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on MENA - Middle East and North Africa |
| By: | Aysit Tansel (Department of Economics, Middle East Technical University, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) Bonn, Germany and Economic Research Forum (ERF) Cairo, Egypt); Deniz Karaoglan (Department of Economics, Middle East Technical University) |
| Abstract: | This is the first study which provides empirical analysis of the variation in health behaviors for adult men and women in Turkey which is a developing country. The health behaviors considered are smoking, drinking, fruit and vegetable consumption, exercise and body mass index (BMI). We find that in Turkey education is the most important factor that affects the health behaviors. The results indicate that smoking is positively associated with education at all levels with a decreasing effect with the level of education unlike in the developed countries. This result indicates that smoking is a serious public health problem in Turkey at all levels of education. Further, alcohol consumption and schooling are positively related and it increases by the level of education. Higher educated individuals clearly eat more fruits, vegetables and exercise more and their BMI levels are in the normal range compared to less educated and illiterate. We also highlight the importance of demographic factors, labor market status and household income. We use Health Survey of Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT) for years 2008, 2010 and 2012. This study will provide a baseline for further studies on the various aspects of health behaviors in Turkey. |
| Keywords: | Health Behaviors, Education, Demographic Factors, Turkey. |
| JEL: | I10 I12 I19 |
| Date: | 2014–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:koc:wpaper:1414&r=ara |
| By: | Elif Oznur Acar (Department of Banking and Finance, Cankaya University); Aysit Tansel (Department of Economics, METU; Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) Bonn, Germany; Economic Research Forum (ERF) Cairo, Egypt) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates how informality can be defined and measured in the Turkish labor market. Two alternative definitions of informality are used to explore their relevance and implications for the Turkish labor market using descriptive statistics. They are the enterprise definition and the social security definition. Further, contributions of individual and job characteristics to the likelihood of informality are investigated using multivariate probit analysis under the two definitions. The social security registration criterion is found to be a better measure of informality in the Turkish labor market given its ability to capture the key relationships between several individual and employment characteristics and the likelihood of informality. The study suggests that preference should be given to social security definition of labor informality for a more accurate depiction of the Turkish labor market. The suitability of the two alternative definitions of informality in the Turkish labor market and its implications have not been investigated before. |
| Keywords: | Informality, Definition, Measurement and Likelihood, Turkey. |
| JEL: | J20 J21 J24 O17 |
| Date: | 2014–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:met:wpaper:1409&r=ara |
| By: | Berberoglu, Giray; Tansel, Aysit |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the effectiveness of private tutoring in Turkey. The authors introduce their study by providing some background information on the two major national examinations and three different kinds of tutoring. They then describe how they aimed to analyse whether attending private tutoring centres (PTCs) enhances Turkish students’ academic performance. By way of multiple linear regression analysis, their study sought to evaluate whether the impact of private tutoring varies in different subject areas, taking into account several student-related characteristics such as family and academic backgrounds as well as interest in and perception of academic success. In terms of subject areas, the results indicate that while private tutoring does have a positive impact on academic performance in mathematics and Turkish language, this is not the case in natural sciences. However, as evidenced by the effect sizes, these impacts are rather small compared to the impacts of other variables such as interest in and perception of academic success, high school graduation fields of study, high school cumulative grade point average (CGPA), parental education and students’ sociocultural background. While the authors point out that more research on the impact of further important variables needs to be done, their view is that school seems to be an important factor for determining students’ academic performance. |
| Keywords: | Private tutoring, Academic Performance, Regression analysis, Turkey |
| JEL: | I21 I23 |
| Date: | 2014–07–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:57370&r=ara |
| By: | Berberoglu, Giray (Middle East Technical University); Tansel, Aysit (Middle East Technical University) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the effectiveness of private tutoring in Turkey. The authors introduce their study by providing some background information on the two major national examinations and three different kinds of tutoring. They then describe how they aimed to analyse whether attending private tutoring centres (PTCs) enhances Turkish students' academic performance. By way of multiple linear regression analysis, their study sought to evaluate whether the impact of private tutoring varies in different subject areas, taking into account several student-related characteristics such as family and academic backgrounds as well as interest in and perception of academic success. In terms of subject areas, the results indicate that while private tutoring does have a positive impact on academic performance in mathematics and Turkish language, this is not the case in natural sciences. However, as evidenced by the effect sizes, these impacts are rather small compared to the impacts of other variables such as interest in and perception of academic success, high school graduation fields of study, high school cumulative grade point average (CGPA), parental education and students' sociocultural background. While the authors point out that more research on the impact of further important variables needs to be done, their view is that school seems to be an important factor for determining students' academic performance. |
| Keywords: | private tutoring, academic performance, regression analysis, Turkey |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp8343&r=ara |
| By: | International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept. |
| Abstract: | This paper discusses Morocco’s 2013 Article IV Consultation on economic developments and policies. The IMF report highlights that despite unfavorable external and domestic environment Morocco’s economic performance has improved during 2013. The Morocco’s economy remains vulnerable to international conditions and a difficult regional environment. It focuses on the importance of giving more flexibility in the exchange rate regime that intends to support competitiveness, enhance the capacity of the economy to absorb shocks, and support the authorities’ strategy for diversifying external flows away from Europe. |
| Keywords: | Article IV consultation reports;Economic growth;Fiscal policy;Fiscal consolidation;Fiscal reforms;Monetary policy;Bank supervision;Economic indicators;Staff Reports;Press releases;Morocco; |
| Date: | 2014–03–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imf:imfscr:14/65&r=ara |
| By: | International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept. |
| Keywords: | Economic growth;Syria;External shocks;Labor markets;Unemployment;Electricity;Tariffs;Selected issues;Jordan; |
| Date: | 2014–06–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imf:imfscr:14/153&r=ara |
| By: | Mona Amer; Philippe Fargues |
| Abstract: | Will the radical political changes Egypt has gone through since early 2011 have an impact on emigration from the country? This all depends on young Egyptian adults, who are the potential migrants of tomorrow. In order to understand the consequences of the Egyptian revolution might for migration, a questionnaire survey was conducted amongst Egyptian youth in 2013. The objective of this paper is to analyse the Egyptian labour market together with Egyptian migration to see whether changing conditions in the labour market, in particular after the revolution of 25 January 2011, may affect migration. This study is divided into three parts. The first analyses recent trends – from 2007 to 2011 – of the labour market and in particular the evolution of the labour force in terms of participation rate and unemployment rate according to gender, age group and educational level. The second part outlines the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of Egyptian migrants, in general, and according to region of migration (Gulf Cooperation Countries and other Arab countries as opposed to OECD countries). It also presents an analysis of unemployment against the education and skill levels of Egyptian migrants. Finally, the last part presents the findings of a survey on orientation towards migration of Egyptian youth. This survey was designed by the Migration Policy Centre and was conducted through phone interviews by the Egyptian Centre for Public Opinion Research (Baseera) in 2013. |
| Keywords: | Egypt, Youth, Migration, Labour Market, Political Change |
| Date: | 2014–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rsc:rsceui:2014/55&r=ara |
| By: | Koray Alper (Central Bank of Turkey); Mahir Binici (Central Bank of Turkey); Selva Demiralp (Department of Economics, Koc University); Hakan Kara (Central Bank of Turkey); Pinar Ozlu (Central Bank of Turkey) |
| Abstract: | Many central banks in emerging economies have used reserve requirements (RR) to alleviate the trade-off between financial stability and price stability in recent years. Notwithstanding their widespread use, transmission channels of RR have remained largely as a black-box. In this paper, we use bank-level data to explore the interaction between RR and bank lending behavior. Our empirical findings suggest that short-term borrowing from the central bank is not a close substitute for deposits for banks. Bank lending behavior responds significantly to reserve requirements and liquidity positions. Our analysis allows us to identify a new channel that we name as the “liquidity channel”. The channel works through a decline in bank liquidity and loan supply due to an increase in reserve requirements. |
| Keywords: | Monetary transmission mechanism; liquidity risk; bank lending channel; Turkey. |
| JEL: | E44 E51 E52 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:koc:wpaper:1416&r=ara |
| By: | Magali Aubert (Marchés, Organisations, Institutions et Stratégies d'Acteurs, INRA); Jean Marie Codron (Marchés, Organisations, Institutions et Stratégies d'Acteurs, INRA); Sylvain Rousset (Institut National de Recherche en Sciences et Technologies pour l'Environnement et l'Agriculture); Murat Yercan (Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Economics, Ege University) |
| Abstract: | In most competitive fresh fruit and vegetables chains, growers are faced with the need to comply with the requirements of increasingly safety demanding customers. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices have become a true solution for small scale growers that could not afford the cost of a GAP certificate. While literature on farmer adoption of IPM practices focuses on farmer and farm characteristics, only a few authors underline the importance of technology, marketing and pesticides safety control. Moreover, only a few papers have studied IPM adoption in developing or emerging countries. Our paper aims to fill this gap by focusing on Turkey, an emerging country with dominant small scale growers, where diffusion of IPM is still in its infancy. It also takes into account factors that go beyond the farmers and farm characteristics that are usually addressed by literature. 186 tomato growers have been surveyed in the province of Antalya, a region of Turkey supplying 85% of the national production of tomato grown under greenhouse. IPM adoption has been represented by two indicators : a counter of the eleven most salient IPM practices and a three-tier level of intensity of adoption (high, medium, low). Our analysis confirms most of our predictions and highlights the role of innovative factors such as technology, farming system characteristics, marketing and safety control. |
| Keywords: | integrated pest management, farmers, tomato, determinants of adoption, turkey, turquieproduit frais, fruit, legume frais, tomatesécurité sanitaire, lutte intégrée, gestion intégréepesticide |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:inr:wpaper:226138&r=ara |
| By: | Abdel-Hameed Nawar (Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University) |
| Date: | 2014–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipc:oparab:249&r=ara |
| By: | International Monetary Fund. European Dept. |
| Abstract: | This 2013 Article IV Consultation highlights that Israel’s economic fundamentals has remained strong. GDP growth is solid, unemployment is low, and inflation remains firmly anchored within the 1–3 percent target range. The financial sector is in good health, and the external position is strong. On the structural front, concerted action is required to boost competition in the non-tradable sector, although it is imperative to promote the participation of Haredi and Israeli–Arab populations in the labor force to reduce poverty and inequality and bolster the economy’s long-run productive capacity. |
| Keywords: | Article IV consultation reports;Economic growth;Fiscal policy;Monetary policy;Financial sector;Economic indicators;Debt sustainability analysis;Staff Reports;Press releases;Israel; |
| Date: | 2014–02–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imf:imfscr:14/47&r=ara |
| By: | Ezzahidi, Elhadj; El Alaoui, Aicha |
| Abstract: | Employment is linked to growth at least in the long-run. Thus, to reduce structurally unemployment it is necessary to boost growth. Thus, any strategy seeking to reduce unemployment must be devised with a good knowledge of the growth content in terms of jobs. In this paper, we use Okun’s law, arc point elasticity, and a simple econometric model to assess the intensity of the links between economic growth and (un)employment in Morocco. Okun’s law provides evidence that economic growth in Morocco is linked with a reduction of the unemployment rate. The sectors intensities to create jobs are very different and provide unsystematic results. Using an average measure of elasticity over the period 1999-2009, we find that many sectors were net losers of jobs. The overall growth-elasticity of employment is positive but low. |
| Keywords: | Growth, Jobs’ creation, Growth-elasticity of employment, Morocco |
| JEL: | E2 J2 J6 J60 O4 |
| Date: | 2014–02–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:57841&r=ara |
| By: | Hind El Makrini |
| Abstract: | We study the export performance of firms from developing countries based on the resource based view (RBV) of a firm. Drawing on the extant literature review, we found firm size, research and development (R&D) expenditure, advertising expenditure and business group affiliation to be important factors of export performance. A quantitative design was particularly used in this study. A two-stage least square estimation (G2SLS) was employed on a sample of 168 Moroccan SMEs over a period of four years from 2009 to 2013. Morocco is an illustrative case of a developing country where export performance studies are very limited. The findings suggest that export sales and domestic sales are interdependent and influence each other. R&D expenditure and business group affiliation have positive and significant impacts on export sales, while advertising expenditure has a negative and significant influence on export sales. The study has useful managerial implications for academics, practitioners and public policy makers, providing guidelines and interesting recommendations for a better export performance. |
| Keywords: | Developing economies, Export performance, Moroccan SMEs, Resource-based View (RBV), Two-stage least square estimation (G2SLS). |
| Date: | 2014–07–24 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipg:wpaper:2014-431&r=ara |
| By: | Nadia Loukil; Ouidad Yousfi |
| Abstract: | The current paper studies the impact of board gender-diversity on firm risk-taking in a developing market. Our study is drawn on a sample of 30 Tunisian listed firms between 1997 and 2010. First, we found that women have a risk perception that leads to a risk avoidance behavior: the presence of women directors, even when there is one woman director, is positively associated with cash ratio. Second, we showed no significant relationship between gender-diversity on board and the propensity to take risk when we considered other measures of risk-taking (strategic and financial). Third, State officer/bureaucratic and politically connected women have a positive effect on cash holding and investment opportunities. Finally, foreign investors do not invest in firms with gender-diverse boards. |
| Keywords: | Corporate Governance, Gender-Diversity, Board of directors, Risk-Taking, Emerging economy |
| Date: | 2014–07–24 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipg:wpaper:2014-450&r=ara |
| By: | Cullen S. Hendrix (Peterson Institute for International Economics) |
| Abstract: | Anecdotal evidence suggests high oil prices embolden leaders in oil-rich states to pursue more aggressive foreign policies. This article tests the conjecture in a sample of 153 countries for the time period 1947–2001. It finds strong evidence of a contingent effect of oil prices on interstate disputes, with high oil prices associated with signifi cant increases in dispute behavior among oil-exporting states, while having either a negative or null effect on dispute behavior in nonexporting states. |
| Keywords: | oil, conflict, diplomacy, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, resource curse |
| JEL: | D74 F51 Q41 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iie:wpaper:wp14-3&r=ara |