What determines energy tax rates in European Union countries?

The purpose of the article is to study the current problems of investment processes in the conditions of transformation of the Ukrainian economy. The relevance of the research was due to significant changes in political, economic and social processes of Ukraine. The research was conducted using general scientific and special methods and methods of research, such as theoretical analysis and synthesis, methods of grouping, modeling, comparison, as well as methods of systematization and scientific synthesis, in particular on materials: Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, research conducted by the Doing Business Group of the World Bank, rating of Moody’s Investors Service, rating of Global Competitiveness Index 2017/2018 and of European Business Association. The most actual factors of influence of political, economic, criminal and legislative processes on investment potential of Ukraine were analyzed. It was defined that the economic of Ukraine is characterized by the deficiency of capital, progressive technologies, mutual integration of scientific and industrial spheres, developed management and high-tech production and the recommendations to create favorable conditions for investment were made. Positive changes were noted in creating a legal framework for the promotion, protection of investments and intensification of investment activity in Ukraine.

This study aimed to examine whether government financial assistance influences the financial performance of state-owned enterprises. Commercial state-owned enterprises in South Africa that are listed under the Public Financial Management Act during the post-apartheid era from 1995 to 2017 were sampled. Government guarantees were measured as a dummy variable, while financial performance was measured by accounting measure: return on assets (ROA). Endogeneity issues were addressed, and data analysis was performed on an unbalanced panel using the two-step system GMM. The empirical evidence indicated that support by the government in the form of guarantees and subsidies has a significant negative effect on the financial performance of state-owned enterprises. This is an indication that continued government bailouts to poor performing state-owned enterprises exacerbates their poor financial performance and encourages these enterprises to become too reliant on government assistance, burdening the national fiscus.

Acknowledgments
The author gratefully acknowledges the National Research Foundation of South Africa for the research grant and Dr Farai Kwenda for his supervision during the study.

The term Human Resource Planning (HRP) can be used to achieve organizational objectives by understanding and planning for employees’ needs in the short, medium and long term in order to deliver desired results. Little research that has been conducted on HRP and most are from the private sector and none to be found in the public sector. This study was conducted in the public institution in South Africa. The literature consulted provides an overview that HRP solves current and future organizational problems by ensuring that the right people are in the right place at the right time. This is achieved by analyzing the current profile of the workforce and comparing it with future needs so that gaps, which need to be filled, can be identified. The paper intended to investigate the extent to which employees are well-resourced to perform their duties in centres of the municipality to the community. The investigation used mixed methods in its data collection. 45 participants participated in responding the self-administered questionnaire and seven participated in one-on-one interviews. The study found that half of employees who are working for the centres of the municipality includes supervisors who lack educational attainments, as they hold only grade 12 and no development was initiated. The study recommended the whole the municipality to establish and implement a promotion policy. All necessary equipment and tools provided were insufficient, as required by the Act, to provide all services to the public.