Land Circulation Research Articles

Transformación de las relaciones territoriales en Ucrania a las condiciones del mercado

Land ownership issues are especially important due to the historical experience of land nationalization of Ukrainian peasants. The sphere of land relations in Ukraine has undergone a process of constant reform since the country’s independence. At the present stage, the abolition of the moratorium on the transfer of ownership of agricultural land is historic for Ukrainian citizens. In consequence, the clarity and transparency of legal procedures for the transfer of land ownership to citizens of Ukraine become particularly relevant.
 In connection with the European vector of Ukraine’s development and gradual economic integration with the European Union countries that have experience in the agricultural land market, it is important to find an appropriate legal model for regulating the circulation of agricultural land in Ukraine, using the experience of the European Union. Land lease relations, as a main means of using agricultural lands for a long time in Ukraine, are considered in the article.
 The adopted Law of Ukraine “On amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine concerning the circulation of agricultural lands” is analyzed. According to its provisions, the moratorium on the sale of agricultural land was finally canceled, which allowed landowners to freely dispose of their property. In the article, it is also proved that the main prospects for the development and functioning of the land market in Ukraine are: 1) foreign investment in Ukraine, 2) the possibility of free disposal of agricultural land plots, 3) attracting additional resources for local communities, 4) stimulating the agricultural sector, 5) increasing the efficiency of production on land.

Research Progress on Agricultural Land Stock Cooperative

As a special form of land circulation, land joint-stock cooperatives have become a trend of land development in the future, and have attracted widespread attention in the academic community. Many scholars have conducted in-depth research on the research of the land share cooperation system, the reasons for its emergence, its role and the influencing factors of participation willingness. On this basis, this paper combs the land share cooperatives in order to provide some reference value for the comprehensive research and future development direction of land share cooperatives.

Spatio-temporal evolution and optimization analysis of ecosystem service value - A case study of coal resource-based city group in Shandong, China

Coal-resource-based cities (CRBCs) have played an essential role in China's economic development over the past few decades, but ecological problems have become increasingly prominent. CRBCs are now facing a critical transformation node under the goal of carbon neutrality. Based on the balance of economy, ecology and energy, we put forward a method to evaluate and optimize sustainable urban development . In this study, we analyzed the land use/land cover change (LUCC) and ecosystem service value (ESV) of coal resource-based city group of Shandong province (CRBCGS) from 2000 to 2018 and the contribution of 16 natural and social production indicators to LUCC was assessed by using the PLUS model. We set up, optimized, and simulated three scenarios for 2030: Business as usual (BAU), Ecological conservation first (ECF), and Economic development first (EDF). The results showed that from 2000 to 2010, the LUCC of SDRBCG was violent, and 15.12% (7084.16 km 2 ) of the land has transformed, mainly caused by the circulation of construction land and farmland, and the land circulation rate decreased from 2010 to 2018. The ESV dropped sharply from 85677.42 million yuan in 2000–78050.77 million yuan in 2015 before rising slightly in 2018. In 18 years, ESV of 49.16% of the land decreased, while ESV of 11.46% increased. In 2030, the ESV of BAU, ECF, and EDF scenarios would be 77437.60, 79630.49, and 76894.29 million yuan. It can be seen that ESV has apparent differences under different policy-oriented. Finally, we identified the regions with significant ESV changes in 2030 by grid analysis. 16.63% of the ECF scenario's areas would show ecological improvement, significantly higher than BAU and EDF. The methods and results of this study can provide valuable data for the management to make urban environmental protection and green sustainable development planning. • Proposed a method of urban space optimization and ecological change prediction coupled with PLUS, MOP and grid analysis. • Analyzed the response of LUCC and ESV by using various visual methods and simulated three development scenarios in 2030. • Found the driving effect of different influencing factors on LUCC. • The optimized result meets the existing policies, fits the reality, and significantly improves the ESV.

Factors influencing abandoned farmland in hilly and mountainous areas, and the governance paths: A case study of Xingning City.

The current global pandemic has laid bare the importance of national food security to human survival. Many cultivated lands in the hilly, mountainous, and other marginalized areas have been abandoned on a large scale, resulting in a tremendous waste of agricultural resources, thereby threatening national food security. Here, we studied abandoned farmland in Xingning City, a mountainous area in northern Guangdong province. According to the "seeding—growing—harvesting" life cycle of cultivated plots, spatial superposition method and remote sensing change detection method were applied to identify abandoned arable land. Logistic regression model was used to reveal the influencing factors and occurrence mechanism of abandoned cropland at plot scale, and cluster analysis was used to discuss the classification and management strategies. Result showed that 16.83% of the cultivated land in the study area was severely abandoned, attributed to poor location, poor basic conditions, and fragmentation of the land. Further, the abandoned farmland was divided into output-driving type, cultivation condition-driving type, and plot-condition driving type. Based on these types, we proposed some countermeasures, such as adjusting agricultural structures, tamping agricultural infrastructures, strengthening land circulation, popularizing appropriate scale operations. These measures provide a reference to effectively curb abandoned farmland and improving the utilization efficiency of cultivated land, especially in recent years.

LAND CIRCULATION, FARMERS' WAGE LEVEL, LABOR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS AND THE BENEFITS OF AGRICULTURAL LAND SCALE MANAGEMENT: A STUDY ON THE CHANGES OF EMOTIONAL BEHAVIOR BASED ON THE SURVEY DATA OF JIANGXI PROVINCE

LAND CIRCULATION, FARMERS' WAGE LEVEL, LABOR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS AND THE BENEFITS OF AGRICULTURAL LAND SCALE MANAGEMENT: A STUDY ON THE CHANGES OF EMOTIONAL BEHAVIOR BASED ON THE SURVEY DATA OF JIANGXI PROVINCE

The Land System and the Rise and Fall of China’s Rural Industrialization: Based on the Perspective of Institutional Change of Rural Collective Construction Land

China’s rural industrialization, which flourished in the 1980s, has suddenly declined since the mid-1990s. Based on the perspective of institutional change of rural collective construction land, this paper discusses the reasons behind the rise and fall of China’s rural industrialization. Using the empirical tests of China’s provincial panel data from 1987 to 1997, it is found that from the 1980s to the mid-1990s, the government relaxed the regulation of collective construction land and allowed its transfer, which was the institutional basis for the rapid rise of China’s rural industrialization with township and village enterprises (TVEs) as the main form. Furthermore, this paper takes the government’s policy of prohibiting the circulation of collective construction land from the mid-1990s as the breakthrough point, and uses the “Land Administration Law of China” promulgated in 1998 as a quasi-natural experiment to examine the causal relationship between restricting the circulation of collective construction land and the decline of TVEs. It is found that the restrictions on the circulation of collective construction land caused by the implementation of the law significantly hindered the development of TVEs. After the implementation of the Land Administration Law, in areas affected more by the law, the development scale of their TVEs shrunk even more. The analysis of this paper shows that deepening the reform of the system of property rights on agricultural land and ensuring farmers’ rights of land circulation are important ways to revitalize the rural areas.

Influencing Factors of Farmers’ Land Circulation in Mountainous Chongqing in China Based on A Multi-Class Logistic Model

The orderly circulation of land can affect the structure of the agricultural industry, improve the level of agricultural industrialization, and realize the sustainable development of agriculture. Located in the inland of southwest China, Chongqing is the core area of China’s Three Gorges Reservoir area, with obvious mountain characteristics. The characteristics and influencing factors of land transfer here can guide the reformation of land policy in other rural areas. Therefore, based on the survey data of 1015 mountain farmers in Chongqing, this paper employs a multi-class logistic model to analyze the above issues. The results show the following: (1) The phenomena of “zero rent” and “non-agreement” are widespread, and the spontaneous internal transfer among farmers is the main influencing factor. The decline in land value, the low degree of foreign investment, and the low average level of farmers’ understanding of land transfer policies are quite different from the economically developed plains in the east. (2) Different directions of land circulation have different influencing factors. (3) The main factors are the total population of rural households, the proportion of non-agricultural household income, the age of the head of the household, the education level of the head of the household, the degree of land division, and the quality of land grades that affect land transfer and development in mountainous areas. Thus, improving the education level or technological training of farmers, establishing effective market mechanisms, and increasing income from non-agricultural employment can effectively promote land transfer. Moreover, age-oriented land policy is easier to implement.

In the spirit of radical liberalism: a historical review of land reforms in China from the 1970s to today

Abstract Focusing on the policy-driven land reforms in the People’s Republic of China, this article discusses the relationship between government intervention and economic growth, through the lens of economic anthropology. Inspired by Karl Polanyi’s insights into market economies, this article undertakes a historical review on the attempts made by Chinese central authority to boost the economy at the expense of rural lands, the results of these attempts and their future implications. The findings indicate that, first, the ‘socialist’ characteristics of China’s market economy imply above all the State’s strong intervention to facilitate, rather than restrict, as suggested by Polanyi, the free circulation of land in the market. This contributes greatly to China’s economic ascent, but also to severe environmental and social problems. Second, compared to the West, the democratic procedure that buffers the impacts and eases the speed of urbanisation is missing in the Chinese context.

Assessing Farmers’ Attitudes towards Rural Land Circulation Policy Changes in the Pearl River Delta, China

An emerging and pressing issue in China’s economic reform is the intensified conflict between arable land protection and the encroachment of urban development into fertile farmlands that threaten food security and urban sustainability. New policies were issued to encourage rural land circulation as an attempt to ensure urban development and a sustainable food system, but farmers’ willingness to adopt the policies is largely unknown. A total of 4500 farmers within 9 cities’ boundaries in the Pearl River Delta were surveyed, and the theory of planned behavior and statistical tools were used to determine key factors affecting farmers’ attitudes towards the new sustainability policy. The results indicate that farmers’ cognition of the policies positively influenced farmers’ willingness to participate in land circulation. Attitude toward the Behavior (AB), Subjective Norm (SN), and Perceived Behavioral Control (PBC) were the dominant factors affecting the policies’ implementation. PBC had the most significant influence on sustainable policy participation, followed by SN and AB. AB alone could not determine the actual participation behavior because of external factors such as family, community, and other policy-related considerations. In conclusion, the successful implementation of the rural land-use policy will be primarily determined by the farmers’ cognition and behavior.

Regional landscape transformation and sustainability of the rural homegarden agroforestry system in the Chengdu Plain, China

Traditional rural homegarden agroforestry system in the Chengdu Plain of China, called “Linpan” in Chinese, integrates the ecological functions of the landscape with human production activities. Studying the driving mechanisms of rural landscape changes in the Chengdu Plain is of great significance from stakeholders’ perspective. Taking the Pidu Linpan Farming System (PLFS) in the suburban area of Chengdu (designated as one of China-Nationally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems in 2020) as a case, this study combined remote sensing image analysis, oral history interviews, and focus group interviews to elucidate the driving forces of landscape changes in the PLFS. The results show that tourism development, traffic accessibility, economic demand, and agricultural heritage protection measure are the main driving forces promoting the stability and maintenance of the traditional homegardens. In contrast, population ageing, land circulation, centralized residence, climate change, and living and recreational need are the forces leading to adverse changes in the traditional homegardens. In addition, these driving forces have led to the gradual abandonment of traditional agricultural activities and critical issues related to rural landscape planning and management. The current research indicates that infrastructure construction and increased traditional agricultural income are considered as the best practices of local stakeholders, promoting the development of the protected homegardens of heritage sites and tourist destinations. Finally, we put forward some suggestions to improve and maintain the traditional rural landscape: (1) establishing a benefit-sharing mechanism; (2) establishing a training system with traditional technology and culture; (3) strengthening infrastructure construction; (4) promoting the development of the agricultural industry; (5) improving the cultural quality of farmers; and (6) establishing a management system with legal effects. This research can provide a basis for the formulation of rural landscape planning and the orderly and healthy development of agricultural heritage in Chengdu Plain.

Agricultural land market in Ukraine

Land resources are not only one of the main natural resources, but also the most important factor in the economic development of the country. With the opening of the market for agricultural land, this resource has become expensive. The moratorium on land sales, which lasted for about 20 years, did not allow citizens to freely dispose of their land rights. But with the adoption of the Law of Ukraine «On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on the Conditions of Circulation of Agricultural Land» from 31.03.2020 № 552–IX, this right was allowed. In this article, we analyzed the market of expropriated agricultural land for one hundred days and 6 months from the beginning of its introduction. The information base was provided by domestic laws and regulations on the economics of nature management, environmental protection, materials and reports of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine, the State Service for Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre of Ukraine. We also used statistical and comparative research methods. Land reforms in Ukraine began with the beginning of independence and continue to this day. After the adoption of the above-mentioned Law, a new stage of land reform began in Ukraine. In the first hundred days, most land plots were expropriated and registered in Kharkiv and Kyiv oblasts, and the smallest — in Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts. At the same time, the largest area of expropriated plots was registered in Kirovohrad and Kharkiv oblasts, and the smallest — in Chernivtsi and Ivano-Frankivsk oblasts. The most expensive land was in Kyiv and Kharkiv oblasts, and the cheapest — in Chernivtsi and Zakarpattia oblasts. All this is explained by the fact that in Kharkiv, Kyiv and Kirovohrad oblasts chernozem soils predominate, which have a high humus content and, accordingly, a higher price, in Chernivtsi and Zakarpattia oblasts sod-podzolic and brown earth soils predominate, which are less fertile, accordingly, the price is lower. Chernozem soils also predominate in Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts, but due to the temporary occupation of these oblasts, the number of expropriated land plots is smaller and cheaper than in other oblasts. In seven months, the situation on the land market has not changed. This indicates that the land market operates in Ukraine.

Особливості управління інвестиційно-інноваційною діяльністю в сільському господарстві України

Abstract. Introduction. Successful functioning of the agricultural enterprise in modern conditions of fast change of needs of consumers and aggravation of competition is impossible without creation effective measures for improvement of qualitative indicators of production, modernization and expansion of manufacture, development of new directions and spheres of activity and also need to plan investment and innovation activities at the enterprise. After all, the chosen innovation and investment strategy is the main tool in achieving economic development and ensuring the competitiveness of entrepreneurial activity, which is why investment and innovation activities need to pay considerable attention to enterprises that operate in market conditions. Purpose. The purpose of the article is to assess investment and innovation activities in agriculture, identify existing problems in this area of the economy and justify ways to intensify investment processes in agricultural production. Results. The experience of many countries with market economies shows the importance of expanding investment support, innovation of economic structures. At present, Ukraine needs to pay more attention to the creation and implementation of promising investment programs to support the innovative development of all sectors of the economy. This will allow the country to increase the competitiveness of its own production and expand the list of technological opportunities in agriculture. In order to increase the efficiency of management at agricultural enterprises and revive the industry, it is necessary to promote the attraction of domestic and foreign investments in the development of agriculture and agro-industrial complex of the country. Conclusions. In determining the innovation and investment strategy for the development of agricultural enterprises in the near future should focus on ensuring and maintaining existing production capacity, creating innovation and investment projects that quickly recoup the investment in production processes, while ensuring the production of competitive products. The key to the implementation of investment activities of agricultural enterprises is also: completion of agricultural land reform aimed at forming a transparent circulation of agricultural land, providing state guarantees of protection to potential investors in agribusiness and socio-economic projects within the revival and development of rural areas.

Evaluation of Risks Related to Transfer of Rural Housing Land for Tourism Development in the Context of “Separation of Three Rights” Reform in China

In this paper, based on a field survey on typical villages in a Chinese metropolis suburb, we employ a risk matrix and the Borda ranking method to evaluate risks related to transfer of rural housing land for tourism development from the perspectives of different stakeholders. We also make suggestions regarding how to standardize transfers and revitalize utilization of rural housing land use rights. Combining qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis, the risk matrix determines the various risk levels faced by different stakeholders in the circulation of rural housing land for tourism development from two dimensions: risk impact degree and risk occurrence probability. Then, the Borda ranking method can subdivide the risk types within each risk level, thus identifying the most critical risks. Our results indicate that (1) unfair distribution of income from land transfers is the major risk faced by farm households and directly decides their willingness to transfer their housing land; (2) market instability is the prime risk factor faced by social investors, and together with project progress risk, indirectly leads to occurrence of operation risk and severely affects the motivation of social investors to invest in transfer, development and operation of rural housing land for tourism development; (3) disappearance of countryside characteristics is the critical risk factor faced by village collectives, and coordination and management risk is the main impediment that blocks the process of transfer of rural housing land for tourism development; and (4) other risks confronted by stakeholders in land transfer, although not the main ones, still need to be granted great importance and followed up closely. Therefore, it is necessary not only to establish appropriate risk avoidance measures for different critical risk factors faced by different stakeholders of such land transfers, but also to strengthen study of the association between the risks, identify the conduction effect of direct and indirect risks, macro and micro risks, and before action and after action risks, and improve the ability to prevent and mitigate these risks.

PRIORITY DIRECTIONS OF ORGANIZATIONAL AND ECONOMIC SUPPORT FOR THE AGRICULTURAL LAND

The article presents a study on the justification of priority areas of organizational and economic support for the circulation of agricultural land. It is determined that the problem of ensuring the circulation of land in the agricultural sector of the economy in its relevance is one of the most serious issues at the state level. It is justified that the aggravation of this problem is due to the increase of interrelated environmental, social and economic risks related to the use of land resources of Ukraine. The following methods were used: a systematic approach to the study of organizational, economic and legal principles of agricultural land circulation; method of economic and statistical analysis and synthesis (for collecting and processing information on regulatory and monetary evaluation of agricultural land and rent by region of Ukraine, determining their relationships); graphic method and method of scientific comparison (for the analysis of the specified statistical data in the movement of indicators of dynamics); method of theoretical generalization (to substantiate the results of research and the formation of conclusions and proposals). The legal basis of land valuation is generalized and the methodological bases of normative monetary evaluation (NME) of land plots are worked out. The ranking according to the normative monetary assessment of agricultural lands and the amount of rent for land shares (units) by regions of Ukraine was carried out. The advantages of the new Methodology of normative monetary valuation of land plots have been established, the leading ones of which are: three separate methodological approaches to conducting normative monetary valuation of lands to a single unified form have been rationally systematized; the inconsistency of interpretations and disparities in the indicators of monetary valuation of land within communities has been eliminated; the procedure for drawing up technical documentation on NMEs has been simplified and the costs for its implementation have been optimized. It is proposed to take into account the qualitative characteristics of land and, accordingly, to introduce an additional adjustment indicator to the standardized capitalized rental income per unit area for agricultural land. It is emphasized that ensuring comprehensive openness of the results of regulatory monetary evaluation of land, strengthening control of the state and communities over the use and circulation of land in the agricultural sector of Ukraine will avoid violations and abuses in the agricultural land market.

Can Land Circulation Improve Farmers’ Income? A Survey of Five China' s Western Provinces

This article Based on the field survey of 15000 farmers in Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi and Qinghai provinces, we used mediator model,analyzed the impact of farmers' livelihood strategies on land circulation and income growth. The research results showed that the farmers’ dependence on land gradually weakened, the willingness of farmland transfer decline, the willingness of farmland transfer to rise; Farmer’s livelihood strategy directly affected income growth, while indirectly income growth by land circulation. Therefore, further promotion on agricultural science and technology achievements transformation and talent support for rural development should be strengthened, the agricultural support system which increases farmers' income should be promoted, farmers' agricultural labor remuneration and scale economic benefit should be encouraged by new styles of agricultural businesses. We should continue to strengthen the progress of the land property rights system, promote the transfer of rural surplus labor through skills training, employment and encourage startups, so that farmers will be both participants and beneficiaries from the farmland transfer.

Property Rights, Land Circulation and Off-Farm Labor Supply: Evidence from a Land Tenure Reform in China

Property Rights, Land Circulation and Off-Farm Labor Supply: Evidence from a Land Tenure Reform in China

On the issue of forming an information and analytical database for the greening of water use in the zone of risky agriculture

In areas of risky agriculture, the practical solution to the problem of improving the quality characteristics of the environment can be the intersectoral formation of organizations and informal institutions that jointly solve the problems of putting into circulation and further use of irrigated land. In the context of global climate change, the agricultural sector, despite some innovative solutions and applied technologies, remains the most dependent and vulnerable. The main part of Russian agricultural products is produced in areas with insufficient and (or) uneven humidification regimes, and the problem of climate change and its impact is as relevant as for other countries. The current conditions dictate the need to create an effective system of organizational and economic relations between rural producers, the land reclamation complex and public administration bodies. The result of their functioning should be the transition of rural areas to sustainable development, which determines the reduction of risks from climate change and the increase in the attractiveness of living and employment of people in rural areas.

UKRAINIAN LAND MARKET MODEL – EXCLUSIVE OR «HYBRID» OF THE LATIFUNDIST MODEL?

The article considers topical issues of land reform in Ukraine in the context of the introduction of the Ukrainian model of the agricultural land market (AL). The purpose of the study is a comparative analysis of the official and author's models of the market turnover of ALs in order to increase the strengths and neutralize the weaknesses of the first of them and turn it into an exclusive model, rather than a copy of the worst variants of the baseline models. It is shown that the state model, which is practiced in Israel, China and other countries, is based on lease land relations - between the state, as the owner of the land, and collective agricultural enterprises, and these relations are regulated by the state land authority. It is determined that the farming model, as the most common and effective, has in its basis a private form of ownership of land, which is cultivated mainly by small and medium farms, and lease land relations are complemented by the market. And these relations, as in Poland, are regulated by state and self-governing bodies. It has been established that the latifundist model of the AL market is also based on private ownership of land, but the main market entities are not farms, but agricultural holdings. Within the framework of this model, land relations between the market entities are oriented mainly on land grabbing and are usually regulated by the general competence authorities. In general, this model is the most threatening to the food security of many countries where it is practiced, such as Madagascar, and the sustainable development of their rural areas. It is justified that the Ukrainian model of the AL market from July 21, 2021 to January 1, 2024 will have many signs of a farming model. But since then, it should not become a «hybrid» of the latifundist, but a combined version of the farm and state models. At the same time, the emphasis should be placed not on the privatization of land, but on their effective use, based on the advantages of the lease form of the land circulation, which are associated with the introduction of long-term lease, increasing its price and transferring to the electronic form.

State-scalar politics of rural land reform in China: The case of Wujin district

China’s central government has been devoted to advancing its dualistic land administration system, such as by designating pilot areas to explore rural land circulation and marketization. Given the increasingly liberalized rural land development practices at localities, this paper aims to explore the variations between policy-making by the central government and implementation at the local scale in the context of interactive politics. A case study of Wujin District, located in the economically developed Yangtze River delta, was examined to unfold the local policy implementation process as intertwined with scalar politics, rural land politics, and the experimentation features of China’s reform. Conducted qualitatively, crucial policy actors were interviewed across multiple administrative levels ranging from the province, prefecture, county, and township governments to village collectives. It was found that within China’s hierarchical land administration, decentralized policy experimentation encouraged by the central government was compromised by the scalar politics and local governmental power structure when implemented on the ground (i.e., the city-county struggles and the resultant incomplete authorities of the primary policy actor). The findings highlight that central policy design and the autonomy of local governments during the policy-making process should be coordinated by embracing scalar complexity.

Возможности вовлечения в оборот неиспользуемых сельскохозяйственных земель в регионах СЗФО

Abstract. In the regions of the Northwestern Federal District, as well as in the whole country, almost every year there is a reduction in the area of agricultural land and arable land. An important problem remains the non-use of agricultural land for their intended purpose. Identification and return to circulation of unused agricultural land, primarily arable land, is an important socio-economic task in almost all regions of the Northwestern Federal District. The mechanism of regulating land relations should be aimed not only at solving the problems of effective use of land resources to achieve the projected growth rates of agricultural production, but also at solving social problems of the territory, improving the quality of life of the rural population. Rational use of agricultural land implies that land use should not only be economically efficient for the agricultural producer, but also from the point of view of the neo-endogenous approach to promote the development of rural areas. The purpose of this study is taking into account the diversification of the rural economy, to explore the possibilities of involving unused agricultural land in the NWFD regions. Methods. The paper uses the following research methods: monographic, abstract-logical, economic-statistical. The reports of Rosstat, Rosreestr, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation and information of regional level management bodies became the information and empirical base. The scientific novelty lies in the formulation and solution of the question of the need and possibility of involving unused agricultural land in the regions of the Northwestern Federal District in the turnover. Results. As a result of the study, the long-term negative consequences of the reduction of agricultural land, the problems of putting unused land into circulation were identified, measures were proposed to eliminate them in order to effectively use the land resources of rural territories and redistribution in the interests of efficient economic entities.