Suchergebnisse

Cambodia is one of the world's most open economies, sustaining high levels of growth in an environment of relatively weak governance. Emerging from a legacy of genocide and civil conflict, the country has sought to address human and social capital deficits across sectors, weaknesses in public finance, and corruption. Despite improvements in access to basic services, governance constraints persist and may threaten gains from economic integration. Over the 2004-10 period, the Bank's engagement on Governance and Anticorruption (GAC) issues in Cambodia was not defined by a single, overarching priority or entry point (such as core public sector management, natural resource management, or service delivery). Rather, the Bank was opportunistic, opting to support the government's GAC efforts across multiple sectors and institutions. The relevance of this opportunistic approach is judged to be moderately relevant. The Bank's objectives on public financial management (PFM) were highly relevant given Cambodia's nontransparent and weak public expenditure management and limited capacity. The Bank's response to sectoral governance weaknesses such as red tape, inefficiencies, and other forms of rent-seeking in customs is rated modest given the need for the government to implement its World Trade Organization commitments. The Bank's project level engagement is rated as moderately relevant. As a basis for reinstating suspended projects, portfolio-wide measures included the use of an Independent Procurement Agency (IPA) for the International Development Association (IDA) procurements, and the implementation of Good Governance Frameworks (GGF) for all IDA projects.

Abstract:This papers adopts as a starting hypothesis the relative degree of influence of international standards in the drafting of the 1978 Spanish Constitution and the absolute need to accommodate to the reality of an integrated State at supranational and international levels. In this sense, a first approach shows that, despite the potential role of constitutional clauses opening to international standards, and after four decades since the entry into force of the Spanish Magna Carta of 1978, constitutional justice and constitutional doctrine have not shown clear nor open behaviour towards international legal requirements, with the exception of its relative enthusiasm towards European parameters.Indeed, in the main part of this paper, the analysis of the past forty yearsof democratic constitutionalism under the 1978 Constitution reveals, first and foremost, an interpretative deficit based on more favourable international solutions, as well as an incorrect and unexplored view of the impact of international treaties within the constitutional system of sources of law.Secondly, the positive impact of international standards is examined in connection with both the «dogmatic part» (constitutional values, principlesand rights) and the «organic part» of the Constitution (separation of powers and territorial organization of the State), without forgetting the weight of international instruments in defending the constitutional order (ordinary —constitutional court— and extraordinary —constitutional amendment— mechanisms). Thirdly, the social responsibility of Universities in their teaching and research (especially in conflicting domestic situations) is submitted to scrutiny, in order to show its key role in transferring advanced knowledge to society without trivializing the importance of both international law and constitutional law in the democratic defense of the constitutional order. Finally, the place that constitutional norms occupy in international treaties, as well as the impact of notions such as (national) margin of appreciation, constitutional identity and others, are proposed so as to complete the analysis.The main conclusion of this paper holds the necessary feedback of internationaland constitutional standards, since these positive synergies (including a global judicial dialogue) will continue to promote the strengthening of a «constitutional feeling» under the 1978 Spanish Magna Carta, which is inserted in an increasingly globalized context. ; Resumen:La presente contribución adopta como hipótesis de partida la relativa influencia de los estándares internacionales en la redacción de la Constitución de 1978 y la absoluta necesidad de adaptación a la realidad del Estado supranacional e internacionalmente integrado. En este sentido, un primer enfoque permite comprobar que, a pesar del juego potencial de las disposiciones constitucionales de apertura internacional, y tras cuatro décadas de vigencia de la Carta Magna Española de 1978, la justicia constitucional y la doctrina constitucionalista no han mostrado una actitud clara y abierta hacia las exigencias jurídicas internacionales, con la excepción de un relativo entusiasmo hacia los parámetros europeos. En efecto, en la parte central del artículo, el análisis de los cuarenta años constitucionalismo democrático bajo la Constitución de 1978 revela, primeramente, un déficit de interpretación basado en soluciones internacionales más favorables, así como una incorrecta e inexplorada concepción del impacto de los tratados internacionales en el sistema constitucional de fuentes.En segundo término, se examina la proyección positiva de los estándares internacionales tanto en la «parte dogmática» (valores, principios y derechos constitucionales) como en la «parte orgánica» de la Constitución (separación de poderes y organización territorial del poder), sin olvidar el peso de los instrumentos internacionales en la defensa del orden constitucional (mecanismos ordinario —tribunal constitucional— y extraordinario —reforma constitucional—). En tercer lugar, se somete a escrutinio la responsabilidad social de la Universidad en sus tareas de enseñanza y de investigación (especialmente en situaciones domésticas conflictivas), con objeto de transferir un conocimiento avanzado a la sociedad sin banalizar o trivializar la importancia del Derecho internacional y del Derecho constitucional en la defensa democrática del orden constitucional. Por último, se completa el análisis propuesto a través de la toma en consideración del lugar que también ocupan las normas constitucionales en los tratados internacionales y el impacto de nociones como margen de apreciación nacional, identidad constitucional y otras.La conclusión principal del trabajo consiste en sostener la necesaria retroalimentación de los estándares internacionales y constitucionales, puesto que esas sinergias positivas (incluido un diálogo judicial global) seguirán propiciando el fortalecimiento del sentimiento constitucional bajo una Carta Magna Española de 1978 inserta en un contexto cada vez más globalizado.Abstract:This papers adopts as a starting hypothesis the relative degree of influence of international standards in the drafting of the 1978 Spanish Constitution and the absolute need to accommodate to the reality of an integrated State at supranational and international levels. In this sense, a first approach shows that, despite the potential role of constitutional clauses opening to international standards, and after four decades since the entry into force of the Spanish Magna Carta of 1978, constitutional justice and constitutional doctrine have not shown clear nor open behaviour towards international legal requirements, with the exception of its relative enthusiasm towards European parameters.Indeed, in the main part of this paper, the analysis of the past forty yearsof democratic constitutionalism under the 1978 Constitution reveals, first and foremost, an interpretative deficit based on more favourable international solutions, as well as an incorrect and unexplored view of the impact of international treaties within the constitutional system of sources of law.Secondly, the positive impact of international standards is examined in connection with both the «dogmatic part» (constitutional values, principlesand rights) and the «organic part» of the Constitution (separation of powers and territorial organization of the State), without forgetting the weight of international instruments in defending the constitutional order (ordinary —constitutional court— and extraordinary —constitutional amendment— mechanisms). Thirdly, the social responsibility of Universities in their teaching and research (especially in conflicting domestic situations) is submitted to scrutiny, in order to show its key role in transferring advanced knowledge to society without trivializing the importance of both international law and constitutional law in the democratic defense of the constitutional order. Finally, the place that constitutional norms occupy in international treaties, as well as the impact of notions such as (national) margin of appreciation, constitutional identity and others, are proposed so as to complete the analysis.The main conclusion of this paper holds the necessary feedback of internationaland constitutional standards, since these positive synergies (including a global judicial dialogue) will continue to promote the strengthening of a «constitutional feeling» under the 1978 Spanish Magna Carta, which is inserted in an increasingly globalized context.Summary:1. Preliminary issues: the influence of international standards in the drafting of the 1978 Constitution and the need for consistency with the reality of an integrated State at supranational and international levels. 2. Subsequent issues: the weight of constitutional jurisdiction confinement in light of international parameters. 3. Further questions: the presence of a self-absorbed constitutionalism with respect to international sources in general and relatively enthusiastic about European sources in particular. 4. Constitutional clauses on the open acceptance of international standards: particular focus on human rights instruments. 5. The constitutional approach international treaties and the so-called control of conventionality. 6. The favourable impact of international standards on the set of constitutional values, principles and rights. 7. The impact of international standards on the organization of powers. 8. The positive role of international instruments in defending the constitutional order: 8.1. Internationalization of the constituent function and the weighting of constitutional amendments. 8.2. International standards and constitutional jurisdiction. 8.3. The inadmissible trivialization of both International and Constitutional Law. 9. International instruments's regard for constitutional norms: the margin of (national) appreciation, the counter-limits and related notions doctrine. 10. Final remarks: the feedback between international andconstitutional standards

In this present article we had proposed to prove that the prevailing, traditional discrepancy between politics and journalism in the Canary Islands in the current territory of Spain, until now explained as an evidence or sign of some kind of deficit in the society of the Archipelago, keeps connection with the geographical and historical determinants of the same islands. For that purpose, we had suggested that the Canarian model, instead of being linked to the European countries located in the south of the Mediterranean Sea as it occurs in the Peninsula, conjugate those characteristics that we can properly determine as typical to the State together with other ideological patterns of the so called Anglo-American model. We had verified such hypothesis in the two central islands of the Archipelago, Gran Canaria and Tenerife, in two preliminary studies made using different methodological parameters: in the first case, we had used microhistory in order to research the problem in the years of the Sexenio Democrático (1868-1874) (Spanish historical period called Democratic Six-year Term); and, in the second example, we had resorted in a long-term, linear investigation from the oldest beginning of the sector to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War (1758-1936). According to our perception, the redundancy of their results with the two different methodological proposals, that drive us to the overcoming of the objection usually attributable to each of them separately, confers the desirable exactitude to the conclusions. ; En el presente artículo nos hemos propuesto demostrar que la tradicional discordancia de la política y el periodismo de las Islas Canarias en el actual territorio de España, a veces explicada como evidencia o indicio de algún tipo de déficit en la sociedad insular, guarda coherencia con los condicionantes geográficos e históricos del archipiélago. A tal fin, hemos planteado que el modelo isleño, en lugar de responder al de los países europeos del sur del Mediterráneo como sucede en la península, conjuga los rasgos propiamente estatales de éste con otros ideológicos del llamado modelo angloamericano. Tal hipótesis la hemos verificado en las dos islas centrales del archipiélago, Gran Canaria y Tenerife, en sendos estudios previos elaborados desde parámetros metodológicos diferentes, toda vez que, en el primer caso, hemos recurrido a la microhistoria para estudiar el problema en el puñado de años del sexenio democrático (1868-1874); y, en el segundo, a una investigación longitudinal a largo plazo, desde los orígenes más remotos del sector hasta el estallido de la guerra civil (1758-1936). A nuestro entender, la redundancia de los resultados con dos propuestas metodológicas tan diferentes, al conllevar la superación de los reparos que puedan achacársele a cada una de ellas por separado, confiere el rigor deseable a las conclusiones.

Тhis paper considers the phenomenon of global growth, emphasizing the slowdown and (limits) of the Western GDP growth. By comparing the United States as the most mature economy in the world, China as the new hegemon, the OECD countries, the BRICS countries, and the rest of the world, we show the growth and unequal development of the five "regional futures" of the global world. In addition to the imminent economic reasons for the backwardness of Western economies and societies, the crisis of the structure and functioning of the democratic capitalist system, and the ecological limits of sustainability, we emphasize two non-economic moments: the end of liberalism as a fundamental ideology of the Western world, and the loss of trust, which is a fundamental moral category. According to futurist forecasts, the West has slowed down, the financial system has been damaged, and the recovery is slow and uncertain. The following subjects are being considered: the growth paradigm, the belief in lasting progress, the end of liberalism and the loss of confidence, the recovery of Western economies, some monetary policy measures, and European fiduciary money and the slowdown of the growth in the Eurozone. The monetary economy of the euro as an agreed single currency has caused strong changes in the Eurozone and has "trapped" the European Union. The euro economy, among other things, is responsible for the sharp division of the Eurozone member states into surplus and deficit countries, and the Eurozone crisis, stagnation, and slowdown in economic (non-economic) growth. ; U ovom radu razmatramo fenomen rasta na globalnom nivou, apostrofirajući usporavanje i (granice) rasta BDP Zapada. Komparacijom SAD kao najzrelije ekonomije na svijetu, Kine kao novog hegemona, zemalja OECD-a, zatim zemalja BRICS-a, te ostatka svijeta, predočava se rast i nejednaki razvoj pet ,,regionalnih budućnosti," globalnog svijeta. Pored imanentnih ekonomskih razloga zaostajanja zapadnih ekonomija i društava, krize strukture i funkcionisanja demokratskog kapitalističkog sistema, i ekološke granice održivosti, ističemo i dva neekonomska momenta, kraj liberalizma kao fundamentalne ideologije zapadnog svijeta i gubitak povjerenja kao temeljne moralne kategorije. Prema prognozama futurista, Zapad je posustao, finansijski sistem je oštećen, oporavak je spor i neizvjestan. Predmet razmatranja su: paradigma rasta, vjera u trajni napredak, kraj liberalizma i gubitak povjerenja, oporavak zapadnih ekonomija, neke mjere monetarne politike, te Evropski prekarni novac i usporavanje rasta evrozone. Monetarna ekonomija evra kao dogovorene jedinstvene valute izazvala je snažne promjene u evrozoni i Evropskoj uniji uhvaćenoj u ,,zamku." Ekonomija evra, između ostalog, odgovorna je za oštru podjelu zemalja članica evrozone na zemlje suficita i zemlje deficita, te krizu evrozone, stagnaciju i usporavanja ekonomskog (neekonomskog) rasta.

У статті схарактеризовано основні чинники, визначено мету й принципи залучення студентства до модернізації вищої освіти в Україні. На підставі системно-функціонального аналізу діяльності Європейського студентського союзу та найбільших його членських організацій розроблено модель розвитку національного студентського союзу як суб'єкта модернізації вищої освіти, відповідно до якої місія і приорітетні цілі Союзу реалізуються через компоненти організаційно-нормативного, змістово-процесуального й результативного блоків. Доведено, що залучення студентства до продукування й імплементації державної стратегії модернізації вітчизняної вищої освіти є важливою умовою успіху даного процесу. ; In the article the main factors, purpose and principles of student engagement in the modernization of national higher education are characterised. Socio-political factors include higher education democratization worldwide, high level of corruption in the system of higher education governance in Ukraine, urgent need for qualified specialists with a developed citizen competence, growing student political activism and others. Major socio-economic factors are the economy of the state budget in the conditions of its deficit due to the lack of financing in the social sphere, education in particular, and higher education commercialization. Finally, among the academic factors the most important is the necessity of higher education quality assurance. So, the main goal of student engagement into the process of higher education modernization at all levels is to improve the quality through the establishment of a partnership culture and the development of democratic foundations in the educational environment. The principles which must be considered as fundamental for the development of a strong student union at the national level are the following: the principle of representativeness, democracy and transparency, non-profit objectives, solidarity, equality, purposefulness, proactivity and impartiality. The mission of the NUS is to represent and protect the educational, socio-political, economic and cultural interests and students' rights in the nation-wide dimension. On the basis of the systemic and functional analysis of the European Students' Union, a model for the development of a national student union as a subject of the higher education modernization was produced. The mission and the priorities of the Union are realized through the components of normative, organizational, content, procedural and result blocks, which implies the interconnection of its structural components, as well as the content, forms, methods and means of influencing the decision-making process in higher education. The result component is understood as the NUS's readiness for constructive cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the National Quality Assurance Agency, universities, regional and institutional students' unions in order to raise the quality of HE. It is proved that student involvement in the production and implementation of the state strategy for the modernization of higher education system is an important condition for the success of this process.

The constitutional reform of 1994 has definitely been an improvement in relation to the previous Constitution of 1853. However, it represents an example of a lost opportunity and, after 20 years of its passing, it is important to point out its deficits and flaws. In the 80's there was a clear academic and political consensus on the importance of solving the democratic instability that affected Latin America. A bad constitutional design that emphasizes the hyper-presidentialism was seen, to a large extent, as the responsible of the political crisis. The Constitution of 1994 maintained an organization of power centered in the Executive. The reform was characterized by its accumulative tendency, instead of being synthetic, which is reflected in a great incorporation of "new rights" in matters of human rights. The energies were put in the increase of the list of rights when, at the same time, another important part of the Constitution was neglected: the one of the organization of power. The incorporation of organisms and institutions such as the Council of Magistracy or the Chief of Staff had changed the institutional system but were not useful for a democratization of power. Moreover, the "accumulative" solutions implied problems in its effectiveness, as certain new rights entered in tension with old ones ; Fil: Gargarella, Gregorio. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Derecho. Cátedra Derecho Constitucional. Buenos Aires, Argentina ; La reforma de 1994 implicó, definitivamente, una mejora en relación a la anterior Constitución de 1853. Sin embargo, representa un ejemplo de una oportunidad perdida y, tras 20 años de su sanción, resulta relevante señalar sus déficits y defectos. En los años 80 existía un claro consenso académico y político en torno a la importancia de resolver la inestabilidad democrática que afectaba a toda América Latina. Un mal diseño constitucional que acentuaba el hiperpresidencialismo era entendido como en gran medida responsable de la crisis política. La Constitución de 1994 mantuvo una organización de poder centrada en el Ejecutivo. La reforma se caracterizó por su tendencia acumulativa, en vez de sintética, lo que se ve reflejado en la amplia incorporación de "nuevos derechos" en materia de derechos humanos. Las energías estuvieron puestas en la ampliación del listado de derechos existentes cuando, al mismo tiempo, se descuidó otra sección muy importante de la Constitución: la organización del poder. La incorporación de organismos e instituciones como el Consejo de la Magistratura o el Jefe de Gabinete cambiaron el sistema institucional pero no han servido para democratizar el poder. Por otro lado, las soluciones "acumulativas" derivaron en problemas en su efectivización, en la medida en que ciertos nuevos derechos e instituciones entran en tensión con otros ya existentes.

En 2004 diferentes factores internos y externos continuaron favoreciendo el crecimiento económico de Colombia. Entre los factores internos sobresalieron la mayor dinámica de la inversión, que fue el componente de la demanda que más contribuyó al crecimiento económico en 2004; las exportaciones que, presentaron el mayor crecimiento anual de los últimos 10 años; las tasas de interés que se ubicaron en el nivel más bajo desde 1992; la menor tasa de inflación de los últimos 30 años; el déficit fiscal más bajo desde 1999, y la mejora en las condiciones de seguridad gracias a la política de defensa y seguridad democrática del gobierno. En el contexto externo, el crecimiento mundial que continuó impulsado por la economía de los Estados Unidos, y la notoria recuperación de la región de América Latina impulsaron el crecimiento de las exportaciones y mejoraron el ingreso de los hogares, favoreciendo la recuperación de la demanda interna. Por su parte, los altos precios de los commodities, la mejora en los términos de intercambio, y el mayor aprovechamiento del Atpdea que para 2004 fue del 52,2%, frente al 43,0% registrado en 2003, beneficiaron al sector externo colombiano. Para 2005, las perspectivas de corto y mediano plazo de la economía colombiana siguen siendo favorables. Según datos del Banco de la República, analistas locales y extranjeros sitúan su pronóstico de crecimiento en un promedio de 3,9%. ; In 2004, different internal and external factors continued to favor the Colombian economic growth. Among the internal factors is worth to mention the dynamism of investment, which was the driving demand component of economic growth; exports, which posted the highest annual growth rate in the last 10 years; interest rates, that stood at the lowest level since 1992; inflation, that showed the lowest rate of the last 30 years; fiscal deficit, which recorded the lowest level since 1999; and security conditions, that improved due to the Government's Democratic Security and Defense Policy. Regarding the external factors, the world growth that was driven by the United States' economy, and the notable recovery of the Latin American region boosted the exports and improved the households' income, favoring the recovery of the internal demand. Other factors that strengthened Colombian external sector were the high commodities' prices, the improved interchange terms, and the better use of the ATPDEA1, which during 2004 was of 52.2%, compared to 43.0% in 2003. For 2005, the short and mid-term prospects for the Colombian economy continue to be favorable. According to Central Bank's data, local and foreign analysts forecasted an average economic growth of 3.9%.

Este artículo analiza la controversia sobre la viabilidad de los alimentos transgénicos, y lo hace con el fin central de entenderla, no de resolverla. Inicialmente, se muestra cómo en este contexto los factores sociales suelen juzgarse perjudiciales porque se los considera sucios, impuros y contaminantes. Después, se exponen los supuestos y las implicaciones del modelo del déficit cognitivo, que es un enfoque teórico utilizado tradicionalmente en los estudios sobre la percepción pública de la ciencia y la tecnología. A continuación, se constata la creciente presencia de la ciencia posacadémica y cómo, en este nuevo escenario, el neoliberalismo puede estar coartando la investigación pública y el pluralismo democrático. La ciudadanía más activa y responsable suele pretender estar bien informada, pero esta aspiración es cada vez más difícil de realizarse debido a que ciertos conflictos sociales se traducen en conflictos entre sistemas expertos. Por ende, se propone complementar la perspectiva positivista, que aquí es la dominante, atendiendo a las perspectivas materialista y cultural. Ello permitirá esclarecer los objetivos de los principales colectivos implicados en tales enfrentamientos. Es decir, si estos colectivos buscan educar al público para que sea libre, responsable y esté bien informado, o persuadirle con propaganda cognitiva para que tolere, apruebe y consuma los respectivos servicios y artefactos. ; This paper examines the controversy over the viability of transgenic foods, in an attempt to understand and not to resolve this issue. Initially, it describes how, in this context, social factors tend to be perceived in a negative manner, since they are often considered to be dirty, unclean and contaminating. Next, the assumptions and implications of the cognitive deficit model are presented, as this theoretical approach has been traditionally used in studies on public perception of science and technology. Afterwards, the growing presence of post-academic science is discussed, as well as how, in this new scenario, neo-liberalism may obstruct public research and democratic pluralism. Active and responsible citizens can try to be well informed, but this is an increasingly difficult task, given that certain social conflicts have become parallel conflicts between expert systems. Finally, it is suggested that the positivist perspective, which is the dominant perspective here, can be complemented by materialist and cultural perspectives. This allows us to clarify the objectives of the main groups involved in these controversies. In other words, it determines whether or not these groups attempt to educate the public in order to ensure that they are free, responsible and well informed, or if they actually wish to persuade them with cognitive propaganda so that they shall tolerate, approve and consume the respective services and artifacts.

This paper uses a case study of Costa Rica to identify the reasons why democracy is conducive for development. By the mid-twentieth century, Costa Rica had begun to depart from the all-too-common mixture of political instability and economic stagnation characteristic of much of the developing world. This paper claims that this country has benefited from better-than-average public policies, a conclusion based upon an original assessment of policy effectiveness and a major comparative ranking of state policies. It largely rejects the interpretation that uncommon development performance stems from institutions created during the colonial period and instead emphasizes how unending political stalemates gradually made the struggle for power more democratic. A central conclusion of this paper is that political competition-as well as steady economic growth rates and development, more generally-interact with and reinforce each other so that the exercise of power foments rather than retards economic growth.

The present report provides an overview of the main debates and developments in relation to migration and asylum in Luxembourg in 2016. The issue of migration remained on the forefront of public and political debate, a debate axed on both planned legislative changes as well as the concrete migratory situation in Luxembourg. Four topics dominated public and policy discussions over the course of the year: the reform on Luxembourgish nationality, economic migration, the organisation of reception, as well as support and integration measures, linked to the continued inflow of applicants for international protection (AIPs) in 2016 and steps taken to adapt formal and informal education to the increasing heterogeneity of Luxembourg's population. The debate on international protection that arose in 2015 was carried onward in 2016, the focus shifting towards reception, support and integration measures. As the inflow of AIPs remained relatively high in 2016 with 2.043 applications, Luxembourg's Reception and Integration Agency (OLAI) warned throughout the year that the country's structures would soon reach the limits of their capacity. Linked to the high recognition rate, the legal challenges that local residents put to the plans for the construction of new reception facilities and the difficulty of beneficiaries of international protection (BIPs) in finding appropriate accommodation, the perceived dearth of housing was discussed broadly by the public, the media, as well as civil society and political actors. The continued inflow of AIPs also put a strain on the concerned administrations, both in terms of financial and human resources, leading to discussions regarding the duration of procedures and the variations of this duration. Moreover, the question of integration or support measures for beneficiaries and applicants stepped to the forefront: the changed profile of people arriving in Luxembourg posed new challenges to language learning and education for the newly arrived, and overall, emphasised the need to adapt existing and create new integration and support measures for beneficiaries and applicants. At the same time, the role of non-governmental organisations in supporting the government in the reception of applicants and in establishing new projects facilitating their integration also grew over the course of 2016, not least due to over 80 projects being granted funding by the Oeuvre Nationale de Secours Grande Duchesse Charlotte (henceforth Oeuvre). The Luxembourgish Centre for Integration and Social Cohesion (LISKO), part of the Red Cross and supported by convention to the Ministry for Family and Integration opened its doors in April 2016. The newly created centre will take care of the integration of BIPs into Luxembourg's society, putting its emphasis on facilitating access to housing. The planned extension of the maximum period of detention for families with children and unaccompanied minors (UAMs) from 72 hours to 7 days precipitated strong reactions from civil society and the public. Luxembourg furthermore followed through on its resettlement and relocation commitments made in 2015, with 167 persons being relocated from Greece and Italy to Luxembourg and with 52 being resettled in the context of the EU-Turkey agreement over the course of 2016. The adaptation of Luxembourg's legislation in the domain of legal migration also took shape over in 2016 and was broadly debated during the law-making process, while warranting less public attention. With the introduction of one bill, the legislator started the process of transposing Directive 2014/36/EU on seasonal workers and Directive 2014/66/EU on intra-corporate transfers into national law. The same bill furthermore introduced an authorisation of stay for investors, the aspect most commented on by civil society; a mechanism for continuation of activity; detailed the conditions under which a TCN (third country national) corporate officer (mandataire social) can apply for an authorisation of stay, extended the period of validity of the "European Blue Card" residence permit from two to four years, modified dispositions regarding the change of status of students and facilitated family reunification. These developments are to be framed within a wider context of economic diversification, encouragement of entrepreneurship and the repositioning of the financial centre. The reform of the Luxembourgish nationality, another major subject of discussion, was recognised as the best way to counteract Luxembourg's increasing democratic deficit after the electorate's refusal to extend legislative voting rights to foreign residents, decided in the referendum of 2015. This reform further proceeded over the course of 2016, reintroduced the perennial language debate in Luxembourg, a larger debate on the role and status of the Luxembourgish language as well as its relation to integration of migrants into Luxembourgish society. In order to increase foreign residents' participation in the upcoming municipal elections of October 2017, the government launched an awareness campaign encouraging foreign residents to register on the electoral roll, and provided support for organisations wishing to organise complementary actions. The Ministry of National Education and Youth made efforts to find responses to the growing heterogeneity of Luxembourg's population, aiming to diversify and broaden the post-primary school offer, to develop plurilingual education in nurseries and to develop non-formal education by reforming in-kind benefits, this with the aim of promoting integration and equal opportunity. The transposition of Directive 2013/55/EU on the recognition of professional qualifications was also completed in 2016. The law further amended several national provisions, recast the legislation in the field of recognition of diplomas, combined all applicable provisions in a single legislative text and simplified the procedure for recognition. The debate regarding the return of irregular migrants circled around a number of issues in 2016: the exclusion of Kosovar nationals from the AVRRL programme, the Schengen evaluation and the aforementioned resulting changes to provisions on detention, the debate on the enforcement of the EU-Afghanistan 'Joint way forward on migration issues' agreement, as well as the continuation of the elaboration of readmission agreements. Luxembourg's government took further steps in the fight against trafficking in human beings (THB) over the course of 2016. The Council of Government adopted the National Action Plan on trafficking in human beings, which focuses on the detection and protection of victims, the prosecution and punishment of perpetrators and a policy to combat trafficking. Luxembourg's strategy on prostitution was presented, consisting of a National Action Plan on prostitution and a bill strengthening the fight against the exploitation of prostitution, procuring and THB. Additionally, the Consultative Commission on Human Rights (Commission Consultative des Droits de l'Homme – C2DH) published its first report on THB, which reviewed the years 2014-2016. In reference to migration and development, Luxembourg continued putting emphasis on vocational training and integration programmes in its indicative cooperation programmes with partner countries. Additionally, the Council of Government approved the bill on the agreement between the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the Republic of Cape Verde on the concerted management of migratory flows and solidarity-based development, facilitating the movement of persons and to encourage temporary circular professional migration between Luxembourg and Cape Verde.

Kenya is entering a decisive year. Three main developments will make 2012 extraordinary. First, Kenya will hold national elections for the first time since the traumatic post-election violence of 2007-08, which ended Kenya's high growth momentum abruptly. Second, Kenya's economy will need to navigate through a severe economic storm, which could well become a hurricane, especially if Europe enters into a recession. Third, the country will implement its most ambitious governance reforms ever, namely the devolution of responsibility to forty-seven new counties. Kenya's policy makers will need to display tremendous skill and steadfast leadership in order to balance the need for fiscal prudence, with ensuring that resource flows to new local governments are sufficient to meet their needs. High expectations of the promise of devolution need to be met by equally high quality planning and execution of its delivery. Kenya will enter 2012 from a weaker-than expected economic position. Kenya's economy is navigating rough economic waters, where existing structural weaknesses have been compounded by short-term shocks. The most visible sign of Kenya's economic challenge is the depreciating shilling, which reached an all time low against the US Dollar in October 2011. The elements behind this situation are high international food and fuel prices, the drought compounded by conflict in the horn of Africa, the Euro crisis, widening fiscal and current account deficits, and major inefficiencies in Kenya's agriculture sector. The recent developments are also undermining one of Kenya's main strengths over the last decade: the credibility and predictability of its macroeconomic policies.

This article substantiates theoretical and methodological approaches regarding the impact of the power-opposition interrelations on strengthening and weakening of democracy. Based on the analysis of a number of indicators and modern political process in Poland, it has been established that democratization takes place against the backdrop of the permanent formation and preservation of two opposed poles in the political field. Deflection from democracy increases the distance between two competing/conflicting parties – pro-government and opposition, this automatically accumulates the potential of pole's force. Therefore, the interrelations between the power and the opposition turn into the force of stratification and equalization, which allows to reduce the "democracy deficit" and bring the political system into the state of equilibrium.The increase of the distance between the power and the opposition is accompanied by the dissemination of opposing approaches to current topics in the political discourse, which are spread through social networks and in the long run allow to polarize the active part of the electorate and provoke political absenteeism in the other part of the electorate. In the context of democracy, this effectively leads to minority rule over the majority, potentially threatening the crisis of liberal democracy.The analysis of the development of social capital in Poland has shown the low level of trust of Poles in public institutions, including those in power, lack of sense of community, preference for individual relations, lack of common approaches to the development of competences. One of the reasons for this phenomenon may be the informatization of a society that relies on individualism, as in the process of technological development, interpersonal contacts are becoming more virtual and shallow. Suchlike "network relations", although unlimited in number, are devoid of the reality. On the other hand, it gives political parties the possibility to implement virtual projects, bypassing institutions of civil society (macrolevels) that have proved to be ineffective, to quickly penetrate at the individual level (micro-levels) and through communication channels to convert social capital into political and economic. This game into virtual democracy has absolutely opposite consequences for democratic consolidation, reinforcing the asymmetry of social perception of democratic reforms, political absenteeism, and individualism. ; Обґрунтовано теоретико-методологічні підходи щодо впливу взаємовідносин влади та опозиції на процеси демократизації. На основі аналізу індикаторів та сучасного політичного процесу в Польщі з'ясовано, що демократизація відбувається на фоні перманентного формування та збереження в політичному полі двох протилежних полюсів. Відхилення від демократії збільшує дистанцію між двома конкуруючими/конфліктуючими провладною та опозиційною партіями, що автоматично акумулює потенціал сили полюсу. Тому взаємовідносини між владою та опозицією набувають характеру сили стратифікації та вирівнювання, що дозволяє зменшити «дефіцит демократії» та привести політичну систему в стан рівноваги.Збільшення дистанції між владою та опозицією супроводжується інспірацією в політичному дискурсі протилежних підходів до актуальних тем, які поширюються через соціальні мережі та дозволяють в довгостроковій перспективі поляризувати активну частину електорату та є одним з наслідків політичного абсентеїзму майже в половини іншої його частини. Це призводить фактично до правління меншості над більшістю, що потенційно загрожує кризою ліберальної демократії.Аналіз розвитку соціального капіталу свідчить також про низький рівень довіри поляків до публічних інституцій в тому числі до владних, брак почуття спільноти, перевага індивідуальних відносин, брак спільних підходів до розвитку компетенцій. Однією з причин такого явища може слугувати інформатизація суспільства, яка робить ставку на індивідуалізмі. В процесі технологічного розвитку міжособистісні контакти стають все більш віртуальними і дрібнішими. Такі «мережеві відносини», незважаючи на їх необмежену кількість, позбавлені аспекту реальності. З іншої сторони, це дозволяє політичним партіям реалізовувати віртуальні проекти, оминаючи інституції громадянського суспільства (макрорівень), які виявилися неефективними, проникати на індивідуальний рівень (мікрорівень) та через комунікаційні канали конвертувати соціальний капітал в політичний та економічний. Така гра в віртуальну демократію має абсолютно протилежні для консолідації демократії наслідки, посилюючи асиметричність соціального сприйняття демократичних реформ, політичний абсентеїзм, індивідуалізм.