substantiated on the regulatory framework of the European Union, the processes of convergence and administrative dynamics, as well as on the principles of the European Administrative Space. In fact, as it is well known, the latter becomes a non-formalised acquis of the European Public Administration, representing a standard for assessing the progress in the reforms of the national public administrations. Our conference has taken place under the auspices of this generous perspective.


Public Administration in the Balkans from Weberian Bureaucracy to New Public Management

Public Administration in the Balkans from Weberian Bureaucracy to New Public Management

Author: Lucica Matei

Publisher:

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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The current volume reproduces papers presented in the Workshop which was organized in Athens, in February 2010 by the European Public Law Organization (EPLO) and the Faculty of Public Administration - National School of Political Studies and Public Administration (NSPSPA), Bucharest. The workshop entitled “Public Administration in the Balkans - from Weberian bureaucracy to New Public Management” has aimed to reveal relevant aspects on the developments of national public administrations in some Balkan states related to the traditional or actual models of the administrative organization. The organizers have proposed to approach theoretical and practical aspects focusing on Weberian bureaucracy and New Public Management (NPM). In this context, the general framework of debates was based both on specificity of public administration in the Balkan states and the European integration process, particularly the enlargement of the European Administrative Space to the Balkan area. As shown by a profound analysis in the papers, the characteristics of the public administrations are moreover diverse and get closer to the developments of the public administrations in Europe, such as the Mediterranean ones (Greece, Cyprus etc.) or those of the states in transition (Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Serbia etc.). The interactions with different intensities between Weberianism and New Public Management emphasise, generally, the characteristics of “a new Weberian state” (NWS) for the Balkan states (Pollitt and Bouckaert, 2004, Meneguzzo et al, 2010), revealing a higher NPM impact (Cyprus, Greece, Croatia etc.) or a lower one (Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia etc.). NWS represents a metaphor describing a model that co-opts the passive elements of NPM, but on a Weberian foundation (Pollitt and Bouckaert, 2004, Brown, 1978). The fact that the Balkan states belong more or less explicit to NWS triggers their position in post-NPM era, thus the state remaining an important actor, able to facilitate the public-private dialogue and to sustain the processes for enhancing the effectiveness of public services and administration. The public administration reforms in the Balkan states have targeted one or several European models of national administrations. Even if the concepts on reform comprise visible differences, the tradition, geo-political specificity, human and material resources have determined similarities and common characteristics, which could be emphasized in the development and actual status of administration in the Balkan states. At the same time, the administrative reforms have already introduced elements that enable the administrations in the Balkan states to get closer to the features of “public governance.” Herewith we refer mainly to participating in decision-making, introducing the elements of “neo-corporatism” governance etc. The capacity of adaptation and openness represent a valuable feature of the Balkan administrations, most of them holding systemic connections of low intensity, thus being far away from what we call “strong administration”, found especially in the European developed states. Recent studies support the above ideas, referring to “main drivers of public administration modernization”, placing most Balkan states in the “very low” or “medium” area (Demmke et al., 2006). When referring to open government or ethics, the same studies place the Balkan states under the heading “very high influence.” Based on the above assertions, the papers emphasize concrete issues that could be synthesized in some large categories: Balkan public administrations between tradition and modernity; National experiences on the impact of the administrative reforms in Balkan states; Myth or reality in considering “a Balkan model of public administration;” Administrative convergence and dynamics as support of the evolution towards a certain model; Assessing relevant case studies on enforcing NPM in local governance. It is also worth to mention that the approach of the participants in the workshop has been marked by the institutional innovations and trends in European governance, the debates concerning the model and characteristics of the European administration etc. The workshop was organized within the framework of Jean Monnet project “South-Eastern European developments on the administrative convergence and enlargement of the European Administrative Space in Balkan States” with the financial support of the European Community.


Government at a Glance: Western Balkans

Government at a Glance: Western Balkans

Author: OECD

Publisher: OECD Publishing

Published: 2020-07-07

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13: 9264701184

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Government at a Glance: Western Balkans presents information on public governance in the Western Balkan region – covering Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia, and compares it to OECD and OECD-EU countries.


Governance in the Middle East, North Africa, and Western Balkans

Governance in the Middle East, North Africa, and Western Balkans

Author: United Nations. Department of Economic and Social Affairs

Publisher: Economic & Social Affairs

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 432

ISBN-13:

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The prosperity and well-being of people across the Mediterranean region depend very much on good governance. Understanding the challenges each country faces and the priorities in reforming public administration is the first step towards more coordinated action to strengthen government institutions, processes, and human resource capacities. The publication provides an overview of governance and public administration in selected countries. It identifies, assesses and analyses relevant needs and challenges as well as priorities for change and innovation in government at the local, national and regional levels. This book is the result of the combined efforts of more than 60 national and international experts and government officials, whose informed perspectives and feedback have shaped the respective chapters.


European Administrative Space - Balkan Realities

European Administrative Space - Balkan Realities

Author: Lucica Matei

Publisher:

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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Since the conceptual framework of the European Administrative Space (EAS) in 1990s, at least two convergent trends may be found out. The first trend refers to EAS operationalisation as instrument and mechanism for assessing the reforms of the national public administrations. Herewith, we refer to the deepness of EAS content, which has become more comprehensive, incorporating the most significant aspects on the public administrations reforms. The second trend refers to continuous enlargement of EAS area. The limits of this area are not the same with the EU limits and the internal processes of EAS do not have the same intensity as those of the European integration. Therefore, we may assert that the EAS reveals specific developments related to the traditions, history, administrative culture, national identity etc. of every state. The regional characteristics on the development of public administrations are decisive and the administrative convergence will take them into account. In this context, the current volume aims to reveal a few Balkan realities on EAS. Of course our approach is far from presenting the whole complexity of the phenomena and processes of public administrations in the Balkan states. The arguments on the above difficulty refer to: different stages for the Balkan states related to the European integration; diversity of the administrative models and cultures in the public administrations of the Balkan states; different levels of economic and social development in the Balkan area. Even in those conditions, as the reader may conclude after studying the current volume, the ideal of European integration gets closer or gathers the national efforts and actions, incorporating them in a convergent trend related to the EAS principles and values. The analyses and researches have aimed the following directions: EAS conceptualization and operationalisation in the Balkans; National experiences on the legal, administrative and institutional pillars of EAS; Convergence and Europeanization of the Balkan public administrations as premises of EAS development; Integrating the Balkan traditional administrative values into the EAS concept and practice. Those major research-oriented directions have represented the pillar for several specialists' studies and analyses, especially from academia, which have been selected for the actual volume. The debates on the topics announced have been achieved in the framework of the Workshop: “European Administrative Space - Balkan Realities”, organized by the University of Rijeka on 18 - 19 February 2011. At the same time, the content of the current volume completes the image of the activities and events organized in the framework of Jean Monnet project “South-Eastern European developments on the administrative convergence and enlargement of the European Administrative Space in Balkan states”, which has received funding from the European Community.


The National Politics of EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans

The National Politics of EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans

Author: James Ker-Lindsay

Publisher:

Published: 2019-11-26

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780367432690

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The National Politics of EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans examines the way in which a number of European Union member states, including Germany and France, formulate their policies towards enlargement in the Western Balkans. The six countries of the Western Balkans - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia - are on course to become the next members of the European Union. While there has been a lot of work on the ways in which these countries are preparing for accession, and how the EU as a whole approaches the question of expansion, very little attention has been paid to how individual EU member states regard enlargement into a region that presents a number of serious challenges, including the legacies of the conflicts of the 1990s, economic underdevelopment and poor governance. Focusing on key states, such as Germany, France and Italy, the neighbouring countries of Central and South East Europe, and Britain, once a leading advocate of enlargement that is now in the process of leaving the European Union, this volume casts important new empirical and conceptual light on the diverse motivations that underpin member state attitudes towards EU enlargement. The National Politics of EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans will be of great interest to scholars of the European Union, European politics, and the politics of the Western Balkans. The chapters were originally published as a special issue of Southeast European and Black Sea Studies.


The Western Balkans and the EU

The Western Balkans and the EU

Author: Morton Abramowitz

Publisher:

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13:

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Today, more than fifteen years after the end of the wars that accompanied Yugoslavia's dissolution, the "Balkan question" remains more than ever a "European question". In the eyes of many Europeans in the 1990s, Bosnia was the symbol of a collective failure, while Kosovo later became a catalyst for an emerging Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). In the last decade, however, the overall thrust of the EU's Balkans policy has moved from an agenda dominated by security issues related to the war and its legacies to one focused on the perspective of the Western Balkan states' accession to the European Union. This Chaillot Paper, which features contributions from authors from various parts of the region, examines the current state of play in the countries of the Western Balkans with regard to EU accession. It brings together both views from the Balkans states themselves and overarching thematic perspectives. For the first time the European Union has become involved in the formation of new nation-states that also aspire to become members of the Union. The EU's transformative power has proved effective in integrating established states; now it is confronted with the challenge of integrating new and sometimes contested states. Against this background, this paper makes the case for a concerted regional approach to EU enlargement, and a renewed and sustained commitment to the European integration of the Western Balkans.