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Disparities in health status between American Indians and other groups in the United States have persisted throughout the 500 years since Europeans arrived in the Americas. Colonists, traders, missionaries, soldiers, physicians, and government officials have struggled to explain these disparities, invoking a wide range of possible causes. American Indians joined these debates, often suggesting different explanations. Europeans and Americans also struggled to respond to the disparities, sometimes working to relieve them, sometimes taking advantage of the ill health of American Indians.

The article examines and evaluates performance measurement in the core public sector of two countries: Singapore (the Civil Service) and New Zealand (the Public Service). In both, performance measurement has been employed extensively as means to evaluate and improve efficiency, output and effectiveness of public services, as part of a wider programme of public sector reform based on the principles of "new public management". The article first discusses the different theories that have given rise to "new public management", and in light of these theories, considers the process of performance measurement and types performance indicator employed in the core public sector of both countries. The types of indicators identified cover cost efficiency, output volume, service quality and outcomes or effectiveness. Following this, the different incentives used in the two countries to spur departments and agencies to improve their performance are examined. The article then discusses the limitations of performance measurement, as experienced in Singapore and New Zealand, and what lessons may be drawn from them to enable performance measurement in both countries to be developed and fine-tuned in the future. (Asian J Polit Sci/DÜI)

The article examines four regulatory enforcement programmes in Singapore, covering food safety, vector control relating to the Aedes mosquito, industrial safety, and pollution control. It shows that the amount of surveillance in these programmes has declined noticeably in the last decade or so. The article explains the reasons for this, including the shift to a preventive strategy in enforcement, manpower constraints, a selective surveillance strategy that targets individuals and enterprises most likely to violate, and increased effectiveness of these programmes thus lessening the need for blanket surveillance. However, in the last two years with the introduction of performance measurement, and the use of surveillance as a key indicator of performance, the amount of surveillance in these programmes has increased again. How far this will continue will depend upon whether the programmes concerned can develop other measures of their performance, which reflect both their preventive and other activities, and also their overall effectiveness. (As J Pol Sc/DÜI)

The article examines features of Singapore's political and administrative system and reviews the country's economic success with emphasis on the successful external economy. Essential features of developments in Singapore's foreign policy are also discussed, including its alliance with the United States, and its support for regional co-operation. The article also surveys various aspects of Singapore's links with South Africa and speculates upon the possibility of a regional grouping based on the Indian Ocean Rim, involving both countries. (SAJIA/DÜI)

A central feature of the Bechuanaland Protectorate was the wide jurisdiction accorded to the tribal chief or kgosi by the Administration. These traditional leaders were allowed by the colonial authorities to retain a considerable measure of autonomy and were able to regulate nearly all aspects of tribal life.

Langsamer Abbau der Machtbefugnisse der Häuptlinge nach der Unabhängigkeit. Versuch, sie über Integration in den öffentlichen Dienst zu Staatsbeamten zu machen. Widerstand der Häuptlinge diesen Bestrebungen gegenüber und der Versuch, so viel wie möglich von ihrer traditionellen Rolle am Leben zu erhalten und entsprechende Funktionen weiter auszuüben. (DÜI-Hlb)

AbstractIn 1950, the leaders of independent India celebrated the contributions that surgeons could make to modernising India. Surgeons, however, faced a difficult choice. Some wanted to invest in generalist surgeons to make basic surgical care available to all Indians. Others wanted to invest in specialists to ensure that India participated in cutting‐edge surgical research and care. These debates shaped the emergence of cardiac surgery at two centres: the Christian Medical College in Vellore and the King Edward Memorial Hospital in Bombay. CMC invested in thoracic surgery in the 1940s to offer new treatments for tuberculosis. This gave surgeons the opportunity to explore new techniques of cardiac surgery. Debate quickly emerged about whether investments in cardiology and cardiac surgery made sense. In the end, the specialities were supported in order to attract paying patients. A parallel controversy took place at KEM, where the dean debated the Bombay Municipal Corporation about the role of surgical research at a public hospital. The Rockefeller Foundation influenced both sites, offering financial support if they adopted an American model of full‐time faculty clinician‐researchers. The two case studies reveal how unusual dynamics could contribute to the establishment of new medical specialities in India.

As the Coronavirus (COVID-19) expands its impact from China, expanding its catchment into surrounding regions and other countries, increased national and international measures are being taken to contain the outbreak. The placing of entire cities in 'lockdown' directly affects urban economies on a multi-lateral level, including from social and economic standpoints. This is being emphasised as the outbreak gains ground in other countries, leading towards a global health emergency, and as global collaboration is sought in numerous quarters. However, while effective protocols in regard to the sharing of health data is emphasised, urban data, on the other hand, specifically relating to urban health and safe city concepts, is still viewed from a nationalist perspective as solely benefiting a nation's economy and its economic and political influence. This perspective paper, written one month after detection and during the outbreak, surveys the virus outbreak from an urban standpoint and advances how smart city networks should work towards enhancing standardization protocols for increased data sharing in the event of outbreaks or disasters, leading to better global understanding and management of the same.