Vito Bobek

By Jasmina Mavrič and Vito Bobek

Cities represent the driving force of development in economic, social, and cultural life, reflecting also the spatial organization of human society. Taking into account the fact that cities are becoming generators of economic development and a source of growth for the national economy, there is an increasing urge to identify the stages of development and to establish a system for the ranking and positioning of cities and regions in this process (the level of categorization). This will allow the preparation of appropriate strategic and development guidelines for cities and urban regions to take place. In order to be able to compare the level of their efficiency in fostering development, there is an intensifying need to develop indicators that measure the performance of cities, are representative and comparable between countries, and allow verification to others. At present, there are many different urban indicators and institutions that compile and analyze them. Performance measurement systems, developed for internal use in some cities, already show a degree of measurement feasibility. The fundamental problem is that this variety of indicators lacks consistency and comparability (over time and between compared cities). Therefore, their use cannot be approved in a wider context (benchmark) of comparative situations. Upon the case of medium-sized cities, we consequently have to question the applicability of the methodology and indicators, used mostly in cases of large, global cities by internationally recognized institutions. With the established set of indicators and assistance of computer programs for multiparameter decision-making processes (analytic hierarchical process [AHP]), this paper also seeks to investigate comparisons between performance of selected European cities (on a qualitative basis).

Part of the book: Perspectives on Business and Management

By Vito Bobek and Anita Maček

In 2012, the EU Commission provided each member state with a country position paper outlining the analysis of the Commission of the main challenges and funding priorities relevant for the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI) in the programming period 2014–2020, including in relation to European Territorial Cooperation. These position papers have guided the ensuing dialogue with the Commission in particular in relation to the prioritisation of development needs and concentration of support, as well as in terms of the presentation of information. In this chapter, authors are presenting relevant social, economic and environmental aspects of the programme area and describe how the cooperation programme’s strategy in the case of cross-border cooperation between Slovenia and Austria for 2014–2020 period has contributed to the delivery of the Union strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and for achieving economic, social and territorial cohesion.

Part of the book: Management of Cities and Regions

By Vito Bobek

Part of the book: Trade and Global Market

By Tatjana Horvat, Nataša Gaber Sivka and Vito Bobek

When preparing a budget, local authorities are faced with a problem of implementing all statutory tasks while maintaining a balanced budget both from a financial point of view and from the aspect of satisfying common needs and interests of citizens. All these factors are reflected in the timely adoption of a budget. Our fundamental hypothesis is that in their efforts for timely adoption of a budget, local communities face institutional and political factors. If the budget of the local community is not adopted on time, local communities, in the case of Slovenia, are financed only on a temporary basis. An example of an institutional factor is the cooperation between a mayor and a finance manager in preparation of a budget (the first factor). An example of a political factor is the clarity of informing a municipal council (the second factor) which is the decision-taking body of a local community, since both the mayor and municipal council are elected politically. To this end, we have set two hypotheses. The first hypothesis is that the first mentioned factor is an important factor for timely adoption of a local community budget. We checked it with the discriminatory analysis. The second hypothesis is that the clarity of informing a municipal council by a mayor is an important factor for the timely adoption of a local community budget. We checked it by testing the difference between the arithmetic mean for two independent samples. The sample consisted of 122 local communities out of 212 population. Based on theoretical background and research, we have drawn recommendations to local communities for timely adoption of budget which consequently allows financing and performance of municipalities’ tasks.

Part of the book: Smart Urban Development

By Tatjana Horvat and Vito Bobek

Internal auditing of non-profit organizations represents the first line of defence against inadequate use of non-profit organization?s funding sources. In the European legal system, the purpose of a non-profit organization is to meet the needs of stakeholders with different products and services and public works that the state or other profit organization cannot satisfy and to affect the policy of the state or the economy. Non-profit organizations due to their nature are not able to acquire their own sources of financing, which is why they largely depend on subsidies, grants, membership fees, revenue from the sale of services and products that are not necessarily sold at market price. Therefore, the correct usage of these sources is all the more important. One way of checking the correctness of the use of sources of financing is internal audit, which must be carefully planned. The purpose of the chapter is to present the planning of the internal audit in the case of a non-profit organization, the most important part of which is the definition of audit objectives, the organization’s risk analysis and the preparation of the audit plan.

Part of the book: Selected Aspects of Non-Profit Organisations

By Vito Bobek, Jellenz Moritz and Tatjana Horvat

This chapter consists of two parts. In the first theoretical part, economic culture and economic performance are presented. Economic performance and development of market economy institutions depend on many factors. It became evident that economic and cultural factors play an important role. There is a lot of evidence that this role has been underconceptualized and analytically-experimentally underexploited. In the second empirical part, authors dive into the complex topic of Namibia’s cultural changing process, combined with its economic development. Such development is only traceable if the historic cornerstones of the nation (e.g., colonization, genocide, apartheid, foreign administration, and independence) are taken under consideration. The emerging social and economic challenges, e.g., poverty, gender, and social inequalities as well as unemployment, will be monitored. To describe Namibia’s economic development, several indices, for instance, foreign direct investment, gross domestic product, and Hofstede six-dimension model, will be applied. Furthermore, indices of Namibia’s cultural development (CDIS) will be presented and analyzed. While demonstrating Namibia’s significant cultural and economic aspects, perspectives in regard to the well-being of the next generations are incorporated.

Part of the book: Perspectives on Economic Development

By Verena Habrich, Vito Bobek and Tatjana Horvat

Emerging markets are amongst some of the fastest-growing economies on the globe. However, it is necessary to enhance human capital to enable the long-term development of a nation. The theory states that the increase in workforce participation favorably impacts GDP per capita. Additionally, developing markets can grow even further if they increase women’s rates in the labor market. The authors’ desire is to determine the main obstacles for women in the job market and identify the impact of female participation on national development. The authors applied the following methods of work: description and compilation of different literature and deduction method to show which relevant factors are recommended to make higher women’s economic activity to impacts the economy in a broader sense. The results show that Emerging markets must overcome gender inequalities, properly enforce female-related regulations, and invest in human development. The results also point out the relevance of a country’s level of development, culture, education, female-related laws, and their influence on women’s decision or ability to work. The discussion demonstrates that the rate of women in the workforce is increasing, but it is still severely lower than the men’s rate. The main issues are cultural stereotypes, limited access to the job market, and difficulties with combining work and childcare. When it comes to infrastructure and educational possibilities, remote areas are still underdeveloped. Furthermore, gender bias is still deeply rooted in rural society. The elimination of these stereotypes and the improvement (and enforcement) of women-related policies will contribute to higher female workforce participation in the future.

Part of the book: Emerging Markets

By Vito Bobek, Manuela Slanovc and Tatjana Horvat

The core part of this chapter is an analysis of how is the cultural heritage present in the EU Policies and in the Slovenia-Austria Interreg V Program in the previous and present multi-annual financial framework (2014–2020 and 2021–2027). The special focus is on the role of NGOs in protecting and preserving cultural heritage at the level of Slovenia. The final section identifies an example of a project idea titled HEGIRA-Heritage in Your Hands where NGOs in the field of cultural heritage are accepted as project partners. A historic forge in Bad Eisenkappel (Austria) serves as an authentic location to establish a “Centre for Forgotten Arts” where NGOs could play a distinctive role. Due to its strategically beneficial position, the center will serve as a gateway to Slovenia and bundle cross-border intangible cultural heritage offers. The implementation of the “Craftsmen in Residence” workshop series—aimed at schools, tourists, and interested citizens—will facilitate knowledge transfer and contribute to safeguarding traditional craftsmanship. HEGIRA builds capacity by connecting actors and institutions to develop an integrated cross-border tourist product, which will serve as a role model and can be transferred to other regions with similar territorial challenges and opportunities.

Part of the book: Global Perspectives on Non-Governmental Organizations