Non-agricultural Activities Research Articles

RURAL TERRITORIES AND THEIR PLACE IN THE SYSTEM OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE STATE AND REGIONS

Introduction. The study of rural areas is an important mission in the development of socio-economic systems of the state and its territories. Transformational changes that have taken place in the process of reforming the national economy and as a result of changes in the administrative-territorial structure of the country require the determination of the location of each component of its territories. Of particular importance is the study of rural areas, where the agricultural sector has a place in the vector of development. The latter determines the standard of living of the population of rural areas and forms a significant share and role in the system of socio-economic development of the state and its regions. The purpose of this article is to research of theoretical and methodological bases of formation of rural territories and their place in the system of social and economic development of the state and regions. Results. Studies have shown that the primary link, the center of rural areas is a rural settlement. Therefore, in our opinion, the key criteria for determining the rural area are administrative-territorial and self-governing. Thus, a rural area is one that is within the jurisdiction of territorial communities of rural (urban) settlements and includes agricultural and non-agricultural lands. This approach has a normative basis – the Law of Ukraine "On Local Self-Government in Ukraine" and the Law of Ukraine "On Voluntary Association of Territorial Communities". Conclusions. The importance of rural areas in the socio-economic development of the country is not limited to social factors. After all, despite the high potential for the development of non-agricultural activities in the future, currently rural areas are the center of agricultural production, which is a strategic sector of the national economy. The agrarian economy performs the most important function in the system of ensuring socio-economic stability of rural development of the state and its regions. Keywords: rural areas, economic development, agrarian reform, agriculture, transport infrastructure.

Development of social and labor relations in rural areas in terms of integration of the agricultural sector of the agro-industrial complex into the EU structure

Social and labor relations in the process of market environment development in the agricultural sector of the agro-industrial complex are undergoing significant changes. The study of these changes is necessary to identify trends that characterize all the processes associated with the use of labor, increase its productivity and impact on the efficiency of agricultural production. Miscalculations in socio-economic policy result in negative consequences and loss of human capital. One of the peculiarities of the period of Ukraine's integration with the EU in Ukraine is that the state does not regulate the content of social and labor relations, and other regulators, such as social partnership, are not yet working at full capacity. The most serious problems were in social and labor relations directly on agricultural enterprises and especially in farms and households. There is a need for effective state influence, using the opportunities of OTG, on the formation of a national model of social and labor relations and the effective use of labor potential. Further development of social and labor relations should be carried out in the context of Ukraine's integration with the EU, which raises the need to improve socio-economic policy towards the agricultural sector in terms of its transformation and adaptation to European integration structures. It is advisable to determine the main directions and priorities of socio-economic modernization of OTG in the coming years. The main ones are: and popularization of knowledge, including the reform of rural vocational schools, the search for new forms of adult learning, the development of economic, technical and social infrastructure, support for entrepreneurship and non-agricultural activities in rural areas.

Earthquake Impacts on the Livelihoods of Community Forest Users in Sindhupalchok District, Nepal, and Their Perceptions towards Forest Conservation

Community forests are a crucial component of farming systems and people’s livelihoods in the rural middle hills of Nepal, where the population depends upon the forest for fuelwood, fodder, and leaf litter for their daily needs. This study aims to assess the perception of community forest user groups towards their postearthquake situations by using the five forms of capital from the sustainable livelihood framework. It further analyzes whether forest user’s attitudes towards forest conservation have changed or not. In addition to household interviews with 68 earthquake-affected households and extensive visits to the study area, key informant interviews and focus group discussions were conducted. This study confirms that the community forest user groups perceived negative effects on the natural, physical, human, and financial capitals, whereas they perceived a positive effect on social capital after the earthquake. Controlled access to forest products, such as timber collection during the recovery phase, restricted their resilience, although nontimber forest products supported it. Low agricultural production because of the scarcity of water for irrigation, as well as the soil infertility because of the landslides, caused local people to shift towards nonagricultural activities for income generation. Further, out-migration for job opportunities resulted in an inflow of remittances and, thus, manpower shortages were observed. Our results show that, despite facing the postdisaster impact on their livelihoods, 92% of the respondents were found to be positive towards forest conservation. This was because of their emotional attachment to the forest and the benefits received from the forest in the past. Local institutional policies and mechanisms must be strengthened to provide communities with the knowledge, skills, and practices for effective postdisaster recovery or for upcoming disasters, as well as the benefits of promoting sustainable forest conservation.

Energy greenhouse gas emission inventory in Batu City

The development of the tourism sector in Batu City is in line with the development of non-agricultural activities in Batu City that dominates 66.7% of Batu City’s land use pattern. This pattern is related to the energy demand in Batu City and contributes to the increasing GHG emissions from the energy sector. The energy sector contributes 24-25% of GHG emissions and it will increase along with further development of activities. The GHG emission inventory is an important step related to GHG emission reduction, and, due to the uncertainty of GHG emission distribution, the inventory was based on the sources of emission. The main purpose of this research is to make an inventory of the amount of GHG emission from the energy sector in Batu City from 3 main emission sources in Batu, namely transportation, commercial, and household. The analytical method used is the Tier 1 approach using a database of energy consumption and the number of activities as an emission source. The results show that the total amount of GHG emissions from the energy sector in Batu City is 2,562,159,822,007.89 kg/year with an average increase of 0.75% per year and is dominated by emission sources from the household sector. The average increase in GHG emissions from the transportation sector is 58.83% with a significant increase in 2015. In the commercial sector, the average annual increase in GHG emissions is 3.83%, and the household sector—as the largest energy consumer—has an average increase in GHG emissions each year of 0.75%.

Sustainable Livelihood Strategies of The Riverine Communities at Sadong Jaya, Sarawak, Malaysia: Role of Capital Assets

The aim of this paper is to explore the role of capital assets in sustaining the livelihoods of the riverine communities with special focus on physical and human capitals. The study was carried out at Sadong Jaya, a sub-district under Asajaya District, Samarahan, Sarawak. It is located at the lower Sadong River lying in the Southwest of Sarawak in the Borneo Island. Due to the dynamic nature of the local environment with its unique geographical location prone to flash flood and monsoon flood, it is crucial to examine the role of physical and human capitals in affecting livelihood strategies adopted by the local communities. A mixed method approach encompassing exploratory study and descriptive analysis was adopted. Multistage sampling techniques were used to select 11 villages along the lower estuarine, middle estuarine and upper estuarine areas, followed by systematic sampling technique employed to select 243 heads of households for face-to-face interviews to find out their livelihood strategies and vulnerabilities faced by them. Data collection involved observation techniques, two FGDs and in-depth interviews with various stakeholders. The findings show that riverine communities at Sadong Jaya utilize diversified livelihood strategies by optimizing the use of capital assets available to sustain their livelihoods. Communities who are better equipped with an enhanced and diversified assets base are more resilient. The study found that infrastructures such as roads and bridges, water supply, drainage systems, watergates and education facilities enable the riverine communities to intensify and diversify economic activities, widen job opportunities and market opportunities. As accessibility to education and training facilities is made available to the locals through better connectivity facilitated by various physical infrastructure, more riverine communities are involved in non-agricultural economic activities and out-migrating to cities and abroad. The paper concludes that provision of basic physical and educational amenities is crucially imperative as a policy recommendation to ensure that the riverine communities are able to enhance their livelihoods strategies for uplifting their standards of living.

Determinants of Income Diversification among Famers in the Kano River Irrigation Project (KRIP), Nigeria

Income diversification is examined in two ways: as a change in agricultural activity, or as an increase in the number of income sources. The primary source of income for rural Nigerian is agriculture. This study is conducted to access the level of income diversification among beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries of Kano River irrigation Project. The result indicated that crop production account for 65% of the beneficiaries’ household income, with other agricultural activities accounting for 18% of the total. While non- agricultural activities account for only 18%. For the non-beneficiaries the result indicated that crop production accounts for 44% of their income other agricultural activities (Fishing, livestock, poultry,) account for 13%, while Non-agricultural activities account for 43 percent of their income. Income diversification is found to be influenced by (age, household size, cultivated area, educational attainment, credit constraints, and annual income. The results show that these elements need to be examined by decision makers in the development of agricultural and non-agricultural projects in this study area.

ANALISIS FAKTOR-FAKTOR YANG MEMPENGARUHI KEPUTUSAN BURUH TANI BERGESER KE SEKTOR INDUSTRI SARUNG TENUN IKAT JAVA ATBM DI DESA BEJI, KECAMATAN TAMAN, KABUPATEN PEMALANG

The intensity of nonagricultural activity in a rural increase. It seen from availability of woven cloth industry of Beji district of Taman sub-province Pemalang, so it make the people who work in the agicultunal sector going move into it. The Job assumed is good and get high salary is a big incent for them to move. This make farmer moving on woven cloth industry. Method research by using case study with determination of sampel use method of Proportional Random Sampling. Factors influencing decision of labour farmer shift to weave case industrial sector fasten to be used by method of Regresi Binary Logistic. Result of research indicate that factors influencing decision of labour farmer to weave case industrial sector fasten is wage rate and age. Keywords: decision of labour farmen, wage rate, age

Examining Linkages among Livelihood Strategies, Ecosystem Services, and Social Well-Being to Improve National Park Management

This research examines perceptions of ecosystem services (ES) and social well-being in the Wuyishan National Park, China. This study analyses the importance of and linkages between them based on the impact of new designation of protected areas on this social-ecological system. Realisation of rural well-being is critical to park-people relations in populated protected areas, and effective resolution is needed to achieve positive conservation outcomes. We conducted 372 structured interviews with community members with different livelihood strategies. Key findings from the research include: (1) the importance of provisioning (e.g., tea, rice, timber) and cultural ES (e.g., local culture, eco-tourism) is related to both current livelihood necessity and future development pursuit. (2) The perceived material well-being is higher than spiritual well-being, and high social well-being is closely related to high-income groups and those that think highly of cultural services, i.e., those engaged in non-agricultural activities (e.g., tourism) and tea cultivation. (3) Cultural values are better preserved in tea and rice cultivation and tourism, but in general, they are not incorporated to improve social well-being. The results suggest that Protected area (PA) management of local communities must seek cultural valorisation for differentiated livelihood strategies for rural people’s sustainable livelihood and stability of the social-ecological system.

Assessing the Prospects of Agricultural Sustainability in Central Brahmaputra Floodplain Environment of Darrang District, Assam

Ensuring agricultural sustainability with escalating population is a real challenge before humanity. At present, heightened demand of state’s rich farmland for non-agricultural activities is posing a pressing need for assessing the prospects of agricultural sustainability. Being a part of central Brahmaputra floodplain in Assam, Sipajhar revenue circle of Darrang district has experienced extraordinary population pressure on land resources over time, which leads to vulnerability of agro-ecological conditions. As per census report, the circle has witnessed 108% increase of population over 40 years. The circle with diverse agriculture and its allied activities has borne the brunt of population pressure in some caste-community concentration areas. The present study assesses the prospects of agricultural sustainability across the gram panchayats of the circle on the basis of six sustainability indicators, namely castes and communities; agriculture and allied practices; spatial pattern of crop productivity; agricultural input–output relation; agro-ecological conditions; and sustainable methods of agriculture selected from social, economic and ecological dimensions of sustainable development. After synthesising these indicators, prospects of agricultural sustainability have been assigned to three groupings of gram panchayats in the circle. This investigation is also intended to provide a rationale for future orientation of agricultural planning in laggard districts like Darrang of Assam.

Analyzing the Effects of Rural Economy Diversification on the Livelihood Assets of Rural Households (Case Study: Khavmirabad District of Marivan County)

Purpose- In this applied study, which has been done by descriptive-analytical method, various agricultural and non-agricultural economic activities, and their impacts on the villagers’ livelihood assets are analyzed.Design/methodology/approach- Data collection was both theoretical using documentary method and empirical using interviews, observation, and distribution of questionnaires among 260 heads of households in the villages of the district. The sample size was determined by the Cochran method from a population size of 2736 households. The questionnaires were distributed among random heads of households as well as the sample villages that were selected by a stratified method.Findings- The analysis showed that the created economic diversity was able to increase the villagers’ livelihood capital, and among them, financial capital has had the greatest impact on improving the level of livelihood capital for the villagers.Research limitations/implications- Among the limitations of the study were the dispersion of a large number of villages in the border area, lack of easy access to these villages, lack of cooperation in providing information, and the villagers’ problem with completing questionnaires.Practical implications- The practical solutions of the study can be: prepare for the development and expansion of tourism (rural, commercial, and nature tourism), Making the necessary legal, administrative, and supportive bases for the development of entrepreneurship and domestic & foreign private sector investment (Iraqi Kurdistan region), Development of trade in goods from the border markets, and Support the formation of fundraising from the micro-savings in the villages for investment and launching production activities in the villages of the district.Originality/Value- Today, the predominant approach of rural planning to eliminate poverty as the most important obstacle to rural development is to provide sustainable livelihoods for villagers. In this regard, the main strategy of this approach is to diversify the rural economy and to bring about various agricultural and non-agricultural income resources in rural areas, so that the villagers’ assets will be increased and/or preserved, which is the core of the sustainable livelihood approach and the main factor of sustainable rural livelihood.

Silver Tourism Economy in Rural Areas in Poland: A Fad or a Permanent Element?

Purpose: The silver tourism economy means an economic system aimed at actively using the human and social capital of older adults to develop rural tourism. This paper aims to identify the supply and demand factors that favor this economy. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study used several complementary research methods. Following the methodological principle of triangulation, the method of secondary source analysis was adopted in the empirical studies in the form of reports from national surveys conducted in rural areas in Poland on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The results of these surveys are nationally representative. Statistical data published by Statistics Poland (former Central Statistical Office) was used. Finding: The silver economy in rural tourism is an essential example of non-agricultural activity and a strategy for the multifunctional development of rural areas in Poland. The paper points out the economic level of the tourism function of rural areas, which forms the supply and demand side of this economy. The importance of the elements of the human and social capital of older adults that promote the supply and demand of rural tourism is presented quantitatively and qualitatively. The utility value of the silver tourism economy at the commercial, non-commercial, and subjective and objective levels was highlighted. Practical Implications: The presented explorations have cognitive and practical value. The adopted elements of the human and social capital of older adults can be helpful in the analysis of the supply and demand of rural tourism included in local socio-economic development strategies. They can be used in strategies to promote the national and international silver economy in rural tourism. They will be helpful in the analysis of investment activities aimed at rural tourism by public and private entities. Originality/Value: The paper complements the theory of rural economics at the methodological and theoretical levels. In the methodological aspect, attention was drawn to using the methodological principle of triangulation in empirical research. The theoretical dimension of the study refers to the creation of a model of the silver tourism economy. It constitutes an economic system composed of relevant parts in structural and functional terms.

Income Diversification Strategies of Italian Peri-Urban Farms: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

On-farm diversification in non-agricultural activities has been increasingly recognized as a rewarding farm strategy through which farmers produce on-farm non-agricultural goods and services. The main objective of this paper is to explore to what extent the condition of peri-urbanity affects farm income diversification in Italy by looking at the push and pull factors that allow peri-urban farmers to re-organize their business by developing diversification strategies that are tightly connected to the demand of goods and services coming from the urban society. A structural equation modeling (SEM) statistical technique has been applied to estimate direct and indirect causal relationships among the multiple variables involved. The SEM analytical approach allowed us to untie the complexity of the push and pull factors connections and to highlight the most significant ones. The strengths of the structural paths provide evidence on the key diversification strategies adopted by peri-urban farms.

Impact of Youth-in-Agribusiness Program on Employment Creation in Nigeria

The increasing rate of youth unemployment in Africa, particularly in Nigeria, remains among the challenges to social and economic stability. Accordingly, the Nigerian government implemented several interventions, including the Youth-in-Agribusiness (YIA) program to reduce youth unemployment. However, the effect of these programs on gainful employment creation is yet to be documented. Therefore, this study examined the impact of the YIA program on creating gainful employment among the youth. Multistage random sampling was used to obtain cross-sectional data from 668 youth in Southwestern Nigeria. Propensity score matching and endogenous switching probit techniques were used for the estimations. Results indicated that variables such as educational attainment, access to training, non-agricultural activity, membership in a youth organization, access to credit, productive resources, and youth location were significant and positively influenced youth decision to participate in the YIA program. Furthermore, participation in the YIA program has a significant positive impact on gainful employment among the youth. Therefore, the study recommends that strengthening social capital such as youth organization, credit scheme (financed by private and government), vocational training, and educational system is vital in enhancing participation in the YIA program and eventually gainful employment of youth.

Factors affecting the change of land function from paddy field to housing in North Sinjai District

Along with the increasing population and the development of economic structure, land needs for non-agricultural activities tend to continue to increase. This trend makes the transfer of agricultural land functions difficult to avoid. Land transfer starts from the demand for agricultural commodities, especially food commodities that are less elastic to income compared to the demand for non-agricultural commodities. This study aims to find out the factors that influence the transfer of land functions from rice fields to housing in North Sinjai District. The results showed that during the period studied, namely from December 2017 to January 2018, factors that influenced the transfer of land functions from rice fields to residential land, namely land area, and the location of land partially had a real effect on the transfer of land functions, while the factors of education level, number of dependents, urgent needs and neighbors who converted their land partially had no real effect on the transfer of household land functions of respondents in transfer of land functions from rice fields to housing.

Inserción laboral en el agro costarricense El caso de los nicaragüenses

Since 1980, the agriculture of Costa Rica underwent changes that expanded agro-exports. In parallel, tourism and other non-agricultural activities spread. In Nicaragua, agricultural export activities declined and, therefore, the demand for labor. Beginning the nineties, Nicaraguan migrations to Costa Rica expanded, creating a South-South model of articulation, very different from the rest of Central America, focused on migrating to the United States. Agricultural wages in Costa Rica are higher than in Nicaragua; however, an important part of Nicaraguans work informally, with lower wages than Costa Ricans, and in conditions of multidimensional poverty.

DIAGNOSIS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMPONENT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL AREAS IN UKRAINE

The purpose of the article is to analyze the environmental situation in rural areas in Ukraine in order to develop proposals for the diversification of agricultural production and non-agricultural activities in these areas on the basis of sustainable development. Based on the anal-ysis of the scientific literature on sustainable rural development, protection, and reproduction of natural resource potential, the methodological basis for the study of the ecological component of sustainable rural development has been formed. In the course of the research monographic, economic-statistical methods and methods of scientific generalization and synthesis were used. Based on the study of the state of agricultural lands, a continuous decrease in fertility as a result of increasing the rate of their degradation is substantiated. It was found that agricultural pro-ducers have reduced capital investment in environmental protection. It is proposed to promote the development of organic production as one of the areas of diversification of agricultural activities in order to reduce degradation processes.

Developing a diversification strategy of non-agricultural activities on farms using system dynamics modelling: a case study of Slovenia

PurposeThis paper aims to analyse the main variables and causal relationships in the system structure of the diversification of non-agricultural activities on agricultural holdings using system dynamics (SD) modelling. The SD model aims to simulate depictions of the behaviour of the real system while testing the effects of alternative decisions over time.Design/methodology/approachAn SD methodology was chosen to model diversification in farm tourism.FindingsA system approach increases the authors’ understanding of the transition of agricultural holdings to farm tourism. The results indicate that the transition to farm tourism depends on the level of tourism development in a certain area. The system is influenced by subsidies allocated by authorities to expand primary agricultural activities. The model describes a situation in which the tourism and agricultural industries have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.Research limitations/implicationsThe research is limited by the small set of available data due to the limited number of farms in Slovenia. One major problem is the difference in statistical data on the same activity collected from different institutions in Slovenia.Practical implicationsThe paper includes implications for understanding the transition process to farm tourism, allowing policymakers to experiment with subsidies and promotion to explore the efficacy and efficiency of proposed policies.Originality/valueThis study provides a structured, systemic view of the diversification of non-agricultural activities on agricultural holdings, where the simulation results are a reliable reflection of the behaviour of the actual system being modelled.

Rural poverty in Poland between the wars

AbstractPoverty is the consequence of not having sufficient income to sustain lives and ways of life. While there are many papers addressing poverty in today’s Poland, no comprehensive study was done to explain and describe rural poverty also in a historical aspect. Therefore, this article attempts to synthetically identify the patterns and particularities of rural poverty in Poland between the wars, and to present the multifaceted and diverse nature of Polish poverty in the initial years of national independence. The authors’ main objective is to indicate the changes in the scope of Polish poverty and to describe the adaptive mechanisms and the discomfort involved in the depreciation of needs. Before independence, the situation varied across the Polish territory. The relatively worst socio-economic conditions were experienced in Galicia due to absence of non-agricultural activities. The population of Prussian rural areas found themselves in a more advantageous situation because of industrial development and working outside agriculture. The situation of peasants was exacerbated by the destructive and resource-draining First World War, whereas rural misery was made even worse by the combination of unemployment and underdevelopment of the country. In the Second Polish Republic, the situation of the rural population did not improve even though the country made great progress at that time. Note that rural poverty varied across employee groups, with cultural and lifestyle differences, limited competences and passive attitudes playing an important role.

Factors Affecting the Performance of Agri Small and Medium Enterprises with Evidence from Kosovo

Abstract The agri SMEs in Kosovo are facing challenges that are reducing competitiveness and preventing it from fulfilling their production potential. The main constraints in increasing productivity and improving competitiveness are the low use of modern techniques and technologies in both production and management of enterprises, lack of funds, the low use of inputs, and the limited ability to meet international standards of food safety. This paper is focused on the analysis of the impact of agricultural SMEs in the rural economy of the country and the problems related to the impact. The data used for this analysis are the data conducted for the Farm Structure Survey (FSS) which includes the farmers’ list from Agricultural Records compiled by the Kosovo Agency of Statistics (KAS) in 2014, as well as the lists of beneficiaries for both direct payments/subsidies and for grants for the period of 2014 to 2017 received by the Agency for Agriculture Development. From the research results, significant factors having an effect on the annual income of agris SMEs are the following: income from the sale of agricultural products, income from subsidies, income from non-agricultural activities, income from salaries, remittances, and income from other activities.

Online marketing of agricultural products during COVID pandemic: Farmers and customers perspectives

India is basically an agrarian economy where the majority of the population depends on agriculture for income. But the significance of agriculture in the rural economy was in a lackluster mode since everyone started to depend on non-agricultural activities for earning their income. The second wave of COVID 19 has made 2021 worse and this time people in the rural area also have been affected, so the farmers. The COVID pandemic has dampened the spirits of marketing of agricultural products, especially for the rural farmers. So this study aims to know whether online marketing for agricultural products is feasible or not. Convenience sampling and descriptive research design was used for the study.Both primary and secondary data were used and primary data was collected using questionnaires. The study reveals that COVID19 made the market unreachable for farmers to sell their products likewise the customers can’t access the markets to buy the products. Most of the farmers and customers suggested that an online platform can make their operation even easier.