Department Of Statistics Research Articles

Quadratic equations with absolute values: an example of developing proof in mathematics students

Proof is the most important and fundamental aspect of mathematics. However, it is generally agreed by mathematics teachers at upper high school and first year university that students lack the ideas of proof. How to develop this in students is a common, difficult and perennial problem. In this paper, we develop some ideas of proof based on the number of solutions of an equation involving a quadratic polynomial and absolute values of linear functions. We begin with the simple idea of making more precise a question that is posed, investigating the problem through exploration, and arriving at some conjectures. We proceed to determine ways to prove the conjectures and thus convert them into theorems. The question discussed in this paper arose in a session for high school students held at the Department of Mathematics and Statistics of the University of Western Australia. The result is an excellent and interesting illustration of problem posing and solving in mathematics that underpins mathematical thinking. The paper is accessible to final year high school and first-year university mathematics students. We expect that it will serve as a resource for and inspire further ideas and examples for mathematics teachers, for teaching proof to students.

Relationship between universal health insurance benefits and prostate cancer mortality in Colombia.

Prostate cancer is the most common cause for cancer mortality among men in Colombia. Law 100, in 1993, created a contributory regime (private insurance) and subsidized regime (public insurance) in which the subsidized regime had fewer benefits. However, Ruling T760 in July 2012 mandated that both systems must offer equal quality and access to healthcare. This study examines the impact of this change on prostate cancer mortality rates before and after 2012. Prostate cancer mortality records from 2006 to 2020 were collected from Colombia's National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE). Crude mortality was calculated by health insurance for different geographic areas and analyzed for changes between 2006 and 2012 and 2013-2020. Join-Point regressions were used to analyze trends by health insurance. Crude mortality rates in the contributory regime had a non-statistically significant decrease from 2006 to 2012 (AAPC= -1.32%, P = 0.14, 95% CI= -3.12, 0.52). In contrast, between 2013 and 2020 there was a non-statistically significant increase in crude mortality (AAPC 1.10%, P = 0.07, 95% CI= -0.09, 2.31). Comparatively, crude mortality in the subsidized regime, from 2006 to 2012, increased with a statistically significant AAPC of 2.51% (P < 0.001, 95% CI = 1.21, 3.83). From 2013 to 2020, mortality continued to increase with statistically significant AAPC of 5.52% (P < 0.001, 95% CI = 4.77, 6.27). Compared to their crude mortality differences from 2006 to 2020, from 2013 to 2020, the departments of Atlántico, Córdoba, Sucre, Arauca, Cesar, and Cauca had the highest rates in prostate cancer mortality in the subsidized regime compared to the contributory regime. Ruling T760 did not positively impact prostate cancer mortality, particularly of men in the subsidized regime.

Wkład ośrodków statystycznych w Krakowie i we Wrocławiu w rozwój metod klasyfikacji i analizy danych

The year 2022 marked the 10th anniversary of the passing of Prof. Kazimierz Zając, the long-standing head of the Department of Statistics and later the director of the Institute of Statistics, Econometrics and Computer Science at Krakow University of Economics, while 2023 marked the 10th year of the passing of Prof. Zdzisław Hellwig, the long-standing head of the Department of Statistics and director of the Institute of Economic Cybernetics at Wroclaw University of Economics. Both professors were the scientific leaders of statistical centres at the above-mentioned universities. The aim of the article is to present the contribution of Polish statisticians to the development of the theoretical foundations and empirical research in the field of numerical taxonomy and methods of data classification and analysis. Particular emphasis is placed on the achievements of Professor Zając and Professor Hellwig and their students and associates. According to the authors of this work, recalling the achievements of these scholars is especially important as most commonly cited sources on data classification and analysis are mainly English-language.

Rehabilitation with removable dentures in adults and older people with partial or total edentulism: Chilean Public Health System Experience, 2017–2019

Statement of problemTooth loss is frequent among the Chilean population, particularly the poor and elderly. The Public's response is mostly via removable dentures (RDs), however there is limited evidence regarding its results. PurposeThe objective of this descriptive ecological study is to monitor and characterize the production of RDs within Chile's Public Health System. Material and methodsPublic records were obtained from the Department of Statistics and Health Information of Chile (DEIS) website. All records regarding RDs activities within the Public Health System for years 2017 to 2019 were retrieved and included in the analysis. ResultsBetween 2017 and 2019, the Public Health sector delivered an average of 342,261 RDs annually, which corresponds to 2.4 RD per 100 individuals. Overall, 70.3 % of beneficiaries were female, 63.2 % were for people between the ages of 20 to 64, and 35.3 % were for people aged 65 or older. Among RDs provided, 57 % were made at the primary level and 43 % at the secondary level of care. The program “More Smiles”, accounted for 52.3 % of primary healthcare RD delivery. At the secondary level, 14.9 % of RDs had metallic framework, while 85.1 % were acrylic. Older persons and males were more likely to receive acrylic RDs than their counterparts. ConclusionsRDs are regularly supplied in Chile's Public Healthcare System, mainly through primary care. The characterization regarding programs, type of RDs, gender and age of the recipients, may guide future hypothesis regarding the adequateness of the response to address tooth loss at a population level. Further investigation into the impact on patient satisfaction and RD quality is recommended to enhance understanding in this domain. Clinical implicationsThe study explores the scale and characteristics of removable prosthetic provision within Chile's Public Health System. This comprehensive overview enables the identification of areas requiring further attention to ensure the delivery of high-quality treatments and the efficient allocation of public resources.

Is a single minimum wage policy viable option? Evidence from the impact of minimum wage on youth employment in Malaysia

The present study is aimed to identify an ideal mechanism to reduce negative effect of minimum wage on youth employment generation. Using available data from Department of Statistics, the study runs an annual panel regression at the state level based on fixed effect specification model. The finding demonstrates that the minimum wage has a negative effect on employment, particularly among youth. It implies that there is an excess of labour supply in the market at the current wage rate. As a result, the rate set is higher than equilibrium, signifying firm disadvantages. The negative effect is more prevalent if the single national minimum wage rate policy is applied to all states. Therefore, the national wage policy should be thoroughly examined. Instead, a regional wage rate should be explored as a potential solution for mitigating and preventing negative employment effects.

Efficiency analysis of manufacturing industries in Singapore using the DEA-Malmquist productivity index

This study evaluated the efficiency and productivity of the manufacturing industries of Singapore. Singapore is one of the world’s most competitive countries and manufacturing giants. All 21 manufacturing industries as classified by Singapore’s Department of Statistics were included in the study as decision-making units (DMUs). Using the Malmquist DEA on data spanning 2015–2021, we found that excerpt for the Paper and Paper product industry, all industries recorded positive total factor productivity (TFP). TFP ranged from 0.977 to 1.481. In terms of technical efficiency, 14 out of 21 industries showed positive efficiency change. The highest TFP was recorded in 2020 and the lowest in 2016. By measuring and improving efficiency, industries in Singapore can achieve cost savings, increase output, and enhance their competitiveness in the global marketplace. In addition, efficiency measurement can help policymakers identify potential areas for improvement and develop targeted policies to promote sustainable economic growth. Given these benefits, performance measurement is inevitable for industries and policymakers in Singapore to achieve economic objectives. Manufacturing industries need to find ways to manage the size and scale of operations as we flag this as an area for improvement.

Antiviral drug treatment profiles and clinical outcomes of COVID-19 patients at public hospitals in Erbil city

Background &amp; objectives: The World Health Organization has identified COVID-19 as a rapidly spreading global disease. Some antiviral drugs have shown promising efficacy in treating COVID-19. This study aims to identify the effects of antiviral drugs and compare them with other therapies in COVID-19 patients, while reviewing the clinical outcomes of these treatments. Methods: This observational retrospective case study included 451 COVID-19 patients, comprising 57.0% males and 43% females, conducted in Rizgari, Erbil, at Central Emergency, Rozhawa Emergency, and Emirate Hospitals over one year from December 2020 to December 2021. COVID-19 cases were confirmed using reverse transcriptase polymerase-chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays, and treatment followed the WHO guidelines, involving antivirals (Remdesivir, Favipiravir), broad-spectrum antibiotics (levofloxacin, azithromycin, ceftriaxone, meropenem, imipenem), and supportive treatment with Becozym (Vitamins B1 + B2 + B3 + B5 + B6). Data were recorded in the statistical department of the hospitals. Results: The total age range of the 451 patients was 95 (18-113) with a mean ± SD of 59.408 ± 18.26 years. The death rate was 22.39%. A majority of the survival patients were in the young age group (95.1%), while the death rate was higher in the old age group (more than 75 years). The death rate of patients treated with antiviral drug Remdesivir was 15.30%, while it was 37.93%, 73.45%, 15.25%, and 14.15% in patients on levofloxacin, ceftriaxone, meropenem, and Becozyme, espectively. Logistic regression analysis did not show any role of treatments in decreasing mortality. Conclusions: Significant differences were observed in clinical outcomes; the majority of surviving patients were in the young age group, while older COVID-19 patients had worse illnesses and treatment outcomes. Diabetes and hypertension were significant predictors of COVID-19 mortality. Although Remdesivir treatment showed a statistically significant association between survival and death cohorts, it was not considered a predictor variable for survival. Antibiotics and supplement drugs like Becozyme were also not considered predictors of survival for COVID-19 patients.

Individual and contextual factors associated with measles infection in Malaysia: a multilevel analysis.

Despite effective vaccination strategies, measles remains a global public health challenge. The study explored individual and contextual factors associated with measles infection in Malaysia from 2018 to 2022, informing the development of targeted public health interventions. This cross-sectional study utilised data from the Ministry of Health, the Department of Statistics, and the Department of Environment Malaysia. Multilevel logistic regression analysis was employed to examine individual-level factors, including age, sex, ethnicity, nationality, contact history, travel history, and vaccination status. Concurrently, contextual factors were assessed, encompassing district-level determinants such as population density, median household income, urbanisation, the number of health and rural clinics, vaccination rates, PM2.5 levels, relative humidity, and temperature, to determine their impact on measles infection risk. Measles infection was significantly associated with various individual factors. These included age (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.02; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.02-1.03), ethnicity, non-Malaysian nationality (aOR, 34.53; 95% CI, 8.42-141.51), prior contact with a measles case (aOR, 2.36; 95% CI, 2.07-2.69), travel history (aOR, 2.30; 95% CI, 1.13-4.70), and vaccination status (aOR, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.72-0.79). Among contextual factors, urbanisation (aOR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.16-2.10) and the number of clinics (aOR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.97-0.99) were significant determinants. This multilevel logistic regression analysis illuminates the complexities of measles transmission, advocating public health interventions tailored to individual and contextual vulnerabilities. The findings highlight the need for a synergistic approach that combines vaccination campaigns, healthcare accessibility improvements, and socioeconomic interventions to effectively combat measles.

Foreign Trade as a Channel of Pandemic Transmission to the Agricultural Sector in Poland

The resilience of economic and social systems to shocks is one of the fundamental goals of sustainable development. One such event that seriously disrupted the global economy was the COVID-19 pandemic. It posed a direct threat to people’s health and lives and also caused an economic crisis. One of the effects of the crisis was the loss of stability in agricultural production with the resulting threat to food security. The foreign trade channel played a vital role in the mechanism of pandemic transmission to the agricultural sector in the world and Poland. This article aims to assess the significance of changes in international trade in agri-food commodities conducted by Polish entities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research period covers the years 2017–2021, focusing on the years 2020–2021, the period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Such a research period allows comparative analyses during the pandemic and pre-pandemic periods. The following research methods are used in this study: a critical analysis of the literature, the descriptive approach, the comparative method, and verbal logic and descriptive statistical methods. The data used in this article come from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) and cover Poland’s foreign trade turnover according to the International Standard Trade Classification (SITC) used by the United Nations Statistics Department. The COVID-19 pandemic period did not cause a drastic collapse in Polish foreign trade. Short-lived blockages in the flow of goods, which appeared in Q2 2020, resulted in a 14% drop in the value of Polish exports. Already in Q3 2020, foreign trade turnover returned to pre-pandemic levels. In Q2 2020, the value of the exports of agri-food goods decreased by only 3%. For other commodity groups, the export values were 7–40% lower. Agri-food trade proved more resilient to pandemic shocks than trade in non-agricultural sectors. The foreign trade crisis affected the imports of goods more than exports.

DETERMINATION OF MAINTENANCE PRIORITIES ON DISTRICT AND CITY ROADS IN LAMPUNG PROVINCE IN 2019 USING THE SIMPLE ADDITIVE WEIGHTING (SAW) METHOD

&lt;p&gt;Road infrastructure is a primary transportation asset extensively used by society to support economic, educational, and other activities. Consequently, roads function as a crucial supporter of the country's socio-economic activities. UU No. 38 of 2004 regarding Roads stipulates that roads are essential transportation facilities for the economy, social aspects, environment, politics, and defense and security. This research employs the Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) method to collect secondary data. The secondary data is obtained from the Department of Communication, Informatics, and Statistics of Lampung Province and processed to generate an assessment of road segments based on preference values. The research results indicate that, based on the criteria weighting, heavily damaged road conditions have the highest importance weight at 58.6%, followed by the criterion of average daily traffic. These findings suggest that road experts share a similar perspective on how road criteria are prioritized for specific regions. The ranking results using the SAW method with a Likert scale indicate a value of 97.34.&lt;/p&gt;

Cancer mortality among Colombian and foreign populations over a 15-year period

PurposeWe aimed to compare cancer mortality among foreign- and Colombian populations in Colombia during the period of 2006–2020. MethodsThis retrospective study utilized vital statistics from the Colombian National Department of Statistics (DANE). The dataset included variables such as age group, sex, country of permanent residency, insurance, education level, marital status, ethnicity, and cause of death. The population data to calculate rates was obtained from the Colombian census and the United Nations. Crude and adjusted rates as well as proportional mortality rates were calculated. ResultsA total of 561,932 cancer deaths occurred in Colombia from 2006 to 2020. The foreign population (country of permanent residency different to Colombia) had a lower crude cancer mortality rate (31.1 per 100,000 inhabitants) than the Colombian population (81.9 per 100,000 inhabitants). However, the age-adjusted cancer mortality rate among the foreign population was 253.6 per 100,000, compared to 86.1 per 100,000 among the Colombian population. The proportional cancer mortality was 10.4 % among foreign population compared to 17.4 % among Colombian population. ConclusionsThe proportional cancer mortality shows that the proportion of cancer-related deaths is greater among the Colombian population compared to the immigrant population. However, immigrants in Colombia have a higher age-adjusted cancer mortality rate than Colombians, indicating that immigrants have worse cancer outcomes than the Colombians even though the immigrant population is younger. This is likely due to the frequent barriers that immigrants encounter in accessing health care in Colombia. Future research needs to focus on access to care for the immigrant population by investigating cancer-related risk factors among immigrants and addressing their barriers to cancer prevention and treatment.

Evaluation of micronutrient and nutritional status among preschool children in Jordan: results from a Nationwide survey.

Jordan faces various malnutrition challenges, including undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, overweight, obesity, and diet-related non-communicable diseases. The country has shifted from issues of undernutrition to rising rates of overweight and obesity, while still dealing with micronutrient deficiencies. The 2010 national survey revealed high rates of iron and vitamin D deficiencies among preschool children, with about 20% experiencing vitamin A deficiencies. The goals of the 2019 Jordan National Micronutrient & Nutrition Survey (JNMNS) include assessing feeding practices of infants and young children, determining the frequency of consuming micronutrient-rich foods, evaluating causes of anemia, assessing the health status of specific subgroups, and comparing findings to the 2010 survey. JNMNS 2019 was a comprehensive national cross-sectional survey structured across four strata. Within each stratum, 40 primary sampling units were chosen in proportion to their size based on the 2015 Jordan census. Subsequently, the Department of Statistics conducted household listings in each PSU. Separate response rates were assumed for households and target groups, encompassing interviews, anthropometric measurements, and specimen collection. The survey aimed to collect data from 2,210 households, including interviews and anthropometry for 1,232 preschool children, with blood samples obtained from 992 of them. The findings revealed no severe anemia cases, but 11% of preschoolers aged 12-59 months were anemic. Iron deficiency affected 22.4%, with 5% having iron deficiency anemia. Vitamin D deficiency increased to 22.9% in 2019. Stunting and wasting rates improved slightly to 6.3 and 0.1%, respectively. Overweight and obesity rates remained stable at 6.2 and 2.1%. Anemia decreased by 5-6%, but iron deficiency rose by 7%. Vitamin A deficiency decreased, but iron deficiency anemia remained largely unchanged. Undernutrition was rare, but vitamin D deficiency affected 27.7% of preschoolers, impacting growth and immunity. Iron deficiency, affecting 25% of children, poses a risk to cognitive development. Overweight or obesity affected 9% of children, a medium public health issue according to the WHO. While malnutrition rates are low, the persistent issues of vitamin D deficiency, iron deficiency, and childhood obesity require focused attention. The study highlights ongoing nutritional challenges among Jordanian preschoolers. Although severe anemia was rare, 11% were anemic, and 22.4% had iron deficiency, including 5% with iron deficiency anemia. Vitamin D deficiency affected 22.9%, impacting growth and immunity. While stunting and wasting improved, childhood overweight and obesity rates remained steady. Anemia decreased, but iron deficiency rose by 7%. Despite reduced vitamin A deficiency, stable iron deficiency anemia rates indicate ongoing concerns. Overall, undernutrition is uncommon, but vitamin D and iron deficiencies, along with childhood obesity, need sustained attention and targeted interventions to improve children's health in Jordan.

BANKING SUPERVISION THROUGH SUPTECH

Victor Ababii E-mail: ababii.victor@gmail.com PhD student, Academy of Economic Studies of Moldova Head of Division, Reporting and Statistics Department, National Bank of Moldova Chișinău, Republic of Moldova https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9573-0204 Abstract: The banking system requires continuous development to enhance stability and integrity of the financial sector by implementing the latest technological tools. Maintaining a sustainable financial system, resilient to the shocks generated by the digital age and able to adapt and prevent emerging cyber risks remains a priority for supervisory institutions, in response to financial supervision and risk management framework through leveraging state-of-the-art technology for better governance and control. SupTech's primary objective is to promote inclusion in the financial sector by focusing on governance management and digital financing. It`s goal is to support the development of an inclusive financial system built on a robust digital infrastructure that enhances efficiency, transparency, and resilience. As technological innovations advance, financial services have to evolve, requiring financial institutions to adapt their surveillance technologies (SupTech) to safeguard citizen interests. Establishing both normative and technical SupTech frameworks helps supervisory authorities to eliminate gaps in internal processes, streamline workflows, fortify risk management, protect consumers, and maintain financial system stability amid ongoing market changes. Implementing a SupTech framework involves several stages: diagnosing the institution's current state, defining the purpose, vision, and objectives of SupTech, identifying key drivers and adaptive capabilities, evaluating necessary actions, and detailing steps for successful implementation. A thorough diagnosis of the supervisory institution involves IT solutions that facilitate continuous bank monitoring and offsite supervision. This diagnostic analysis includes: (1) Data products – identifying the position and trends to reach the level of AI-augment business intelligence tools; (2) Analytics – aiming to implement analytics tools perspectives; (3) Access controls - with the position on the agency - wide access; (4) Storage – oriented towards the use target of big data tools; (5) Validation and processing – aiming at the use of advanced data processing; (6) Collection – using the latest AI-based collection trends or alternative data sources. Configuring the SupTech framework involves transforming vulnerabilities into opportunities. For example, automating data flows can address deficiencies in manual data handling, risk assessment, and report generation. Implementing a data warehouse can solve challenges related to data consolidation, multiple analysis tools, system integration complexity, and data correlation. SupTech aims to provide supervisory authorities with reliable, high-quality data, aligning with best practices in governance and data management. This ensures consistency in the supervisory process and resilience to technological advancements. Digitizing surveillance processes is crucial for operational efficiency, with advanced analytics and business intelligence solutions enhancing surveillance information and decision-making. Keywords: SupTech, Fintech, Regtech, risks, data model. JEL classification: G21

Mobile Application for Recognizing Colombian Currency with Audio Feedback for Visually Impaired People

Context: According to the census conducted by the National Department of Statistics (DANE) in 2018, 7.1% of the Colombian population has a visual disability. These people face conditions with limited autonomy, such as the handling of money. In this context, there is a need to create tools to enable the inclusion of visually impaired people in the financial sector, allowing them to make payments and withdrawals in a safe and reliable manner. Method: This work describes the development of a mobile application called CopReader. This application enables the recognition of coins and banknotes of Colombian currency without an Internet connection, by means of convolutional neural network models. CopReader was developed to be used by visually impaired people. It takes a video or photographs, analyzes the input data, estimates the currency value, and uses audio feedback to communicate the result. Results: To validate the functionality of CopReader, integration tests were performed. In addition, precision and recall tests were conducted, considering the YoloV5 and MobileNet architectures, obtaining 95 and 93% for the former model and 99% for the latter. Then, field tests were performed with visually impaired people, obtaining accuracy values of 96%. 90% of the users were satisfied with the application’s functionality. Conclusions: CopReader is a useful tool for recognizing Colombian currency, helping visually impaired people gain to autonomy in handling money.

Growth Dynamics of Sugarcane in North Karnataka, India

Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) holds immense significance in India's agricultural, economic and industrial spheres. In Karnataka, sugarcane was cultivated on an area of 6.37 lakh hectares with annual production of 61.15 million tonnes (2021-22). Bagalkote district ranked as the state's second-largest sugarcane producer, accounting for 16.82 per cent of the total cultivated area and contributed for 15.06 per cent in the total production of the state. The present study was conducted to know trends in sugarcane cultivation in Karnataka and Bagalkote district. The secondary data on area, production and productivity of sugarcane for a period of 20 years (2001-2021) were collected from the publications of Department of Economics and Statistics (DES) and were analysed using Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) and Cuddy Della Valle Index. The results of the analysis revealed a significant compound growth rate of 3.50 per cent annually for sugarcane production in Karnataka, driven by augmented area and productivity and area under sugarcane expanded by 2.92 per cent per annum. In Bagalkote district, sugarcane production increased by 4.21 per cent annually, attributed solely to the increased cultivated area, even though productivity exhibited a slight decline. The Cuddy-Della Valle Index revealed higher instability in production and area compared to productivity in both Karnataka and Bagalkote district. The study highlights the importance of farmers adopting new high-yielding sugarcane varieties that demonstrate resilience to adverse weather conditions, pests, and diseases as a means to sustain and boost productivity for higher sugarcane production.

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF DETERMINATIONS OF RESERVATION WAGE EXPECTATIONS AMONG UNEMPLOYED MEN AND WOMEN IN SRI LANKA

The "reservation wage" concept indicates the minimum compensation a person is willing to accept when seeking employment. This study aims to determine how reservation wage expectations differ between unemployed men and women in Sri Lanka. This analysis used secondary data extracted from the Sri Lanka Labour Force Survey (2021), which was conducted by the Department of Census and Statistics, and encompasses a sample size of 1,567 total unemployed, comprising 739 unemployed males and 828 unemployed females. A semi-log model was applied separately to the unemployed men, the unemployed women and the total unemployed to achieve the study's objective. The results indicated that gender significantly influences reservation wage expectations among unemployed men and women. Compared with women, unemployed men have a higher reservation wage expectation. Noteworthy variables, including household size, age, and unemployment duration, exhibit varying degrees of insignificance in shaping reservation wage expectations for both genders. Finally, this study concluded that the reservation wage expectations among unemployed men and women in Sri Lanka are significantly affected by various demographic, household socio-economic and regional geographical factors. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers to foster gender equality and labour market inclusivity to reduce the gender gap in Sri Lanka.

Multidimensional energy poverty in Colombia: A department-level review from 2018 to 2022

This article aims to measure energy poverty in Colombia in its thirty-two departments and its capital city from 2018 to 2022, using a composite approach. To achieve this, a Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index (MEPI) was designed, according to the methodology proposed by Nussbaumer et al. (2012; 2013) [1,2]. Twenty-eight variables were used, which were distributed across seven dimensions, and recorded by the National Quality of Life Survey (ECV, Spanish acronym), administered by the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE) of Colombia. In addition, a nested weighting method was used to assign weights within the index. Subjective weights were given to the dimensions, and an entropy method was used for each of the component variables. The results show that energy poverty has an increasing trend in Colombia throughout the period, especially in the municipal capitals. There are significant differences between urban and rural areas in all territories, and the departments located in the most remote areas of the country have a higher energy poverty. This is consistent with the low population density, as well as with off-grid areas. The results obtained will allow decision makers to conduct a preliminary evaluation of the management and effects of the specific public policy programs and plans that have been implemented in the different territories of the country.

Business cycles in Colombia: stylized facts

The purpose of this article is to examine the economic cycles in Colombia and to empirically corroborate the fulfillment of nine stylized facts documented in the specialized international literature. For this purpose, the retropolated series 1975-2013 and the series 2005:1-2022:4 of the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE) were analyzed using the Hodrick-Prescott filter. Thus, the occurrence of four economic cycles is recorded between 1975 and 2013 with an average duration of 9.3 years with an expansionary phase of 5.0 years and a contractionary phase of 5.3 years. Similarly, between 2005:1 and 2022:4 there were three cycles with an average duration of 21.7 quarters, with an expansionary phase of 14.7 quarters and a contractionary phase of 7.0 quarters. It should also be said that the cyclical fluctuations of employment and unemployment are closely related to effective demand and domestic demand in accordance with Keynesian theory; for example, the positive correlation between the real GDP cycle and the implicit GDP deflator cycle suggests that the cycles were not due to shifts in the aggregate production function as the dominant theory stresses, but to shifts in the aggregate demand function.

ADAPTING TO THE DIGITAL ERA: KEY SKILLS FOR FUTURE ACCOUNTING PROFESSIONALS

Unemployment can be considered as global challenge faced by almost all countries. However, further analysis by the Department of Statistics of Malaysia (DOSM) revealed a worrisome detail in which the rate of skill-related underemployment graduates continues to rise up recording 33.9 per cent in 2021 as compared to 31.2 per cent in 2020. Skill-related underemployment graduates is identified as occupation mismatch taking into consideration their educations, knowledge and skills were not fully utilised to their current work. Occupation mismatch may be worsened with the rapid growth of information and communication technology (ICT) and accounting graduates is no exception. Accounting profession is notified to also be highly at risk of being digitalised and automated in the near future. Accounting graduates with top academic credentials may still possibly failed to secure jobs because employers may view certificate and approval requirements are not enough. Instead, they require more incremental benefits such soft skills, communication skills, leaderships skills and ability to work in team. Importantly, students need to be aware of the employment needs and equipped themselves with skills beyond classroom learning before they finally graduated. To address this issue, this study will be carried out with the purpose to identify the important of accounting skills required for employment in accounting profession. A group of accounting students will be identified to participate this research. This research employs qualitative approach utilizing structured interviews which will be conducted through several medium of communication namely, phone calls and online questionnaires distributed through instant messaging application using Google form. The findings from this study are hoped to provide some suggestions of programs, activities, or new approaches on improving and enhancing accounting graduates’ skills that would transform them into highly marketable graduates.

Improving Statistical Analysis in Supporting Big Data Era for SMA Negeri 1 Krembung Teachers

Classroom Action Research (CAR) is a research type conducted within the classroom environment to enhance the learning process. Nevertheless, many school teachers encounter obstacles primarily due to insufficient knowledge about research methodology and statistical analysis, which support CAR. To maximize data potential in education, SMA Negeri 1 Krembung recognizes the importance of enhancing teachers' statistical and data science-based analysis skills. To achieve this, the Department of Statistics at Universitas Brawijaya collaborates in organizing community service through training to empower the educational community at SMA Negeri 1 Krembung. To assess the community service program's effectiveness, pre-test and post-test analyses were carried out using the t-test. By applying the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test hypothesis, a significant difference was identified in statistical and data science-based analysis skills before and after the community service program implementation. The ability to analyze based on statistics and data science has improved, evident from the post-test mean rank value surpassing the pre-test mean rank value (11.08 &gt; 6.33). Consequently, it can be concluded that repeating training activities is essential to enhance statistical and data science-based analysis skills in the big data era and to provide a deeper understanding of Classroom Action Research.