Planning Of Socio-economic Development Research Articles

The politician's point of view

The politician's point of view refers to studies which prove that neither a socio-economic development plan which ignores population questions, nor population education in isolation, can succeed. Educated people tend to have fewer children and to provide better education for them, while girls marrying before the age of 20 have little hope of continuing education and are subject to other social pressures. Examples are given from population education programs in Egypt.

The Lane County Survey: An Episode in the Development of Rural Planning

One of the major social concerns at the turn of the twentieth century—how best to cope with massive urbanization and industrialization—stimulated the rise of modern American urban and regional planning. Most of those active in the nascent field of planning directed their efforts toward the receiving end of the population shift, the cities. But the changes in rural places, and especially the meaning of rural change for society as a whole, also received much attention. A variety of activities sprang up in the 1910s and '20s in an effort to strengthen rural institutions. In this article I focus on one category of those activities, the rural survey. The surveys are an important precursor to current approaches to rural socio-economic development planning: they highlight the key roles that culture and community play in the development process. I first describe the perceived situation in rural America at the turn of the century. Next I discuss the development of the rural survey as a method to diagnose rural problems. I then examine one example of a rural survey, that done in Lane County, Oregon, in 1915 and '16. Finally, I consider the legacy of rural surveys—their impact on the development of planning for rural areas.

DevDev: A Balanced, Moderate and Eclectic Perspective

This article is an examination of 1 side of a 3 sided prototype debate concerned with solving the problems associated with population. In order to put this side in the best possible context the other 2 separate parts need to be read. All 3 sides agree that over population is a problem that contributes to underdevelopment rather than being a major cause of it. All 3 population policy as the responsibility of every government. The social and economic development advocates (DevDev) feel that their position has been vindicated by the fact the magnitude of population problem has been reduced. Empirical data has shown that the problems of population are not as dramatic as was first stated by the FamPlan side of the debate. For example the link between population growth and resource exhaustion is not as strong as was originally stated. Another factor is the decline of fertility rates in some developing nations. This was brought about both of intensive family planning methods and development programs. Today the more moderate voices are being heeded. A theory synthesis that incorporates both socioeconomic development and family planning is the one the is being proven by the developing countries of the world.

Integration of surface and groundwater resources for the development of Hamad Basin project

Hamad Basin (166,000 km2) is an extensive basin, inhabited by 219,000 souls. It is located in the arid region within the border of four Arab States: Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. Average annual precipitation depth is 78 mm, falling mostly during winter. Integrated studies of the natural resources, (water, soil, range, and animal) were carried out with other complementary studies to formulate a socioeconomic development plan for the promissing areas within the basin. Modern technologies were applied such as remote sensing, isotope analysis, processing, and documenting of basic hydrogeological data within the data bank system using computer facilities. Results revealed that the output of the natural dry plant production amounts to 2.0 × 106 tons. Animal wealth comprise 2 × 106 head mainly of sheep. Average annual surface runoff is 146 × 106 m3, which could be appropriately exploited in water spreading schemes to improve range. Water lost presently through evaporation from vast flat depression (Khabra) could be conserved through deepening the Khabras, and recharging shallow perched aquifer by surface runoff, which could be mined later. Results of regional geology, partial geophysical studies, and hydrogeological, hydrochemical interpretations have concuded the existance of two main aquifer systems, the first lies within the tertiary and quaternary formations, while the second extends to the mesozoic, and paleozoic. Their yield varies quantitively and qualitively, up to 100 × 106 m3 could be safely drawn annually. One compound pilot project was selected within the sector of each of the four Arab States to test the feasibility of the proposed development program for the promissing areas of the basin.

Old Lamps for New: Recent Developments in Nusa Tenggara Timur

The Christian churches in Indonesia claim to serve the whole person through spiritual means, education, and socio-economic development. In Nusa Tenggara Timur, eastern Indonesia, the majority of people are Christians, while the rest are animists. The island of Flores has an overwhelming majority of Catholics, Timor of Protestants, while Sumba is mainly (<animistif with minorities of Catholics and Protestants. Development projects by churches and provincial and central governments are often held up by custodians of tradition, to the detriment of farmers' increased economic welfare. They are also hindered because they are imposed from above without proper consultation with those who are supposed to benefit from such development projects. Thus development often founders. During the heady days of President Soekarno's Guided Democracy (cf. Ricklefs 1981, pp. 239-46 ff.; also Feith and Smith 1974, pp. 167-71, 196-208) when not only government was in disarray but the economy of Indonesia was also lacking in direction, the Flores-Timor Plan was created. This was a socio-economic development plan to raise the economic welfare of subsistence farmers in Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT), to create new markets, and to lift the sights and expectations of the desa. It was an attempt by the Catholic Church to bring prosperity, happiness, and more education to these islands. 1 Under the Dutch colonial regime, these Eastern Islands were underdeveloped and left pretty much to their own devices by the government; the only ones particularly interested in helping the people towards a better life were the Catholic missionaries of the Divine Word Society (SVD)2 and the Protestant missionaries and churches. Under the Flores-Sumba Contract of 1913, government subsidies had been paid to the churches by the Netherlands Indies

Technological leapfrogging: Implications for developing countries

Introduction Technology comes with mixed blessings. It considerably enhances human muscular and mental capabilities, and conditions our living surroundings to make it more and more comfortable. However, often inadvertently, its application is also degrading the geophysical environment, disrupting the ecological balance, and disturbing the evolutionary nature of the social change processes. Furthermore, abuse or careless use of technology is threatening total annihilation of human life on earth. And yet, there is cause for hope. To improve the quality of life of the teeming population of the underdeveloped world, to undo the negative impacts of the past and present technological activities of the industrialized world, and also to provide a deterrent to self-destruction or irresponsible acts of carelessness-we need technology now more than before. In other words, we need technology for sustainable development. There is no unique path to development. Experiences gained by the early developers and the newly industrialized countries, show that neither the size of the population nor the natural resources endowment can guarantee a country’s economic success or failure. However, experience also shows that technology seems to matter more. Based on this recent realization, the productive and efficient utilization of technology is considered as central to the economic development process of the present world, both developed and developing. It is now well accepted that technology plays a decisive role in every sector of national development-be it food production, education, energy, or communication and transportation. The widespread recognition of the crucial role of technology in national development has led to considerable international deliberations on the issues related to technology policy formulation and planning in the developing countries. The countries of the Asian region are, thus, paying increasing attention to the application of technology for development. However, recent studies [7, 81 have shown that, although there are expressed interests, most of the efforts in using technology as a strategic variable for socioeconomic development planning in the developing countries have still remained problematic. These

Space and living conditions in Poland

Space and living conditions are interesting both from the point of view of theory and practice. Social egalitarianism occupies much space in political declarations and programs. It is related, among other things, to the need to reduce spatial disparities in living conditions. Irrespective of the degree of feasibility of such expectations, it should be recognized that there is a permanent demand for empirical studies of the existing spatial differentiation of living conditions both for diagnostic purposes and for the purpose of elaboration of socio-economic and physical de velopment plans for the country. Despite considerable methodological achievements in this respect, it is still not possible to make comprehensive analyses and syntheses of the problem. This is due to the complexity of living conditions, which in itself is the outcome of changing events and processes occurring in the economy, culture and politics. In these circumstances it is necessary to look for more comprehensive sources of information. The analysis of time budgets is one source of information that has been made little use of so far. This paper is an attempt to draw attention to the usefulness of time budgets in geographical studies. They are a useful addition to other research techniques employed in geography and spatial planning. The paper is based on studies using Poland as an example of their cognitive potential. It was not intended as a monograph nor a contribution to the analysis of spatial differentiation of living conditions in Poland. The daily time budget contains many limitations which follow from the division into daytime and nighttime and the time of day. Contem porary civilization upsets the natural rhythm of day and night and time of day, drawing numerous benefits in the process. The limitation or

Mortality and morbidity transition in Kuwait: the role of health and development policies.

Kuwait has, in recent years, achieved a marked improvement in the health status of its population, as measured by a variety of mortality and morbidity indicators. This can be attributed to the implementation of two sets of policies that impact upon health, namely the health and socio-economic development plans of the Kuwaiti government. This article seeks to outline these recent changes in mortality and morbidity levels, and traces out the key policies considered to be the major determinants for these changes. Data is presented on health status, and on patterns and trends of health services' utilization. These trends suggest strongly that, for Kuwait, the health goals set for the year 2000 are achievable.

Impact study of Thailand's National Family Planning Programme on fertility decline in the first half of the Fifth National Socio-Economic Development Plan (1982-1986).

The evaluation of the National Family Planning Programme (NFPP) in the First Half of the Fifth National Socio-economic Development Plan (1982-1986) was conducted by the joint Thai-US team in mid 1984. It was found that the continuing fertility decline, from a crude birth rate of 26.9 per 1, 000 in 1981 to 21 per 1, 000 in 1984, was attributable to increased contraceptive prevalence, which was largely a result of the NFPP. This has affected the population growth rate, which has declined from 1.8% to an estimated 1.6% over the 1981 to 1984 period. This study forecasted that there would be a 30% increase in the number of currently-married women, aged 15-44 by the end of the Sixth Development Plan (1991). This increase will put a great burden on the NFPP. However, the possibility of attaining the growth rate of 1.2% by the end of 1991 is conditional upon the persistence of current trends in contraceptive prevalence with the full support of all family planning and FP-related agencies.

The multilevel dependence of contraceptive use on socioeconomic development and family planning program strength

Abstract Using World Fertility Survey data for 15 developing countries, we estimate an equation in which the dependent variable—whether the respondent has ever used an efficient contraceptive method—depends on the respondent’s education and location of childhood residence. All of the coefficients of this equation, including the intercept, vary over countries. Analysis based on new methodology shows that the intercept and education effects vary as a function of national family planning program efforts and that none of the parameters of the equation depend on gross national product per capita. The results demonstrate the efficacy of multilevel analysis, provide a partial test of the theory underlying the analysis, and refocus discussion of the contributions of development and policy variables to fertility reduction.

Implementing Public Health Policies in Rural Thailand

Bureaucrats with multiple superiors often encounter difficulty in implementing policies initiated from higher-level officials. When there is a lack of policy-making co-ordination among the superior bureaucrats, the result can be conflicting and excessive policy demands made on the subordinate implementors. Problems caused by such demands are likely to affect adversely the work performance of these subordinates. As noted in a previous study, it is difficult to achieve policy co ordination among the superiors because of the political nature of the provincial bureaucracy of the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH).1 Public health officials within each province form political cliques which compete with each other for power and influence. At the same time, the work of superiors, both at the district and provincial levels, are functionally differentiated. Each superior has a tendency to over emphasize the significance of his work at the expense of others. Con sequently, each superior usually demands that subordinates at health centres give first priority to his functional area. In recent years, the MOPH has often changed its policy goals and guidelines. This has created a situation of policy ambiguity. Many superiors and subordinates alike do not comprehend the new policies originating in Bangkok. They are not certain what the policy priorities are, and sometimes do not take these policies seriously because they know from experience that the MOPH will soon initiate a new set. Recently, the MOPH made another major policy change. Accord ing to the Fifth National Public Health Plan, and in accordance with the Fifth National Socio-Economic Development Plan of Thailand (1982-86), the new overall objective of the MOPH is to promote primary health-care throughout the country. The target is to improve the health conditions of the poor in rural areas. This article will address the possible implications of this new

Rural-Urban Migration and Urbanization in Bangladesh

The main components of urban population growth in Bangladesh are examined in order to determine the relative importance of natural increase in-migration and territorial annexation in contributing to urban population growth from 1961 to 1974. It is shown that in-migration particularly rural-urban migration has been the major component of urban growth over this period and has been caused primarily by disparities in economic and social opportunities between urban and rural areas. The author also examines urban in-migration in the regional context and in relation to city size. The consequences of continuing rapid urbanization for both urban areas and for the countrys socioeconomic development plans are discussed.

Editor's Introduction

Abstract Five years ago, Soviet Education published two issues (November and December 1976, Volume XIX, No. 1 and No. 2) on schooling and higher education at the beginning of the Tenth Five-Year Plan for socioeconomic development in the USSR. Five years later, it is time to take stock of the results of the work done during that planning period — the years 1976 to 1980 — and to project policy goals for education in the years of the new, Eleventh, Five-Year Plan - 1981 to 1985. Such is the rhythmic cycle followed in Soviet policymaking. The successive five-year plans are launched by the congresses of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU): the Twenty-Fifth Communist Party Congress was held in February 1976 at the start of the Tenth Plan, and the Twenty-Sixth was held in February 1981 at the beginning of the Eleventh.

The Location of Research Potential

The Twenty-fifth Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union posed the task of improving techniques used in the comprehensive solution of major nationwide interbranch and territorial problems. The improvement of the territorial location of science and the better utilization of regional research potential are some of the problems that hold great importance for the further socioeconomic development of the nation. (1) The development of long-range plans for socioeconomic development and comprehensive programs of technical progress on a national, union republic, and regional scale is closely associated with the territorial location of research, project-planning, and experimental facilities.

A model to support decision making for the energy supply-system of a metropolitan area†

The objective of this study is to construct two models to support decision making for energy systems of a metropolitan area. First, the future energy demand of the region is estimated based on a socio-economic development plan. Next, a planning problem for an energy supply system is formulated as a mathematical programming problem with multiple objective functions under the constraints of energy demand-supply balances and of environmental protections. Both the end-use energy price and the percentage of electricity generated within the region are reflected in the- objective functions. Applying the parametric algorithm in linear programming method, solutions which satisfy Pareto optimality have been derived. The feasibility of these two models has been ascertained through the positive study for Osaka City.

A Model to Support Decision Making for Energy Supply System of a Metropolitan Area

The objective of this research is to construct two models to support decision making for energy systems of a metropolitan area. First, the future energy demand of the region is estimated based on a socio-economic development plan. Next, a planning problem for an energy supply system is formulated as a mathematical programming problem with multiple objective functions under the constraints of energy demand-supply balances and of environmental protections. Both the end-use energy price and the percentage of electricity generated within the region are reflected upon the objective functions. Applying the parametric algorithm in linear programming method, solutions which satisfy Pareto optimality have been derived. The feasibility of these two models has been ascertained through the positive study for Osaka City.