Answer the following questions regarding "Contemporary Regulatory Policy":

1. How can regulatory institutions be designed to be effective in the long run? Explain.
2. When does regulatory policy serve the general interest rather than narrow special interests? Explain.
3. What factors determine the public credibility of a regulatory regime? Explain.

 

A regulatory institution is industrial policy formulation body with main objective of lawfulness (compliance), fairness and perceptions of fairness, and minimal economic impact. Regulation is the proportionate response to problems using quality assurance approach.

To meet the above universal objective, a regulatory body must be a organized and structured system that has the following characteristics;

• Responsive ; Has regulatory system that is flexible to emerging situations with ability to contain and correct any product safety lapse that has occurred, minimizing the health effects.
• Process and outcome orientation; The institution should have a system that is focused on Quality assurance on the process and outcome of the goods or services
• Monitoring capacity; The institution should establish a system of risk analysis with preventive and correctional measures
• Independent ; a regulatory institution should exclusively be an independent institution free from external influence.

2) A regulatory policy serve the general interest rather than narrow special interests in the following circumstances ;

i) When the consumer is not well defined

ii) If the product has a low rate of risk of occurrence with low negative impact

iii) When all the producers are targeted

iv) when regulating the use of a product which is used as a raw material for may consumer goods.

3) Public Credibility of the regulatory system is the level of trust that member of the public has to the institution in terms of its effectiveness. The contributing factors are;

i) Comprehensiveness; Public tend to trust a institution that provide solutions in all the prevailing problems regarding quality assurance.

ii)Consistency; A regulatory institution that is always work within the law has high level of trust.

iii) Transparency; a regulatory system should be anti corruption in all its services

iv) Public interest; A system that is more align to the safety of the public is more eligible to be trusted than one that takes the stands of the producers

v) Competent leadership; Clearly defined roles that are performed by qualified officers.