Suchergebnisse

Straipsnyje nagrinejama Lietuvos geroves valstybes raida saliai istojus i Europos Sajunga (ES). Teksta sudaro trys dalys. Teorineje dalyje ivertinamas dvieju ilgalaikiu valstybe strukturuojanciu procesu - pokomunistines transformacijos ir europeizacijos - santykis. Antrojoje dalyje analizuojami viesojo diskurso pokyciai siekiant issiaiskinti, ar ir kiek skirta demesio geroves valstybes pertvarkai Lietuvoje pasiekus pagrindinius euroatlantines integracijos tikslus. Galiausiai, remiantis 'socialiniu investiciju' koncepcija, bus siekiama parodyti, kiek Lietuvos geroves valstybes raida atliepia europines tendencijas. Pagrindine tyrimo isvada yra ta, kad geroves valstybes raida islieka inertiska, nors finansavimo salygos istojus i ES is tiesu gerejo. Be to, palyginti su gretimomis ES salimis naremis, skiriama maziau demesio toms geroves politikoms, kurios galetu duoti didziausia 'investicine graza'. Taip pat labiau orientuojamasi i tretini paslaugu lygmeni. Tokia situacija pirmiausia aiskintina trimis veiksniais: ekonominio saugumo prioriteto islaikymu, partine poliarizacija ir istorine logika, kuria diktuoja jau susikloste galios santykiai The article analyses the development of the Lithuanian welfare state after the country joined the EU. The text consists of three parts. In a theoretical part one evaluates interrelation of two long-term state-structuring processes, i.e. post-communist transformation and Europeanisation. In the second part, the changes of the public discourse are analysed in order to evaluate, if and how much attention is paid for the reforms of the welfare state in Lithuania after the main goals of Euro-Atlantic integration have been reached. Finally, under the concept of 'social investment state', one seeks to evaluate, how much the evolution of Lithuanian welfare state reflects the European trends. The main conclusion of analysis is that the development of welfare state remains inert despite the fact that financial conditions after the access to the EU have indeed improved. Besides, in comparison with the neighbouring EU member states, Lithuania pays less attention to those welfare policies that may bring the biggest 'return on investment'. The system is also more oriented towards the tertiary level. Such situation is firstly to be explained by three factors - the overall strength of economic security as the main political priority, party polarisation and historical logic dictated by the established power relations. Adapted from the source document.

The article discusses the impact of European Union membership on the economy, politics and policies of the new member's states, in particular, Lithuania. It first presents the forecasts and arguments regarding the impact of EU enlargement that were discussed before the enlargement in 2004/2007. Afterwards it evaluates the experience so far, by discussing the studies which have been made on the impact of EU and concludes that, the enlargement has been a positive sum game for the economies of new member states (as well the whole EU), increasing trade and investments flows and contributing to the catching up with the rest of the EU. However, it argues that the impact of the EU membership is mediated by domestic policies of each member state, and that Lithuania has not attempted to strengthen the positive impulses coming from the EU accession, in particular by postponing the structural reforms in the country. So far most evidence shows that new members have not changed radically the functioning of the EU, and the implementation of the EU norms has been better than expected, with Lithuania consistently being one of the leading countries in this respect. Finally, it assesses the main European policy priorities in Lithuania, in particular the reasons for some failures (such as the failure to join the eurozone in 2007) and achievements. It argues that most European policy failures have been due to the inconsistency and low credibility of some domestic policies. It concludes by providing venues for future research of European policy after the enlargement. Adapted from the source document.

The contemporary information & communication technologies (ICT) will not, by themselves, resolve the issues, faced by Lithuanian public administration in designing & implementing its policies. This is the major argument of the article, supported by the available empirical information & various secondary sources. Why the bureaucracy, which is often considered as being slow, inflexible & inertic should suddenly change due to the mere fact of ICT being purchased & installed? The answer is often based on some intuitive logic, which is called in this article the "ideal model of e-government." The first of the assumptions in this model claim that the public sector has the right skills to select the relevant technology. The next assumption is that once the technology is installed, it will be used competently & open-mindedly -- with the right capacities, motivations & leaders available to do that. In turn, if the technology is used competently, one can indeed expect improvements in public policy making & implementation: organizational change, better inter-institutional co-operation, development of e-services, etc. Notably, many ICT projects in the public sector fail & Lithuania is no exception in this respect. The investment does not necessarily lead to a meaningful organizational change, it does not enhance co-operation between institutions & does not improve communication & trust between the citizens & the state. Surely, the e-government is a rather new development, so one should hardly expect that all the visions will be successful outright. However, while at least some of the major problems may be anticipated in advance, the solutions are not always clear-cut. In order to take a full advantage of the ICT potential in the public sector, a clear choice of an actual model of public administration is necessary. Here a number of classic dilemmas may be identified -- regarding the relations between the public & the private sectors, internal control within the organization, sharing of responsibilities between organizations, etc. It is argued in the article that the answers to these questions in Lithuania are clear only in the official strategies & statements. Meanwhile the practice shows, that the relations between the public & the private sector are unbalanced, organizations lack the culture of critically assessing their achievements, institutions are carefully avoiding "interference" from outside into their internal matters & government is far from being conceived as a "service" to the citizens. It is also noted, that the differences between the official rhetoric & the practice may well be explained by the experience of both the soviet period as well as the accession to the EU: the institutions developed the skill of flexible adjustment to the dominant discourse without finding it necessary to change the essence of policy process. All in all, while the ICT do provide opportunities for improvement of public management, in order to take a full advantage of these opportunities it is necessary to resolve some of the classical dilemmas of public administration. In order to do that, some deeper changes of attitudes, values, & culture are necessary both in the public sector as well as in the society at large. Therefore, notwithstanding the expectation of the big change towards modernization of public sector the old saying of "plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose" is applicable for estimating the potential of the ICT to change the public sector. Adapted from the source document.