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In deciding whether an infrastructure project should be delivered using traditional procurement or a public-private partnership (PPP), the public sector estimates the project's value for money (VFM), which serves as the principal justification for adopting PPP. It is well known that VFM arises primarily from risk transfer, that is, the risk of (for example) potential cost overruns is transferred from the public sector to the private sector under PPP, thereby creating cost savings to the public sector. Using a unique source of PPP data, Infrastructure Ontario, Canada, this paper investigates an issue not examined systematically and quantitatively in the literature: how the contribution to VFM arising from risk transfer varies from project type to project type, and why. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite efforts to improve public procurement policies and guidelines in Nigeria, infrastructure delivery experiences several challenges that have hampered economic development, resulting in public infrastructure deficiency of value for money. Identifying drivers of value for money in public infrastructure procurement in Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria, is the aim of this study. The mixedmethod research design was adopted for this study. Purposeful and snowball sampling techniques were utilized to determine the study respondents. Data collection was implemented using a survey questionnaire. From the systemic literature review, 14 drivers were identified. The dependability of the research instrument was conducted using the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test of adequacy and Bartlett's Test of Sphericity. The data obtained from this study was subjected to descriptive statistics and factor analysis. The study findings identified public sector technical innovation and transfer, products and services meeting users' demand, efficient risk allocation, low project life cycle cost, and complementary advantages of public-private partnership as the most significant drivers of value for money in public infrastructure procurement. This study justifies an evident need to highlight and incorporate value-for-money drivers toward efficient and sustainable public infrastructure delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Public Private Partnerships (PPP) and the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) have been significantly adopted over the last three decades as a mechanism for the delivery and financing of projects. Various infrastructure project types in the energy and the transport sectors have adopted this procurement system for their ‘anticipated’ effectiveness in risk distribution and value for money. Yet, their acclaimed benefits, particularly in ensuring value for money in the waste to energy – or energy-from-wastes (EfW) – sector are under significant scrutiny. Governments and investors are increasingly questioning their fiscal efficiency and overall benefit to taxpayers. Despite these concerns, studies investigating whether PFI provides value of money of PFI in EfW are lacking. This study addresses this gap by comparing the PFI models used in the UK and Canada in currently operative EfW projects using mixed risk epistemology approach combining methods that provide both a real and objective evaluation of issues and risks and a subjective (or opinion-based) evaluation. The former is achieved through a quantitative probabilistic model for simulating EfW feasibility at the operation phase. The quantitative probabilistic model is capable to model and capture how operational phase costs and profitability are affected by lifecycle risks (such as quality of service driven by contractual requirements that are usually passed on to the Operation and Maintenance (O&M) contractor) and a range of technical, payment and incentive dynamic variables and their fluctuations. If the impact of these variables is not considered and modelled accurately, the O&M contractor could incur significant losses undermining the viability of the EfW project. The latter employs a psychometric methodology to delve into the primary concerns of professionals involved in EfW projects regarding associated risks. The results show that common O&M risks identified in EfW PPP projects in UK and Canada prevail around unplanned maintenance, infeed waste reduction, market price, unsustainable debts, and policy changes.

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) have emerged as a strategic tool for enhancing the economic growth of International Airport infrastructure and service delivery markets in Cyprus. Although different types of PPPs exist worldwide and are likely to influence how road projects are implemented, this has not been fully researched in Cyprus. This study investigates how various aspects of PPPs can influence the implementation of International Airport infrastructure development in the Republic of Cyprus. It combined qualitative and quantitative approaches using a cross-sectional design. Secondary data was complimented with primary data collected from 63 purposively sampled respondents. The study established that PPP international airport projects in Cyprus have particularly utilised the Build, operate, transfer (BOT) model. As the existing publicly owned airports were not considered to be financially viable or sustainable at the beginning of the century, it became evident that these government functions could not be socio-economically or otherwise justified. For this reason, the involvement of the private sector in the operation of publicly owned and administered airports was fully endorsed by both the government and the local society at large. The form of private participation to be selected rightly depended on the risk/decision making power that the government apparatus was prepared to transfer to the private sector and the financial viability of the airport as a sustainable business. To have defensible, sustainable, and resilient Airport BOT Projects in Cyprus, the regulatory model of frameworks should be changed into a community model to develop sustainable projects, as opposed to the market or statist model that favours or prioritise private partners and government interests respectively. Though it may seem difficult to create a line of responsibility, it is possible to set an established way to collaborate and cooperate on particular BOT contract projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Value for money poses the question, "What is good resource use?" It is often answered with a narrow economic analysis that does not adequately address what diverse people value. We suggest new principles and methods that may help evaluators answer the question better. First, we define value for money, which sits at the intersection of evaluation and economics. Next, we make the case for a holistic assessment of value for money that evaluators can conduct with tools they already have, like rubrics. We introduce three principles that further align value for money with evaluation: value depends on the credibility of estimates; things do not have value, people place value on things; and people value the same things differently. Together, they suggest evaluators should arrive at multiple, possibly conflicting conclusions that represent diverse value perspectives. We demonstrate how this may be done using a value-for-money rubric to improve resource allocation for impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since public procurement involves such large amounts of money in various procurement operations, it is imperative to ensure value for money (VfM), electronic procurement is a modern tool through which value for money can be attained, this study determine the influence ofelectronic procurement strategy on Value for Money in construction project. Study used a cross section design to collect data from 160 employees from different department who were sampled based on their strata and by using questionnaire. The study found that reliability and speedy of electronic procurement increases the efficiency of construction projects. The study concludes that electronic procurement, is the key tools through in which, if utilized well the construction project in public organization will be efficiency, economy and effectively through trade discount and communication. Also, electronic procurement increase transparency and to a large extent brought about simplicity of the work done despite of the challenge of network problem.

Since public procurement involves such large amounts of money in various procurement operations, it is imperative to ensure value for money (VfM), electronic procurement is a modern tool through which value for money can be attained, this study determine the influence ofelectronic procurement strategy on Value for Money in construction project. Study used a cross section design to collect data from 160 employees from different department who were sampled based on their strata and by using questionnaire. The study found that reliability and speedy of electronic procurement increases the efficiency of construction projects. The study concludes that electronic procurement, is the key tools through in which, if utilized well the construction project in public organization will be efficiency, economy and effectively through trade discount and communication. Also, electronic procurement increase transparency and to a large extent brought about simplicity of the work done despite of the challenge of network problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors that influence the patronage of street food vendor in Nigeria. The data for this study was collected from 385 street food customers in northwest Nigeria, and was analyzed using multiple regression. Also, composite reliability and Average Variance Extracted were used to test the reliability and validity of the instrument. The finding shows that patronage of street food vendor is taken as a function of quality food, value for money and familiarity of the food contents. Since the industry is one of the sources of employment generation, understanding what makes people patronize them can be a contribution to the development of the literature and an important step in designing a more effective policy mechanism for economic growth. Informal sectors are under researched and most researchers delved more on formal economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite widespread criticisms, governments around the world have adopted Value for Money (VfM) analysis as a key metric in gauging the prospective value of infrastructure projects. This paper examines the institutional processes through which VfM is rendered defensible as a form of valuation. Drawing on a case study of Infrastructure Ontario in Canada, the paper demonstrates that this involves strategies for partitioning space and time, including boundary work, objectification, phasing and outsourcing. We argue that the institution of delays and distances ultimately fosters the displacement of subjectivity in the valuation process while entrenching distinctively financialized understandings of value. Moreover, we demonstrate that this is driven not so much by the organization's desire to control the future but by a defensive orientation that sets out to ward off potential critiques that may arise from project failures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waste management systems have developed in recent years toward the adoption of sustainable management principles and practices, such as circular economy, zero waste, resource efficiency, waste avoidance, re-use, and recycling. Nevertheless, landfills continue to be used for waste disposal despite their risks related to contamination and effects on urban development. Most research on landfills focuses on their operational and technical aspects, while the performance and cost efficiency in managing landfills is less commonly studied, especially their post-closure management. However, improving efficiency is very relevant in the context of scarce public sector resources. This paper, therefore, analyzes the efficiency of post-closure management of landfills. Drawing on agency and stewardship theories, we focus on the difference in efficiency between public and private management of post-closure landfills. We use a linear mixed regression model to analyze data from 2015 to 2018 relating to 54 landfills (79% of which are privately managed) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The results show that public management is more efficient than private management. Results contribute to defining drivers of cost and confirming a disparity in the performance of private and public management. Our results cast doubt on the assumption, which is prevalent in new public management theory, that private operators are more efficient than public ones. We conclude by highlighting that to reach efficiency, it is better to increase the effectiveness of regulation in terms of value for money, without pre-determined preferences for the type of management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to examine the relationship between comfort, cabin space, design, social life, value for money, and customer satisfaction among compact SUV car owners at a Malaysian automaker. The study involved 407 samples of compact SUV car owners who responded to a questionnaire with their opinions. The findings revealed that comfort, cabin space, and value for money were significant factors in determining customer satisfaction among owners of compact SUVs. Despite the subjectivity of design, this factor did not significantly influence the overall customer satisfaction of compact SUV car owners. Similarly, social life factors, such as the social status associated with owning a particular car brand or model, were discovered to have no significant impact on customer satisfaction. The study highlights the need for this automaker to prioritize comfort, cabin space, and value when designing and marketing compact SUVs to increase customer satisfaction. Future research will examine strategies to optimize the comfort, cabin space, and value for money aspects to meet customer expectations and increase their overall satisfaction.

Purpose – This study assesses the impact of marital status towards customer-centric measures in a Canadian ski resort using the importance-performance map analysis (IPMA) as the analytical framework. For the purpose of this paper, the three groups that were assessed included singles, partnership without children and partnership with children as marital status indicators. From the theoretical and especially managerial point of view, knowing the importance and the performance of the relevant ski resort-related customer-centric perceptions is of key importance. Design/methodology/approach – A survey was completed to assess customer-centric measures including customer satisfaction, repurchase intent, value for money, willingness to recommend, overall performance in terms of meeting expectations, relationship quality and skiing service quality. An IPMA was conducted with partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to assess the importance-performance perceptions of the three marital status groups. Findings – The results indicated that for five of the seven customer-centric measures, there were significant differences between the marital status groups. Overall, singles appeared to have the lowest values in customer-centric measures, whereas respondents living in partnership with children had the highest. This was also the case with the value for money perceptions, although the cost for the ski resort visit was likely to be the highest for the respondents living in partnership with children. There were also differences between the marital status groups in terms of the importance-performance evaluations. Originality/value – Results of this research have implications for ski resort management as the three marital status groups appear to perceive the customer-centric measures quite differently in the IPMA framework.

Value for Money (VfM) has been used as a critical criterion for evaluating Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), a popular procurement strategy for delivering infrastructure assets. However, there is a tendency for prevailing VfM techniques (e.g., Public Sector Comparator, PSC) to focus on obtaining cost savings rather than value per se. Despite the criticisms of the PSC and its alternatives for assessing VfM, there remains no research comparing decision-making methods for procuring transport infrastructure projects. In this instance, the upshot has been the public sector's inability to safeguard and deliver VfM to their taxpayers. Against this backdrop, we systematically review the VfM assessment literature to understand the effectiveness (e.g., strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) of prevailing approaches used to determine the ‘value’ of transport projects. In light of our review, we propose and introduce the concept of the ‘onion’ architecture to improve the decision-making practice of PPPs, which comprises four systematic future research directions and policy implications. To this end, our paper provides a platform for developing new procurement paradigms that can be used to future-proof infrastructure assets.

AbstractThe method by which government and public institutions make acquisitions lays the groundwork for development of rural district councils by enabling critical investments in terms of physical infrastructure and institutional capacity building. The purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between procurement objectives, procurement process, procurement management, and value for money on Zimbabwe’s Rural District Councils (RDCs). The study was guided by the Practice Based View and the Supply Chain Practice Perspective. A structured, closed-ended, self-administered Google form questionnaire was used to collect responses from 30 out of 60 randomly chosen RDCs in Zimbabwe. 207 useful responses were obtained from 264 supervisory staff and procurement officials. The procurement process, procurement objectives, and procurement management were found to positively influence value for money. The results also indicate that procurement objectives positively influenced the procurement process, while the procurement process was found to have a positive effect on procurement management. This study provides fresh insights and validates existing knowledge on the procurement process, procurement objectives, procurement management, and value for money in the RDCs. As this study demonstrates how procurement practices have a direct impact on value for money, it advances our understanding of public procurement and value for money in developing countries like Zimbabwe. Moreover, the study findings support both the Practice Based View and the Supply Chain Practice Perspective in that the results show that procurement practices when effectively managed and aligned with the objectives of the organization, they contribute to achieving value for money in procurement. outcomes.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to quantify heterogeneity in the value for money of precision medicine (PM) by application types across contexts and conditions and to quantify sources of heterogeneity to areas of particular promises or concerns as the field of PM moves forward.MethodsA systemic search was performed in Embase, Medline, EconLit, and CRD databases for studies published between 2011 and 2021 on cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) of PM interventions. Based on a willingness-to-pay threshold of one-time GDP per capita of each study country, the net monetary benefit (NMB) of PM was pooled using random-effects meta-analyses. Sources of heterogeneity and study biases were examined using random-effects meta-regressions, jackknife sensitivity analysis, and the biases in economic studies checklist.ResultsAmong the 275 unique CEAs of PM, publicly sponsored studies found neither genetic testing nor gene therapy cost-effective in general, which was contradictory to studies funded by commercial entities and early stage evaluations. Evidence of PM being cost-effective was concentrated in a genetic test for screening, diagnosis, or as companion diagnostics (pooled NMBs, $48,152, $8,869, $5,693, p

With the demand for elderly care increasing in many countries, digital technologies offer the potential for organising such care while also increasing value for money. However, public administrators need tools to make sense of their own complex environment and the possible impacts of new technologies. The current paper examines this issue by applying horizontal performance measurement, where practitioners can give financial value to issues that span across many functions and thus avoid sub-optimisation. We use an interventionist case study to illustrate a situation in which a Nordic city attempted to calculate the financial impact of introducing new digital technologies into elderly care. As our contribution to the literature on horizontal performance measurement, we show how economic (financial) and wellbeing anchors influence horizontal performance measurement in a healthcare digitalisation project. We also contribute to the development of our method theory, i.e., anchor practices, by providing evidence of the usage of multiple simultaneous anchors and make a methodological contribution by showing that interventionist researchers can support operationalising anchor practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastronomy is considered a vital resource and is a key component of a memorable tourism experience. Some studies have explored memorable gastronomic experience (MGE) but have been unable to provide a comprehensive overview of the topic. The purpose of this research is to advance knowledge in relation to MGE. The Q-methodology of research synthesis (QMRS) was applied to identify MGE dimensions and support qualitative and quantitative approaches within the research process. The findings of the study contribute to a greater understanding of MGE by providing a conceptual model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The method by which government and public institutions make acquisitions lays the groundwork for development of rural district councils by enabling critical investments in terms of physical infrastructure and institutional capacity building. The purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between procurement objectives, procurement process, procurement management, and value for money on Zimbabwe's Rural District Councils (RDCs). The study was guided by the Practice Based View and the Supply Chain Practice Perspective. A structured, closed-ended, self-administered Google form questionnaire was used to collect responses from 30 out of 60 randomly chosen RDCs in Zimbabwe. 207 useful responses were obtained from 264 supervisory staff and procurement officials. The procurement process, procurement objectives, and procurement management were found to positively influence value for money. The results also indicate that procurement objectives positively influenced the procurement process, while the procurement process was found to have a positive effect on procurement management. This study provides fresh insights and validates existing knowledge on the procurement process, procurement objectives, procurement management, and value for money in the RDCs. As this study demonstrates how procurement practices have a direct impact on value for money, it advances our understanding of public procurement and value for money in developing countries like Zimbabwe. Moreover, the study findings support both the Practice Based View and the Supply Chain Practice Perspective in that the results show that procurement practices when effectively managed and aligned with the objectives of the organization, they contribute to achieving value for money in procurement. outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural organisations in Ukrainian market play an important role. In 2022, during the worsening economic crisis and war on the territory of the entire country, the stable functioning of an agricultural sphere is a topical issue. The demonstration of “transactional spending” is somewhat unclear at the current stage. Thus, the purpose of the study is to investigate the field and generalisation of institutional aspects of the demonstration of transactional spending in agricultural organisations. With the employment of analysis and scientific research systematisation methods, it was noted that transactional spending of an agricultural organisation includes spending on information regarding the market functioning gathering, legal expenses, quality control, and property security. During the research, a demonstration of transactional spending of agricultural organisation subaccounts is unclear and requires the development of a unified approach to the spending regulation. The main ways of transactional spending accounting of agricultural organisations were determined. Practical aspects of transactional spending accounting in agricultural organisations of Ukraine were also denoted. A model of transactional spending accounting was developed, which is based on a creation of a new account 99 “Transactional spendings”. A new transactional spending accounting system was developed, which sorts transactional spending according to the classification in the new account subaccounts. These changes in accounting may be used to create new financial statement systems for agricultural organisations. The proposed transactional spending accounting system includes every possible risk of payment duplication or payment not being included in the statement. It may be employed not only by agricultural organisations but also used for the standards of bookkeeping practice

Purpose – The purpose of the study is to discover clusters or homogenous groups of work-from-home (WFH) Internet subscribers in the Philippines based on the attributes of speed, network quality, customer service, after-sales support, price, contract and value for money. Another objective is to determine if the formed clusters are related to the demographic profile. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 275 internet subscribers from Metro Manila were surveyed. K-means cluster analysis using the Hartigan-Wong algorithm was performed on the data to generate the clusters. Findings – Results generated four significant clusters, which were named service value expecters, average expecters, low expecters and high expecters. Most of the subscribers are under the high expecters, followed by the service value expecters. The age and income of the subscribers are the profile that can affect the formulation of clusters in the Internet service industry. Those people in the younger age groups can be seen as more demanding, while older people tend to be content with the Internet service. Counter-intuitively, people with higher income seem to be more easily satisfied with Internet service features, while those people with lower income seem to be more demanding. Educational attainment and the number of household members do not have a direct effect on the formulation of clusters of Internet subscribers. Originality/value – This is the first study to use cluster analysis in identifying possible segments of WFH Internet subscribers based on Internet service attributes. Its value is the provision of market segments based on which can be the basis for formulating marketing strategies and policies for the telecommunications industry.

Security at airports represents a major risk exposure. Poorly paid and underappreciated staff are tasked with controlling critical access points to ground and airside facilities. This paper describes a review of security services at a major North American airport, based on interviews conducted with management and personnel of a contracted service provider. It also evaluates service quality, contract compliance and the business processes involved in the delivery of those services. The review identified significant problems with staff turnover, training and performance; all factors that could lead to compromised security. It also examined the value received for money spent on delivering security services, considering their: (i) economy; (ii) efficiency and (iii) effectiveness. While this review was confined to a single airport, it is expected that the methodology adopted, as well as the problems noted, will apply to other aviation facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims at investigating the cost-effectiveness of developing a new type of house, the floating house, as a solution to land scarcity in metropolitan coastal cities. Under value management framework, the "function analysis system technique" diagram was established to identify the functions of land-based and floating houses. Participants with different backgrounds shared their views through the two designed questionnaires, assisting in determining the cost allocation and functional performance levels of the houses. Fuzzy set theory was utilized to convert the collected professional knowledge and public opinions into numerical measurements. The obtained function values disclosed that, despite weaknesses in the conventional living and structural issues, the floating house still shows competitiveness and opportunities in customer attraction, environmental sustainability, and encouraging local tourism. This paper offers the evidence and reference to both practitioners and governments seeking for a better value of the money they invest in future floating house projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research for development (R4D) funding is increasingly expected to demonstrate value for money (VfM). However, the dominance of positivist approaches to evaluating VfM, such as cost-benefit analysis, do not fully account for the complexity of R4D funds and risk undermining efforts to contribute to transformational development. This paper posits an alternative approach to evaluating VfM, using the UK's Global Challenges Research Fund and the Newton Fund as case studies. Based on a constructivist approach to valuing outcomes, this approach applies a collaboratively developed rubric-based peer review to a sample of projects. This is more appropriate for the complexity of R4D interventions, particularly when considering uncertain and emergent outcomes over a long timeframe. This approach could be adapted to other complex interventions, demonstrating that our options are not merely "CBA or the highway" and there are indeed alternative routes to evaluating VfM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – While empirical studies establish the importance of procurement planning in achieving value for money (VfM) in procurement, there is scant evidence demonstrating a link between procurement planning and procurement regulatory compliance, and thus VfM. As a result, this study examined how procurement regulatory compliance can be applied when procurement practitioners in Tanzania seek to maximize VfM through procurement planning. Design/methodology/approach – A cross-sectional research design was adopted from which data were collected once through a structured questionnaire. The structural equation modeling (SEM) and Hayes' PROCESS macro test for mediation analysis were used to analyze the collected data. Findings – Procurement planning has a significant and positive relationship with procurement regulatory compliance (ß = 0.491, p

This study explores the relative importance of epistemic value, value for money and perceived safety in visitors' evaluation of a foreign destination. Based on a sample of 248 international tourists who visited Zanzibar between July 2021 and January 2022, the study shows that the three factors are significantly associated with overall satisfaction, subsequently affecting the visitor's willingness to recommend the destination. However, perceived safety and epistemic value also directly affect the willingness to recommend. Regarding importance, epistemic value is the most important antecedent of the willingness to recommend, while the value for money is the least important. The results imply that as destinations strive to attract international visitors following the pandemic, their marketing communications should emphasize epistemic value, overall satisfaction, and safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a critical interrogation of government-led reform of higher education (HE) in England. Its focus is marketisation, and in particular, the concepts of 'value for money' (VFM), teaching excellence, and students as educational consumers. Hitherto, research on VFM in HE has been largely quantitative in nature and primarily focussed on student perceptions. This qualitative research study contributes to existing knowledge, by comparing the perceptions of students and university lecturers in the social sciences. Undertaken at a Northern university between 2017 and 2019, it highlights key concerns around changing student expectations, managerialism and the potential instrumentalisation of learning and teaching. The issues explored here lend themselves to a broader based study across different types of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and different cognate areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Occupational therapists recommending home modifications in Australia are often required by funding bodies to consider 'value' and 'value for money' (VFM); however, clear guidance on how to define and apply these concepts is not always provided. This paper reports on a qualitative study examining how the concepts of value and VFM are currently understood and operationalised by occupational therapists in Australian home modification practice, with the aim of positively contributing to both policy and practice in this area. Methods: The study utilised constructivist grounded theory to collect and analyse qualitative data from 20 occupational therapists who were currently working across Australia and had professional experience in home modifications. Findings: The grounded theory that was derived from the analysis highlights the unique position that occupational therapists occupy in home modification work as they strive to align the values of different stakeholders to create solutions that all consider to be valuable. In the absence of consistent frameworks or methods for determining value and VFM, evidence also emerged of occupational therapists using a range of individual approaches such as using formal and informal care as metrics, cheapest option approaches, and comparative costing. Conclusion: In addition to a clear need for consistent and transparent approaches to understanding and operationalising VFM in home modifications, there is also a need for further investigation into the value systems that underpin this work. A conceptualisation of occupational therapists as street‐level policy agents has proven useful here as it highlights the position occupational therapists occupy, enacting, making, and, at times, challenging policy in day‐to‐day practice as they work to align the values of the various stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to determine the effect of accountability, transparency, and supervision on the Value for Money concept budget performance at the Gunung Kidul Regency Government. Methodology/Approach: This study uses respondent data derived from the process of distributing questionnaires. Respondents are the Head of Service, Office Treasurer, Head of Finance, and Head of Planning from 24 Regional Apparatus Organizations of Gunung Kidul Regency. The process of data analysis using multiple linear regression with the analytical tool used is SPSS. Findings: The hypothesis proposed in this study is that accountability, transparency, and supervision positively affect the performance of the Value for Money concept budget. The Local governments that apply the principles of accountability, transparency, and good oversight will improve the budget performance process with the Value for Money concept. Practical and Theoretical contribution/Originality: The Regional Government budget can be realized with the principles of economy, effectiveness, and efficiency. The government of Gunung Kidul Regency is expected to increase accountability, transparency, and control to produce good budget performance. Research Limitation: This study has limitations in the level of generalization of research results. This study only measures the influence of the budget with the concept of Value for Money in Gunung Kidul Regency. Each region has different characteristics and conditions, so this research cannot be generalized. Furthermore, research data collection has closed questions so that researchers do not get direct and detailed arguments from respondents as a whole.

Purpose: This study aims to analyze the effect of accountability, transparency, and supervision on value for money-based budget performance in Mojokerto City. Design/methodology/approach: In this study, sampling is carried out using the purposive sampling method. The research sample consists of 51 respondents in regional apparatus organizations in Mojokerto City. The analytical technique used in this study is multiple linear regression analysis. Findings: The results show that transparency and supervision have a significant effect on value for money-based budget performance, while accountability has no significant effect on value for money-based budget performance. Paper type: Research paper

Summary: Background: A key barrier to cervical cancer elimination in China is low human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine uptake, which is limited by supply constraints, high prices, and restriction to two/three-dose schedule. We explored optimal vaccination strategies for maximizing health and economic benefits accommodated to different supply and dose schedules. Methods: We evaluated different HPV vaccine strategies under 4 scenarios with different assumptions about vaccine availability and dose schedules. Each strategy involved different vaccine types, target ages, and modes of delivery. We used a previously validated transmission model to assess the health impact (cervical cancer cases averted), efficiency (number of doses needed to be given to prevent one case of cervical cancer [NND]), and value for money (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio [ICER] and return on investment [ROI]) of different strategies in Chinese females over a 100-year time horizon. All costs are expressed in 2021 dollars. We adopted a societal perspective and discounted quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), costs and benefits by 3% annually for cost-effectiveness analysis and ROI calculation. Findings: In a supply-constrained and on-label use scenario, compared with no vaccination, two-dose routine vaccination of 14-year-olds would be the optimal, cost-saving strategy for a future national program (NNDs: 150–220, net cost saving: $15 164 million–$22 034 million, ROIs: 7–14, depending on vaccine type). If the one-dose schedule recommended by WHO is permitted in China, then reallocating the second dose from the routine cohorts to add a catch-up vaccination at 20-year-olds would be the most efficient strategy (NNDs: 73–107), and would be cost-saving compared with routine one-dose vaccination only (net cost saving: $4127 million–$6035 million, ROIs: 19–37). When supply constraints are lifted, scaling up vaccination in older females to 26 years could further expand the health benefits and still be cost-saving compared to maintaining the optimal vaccination strategy in the supply-constrained context. Interpretation: Our study provides timely evidence for the current and future HPV vaccination strategy planning in China, and may also be of value to other countries with supply and dose restrictions. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences (CIFMS).

The focus of this paper is to examine the status of Value Management (VM) studies in specific construction projects by reviewing 104 relevant articles published from 2001 to 2021. The analysis indicates that the project type, project size, and research theme of VM studies conducted on various construction projects are all significantly correlated. Building projects and large-scale projects are identified as the most favoured subjects of VM studies to date. Meanwhile, researchers are keener on investigating the performance, impacts, and strategy of VM in different construction projects. Based on the status observed, some possible directions for future research are addressed. This paper not only provides evidence to demonstrate VM’s broad applicability, but also serves as a favourable reference for researchers to select research issues and topics with greater freedom to develop necessary VM studies in the construction industry.

The implementation of infrastructure projects is one element that drives economic development. When considering the high costs and complexity of these projects, the importance of analysis is highlighted a little more than traditional value for money when such projects are carried out in a public-private partnership. This article examines the state of the art of research on evaluating public-private partnership performance considering evidence of value for money. For this purpose, a systematic literature review was conducted based on the scientific production available in the Scopus and Web of Science databases. The main contributions of this study consist of presenting (1) a set of papers on performance evaluation that considers VfM as a complement to its evaluation systems, comparatively or inclusively in its analyses; (2) a methodological framework; and (3) guidelines for future research. This study provides insights for developing empirical studies in a wide range of contexts or sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to examine hotel guests’ satisfaction relative to room rates paying attention to the heterogeneity in the scale of satisfaction scores. Design/methodology/approach – This paper studies guests’ post-purchase hotel evaluation using survey data from a sample of 14,879 tourists visiting a Northern Spanish region. This study estimates a Heteroskedastic Ordered Probit model in which both “cognitive” and “emotional” components of satisfaction are modelled. The model allows us to control for heterogeneity in the scale of the latent satisfaction scores. Findings – This paper finds that satisfaction relative to rates (value for money) decreases with expenditure per person and day. Interestingly, this negative relationship mainly holds for those who do not prioritize prices at the time of choosing the hotel. Positive first impressions are positively associated with higher satisfaction. In addition, this study finds that the emotional component of satisfaction increases with hotel quality and hiring a full board, being also greater among women and elderly people. Originality/value – Instead of using an overall measure of satisfaction, this paper uses one that gathers how the tourist assesses satisfaction in relation to cost (value for money).

The Government of Ghana spends approximately seventy percent of its annual budget on the procurement of goods, services, and public works. The Public Procurement Acts (Act 663, and Act, 914) were established to regulate public procurement activities and ensure transparency, accountability, and Value for Money (VFM) in the procurement processes. Contrariwise, the extent of misappropriations of public funds in Ghana by public officials has reached an all-time high. To address this concern, our paper is aimed to develop a model to explain the extent to which Internal Audit Effectiveness (IAE) drives VFM, and Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP). This paper is a cross-sectional survey-based study involving public agencies in Ghana. The population of the study comprised 72 District Assemblies across the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions. Stratified sampling technique has been used to randomly select 200 participants comprising internal auditors, procurement officers, accountants, and finance officers for the study. Smart-PLS software and the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) approach have been used to analyze the survey data, and test the hypotheses of the study. The study has revealed that internal audit competency, internal audit independence, external auditors’ role, and top management support are the main determinants of IAE. Again, our mediation analysis has revealed that IAE drives both VFM and SPP. The results have further shown that an increase in VFM positively affects SPP. These results have implications for the reinforcement of internal audit agency regulations of 2003 (Act 658) and public procurement act 2003 (Act 663) and the amended Act 2016 (Act 914). Again, the results have extended exciting knowledge on the IAE by linking it up with SPP and VFM in a developing country context where such studies still remain fuzzy.

The Harvard Water Program is more than sixty years old. It was directed by an academic Steering Committee consisting of the professors of Government and Political Science, Planning, Economics, and Water Engineering. In 2022 we would add to the notional Steering Committee the professors of Ecology, Sociology and Water Law, calling it the augmented Harvard eutopian approach to the design and operation of Water Resource Systems. We use the Greek word 'eu-topos' to mean 'a good place', figuratively speaking, and 'dys-topos' its antonym, 'not a good place'. By opposing eutopia and dystopia (latin forms) (Utopian literature begins with Thomas More's (1478–1535) fictional socio-political satire "Utopia", written in Latin and published in 1516: "Libellus vere aureus, nec minus salutaris quam festivus, de optimo rei publicae statu deque nova insula Utopia". "A little, true book, not less beneficial than enjoyable, about how things should be in a state and about the new island Utopia" [Wikipedia translation]. He coined the word 'utopia' from the Greek ou-topos meaning 'no place' or 'nowhere'. It was a pun-the almost identical Greek word eu-topos means 'a good place'), we pass judgement on three Irish case studies, in whole and in part. The first case study deals with the dystopian measurement of the land phase of the hydrological cycle. The system components are distributed among many government departments that see little need to cooperate, leading to proposition 1: A call for a new Water Law. The second case study deals with a project to restore a 200 km2 polder landscape to its condition in 1957. The project came to the University with an hypothetical cause of the increased flooding and a tentative solution: dredge the Cashen estuary of its sand, speeding the flow of sluiced water to the sea, and the status quo ante would be restored. The first scientific innovation was the proof that restoration by dredging is impossible. Pumping is the only solution, but it raises disruptive questions that are not covered by Statute. The second important innovation was the discovery in the dynamic water balance, of large leakage into the polders, either around or between sluiced culverts, when the flap valves are nominally closed, impacting both their maintenance and minimization of pumping. Discussions on our findings ended in dystopian silence. Hence proposition 2: Moving towards eutopia may only be possible with a change in the Law. The third case study concerns the protection of Cork City from flooding: riverine, tidal and groundwater. The government's "emerging solution" consists of major physical intervention in the city centre, driven hard against local opposition, as the only possible solution. Two hydro-electric reservoirs upstream were largely ignored as part of a solution because the relevant Statute did not mandate their use for flood control. The Supreme Court has recently overturned this interpretation of the governing Statute. A new theory of flood control with a cascade of reservoirs, dams and weirs is the scientific innovation here. Once more these findings have been greeted by government with dystopian silence. Hence proposition 3: Re-open the design process to find several much better solutions, approximating a eutopian water world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the relationships customer centric measures in wine tasting rooms. Furthermore, moderating role of customer satisfaction in value for money and repurchase intent relationship was examined.The data were collected in wineries in British Columbia, Canada. Analysis was conducted using the partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). In order to test the moderating role of satisfaction, the respondents were divided into two groups of unsatisfied and satisfied customers. The multi-group analysis of PLS-SEM was used to detect possible heterogeneity.The findings show that there is a significant relationship between value for money and repurchase intent. A significant relationship between value for money and repurchase intent was also detected, when satisfaction as a dichotomous variable was present in the model. A moderating role of satisfaction was discovered, where the strength of the relationship between value for money and repurchase intent appeared to decrease with higher levels of satisfaction.This study provides an overview in the triangle relationships between value for money, customer satisfaction and repurchase intent, and how the dichotomous satisfaction construct moderates the value for money and repurchase intent relationship. Surprisingly, the moderating impact was found to be negative and at the same time significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]