Poor Citizens Research Articles

Legal and Ethical Dimensions of Islamic Microfinance in Poverty Alleviation: A Critical Analysis

According to the World Bank’s (2019) study, poverty accounts for more than 70% of the total population in Nigeria, implying that over 130 million people in the country, live in poverty. This pathetic situation is further aggravated by financial exclusion whereby low-income people are neglected away from the financial system because they are considered uneconomical to serve or too difficult to reach. According to the World Bank’s Global Findex, 1.7 billion adults globally are financially excluded, living without formal credit or savings (FINCA International, 2024). Recently, microfinance has emerged as an important instrument of poverty alleviation in the developing countries with more than 7000 micro lending institutions providing loans to more than 25 million poor individuals across the world (Dahiru and Hassan, 2008). Despite the number of microfinance banks in Nigeria with over 800 of them in the country, Microfinance banks’ contribution to Nigeria’s economy is less than 1% (National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), 2020). The question now is, where lies the problem? Through a doctrinal approach, it is observed that the system of operation and management of Microfinance banks in Nigeria has eroded their primary objective (financial inclusion). This is mainly due to the imposition of high interest rate by Microfinance Institutions, poor risk management mechanism, weak organizational structure, insufficient capital, shortage of experts, among others. With its success in some parts of Nigeria such as Al-Barakah Microfinance Bank in Lagos state, Islamic microfinance is recommended to be the real solution in achieving financial inclusion through its products that are interest-free and customer-friendly to the poor and middle-class citizens, in a bid to ensure optimum poverty alleviation in a well regulated and ethical business environment.

Urban Informality and Its Impacts on Sustainable Urbanism: A Review Using Selected Indicators in Kayole Informal Settlement in Nairobi

Sustainable urbanism is a fundamental element of sustainable development as envisaged under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs) and the New Urban Agenda (NUA). Among the key bottlenecks to sustainability are urban poverty and informality. These breed developmental ills, including crime, conflicts, pollution, overcrowding, disease and illicit trade practices. Still, studies and policies acknowledge the urban informals (housing, commerce and industry) for safeguarding poor citizens’ right to the city, protecting livelihoods and reducing survivalist crimes, especially, in cities of the global South. This paper uses illustrations from Kayole Informal Settlement in Nairobi to examine the impacts of informal urban solid waste management and trade practices, and suggest synergies for overcoming them. Guided by sustainable development and sustainable urbanism theories, the descriptive study explores and mitigates select infrastructural, economic, health, environmental and governance indicators affected by informality, and which impact the realization of globally agreed development pathways. Its data was collected through questionnaires, Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), observation, literature review and mapwork (ArcMap and Google Earth). The resulting findings show minimal progress towards sustainability and pinpoint intervention areas Nairobi should work on to lift residents from extreme poverty as opposed to making the city functional and liveable for the poor.

Decision Support System for Determining Recipients of Subsidized Foodstuffs for Poor Families Using the Simple Addictive Weighting Method

Technology is increasingly becoming a necessity that must be met, both in the world of education and in the world of business and social, especially information technology is used not only as a support but also as a primary need that can be used to provide information quickly. In accordance with what has been determined to obtain Subsidized Food, criteria are needed to determine who will be selected to receive subsidized food. The distribution of subsidized food is distributed to underprivileged or poor citizens. To assist in determining who is eligible to receive subsidized food, a decision support system is needed. One method that can be used for Decision Support Systems is by using Simple Additive Weighting (SAW). In this study, a case will be raised, namely finding the best alternative based on predetermined criteria by using the SAW method to calculate the method in the case. This method was chosen because it is able to select the best alternative from a number of alternatives, in this case the intended alternative is those who are entitled to receive subsidized food based on the specified criteria. The study was conducted by finding the weight value for each attribute, then a ranking process was carried out which would determine the optimal alternative, namely the poor. After the study was conducted, the results obtained were that there were 4 alternatives receiving Subsidized Food and the one with the highest value was alternative 5 with the name Yuhel Fentri with a value of 0.875.

From Invisibility towards Justice: The march of the marginalized citizens of Mumbai”

Abstract Mumbai, like Marozia is a city where for many the living conditions are like those described by Calvino for rats but who hope to fly like swallows. It’s a city where many come to eke out a livelihood, increasingly difficult in rural areas. And it’s from these communities that women organized to form what came to be called the Right to Pee campaign. Drawing upon networks and strategies of the long history of women’s movements in Mumbai, this struggle gives us a glimpse of another city desired by the poor citizens without whom the city would no longer hum.

The Stigmatisation of Poor Citizens Living in Slums in Brazil: the Rio de Janeiro Scenario as a Study Paradigm

The Stigmatisation of Poor Citizens Living in Slums in Brazil: the Rio de Janeiro Scenario as a Study Paradigm

Localized Racism, Legalized Theft, and the Long Dispossession of U.S. Cities

Andrew Kahrl's The Black Tax is a sweeping and insightful history of the local property tax in the United States from Reconstruction onward that speaks eloquently to urban history, tax history, and histories of capitalism and race in the United States. Kahrl exposes the relentless process of dispossession and exploitation, captive taxpayers and fiscal apartheid within the local property tax that has overtaxed Black Americans by over $275 billion, cost $326 billion in land loss, and created a generational wealth difference compounded into trillions. But Kahrl is not focused only on individual loss or even community dispossession, but on entrenched systems of legalized theft built into the local property tax that have reinforced themselves over time through the most localized bureaucratic subjectivity and bias, such that poor cities are now left with few fiscally sustaining options other than preying on their poorest citizens.

CANONICAL CORRELATION ANALYSIS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH AND UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

The paper discusses the relationship between economic growth and the unemployment rate in Indonesia in each province in 2021. Both variables are considered as the dependent variable and there are 5 independent variables used in this research such as human index development, wage minimum region, poor citizens percentage, investment, and farmer rate value in each province. The method used to analyze is canonical correlation analysis, which is one of the dependent methods that are used for multivariate analysis. This method was used to determine which variable had the most significant relationship between dependent and independent variables, the data was taken from the Center of Statistics Bureau Indonesia in 2021. The result shows that among independent variables the human index development had the strongest relation it had 79%, while the correlation between the dependent and independent variable the unemployment rate gives the strongest influence it is 68%.

Efficiency of Public Healthcare Systems Across Indian States

This article analyses the technical efficiency of public healthcare systems within various states of India. Slacks-based efficiency model (SBM) to compare the efficiencies of the public healthcare systems of selected Indian states has been used. A comparison of budget documents and government responses during the pandemic revealed the changing stereotypical stand of the Central Government towards the health sector, especially after the advent of the pandemic. Further, the study found that the public healthcare systems of four states (Bihar, Kerala, Maharashtra and NCT of Delhi) are SBM efficient. Healthcare resources are over-utilised in most states, but health outcomes still need to be improved. The study recommends connecting poor and illiterate citizens in remote villages with public health utilities to improve health outcomes. JEL Codes: H51, H52, H75

Algo sobre Hölderlin sobre o Estado

At a time increasingly dominated by the idiótis, one gets shocked when comes across a statement by Hölderlin as a motto in a book of Friedrich Hayek: “What has always made the state a hell on earth has been precisely that man has tried to make it his heaven.” What? Hölderlin, a precursor of neoliberalism? Situating this statement of Hyperion in its proper context, while also presenting what Hölderlin thinks about the State, the present text shows that what makes possible an expropriating appropriation of Hölderlin’s criticism towards utopian expectations about the State is an essential ambiguity in the use of some terms: a confusion about two fundamental dimensions of the social existence of men, namely, the political and the economic. Such ambiguity, which permeates the entire liberal ideal from its beginning to the present day, is sustained by a very simplistic and false dichotomy opposing the State as permanent threat of oppression to the poor citizens, who must fight tooth and nail for their rights.

Government Policy Communication in Poverty Alleviation in the City of Makassar

One of the economic development policies in a country is based on the accelerated pace of poverty alleviation in society, which is increasingly becoming a problem for the government The poverty rate in Makassar City is relatively high, so it is very important for the government to optimize policy communication by the government in poverty alleviation. The purpose of this study was to determine the process of communication on government policies in poverty alleviation in Makassar City. This research uses a qualitative method and a phenomenological approach. The study focuses on policy communication on the aspects of transmission, clarity, and transparency of information using data analysis techniques of qualitative interactive models. The results of this study indicate that the communication of Makassar city government policies in reducing community poverty is considered less effective; this is indicated by one of the poverty reduction policies through the Productive Economic Enterprises (UEP) assistance program and the Joint Business Group assistance program (KUBE) whose distribution is not well targeted to the community due to the lack of information provided by the Makassar city government to the sub-district government to assign the sub-district party the task of identifying and collecting data on poor citizens. Apart from that, the Makassar city government also, according to the program policy, did not provide clear and transparent information on the amount of the budget allocated to each community group and the budget allocation for the development needs of the program, because of the UEP and KUBE policies. The findings of this study also assessed that the communication process for poverty alleviation policies did not work according to community expectations because of the sectoral ego of the city government which was politicized by seeking benefits to be obtained by several parties who were not responsible for the implementation of the UEP and KUBE programs. Keywords: policy communications, government, poverty

Social contract as a tool for overcoming poverty of the working-age population: assessment of budget efficiency and directions of modernization

One of the promising instruments of social support for the population in the Russian Federation is a social contract, the feature of which is the conditional nature of social payments, requiring poor citizens to take active actions to improve their living situation (job search, vocational training, doing business). This study analyzes the Russian and foreign experience in organizing social contract instruments (the TANF program in the USA and the RSA program in France). The subject of the author's research is the effectiveness of budget expenditures of the budgetary system of the Russian Federation for the financial provision of the social contract mechanism in the context of the allocated areas of assistance. Special attention is paid to the legal support of the functioning of the social contract in terms of methods for evaluating its effectiveness and the distribution of appropriate subsidies from the federal budget. Based on the criterion proposed by the author of the relative amount of budget expenditures per citizen who has overcome the poverty threshold, an assessment of the budgetary effectiveness of various areas of assistance under the social contract is carried out. The conclusion is made about the difference in the evaluation results when using official indicators and the author's approach. Thus, official data indicate the success of the results of the social contract program, comparable with foreign analogues. The author's assessment of budgetary efficiency showed the irrational use of budgetary funds: 60% of financial resources in 2021-2022 were directed to the least effective area of assistance. Additionally, the problems in the mechanism of federal co-financing of expenditures of regional budgets for the use of the instrument are identified. The author identifies the methodological shortcomings of the current methodology for evaluating its effectiveness. Based on the identified problems, changes are proposed in the regulatory framework governing the financial mechanism for providing assistance on the basis of a social contract. These results are of high practical significance for the activities of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, as well as regional executive authorities responsible for the implementation of the social contract.

Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Sit at Home Order: Its Socio-Economic Implications on Ebonyi State, Nigeria

Nigeria is rated as one of the poorest nations in the world as over 80 % of its citizens live below poverty level. This percentage of the citizens depend on their daily earnings to be able to take care of their family members in terms of feeding, health care services, payment of school fees among others. This daily earnings were shortened by the Indigenous People of Biafra with their mandatory sit at home order on Mondays and every other day that their leader would be appearing in court in the whole of five South East States. This followed the arrest and detention of the leader of IPOB; Mazi Nnamdi Kanu by the federal government of Nigeria. The broad objective of this paper is to examine the socio- economic implications of this sit at home order on the poor citizens of South East States of Nigeria with focus on Ebonyi State; a state rated as the poorest among the five states of the South East. The theory that anchored the study is the optimal constraint theory while quantitative research design which made use of survey method was employed to accomplish the purpose of the study. The data for the study were collected through structured questionnaire items and focus group discussion. 400 respondents were purposively selected from the study area. Four points Likert type scale was employed in data collection and to measure the magnitude of the responses. Data collected were analyzed using percentages. The three formulated hypotheses were tested using Chi-Square. The findings show that the sit at home order has made the people of South East States especially Ebonyi State poorer with its chain effect on school drop-out, joblessness and increased insecurity. The paper recommends among other things that Governors of the five South East States should discuss with all the different groups and factions of IPOB to understand the implications of their order on the people they meant to protect and call off the order, while the governors should as well dialogue with the federal government for the release of Nnamdi Kanu.

How Do European Countries Use EU‐Funded Food Aid and How Important Is It for the Most Deprived?

AbstractThe Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) aims at providing food and (non‐)material assistance to the most vulnerable European citizens. Linking macro and micro data on the importance of FEAD resources shows, however, a mixed picture of targeting the most deprived: although FEAD budgets accrue more to countries with greater social needs, when the budgets are compared with the number of severely deprived persons, FEAD resources were found to be more than twice as high in Finland than in Hungary. This suggests that FEAD does not differentiate sufficiently across countries to focus on the poorest citizens within the Union. Moreover, a micro‐level analysis of how these budgets are spent in a number of selected countries (Belgium, Finland, Hungary and Spain) reveals large between‐ and within‐country variations in the developed FEAD programmes, indicating substantial discretionary leeway for Member States and social organisations to implement FEAD.

Rethinking social protection policy for persons with disabilities in Ghana

Globally, social protection plays a pivotal role in poverty reduction and has been adopted to address the needs of vulnerable populations in society, including persons with disabilities. Social protection is an essential mechanism to achieve sustainable development. The United Nations’ Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals seek, among others, to ensure that state parties implement social protection which could prevent situations that adversely impact the well-being of their poor citizens. Poverty lingers in Ghana, despite interventions developed under the National Social Protection Policy. Disability is a social, economic, mental, and public health issue with over a billion of the world’s population living with some form of disability. Persons with disabilities are disproportionately poor because of challenges and barriers to their inclusion and full-effective participation in society. Guided by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Sustainable Development Goals, we conducted a content analysis of the National Social Protection Policy of Ghana. Twin-track approach to social policy development, modification to existing social protection programmes and the inclusion of persons with disabilities in decision-making processes are among the recommendations to address the needs of persons with disabilities in Ghana. How to reference using ASWNet style: Naami, A., Pumpuni, C. M., Mort, K. A. & Ofori, A. (2023). Rethinking social protection policy for persons with disabilities in Ghana. African Journal of Social Work, 13(5), 254-264. https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/ajsw.v13i5.4 Visit journal website: https://ajsw.africasocialwork.net

About some problems of law enforcement activities in the field of state social assistance and support to poor citizens in Russia

The subject of the study is the most common conflict situations that are resolved, mainly in court, in the field of providing state social assistance and support to the poor citizens. The author analyzes the existing, rather extensive judicial practice in this area, focusing on the most socially significant aspects of law enforcement that need further improvement. The methodological basis of the study was a set of general scientific methods of cognition, based on a dialectical general philosophical basis, and, in turn, determining the use of certain private scientific methods, primarily statistical methods in the law enforcement sphere. The article was prepared as part of the state assignment to the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation in 2023. The sphere of assistance to low-income citizens and families is extremely conflictual from the point of view of law enforcement. The most common categories include legal disputes related to: contradictions between federal legislation and regulatory acts of the regions of the Russian Federation; imperfection of federal and regional legislation; improper application of the norms of substantive and procedural law; violation of the terms of the social contract; recovery of funds unreasonably paid to recipients of social assistance; bringing to administrative responsibility for misuse budget funds; challenging the refusal to provide social services, in the form of vouchers for sanatorium treatment.

The Well-being Effects of an Old-Age Pension: Experimental Evidence for Ekiti State in Nigeria

Abstract Many countries in the developing world have implemented old-age pensions. Evidence of the impact of such policies on the elderly in sub-Saharan Africa, however, is scarce. We provide evidence from a randomised evaluation of an unconditional old-age pension targeted at the elderly in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Our findings show that treated beneficiaries self-report better quality of life and a more stable mental health. We also provide evidence of spillover effects on the labor outcomes of other household members and of household savings patterns as well as support for interventions aimed at improving the welfare of elderly poor citizens and other household members.

Will democracy support switching from targeting to universalism?

This paper takes advantage of Ide, Furuichi, and Miyazaki’s policy proposal to present a theoretic framework for analyzing the likelihood that a democratic society will support moving social policies from targeting to universal access. The main finding is that the proposed transition to universalism will likely increase Japan’s already substantial fiscal deficit and that it will appease social cleavages only if the psychological feeling of equal treatment is large enough to compensate the poor citizen’s utility loss. However, if the equal-treatment feeling is not high enough, then both the poor and the middle class will be dissatisfied with the transition proposal, which will not gather social support.

Financial Inclusion: Strategies for Rural Prosperity: Leads to Sustainable Business

To help the uninsured and the needy in rural areas, you need to provide them with access to low-cost financial services. The Indian government's financial inclusion policy simplifies the process of conventional, institutionalized lending to promote savings. People with low incomes have the less financial cushion to absorb shocks in the economy. Indirectly, formal banking services aid the financially vulnerable by allowing them to save money. If sufficient and explicit funding is made accessible, mass entrepreneurialism can increase productivity and prosperity. That continues indefinitely. Assuming you've accomplished your core objectives, ensure they remain unchanged. Instead of being an objective or a plan of action, sustainable development and financial inclusion are just goals. It hopes to help India and its poor citizens join the modern world. Giving them access to low-cost, dependable, and readily available means of creating and improving their means of subsistence is one way to lift people out of poverty and foster a sense of agency and independence. The success of financial inclusion depends on people being able to open bank accounts and on financial institutions providing high-quality services and the necessary infrastructure.

Comprehensive analysis of the effectiveness of social security regional financial models in Russia based on the DEA method

The problems of financial regulation of poverty and income inequality in Russia are widely discussed in the scientific literature. One of the important aspects in this area is efficiency assessment, which should be the basis for developing solutions that contribute to the growth of the Russian population welfare. This article develops a comprehensive methodology for assessing the effectiveness of the system of state financial regulation of poverty and income inequality In Russian regions on the basis of the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method and regression analysis. The information base contains the indicators of socioeconomic development of Russian regions for the period from 2017 to 2021. The analysis algorithm of the technical efficiency of budget expenditures on social policy has been developed and tested. The research novelty is the application of the DEA method taking into account the theory of regulation of income inequality by F. Bourguignon. The paper provides a comprehensive assessment of the regions’ efficiency and identifies the determinants of the efficiency indicators: the size of the regional economy and the level of income per capita; the share of poor citizens in the region; indicators of regional demographic development (fertility, mortality), etc.

Otogenic Brain Abscess in a Child of Third World Country - A Single Stage Transcranial Transmastoid Approach: A Case Report

Brain abscess, though not rare, is an uncommon complication of otitis media. We report a case of 12 years old male for chronic ear discharge, throbbing headache and post aural swelling for three weeks. A detailed history and physical examination of the child was performed and a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan was done. A diagnosis of an intracranial abscess, secondary to the chronic otitis media was made. An emergency craniotomy with drainage of brain abscess was planned and performed by the Neurosurgeon. Otolaryngolgoist performed mastoidectomy, in the same setting. After the surgery, post-operative manage- ment was done and the patient was discharged, uneventfully. The complete management in a single sitting of primary cause and resulting complication with no added expenses is the necessity of a poor country citizen.