Archives - Page 8

  • Multilateral negotiations
    No. 36 (1999)

    Negotiations, understood as an exchange of interests and the rapprochement of two opposing parties towards a mutually acceptable position, have become a mechanism of fundamental importance for incorporating new practices, commitments and rules into the international system of flows of goods, capital services, technology, people and information.

    For Central America, this is of vital importance because it implies learning the mechanisms that small countries have at their disposal to defend their interests in an increasingly competitive and, in many cases, increasingly protectionist international trade environment.

    Thus, through unilateral initiatives, multilateral disciplines and the negotiation of bilateral and regional agreements, the countries of the hemisphere in general and the Central American countries in particular have made deliberate and systematic efforts to create conditions conducive to the negotiation of a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). In short, major events have been recent examples of progress in integration and negotiation.

    In this sense, the Central American Journal of Public Administration, published by ICAP, is pleased to include in this issue a selection of articles that provide a variety of approaches concerning the process of continental regionalization and the increase in cross-conditionality around these issues and policies at the Central American level, emphasizing the important variations in the conceptualization and operationalization of the negotiations.

    The regional reflection in this volume addresses, on the one hand, the world economic phenomena that have an impact on the economies of the area, as well as the follow-up of the economic evolution, with emphasis on the multilateral negotiations that the Isthmus carries out within its strategy of development and external opening with deepening in the process of integration of the region.

    The documented experiences, on the other hand, show the global visualization of the management of negotiations with important advances with respect to debt-for-environment agreements, or debt-for-development, or environment-for-economic growth, manifesting the diverse emergence in terms of understandings and enriching the possible options of alliance between the different actors and partners, at the level of countries, companies and organized groups.

     

  • Decentralization and Municipal Modernization
    No. 34-35 (1998)

    As the twentieth century draws to a close, Central American societies are experiencing a series of unprecedented changes. There is no doubt that many of these developments are positive, such is the importance currently given to the municipal issue and, more broadly, to political-territorial decentralization, which have become unavoidable items on government agendas.

    A starting point for the analysis of the situation of the processes of decentralization and remodeling of municipal management promoted within the framework of the restructuring of the State is the recognition of the relevance that the discussion of these issues has acquired in the political-administrative spheres.

    In the new type of situations generated by these proposals and concrete processes that have been promoted in Central America since the second half of the last decade, when the region began to experience the first attempts at decentralization and reformulation of the municipal scheme, have had an impact on important changes in the political-institutional order.

    Reflection on the effects of these changes on local political-administrative systems and on the relationship between the central power, the municipality and the local community is of particular interest, since it directly alludes to the possibilities of democratization of society and the State, in a context in which excessively centralized and autocratic styles of government have prevailed.

    The main novelties presented in the local scene in Central America, try to emphasize on the one hand, the new conditions that the inhabitants find to give content to their citizenship, and on the other hand, the objective limits faced by the democratization processes promoted in the isthmus, pointing out the political-institutional mechanisms that impede a fluid relationship between municipality-local civil society and the access of the same social collectivities to the management of the "local-public".

    This issue of the Central American Journal of Public Administration addresses the challenge of municipal modernization as a strategic alternative for Central America, exposing experiences that include at an analytical level, the identification of the main threats and opportunities that influence the viability of strengthening local governments, arguing that this process will result from the combination of two critical elements: the autonomous local initiative and the deepening of decentralization.

     

  • Globalization and Economic Blocks
    No. 32-33 (1997)

    Globalization and Economic Blocks

    Important external signs that occurred in the late 1980s and early 1990s lead us to believe that the era of geopolitics is over and that a new world order is in the making, as a result of recent changes in international economic relations. Everything seems to indicate that the internationalization of the economy and the globalization of markets are the fundamental elements of this emerging order, around which countries could unite to form different blocs.

    Today, there is no longer so much discussion about the need for, and the goodness of, opening up the economy, but rather it is considered an unquestionable requirement for development. The debate is focused on how to achieve greater insertion in the international market, at a lower cost and in the shortest possible time.

    Central America could not be left behind in this new turn being taken by the countries of the world and is preparing to advance in the opening process and face the challenges of globalization. Although it may be considered that Central American countries still have a long way to go, their situation has changed drastically in recent years. An example of this position is the concerns expressed at some of the Central American Presidential Summits, which went from being focused on issues of pacification and democratic opening, to address those related to economic development, social policy and the environment.

    The second five years of the 1990s showed Central America to be a region of peace, with governments elected in democratic processes and with a certain stability in the macroeconomic field. In short, it can be said that regional production is beginning to recover. Central American integration has been reactivated and intra-regional trade has been stimulated.

    The globalization of markets and the opening of trade represent a possibility for Central American countries to insert themselves into international flows of investment, trade and technology, allowing for greater economic growth. It is also a challenge because it compels to solve market deficiencies, to improve infrastructure, especially those related to the management of exports and other aspects related to efficient production, in order to take advantage of the opportunities and demands of the new context, without forgetting that successful countries are those that put emphasis and tenacity in technological innovation.

    In essence, it can be said that the globalization process tends to integrate the world, generating at the same time a tendency towards a single universal market. Consequently, this potential and true new world economic order should not only mean the predominance of transnational corporations and the major economic powers, as has been the case to date, but should also be committed to incorporating the vast group of developing countries.

     

  • Modernization of Public Employment
    No. 30-31 (1996)

    Five years ago, ICAP carried out a program for the development and modernization of public employment administration entities, which constituted a sort of milestone in the modernization and institutional strengthening exercise and was an important input to successfully carry out the VII Meeting of Civil Service Directors of Central America and Panama, in Guatemala City, Guatemala, during the period from August 5 to 9, 1996, dedicated to the theme "Modernization of Public Employment". This meeting was originally conceived as part of a permanent process of updating ideas and not as a final product. In fact, it became the main point of reference for Central American thinking on this topic, and consequently the source of inspiration for the preparation of this issue of the Revista Centroamericana, which has been prepared with an unusual focus on the current practices of the State in this area.

    The topic of public employment, which often, due to its apparent monotony, goes unnoticed in the great public debates, is essential and exciting in the context of the current moments of modernization of the State, processes of change undertaken in all the countries of Central America. In this profoundly changing frame of reference, the introduction of new technologies, accompanied by new ways of working, require new professional profiles with respect to knowledge, values, skills and attitudes, so that this topic has become a fundamental element for the development of institutions, organizations and companies, and has taken on practical relevance in the Central American public sector, to operationalize the new tasks of the State.

    Two major lessons were derived from the space for reflection of this meeting:

    * The current management complexity of the entities in charge of public employment administration, and more generally of the human resources function concerning policies, structures, activities and instruments, follows the acceleration of these changes. Hence the importance of renewing not only the civil servants working for public administrations, but also the systems and entities in charge of managing these personnel. 

    * The challenge of competitiveness and productivity makes the function of public employment one of the strategic objectives of all organizations in general and of the State in particular, so that this work must be integrated into institutional macro-strategies, imposing the need to use in the management of human resources, knowledge, processes, methods and tools of the same nature and equal sophistication as those used in other areas.

     

  • Modernización del Estado
    No. 28-29 (1995)

    The concern for achieving profound modifications in the State to adapt it to the new realities has emerged as one of the basic conditions for overcoming the economic problems that have been burdening Central American countries for several years, mostly related to their acute fiscal deficit problems. It would be necessary to add the persistent pressure exerted by the position of the international financial organizations, known as the "Washington Council", to improve this situation.

    In the eighties and within the framework of the Structural Adjustment Programs, some Central American countries took their first steps to initiate their State Reform processes. Although not all of them have reached similar levels of progress, some of them have managed to reduce public employment, privatize certain companies, and carry out certain transformations in the two main areas of Public Finance, related to expenditure control and revenue collection. It would seem, however, that the fundamental point and basis of state transformation presents some limitations with respect to its definition: the required profile of the State, so that it may in turn be the object and subject of the efforts for change.

    It is important to emphasize that the imminent approach of the 21st century and the current world conditions of economic globalization are more than imperative to accelerate the processes of State Reform, always bearing in mind that they will only make sense if they are oriented to achieve that a greater percentage of citizens live in better conditions. If this purpose is pursued, even if the measures affect certain groups in the short term, it will be clear that in the medium and long term, the benefit will be greater and that the sacrifices made will have been fully justified.

    In Central America, State Reform and Modernization processes have been undertaken in all countries, with different dimensions, scope and characteristics. Their importance shows the preeminent place occupied, both in the VII and XV Summit Meeting of Central American Presidents, by issues related to the modernization and reform of the public sector, aimed at seeking a more efficient and agile State, focused on facilitating and stimulating economic agents and providing adequate services to the population.

    Thus, State Reform in Central America is not a new topic, its conceptualization, analysis, discussion and execution have been addressed for several years by politicians, researchers, academics and technicians, in order to approach this topic from different perspectives, in accordance with the realities of their respective countries. The progress achieved in this area seems to show that expectations have far exceeded reality and there is still much to be done if we wish to achieve a real change that will transform society.

     

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