New Institutional Economics, Governance and the Performance of Water Institutions in India
There has been substantial water resources development for agriculture in India but the emphasis has been mainly on the technical side - the building of the necessary institutions required for effective management of the resource has received little attention. Many believe that water resource management in India is heading for a crisis unless the institutions and related policies are rapidly transformed. In this light, the study examines key features of water institutions in India, applying new institutional economics fundamentals, as well as management theories of good governance. The study uses a survey of 29 water institutions and 450 farm households conducted across three states in India which face water scarcity and have attempted to address it through institutional efforts and innovations. The findings indicate and help identify important characteristics of institutional design for creating better institutions. Findings indicate that derived from new institutional economics fundamentals, the stress on features such as clear objectives, good interaction, adaptiveness, appropriateness of scale, and compliance ability are very important for institutional performance. They reduce transaction cost and promote cooperative solutions, which are key contributions of good institutions. Delivery of good governance by effective institutionalization of technical, organizational, and political rationalities are also very important. This requires empowerment of bodies such as the general body, chairman, managing committee and secretary in the institutions. The results bring out some significant associations and ways for enhancing institutional performance in water resource management in India.
Efficiency of common-pool resource institutions: focusing on water users associations in South Africa
Despite of the promulgation of new water laws post-apartheid by the South African government, some parts of the country are still faced with inequitable, inefficient and inadequate water supply. Water institutions in South Africa and other developing countries are faced with various and multi-faceted challenges that consequently lead to their failure to provide water resources effectively. The evident responsibility of governing water resources in developing countries is commonly played by local and national institutions, using the water sector’s fundamental regulations, policies as well as statutory enactments. This paper draws lessons from the international examples to analyse the motivation for WUAs and the challenges they are faced with. The method for data generation used in this article is document analysis. A narrative approach using the literature and document analysis provided an insight into the economic and institutional history of WUAs. The analytical framework to study path dependency and power relations in connection with WUAs in South Africa was drawn from a literature review of transition studies and NIE. This study established that the current and future decisions made by the WUAs in South Africa are not entirely independent of those made in the past under irrigation boards. The study argues that establishing WUAs cannot automatically substitute for the domains of relations which existed within irrigation boards.
Gambling and Problem Gambling in Sweden: Changes Between 1998 and 2009
Gambling participation and rates of problem gambling change over time in response to a variety of factors including gambling availability, demographic changes and adaptation at individual and societal levels. These relationship are complex and only partially understood. The major aim of the present study was to provide general population estimates of gambling participation and problem gambling for Sweden and compare these estimates with estimates from a previous national study. The study was also designed to identify risk factors for problem gambling including change in these factors over time. Data are from the first phase of the Swedish Longitudinal Gambling Study (Swelogs) in which a representative sample of 8,165 people was assessed using validated problem gambling and other measures to facilitate comparison with findings from the 1997/1998 Swedish Gambling Study (Swegs). Overall, it was found that gambling participation reduced markedly, although in some population sectors increases were evident for some forms including poker and electronic gaming machines. Lifetime prevalence of probable pathological gambling increased; however, past 12 months probable pathological and problem gambling prevalence did not. Males, younger adults and people born outside Sweden were at high risk in both studies. Significant prevalence increases were evident for people aged 18–24 and those with low levels of education. The results indicate that relationships between gambling exposure, participation and problems are dynamic with shifting implications for public health and social policy.