Development In Low-income Countries Research Articles

Mobile Phones for Mobile People: The Role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) among Livestock Traders and Borana Pastoralists of Southern Ethiopia

Abstract The recent widespread use of mobile communication technologies has sparked considerable interest in their application to social and economic development in low-income countries. In this article we examine the different uses of mobile phones among livestock traders and Borana pastoralists of southern Ethiopia, where increased adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) has been recent and shows potential for improvements in local livelihoods and marketing systems. We draw on an ongoing study of pastoralists and livestock traders who, in the past five years, have increased their reliance on mobile phones. They increasingly employ them to access information on grazing, weather and market conditions despite local differences in adoption rates. The article argues that differential rates of ICT adoption among groups of herders and traders relate to unequal access to the technology and infrastructure, as well as differences in local practices of information gathering. We show that the high-level of sharing of mobile technologies between owners and non-owners, however, dampens some of the negative effects of unequal ownership and infrastructure deficiencies. In the conclusion, we address the program and policy implications of the study's findings and point to the need for additional research on mobile phone use among pastoralists.

Managing Disaster Risk: An Integrative Essay About Governance, Capacity, Fragility, and Vulnerability

The concepts of governance, capacity and fragility have been used by researchers, practitioners and donors focused on development in low income countries. All three concepts remain contested; there are neither undisputed meanings nor applications for each of them. Nevertheless, in international development the three concepts are in good currency and they are used to interpret myriad dimensions of development including how disaster risk management is practiced in low income countries. By connecting the three development concepts with a fourth—vulnerability, we provide a more comprehensive understanding of how development interventions, specifically those related to disaster risk management, can be targeted in countries labelled as fragile. This approach is consistent with recent arguments that recommend sector specific and even program specific interventions that may have a higher likelihood of succeeding by iteratively addressing vulnerability in countries with poor governance, fragility and low capacity.

Environmental Quality in Economic Development in Low-Income Countries: Application of an EQT Model using Cross-Country Sample Data

Past studies have tended to inquire as to whether there is evidence that economic growth negatively impacts environmental quality. This remains and has always been an ample question to ponder with regard to the case of high-income countries. In terms of the low-income countries, however, the reverse question seems to be more appropriate given that the main concern in these countries is relatively more about growth than the environment. This paper develops an Environmental Quality Trajectory (EQT) model and applies it to provide a theoretical and empirical analysis of the importance of environmental quality, and how it impacts economic growth and development for developing countries. The study reveals some very important issues concerning the environment and the major factors that shape its role in economic growth and development in low-income countries. And most importantly, the study’s results appear to generally lend support to aspects of the Ruttan-Kuznets propositions about the relationship between income and environmental quality in developing countries, and at the same time seem to refute some aspects of it, to the effect that the implications of the environmental Kuznets curve does not seem to hold equally to all low-income countries per se, as ordinarily believed hitherto.

Evidence for informing health policy development in Low-income Countries (LICs): perspectives of policy actors in Uganda.

Although there is a general agreement on the benefits of evidence informed health policy development given resource constraints especially in Low-Income Countries (LICs), the definition of what evidence is, and what evidence is suitable to guide decision-making is still unclear. Our study is contributing to filling this knowledge gap. We aimed to explore health policy actors' views regarding what evidence they deemed appropriate to guide health policy development. Using exploratory qualitative methods, we conducted interviews with 51 key informants using an in-depth interview guide. We interviewed a diverse group of stakeholders in health policy development and knowledge translation in the Uganda health sector. Data were analyzed using inductive content analysis techniques. Different stakeholders lay emphasis on different kinds of evidence. While donors preferred international evidence and Ministry of Health (MoH) officials looked to local evidence, district health managers preferred local evidence, evidence from routine monitoring and evaluation, and reports from service providers. Service providers on the other hand preferred local evidence and routine monitoring and evaluation reports whilst researchers preferred systematic reviews and clinical trials. Stakeholders preferred evidence covering several aspects impacting on decision-making highlighting the fact that although policy actors look for factual information, they also require evidence on context and implementation feasibility of a policy decision. What LICs like Uganda categorize as evidence suitable for informing policy encompasses several types with no consensus on what is deemed as most appropriate. Evidence must be of high quality, applicable, acceptable to the users, and informing different aspects of decision-making.

Early childhood development in low-income countries.

Early childhood development in low-income countries.

The World Bank and the global governance of education in a changing world order

The World Bank's involvement in education policy and reform has grown substantially since the 1960s. For an organization that originally had no mandate to work on education, the Bank has become perhaps the most powerful and hegemonic of the international organizations operating in the education for development field. The Bank is the largest single international funder of education for development in low-income countries, and its technical and knowledge-based resources tower over those of other international institutions.This article develops a heuristic framework for understanding agenda-setting processes in international organizations (IOs), and applies it to analyze how the World Bank work in education has evolved with the passage of time. The framework focuses on three dynamics as keys to understanding the Bank and education: the political opportunities created by geo-political and ideological shifts among the most powerful member governments; the IOs relationships with borrowing (or “client”) countries; and finally the internal dynamics and organizational culture of the IOs own bureaucracy as it aims to reproduce itself and manage shifts in the previous two dynamics. These three dynamics and their interaction are explored over four key periods: from the 1960s to the beginning of the 1980s, when the debt crisis exploded in many developing nations; from 1981 to mid-nineties, a period marked by structural adjustment lending and the reorganization of the Bank's education sector activities around basic education; from the mid-nineties to 2008, when the Post-Washington consensus emerged; and from 2008 to present, a period characterized by significant shifts in power in the world system and an accompanying rise of strategic uncertainty at different levels within the Bank.

Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements Do Not Affect the Risk of Malaria or Respiratory Morbidity in 6- to 18-Month-Old Malawian Children in a Randomized Controlled Trial

Background:There is evidence to support the use of lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNSs) to promote child growth and development in low-income countries, but there is also a concern regarding the safety of using iron-fortified products in malaria-endemic areas. Objective:The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that 6- to 18-mo-old rural Malawian children receiving iron-containing (6 mg/d) LNSs would not have excess morbidity compared with infants receiving no supplementation. Methods:A randomized controlled trial allocated 840 children to receive daily supplementation with 54 g/d LNS with milk protein base (milk-LNS), 54 g/d LNS with soy protein base (soy-LNS), 71 g/d corn-soy blend (CSB), or no supplementation from 6 to 18 mo of age. Morbidity was compared using a non-inferiority margin set at 20% excess morbidity in supplemented groups compared with the nonsupplemented group. Results:Baseline characteristics were similar across groups. The proportion of days with febrile illness between 6 and 18 mo was 4.9%, and there were no differences between the groups: 4.9% (95% CI: 4.3, 5.5%), 4.5% (95% CI: 3.9, 5.1%), 4.7% (95% CI: 4.1, 5.3%), and 5.5% (95% CI: 4.7–6.3%) in the milk-LNS, soy-LNS, CSB, and control groups, respectively. The proportion of days with respiratory problems and diarrhea between 6 and 18 mo also did not differ between groups. Compared with controls, the incident rate ratio (95% CI) for clinical malaria was 0.80 (0.59, 1.09), 0.77 (0.56, 1.06), and 0.79 (0.58, 1.08) in milk-LNS, soy-LNS, and CSB, respectively, with 95% CIs confirming non-inferiority. The incidence of febrile episodes, diarrhea, respiratory problems or admission to hospital, prevalence of malaria parasitemia throughout the follow-up, and mean change in hemoglobin concentration from baseline were also similar between the groups. Conclusions:Daily supplementation with 54 g of milk-based or soy protein–based LNS or 71 g of CSB did not result in increases in malaria or respiratory morbidity in children in a malaria-endemic setting. However, we could not conclude whether LNSs did or did not increase diarrheal morbidity. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00524446.

A・J・コール、E・M・フーヴァー共著「低所得国における人口成長と経済発展」

A・J・コール、E・M・フーヴァー共著「低所得国における人口成長と経済発展」

Socio-cultural acceptance of appropriate technology: Identifying and prioritizing barriers for widespread use of the urine diversion toilets in rural Muslim communities of Bangladesh

The Urine Diversion Dehydration Toilet (UDDT) is an important technology which could raise the standard of living for the poorest areas in low-income countries. It is a resource reuse oriented sanitation technology and onsite treatment system for human wastes. It can be one option to solve global sanitation problems by breaking socio-cultural taboos in water, sanitation and hygiene in low income countries. In this study, both qualitative and quantitative data were collected to assess the socio-cultural acceptance and replication of UDDTs in rural Muslim communities in Bangladesh. The study results showed that UDDTs have been generally accepted by almost all users and to some extent by non-users. There were some social and cultural barriers to accepting UDDTs in the study area. Major drivers, which need to be further explored and researched, were found to heavily influence the acceptance and replication of UDDTs. Importantly it was found that the biggest challenge to the acceptance of this technology was not the replication of UDDTs or socio-cultural barriers. Instead, the biggest challenges were high construction cost, dependence on subsidies from donors and a lack of financial contribution from the government. It was found that even though socio-cultural barriers are important, identifying the proper drivers, alternative financial mechanisms (such as involvement of micro-finance organizations), the involvement of community based organizations, and the active participation of local governments were the top priorities. Identifying these factors and prioritizing them is essential for deploying UDDTs and similar technologies throughout other parts of the world. This study provides insight into technologies that are critical for development in low income countries as well as the characterization of socio-cultural factors that are involved at this intersection of technology in society.

Food and nutrition policy: A biological anthropologist's experiences from an academic platform

Biological anthropologists within academia and in other sectors are increasingly engaged in a variety of problem-oriented research and in the design, implementation, or evaluation of policies and programs, domestically and abroad. Such work can have distinctive requirements in terms of disciplinary background, professional orientation, and professional development. This article explores these issues through the author's autobiographical account of a career in food and nutrition policy from within an academic nutrition department. The article is guided by an analytical framework that compares eight projects in terms of their mode of knowledge production, academic impact, public impacts, and personal rewards. The projects range from village-based surveys in Samoa and Malawi to food security planning in upstate New York communities, US policies on genetically engineered (GE) foods, and participant-observer research on nutrition policy development in low-income countries. The cumulative experience reveals the importance of a commitment to problem-solving, a transdisciplinary orientation, intellectual and methodological dexterity, ongoing engagement with policy actors and openness to emergent research questions, new research settings, and nontraditional funding sources.

Perinatal common mental disorders among women and the social and emotional development of their infants in rural Vietnam

BackgroundLittle is known about the effect of common mental disorders (CMD) among women in the perinatal period on infant development in low-income countries. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of exposures to maternal symptoms of ante- and post-natal CMD on infant social–emotional development in a low-income setting. MethodsA prospective community-based investigation in which a cohort of pregnant women was recruited in rural northern Vietnam and followed until 6 months postpartum. Psychosocial and biological data were collected in four assessment waves. The outcome was 6-month old infants' scores on the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development Social–Emotional Questionnaire. Direct and indirect effects of maternal CMD on the outcome were tested simultaneously with path analysis. ResultsComplete data were available for 378 mother–infant dyads. There were no direct effects of ante- or post-natal CMD on infant Social–Emotional scores. However, there was an indirect pathway (path coefficient −1.11, 95% CI −1.79 to −0.42) in which antenatal CMD were associated with increased likelihood of postnatal CMD, which were associated with reduced parenting self-efficacy and less affectionate and warm parenting practices, which were associated with lower infant social–emotional scores. Parenting self-efficacy and practices also mediated the adverse effects of a woman being young or of high parity or experiencing poverty, intimate partner violence, a poor relationship with her own mother, non-economic life adversity and insufficient breastmilk, on infant social–emotional development. LimitationsWe acknowledge some limitations including (1) a moderate rate of attrition, (2) the use of a screening test for perinatal CMD, (3) the Bayley scales are not yet validated for use in Vietnam and (4) possible response bias in which maternal perceptions of their infants were influenced by their mood. ConclusionsThese data indicate that women's antenatal and postnatal mental health is a crucial but currently inadequately understood determinant of the social and emotional development of infants in low-income settings.

The Role of Islamic Finance in the Development of the IDB Member Countries : A Case Study of the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan

Finance is expected to play a major role in equitable and sustainable economic development. However, the track record of conventional finance is not encouraging for the task. It has not been very successful in addressing unemployment and poverty. Indeed, the stylized facts show that many countries suffer from increasing income and opportunities inequalities along with economic and financial instabilities. Can Islamic finance offer a solution where conventional finance has failed in the task of equitable socio-economic development? The present paper seeks to explain how promotion of Islamic finance can help in the development of low-income countries.1 This potential role of Islamic finance is discussed in the context of a case study of Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan. Development of Islamic financial sector is high on the agenda of Islamic Development Bank in its efforts to partner in the socio-economic development of its member countries and restoration of human dignity.

From Disease to Pandemic

From Disease to Pandemic

Is Tariff Reduction a Viable Strategy for Economic Growth in the Periphery? An Examination of Tariff Interaction Effects in 69 Less Developed Countries

Conventional economic wisdom maintains that the reduction of domestic import restrictions assists in the development of less developed countries. But far from being a settled debate, the empirical research on tariffs and economic growth is much more controversial than is commonly recognized. In fact, so contentious and unsettled is this mode of inquiry that the research of some scholars directly contradicts the findings of others. In light of this difficulty encountered by researchers, the current study argues that the tariff~growth link is best analyzed by exploring the conditional effect of import restrictions on the development of low-income countries. Utilizing a panel dataset with information for 69 less developed countries, the results of this investigation show that tariff interactions with domestic investment and labor participation, respectively, augments the growth-generating impact of these variables. In addition, the constituent terms reveal that domestic investment and labor-force participation produces robust negative associations with economic growth when removing their tariff contingent effects. Taken as a whole, the evidence illustrates the value of exploring the indirect relationship between tariffs and economic growth as well as the potential usefulness of restrictive import policies for development in the periphery.

End of the “American Century”

At the start of the post WWII era, the United States led the world to establish a political and economic order for freer trade, military cooperation, and economic development in low income countries. The program was far from perfect, but it gave the world decades of growth, expansion, and increased freedom and opportunity. More people in more countries raised their living standards more significantly than in any other period of human history. Freer trade and avoidance of major wars benefited people everywhere. The U.S. leadership is nevertheless much weaker now. Countries cannot agree on trade treaties to remove further barriers, and the growing size and importance of several countries with diverse interests make agreements harder to reach. Terrorism in parts of the world restricts the spread of markets. A likely outcome will be slower growth of the world economy in the future.

Trade, income and the Baltic Dry Index

Does trade improve the income levels of the poor and less developed nations? Focusing on the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) designated by the United Nations, we construct a new measure of trade cost, based on the Baltic Dry Index (BDI), as an instrument for trade. The BDI reflects the cost of utilizing dry bulk carriers, which are specially designed vessels for transporting primary goods internationally, where these goods dominate the output and export sectors of the LDCs. We find that a 1% expansion in trade raises GDP per capita by approximately 0.5% on average. This estimate is much larger than previously found in the literature and its quantitative significance emphasizes the importance of trade towards the economic development of low income countries.

Impact of maternal depressive symptoms and infant temperament on early infant growth and motor development: Results from a population based study in Bangladesh

BackgroundEvidence linking maternal depressive symptoms with infant’s growth and development in low-income countries is inadequate and conflicting. This study investigated the independent effect of maternal perinatal depressive symptoms on infant’s growth and motor development in rural Bangladesh. MethodsA cohort of 720 pregnant women was followed from the third trimester of pregnancy to 6–8 months postpartum. For growth and developmental outcomes, 652 infants at 2–3 months and 6–8 months were assessed. Explanatory variables comprised maternal depressive symptoms, socioeconomic status, and infant’s health and temperament. Outcome measures included infant’s underweight, stunting and motor development. Multiple linear regression analyses identified predictors of infant growth and development. ResultsMaternal postpartum depressive symptoms independently predicted infant’s underweight and impaired motor development, and antepartum depressive symptoms predicted infant’s stunting. Infant’s unadaptable temperament was inversely associated with infant’s weight-for-age and motor development, and fussy and unpredictable temperament with height-for-age and motor development. LimitationsRepeated measures design might threaten the internal validity of the results 8.3% of the participant does not participate in the measurements at different times. As the study was conducted in two sub-districts of rural Bangladesh, it does not represent the urban scenario and cannot be generalized even for other rural areas of the country. ConclusionThis study provides evidence that maternal ante- and postpartum depressive symptoms predict infant’s growth and motor development in rural Bangladesh. It is recommended to integrate psychosocial components in maternal and child health interventions in order to counsel mothers with depressive symptoms.

Early Participation in a Prenatal Food Supplementation Program Ameliorates the Negative Association of Food Insecurity with Quality of Maternal-Infant Interaction

AbstractFood insecurity is detrimental to child development, yet little is known about the combined influence of food insecurity and nutritional interventions on child development in low-income countries. We proposed that women assigned to an early invitation time to start a prenatal food supplementation program could reduce the negative influence of food insecurity on maternal-infant interaction. A cohort of 180 mother-infant dyads were studied (born between May and October 2003) from among 3267 in the randomized controlled trial Maternal Infant Nutritional Interventions Matlab, which was conducted in Matlab, Bangladesh. At 8 wk gestation, women were randomly assigned an invitation time to start receiving food supplements (2.5 MJ/d; 6 d/wk) either early (~9 wk gestation; early-invitation group) or at the usual start time (~20 wk gestation; usual-invitation group) for the government program. Maternal-infant interaction was observed in homes with the use of the Nursing Child Assessment Satellite Training Feeding Scale, and food-insecurity status was obtained from questionnaires completed when infants were 3.4–4.0 mo old. By using a general linear model for maternal-infant interaction, we found a significant interaction (P= 0.012) between invitation time to start a prenatal food supplementation program and food insecurity. Those in the usual-invitation group with higher food insecurity scores (i.e., more food insecure) had a lower quality of maternal-infant interaction, but this relationship was ameliorated among those in the early-invitation group. Food insecurity limits the ability of mothers and infants to interact well, but an early invitation time to start a prenatal food supplementation program can support mother-infant interaction among those who are food insecure.

Migration and development in low-income countries: a role for destination country policy?

In the burgeoning discourse on the potential of migration to facilitate development in origin communities, the predominant focus is on the role that governments in those origins can play. In destinations, research and policy attention has been directed towards the role of migration in their own economies and on the adaptation and experience of migrants in the destination. However, if each of the triple bottom line dividends of migration are to be achieved it is important to ask the question as to whether policies and practices by destination governments can play a role in facilitating positive development impacts in origin areas. This paper addresses this question, focusing on Australia which is a major destination of permanent and temporary immigrants from the Asia-Pacific region. Contemporary migration and settlement policy and practice in Australia are driven understandably by economic and political self-interest. However, a question which is tentatively being raised is whether it would be possible to include some consideration of the impacts of migration on origin countries. This potential is explored in a number of areas. Firstly, with respect to brain drain effects, Australian immigration is very selective of high-skill groups and a number of potential ways in which this policy can be modified in order to replace the loss of human capital in origin areas are explored. The focus then moves to whether destination countries can target some immigrant recruitment to particular areas, where migration can have the most beneficial effects on origin areas. The coordination of migration and development assistance policies are investigated. The paper then focuses on the role of remittances and whether destination policy can maximise their scale and impacts in origins. This leads into a more extensive consideration of the potential role of Asia-Pacific diaspora in Australia in facilitating development in their origin communities and whether initiatives in Australia can enhance these effects. There is no substitute for good economic development policy, sound governance and improving human development and well-being if the lives of people in low-income countries are to be improved. Migration can never be a substitute. However, migration has the potential to play a facilitating and partial role in development. Nevertheless, if this potential is to be fully realised there is a need for a cultural shift in the way in which migration is seen. This applies not only to origin country governments but also in destinations.

Experience developing national evidence-based clinical guidelines for childhood pneumonia in a low-income setting--making the GRADE?

BackgroundThe development of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines has gained wide acceptance in high-income countries and reputable international organizations. Whereas this approach may be a desirable standard, challenges remain in low-income settings with limited capacity and resources for evidence synthesis and guideline development. We present our experience using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach for the recent revision of the Kenyan pediatric clinical guidelines focusing on antibiotic treatment of pneumonia.MethodsA team of health professionals, many with minimal prior experience conducting systematic reviews, carried out evidence synthesis for structured clinical questions. Summaries were compiled and distributed to a panel of clinicians, academicians and policy-makers to generate recommendations based on best available research evidence and locally-relevant contextual factors.ResultsWe reviewed six eligible articles on non-severe and 13 on severe/very severe pneumonia. Moderate quality evidence suggesting similar clinical outcomes comparing amoxicillin and cotrimoxazole for non-severe pneumonia received a strong recommendation against adopting amoxicillin. The panel voted strongly against amoxicillin for severe pneumonia over benzyl penicillin despite moderate quality evidence suggesting clinical equivalence between the two and additional factors favoring amoxicillin. Very low quality evidence suggesting ceftriaxone was as effective as the standard benzyl penicillin plus gentamicin for very severe pneumonia received a strong recommendation supporting the standard treatment.ConclusionsAlthough this exercise may have fallen short of the rigorous requirements recommended by the developers of GRADE, it was arguably an improvement on previous attempts at guideline development in low-income countries and offers valuable lessons for future similar exercises where resources and locally-generated evidence are scarce.