RIA in Practice: Group Exercise
Dr. Malathy Knight
Research Associate, Verite Research
March 26th, 2015
Objective: unpacking the RIA process
•
•
Delve deeper into particular element of RIA: the
RIA process (vs. RIA document)
Technical capacity (RIA document) necessary but
not sufficient for effective, sustainable RIA
 Consistent/in sync with broader regulatory policy
principles/framework
 Policy buy-in (political, stakeholder): #LK story on RIA vs
plantations & telco privatization
•
Real world problem-solving/asking the hard policy
questions: most meaningful takeaway from this
workshop
Group exercise: structure
•
•
Setting out objectives, context, contours: 15
minutes
Group work : 90 minutes
 Begin with 2 debating teams (45 minutes)
 Use the findings from debate for group presentation
• Group presentations: 15 minutes
 Suggested case study: focus on a sector currently
topical to #India (financial, energy/utilities??)
 Use your own/collective experiences as policy
implementers
 Interactive, problem-solving
Group exercise: some conceptual guidelines
• Clearly set out policy objectives
 Broad public policy/regulatory governance principles & objectives
 RIA-specific objectives (in chosen sector)
• Identify key policy issues/challenges w.r.t RIA process in
chosen sector
• Unpack these policy issues (e.g. policy buy-in) looking to:
 Effectiveness
 Sustainability
 Going back to any other policy objectives identified above
• Ask the tough questions: is RIA useful in the first place?
Why?
Group exercise: some conceptual guidelines
• Set out a workable “mock” RIA process template (what,
why, how) for chosen sector: fit/integrate into India’s
public policy structures/processes (including legal
traditions/dispute resolution)
• Some elements to consider (not exhaustive list; leave it to





you the practitioners!)
Political context (including politicians: bureaucrats principal-agent
dynamics)
Socio-economic context
Governance culture (e.g. regulatory “independence”, RTI, civil society
“voice”, culture of consultation)
Mapping of key stakeholders
Organizational set up (e.g. where in the policy chain should this entity
be placed, financial & technical resources)
Discussion on RIA process: a quick review
•
•
•
Systematic, structured, evidence-based,
consultative analysis of the prospective impacts of a
proposed policy measure against possible
alternatives (ex-ante)
“..RIA’s most important contribution to the quality of
decisions is not the precision of the calculations used,
but the action of analyzing – questioning,
understanding real-world impacts and exploring
assumptions..” (OECD, 2002)
NOT an end itself; process matters
(demonstration effects)
Discussion on RIA process: a quick review
•
Sub-set of regulatory policy:
effectiveness/efficiency,
transparency/accountability, proportionality,
consistency, legitimacy – facilitating better
governance structures and processes
•
Two inter-linked elements: RIA process and RIA
document
Discussion on RIA process: policy context
Fits policy
cycle
Stakeholder
buy-in &
engagement
Public
consultation
Consistent
analytical
method
Iterative
process
Discussion on RIA process: policy context
Policy
identification
Policy
evaluation
Policy
Space
Policy
implementation
Policy
formulation
Discussion on RIA process: policy context
Setting
agenda
Enforcement
Ex-post
evaluation
Ex-ante
appraisal
Monitoring
Drafting
rule/
Monitoring
Implementation
Final impact
assessment
Implementation
regulation
Discussion on RIA process: policy space
1 Figure 2.1. The policy process: a schematic
Environment
Environment
(a)
Inputs
Mediating variables
The
political
system
Environment
Legend
(b)
Bi-directional flow
Policy
demands
Interest
groups/
Parties/
Organisations
The decision system
Policy
outputs
Policy
outcomes
Uni-directional flow
Organisational
network
The political system
“black box”
The “internal” policy
process
Environment
Environment
Environment
Discussion on RIA process: policy space
1 Figure 2.2. Conceptualising North's theoretical framework: a schematic
INSTITUTIONS
ORGANISATIONS
Formal Rules
E.g. The state, Executive,
legislative & judicial arms of
E.g. Constitutions, Laws,
Property rights (Contracts),
Global governance
mechanisms (donor
conditionality, GATS
commitments)
government, Regulatory
agencies, Political parties,
Interest groups, Donors
Informal Norms
INDIVIDUALS
E.g. Trust, Power, Rent-
E.g. President of a
country, Minister
of Parliament,
Justice of the
Supreme Court,
Chairperson of a
regulatory agency,
an individual
citizen of a country
seeking (corruption), Culture
Legend
Mutually re-enforcing feed-back loop
Discussion on RIA process: regulatory space
Independent
judiciary
y
n
Unified
government
Inefficiencies,
government
ownership,
international
guarantees
y
n
Parties alternate in
government
y
n
Legally binding
contractual
arrangements?
Complex party decision
making?
Legally binding
contractual
arrangements?
Specific process
written in law or
contract?
n
y
y
Inefficiencies,
government
ownership,
international
guarantees
n
n
y
Strong
bureaucracy?
n
y
Inefficiencies,
government
ownership,
international
guarantees
Strong
bureaucracy?
y
Complex
rules
n
Simple rules
Complex
rules
Simple rules
Thank you