In my master thesis I will focus on advantages of co-operation small villages and their expectant development. The theoretic part of thesis target the legislative and socioeconomic aspects of municipal co-operation. Principal aim is giving account of positive and negative impacts of function and next development of co-operation smaller municipalities and their staying in residential structure. Next part will be attended to association of municipalities and legal entities called Sdružení Růže. This is situated in the south part of Czech republic. I will analyze kinds of their activities and determinate limits and barriers of their development by socioeconomic analysis territory.

Inter-municipal co-operation (IMC) is one of the most challenging forms of co-operation between local authorities. If municipalities need to co-operate, isn't it because they are too small. And if they are too small, why not amalgamate then? IMC is often seen -- and feared -- as a first step towards amalgamation, or a bad compromise after the failure to amalgamate. It shouldn't. Across Europe, the reasons for inter-municipal co-operation vary to a considerable extent. And they are not necessarily linked to the excessive (for some) fragmentation of the municipal chart. Inter-municipal cooperation offers a serious way forward. It is not an easy option; it can be complex and it carries risk. But it has the potential to deliver significant advantages to all municipalities, both large and small.

This thesis examines how the size of the municipality affects its finances in terms of income and expenditure. The aim of this study is to assess the benefits of the merger of small villages to larger town and reveal some areas where the size of the municipality plays a role in terms of its financing. The thesis composes of three parts. The first chapter is an overview of theoretical knowledge about the topic to faciliate understanding of the following two parts. These are already showing a practical example - a case study of marging six small villages with a larger town. The second part of the analysis focuses on the revenue site of their budgets. Finally, the third section is dealing with the expenditure site of municipal budgets. Partial conclusions on benefits and drawbacks of merging municipalities are made in each part of the work.

Residential arrangement of the Czech Republic is typical by a big number of small municipalities. Those municipalities has the same status as bigger municipalities. However those small municipalities manage with limited resources for their development. Some authors discuss about incapability of small municipalities and the possibility of their integration. This thesis is about the problematics of small municipalities and it focuses on the smallest ones and it shows their activity and capability of existence. key words: small municipalities, very small municipalities, rural

Nowadays, the phenomenon of the Economic Crisis is still very topical economic issue. Not only private but also public sphere suffer from Economic Crisis. Thesis, called "Municipal Tax Revenues in Times of the Economic Crisis", deals with development of tax revenues between 2007 and 2010. In addition, this paper scrutinizes evolution of other revenues that flows into municipal budgets. For this analysis, three cities in Central Region of the Czech Republic, such as Mladá Boleslav, Mnichovo Hradiště and Kosmonosy, were selected. Above-mentioned work also focuses on possibilities of municipalities in terms of coping with reduced tax revenues. The crisis have not affected monitored municipalities so dramatically. Although tax revenues have considerably decreased, municipalities did cope with such a situation by means of drawing reserves from previous years. Thesis is divided into four chapters. First part deals predominantly with municipal revenues in general (tax, non-tax, capital receipts, subsidies) and budget-designated taxes. In the next chapter, revenues of chosen municipalities are analysed. In the third chapter, these revenues are compared by the test of selected municipalities. The last part formulates municipalities` options to prevent the reduction in tax revenues.

Examensarbetet inom civilekonomiprogrammet syftar till att bidra med kunskap om främjandet av företagande och utifrån offentliga sektorns perspektiv identifiera faktorer som har mer eller mindre möjlighet att påverka företagandet i Sverige. Vidare har det lagts betoning på de olika faktorerna som är synliga i främjandet av företagande för att kunna analysera huruvida det på lokal nivå går att påverka näringslivet ur ett kommunalt perspektiv. Regeringens målsättning är att kommuner fungerar effektivt inom gränserna av valfrihet och medbestämmande. I Sveriges välfärdssystem finns det en hög ambitionsnivå, men det ger varierande resultat beroende på vilken kommun som diskuteras. När det gäller andra delar av förvaltning har kommunerna krav eller regler som påverkar hur organisationen utformas, men dessa finns i mindre omfattning när det kommer till näringslivet. Det finns en hel del studier i ämnet, men det har enligt vår uppfattning funnits en brist i informationen som finns synlig angående hur utvecklingen ser ut från företagande till att aktivt starta företag med hjälp och förutsättningar från kommunen. Uppsatsen är en kvalitativ fallstudie, där det insamlade materialet har utgått från grundad teori och konceptuell forskning. Metoden som använts var telefonintervjuer med olika kommuner. En sammanställning gjordes sedan till mindre beskrivningar av attribut som anses viktiga av respondenterna. Resultatet är en redogörelse av intervjuerna och en jämförelse mellan kommuner i relation till företagande. Utifrån uppsatsen och undersökningen har vi fått mer insikt i vad som kan påverka förutsättningar i näringslivet och att det ligger en del problematik i hur den institutionella strukturen allokerar uppgifter utan att ge organisationer befogenhet att påverka förutsättningarna för individen i samhället. Det bör vara mer tydligt huruvida främjandet av nyföretagande är en statlig eller kommunal prioritering. Arbetet med främjande åtgärder av företagande kan med fördel bli mer tydlig och ett hållbarhetstänk kan vara en bättre utgångspunkt snarare än antalet startade företag. / The thesis aims to contribute to knowledge in the promotion of nascent entrepreneurship and from the public sectors perspective identify factors that have more or less opportunity to influence how starting businesses is encouraged in Sweden. In addition to this it aims to discuss visible factors in an encouraging business region and how municipalities work within these limits. The Government's objective is for municipalities to function effectively within the limits of Swedish rules for municipalities. In the Swedish welfare system, there is a high level of ambition, with varying results depending on which municipality is being analysed. When it comes to how the business climate is structured, the municipalities lack rules or requirements. There are a lot of studies on the subject, but in our opinion, there is a lack of transparency in the development of creating an encouraging business environment in Sweden. The thesis is a qualitative case study, where the collected material has been based on theory and conceptual research. The method used was telephone interviews with various respondents from different municipalities. A summary is then presented with attributes that were considered important by the respondents. The result of the performed interviews shows the operational work within the municipality, correlating with the business world. From the study we have gained more insight into what can affect the process of encouraging businesses in municipalities. Furthermore, it became visible that there might be a shortage in institutional structure, because of deficient regional power when it comes to allocating conditions to an encouraging business climate. Perhaps it could benefit the matter of increasing businesses if the objective was more pronouncedly exalted, as to whether it is a governmental or municipality priority. The promotion of entrepreneurship could possibly be clearer and perhaps benefit from more of a sustainability perspective rather than the number of companies started.

This study examines the determinants of unemployment at the municipal level and as such aims to answer what the place-specific drivers of unemployment in South African cities and towns are. The purpose has been to test the arguments that local economies and labour markets matter for local unemployment. The empirical analysis makes use of a balanced panel data set for the period 1996 to 2012 for across 234 local and metropolitan municipalities to estimate a regression model in which the level of unemployment in a particular place is determined by a range of place-specific explanatory variables. It is found that the place-specific determinants of unemployment are a higher population growth rate and dense populations that are associated with lower unemployment rates, indicating the benefits from agglomeration economies. A large informal sector is negatively associated with unemployment, which supports the sentiments expressed in the literature that without agglomeration, economic opportunities for individuals in informal employment are limited. If people in a city or town are better educated this is associated with lower levels of unemployment on average. High inequality does not necessarily cause high unemployment; however, they do coincide. A positive association between specialisation and unemployment is found. Furthermore, the mining, manufacturing, construction and trade sectors that are locally bigger than in the national economy are associated with lower unemployment. The results support the findings that a link exists between geography and labour market outcomes and therefore the need exists for convergence of the social safety net and integration with the economic opportunities at the thriving cities and towns. / MCom (Economics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

This study examines the determinants of unemployment at the municipal level and as such aims to answer what the place-specific drivers of unemployment in South African cities and towns are. The purpose has been to test the arguments that local economies and labour markets matter for local unemployment. The empirical analysis makes use of a balanced panel data set for the period 1996 to 2012 for across 234 local and metropolitan municipalities to estimate a regression model in which the level of unemployment in a particular place is determined by a range of place-specific explanatory variables. It is found that the place-specific determinants of unemployment are a higher population growth rate and dense populations that are associated with lower unemployment rates, indicating the benefits from agglomeration economies. A large informal sector is negatively associated with unemployment, which supports the sentiments expressed in the literature that without agglomeration, economic opportunities for individuals in informal employment are limited. If people in a city or town are better educated this is associated with lower levels of unemployment on average. High inequality does not necessarily cause high unemployment; however, they do coincide. A positive association between specialisation and unemployment is found. Furthermore, the mining, manufacturing, construction and trade sectors that are locally bigger than in the national economy are associated with lower unemployment. The results support the findings that a link exists between geography and labour market outcomes and therefore the need exists for convergence of the social safety net and integration with the economic opportunities at the thriving cities and towns. / MCom (Economics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Problembakgrund: I en verksamhet görs lönsamhetsbedömningar i samband med investeringar där intäkter förs mot kostnader för att undersöka vilka investeringar som kan vara lönsamma. Investeringar i kultur förknippas ofta med höga investeringskostnader men kännetecknas däremot inte av höga intäkter, varpå det kan vara svårt för en kulturinvestering att bli lönsam. Kultur är värdefullt för många i samhället, men är desto svårare att värdera i monetära termer eftersom den upplevs olika av alla individer och befintliga värderingsmetoder kan användas för att värdera kulturens output på olika sätt. Kommuner investerar ofta i kulturområdet, varför det är intressant att undersöka tillvägagångssättet för rättfärdigandet av sådana investeringar, vilket denna rapport undersöker.   Syfte: Syftet med rapporten är att beskriva och analysera vilka faktorer som kan påverka beslut i kulturinvesteringar, samt att förklara hur kultur kan värderas i monetära termer.   Metod: I denna kvalitativa rapport har Varbergs kommun valts ut som fallstudie. En deduktiv ansats har använts, där utgångspunkten har legat i befintliga teorier och sedan jämförts med insamlad empiri. Teorierna är hämtade ur vetenskapliga artiklar och tryckt litteratur, den insamlade empirin har hämtats genom kvalitativa besöksintervjuer och en kvantitativ enkätundersökning.   Slutsats: Rapportens slutsats är att Varbergs kommun tar hänsyn till besöksantal, befolkningsökningar, efterfrågan och behov från invånare när beslut tas kring kulturinvesteringar. Några traditionella företagsekonomiska lönsamhetsbedömningar eller metoder för att värdera kultur används inte. Kommunen ser kultur som en självklarhet i samhället och bedömer istället vilken nytta som den tillför kommunens invånare. / Background: Profitability assessments are made in traditional businesses before investments: possible revenues are compared to costs to determine which investments can be profitable. Investing in culture is often associated with high investment costs but not with high revenues, therefore it can be difficult to get a cultural investment to become profitable. Culture is valuable for the community, but is also difficult to valuate in monetary terms since it is perceived differently and existing valuation methods can be used to value the culture output in various ways. Municipalities often invest in culture, why it is interesting to examine how they proceed in order to justify such investments, which this report covers.   Purpose: The purpose of this report is to describe and analyze the factors that can affect decisions in culture investments, and to explain how culture can be evaluated in monetary terms.   Method: In this qualitative report Varberg municipality was selected as a case study. A deductive approach has been used, with a starting point in existing theories and then compared with collected empirical data. The theories are derived from scientific articles and printed literature, the collected empirical data are gathered through qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey.   Conclusion: The report concludes that the municipality of Varberg takes into account the number of visits, population increases, the demand and needs of the residents when making decisions about cultural investments, and not traditional profitability assessments. Method of valuing culture is not used, but the municipality sees culture as an essential part of the community and instead examine the benefits it brings to local residents.

The pursuit of urban sustainability is considered central to sustainable development and is a key objective of the global Sustainable Development Goals (2015) and the New Urban Agenda (2016). This thesis aims to contribute to debates on urban sustainability by providing insights as to the role of actors participating in processes of governing for urban sustainability, with particular focus on the municipal organisation. The thesis employs an interdisciplinary approach to illustrate divergent approaches to governing for urban sustainability, with reference to empirical studies of strategic planning processes in municipalities in selected North-western European countries – Sweden, Switzerland and The Netherlands. These studies address themes including climate change, sustainable transport and multi-level governance. The thesis provides a broad overview of theoretical discussions related to governing, strategy and planning, the role of actors in governing for urban sustainability, and the particular importance of climate change as a challenge for urban sustainability. A number of research gaps are identified and addressed in two research questions, focusing on the organisation and practice of processes of governing for urban sustainability, and the factors influencing actors participating in such processes. The thesis responds to these research questions with reference to five appended papers, which illustrate different dimensions of governing for urban sustainability. The first paper concerns the organisation of processes to develop energy and climate strategies in Swedish municipalities, and the second paper highlights the experiences of actors participating in such processes. The third paper presents results from a survey illustrating the expectations of stakeholders active in governing transport in the city of Norrköping, Sweden. In the fourth paper, the development and implementation of policies aiming for sustainable transport and urban sustainability in Basel, Switzerland, are discussed. In the final paper, cooperation through transnational municipal networks is explored with reference to the World Ports Climate Declaration, an initiative of the city of Rotterdam. The thesis confirms the presence of five factors – capacity, mandate, resources, scope and will – that shape the “strategy space” of actors and play an important role in conditioning the form and content of processes of governing for urban sustainability. The thesis suggests that the ways in which a municipal organisation perceive and mobilise the five factors will strongly determine the extent of its sustainability strategy space. In sum, municipal organisations and other actors participating in processes of governing for urban sustainability need to mobilise the five factors and expand their strategy space, in order to achieve vertical and horizontal alignment of strategic objectives and facilitate implementation that delivers transformative change.