public policy making, Essays (university) of Public Policy

Download public policy making and more Essays (university) Public Policy in PDF only on Docsity! Principles for Effective Policy making a) Necessity: Regulation must be outcome-based and implemented when needed. They should be concentrated or targeted on the issue they're trying to solve, with the least number of unintended repercussions possible. Policies might not always be the greatest answer to a particular issue. So, to select the optimal option, alternatives to regulation must first be considered. Regulations should be regularly examined to determine if they are still essential and relevant to ensure necessity and effectiveness. If not, they ought to be changed or eliminated. In some cases, regulations may be based on already-existing regulations and affected by databases readily available, such as JSE data. b) Simplicity: To ensure clear knowledge of the requirements and facilitate effective compliance, policies should have a clear statement of purpose that is presented in simple, straightforward language. Certain regulations' effectiveness may be harmed by their intricacy. User-friendly regulations are required. The interaction between the regulator and those under their control ought to be enabling. There should be a variety of ways to communicate with the regulator. c) Proportionality: Government should only get involved when it is necessary, and then only in proportion to any potential risk or harm. The cost of regulation should also be calculated and kept to a minimum. Socioeconomic impact analyses play a key role in achieving this. Each choice must have its costs and benefits weighed, and the advantages must be greater than the costs. Well suited regimes should be considered when there are specific effects on certain subjects or situations, such as effects on smaller entities. d) Predictability: To provide stability and certainty to the regulated, regulation should be predictable. A requirement should, whenever possible, be based on rules rather than judgment. This will establish a predictable environment and make effective compliance easier. Rules lessen uncertainty and aid in ensuring fairness, even though they may necessitate systems to deal with deviations. Expectations for applicants must be made clear up front. e) Accessibility: Everybody for whom regulation may be essential must have access to it. Authorities should try to establish a single location where all required paperwork and regulations can be accessed. For those who are and are not regulated, this will lessen their administrative obligations. In this way, technology is helpful. . f) Timeframes: The approval processes must move promptly, efficiently, and in accordance with the planned timelines. The regulatory procedure must constantly be able to track applications. The regulated party shall be made aware of any circumstances that prevent the deadline from being reached. When more than one regulator is necessary to authorize a regulatory action, measures should be implemented to allow regulatory processes to run concurrently in time and process. This will guarantee that the activity's effective approval has a fair turnaround time. g) Competitiveness: Regulations must be competitive with those in other nations. Finding out if other nations regulate for a similar reason will be crucial. If so, it is necessary to consider if our system is similar and unified. If not, a justification for the non-comparability should be given; for instance, a regulation may be for domestic purposes only, such as BBBEE, which aims to make up for prior injustices. FACTORS INFLUENCING POLICY-MAKING a) Political factors: Public policy takes place within a political terrain and it is formed by political ideas, philosophy and ideology espoused by political parties and the society at large. There are variables that are crucial in this environment including the system of government, the Constitution and political culture. b) Economic factors: The economic environment entails the way in which society creates and distributes wealth and allocates scarce resources to competing groups or individuals. c) Social factors: The social environment covers issues such as the population size (demographic profile), language, ethnic and cultural practices, values and beliefs, socioeconomic needs such as access to food, water, land, housing, health, employment, safety and protection, migration and immigration patterns. Social change is inevitable and invariably will influence policy-making. For example, measures adopted by Government in March 2020, through numerous regulations and guidelines emanating from the National Disaster Management Act, were a direct response to combat a threatening human health emergency crisis caused by the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19). d) Technological factors: The advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and the participation of South Africa in the World Economic Forum (WEF) has necessitated the national government to proactively respond through the setting up of the Presidential Commission on the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The Commission will be chaired by the President of the Republic of South Africa to, inter alia, guide government’s approach to a national data policy on e-commerce platforms and taxing electronic platforms, digital skills development and ways to reduce communication costs, digital literacy and innovations in school curriculums. Furthermore, the policy would encompass government’s approach to making sure small and medium-sized businesses have a culture of entrepreneurship and access to funding and the building of confidence in government’s systems and infrastructure. The technological developments of 4IR clearly have far-reaching implications in the information and communication technology domain and other spheres of life and may warrant policy interventions in the short term or long term. This was clearly shown by the adverse impact of Covid-19 whereby social distancing was adopted and people were encouraged to work from home, shop online (e-commerce) and schools encouraged to offer online classes. Unfortunately, access and lack of ICT infrastructure made some of these interventions practically impossible and challenging for the majority of the citizens due to deprivation, requiring government to immediately re-examine its ICT policies and infrastructure in order to urgently address the digital divide in the country. e) Environmental factors: Environmental factors include issues of climate change (increasing depletion of ozone layers, greenhouse gas emissions, etc.), biodiversity, protection of endangered