|
on Central and Western Asia |
| By: | Briones, Roehlano (Philippine Institute for Development Studies); Felipe, Jesus (Asian Development Bank) |
| Abstract: | Relative to other developing regions, developing Asia has experienced a slower decline in employment share in agriculture, compared to its output share; a rapid growth in labor and land productivity; and a shift from agricultural output from traditional to high-value products. The most successful Asian economies have pursued an agricultural development-led industrialization pathway. Nevertheless, agriculture remains the largest employer in many large Asian countries, hence future structural transformation must take into account agricultural transformation. Extrapolating from past trends, and taking to account emerging conditions, many countries of developing Asia will be expected to move on to the next phase of agricultural development; however even in the long term, agriculture’s employment share will continue to be sizable relative with the output share. To expedite transformation, many Asian countries will still need to promote long term productivity growth in agriculture and facilitate upgrading of their farms and agroenterprises within the global value chain. |
| Keywords: | economic growth; structural transformation; agricultural development; agricultural productivity; global value chain |
| JEL: | O13 Q19 |
| Date: | 2013–08–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0363&r=cwa |
| By: | Huh , Hyeon-seung (Yonsei University); Park, Cyn-Young (Asian Development Bank) |
| Abstract: | How the price of food is determined has become a critical issue, given the drastic surges in prices in recent years and the prevailing expectation of further increases. Along this line, this paper examines the sources of food price fluctuations in 11 developing Asian countries. The working model is a block vector autoregression (VAR), and 10 variables are classified into three blocks—world, region, and country—depending on their origin and nature. Empirical evidence shows that the regional shock plays a pivotal role in explaining the variations of domestic food prices, particularly at medium- to long-term horizons. Contrary to conventional belief, the world food price shock contributes little to the dynamics of domestic food prices in developing Asia. The findings suggest Asian food markets are more integrated regionally than with the world market. The short-run movements of domestic food prices are accounted for largely by the country’s own shock. Taken together, our findings suggest that promoting food price stability would require efforts at the regional level as well as at the domestic level, reflecting the influence of region-specific factors. Extensions to the developing countries in other regions produce similar findings on the determination of food prices. |
| Keywords: | food price; developing Asia; Shocks; block VAR |
| JEL: | C32 F15 Q11 |
| Date: | 2013–09–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0370&r=cwa |
| By: | Masayuki Komatsu (Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI)) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the current status of fisheries and aquaculture in Southeast Asia and international trade. Analysis concludes that a policy of sustainable management for both capture fisheries and aquaculture is of greatest importance, but such a policy has been neither planned nor implemented with a holistic and long-term perspective. Current policy reflects a short-term view and the immediate needs of each nation. Therefore, capacity building of human resources and organizations, including governments, is needed for the formulation of holistic national policies to seek long-term and fundamental remedies for the sustainable management of fisheries resources and intensified and extensive aquaculture. Such holistic national policies should include science-based management, monitoring, enforcement, coordination of capture fisheries and aquaculture, and international trade policies. It may include the effects of climate change and oil price increases, as well as international market trends and regulations or barriers. Moreover, international trade will be promoted based on the sustainability of capture fisheries and aquaculture. ADB members and governments are urged to provide official development assistance for policy implementation, in particular to the private sectors that may not otherwise receive any, and to small and community-related businesses. Recommendations focus on building capacity for the long run, among others, for which facilitation should be provided. |
| Keywords: | Sustainable Fisheries Management, international trade in fishery and aquaculture, the sustainability of capture fisheries and aquaculture |
| JEL: | Q22 O13 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:govern:23715&r=cwa |
| By: | Mitra, Raja Mikael (Asian Development Bank) |
| Abstract: | Some countries and regions have been more successful than others in developing information technology-business process outsourcing (IT-BPO) services industries. India and the Philippines in particular have offered educated human resources at low cost, attractive fiscal incentives, and industrial parks although these factors alone do not explain the rapid growth of the industry there as other countries also had these strengths but failed to develop industries as rapidly. A wide range of factors driving and constraining industry development must be taken into account, namely human resources; financial, infrastructure, technology, legal, and regulatory developments; the roles of foreign companies, diasporas, and of indigenous entrepreneurs; the government; industry associations; civil society; production, trade, and knowledge networks; and the interplay of all these factors locally, nationally, and internationally. This analysis of IT-BPO industry developments in Asia points to continued expansion in domestic, regional, and global demand and supply. There is a need for timely, concerted efforts by key stakeholders to define strategies, programs, and projects to respond to opportunities and challenges at all levels. Experiences from Asian economies can offer lessons, but each situation has its own peculiarities. There is no single approach to developing an IT-BPO industry. |
| Keywords: | information technology; business process outsourcing; software industry; offshoring; services; knowledge economy; India; ASEAN; Asia |
| JEL: | O14 |
| Date: | 2013–08–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0365&r=cwa |
| By: | Christian Milelli; Alice Sindzingre |
| Abstract: | The spectacular surge in Chinese outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) has been reinforced by China’s accession to the WTO (2001). The understanding of their determinants remains a key theoretical question, in particular whether they confirm the standard conceptual framework - ‘ownership’, ‘location’, ‘internalisation’ (OLI) and ‘linkages’ (augmenting competences by learning). The paper argues that the determinants of Chinese OFDI change over time and converge toward global strategies, via a comparison between Chinese OFDI in developed countries (based on an original database of 1800 investment operations in Europe from 2002 onwards) and in developing countries (Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America). While their impacts indeed vary according to countries’ contexts, Chinese OFDI in developed and developing countries converges toward complex and similar motives, become more mature through the combination of various modes of entry (greenfield and mergers-and-acquisitions), and exhibit more commonalities than differences. The comparison thus demonstrates that while the determinants of Chinese OFDI in developed countries were initially access to their markets, they now include efficiency-seeking motives (dispersing design, R&D and production) and assets-seeking (or augmenting assets) motives, the latter’s prevalence in developed countries (e.g., patents, skills, brands) remaining a contrast with developing countries. Chinese OFDI in developing countries is mostly driven by resource-seeking motives (strategic inputs for China’s growth), but also in resource-endowed developed countries (Australia, Canada). Large investments are driven by Chinese state-backed firms both in developed and developing countries. The growing number of Chinese small and medium private enterprises which invest in developing countries (e.g., Sub-Saharan Africa) shows that market access has increasingly become a determinant of OFDI, together with efficiency - and assets-seeking motives - rising labour costs in China being incentives for relocating abroad, in particular in labour-intensive sectors where competitiveness is driven by prices. Chinese firms often conduct these various strategies simultaneously. |
| Keywords: | China; foreign direct investment, Europe; Sub-Saharan Africa |
| JEL: | F21 F23 O53 O55 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:drm:wpaper:2013-34&r=cwa |
| By: | Sombilla, Mercedita (National Economic and Development Authority); Mapa, Dennis (University of the Philippines); Piza, Sharon (Asian Development Bank) |
| Abstract: | Two trends on yields have been observed for rice, wheat, and even edible oils in Asia. The deceleration of yield growth is one of these trends. The other relates to the differential yield increases across countries in the region. This study provides explanations for both trends and relates these to the exhaustion of the yield potential of current technology, emerging threats posed by climate change and other disturbances, varying levels of development across countries and hence the development of infrastructure, among others. Total factor productivity (TFP) estimates for these commodities indicate the potential to overcome these constraints, however. Key determinants of TFP growth were identified and discussed. While the influence of these determinants on the TFP estimates was not tested empirically in this study because of data limitations, evidence of the relationship was clear and strong in numerous TFP studies done for the agriculture sector as a whole, and for rice and wheat in various countries including Asian countries. Long-term growth will have to come from great advances in interventions being undertaken, three of which include (i) major breakthroughs in new varieties and farming systems in both fertile and unfertile lands; (ii) the restructuring of small farms into more efficient, mechanized large-scale operations, especially in production areas with good infrastructure for market access and irrigation; and (iii) the development of market mechanisms to enhance the comparative advantage of domestic production and explore the value-adding potential of commodities, particularly edible oil. Three policy recommendations are also forwarded to achieve these great advances: (i) sustained investment in agriculture; (ii) getting the mix of institutions right; and (iii) gearing up for globalization. The role of development partners as well as the private sector in effecting sustainable growth is briefly discussed as a concluding section. |
| Keywords: | TFP; constraints; Asia Pacific; rice; wheat; edible oil; investment; institutions; globalization; private sector; development partners |
| JEL: | D24 D57 O13 Q11 Q18 |
| Date: | 2013–09–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0376&r=cwa |
| By: | Michitaka Nakatomi (Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI)) |
| Abstract: | Looking back at the history of the World Trade Organization (WTO), major accords that have been reached under the multilateral framework to date are in substance issue-based “plurilateral†agreements. This paper looks at some specific examples of issue-based plurilateral agreements—such as the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), the Financial Services and Basic Telecommunication Services Agreements, and the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA)—with the aim of pointing to the crucial role they can play in resolving the stalemate at the WTO and the Doha Round and the accelerating proliferation of free trade agreements (FTAs). Through analysis of their characteristics compared with the WTO and FTAs, the paper attempts to identify the potentials as well as legal and substantive constraints of issue-based plurilateral agreements. It also suggests possible areas where new plurilateral agreements—whether single or multiple issue-based—can be developed. The paper also highlights the importance of plurilateral agreements as a mechanism complementary to the WTO and FTAs in enhancing the governance of the global trade system, and outlines conditions that need to be fulfilled to address the needs of developing countries. |
| Keywords: | WTO, issue-based plurilateral agreements, the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), FTA, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) |
| JEL: | F13 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:govern:23716&r=cwa |
| By: | Panagiotis Kampylis (JRC/IPTS); Nancy Law (University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong); Yves Punie (JRC/IPTS); Stefania Bocconi (Italian National Research Council, The Institute for Educational Technology); Barbara Bre?ko (JRC/IPTS); Seungyeon Han (Hanyang Cyber University, South Korea); Chee-Kit Looi (National Institute of Education, Singapore); Naomi Miyake (The University of Tokyo, Japan) |
| Abstract: | This report presents three cases of ICT-enabled innovation for learning from Europe (eTwinning, 1:1 Learning in Europe and Hellerup School in Denmark) and four cases from Asia (e-Learning Pilot Scheme in Hong Kong SAR, Knowledge Construction with Technology (CoREF) in Japan, Third Masterplan for ICT in Education (mp3) in Singapore and Digital Textbook project in South Korea), covering aspects such as the context, scale and nature of innovation, the intended learning outcomes, the role of technology, and implementation strategies. Based on desk research, case reports, consultation with education stakeholders from Europe and Asia, and in-depth expert interviews, the necessary conditions for sustainability, scalability and impact at system level are analysed. Thus, the report brings evidence to the debate about the mainstreaming of ICT-enabled innovation for learning in Europe and beyond, contributing to the Europe 2020 Strategy to modernize Education and Training across Europe. |
| Keywords: | ICT-enabled innovation for learning, Creative Classrooms, conditions for sustainability and scalability of educational innovation, ecological framework for mainstreaming educational innovation, |
| JEL: | I20 I21 I28 I29 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc83503&r=cwa |
| By: | Hamidov, Ahmad; Khamidov, Mukhamadkhan; Thiel, Andreas |
| Abstract: | Given the fact that water consumers associations (WCAs) in Uzbekistan were established about a decade ago in a top-down fashion to maintain on-farm water facilities, using fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis tool this paper attempted at determining sets of conditions that are necessary and sufficient to achieve an outcome. The study followed the logic of abductive approach, where sets of theories were adjusted based on the empirical field stint. Institutional economics perspective was applied to identify rural farmers’ behavior in the management of common pool resources (CPRs). The study took place in Bukhara region – southwestern part of Uzbekistan – and involved focus group discussions with members of fifteen WCAs using semi-structured interview format. Three sets of conditions (appropriate chairmanship skills [ACS], proper water allocation [PWA], and effective participatory governance [EPG]) were found to be important for explaining the outcome (improved maintenance of irrigation canals [IMC]). The analysis of necessary conditions indicated that neither condition ACS nor PWA nor EPG is necessary for IMC on its own. The same finding was apparent for the complements of the three conditions, ~ACS, ~PWA, ~EPG. In the meantime, the analysis of necessary conditions for unions of conditions (logical OR) revealed that the terms of PWA OR EPG (i.e. PWA+EPG) is necessary to achieve the outcome. However, their presence is not sufficient. The result for sufficiency analysis highlighted that no single condition alone is sufficient to achieve IMC. The results for combinations of conditions showed that the presence of ACS AND PWA AND EPG (i.e. ACS*PWA*EPG) is sufficient for achieving the outcome, IMC. Therefore, it is reasonable to believe that when these conditions are present simultaneously, there is a great chance of improving CPR use within WCA territories. |
| Keywords: | Uzbekistan, Common pool resources, canal maintenance, institutional analysis, water consumers associations, qualitative comparative analysis, Community/Rural/Urban Development, International Development, Land Economics/Use, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159099&r=cwa |
| By: | Duishonakunov, Murataly; Imbery, S.; King, L. |
| Keywords: | Central Asian highlands, glacier retreat in Chon and Kichi Naryn catchments, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Land Economics/Use, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159128&r=cwa |
| By: | Oleksandra Betliy; Veronika Movchan; Mykola Pugachov |
| Abstract: | To date, prices of gas and other energy used by households in Ukraine have been generously subsidized by the Government. However, suppressed energy prices lead to excessive use of gas and an inefficient level of investment into energy savings. In addition, Ukraine’s dependence on imported gas contributes to trade imbalances and growing pressure on the devaluation of the national currency. Thus, the issue of raising gas prices remains critical for the population of Ukraine. In particular, this step was also envisaged in an ambitious reform agenda announced in mid-2010 aimed at restoring stable and high economic growth. However, this policy may have an unprecedented impact on the welfare of population. This paper presents the main findings from the simulation of gas price shocks, provides an overview of social support programs in Ukraine and analyses their efficiency. Based on the analyses, the paper draws two major conclusions. First, increases in gas prices result in welfare losses in all household categories, with a more profound impact on urban households. Second, the current social welfare programs are not very efficient in targeting the poorest households. Reform of the social welfare system is thus required to ensure a safety net for poor households in times of gas price hikes. In order to assist national decisionmakers in solving these issues the paper presents general policy recommendations. |
| Keywords: | gas price shock simulation, welfare programs, social support programs |
| JEL: | I38 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lvl:pmmacr:2013-12&r=cwa |
| By: | Soumyatana Mukherjee |
| Abstract: | This paper, in terms of a three-sector mobile capital version of Harris-Todaro type general equilibrium model of rural-urban migration with agricultural dualism and a non-traded intermediate input, tries to theoretically explain why a developing country may experience a ‘jobless growth’ during liberalised regime as suggested by empirical evidences. I have considered impacts of trade liberalization (captured by a tariff-reform in the protected importcompeting sector) and liberalization of labour laws (captured by a reduction in the bargaining strength of the labour unions). These findings are particularly interesting for their contradiction to the predictions of standard Harris-Todaro model. |
| Keywords: | Trade Liberalization; Labour Market Reform; Agricultural Dualism; Jobless Growth; Non-traded Intermediate Input; Urban Unemployment. |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:not:notgep:13/07&r=cwa |
| By: | Sévi, Benoît; Le Pen, Yannick; Chevallier, Julien; Bunn, Derek |
| Abstract: | As both speculative and hedging financial flows into commodity futures are expected to link commodity price formation more strongly to equity indices, we investigate whether these processes also create increased correlation amongst the commodities themselves. Considering U.S. oil and gas futures, using the large approximate factor models methodology we investigate whether common factors derived from a large international dataset of real and nominal macro variables are able to explain both returns and whether, beyond these fundamental common factors, the residuals remain correlated. We further investigate a possible explanation for this residual correlation by using some proxies for hedging and speculative activity, showing that speculation increases and hedging reduces the inter-commodity correlations. |
| Keywords: | Oil Futures; Gas Futures; Common Factors; Approximate Factor Models; Excess Comovement; |
| JEL: | C22 C32 G15 E17 |
| Date: | 2013–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dau:papers:123456789/11692&r=cwa |
| By: | Bekchanov, Maksud; Bhaduri, A.; Ringler, C. |
| Abstract: | Intersectoral and interstate conflicts over the use of limited water and energy resources are aggravating in all arid regions throughout the world, and particularly in the Aral Sea basin of Central Asia. Tremendous expansion of the irrigated areas to produce cotton starting from the 1960s led to a heavy dependence of the economies on irrigated agriculture. Irrigation development reduced environmental flows in the basin and caused a gradual desiccation of the Aral Sea, once the fourth largest lake in the world. The emergence of the five independent Central Asian states in the current territory of the Aral Sea Basin, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, added new challenges for sharing basin resources. The resume of construction of Rogun dam, with a height of more than 300 m and active storage of over 10 km3, by Tajikistan in 2008 in the Vakhsh tributary of the Amu Darya River in upstream of Nurek reservoir led to fierce intergovernmental debates. Tajikistan intends to increase its national energy security and to gradually grow export revenues from electricity generation through this project with a maximum electricity generation capacity of 3600 MW. The country argues that the construction of the dam also increases water availability to downstream regions. In contrast, downstream Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan are concerned that inappropriate operation of the reservoirs by the upstream country may substantially harm irrigation benefits that are essential for the livelihoods of the majority of the population in these two countries. Despite many debates and controversial arguments by both parties over the results of the construction of the dam its impact of Rogun Dam on agricultural production and livelihoods in the downstream regions has not been assessed in detail. This study uses an integrated hydro-economic model to address the potential impact of Rogun Dam on downstream water availability and irrigation benefits. |
| Keywords: | Intersectoral and interstate conflicts, Aral Sea basin of Central Asia, Rogun dam, irrigated agriculture, integrated hydro-economic model, potential impact of Rogun Dam on downstream water availability and irrigation benefits, Community/Rural/Urban Development, International Development, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159075&r=cwa |
| By: | Hiroaki Sasaki; Ryunosuke Sonoda; Shinya Fujita |
| Abstract: | This paper constructs an open economy Kaleckian model in which the international competition affects the bargaining process between firms and workers, and investigates the effect of such bargaining on macroeconomy. If the real exchange rate has little impact on the trade balance, the economy is stable, whereas if it has a larger impact on the trade balance, the economy is unstable. Moreover, we show that the effect of a change in the bargaining power on aggregate demand depends not only on the demand regimes but also on which agent bears the burden arising from the international price competition. |
| Keywords: | Kaleckian model, Open economy, International price competition, Wage bargaining |
| JEL: | E12 F43 J50 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kue:dpaper:e-12-005&r=cwa |
| By: | Debertin, David L.; Goetz, Stephan J. |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we define social capital from different perspectives and show how it is linked to the concept of a community. Based on these definitions, a conceptual framework for analyzing and measuring social capital and its indicators is developed. A typology for analyzing social capital is then created based on different types of communities. The characteristics of three prototype communities–a small rural community, a modern city suburb, and a community located in the core of a central city are outlined. For each prototype community, social capital formation strategies and indicators suggesting evidence of social capital are identified. Implications for future research efforts dealing with social capital are discussed. |
| Keywords: | social capital, community, rural community, suburban community, urban community, community development, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Labor and Human Capital, R58, |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ukysps:159102&r=cwa |
| By: | Gafarova, Gulmira; Perekhozhuk, Oleksandr; Glauben, Thomas |
| Abstract: | There are a lot of empirical studies which examine the pricing behavior of agricultural good exporters and find pricing-to-market behavior by grain exporters in the destination countries. By investigating mainly the U.S., Canadian and Australian wheat exporters’ pricing behavior, Pick and Carter (1994), Yang and Lee (2001), Lavoie (2005) and others argue that wheat exporters exercise pricing to market behavior, meaning that they price discriminate (set different prices) and achieve different markup of prices over marginal costs in some destination countries due to the exchange rate volatility. One of the recent studies by Pall et al. (2013) considers pricing behavior of the Russian exporters and concludes that Russia can implement the price discrimination in Armenia and Azerbaijan, but it does not exert market power in the world wheat market.The main goal of this study is to examine: how does the effects of exchange rate fluctuations on price markups differ across wheat exporting countries – Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine? If KRU countries are able to exercise pricing to market behavior and get market power in international wheat market for the period 1996-2012? Which exporting country is expected to adjust prices to achieve foreign currency price stability in the destination markets? Pricing-to-market model will be used to check the existence of market power. |
| Keywords: | Pricing behaviour, international wheat market, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Pricing-to-market model, Demand and Price Analysis, International Relations/Trade, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159101&r=cwa |
| By: | Ritsa Panagiotou |
| Abstract: | The European Union’s enlargement towards the Western Balkans may be facing its most difficult challenge since its launch in Zagreb in 2000. The prospect of Balkan enlargement has been hard-hit by the deterioration of the European economy, and particularly the Greek sovereign debt crisis. The countries of the region have been deeply affected by the shock waves emanating from the Greek and eurozone crises: the negative repercussions include a deterioration of their economies, their prospects for growth, their capacity for reform, their social, political and institutional structures, and their ability to fulfill the accession criteria. Crucially, the EU’s hitherto undisputable symbolic role as an “anchor†of stability, as a one-way path to prosperity and as a goal to be aspired to, may be losing its credibility and appeal for some of these countries. |
| Keywords: | EU-South-Eastern Europe |
| Date: | 2012–12–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:erp:euirsc:p0326&r=cwa |
| By: | Jonathan Timmis |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the effect of Internet technology on how firms access export markets - directly or via intermediaries. Empirical evidence suggests that technology diffusion is geographically localised, with spillover effects from neighbouring firms decaying quickly over short distances. To address the endogeneity of Internet adoption, I construct an instrument that captures these local network effects, by matching IP addresses to firm locations. Using a cross-section of firms in 18 developing countries I find that Internet access magnifies direct trade with no discernible effect on intermediated trade. Adopting the Internet because of local networks increases direct exports as a proportion of firm sales by 32-36%. The analysis is robust to consideration of a wide-range of potentially omitted variables. |
| Keywords: | Internet, technology, intermediation, international trade, heterogeneous firms |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:not:notgep:13/05&r=cwa |
| By: | Djanibekov, Utkur; Khamzina, Asia; Villamor, Grace B.; Lamers, John P.A |
| Abstract: | Irrigated agricultural production in Uzbekistan is threatened by the impacts of land degradation, irrigation water scarcity and climate change. The conversion of marginal croplands to tree plantations is an option for rehabilitation of nutrient-depleted cropland soils, saving of irrigation water, carbon sequestration, and improving population welfare. The economic benefits and impacts of tree planting on marginal croplands, and policies that may facilitate the adoption of this land use are not well known. We employed various methods at different scales to investigate economically viable options of afforestation on marginal croplands on example of irrigated drylands of Uzbekistan. This includes analyzing the impacts of afforestation supported by the carbon (C) sequestration reward on the rural livelihoods. At field level (one hectare), the stochastic dominance analysis was employed to investigate the financial attractiveness of afforestation on marginal farmlands under uncertainty. At the farm level, the expected utility method was employed to analyze effects of this land use change on farm incomes. To consider the bimodal structure of agriculture in Uzbekistan, the stochastic dynamic farm-household model was developed. The results indicate that due to benefits from non-timber products, afforestation is a more viable land use option on marginal lands than crop cultivation. Allowing the exemption of marginal lands from cotton cropping in favor of tree planting would incentivize afforestation. At the same time, the field level analysis indicates that due to variability in returns a substantial increase in C prices would make afforestation as financially attractive as crops on marginal lands. However, when considering uncertainties in land use returns at the whole farm level, afforestation would occur without the C incentives due to improved irrigation water use efficiency and reduced revenue risks through land use diversification. Through the considered farm-household wage-labor relationship, the benefits of afforestation on marginal croplands at farm would be also transferred to rural smallholders employed at this farm. This would mainly result from improved payment structure by tree products, particularly fuelwood and foliage for livestock fodder. |
| Keywords: | Uzbekistan, Sustainable rural development, Land use diversification, Bimodal agricultural system, Non-timber tree products, Community/Rural/Urban Development, International Development, Land Economics/Use, Production Economics, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159089&r=cwa |
| By: | Riboni, Alessandro |
| Abstract: | We study a legislature where decisions are made by playing an agenda-setting game. Legislators are concerned about their electoral prospects but they are also genuinely concerned for the legislature to make the correct decision. We show that when ideological polarization is positive but not too large (and the status quo is extremely inefficient), institutions in which the executive has either no constraints (autocracy) or many constraints (unanimity) are preferable to democracies that operate under an intermediate number of constraints (simple majority rule). When instead ideological polarization is large (and the status quo is only moderately inefficient), simple majority turns out to be preferable. |
| Keywords: | Majority rule; Position-taking preferences; Ideological polarization; Strategic interactions; Agenda-setting game; |
| JEL: | D7 D02 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dau:papers:123456789/7723&r=cwa |
| By: | Teshebaeva, Kanayim; Sudhaus, Henriette; Wetzel, Hans-Ulrich; Echtler, Helmut; Zubovich, Alexander; Roessner, Sigrid |
| Keywords: | Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan, earthquakes, landslides, floods, hazard assessment, Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), Differential SAR Interferometry (InSAR), Osh province, Nura earthquake in 2008, Community/Rural/Urban Development, International Development, Land Economics/Use, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Q, R, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159072&r=cwa |
| By: | Khakimov, Parviz |
| Abstract: | The objective of the study is analysing the impact of Tajikistan WTO accession on agricultural sector of Tajikistan. The research questions are: a) How country’s recent WTO accession will influence the agricultural sector of Tajikistan? b) How consumers, producers and state budget will affect under country’s WTO accession? In this paper, all abovementioned research questions are tested under official and ten percent depreciated (experimental) exchange rates. |
| Keywords: | Tajikistan WTO accession, agricultural sector, partial equilibrium model AGRISIM, International Development, International Relations/Trade, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159111&r=cwa |
| By: | Janda, Karel; Turbat, Batbayar |
| Abstract: | This paper evaluates the effectiveness of some of the microfinance lending methodologies using the approach comparing these institutions among themselves in terms of how different lending methodologies influence their performance indicators. The results of this study with respect to different tested hypotheses are somewhat mixed but the general outcome is that rural lending and targeting women borrowers seem to have accomplished the goal whereas the effectiveness of group lending, in contrast to the initial expectation, was not confirmed. |
| Keywords: | microfinance, Asia, profitability |
| JEL: | G21 O16 P34 |
| Date: | 2013–11–13 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:51430&r=cwa |
| By: | TANSEL, AYSIT |
| Abstract: | Purpose: This paper aims to provide the recent developments on the supplementary education system in Turkey. The national examinations for advancing to higher levels of schooling are believed to fuel the demand for Supplementary Education Centers (SEC). Further, we aim to understand the distribution of the SECs and of the secondary schools across the provinces of Turkey in order to evaluate the spacial equity considerations. Design/Methodology/Approach: The evolution of the SECs and of the secondary schools over time are described and compared. The provincial distribution of the SECs, secondary schools and the high school age population are compared. The characteristics of these distributions are evaluated to inform the about spatial equity issues. The distribution of high school age population that attend secondary schools and the distribution of the secondary school students that attend SECs across the provinces are compared. Findings: The evidence points out to significant provincial variations in various characteristics of SECs and the secondary schools. The distribution of the SECs is more unequal than that of the secondary schools. The provinces located mostly in the east and south east of the country have lower quality SECs and secondary schools. Further, the SEC participation among the secondary school students and the secondary school participation among the relevant age group are lower in some of the provinces indicating major disadvantages. Originality/Value: The review of the most recent developments about the SECs, examination and comparison of provincial distributions of the SECs and of the secondary schools are novelties in this paper. |
| Keywords: | Supplementary Education, Demand for Education, Turkey |
| JEL: | I20 I21 I22 |
| Date: | 2013–09–22 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:50213&r=cwa |
| By: | Debuque-Gonzales, Margarita (University of the Philippines) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the financial determinants of research and development (R&D) investment in Asia, where innovation is naturally seen as the key driver of future (high) economic growth. We sample listed nonfinancial firms from eight economies in region (the People’s Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; India; Indonesia; the Republic of Korea; Malaysia; the Philippines; and Singapore) for the period 2002–2011 using the Oriana database. Panel data regressions show sensitivity of R&D investment to changes in cash flow, indicating reliance on internal financing of R&D and financially constrained firms, and a greater role of debt, rather than equity, as a source of external financing. In terms of alternative uses of funds, dividend payments by firms seem to divert from their spending on R&D, but investments in financial assets do not. In terms of ownership structure, empirical results show that both higher domestic ownership concentration and higher foreign ownership tend to lower cash flow sensitivity of R&D investment, suggesting more stable funding of innovation. Overall, there does not seem to be an extreme preference of firm shareholders for short-term returns at the expense of long-term productivity. However, there is clearly a gain for firms as well as economies they are in with better access to external financing of R&D. |
| Keywords: | R&D investment; financing innovation; cash flow; R&D financing constraints; Asia |
| JEL: | D92 G30 O30 O40 |
| Date: | 2013–08–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0364&r=cwa |
| By: | Sattarov, Doniyor; Schmitz, P. Michael; Mal, Puran |
| Abstract: | The agricultural sector of Uzbekistan is still characterized by unsustainable production patterns and the agricultural institutions of the country are controlled to a large extent through government intervention. The Government takes the decision to grow cotton and wheat and fix the output prices. The decision about the production quotas for cotton and wheat leads to a restricted area and water availability for growing other crops. The country is affected by a locally occurring climate change as well as regional climate change threatens to aggravate existing water use conflicts. The current and expected climatic conditions are showing the additional irrigation applications for a sustainable and fruitful agricultural production. The partial implementation of reforms such as privatization and liberalization of agricultural markets affect the development of agriculture and agricultural trade in Uzbekistan. This paper highlights the major effects of market and price liberalization on agricultural trade using the partial equilibrium model AGRISIM which is based on the "Static World Policy Simulation Model" (SWOPSIM)of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).With the help of the model, changes in general economic conditions and policy intervention in agricultural markets and foreign trade are simulated. The study suggests that the issues of sustainable agriculture development and food security in Uzbekistan can be achieved through, liberalization of agricultural markets and trade specially wheat and cotton. |
| Keywords: | Uzbekistan, agricultural sector, agriculture trade, liberalization, AGRISIM Model., Agricultural and Food Policy, International Development, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159076&r=cwa |
| By: | Gojenko, Boris; Leonhaeuser, I.-U.; Stulina, G. |
| Abstract: | The present research is realised in the frame of the ZEU project “LUCA” (Land Use, Ecosystem Services and Human Welfare in Central Asia). LUCA builds a platform for joint analysis of land use effects for a whole region, involving participants from various countries of Central Asia. In the transition from planned to market economies, the Central Asian Republics experienced rising poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition as well as serious degradation of water and land resources. The process to a market oriented economy has not been adequately supported by national institutional development. It resulted in a reduced living standard. Land use strategies in Uzbekistan determine the level of food security. While the area of rangelands is vast, the livestock farming and production of grains, fruits and vegetables play a major role in food security and also are the basic source of rural population income. More than 60% of Uzbeks live in rural area. Uzbekistan produces adequate calories to supply the population but almost 30 % lives below the food poverty line (IFPRI, 2006). The poorest population spends more than 60 % of income for food and takes a diet dominated by cereals. The existing system of the “state order” to produce cotton and wheat does not allow to growing up food crops in adequate amount. The survey is focused on questions on the socio-economic situation, societal determinants of food supply, food consumption patterns, eating habits, and coping strategies managing food crisis on household level. Markhamat region of Andijan province and Denau region of Surkhandarya province are the two most populated regions of Uzbekistan and presented as the study area. The data collection is based on the own structured questionnaire, on the Household Food Security Survey Module (HFSSM), Food Consumption Score (FCS), and Food List Recall. Data analysis was done with SPSS. The main results show the percentage of food secure and food insecure households as well as the food consumption status of these households concerning cash and food crops households are producing on their farm land and/or on their homestead plot. The results show that the main indicator of the level of income, food security situation and food consumption status of household is the production strategy. Thereby the more households produce cotton and wheat they will have less income, and a worse food security and food consumption status. |
| Keywords: | Uzbekistan, rural area, crop production, food security, descriptive analysis, regression analysis, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Food Security and Poverty, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159125&r=cwa |
| By: | Dang, Hai-Anh H.; King, Elizabeth M. |
| Abstract: | Few would contest that teachers are a very important determinant of whether students learn in school. Yet, in the face of compelling evidence that many students are not learning what they are expected to learn, how to improve teacher performance has been the focus of much policy debate in rich and poor countries. This paper examines how incentives, both pecuniary and non-pecuniary, influence teacher effort. Using school survey data from Lao PDR, it estimates new measures of teacher effort, including the number of hours that teachers spend preparing for classes and teacher provision of private tutoring classes outside class hours. The estimation results indicate that teachers increase effort in response to non-pecuniary incentives, such as greater teacher autonomy over teaching materials, and monitoring mechanism, such as the existence of an active parent-teacher association and the ability of school principals to dismiss teachers. Methodologically, the paper provides a detailed derivation of a simultaneous ordinary least squares-probit model with school random effects that can jointly estimate teacher work hours and tutoring provision. |
| Keywords: | Tertiary Education,Education For All,Teaching and Learning,Primary Education,Secondary Education |
| Date: | 2013–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:6694&r=cwa |
| By: | Avazov, Shakhzod |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the livelihood of the agro-pastoral communities of Western part of Tajikistan, the Zarafshan valley. The data were amassed on current fodder management practices in eighteen villages through households as well as agro-pastoralists and visual observation on local pasture areas. The interviews and discussions yielded more information on the decision-making processes that dehkans (farmers) employ to determine the quantity and composition of feed offered to livestock at particular times of the year. Among the influences to decisions were constraints to grazing and knowledge of appropriate lopping regimes for different animal fodder species. Varying degrees of access to off-farm fodder sources and the numbers of livestock kept by different households were also seen to affect fodder management decisions. Development activities aimed at labour use to fodder collection and the exchange of local knowledge regarding local fodder management are most likely to result in improvements in the levels of fodder supply for the majority of households in the short term. The variations were discussed within site-specific dehkan groups and between group representatives at a series of workshops. According to the results, stable type, number of cattle, size of cultivated land, labor availability per household, existence of small ruminant flock in the village, and the number of small ruminants were found to be most important factors affecting household economic status. It was concluded that more robust and long-term studies should be conducted using a wider variation in grassland quality to confirm the study findings. |
| Keywords: | Zarafshan valley, agro-pastoral communities of Western part of Tajikistan, local fodder management practices, socio-economic features, Community/Rural/Urban Development, International Development, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Q, R, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159074&r=cwa |
| By: | Horioka, Charles Yuji (University of the Philippines); Terada-Hagiwara, Akiko (Asian Development Bank) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we analyze the determinants of corporate saving in the form of changes in the stock of cash for 11 Asian economies using firm-level data from the Oriana Database for the 2002–2011 period. We find some evidence that cash flow has a positive impact on the change in the stock of cash, which suggests that Asian firms are borrowing constrained and that they save more when their cash flow increases so that they will be able to finance future investments. Moreover, we find in the developed economy sample that, as expected, cash flow has a positive impact on the change in the stock of cash only in the case of the smallest firms, which are more likely to be borrowing constrained, and find in the developing economy sample that, as expected, the positive impact of cash flow on the change in the stock of cash declines with firm size. In addition, we find that the cash flow sensitivity of cash declined after the global financial crisis. Finally, we find some evidence that Tobin’s q has a positive impact on the change in the stock of cash. |
| Keywords: | corporate saving; corporate investment; borrowing constraints; liquidity constraints; cash flow; cash holdings; cash flow sensitivity of cash; Tobin’s q; firm size; productivity shocks; Asia; Oriana Database; financial sector development; global financial crisis |
| JEL: | D92 E21 E22 G11 O53 |
| Date: | 2013–10–22 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0381&r=cwa |
| By: | Antonio Di Paolo (Department of Econometrics, University of Barcelona); Aysit Tansel (Department of Economics, METU) |
| Abstract: | Foreign language skills represent a form of human capital that can be rewarded in the labor market. Drawing on data from the Adult Education Survey of 2007, this is the first study estimating returns to foreign language skills in Turkey. We contribute to the literature on the economic value of language knowledge, with a special focus on a country characterized by fast economic and social development. Although English is the most widely spoken foreign language in Turkey, we initially consider the economic value of different foreign languages among the employed males aged 25 to 65. We find positive and significant returns to proficiency in English and Russian, which increase with the level of competence. Knowledge of French and German also appears to be positively rewarded in the Turkish labor market, although their economic value seems mostly linked to an increased likelihood to hold specific occupations rather than increased earnings within occupations. Focusing on English, we also explore the heterogeneity in returns to different levels of proficiency by frequency of English use at work, birth-cohort, education, occupation and rural/urban location. The results are also robust to the endogenous specification of English language skills. |
| Keywords: | Foreign Languages, Returns to Skills, Heterogeneity, Turkey |
| JEL: | I25 J24 J31 O15 O53 |
| Date: | 2013–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:met:wpaper:1311&r=cwa |
| By: | Eugen Dimant (University of Paderborn); Tim Krieger (University of Freiburg); Margarete Redlin (University of Paderborn) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the impact of migration on destination-country corruption levels. Capitalizing on a comprehensive dataset consisting of annual immigration stocks of OECD countries from 207 countries of origin for the period 1984-2008, we explore different channels through which corruption might migrate. Independent of the econometric methodology applied, we consistently find that while general migration has an insignificant effect on the destination country’s corruption level, immigration from corruption-ridden origin countries boosts corruption in the destination country. Our findings provide a more profound understanding of the economic implications associated with migration flows. |
| Keywords: | Corruption, Migration, Impact of migration |
| JEL: | D73 F22 O15 |
| Date: | 2013–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pdn:wpaper:71&r=cwa |
| By: | Nugumanova, Lyazzat |
| Abstract: | During the last decades the topic of fossil fuel subsidies has been gaining importance in the policy discussion. International Energy Agency (IEA) (2011) estimates that the total global fossil fuel subsidies in 2010 amounted to $409 billion. Kazakhstan is energy-rich country with significantly high subsidies on fossil fuels. Fossil fuel subsidies are a distortion which causes inefficient use of energy and natural resources, high CO2 emissions, distort the energy markets, put pressure on the state budget, and hinder investments into energy sector and renewable energy and thus long-term sustainable development in Kazakhstan. Removing fossil fuel subsidies could be in the long-term beneficial for Kazakhstan. The main research question is to analyze macroeconomic effects of removing current distortions in the energy market using the computable general equilibrium model (CGE), GTAP. The specific objectives are to understand the issue and the extent of fossil fuel subsidies in Kazakhstan, analyze implications of these subsidies, and provide general policy suggestions on this topic. This paper first presents main data on fossil fuel subsidies, energy and environment in Kazakhstan, literature review, methodological approach suitable for this research and expected results. |
| Keywords: | fossil fuel subsidies, Kazakhstan, computable general equilibrium model (CGE), GTAP, Environmental Economics and Policy, International Development, International Relations/Trade, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159103&r=cwa |
| By: | Lechmann, Daniel S. J. |
| Abstract: | Most self-employed would apparently earn higher earnings if they were working in paid employment. One explanation for this 'return-to-entrepreneur-ship puzzle' could be that entrepreneurship entails substantial non-monetary bene-fits, such as autonomy, flexibility, and task variety. Utilizing German data and a de-composition analysis, this study examines the contribution of such working condi-tions to the observed earnings differential between self-employment and paid em-ployment. The results imply that working conditions differences do not contribute to resolve the return-to-entrepreneurship puzzle. Rather, (mis-)measurement of earnings seems to be an issue. -- Die meisten Selbständigen könnten als abhängig Beschäf-tigte anscheinend höhere Einkünfte erzielen. Möglicherweise arbeiten sie dennoch weiterhin als Selbständige, weil die Selbständigkeit nicht-monetäre Vorteile, wie etwa mehr Autonomie, Flexibilität und Abwechslung, mit sich bringt. Unter Verwendung eines Datensatzes deutscher Erwerbstätiger und mittels einer Zerlegungsanalyse untersucht diese Studie, inwiefern Unterschiede in solchen Arbeitsbedingungen die Unterschiede in den Einkünften zwischen Selbständigen und abhängig Beschäftigten erklären könnten. Die Ergebnisse deuten darauf hin, dass Unterschiede in den Arbeitsbedingungen nicht dazu beitragen, die (zu) niedrigen Einkünfte der Selbstän-digen zu erklären. Vielmehr scheinen Schwierigkeiten bei der Messung der Einkünfte eine Rolle zu spielen. |
| Keywords: | compensating differentials,Germany,returns to entrepreneurship,self-employment,working conditions |
| JEL: | J23 J31 J81 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:faulre:86&r=cwa |
| By: | Aslanov, Ilkhomjon |
| Keywords: | Dust storms, dust transfer and depositions, the southern Aral Sea region, Environmental Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, R, Q, O, |
| Date: | 2013–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159127&r=cwa |
| By: | Mamajonov, Nuriddin |
| Keywords: | Education, Capacity Building, Uzbekistan, International Development, International Relations/Trade, Political Economy, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession, |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ugidic:159770&r=cwa |
| By: | Maria Bruna Zolin (Department of Economics, University Of Venice Cà Foscari); Lucia Luzi (Department of Economics, Boston University) |
| Abstract: | The aim of this paper is to provide an Asian perspective on land investments with particular reference to the European position in terms of land acquisition. At first, the paper recalls the relevance that land holds as a distinct factor of production and consumption. Then, it investigates the different ways employed to define the recent phenomenon of land-grabbing in the increasing literature review. In order to contribute to the discussion on the issue, the second part of the paper is devoted to the examination of the Asian case. Furthermore, it analyses both the direct and the indirect role played by the European Union in influencing and enhancing the phenomenon of land-grabbing in Asia. The paper concludes with observations and proposals on the impact of land-grabbing. |
| Keywords: | Land, Natural resources, Asia, EU, Food security, Energy security, Environment, Public policies. |
| JEL: | Q15 Q24 Q42 O13 O53 P28 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ven:wpaper:2013:26&r=cwa |
| By: | Gjosheva-Kovachevikj, Marija; Kovachev, Goran; Risteski, Hristijan |
| Abstract: | Agriculture is a fundamental economic activity in Macedonia which constitutes 10% of GDP over the past decade, adding related processing industry increases this share to approximately 15%-16%. During the last period of economic restructuring, agriculture played a critical role in the social and economic stability of the country. As a generator of growth of income and employment (19% of the total employment) agriculture needs a steady stream of funds to increase the competitiveness of the farmers by improving the technological and market infrastructure as well improving quality of life of rural population. Beside the state financial support of agriculture and rural development, the commercial financing - through lending is from utmost importance as well. The absorption of the available funds by rural population is limited by strong criteria. The pressure for acceleration process for developing of the competitive and sustainable agriculture and sustainable rural communities require better access of the funds to farmers. In this regards, the purpose of the research is to explore the existing situation in the lending system in agriculture and further provide analysis and recommendations for improving the commercial form of financing to farmers. Therefore, the desk work and field research through questionnaire and interviews have been conducted in order to collect information about needs and problems of the key actors in the field of lending in the agriculture and rural development. The results have been communicated with the stakeholders at panel discussion and furthermore upgraded and distributed to the relevant institutions and organisations. Findings demonstrate that the lending system in agriculture does not operate in an ideal environment and its facing numerous problems and obstacles |
| Keywords: | lending; agriculture; rural development; financial institutions; farmers |
| JEL: | G21 H81 Q1 |
| Date: | 2013–09–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:51338&r=cwa |