Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Paraguay Reader, Robert Andrew Nickson, Peter Lambert

Robert Andrew Nickson

Paraguay has long been seen as one of the forgotten corners of the globe, a place that slips beneath the radar of most diplomats, academics, journalists, and tourists in Latin America. Paraguay is a country defined not so much by association as by isolation. The renowned Paraguayan writer Augusto Roa Bastos famously remarked that Paraguay’s landlocked isolation made it like an island surrounded by land. Yet Paraguay is developing and globalizing fast. It is a major exporter of electricity, soy, and beef; its economy grew by 14 percent in 2010, the second fastest in the world; and it has one …

Decentralisation In Peru, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

There has been a striking increase in fiscal transfers in Peru since 2005. However the overall decentralisation process has been held back by limited progress in administrative reform and associated weak transfer of service delivery responsibilities. The Economy and Finance Ministry continues to play a crucial and generally negative role in controlling the pace and direction of the overall process.

Oscar Creydt: Una Biografía, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

Hoy en día muy pocos paraguayos, sobre todo los jóvenes, han escuchado hablar de Oscar Adalberto Federico Creydt – un apellido muy poco ‘paraguayo’. Sin embargo, durante cuatro décadas del siglo veinte – entre 1925 hasta 1965 – fue una figura prominente de la política paraguaya. Esto pasó a pesar de que él nunca llegó a ocupar cargo político en ninguna administración y a pesar de que pasó la segunda mitad de su vida – cuarenta años - casi sin pisar tierra paraguaya. Entonces, cómo fue posible? La explicación se debe a que Oscar Creydt fue el principal dirigente del …

Where Is Local Government Going In Latin America? A Comparative Perspective, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

In the light of the decentralisation process now under way in Latin America, this paper seeks to address the direction of local government in the region. It proposes two Weberian ideal types of local government systems – ‘managerial’ and ‘governmental’. Ten basic features of local government systems are then used as a template to ‘situate’ Latin American local government within this typology. On the basis of this comparative framework, the paper tentatively concludes that the ‘managerial’ type of local government is gaining ground in the region.

Paraguay Governance Assessments, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

This report presents the findings of the review of the DGTTF-funded project, System for Monitoring and Evaluation of Democratic Governance in Paraguay. The project took place over 15 months from March 2008 to June 2009 with a DGTTF grant of $100,000 to cover the costs of the preparation and publication of the baseline governance assessment framework. This review assesses the extent to which the project was innovative and catalytic in the Paraguayan context. It considers what has made the project succeed or fail, and why. The project was carried out under the ‘national execution’ modality, with the Congress as implementing …

Change And Continuity In Paraguayan History - 1811, 1911, 2011, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

This concluding chapter of a book to celebrate the bicentenary of Paraguay in 2011 briefly traces the dramatic changes to the country - in territorial dimension, demography, landscape and social indicators - over the 200 years since independence in 1811. In contrast, it then highlights the continuity of dependence on primary production for insertion in the global economy as well as the cultural resilience of the Guaraní language as the key marker of national identity.

El Regimen De Stroessner (1954-1989), Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

Este capítulo describe las tres etapas principales del régimen de Stroessner: fase de consolidación (1954-1967); fase de expansión (1968-1981); y fase de descomposición (1982-1989), y las circunstancias de su caída. Posteriormente abarca los tres pilares del régimen: el Partido Colorado, las Fuerzas Armadas y el mismo Stroessner en su calidad de Jefe de Estado, Comandante en Jefe de las Fuerzas Armadas y Presidente Honorario del Partido Colorado. Se analiza cinco mecanismos cruciales que le permitieron mantenerse en el poder durante tanto tiempo: una fachada democrática, un sistema de represión eficaz, la corrupción institucionalizada, el uso de la ideología nacionalista, y …

Political Economy Of Policymaking In Paraguay, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

The main objective of this chapter is to analyze the public policymaking process in Paraguay, particularly with regard to the formulation and implementation of policies that affect the generation of remunerative employment. Concretely, the chapter addresses how the broad institutional (i.e., political, administrative and legal) environment influences—both negatively and positively—the potential for formulating and implementing a medium-term employment strategy for poverty reduction in Paraguay. The main policymaking focus of the employment strategy will be on the private sector. However, the potential contribution of an employment strategy for the public sector itself towards poverty reduction is also considered.

The formulation and …

Review Of "Paraguay And The United States: Distant Allies" By Mora, F. O. & Cooney, J, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

This book provides an overview of relations between Paraguay and the United States from Independence to 2003. The authors tracing of the switches in US foreign policy towards Paraguay from one presidential administration to another provides a mine of interesting information. However, they fail to address the underlying continuity of US support for right-wing governments in Paraguay during the post-1945 period and the obstacle that this has posed for democratisation.

Governance And The Revitalisation Of The Guaraní Language In Paraguay, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

This article takes a governance perspective to examine the contemporary revitalization of Guaraní, a “repressed” language that is spoken by a majority of the population in Paraguay. A historical overview highlights the striking endurance of the language in spite of two centuries of official subjugation. The article traces the positive impact of political democratization since 1989 on the revitalization of Guaraní by examining four interrelated areas that are closely linked to the governance agenda: the education system, the media, the political system, and popular culture. However, the absence of a comprehensive language policy continues to limit progress in improving governance, …

Assessing The Regulatory Model For Water Supply In Jakarta, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

This article assesses the regulatory model for urban water supply services in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia. Water supply services have been privately operated there since February 1998 after two companies—Thames PAM Jaya (TPJ), operating in Eastern Jakarta, and PAMLyonnaise Jaya (PALYJA), operating in Western Jakarta—signed 25-years concession contracts with the state-owned Jakarta City Water Company (PAM Jaya). An independent regulatory body, the Jakarta Water Supply Regulatory Body (JWSRB) was established in 2001. The article compares the regulatory system in Jakarta with the French and English approaches to water regulation. It then assesses this regulatory system from the perspective of …

La Colonizacion Brasilera En La Region Oriental Del Paraguay, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

This book chapter analyses the origin and growth of Brazilian migration to the eastern border region of Paraguay from the 1960s through to the late 1970s with special attention to the associated growth of commercial agriculture, especially soybean, for export to the world market.