The diploma thesis deals with the concept of Public private partnerships in the Czech Republic. Specifically it focuses on healthcare and social services. At first we introduce the partnership between the public and private sector in general. We inform about its forms, risks, advantages and disadvantages. We concentrate on legislative and institutional environment in the Czech Republic. The fundamental contribution of the thesis can be seen in monitoring of individual realized and unrealized projects. There we make effort to find common factors of their realization. The main aim is to answer the question whether PPP projects are appropriate tool for solving the situation in the health sector. The results show that the state PPP projects are not appropriate instrument to address investment in the current conditions. On the contrary better management is seen at municipalities especially in social services. PPP projects can not be seen as means of solving long-term problems in the health sector in the Czech Republic. In conclusion we give recommendation regarding application of the concept of PPP in the healthcare or the social services in this country.

The objective of the thesis is to analyze the current implementation of information and communication technologies in public administration in the Czech Republic and its development. The presented results come from my partial researches of this area, which I was doing in the whole course of my doctoral study. The thesis is divided into several parts. The first part deals with review of various e-Government definitions and its objectives identification as e-Government has already become an integral part of public administration transformation process. There are also discussed individual e-Government development stages within the broader context of information society development as well as in the context of connections created within the European Union. The second part of the thesis deals with two different points of view of e-Government. The first one includes separate components and institutes of e-Government such as an electronic signature, data mailboxes and contact points of public administration. The second point of view is based on projects. There are mentioned both state level projects such as the Portal of public administration, information system of data mailboxes, Czech POINT, basic registries of public administration and resort level projects as well as projects of particular authorities. Typical examples of regional and local level e-Government projects, which are provided by municipalities, are also included in this part. The third part of the thesis deals with legal, economic, social and regional aspects of e-Government. Indivisible part of this chapter is precise identification and description of constraints that limit implementation possibilities of information and communication technologies within the public administration. These constraints must not be understood as barriers that have to be overcome at any costs or as barriers restraining development of e-Government, but as borders of properly defined space, where the electronization of public administration should operate. Correct understanding of these constraints can help to decrease failure risk of e-Government projects. One of these constraints is legal framework, which I suppose to be crucial and that is why I pay to it the most attention. Besides proving the stated working hypothesis there are given three recommendations for next development of e-Government in the Czech Republic. I suppose that e-Government is a meaningful part of transformation process of public administration and that while keeping some rules it can bring significantly positive results.

This thesis investigates the dynamics of natural contraceptive method use in a low fertility setting in contemporary Eastern Europe. Natural contraception was one of the key drivers of European fertility transition and still accounts for a large proportion of current method use in the developing world as well as in the Eastern Europe. Nonetheless, little systematic research on natural method use exists in contemporary demographic literature. This thesis focuses on the post-Socialist republic of Moldova- the poorest country in Europe. The Moldovan contraceptive regime, as observed elsewhere in Eastern Europe, is characterised by limited uptake of modern contraception and widespread use of induced abortion. Under the Moldovan Socialist government, social pressures including the requirement of children to obtain housing led to an almost homogenous pattern of early low fertility. In examining natural method use in the Moldova, this thesis addresses not only the limited understanding of natural method use in contemporary societies, but also contributes to unravelling the potential interaction between contraception and abortion in a low fertility setting. The main aims of this thesis are to: (i) provide a quantitative evaluation of the dynamics of natural contraceptive use in a low fertility setting and (ii) explore the changing fertility situation in Moldova. These aims are accomplished using data from the first ever Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) conducted in Moldova during 2005. The thesis comprises four research chapters as well as an introduction and conclusion. The introduction chapter examines the significance of natural methods in historical and contemporary societies, and provides context on the Moldovan demographic and socio-economic context. The second chapter examines the factors influencing the use of natural contraceptive methods. Specifically, the effect of economic hardship on the persistence of natural contraceptive use is examined. The analysis also evaluates the impact of FP programmes designed to reduce reliance on natural methods at a regional level. It contributes direct policy relevance by improving understanding of the efficacy of reproductive health interventions. In particular, the chapter identifies an impact of uneven coverage of health infrastructure on contraceptive choice and switching patterns. The second and third chapters evaluate the fertility timing patterns associated with natural method use – specifically the effect of contraceptive confidence on the interval between marriage and first birth and all subsequent birth intervals. These analyses also expand the understanding of contraceptive confidence by examining the interaction between natural method use and induced abortion. The fourth chapter tests the hypothesis that natural method use is in fact less effective than modern method use. This is pertinent to the peculiar demographic situation in Moldova, where low fertility occurs concurrently with a high prevalence of natural method use. The analysis evaluates the determinants of contraceptive discontinuation using the contraceptive histories recorded in the DHS contraceptive calendar. Key results are the high failure rates of natural contraceptives, and the high propensity of modern reversible method users to abandon use- hence exposing them to unwanted pregnancy. The final chapter summarises the key findings from each paper and addresses the policy implications as well as limitations of the thesis. Areas for future research are also identified.

Este trabalho busca analisar políticas de redução das taxas de homicídios em municípios da Região Metropolitana de São Paulo, baseadas especificamente na restrição do horário de funcionamento de bares. O objetivo geral é analisar comparativamente a implementação da chamada Lei Seca nesta região, considerando a necessidade de coordenação da ação de diversos atores para a sua efetivação. A hipótese principal é que os resultados alcançados pela Lei Seca dependem da articulação entre diversos atores (estatais e civis) ligados à segurança pública, de um desenho institucional bem delimitado para garantir a coordenação desses agentes e da fiscalização das ações. Os processos de implementação da lei foram analisados comparativamente, bem como o consórcio de instituições e atores civis responsáveis pela elaboração, execução e fiscalização da lei. O trabalho baseou-se em pesquisa bibliográfica e documental, levantamento de estatísticas criminais e entrevistas qualitativas com agentes envolvidos na formulação e implementação dessa política pública. Esta análise se insere nos debates sobre a articulação entre instituições responsáveis pela segurança pública, participação da sociedade civil, municipalização da segurança pública, relação entre o consumo de álcool e homicídios e outros, mas a contribuição pretendida refere-se especialmente ao debate sobre a produção de bens coletivos. Pode-se concluir que os resultados da interação entre os atores envolvidos e a cooperação para a efetivação da política analisada dependem de investimentos dos atores públicos para o estabelecimento de condições iniciais de implementação baseadas no diálogo e convencimento dos demais atores, aproximando-se assim daquilo que a literatura passou a denominar governança colaborativa. / This thesis aims to analyze policies to reduce homicide rates in cities within the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, based on restricting bars business hours. The overall objective is to analyze the implementation of the Dry Law in the area, taking into consideration the need to coordinate the action of many players in order to make it effective. The main assumption is that Dry Law results depend on the joint effort from various players in public safety (state and civil), a well-defined institutional structure to ensure coordination of these agents and actions surveillance. The law implementation process was analyzed, as well as the consortium of institutions and civil players responsible for the preparation, enforcement and supervision of the law. The work was based on literature and documents review, crime statistics and qualitative interviews with stakeholders involved in the formulation and implementation of this public policy. This analysis is part of the debates about the articulation among institutions responsible for public safety, civil society participation, municipalization of public safety, the relation between alcohol consumption and homicide and others. Nevertheless, the contribution is intended to refer specifically to the debate on the production of collective goods. In conclusion, results from the interaction among players and cooperation to put this policy into effect depend on public players investment in order to establish initial conditions for implementation, based on dialogue and persuasion of other players, approaching what literature has defined as \"collaborative governance\"

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The purpose of this study was to examine and explore the meanings, and essence of the lived experience of Nigerian women whose male siblings had been prioritized in the family. The goal of the was to use the detailed description given by the research participants to understand the impact of male sibling prioritization, and thereby advance gender equality in Nigeria. The fundamental importance of obtaining a better understanding of the impact of male sibling prioritization on women and gender equality influenced the researcher to commit herself to this study. A qualitative phenomenological research method was employed to conduct this study. Sources of data for this research study were observations, semi-structured one-on-one interviews, and transcripts from the research participants. The twelve research participants for the study were Nigerian women, homogenous by the criteria that they were all born and raised to adulthood in Nigeria. In addition, the research participants lived in South Florida, could read and write English and had one or more male siblings. Initial analysis of the data led to the unfolding of themes connected to male sibling prioritization and gender equality. Twenty symbolic themes surfaced from the research. These themes helped to show how Nigerian women were affected by male sibling prioritization, and how understanding these disadvantages could be used to promote gender equality. It is anticipated that the results from this research study will inform scholars, researchers, therapists, government officials, families, and conflict practitioners on ways to provide social, economic, educational, and political conditions favorable to Nigerian women seeking gender equality, and empowerment.

The purpose of this study is to explore the use of interstate inmate transfers (IITs) by prison wardens and the administrative intent that guide their use. This study assesses the explanatory power of the new penology in three cases and asks three broad questions of two prison wardens and the DOC: What correctional goals do you hope to accomplish with interstate inmate transfers? Why? And what contextual factors (if any) are felt to inhibit or facilitate these goals? IITs are controversial. Supporters of IITs argue that in addition to serving the needs of correctional managers, they may also serve to help inmates reenter society, remain physically safe while incarcerated, remain close to family and friends, and have access to appropriate correctional programming and treatment. On the other hand, critics of IITs argue that they are much more than a correctional management tool. Rather, IITs are evidence of an informally emerging "new penology" in American corrections that—due to the increasingly problematic conditions of confinement encountered by correctional managers (e.g., overcrowding)—emphasize a shift in focus away from what is good for the individual inmate to what is good for managing the correctional system as a whole. The case data collected in this research contradict, to a large degree, new penological assumptions. The findings point to high levels of ideological and behavioral autonomy among prison wardens as well as high levels of individualized and moralistic thinking with regard to inmate management, and a general feeling that correctional management at the institutional level is only situationally (rather than perpetually) stressful. Thus, the new penological assumption that criminal justice actors lack human agency or that inmates are thought of only in actuarial terms, may be an incorrect or incomplete assumption in relation to prison wardens and the intent of IITs in these cases. This study concludes that in order to better understand and possibly predict the administrative intent of IITs, an alternative theoretical framework should be utilized—one that better captures the dynamism and variability of influence that unique situational and dispositional factors (and their interaction) may have on administrative intent.