| CODE | PPL3101 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Governing Microstates | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 03 - Years 2, 3, 4 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 6 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Public Policy | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit will give students a thorough understanding of the systems of government currently found in micro-states, giving importance to their past colonial association. This colonial legacy served to influence not only governing institutions but also the kind of socio-economic relations these states developed. For this reason a strong comparative approach will be employed. The study-unit will then go on to examine institutional changes in these micro-states over the past two decades, paying attention as to how these changes have been influenced by their role in international politics, the IT revolution, globalization and in the case of Malta and other EU micro-states the impact of EU membership. It will pay particular attention to evolving economic scenarios and how these impact governance in micro-states. Finally, it will pay attention to policy-making processes and the influences that shape their policy process. Study-unit Aims: This study-unit is intended to: (a) give students a grounded understanding of governing systems in micro-states and the principal factors that helped to shape them; (b) show how current developments, economic and political, are impacting the governing systems and possibly re-shaping them; (c) stress the unique features of micro-states and how social relations, international pressures and economic challenges impact the policy process. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: (a) Grasp what underpins micro-state governance, whether this be small size, economic challenges or international pressures; (b) Define current socio-political and economic context in which microstates navigate their daily lives; (c) Discern the challenges faced by policy-makers and institutional actors. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: (d) Assess institutional development within a micro-state context; (e) Compare social, political and economic developments in micro-states in a meaningful, systematic and relevant framework; (f) Identify challenges to proposed policies as a result of small size; (g) Evaluate possible responses to institutional and governance issues resulting from smallness; (h) Implement policies that are relevant to Malta and which are not simply dictated by large-scale country options; (i) Judge, evaluate and advise on how EU policies, sometimes because of their one-size approach, may impact on Malta and other micro-states. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: (a) Eccardt, Thomas (2005), Secrets of the Seven Smallest States of Europe, Hippocrene Books. (b) Baldacchino, G., & Milne, D. A. (2000). Lessons from the political economy of small islands: The resourcefulness of jurisdiction. NY; London: St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Press; in association with Institute of Island Studies, University of Prince Edward Island. (c) Baldacchino, Godfrey (2007) Editor, Introducing a world of islands, University of Malta. (d) Pirotta, Godfrey A., (1996), The Maltese Public Service 1800-1940, The Administrative Politics of a Micro-state, Mireva, Malta. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Tutorial | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Amanda Cassar |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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