Theses and Dissertations from UMD
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New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM
More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.
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Item SUSTAINING PRIVATIZATION(2011) Pratap, Kumar Vinay; Graham, Carol; Public Policy; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This dissertation examines the factors associated with sustainable privatization of infrastructure projects. Privatization offers a way for governments to make infrastructure delivery more effective and efficient than exclusively public provision, but often the promise is fraught with peril. The three essays that constitute this dissertation seek to use empirical data and analysis to answer three selected questions regarding sustainable privatization: ,,h What causes the private sector to exit from infrastructure projects? ,,h Do Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) provide value for money to governments? ,,h Does privatization lead to benign outcomes? The first essay of this dissertation takes the broadest view, looking at cross-country, cross-sector regression analysis to unearth patterns in infrastructure privatization failures - with a view to understand as well the factors that lead to success. The second essay takes a further step from the broad overview of the first essay by looking in detail at individual projects and examining what factors could lead to better value for money to governments. Finally, the third essay looks at the choice between asset sales and share issue privatization as two specific methods for privatization and their subsequent impact on the performance of the privatized company. The three essays thus represent a progression from survival to good health and finally to growth. My major conclusions are: ,,h Project cancellation rates, though rising, are still low. Although ownership may change hands, for the most part, the private sector is staying in private infrastructure projects. ,,h Although trends in cancellation may not be an issue for private infrastructure projects as a whole, it is a concern in the water and sewerage sector. The high probability of cancellation and relatively low level of fresh investment in the sector suggests a declining role for the private sector in making available this essential service. ,,h There is value for money to governments from entering into Public-Private Partnerships in infrastructure. ,,h Divestment leads to significant improvement in profitability, efficiency, and real output of firms, besides providing some fiscal boost to the government. However, the impact on employment is negative.Item Utilities Privatization in the United States Air Force(2008-01-11) Scott, David R; Cable, John H; Civil Engineering; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The Department of Defense (DOD) has roughly 2,600 electric, water, wastewater,and natural gas utility systems valued at an estimated $50 billion. In 1997, DOD decided that privatization was the preferred method for attaining industry standards for utility systems. The Air Force has ownership of 502 of these utility systems. This thesis will provide a background of DOD policy, the Air Force's Utilities Privatization Program and Guidance, findings made by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and actions taken to remedy those findings, and discuss several issues that personnel involved in utilities privatization should understand and remain vigilant of during the privatization process and throughout the life of the contracts.Item PRIVATIZATION IN COSTA RICA: A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS(2005-11-03) Chamberlain, Anthony Brian; Franda, Marcus; Government and Politics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This dissertation offers an assessment of the last 25 years of privatization efforts in Costa Rica. The study argues that the example of Central America's most economically developed country illustrates that one-dimensional thinking about privatization of state services is misdirected. That judgment remains true whether the "one dimension" represents indiscriminate acceptance of privatization or its doctrinaire rejection. More specifically, separate case studies of three types of privatization attempted in Costa Rica demonstrate that in some cases privatization indeed represents an effective response to the particular historical circumstances the country faces. In other instances, however, privatization can be inappropriate. This judgment is based on historical investigation, the testimony of recognized authorities, logical analysis of arguments both for and against privatization, and on responses to the program on the parts of key economic sectors. The argument is made in seven chapters. The first defines terms and provides historical perspective on the topic by examining the concept of privatization in general within the context of commercial globalization and of capitalism itself. Chapter II continues in this historical vein, this time reviewing the history of Costa Rica's general political-economy - in order to convey Costa Rica's unique character and context. Chapter III connects Chapters I and II by contextualizing Costa Rican privatization within the international economic crisis of the 1970s and early 1980s. Within that context, the stages of Costa Rica's integration into the process of globalization are delineated. Chapters IV, V and VI then evaluate repeated attempts to privatize many of Costa Rica's nationalized enterprises. The chosen ventures include the Costa Rican Development Corporation (CODESA), the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) (which includes telecommunications), and the Costa Rican Social Security System (CCSS/INS). The chapters in question review the nature of each concern, its genesis, the reasons advanced for its privatization, and the spectrum of opinion evaluating the privatization process and results. A concluding seventh chapter reviews the dissertation's argument, synthesizes the evaluations provided by the case studies, draws conclusions, and makes recommendations for the future of privatization in Costa Rica.