Disparities In Socio-economic Development Research Articles

An appraisal of socio-economic disparity at block level in Bankura district of West Bengal, India

Regional disparities in socio-economic development have long been a source of concern for policymakers, economists, geographers, and others. It is a global phenomenon observed in both developing and developed nations. Regional disparity occurs due to uneven regional development, which fluctuates over time based on social, cultural, economic, and demographic factors. In the present paper, an attempt has been made to find out the spatial variation of socio-economic development at the block level in Bankura district of West Bengal. The current study used 27 indicators across six dimensions (i.e., education, health, agriculture, banking and finance, livestock, and basic amenities) to measure the degree of spatial disparity. To examine spatial variations, common statistical techniques such as mean, standard deviation, and composite development index have been used.

ПРОСТОРОВІ ОСОБЛИВОСТІ РОЗВИТКУ КИЇВСЬКОГО МЕТРОПОЛІСНОГО РЕГІОНУ: ВИМІРИ ПОЛІЦЕНТРИЧНОСТІ

This study is aimed to develop a methodology for assessing the polycentricity of socio-economic development and diversification of the metropolitan region functions and identification of developed and prospective centers. The article evaluates the demographic-residential, industrial-logistics and innovation, service, administrative and management, and budget functions of the Kyiv metropolitan region. The study confirmed that the region is characterized by considerable spatial disparities in socioeconomic development. This is related to remarkable polycentricity and essential differences in the intensity and diversification of the main functions’ performance. Typification of the territorial units of the Kyiv metropolitan region by the level of socio-economic development and features of the diversification of the functions was carried out. Solving the problem is based on the development of a balanced and effective spatial organization of the Kyiv metropolitan region and the amplification of a hierarchical system of centers (poles) of development in the suburbs. The latter will perform a number of functions of the metropolis and balance the development of the entire metropolitan region driven by the wide range of suburbanization processes. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the identification of developed and prospective centers of the Kyiv metropolitan region, which is an important basis for developing a strategy for the post-war reconstruction of the territory. It contributes to the contemporary discourse by the development of a research methodology of a quantitative assessment of polycentricity in order to identify the developed and prospective centers of the metropolitan region.

Norwegian and Russian settlements on Svalbard: An analysis of demographic and socio-economic trends

Abstract The Svalbard archipelago is a centre of global research on climate change and also an example of a rapidly changing Arctic area with tourism replacing the traditional mining industry. We compared the different development paths of the Norwegian (Longyearbyen and Ny-Ålesund) and Russian settlements (Barentsburg and Pyramida) on Spitsbergen as part of the Svalbard archipelago using demographic and socio-economic data until 2022 when available, but not focusing on the impacts of COVID-19 and changing geopolitics after 2022. We analysed strategy documents produced by Norway and Russia and by organisations connected to Svalbard. The analysis continued by scrutinising the statistical data available to ascertain if this supported the strategic goals outlined in the documents. Data collection was by direct enquiry to national statistical bureaus, agencies and institutions in Norway and Russia. Secondary data were collected from media publications and social media accounts. Statistics Norway provided very detailed data on demographics and industrial structure, turnover, investments and comprehensive statistics on employees by industry on Norwegian settlements on Svalbard. The results revealed disparities in socio-economic development, striking differences in data availability and in transparency between the Norwegian and Russian settlements. The population in the Norwegian settlements continued to grow during the period 1990–2022 with an increasing number of foreign nationals, and the population in the Russian settlements decreased by 85% at the same time period. The Norwegian settlements exemplify a diversified economy with a growing private sector, and the Russian settlements continued to rely on the town-forming Russian state unitary coal mining enterprise, Trust Arktikugol. While Svalbard presented a prime example of open data and transparency in the environmental sciences, the socio-economic and demographic statistics were lagging behind. Several practical proposals are presented for improved data collection on the Svalbard settlements.

How magnitude of PM2.5 exposure disparities have evolved across Chinese urban-rural population during 2010–2019

Rapid industrialization and urbanization in China not only facilitate economic progress, but also aggravate environmental pollution and disparity. Particulate matter (especially PM2.5) pollution has attracted considerable attention in recent years owing to its serious adverse health impact. However, the spatial disparity and socioeconomic inequality between urban and rural population owing to PM2.5 pollution have rarely been quantified. In this study, PM2.5 exposures to urban and rural population in China during 2010–2019 were estimated respectively using satellite data and the convolutional neural network. The association between socioeconomic indexes and PM2.5 exposure was then examined with the geographic detectors, considering the tremendous disparity in socioeconomic development between rural and urban communities. The regional difference and urban-rural disparity in PM2.5 exposure was finally quantified based on Theil index. The results show PM2.5 exposure and its spatial difference have decreased significantly during the decade, with the concentration decreasing by 26% (from 48 to 35 μg/m3) and the Theil index decreasing from 0.13 to 0.05. The inter-provincial difference dominates the overall spatial variation in 2010, changing to intra-provincial difference in 2019. We also find that China has faced environmental inequality in PM2.5 exposure between urban and rural community in the past decade, manifesting that the urban population suffered from higher PM2.5 levels than the rural population, while the inequality had decreased significantly by 2019. This is consistent with the pattern that PM2.5 exposures increase with socioeconomic development in the early stage, and stabilize or decrease in the late stage. The results suggest that China should abandon the old path of “pollute first and control later” on rural revitalization strategy, otherwise rural population may experience higher exposure than urban population, plunging rural communities into the “environment-health-poverty” trap.

Disparities in Socio-economic Development in Kerala: A Disaggregated Analysis

The socio-economic development of each district is crucial for the overall development of a State which improves the quality of life of people. In this context, this paper examines the level of development of different districts in Kerala with the help of Weighted Mean Development Index (WMDI). The study covered all fourteen districts of the state. The level of development was examined separately for population, health, education, transportation and communication, industries, agriculture, animal husbandry, tourism, banking, crime and overall socio-economic development using district-level data for the year 2019-20 on forty-five socio-economic indicators including ten major sectors. Findings show that the composite indices of overall socio-economic development ranged between 0.21 and 0.70 with the district of Ernakulam ranked first and the least ranked district was Pathanamthitta. Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram were the most developed districts whereas, Kasargode, Wayanad and Pathanamthitta were the least developed. The level of development in different districts of the state has shown wide disparities. It would be useful to investigate and evaluate the level of development at a lower level, such as Tehsil or block level, in order to make location-specific recommendations, as most low-developed districts have areas that are better developed than others.

ДИФЕРЕНЦІАЦІЯ ДОХОДІВ ДОМОГОСПОДАРСТВ УКРАЇНИ

The article analyzes the differentiation’s level of household incomes of Ukraine by individual indicators and formulated proposals for smoothing the imbalances of socio-economic development. Existing social distinctness has a destructive influence on the formation of innovation economic, because in such conditions high-tech products can’t be created, because low wages aren’t compatible with complex technological operation. This situation іs negative influence to social-psychical state of society, deform the motivation of economic behavior, is a significant factor that constrains the economic activity of population. There are also political implications of income inequality. They are due to the fact that in a society with high income differentiation is usually a large proportion of dissatisfied and unfair income distribution creates political instability. There, reducing the stratification of the population by income is the most important task of socio-economic policy. The authors were being summarized different approaches to the definition of “income differentiation”. An attempt is made to outline and summarize the main factors contributing to inequalities in the formation and distribution of income. The level of differentiation of household incomes of Ukraine in dynamics is analyzed. In particular, the study of the level of income differentiation was carried out by size and type of settlement (urban and rural households) and by gender (men and women). It was found that the income of the Ukrainian population differs significantly not only in size but also in structure. There has also been a link between income stratification and poverty. The authors compared how Ukrainian families’ perceptions of their own wealth/poverty differ from official statistics. The fact that there have not “middle class” in Ukraine was significant. The main scientific result is to prove the connection between the differentiation of income and disparities in socio-economic development. To smooth out inequalities in income distribution, measures are proposed, grouped by areas: economic growth; active policy in the labor market; small business development; formation of an effective system of social protection of vulnerable segments of the population.

Original

The socio-economic development of a region depicts overall improvement in poverty conditions and resource availability. It is a continuous process to meet the social and economic necessities of the people. Eastern Uttar Pradesh, an economically backward region due to lack of infrastructure and high concentration of population, shows the high disparity in socio-economic development. This work is an attempt to estimate the levels of socio-economic development of this region. Indicators used to measure the level of socio-economic development of the study area are per capita energy consumption, percentage of workers to total population, per capita income, literacy rate, number of health care centers per lakh population and number of schools per lakh population. Results show that Varanasi, Ambedkar Nagar, Sultanpur, Ghajipur, Jaunpur, Sant Kabir, Sant Ravidas Nagar, Pratapgarh, Deoria, Mau and Faizabad are highly developed while Districts of Vindhyan and Terai area are poorly developed due to poor infrastructure and awareness.

Spatial Disparities in Socio-economic Development among North-western Indian States

ABSTRACT Regional disparity in the socio-economic development is a universal phenomenon which can be found in developed and developing countries of the world including India. The present paper addresses the issue of regional disparity based on 16 indicators of socio-economic development at district level in north-western region of India. The study has been done with reference to three reference years at an interval of 20 years, that is, 1971, 1991 and 2011. The study is entirely based on secondary sources of data collected from various government data providing agencies. In order to examine the spatial variations in socio-economic development, Z-score and composite standard score have been computed and interpreted. Co-efficient of variation (C.V.) has also been computed to measure the disparities at the variable level and overall development. During 1970s, the high level of development was concentrated in few pockets. North-west India has witnessed visible improvement in the levels of socio-economic development. The study shows that the low level of development remained concentrated in the districts of Rajasthan along with the central-western districts of Jammu & Kashmir. Despite declining regional disparities in socio-economic development, some of the districts are still multi-sectoral backward in the study region

ELABORATION OF A MECHANISM FOR REGULATING DISPARITIES OF REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BY FUZZY LOGIC METHODS

Introduction. Regions of Ukraine are characterized by a considerable level of disparities in socio-economic development. Interpretation of disparities is important in order to develop the measures preventing their aggravation. Problem Statement. The indices of regional disparities are variable and heterogeneous, with different dynamics. Thus, it is difficult to estimate them with the help of conventional methods that do not allow application of intermediate indices. Purpose. To formulate a mechanism for regulating regional disparities necessary for further solution of management and prognostic tasks based on innovative approaches given environmental variability, rapid, and non-linear dynamics of disparities. Materials and Methods. For estimation and interpretation of indices for regional disparities, it is advisable to use methods of fuzzy logic theory. These methods apply to quantitative estimation of qualitative information (in the case when it is indefinite), modeling of increasingly complicated economic processes given a high reliability of calculations based on fuzzy logic models. Results. The mechanism for forecasting the dynamics of regional disparities by fuzzy logic methods has been presented as integration of interdependent factors ensuring development of the region under unstable conditions of external and internal environment. With the help of fuzzy logic methods, the membership function between the levels of disparities and the catalysts of disparities (retarders) has been built. The characteristics of regional disparity levels have been classified as permissible, regulated, and catastrophic. The study of dynamics of the disparity underlies elaborating public policy recommendations on the regulation of disparities. Conclusions. The characteristics of disparities for each region estimated on the basis of membership function pave the way for further forecasting the dynamics of disparities and developing a strategy for the regulation of disparities in each region.

Fertility transition and socioeconomic development in districts of India, 2001-2016.

The fertility-development relationship is bi-directional, context-specific, multi-phased and inconsistent over time. Indian districts provide an ideal setting to study this association due to their size, diversity and disparity in socioeconomic development. The objective of this study was to understand the association of fertility and socioeconomic development among the 640 districts of India. Data were drawn from multiple sources: Censuses of India 2001 and 2011; DLHS-2; NFHS-4; and other published sources. A district-level data file for Total Fertility Rate (TFR) and a set of developmental indices were prepared for the 640 districts for 2001 and 2016. Computation of a composite index (District Development Index, DDI), Ordinary Least Squares, Two Stage Least Squares and panel regressions were employed. By 2016, almost half of all Indian districts had attained below-replacement fertility, and 15% had a TFR of above 3.0. The DDI of India increased from 0.399 in 2001 to 0.511 by 2016 and showed large variations across districts. The correlation coefficient between TFR and DDI was -0.658 in 2001 and -0.640 in 2016. Districts with a DDI of between 0.3 and 0.6 in 2001 had experienced a fertility decline of more than 20%. The fertility-development relationship was found to be strongly negative, convex and consistent over time, but the level of association varied regionally. For any given level of DDI, fertility in 2016 was lower than in 2001; and the association was stronger in districts with a DDI below 0.45. The negative convex association between the two was prominent in the northern, central and eastern regions and the curves were flatter in the west, south and north-east. The increasing number of districts with low fertility and low development draws much attention. Some outlying districts in the north-eastern states had high TFR and high DDI (>0.6). Based on the findings, a multi-layered strategy in districts with low socioeconomic development is recommended. Additional investment in education, child health, employment generation and provisioning of contraceptives would improve the human development to achieve India's demographic goals.

ТРУДОВАЯ МИГРАЦИЯ В СТРАНАХ АСЕАН : ВНУТРИРЕГИОНАЛЬНЫЕ ОСОБЕННОСТИ

The review highlights distinctive features of labour migration in ASEAN region. Disparities in socio-economic development and multidirectional demographic trends in the member countries enhance significance of intra-regional labor migration as a factor of improving life standards in sending countries and increasing the efficiency of labour markets in receiving countries. Among typical problems for labour migration within the region, there are limited opportunities for foreign workers to use legal channels for migration and, as a result, lack of access to social assistance in case of crisis.

The spatial distribution and determinants of China’s high-speed train services

China is now a global leader in the construction of high-speed railways (HSRs). However, few studies have focused on the actual operational performance of China’s HSR system, which is revealed by high-speed train (HST) services. This paper investigates the spatial distribution of China’s HST services, and the influencing factors are analyzed by using multiple stepwise regression. The results indicate that the total HST services in China have sharply increased in a short period, but there are significant disparities in HST services available to different regions and cities. At the regional level, Central and East China and China’s major urban agglomerations have received more HST services, while the HST services in West China have achieved faster growth. At the city level, most cities in the southeastern coastal provinces and middle reaches of the Yangtze River have received more services, largely due to the highly developed HSR infrastructure network there. The results of the stepwise regression show that the dominant factors in HST service allocation in China vary greatly at different spatial levels and in different regions. At the national level, the urban socio-economic performance and nature of the HSR infrastructure has a significant impact on the distribution of HST services. Additionally, at the regional level, the primary determinants of HST service allocation vary across regions, which are closely associated with the disparity in socio-economic development and the HST extension stages in different regions.

Urban Rural Disparity in Westernization Related Cancers and the Increasing Incidence in Parallel with Socioeconomic Development and Urbanization from 2000-2015 among a Rural Chinese Population: An Observational Study

China used to have great urban rural disparity in socioeconomic development. Since the late 1980s, rapid socioeconomic development and urbanization have been taking place in rural settings. It is epidemiologically established that cancer scale and profile will transit as economy prospers and urbanization develops. However, there are few published studies reporting what changes are undergoing in cancer pattern in Chinese rural settings. Population-based tumor registration data collected by us in urban Shijiazhuang city (available for 2,374,827 people in 2012) and in rural Shexian County (available for 408,995 people since 2000) were used for urban rural comparison of age standardized incidence rate (ASIR) of westernization-related cancers in 2012, and the trend of biennial ASIR of these cancers for 2000-2015 in Shexian County was examined following a decade of rapid socioeconomic development and urbanization. From 1988-2015, the Gross Domestic Product per Capita (GDP) in rural Shexian County increased from 860 to 3000 US$, and urbanization rate from 22.4% to 54.8%. The biennial ASIRs of lung, colorectal, gallbladder cancer and leukemia in both sexes, and that of breast, ovary, thyroid, and kidney cancer in women increased significantly from 2000 - 2015. The increase from 2000-2001 to 2014-2015 in man and women for lung cancer was from 15.9 to 34.7 per 105 (P = 0.05) and 9.6 to 16.7 (P = 0.00), for colorectal cancer from 6.6 to 15.9 (P = 0.00) and 4.0 to 11.7 (P = 0.00), for gallbladder cancer from 0.1 to 2.4 (P = 0.00) and 0.3 to 2.7 (P = 0.00), for leukemia from 2.8 to 7.7 (P = 0.00) and 2.3 to 6.2 (P = 0.00); and in women for cancer of breast from 2.8 to 17.3 (P = 0.00), kidney from 0.2 to 2.4 (P = 0.00), ovary from 0.2 to 4.3 (P = 0.00), and thyroid from 0.2 to 4.2 (P = 0.00). Notwithstanding these increases, their ASIRs in 2012 in Shexian County were still significantly lower than that in Shijiazhuang city. Westernization-related cancer is increasing rapidly in rural China. Comprehensive measures are needed to strengthen prevention to ensure sustainable development.

Mechanism of defining social and economic catalyst of the regional development imbalance based on the instrumental analysis

The disparity of indicators of the development is a factor hindering the stable socio-economic development of the regions and forms a number of threats to create a consolidated economic space within the country, so they need to be evaluated in order to develop the tools influencing them. The problem of determination of factors influencing the disparity of regional development is considered in the paper. Published scientific works do not fully meet the needs for research on disparities due to the failure to take into account the levels of influence of individual indicators on dynamic development of regions. The aim of the study is to identify the main indicators that are socio-economic catalysts of the uneven development of regions based on a comprehensive assessment of the achieved level of socio-economic development of regional systems in Ukraine. There are some methods used in the study: taxonomic, grouping, cluster analysis, quartimax, correlation analysis. The paper proposes the mechanism that allows us to identify the key factors that determine the degree of disparity in the socio-economic development of regions. To describe such factors, the definition of a socio-economic catalyst and a retarder of development have been introduced. The calculated weighting factors are used to determine the force of influence of social and economic catalysts on the degree of uneven development of regions. It is revealed that the difference in the development of regions is more determined by economic factors and indicators that represent the welfare. The results of the research can be used to formulate a strategy for regulation of disparities in regional socio-economic development. The implemented methodology for assessing and analyzing interregional socio-economic unevenness and regional disproportions allows us to identify the key factors that determine the imbalance in socio-economic development of regions. Investigation of the factors that form the disparities in regional development allows us to form the systematic tool for influencing them.

Cultural and Geographical Influences on Underweight Prevalence among Preschoolers in Ghana

Underweight prevalence among preschool children in Africa has been studied, but the effects of culture and geography remain unclear. This study used the 2008 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey data for 2244 children aged 0‐59 months and generalized linear mixed models to analyze these data. The results showed that culture and geography remained significantly associated with preschool underweight prevalence after controlling for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of children, mothers, and households. Additionally, the gender of a child, size at birth, fever status, mother's , insurance coverage and number of children <5 years in the household were significantly associated with underweight prevalence in Ghana. The study concluded that in addition to specific characteristics of children, mothers, and households, culturally motivated childhood dietary restrictions among the Ga/Dangme and Ewe could be reduced through appropriately targeted nutritional messages. Additionally, decreasing North‐South disparities in socioeconomic development, and improving nutritional outcomes among disadvantaged households in southern Ghana should be the focus of policies and strategies directed at reducing preschool underweight prevalence in Ghana.

Analysis of Malaysian Regional Quality-of-Life and its Policy Implications

The Malaysian Quality of life Index (MQLI) has improved by 7.0 points during 1990-2000 and further to another 11.9 points from 2000 to 2010. Nevertheless, it is anticipated that the improvement in the QOL has not been uniform across the states in the country. Therefore, a study need arises to investigate the regional variations in the QOL in the country so that future policies may be directed towards removing the disparity in socioeconomic development of the country. Objective measurements of social, economic, physical and environmental data at the regional level have been analyzed to investigate regional variations in QOL.

The use of long-acting reversible contraceptives in Latin America and the Caribbean: current landscape and recommendations.

STUDY QUESTIONCan the high rate and associated burden of unintended pregnancy (UP) and adolescent pregnancy in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) be reduced through wider access to and use of long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) methods?SUMMARY ANSWERStudies show that impoved access to and use of LARC methods is an effective tool for reducing the high rates of UP, unsafe abortion and abortion-related complications, and maternal deaths (as well as reducing their social and financial burden), and we have provided recommendations to help achieve this in LAC.WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADYLAC comprises 46 countries with 650 million inhabitants, and shows large disparities in socioeconomic development, access to health services and attention to sexual and reproductive health rights. The exercise of these rights and universal access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) programmes is a key strategy for improving maternal health by reducing the number of UPs, the rate of women’s and child mortality and morbidity, and the number of unsafe abortions. The implementation of SRH programmes in the region has contributed to a decrease in pregnancy rates of more than 50% over 40 years. However, despite this progress, the numbers of UP and adolescent pregnancies are still among the highest worldwide, which can be attributed in large part to the low prevalence of use of LARC methods.STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATIONThis is a position paper with the objective of reviewing the magnitude and burden of UP in LAC, as well as available LARC methods and barriers to their access, with the goal of increasing knowledge and awareness among healthcare professionals (HCP), policymakers and the general public about the potential to reduce UP rates through the increased use of LARC.PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODWe searched the electronic databases of PubMed and EMBASE to identify studies published up to May 2017. We also searched for websites regarding LAC, LARC methods, and UP including, for example, those from the United Nations, the World Health Organization, Pan American Health Organization, the Alan Guttmacher Institute and the United States Agency for International Development. Studies were included if they investigated mainly UP and their consequences as well as the use of LARC methods in the region. During 3 days of meetings, the importance of the studies identified and the appropriateness of inclusion were discussed.MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCELAC is not one unit and shows great ethnic diversity as well as economic and cultural differences among the various countries. These differences must be taken into account when developing policies related to disseminating information and combatting misinformation regarding the use of LARC among different audiences, such as adolescents and young women, nulligravidas, indigenous populations and women with disabilities. Furthermore, only some governments have made efforts to increase accessibility to LARC methods, and there is a need to implement training programmes for HCPs, launch education campaigns for the general public, increase access and review the cost-benefit analyses specific to LARC, which have already demonstrated that the upfront cost of LARC is less than the cummulative expense of short-term contraceptives. Recommendations to achieve these goals are presented.LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTIONKnowledge and awareness of the contraceptive method itself and of the mix of individual countries in the region is essential to the development of specific strategies and actions, tailored to each particular country situation, aimed at increasing access to modern contraceptive methods, especially LARC.WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGSHealthcare systems in LAC should consider LARC as a primary option for decreasing UP and adolescent pregnancy. Disseminating information, increasing awareness of their efficacy, removing barriers and improving access to LARC methods are the urgent actions recommended for government, academia, professional organizations, insurance companies and policymakers in order to address this major public health problem in LAC.STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTERESTSThis manuscript was supported by a grant from the Americas Health Foundation (AHF), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to improving healthcare throughout the Latin American Region. LB and IM received additional support from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) award # 2015/20504-9. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Causes and consequences of rural-urban migration: The case of Juba Metropolitan, Republic of South Sudan

Migration is the movement of people from one ecological region to another; it may be on temporary or permanent basis. This research studies focused on the causes and consequences of rural-urban migration in Juba Metropolitan, Republic of South Sudan as a case study. The stratified random sampling method on the basis of existing payam (districts) was used to divide the study area into three zones of Juba, Kator and Munuku. Data were generated through primary and secondary sources. The data generated were analyzed using SPSS. The findings of the study show that Munuki payam covers most of the migrants. The study also reveals that males migrate more than the females in Juba and migration is high within the age cohorts of 30-39 years and 40-49 years old. Furthermore, the study revealed that the propensity to migrate is directly related to educational attainment. It can be inferred from the findings of the study that the majority of migrants in Juba Metropolitan migrated in search of employment while others migrated to continue their education while others migrated in search for basic amenities, to join relatives and get married. This means, until the imbalance or disparity in socio-economic development between the rural and urban areas are removed, no amount of persuasion or force can put a stop to rural-urban migration and its’ multiplying effects in Juba Metropolitan, Republic of South Sudan.

Urban-Rural Disparity in Helicobacter Pylori Infection–Related Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer in China and the Decreasing Trend in Parallel with Socioeconomic Development and Urbanization in an Endemic Area

BackgroundGlobally China has the largest urban-rural disparity in socioeconomic development, and the urban-rural difference in upper gastrointestinal cancer (UGIC) is similar to the difference between developed and developing countries. ObjectivesTo describe urban-rural disparity in UGIC and to emphasize prevention by socioeconomic development and urbanization in China. MethodsAge-standardized incidence rates (ASRs) of cancers in 2012 were compared between urban Shijiazhuang city and rural Shexian County, and trends from 2000-2015 in Shexian County were analyzed. FindingsCompared with urban Shijiazhuang city, the ASR of gastroesophageal cancers in rural Shexian County was 5.3 times higher in men (234.1 vs 44.2/100,000, P < .01) and 9.1 times higher in women (107.7 vs 11.8/100,000, P < .01). This rural-urban disparity in UGIC is associated with differences in socioeconomic development in annual gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of US$2700 vs US$6965, in urbanization rate of 48% vs 100%, and in adult Helicobacter pylori infection prevalence of 75% vs 50%. From 2000-2015, the GDP per capita in Shexian County increased from US$860 to US$3000, urbanization rate increased from 22.4% to 54.8%, and prevalence of H pylori infection among 3- to 10-year-old children decreased from 60% to 46.1% (P < .01). Meanwhile, the biennial ASR of esophagogastric cancer decreased 42% in men, from 313.5 to 182.1 per 100,000 (P < .01), and 57% in women, from 188.6 to 80.4 per 100,000 (P = .00). However, lung, colorectal, and gallbladder cancers and leukemia in both sexes and breast, ovary, thyroid, and kidney cancer in women increased significantly. Despite this offset, ASR of all cancers combined decreased 25% in men (from 378.2 to 283.0/100,000, P = .00) and 19% in women (from 238.5 to 193.6/100,000, P = .00). ConclusionsUrban-rural disparity in UGIC is related to inequity in socioeconomic development. Economic growth and urbanization is effective for prevention in endemic regions in China and should be a policy priority.

Centra wzrostu w regionie podkarpackim w latach 1980–2014

Market processes, in competitive conditions, cause the development of particular areas with different intensity. Market forces interact in the direction of the concentration of development processes in the most attractive locations, which results in disparities in socio-economic development in the area. The aim of this article is to analyze the structural changes of socio-economic growth centers of Podkarpackie Voivodeship which are different scale centres of economic activity of the region, from the centres of regional importance to small units having local significance. The analysis reflects the development of the potential, functions and the spatial distribution of growth centres in the years 1980–2014. In the analyzed period reduces the number of centers the number of employed people in them. The importance of centres of industial development is on the decline. Correspondingly, the importance of centres with a developing services sector is increasing. The spatial structure of the Podkarpacki region are noticeable progressive processes of concentration of economic activity in the central city of Rzeszow.