Keymon

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Against the backdrop of the recommencing of the government's defence rearmament programme, construction has begun on the future frigate fleet of the Keymonite Navy. Amidst the approval of funding from the Defence Appropriations Committee, the Defence Material Agency has awarded Keymon-based shipbuilding company, Flacher-Grünig AG a contract to build twelve (12) frigates for the Keymonite Navy at an estimated cost of around 10 billion KED. The programme, which had been originally set for commencement decades prior, had been shelved amidst numerous administrative and cost concerns during the reign of the caretaker governments following the SDP temporary withdrawal from Keymonite politics. At the inaugural steel cutting ceremony at the company's shipyard in Keymon, CEO of Flacher-Grünig AG Hugo Risch stated that the company had entered the bidding process and had undergone numerous regulatory checks to ensure it could compete among other international players. Expressing his gratitude to the Defence Material Agency for choosing the company for the project, Risch stated that the company intends on completing the project ahead of schedule and under budget, utilising new and advanced technologies to reduce the regular costs associated with wide-scale construction projects of this nature. The company will construct 12 of the proposed Benedetti-class frigate, named after the nation's first female, Ammuntagnu Prime Minister. The ships are expected to operate within the Mad Dog Ocean alongside the destroyers currently under order from a Dorvish naval shipyard. According to Minister of National Defence Ursula Kieffer, the frigates and destroyers when combined would allow for the Keymonite Navy to enhance its at-sea capabilities. She stated that in its current state, the Keymonite Navy was in no shape, form capable of securing the nation's economic exclusion zone, with vessels from the Civil Guard fulfilling this function in the interim. The Benedetti-class is an extremely flexible design concept originating out of Kazulia's Pennington-Reid. According to the company's website: "The class is based on a frigate-like design, but built with an internal multipurpose deck (flex deck) and a stern vehicle ramp. The ships can serve as command platforms for a staff of 75 persons (naval or joint staff) with a containerized command and control centre, transport and base of operations for a company-sized landing force of some 200 men with vehicles"

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With the government's digital transformation agenda now entering its phase whereby it would seek to transform the private sector and the future of work within Keymon, the government is seeking as its first move to transform the way financial transactions are handled. Currently, financial transactions are primarily done through physical cash, wherein persons exchange a physical polymer note for items/services on sale. Having identified e-payments and e-commerce as the first phase of the march towards the digital economy, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications as the line ministry responsible for the effective operationalisations of e-payments and e-commerce solutions throughout the private sector has launched the nation's first e-payments system following a deep collaboration with the Ministry of Public Administration, numerous international development organisations and private sector entities. Coined, KeyPay, the application allows for users to make payments via their mobile phones, tablets and computers. It also allows for users to utilise e-coupons, pay for bus fares, taxis fares and other modes of public transport. A collaboration between the numerous banks within Keymon have made it possible for the application to be available to the banks' customers. "Now it is possible to buy products from the farmer's market by simply swiping your phone on a scanner," explained Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications Dr Victoria Osterloh. Minister Osterloh stated that the KeyPay system had been built largely from the payment system used by citizens to make transactions with government services. She explained that KeyPay will replace the citizen-to-government e-payments application altogether and would allow for seamless cashless transactions well outside the remit of citizen-to-government services. "The government has formally entered the e-payments market." She said. Minister of Commerce and Industry Jeannot Wolff stated that the government had no intentions of establishing a monopoly of e-payments, explaining that there was considerable room for private sector entities and the public sector to compete. It was with that understanding that the Minister also announced the government's e-payments tax credit. He explained that the government wanted to ensure that there was a market for e-payments and e-commerce and numerous players existing within it. The e-payments tax credit would seek to encourage businesses to transition towards e-payments and would also seek to encourage entrepreneurs to develop new and innovative e-payments applications. Minister Wolff stated that the tax credit would be similar to the government's automation tax credit which aims to encourage companies to integrate automation into their operations. It is important to note that Minister of Finance and Economic Development Dr Evan Birchmeier, Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications Dr Victoria Osterloh and Minister of Labour and Social Development Dr Finnian Leuzinger are currently moving to bring about wide-ranging reforms to automation and the automation tax credit in the upcoming economic review.

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Similar to the industrial revolution experienced by numerous states in Artania, Seleya, Majatra and Dovani, the integration of technology and the workforce has ushered in a major transformation of national economies and has had a profound impact on productivity and participation. The use of digital technologies/the digital transformation of agriculture remains one of the major pillars in the development of a "digital economy". Digital technologies, similar to their older, mechanised counterparts, have the potential to transform the lives of farmers and the agricultural value chain in profound ways. By enhancing productivity and increasing output, digital technologies within agriculture have the potential to address numerous issues including food insecurity and hunger. Minister of State for Digital Transformation Catherine Reuter believes that if we were to step back and view the economy as a whole, a digital transformation of agriculture can be far-reaching in terms of its impact on the national economy. She explained that similar to the experiences of the public sector transformation, the digital transformation of agriculture will lead to greater efficiency and accountability. Drawing the example of the inefficient distribution of government support to farmers, Minister Reuter championed that an agricultural sector with a foundation firmly planted in the use of digital technologies will virtually eliminate inefficient and inequitable grant/assistance distribution overnight. Having established Keymon's agricultural sector as one where the government does not have an active role within (i.e.) there are no state-owned agricultural company/agri-business firms, the government has established itself as an enabler, seeking to spur development within the sector through strategic interventions be it through policy reform, the expansion of physical infrastructure or incentives. Minister Reuter stated that the digital transformation of agriculture will not see increased government intervention in the form of a direct hand in the business of the various farmers of the industry but would continue on its path as an enabler of growth. Through the Agricultural Development Bank, the government hopes an enact its agenda for the transformation of agriculture, recognising that although the numerous private sector companies will be allowed to conduct their own affairs within the industry, the government remains the arm responsible for its operationalisation.

Having boosted the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB's) budget from 30 million KED to around 1 Billion KED, Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries Joël Kemmer explained that the agency, with assistance from the Ministry of Public Administration, the Minister of Finance and Economic Development and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication, the agency designated to oversee the transformation agenda as the implementation arm of the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries. Among the products proposed by the ABD, a national registry of farmers within the nation including information such as the size of the farm, the number of animals present within the farm and its location; the digitisation of the national seed bank to allow for greater accountability on the types of seedlings within the possession of the government and the establishment of municipal seed banks to allow for greater food security; the development of an e-commerce platform to allow for farmers to sell their produce outside of the farmer's market; digitisation of municipal government cold-storage facilities. One of the major problems associated with agriculture within Keymon is the lack of space to do so. The nation's mountainous terrain is a natural hindrance to mega farmers or large farms, thus relegating agriculture to small/medium-sized operations. Minister Kemmer believe that farmers can enhance productivity and optimise space via vertical farming techniques. According to the Minister, vertical farming which integrated digital technologies with agriculture would allow for farmers to grow crops in horizontal silos, allowing for greater output without the need/use for large farms. Managing Director of the Agricultural Development Bank Mathias Winterberger stated that the bank had been working with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development on crafting numerous loan financing arrangements to encourage farmers to transform their territorial-based farmers into vertical farms. It is expected that the bank will make an announcement on such a programme in the coming months.

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For much of its existence, automation has been a major disruptor of economic activity and has been talked up as bringing about a major transformation in the way humans work. Whilst this may be true, a constant in its development and progress remains the resistance of humans to see its full potential. Whilst many view automation as a major transformation for work, others view its potential integration into the workplace as a sign of the supposed obsoleteness of humans as opposed to machines. Championing automation as a force for evil, labour unions rile against the apparatus, stating that its introduction into the workplace is usually accompanied by periods of rising unemployment, explaining that employers continue to send long-time employees into the unemployment lines, destroying lives and livelihoods at the flick of a wrist. It is important to note that the cries of the labour union are not founded on misconception and misunderstanding but are grounded in peer-viewed facts. In a recent study by the University of Keymon, Münberg it was found that companies that saw a major pivot towards automation in the workplace, more than half of the companies employees were fired or forced into retirement as automation via factory robots and other automated machines doubled the productivity of companies without needing salaries, benefits or any of the rights and privileges enjoyed by workers within Keymon, but despised by employers. Whilst it may have been easier to rile against greed within corporate Keymon, graduates from the University of Keymon, Münberg commissioned a second study into the relationships between capitalism and automation and socialism and automation. The study's hypothesis notes that in a socialist model of automation, there is a clear understanding of the need to preserve the relationship between workers and machines on a level whereby the workers come out on top, explaining that in contrast, the capitalist model of automation would usually place profits ahead of the well-being of the employee and thus companies/businesses with this model in mind would faster grasp at full automation than a blended approach. One of the chief architects of the study, Dr Bern Randegger, a political economist explained that to strike a balance between automation and workers wherein both entities can co-exist without one side seeing its untimely demise, both the government and companies must seriously take into consideration the Labour-Leisure trade-off.

He explained the labour-leisure trade-off as the scenario wherein workers substitute leisure time for labour/work in the instances where wages exceed a certain level. According to Dr Randegger, in many circumstances the capitalist model of automation is the most widespread as employers virtually view the advent of automation and machine learning as a means of circumventing the employer-employee relationship, thus opening up avenues for him/her (the employer) to replace employees in the long-term. With the labour/leisure trade-off in mind, automation, according to Dr Randegger could bring numerous benefits to both employer and employee once the right balance is struck. "The important part in this is striking the right balance. Whilst there are competing interests within the workplace; for employers their interests in centred squarely on productivity and profit whilst for the employee there are primarily motivated by their wages and the relative environment they work within. When there isn't a balance between those two conflicting ideas, productivity and profits suffer alongside wages and well-being." Dr Randegger stated that there is a possibility that by promoting automation within the workplace, there can be a balance struck wherein humans remain employed and machines are introduced onto the factory floor. He stated that in that instance major changes in how the government, business and the country views labour will begin to manifest themselves. He created the following scenario: "The Wise Company wants to introduce automation into their mattress factory to enhance productivity. Instead of firing employees, the number of employees remains the same, but mechanical arms are introduced to aid workers in the more laborious and time-consuming tasks of making a mattress. Now with mechanical arms aiding workers in moving, lifting and packaging mattresses, the company's productivity either remains the same or increase albeit to a small degree. With the company's productivity increased via automation, the CEO of the Company (Mr Bert Mattressberg) can reduce the hours his human workers spend at the factory. In view of the added productivity, there is no real incentive for Mr Mattressberg to reduce the number of employees at the company and replace them with machines in what many call "full automation" as (1) studies show full automation has a tendency to reduce productivity compared to when humans and robots work together and (2) the company gains productivity by reducing the number of hours at work and pairing humans and robots in a neatly managed balancing act.

Some critics have hit back at Dr Randegger's scenario stating that in the instances where automation has been introduced in a "near perfect balance", unemployment still rose as companies primarily hired individuals to undertake low-level jobs such as moving and packaging the mattress and with mechanical arms doing that job, individuals find themselves redundant and are thus fired. Dr Randegger retorted stating that although unemployment will still be experienced, its impact will have been reduced and that there needs to be a clear path for low-level employees replaced by automation to find themselves in meaningful employment opportunities. He notes that although the idea of retraining employees is hard in nations where the average citizen does not possess advanced education, in nations where citizens possess advanced degrees/qualifications, the time to retrain said employees are shorter as a base understanding/general knowledge is hammered into almost every degree course. "Before the government even contemplates seriously pushing for businesses to introduce automation into the workplace on a scale similar to the scenario I drew up, a major transformation of the National Apprenticeship Programme is needed. It has to be shifted away from simply placing people alongside private sector entities towards tailor-maid, high impact retraining programmes which would allow a mattress packager to be retrained in accounting or masonry or any other skill the business/country will need in the future."

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Amidst a decline in global trade and economic activity, the global economy seems to be on the move once more. The global economic engines of Dorvik, Yingdala, Deltaria and Lourenne are restarting, sending global logistics into a flurry. At home, rumours of the central government gearing up for a major shift in the nation's foreign policy and major trade announcements have sent logistics companies scrambling to reorganise and reorient their operations to serve what many believe could be a global trade boom. Mad Dog Shipping (MDS), the Keymon-based global shipping and logistics corporation has announced its intention to restructure the companies operations to better serve the potential trade boom. Speaking at a seminar on global logistics, CEO of MDS Nathan Tschiemer stated that the company would be making an about-face and would cease its previous actions of focusing much of its attention on a singular geographic area. Instead, the company intends on focusing its operations on a bi-hemispheric basis. Tschiemer stated that the company had no intentions of concentration resources to serve the economic activity of one hemisphere stating that growth was everywhere. With the company's shipyard in Kordusia, Dorvik complete orders have already been approved for the company to construct 20 Kordusia-class super containers are promised in the initial agreement made between the company in state officials in Dorvik. Stating that should growth intensify within the world's major economies and global trade continues to rebound, freight prices could potentially increase as the company, similar to other global logistics companies is currently rushing to expand its storage infrastructure amidst some decades of inactivity and general neglect said an official from the company's communications office. According to Tschiemer, the resurgence of the Majatran Alliance and a potential revival of a similar regional integration movement in Artania are sending global trade projects into a positive swing. The Kordusia-class, when completed will be the company's largest container ship to date and will replace the company's ageing fleet of Stocker-class container ships. Alongside giving the company additional tonnage, the new vessels would enhance range as the company intends on utilising more fuel-efficient engines manufactured in Dorvik. Although Tschiemer has stated that the company intends on expanding its operations to see more than 50 container ships enters its fleet, he notes that the company's current financial situation prevents such an ambitious move. However, he notes that should the company see success in the coming months and years, such an ambition might be within reach for the company.

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The question of healthcare reform has been one which the central government, particularly the SDP-led central government has largely avoided for much of its time in power. Healthcare, aside from the economy and domestic security, remains one of the most contentious issues within the political domain, as throughout the numerous campaigning seasons during the previous elections, its importance has been underscored by waves of citizens expressing their concern for the fact that amidst the government's major pushes to reform the economy and other key parts of society, healthcare remained largely untouched. Some political analysts view the hesitancy by previous administrations to address the situation of healthcare keymon as one to be fueled primarily with the fear of damaging the social fabric of the nation, recognising the importance of the issue to citizens. One of the foremost proposals by successive governments has been a turn to privatise healthcare to reduce the issue's burden on the national economy. With a clear understanding of the importance of a transformational healthcare policy and a healthcare system capable of tremendous change, Minister-President Dr Caroline Friedemann commissioned both a study and a cabinet-appointed committee to consider and report on the government's options for reform within the national healthcare sector. Earlier this morning at a press conference at the Cabinet Offices in Munberg, Chairman of the Healthcare Reform Committee and Professor of Health Administration at the University of Keymon (Osterstätten) Dr Alexander Hiestand unveiled the conclusion of the committee's work and the findings of the study. Speaking to the committee's work and the study on a joint standing, Dr Hiestand stated that both the committee and the study had come to the conclusion that although the privatisation of healthcare had its benefits in the area of cost and administrative expenses, the long-term outlook for privatised healthcare within Keymon was unstable. He drew examples of privatised healthcare systems throughout the known world, drawing inferences as to their long-term failures to address systemic problems and inadvertently add to mounting socioeconomic strain and inequality. Instead, Dr Hiestand stated that the government should remain with the current single-payer healthcare system, albeit with major changes in its structure and operations.

Concurrently, healthcare within Keymon is primarily governed by the government via a sub-department of the Ministry of Public Health. Unlike other territories, healthcare is not decentralised to counties/municipalities nor is the administration of healthcare separate from the crafting of national healthcare policy. The Healthcare Reform Committee recommended that the central government begin the process of decentralising healthcare either to municipalities or to entities separate/independent of government interference. Dr Hiestand notes that the administration of healthcare within Keymon remains open to political interference as it remains under the domain of the Ministry of Public Health. He stated that although the incumbent Minister of Public Health Dr Arnold Scholtes has demonstrated his competence, he worries for the future where an opportunist Minister of Public Health may begin to influence the quality and accessibility of healthcare by interfering in the administration of healthcare. "Similar to justice, there is a reason why the Minister of Justice does not play a role in the administration of justice. The room for political interference in the administration of healthcare is concerning." Dr Hiestand said. Adding detail to the committee's recommendation of decentralised healthcare, Dr Hiestand explained that in the case of decentralising healthcare to municipal bodies, although the central government would remove itself from the equation, retreating to its responsibility for the development of healthcare policy, the politics of municipal bodies could find itself slipping into the conversation in a similar manner, virtually replacing the potential interference of the central government in the administration of healthcare with local governments/municipal bodies. Dr Hiestand stated that he had preferred a system wherein the administration of healthcare was kept separate from the government as independent entities largely responsible for the administration of healthcare within a given geographical area. Coined Regional Healthcare Authorities, Dr Hiestand envisioned that said authorities will be responsible for the administration of healthcare, particularly as it pertains to the maintenance of hospital infrastructure, the salaries of staff, the maintenance of ambulances and other associated vehicles, the governing of local pharmacies. According to Dr Hiestand, the regional healthcare authorities would be self-sufficient, granted they be allowed to maintain their own budgets albeit with significant oversight from the central government and with the ability to invest a portion of its budget into a trust to aid in financing the authority's operations after an assessment by the central government.

Speaking at a press conference later in the afternoon, Minister of Public Health Dr Arnold Scholtes stated that the central government intends on undergoing the process of reforming healthcare within Keymon with the proposals of the Healthcare Reform Committee in mind. According to the Minister, the central government intends on pursuing the path of the regional health authorities as proposed by the committee. The Minister explained that the government intends on introducing an omnibus healthcare amendment to bring about the changes necessary to see the creation of Regional Health Authorities within Keymon. "The government proposes the creation of the Northern, Central and Southern Regional Health Authority. As proposed by the committee, the regional health authorities will be responsible for the administration of healthcare in almost every aspect and due to the strong arguments made by Dr Hiestand and career hospital administrator and surgeon Dr Liliane Thimmesch in favour of the regional health authorities being near financial independent, provisions are expected to be made for health trusts to be formed with oversight from a special committee of the Chamber of Deputies and portfolio reviews by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. Speaking on their general structure, according to Minister Scholtes, the regional health authorities are to be governed by a board of directors and chairman, with operations being placed at the foot of the Principal Medical Officer (PMO) of the Health Authorities.

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In a nation where gross productivity is on the rise, the demand for food in more accessible ways is becoming a pressing issue. Wherein citizens of the digital transformation agenda seek to see in benefits not only through its interactions with the government but its interactions with almost every facet of the modern economy, the ease of access to commodities remains in high demand. Despite the issues surrounding productivity within agriculture, there is a growing demand for locally produced agriculture. With the government's intention to transform agriculture through digital transformation, the creation of municipal agricultural e-commerce platforms could be the first major step in the realisation of the government's plans. Speaking at a joint press conference at the Cabinet Offices in Münberg, Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries Joël Kemmer, Minister of State for Local Government Jean-Claude Nilles and Minister of State for Digital Transformation Catherine Reuter announced that the central government through the Central Digital Service (CDS), had launched a programme to create agribusiness e-marketplaces for municipal governments to encourage farmers and other agribusiness companies within their respective municipalities to shift towards an online platform. Minister Kemmer explained that with the government and the Agricultural Development Bank seeking to render significant amounts of support to agribusinesses throughout the country, the need for municipal agribusiness e-commerce marketplaces comes increasing important as a potential avenue for revenue among farmers and entrepreneurs. Minister Reuter believes that the development of decentralised, yet interconnected e-commerce marketplaces for agricultural products will lend itself to increased opportunities and greater market access by farmers and entrepreneurs. She explained that concurrently, farmers are mainly restricted by geography/location, meaning that a farmer in Oftzach may not be able to see his/her products be sold in markets in Lenzsoix, thus forcing him/her to restrict his/her business to Oftzach, thus stifling potential growth. Minister Nilles notes that the e-commerce marketplaces are not be viewed as an attempt by the national government to replace physical farmer's markets but to allow for an alternative platform to be available for those who may not see success in the farmer's market.

Minister Reuter sought to explain the logistics of the numerous e-commerce marketplaces expected to come online in the coming months. The first component of the system is collection/transportation. According to the Minister, transportation will be primarily managed through cooperation between the municipal bodies and local transportation companies. The buyer/customer pays for the item online, they are granted the option to choose from their local transportation companies and thus pay the fee associated with transport as well. Should they choose to decline transportation, the buyer/customer will be given the ability to collect the product at the farm itself. Another component of the system is accessibility. Although the government does not expect every farmer or agribusiness entrepreneur to have access to personal computers yet, it is known to the government that almost every person within Keymon around 98% have access to cellphones, cellular data or free wifi. The e-commerce marketplaces being built out by the Central Digital Service has a heavy focus on mobile use, thus increasing accessibility. Another component of the system is safety standards. Recognising that the government is pushing to encourage the development of said platforms and their use by the wider population, safety and food quality standards would remain extremely important to the operation of the marketplaces. Prior to posting products for sale on the platform, farmers and agribusinesses must meet criteria pertaining to food safety and quality, as failure could do so could cause an investigation by the municipal health department, the seizure of the farmer/agribusiness' produce and his/her suspension from the platform. According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the platforms will also adhere to consumer protection guidelines, warning that attempts to mislead buyers/consumers could lead to more server sanctions including fines and/or imprisonment. Although the development of regulations pertaining to the activities will be a joint collaboration between the central government and municipal bodies, the maintenance of the platforms will be largely the responsibility of the municipal bodies with technical assistance being readily available through the Central Digital Service.

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Although it is safe to say that the Keymonite economy has been transformed, Minister of Finance and Economic Development Dr Andrea Bachmann believes that the mechanism by which economic development is delivered must be reformed to better serve the people of Keymon and to ensure holistic economic development. Speaking at a seminar at the Centre for Economic Policy in Münberg, Dr Bachmann stated that the "trickle-down economic development" of the past must come to an end and local government reform alongside breathing air into municipal/canton levels of economic development must be ushered in if the foundation of Keymon's economic system were to withstand global pressure. Pointing to the government's economic stimulus package, Dr Bachmann stated that the proposal lays out key objectives for both the central government and municipal/cantonal governments in the pursuit of decentralised economic development. The proposal includes investments into energy, digital transformation and community development. Outside of the four major cities of Keymon, economic development has been considerably slow, owing to the top-down economics of previous administrations including the SDP. The result of what seems to be decades if not centuries of deindustrialization and deep urbanisation is an eroded foundation for rural development. The large factories and mega-farms of the past have either collapsed or shifted their focus on the major cities, taking with them employment opportunities as well as the human capital of many of these rural towns/communes. As the nation's economic development had been hinged on the four major cities, young persons moved from their rural communes in pursuit of employment opportunities, chasing the very jobs their parents and grandparents had once held. It is easy to attribute this dilemma to the new economy and concentration of employment opportunities, capital and investment around the major cities. The tendency for previous administrations to let slip the economic security of the municipal/cantons has contributed to their erosion, with many municipal/cantonal councils teetering on the edge of economic collapse were it not for the significant amounts of taxation and disbursements from the central government keeping the lights on in many rural communities.

As the co-line minister responsible for economic development alongside the Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications and the Minister of the Interior, Dr Bachmann believes that she has a legal obligation to bring about a major shift in the structure of Keymon's economic system to allow for greater municipal/cantonal economic growth and to assist said entities in becoming more independent of government support. One of the major components of the government's proposed economic stimulus is a new rural development policy for Keymon. As mentioned prior, the economic insecurity of the various cantons is clear evidence of an inefficient rural development policy or the lack thereof. For decades, Bürgermeisters (Mayor) and Kantonsbürgermeister (Cantonal Mayor) have called for a complete reformation of the way in which municipalities access funding for projects, stating that the process is "cumbersome" and "demoralising". Bürgermeister of Affolmôtier, Robert Kirsch notes that without reform to the way in which municipalities and cantons access funding and grants for economic development, any attempt at decentralised economic development would fail as new systems would attempt to operate on an unstable foundation. Dr Bachmann underscored the importance of the government's fiscal stimulus, stating it will change the way in which the central government interacts with local governments and would also change the way in which economic development occurs within Keymon. Dr Bachmann notes that during the consultation period prior to the bill's proposal, one of the major concerns among municipal and cantonal councils was that economic development programmes and proposals made on the local level would be side-lined by directives from the central government. Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications, Dr Judith Irminger stated that municipal and cantonal governments are more aware of the needs and aspirations of the citizenry than the central government and thus the idea of sidelining their economic development proposals for national directives would be largely irresponsible. "Although we do not maintain a federal system within Keymon, this government believes that the municipalities and cantons are capable of greater economic independence. The decentralisation argument has moved into the local government arena."

Speaking to the specifics of the economic stimulus agenda, Dr Bachmann stated that the government intends on (for the interim), treating municipal bodies differently as compared to their metropolitan counterparts. She explained that prior to now, municipal and cantonal councils competed with the cities of Lenzsoix, Münberg, Oftzach and Osterstätten for funding in numerous areas including infrastructure, digital transformation and energy, which resulted in the municipal bodies losing out on important funding/grant opportunities due to reduced bargaining power and the tendency for successive governments to ignore the lack of growth/development in those areas. Minister-President Dr Béatrice Schneider caused the creation of a new portfolio underneath the Ministry of the Interior to deal specifically with matters pertaining to rural development. Incoming Minister of State for Local Government and Rural Development Alina Krähenbühl is a public policy analyst and former Secretary-General of the Ministry of Public Administration and will replace Kevin Kämpfer. Speaking to the media following her appointment, Minister Krähenbühl stated that the central government intends on easing the process related to gaining access to funding for programmes and projects by municipal governments. She explained that as it pertains to municipal bodies being treated separately, the central government intends on crafting funding exclusive to municipal bodies, noting that the aforementioned major cities would not have access to such funding. "Once economic development within these bodies manifests themselves into greater economic security, we can begin to wean these bodies off of subsidies and national funding mechanisms. When asked as to whether the plans for greater economic development among municipal bodies would contradict the government's statements on wanted greater fiscal responsibility among governing bodies, Minister Bachmann stated that the central government does not intend on allowing for municipal bodies to run large deficits and undergo inefficient programmes, noting that Minister Krähenbühl would be responsible for overseeing such a mandate.

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As the government continues with the development and implementation of its plans for the digital economy, the inaccessibility of broadband data or the lack thereof in rural communities continues to stunt the digital economy's growth and development within communities outside of the free cities. Broadband, similar to electricity and water, is now essential to life within Keymon as it is imperative that should the digital economy manifest itself, citizens and businesses regardless of their geographic locations will need unfettered access to a reliable internet connection to carry out essential tasks such as e-payments, education, healthcare and other essential services. The Office of Communications and Regulation, in its latest report on internet accessibility, estimates that around 14-20 percent of Keymonite citizens aren't able to access affordable, high-speed internet for numerous reasons mainly due to a lack of high-speed broadband infrastructure. This lack of high-speed internet infrastructure within rural communities is slowly manifesting itself as an equity issue as citizens residing within the free cities and environs enjoy the benefits of high-speed broadband internet but those residing within the rural countryside are often shut out from participating in the nation's digital transformation. Seeking to prevent the situation from evolving into an equity issue for the central government, Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications Dr Judith Irminger, announced in a recent statement that the government intends on making significant investments into rural broadband infrastructure, stating that the development of high-speed internet access within rural communities has been a priority for the new government since it initially entered office a few months prior. With telecommunications within Keymon being largely subsidised for low-income families, Dr Irminger stated that the central government was not truly concerned about affordability moreso the inability to access services in the first instance via a lack of infrastructure. According to the Minister, the central government intends on incentivising private-sector telecommunications companies and state-owned telecommunications company TeleKEY to expand into areas without sufficient broadband infrastructure. Although there are rumours of a potential restructuring of TeleKEY in the pipes, Minister Irminger stated that the company would have to play a leading role in working with private sector ISPs in expanding into rural communities via TeleKEY's infrastructure. Much of the infrastructure development will be primarily focused on fibre-optic deployment in anticipation of the potential introduction of 5G technology into Keymon sometime in the future. However, for now, SMEs and citizens within these rural communities are expected to benefit from increased access and higher internet speeds once the government's plans within this area has been completed.

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For much of its modern economic history, the manufacturing sector has played the most important role in Keymon's economic development. Established initially as the foundation of the modern Keymonite economy, the manufacturing sector has been a key source of employment and opportunities among citizens and can easily be attributed to pulling the nation out of economic ruin following the global economic downturn. But for all its marked importance, manufacturing and Keymon's ability to compete against established manufacturing powers had been gradually eroding over the past decades. With little to no investment in enhancing the capacity and general productivity of the nation's handful of large-scale manufacturers and with little attention being given to the nation's small and medium-sized enterprises, the once economically important keymonite manufacturing sector is but a shell of its former self. As the economy transitioned towards digital transformation, firm plans had not been set into motion to diversify the nation's manufacturing away from niches. Traditionally, keymon's manufacturing sector has produced low-level trade items such as beverages, foodstuff and a handful of machine tools. For a nation's manufacturing capacity to grow, there must be consistency both in the established practices and movement in terms of becoming involved in new areas. The lack of diversification within the nation's manufacturing sector can thus be attributed to its demise. Aside from the issues surrounding a lack of diversification within manufacturing, there remain significant considerations for labour and workforce. For much of its history, the manufacturing sector's ability to compete against established manufacturing powers such as Dorvik, Lourenne, Yingdala and Deltaria, has been pinned on its ability to integrate advances in technology into business operations. Unlike the aforementioned nations with large labour pools, Keymon's labour pool remains relatively small. With a population of around 18 million, Keymon does not have much wiggle room in terms of individuals to call upon to boost the nation's productivity. The labour productivity levels of Dorvik, an established manufacturing hub in the western hemisphere, far outstrips Keymon's ability mainly because the nation maintains an extremely diverse manufacturing base and a large, highly-skilled labour pool, and thus the nation's manufacturing sector can compete with other established manufacturing hubs not just on a basis of productivity but can also leverage the depth of the sector against other industries as a potential buffer to economic shocks.

The question of how does Keymon enhance its manufacturing capacity has been debated ad nauseam. Having been the subject of numerous case studies and green papers, the constant of many of these studies has been the integration of ICT into factories and businesses. As the digital transformation agenda continues into its new thrust of establishing a digital economy, the benefits of automation have been talked about for quite a while. One of the many conclusions drawn by economists and demographers is that although automation can have a direct impact on employment, tipping the scales in favour of human labour by allowing for the jobs of humans to become easier via automation with having to fire them can bring about long-term benefits in terms of enhanced productivity and competitiveness. As economist Alfred Diederich points out "introducing automation into the workplace, especially in manufacturing can bring about enhancing productivity as it has been shown that where humans and machines are paired labour productivity increases significantly." Diederich notes that automation can enhance the productivity of manufacturers of all sizes, from small and medium-sized enterprises to large multinationals, advocating for SMEs to be the benefactors of automation large and established companies. "SMEs account for around 60% of the manufacturing companies within Keymon. I believe that any attempt at enhancing the nation's manufacturing capacity through automation should be aimed at these companies." One of the other considerations in enhancing the nation's manufacturing capacity remains workforce development. As established, Keymon's small labour pool does not allow for much wiggle room. Thus the idea of workforce development comes increasingly important as the nation must maintain a highly-skilled and flexible workforce capable of leaning into numerous strengths. Although Keymon maintains a workforce development programme through the National Apprenticeship System, the scope and scale of the programme remain constrained. As the University of Keymon notes in a recent paper on the effectiveness of the system, "there is room for significant improvement, both in terms of scope and scale. Aside from up-skilling noncollege-educated workers, the programme should lean into providing unique/tailor-made workforce development models/programmes for SMEs.

Having regard to the fact that a transformation in Keymon's manufacturing sector cannot be achieved through the efforts of the private sector alone, Minister of Commerce and Industry Susan Von Niederhäusern made numerous announcements on the government's agenda for the manufacturing sector. Speaking at the annual conference of the Association of Keymonite Manufacturers (VKH/APK), Minister Von Niederhäusern stated that having noted the green papers of previous administrations, the numerous academic studies of the University of Keymon and commentary of economist and public policy experts, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry had set out to craft numerous policy interventions which it believes will enhance the nation's manufacturing capacity and bring about a revival in domestic manufacturing. Among the interventions were: (1) The establishment of numerous tax credits for research and development, workforce development and diversification, (2) the establishment of a national quality policy, (3) the establishment of a national quality and standards agency to develop, promote and enforce standards in order to improve the quality and performance of goods produced or used within Keymon, (4) reform the national apprenticeship system to allow for technical advice to be rendered to private sector entities, (5) reform the factory automation tax credit to favour SMEs instead of established conglomerates and (6) reform the Business Development Bank to a cabinet-level position. According to Minister of State for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Micheline Bernhoeft, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is currently in talks with the Ministry of Public Administration in aiding SMEs in understanding the importance of digitisation and digitalisation to the development of their respective business.