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Regulatory reform has emerged as an important policy area in developing countries. For reforms to be beneficial, regulatory regimes need to be transparent, coherent, and comprehensive. They must establish appropriate institutional frameworks and liberalized business regulations; enforce competition policy and law; and open external and internal markets to trade and investment. This report analyses the institutional set-up and use of regulatory policy instruments in Uganda. It is one of five reports prepared on countries in East and Southern Africa (the others are on Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Zambia), and represents an attempt to apply assessment tools and the framework developed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in its work on regulatory capacity and performance to developing countries.

This paper looks at the existing tools and approaches most commonly used in developed and developing countries to review the stock of regulations. The tools reviewed can generate benefits in the short term, but they are most effective as part of a longer-term sustained initiative. This paper has a particular focus on the challenges that arise from their use in emerging and developing countries. The objectives of this paper include: 1) explaining the rationale for the use of these tools and approaches; 2) discussing each one of them in a succinct way; 3) considering the extent to which these tools can support more systemic regulatory reforms in the medium and long terms; and 4) considering the particular challenges and opportunities regarding their use in developing and emerging economies. Section one is a brief description of the rationale and context for applying tools and approaches to review the stock of regulation. It includes a reference to benefits and preconditions to make use of these tools. It also presents a categorization of the most commonly used tools and a comparative table on the way these tools can be applied. Section two presents a description of each of the different tools and approaches available, and discusses the way they are used and their main components. It includes references to international experiences in which these tools have been integrated into the regulatory reform process. Section three presents preliminary commentary about some of the potential advantages, disadvantages, and impacts of using these tools and approaches in developing countries. Some particular cases are presented to illustrate these trends. The section also includes a short description of the sequence observed in the use of some of these tools. Moreover, this section illustrates how these tools can (or cannot) generate gains in the short term and also provide a basis for further and broader regulatory reform programs.

Mestrado em Economia e Política da Energia e do Ambiente Os Resíduos Sólidos Urbanos (RSU) produzidos nos grandes centros populacionais requerem um adequado tratamento e destino final de forma a evitar problemas ambientais. Alguns métodos de tratamento permitem a recuperação de parte do potencial energético contido nos resíduos, quer pela combustão dos resíduos (incineração ou pirólise), quer pelo aproveitamento do biogás ( produzido em aterros sanitários ou na digestão anaeróbica dos resíduos). A gestão dos resíduos é uma actividade económica sustentada por tarifas e por receitas provenientes da venda de energia e de materiais recicláveis. Os aspectos econômicos são determinantes em todas as fases de implementação de projectos de gestão de resíduos, do planeamento à exploração. A viabilidade económico-financeira das empresas do sector é assegurada, embora a sua rentabilidade possa ser limitada através de regulação económica. A economia dos resíduos sólidos urbanos e do seu aproveitamento energético pode ser abordada na perspectiva microeconómica de uma empresa, constituindo aspectos importantes a viabilidade do projecto e o estabelecimento de preços, ou numa perspectiva ambiental, no âmbito das teorias da economia do ambiente e dos recursos naturais, dos custos e benefícios sócio-económicos e ambientais. O tratamento dos resíduos traz inegáveis benefícios à comunidade, à saúde pública e às actividades económicas em geral, por via da minimização da poluição e dos impactos ambientais negativos, apesar dos próprios métodos de tratamento não serem completamente neutros. São apresentados dois modelos de abordagem da gestão dos resíduos: O primeiro na perspectiva da economia da empresa, considerando os aspectos da análise de projectos, contabilidade orçamental, estabelecimento de tarifas e análise de risco. O segundo na perspectiva da avaliação económica dos benefícios e custos evitados com o tratamento e destino final dos resíduos, deduzidos dos impactos negativos resultantes do próprio tratamento, como a emissão de gases de efeito de estufa, o impacto visual, etc.: análise custo-benefício. Apesar da escolha das soluções técnicas ser fortemente condicionada pelos regulamentos da Comunidade Europeia, o objectivo é definir uma hierarquia entre aquelas soluções e estabelecer as bases para um processo de tomada de decisão baseado em critérios económicos. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) produced in urban centres requires adequate treatment and disposal to avoid environmental problems. Some treatment methods allow recovery of part of the potential energy contained in waste, through combustion of waste ( incineration and pyrolisis) or through combustion of biogas (from landfills or anaerobic digestion of waste). Waste management is an economic activity sustained by tariffs and receipts from sales of recovered energy and materiais recycling. Economic aspects are determining factors in ali stages of implementation of waste management projects, from planning to operation. The economic and financial viability of companies in the sector is assured, though profitability may be limited by economic regulation. The economy of solid waste management and energy recovery from waste can be considered from the microeconomic perspective of a company, project viability and the setting of prices being important aspects, or from an environmental perspective., within the theories of economy of the environment and natural resources, social-economic and environmental costs and benefits. Treatment of waste provides undeniable benefits to the community, public health and economic activity through minimising pollution and adverse environmental impacts, though treatment methods may not be completely neutral. Two models of waste management are presented. The first takes the point of view of the economy of a company, in which project analysis, provisional accounting, tariff setting, and risk analysis are considered. The second uses economic evaluation of benefits and avoided costs of waste treatment and disposal, deducting the negative impacts and costs which result from treatment, for example greenhouse gas emissions, visual impact, etc.: cost-benefit analysis. Though the choice of technical solution is always strongly conditioned by EC regulations, the goal is to establish a hierarchy of waste treatment solutions and a basis for decision-making sustained by economic criteria. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion