UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS

TERM PAPER
POLICY MAKING AND RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT

OMOBI DENNIS OVUOKERIE

COURSE CODE: GRY429

COURSE TITLE: RESOURCE ANALYSIS

LECTURER:

DR. A. O. DARAMOLA
Introduction

Policy making is a deliberate system of principles to guide decisions and achieve rational

outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent, and is implemented as a procedure or protocol.

Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an organization. Policies can assist

in both subjective and objective decision making. Analysis of policy making may be related to all

the research tradition in geography.

Human livelihood is determined by the availability of resources within the environment either

natural or man-made. Resource management is acquiring, allocating and managing the resources,

such as individuals and their skills, finances, technology, materials, machinery and natural

resources required for a project. Resource management ensures that internal and external

resources are used effectively on time and to budget. Resources may be obtained internally from

the host organization or procured from external sources.

Analysis of policy making offers a number of returns. By studying its origin, processes, and

consequences, research provides understanding of the manner in which resources are allocated.

By appreciating the nature of the allocated process, analyst should be able to contribute to

improving the effectiveness of citizen involvement. However, a cautionary note is necessary.

Geographers should approach policy analysis as a means to an end, rather than as an end in itself.

If the geographer is to gain maximum advantage from his skills and expertise, he should treat

policy and decision processes as independent variables which help to account for man-

environment relationships, spatial organization, or regional complexity. If policy and decision

processes are analyzed as dependent variables, then the geographers drift away from his area of

competence and expertise.

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From where and how do the human beings get resources are the important research questions to

understand whether they have regular flow or exhaustive in availability. Increasing demand,

short supply in comparison to demand and its increasing scarcity in extraction and exploitation,

we often faced, are the further issues which determine the availability and utilization of

resources, standard of human life and also frequently give pressure in the surrounding

environment. The other important facets of resource management studies are the level of skill

and power with the people and stakeholders who directly involve in proper utilization and

management. Therefore, the scope of the discipline has to carry these issues and challenges for

the better understanding and sustainability of future survival of human beings, and also to keep

intact the surrounding environment. There are two schools of thought. One is oriented towards

the people (human) centric contextual ground of discourse of ‘resource’ with a view to

combination of opportunities provided by the nature as a resource base and the human demand,

mind, skill, knowledge, culture, society and rules and regulations; and the second is concentrated

on natural resources as a free gifted stocks and its management for regular exploitation. Natural

resources are derived from the environment. Many of them are essential for our survival while

the others are used for satisfying our wants and the rest left as it is. The material world is heavily

dependent on different natural resources. The widely used common definition of natural resource

takes place naturally within environment that exists relatively undisturbed by mankind or

available in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts of biodiversity

and geo-diversity existent in various ecosystems. The variety and quantity of uses of natural

resources have increased at present to such an extent that these were never found before in the

history of mankind. New requirements for various resources in modern society have increased

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the demand for them a thousand fold and have woven them into combinations whose patterns are

constantly changing (Malla and Shrestha, 1983:2).

Natural Resource Management vis-à-vis Resource Management

Natural resource management specifically focuses on a scientific and technical understanding of

resources and ecology and the life-supporting capacity of those resources. Environmental

management is also similar to natural resource. The natural resource management emphasis on

sustainability can be traced back to early attempts to understand the ecological nature of

American rangelands in the late 19th century, and the resource conservation movement of the

same time. This type of analysis coalesced in the 20th century with recognition that

preservationist conservation strategies had not been effective in halting the decline of natural

resources. A more integrated approach was implemented recognizing the intertwined social,

cultural, economic and political aspects of resource management.

Resource management is concerned with allocation of resources and biophysical and

socioeconomic milieu in which resources are or ought to be developed. Such resource allocation

patterns do not result in unnecessary deleterious effects in the biophysical and socioeconomic

systems. Resource allocation should therefore influence the production, consumption and

distribution of resources in a direction consistent with the local, regional or national development

objectives (Omara-Ojungu, 1992:3). It involves controls on the amount, quantity, timing,

availability and the general direction of resource development. Resource management strategies

are designed to promote exploitation, enhancement and restoration of resources.

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Resources management examines strategies and technologies for resource development in order

to sustain economic growth without hampering the environment. In a resource management

context, the term is reserved for substances, organisms and properties of the physical

environment i.e. natural resources. Human beings evaluate natural systems, regarding as

resources only those elements which they have the knowledge and technology to utilize and

which provide desired goods and services. Natural attributes failing to meet these criteria remain

unvalued, ‘neutral stuff’.

Resources Management and Policy Making

There is a growing awareness to the role that natural resources, such as water, land, forests and

environmental amenities, play in our lives. There are many competing uses for natural resources,

and society is challenged to manage them for improving social well-being. Furthermore, there

may be dire consequences to natural resources mismanagement. Renewable resources, such as

water, land and the environment are linked, and decisions made with regard to one may affect the

others. Policy and management of natural resources now require interdisciplinary approaches

including natural and social sciences to correctly address our society preferences. This series

provides a collection of works containing most recent findings on economics, management and

policy of renewable biological resources, such as water, land, crop protection, sustainable

agriculture, technology, and environmental health. It incorporates modern thinking and

techniques of economics and management. Books in this series will incorporate knowledge and

models of natural phenomena with economics and managerial decision frameworks to assess

alternative options for managing natural resources and environment.

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Some investigators from many disciplines have studied policy making relative to resource

management. The relevance of policy models for environmental management in general has

attracted attention. Some have concentrated upon the role of information and communications in

policy making, while others have concentrated upon the influence of politics. Attention has been

given to the relationship between administrative structures and policy making, as well as to

developing general analytical frameworks. These aspects all appear in the following

investigations which emphasize the nature of policy and decision processes.

Prescriptive studies

Geographers have used prescriptive models as standard against which to appraise management

practices. The process commences with a statement of desirable goals and identification of

specific problems. Subsequent stages include consideration of constraints (time, money, and

personnel), delineation of potential solutions, and formulation of alternative strategies. Appraisal

of alternatives, selection of a solution and hindsight review following implementations.

Descriptive models

Geographers have devoted more attention to descriptive than prescriptive models, and White

(1961, 1963) developed the basic framework which has influenced most subsequent

investigators. Based largely upon his natural hazards research, White sought to formulate a

model which would help to describe the actual choices made in resource management. These

choices were then contrasted with the theoretical range of choice to determine if and how man

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could make better use of, or adjustments to the environment. White identifies six aspects

associated with decision making.

 The first was the perceived range of choice, or the range of resource use recognized by

the manager, whether that individual was a lay person, government official, or politician.

 The second involved resource estimates, or the judgements about the quantity and quality

of the physical resources. Estimates could be based on scientific inventory and appraisal

and/or upon casual and highly biased perceptions.

 Available technology was the third aspect, as it influenced future demand, production,

and combination of use.

 The fourth aspect incorporated expected economic efficiency, normally expressed with

discount rates and benefit-cost ratios.

 A spatial linkage, or the relation of a given use to other resource uses in contiguous or

functionally related areas, was the fifth concern.

 The sixth aspect, social guides, was considered to modify each of the preceding five. As

White explained them, social guides incorporated the customs, attitudes, education, and

organizations that characterized a society.

The purpose of this policy is to articulate the framework that governs the Integrated Budget,

including planning, allocation and management of the corresponding financial resources. As

such, this policy covers the full financial cycle of the management of resources. This policy

provides the reader with an overarching understanding of resource management, including roles

and responsibilities of individual units. It also includes references to the policies, guidance and

tools that are applicable in specific cases.

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REFERENCES