https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/135089 Sat, 04 Apr 2026 11:51:28 GMT 2026-04-04T11:51:28Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128742 Title: Guest editorial : Public administration and crisis governance in small states Authors: Sarapuu, Külli; Jugl, Marlene Abstract: The editorial sets the scene to the special section that brings together four articles on crisis governance in small states. While questions of crisis management and robust governance have received growing attention in the public administration literature, we lack knowledge on how these phenomena play out in the specific context of small states. The editorial briefly presents the articles and discusses common themes emerging across the very diverse study settings. It becomes apparent that vulnerability and robustness are two sides of the same coin: both are facilitated by typical small state features, including an inevitably higher exposure to external factors and influences, limited governing capacities, and small scale. Paradoxically, smallness facilitates vulnerability to crises as well as robustness in crisis response. The editorial concludes with suggestions for future research. Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128742 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128741 Title: Strained missions : the diplomatic dilemmas of small states from the Global South in the area of autonomous weapons systems Authors: Bhila, Ishmael Abstract: Emerging technologies around autonomous weapons systems pose significant threats, particularly to small states in the Global South. Despite these threats, many such small states have struggled to participate in multilateral discussions to regulate and prohibit autonomous weapons systems, while the negotiations have been ongoing within the Group of Governmental Experts on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (GGE on LAWS) under the United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (UNCCW) since 2017. This paper analyses the dilemmic positions small state diplomats find themselves in when trying to devote time and expertise to international discussions on autonomous weapons systems while at the same time negotiating the power politics within the international law-making system and working with a limited expertise pool and resource base. The research is based on interviews with diplomats in Geneva, participation data collated by the UN, and virtual and in-person observation of the GGE on LAWS discussions in the UNCCW. The paper concludes that disarmament diplomats from small states from the Global South face various challenges, including small governments back home that cannot address emerging issues, great power politics, unequal international legal systems, and absent common positions on disarmament. Nevertheless, these same small states have dealt with such challenges, so as to decolonise the asymmetric diplomatic space within which they operate. Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128741 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128740 Title: The disease dilemma : neoclassical realism and Palau’s border policy governance challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic Authors: Halliday, Andrew Abstract: With the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1994, small island developing states are challenged to combat external threats in the marine environment, such as illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU). Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic has seen states across the world enact strong policies, including selective travel bans and border closures, as policy responses to limit virus transmission. Pacific island states enacted some of the most stringent border measures and were largely successful in stopping the import of COVID-19 into their jurisdictions. This paper examines one particular incident that occurred in December 2020 where the state of Palau, supported by the United States, acted to apprehend a Chinese illegal foreign fishing vessel and its crew, in spite of the state's self-enforced border closure to protect their population from the coronavirus. A neoclassical realism lens is employed to analyze the circumstances and influences which shaped this policy action. This analysis highlights the challenges facing island states in marine governance and enforcement amplified by COVID-19 policy considerations. In examining this case, potential policy drivers are identified, while the impact of this particular case in the context of Palau foreign policy and larger US-China relations is also discussed. Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128740 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128739 Title: Managing adaptation finance in SIDS : a study of subnational allocation criteria and procedures in Seychelles Authors: Bartram Gurresø, Clara Abstract: The international climate regime considers Small Island Developing States (SIDS) priority recipients for international adaptation finance due to their high vulnerability to climate change. This objective neglects two important aspects: firstly, vulnerability is unevenly distributed at the subnational level. Therefore, protecting the most vulnerable requires not only providing finance to SIDS, but also ensuring that it reaches the most vulnerable people and areas within them. Secondly, vulnerability is a complex and context-dependent phenomenon that may differ between and even within communities. Studies on subnational adaptation finance tend to apply pre-defined indicators of need and treat national governments as unitary actors. However, governments consist of a web of different entities and individuals with potentially differing perceptions and interests. To explain subnational allocation, we need to understand it better from a recipient country perspective, including who makes the decisions and who are perceived as the most vulnerable. This paper examines priorities and procedures shaping subnational adaptation finance allocation in Seychelles, through interviews and analysis of government reports. The findings indicate inconsistent perceptions between and within public entities of who are those particularly vulnerable. Actors prioritise projects protecting the largest number of people and the economy, which they perceive as a way to protect the most vulnerable. Whether this is plausible must be evaluated in the context of Seychelles’ fragile and undiversified economy. Finally, public entities in Seychelles have uneven decision-making power and capacity constraints, resulting in certain sectors being prioritised over others for adaptation finance. Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/128739 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z