Income Supply Research Articles

The effect of oil palm on income strategies and food security of households in rural communities in Campeche, Mexico

Oil palm cropping expands rapidly in the Mexican state of Campeche. The crop has the potential to contribute to agricultural diversification and economic development of rural communities. At the same time, the effect of its rapid, unplanned expansion on income strategies and food security of domestic groups in rural communities is largely unknown. The goal of this study is to analyze the effects of the oil palm crop on income strategies and food security in rural communities of the south of Campeche State, México. The Sustainable Livelihoods (SL) approach was used and information on cropping and SL was gathered through a survey and participatory community workshops. Results show that, until now, oil palm cropping is a complementary activity to the income strategies of the farmers’ families as these incorporate palm cultivation, while maintaining their other productive activities. Oil palm plantation establishment contributes to productive diversification, job creation and provision of stable incomes of domestic groups (DGs). Furthermore, domestic groups that include oil palm production in their income strategies have a greater degree of food security.

Can the Provision of Alternative Livelihoods Reduce the Impact of Wild Meat Hunting in West and Central Africa?

As threats to the world's ecosystems continue to escalate, the demand for evidence-based conservation approaches from conservation scientists, practitioners, policy-makers and donors is growing. Wild meat hunting represents one of the biggest threats to tropical forest ecosystems and various conservation strategies have been employed with the aim of reducing hunting impacts. Alternative livelihood projects have been implemented at the community level to reduce hunting through the provision of protein and income substitutes to wild meat. However, there is scant evidence of these projects' impact on hunting practices and wildlife populations. This study addresses this knowledge gap, focusing on alternative livelihood projects in West Africa and Central Africa. A comprehensive literature review and call for information identified 155 past and current projects, of which 19 were analysed in detail through key informant interviews. The study found that a range of different livelihood alternatives are being offered. Most projects are run by local and national non-governmental organisations, and project managers acknowledged the importance of involving communities in project decision-making; however, many projects are funded through small, short-term grants and struggle to meet their objectives with the available time, funding and capacity. Given these constraints, few projects monitor their outcomes and impacts. Projects also seldom implement conditionalities and sanctions, which may lead to the alternatives offered becoming additional rather than substitutional activities. Applying currently available best-practice guidelines for Integrated Conservation and Development Project design and implementation, including the use of simple monitoring methods for evaluating outcomes and impact, would greatly increase the chances of success for alternative livelihood projects, along with a restructuring of current funding models.

Value of work for employees with a chronic disease.

Most people with a chronic disease value participation in work. Knowledge is limited, however, as to what extent employees with a chronic disease value participating in work, and the main reasons for this. Limited research is available on which specific factors contribute to the perceived value of work. To evaluate main reasons for, and the extent to which employees with a chronic disease value participation in work, and factors which motivate or demotivate employees in work. A survey of members of three large patient federations was performed. Respondents had a chronic disease and were of working age. The extent and reasons for valuing work were analysed using descriptive statistics; (de)motivating aspects were qualitatively analysed using specific software. The 1683 respondents valued work with an average of 8 on a scale from 1 to 10 (1: 'work is not at all important to me' and 10: 'work is extremely important to me'). Most frequent reported reasons for valuing work were the provision of income, social contact and the ability to contribute to society. Motivational aspects for work were being financially independent, having positive social contact with colleagues or clients and having the ability to contribute to society. In contrast, negative social contact, performing useless work and having little autonomy demotivated people. Employed people with a chronic disease generally value work, mainly because it makes them financially independent, provides social contact and enables them to contribute to society.

Financial Management Practices of Investors:An Insight from Monthly Budgetary Allocation

With less than 1% of population in organized employment coupled with shifting of government focus from a regulator to a facilitator socialist welfare state the onus of retirement planning and life after retirement has been rested with individual. The budgetary allocation towards investment irrespective of its type has become imperative for investors in order to take care of their post retirement life. The study investigated budgetary allocation of retail investors for various budgetary heads which included daily necessities in order to fulfill their short term and long term goals. Two important constituents of financial management namely goal setting and budgetary allocation were inquired and it was found that majority of investors though acknowledge the importance of financial planning, they do fail to put it into practices and seldom engage themselves in record keeping and disciplined investing mode. Rather to achieve the goals majority of respondents do not have fixed provision or proportion of income that is set aside to achieve it.

The role of urban‐based agriculture on food security: Kenyan case studies

AbstractKenya is rapidly urbanising. In the growing cities and towns, there is an increasing need for food supplies, creating demand for agricultural products. High unemployment rates, urban poverty, and food and nutrition insecurity force some urban dwellers to partly adopt livelihood strategies based on urban agriculture. Presently in Kenya, urban and peri‐urban agriculture plays an important role in urban food system, because it enhances livelihood strategies for urban households, not least the poor. Using a sample of 2,009 households, this study characterised urban farming and urban‐based rural farming in medium‐sized towns of Thika and Kisumu, Kenya. It further assessed food security levels of urban households engaged in farming and households that do not farm. Results demonstrate that more than half of the households produced part of their food, either in urban or rural areas. About 37 per cent and 25 per cent of the respondents produced food in rural and urban areas, respectively. Generally, more of the households engaged in both urban farming and urban‐based rural agriculture are more food secure compared with the non‐farming households. Urban farming has a potential of improving household food security and provision of fungible income; hence, the practice should be included in the urban food policies.

Effect of sustainable poultry interventions on household food security and resilience in game management areas of Zambia's Luangwa Valley: a before-and-after study

Abstract Background Zambia's Luangwa Valley epitomises the linked environmental, agricultural, and human health problems around protected wildlife areas in developing countries. Smallholder crop yields are usually poor, and farmers turn to the unsustainable harvesting of natural resources, including hunting, fishing, and deforestation for charcoal production to supplement household income and food supply. Chronic poverty and food insecurity are pervasive and long-term household and environmental resilience are uncertain. Village poultry can ameliorate these problems, through the provision of animal-source food and income and an alternative to consumption of natural resources. However, the returns on traditional backyard poultry ownership are reduced by high flock losses and poor flock genetics. We, therefore, designed and implemented two poultry interventions and measured their effect on productivity, profitability, and consumption of animal-source food. Methods We implemented two programmes in the Luangwa Valley, Zambia. First, we undertook a community vaccination programme for Newcastle disease virus (NDV) in village chickens in Mambwe and Lundazi districts and gave flock owners instruction in improved management practices through workshops. We recorded changes in flock size over 4 years, using surveys administered every 4 months, and we used other primary and secondary data sources to assess changes in poultry-related income and chicken and egg consumption. For the second programme, we facilitated construction of semi-intensive egg production facilities in 24 communities. Layer-hen facilities each held 40 hens and were owned and operated by a group of 4–5 people. We recorded data on egg productivity (the number of eggs produced on a day divided by the number of hens in the flock on that day), poultry-related income, and egg consumption for 1 year using facility records, a semiannual survey, and qualitative interviews. Findings In areas covered by the NDV vaccine programme, mean household flock size increased from 10·9 birds in July, 2007, to 25·7 birds in November, 2011 (p Interpretation NDV vaccination and improved management sustainably increased flock sizes and improved household income but had no direct effect on household consumption of animal-source food. By contrast, semi-intensive egg production businesses provided both consistent income and significant increases in consumption of animal-source food, not only promoting food security and resilience but also providing a potentially important alternative to bushmeat in villages surrounding ecologically-important protected areas. Funding Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future (AJT) and the National Institutes of Health (T32 OD011000, SED).

The economic burden of HIV/AIDS on individuals and households in Nepal: a quantitative study

BackgroundThere have been only limited studies assessing the economic burden of HIV/AIDS in terms of direct costs, and there has been no published study related to productivity costs in Nepal. Therefore, this study explores in detail the economic burden of HIV/AIDS, including direct costs and productivity costs. This paper focuses on the direct costs of seeking treatment, productivity costs, and related factors affecting direct costs, and productivity costs.MethodsThis study was a cross-sectional, quantitative study. The primary data were collected through a structured face-to-face survey from 415 people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV). The study was conducted in six representative treatment centres of six districts of Nepal. The data analysis regarding the economic burden (direct costs and productivity costs) was performed from the household’s perspective. Descriptive statistics have been used, and regression analyses were applied to examine the extent, nature and determinants of the burden of the disease, and its correlations.ResultsAverage total costs due to HIV/AIDS (the sum of average total direct and average productivity costs before adjustment for coping strategies) were Nepalese Rupees (NRs) 2233 per month (US$ 30.2/month), which was 28.5% of the sample households’ average monthly income. The average total direct costs for seeking HIV/AIDS treatment were NRs 1512 (US$ 20.4), and average productivity costs (before adjustment for coping strategies) were NRs 721 (US$ 9.7). The average monthly productivity losses (before adjustment for coping strategies) were 5.05 days per person. The major determinants for the direct costs were household income, occupation, health status of respondents, respondents accompanied or not, and study district. Health status of respondents, ethnicity, sexual orientation and study district were important determinants for productivity costs.ConclusionsThe study concluded that HIV/AIDS has caused a significant economic burden for PLHIV and their families in Nepal. The study has a number of policy implications for different stakeholders. Provision of social support and income generating programmes to HIV-affected individuals and their families, and decentralising treatment services in each district seem to be viable solutions to reduce the economic burden of HIV-affected individuals and households.

Governance of Australian Pension Funds: An Insider View

Pension (superannuation) funds perform a critical role in the provision of retirement income and have a significant impact on the supply and movement of funds in the world’s capital markets. In this context a key element is the scrutiny and oversight of pension assets is a robust governance framework. This investigation is empirical and qualitative based upon the perceptions of insiders of the governance framework of the APRA regulated industry. Superannuation in Australia is mandatory and auto enrolled and fund management is institutional divided into for profit and not for profit funds. The evidence confirms general agreement of a framework made up of external and internal governance mechanisms and concerns about issues such as; an objective, multilevel agency, member engagement and literacy. However, dichotomous and polarised views emerge on issues of principles basis of regulation and supervision, the market mechanism and internal process of trustee boards. The results provide input for policy development.

Perceptions of Local People on the Use of Nyabarongo River Wetland and Its Conservation in Rwanda

ABSTRACTThis research presents a case study on perceptions of local people on the use of Nyabrongo river wetland and its conservation in Rwanda. It critically examines the potential implications of a shift in wetland use and management practices for local people and presents empirical data from a household survey, group discussions, and observations from transect walks. Results showed that the change in the use and management regime of Nyabarongo river wetland poses substantial loss for local people in terms of provision of resources, income, and access to the wetland, so that the majority of the participants are not happy with the current use of the wetland. Research concluded that there should be participation of all stakeholders, including local people, during policy development in order to shift from command-and-control toward local stakeholder integration in decision making.

Community-based psychosocial rehabilitation for schizophrenia service users in the north west province of South Africa: A formative study

ABSTRACTPsychosocial support is recognized as important for recovery for service users with schizophrenia, in addition to provision of antipsychotic medication. This study aimed to develop a community-based psychosocial rehabilitation programme for service users with schizophrenia to be facilitated by auxiliary social workers, and to investigate acceptability and feasibility of the programme. A task-sharing approach was adopted in which auxiliary social workers were trained to facilitate psychosocial rehabilitation groups. In-depth individual qualitative interviews were conducted with six group members at baseline, midpoint, and endpoint (18 interviews in total). NVivo10 was used to store data and conduct qualitative framework analysis. Participants reported benefits of the programme, including improvements in group members’ self-esteem, social support, illness knowledge, self-care, and contribution to their households. A key barrier to acceptability was the lack of provision of income generating opportunities. Implementation challenges include difficulties in tracing and engaging service users and families, lack of an appropriate venue, and issues with supply of antipsychotic medication. This study has provided evidence for the benefits and acceptability of this contextually adapted programme. Key barriers to implementation can be addressed through the provision of the necessary resources for auxiliary social worker input in the community.

The Future of Pensions: Reforms and their Consequences – Introduction

Origins of pension systems Relatively generous provision of incomes for old people is among the main achievements of modern westernised economies. Historically, the state entered and expanded the market for pension provision in order to eliminate old-age poverty and to overcome diverse types of market failures. However, since pension budgets have been increasingly challenged by demographic and financial developments, governments around the world have been reforming their pension systems. This special issue sheds light on the origin, design and potential consequences of pension reform – with a special focus on the UK and Germany. Before turning to the structure and reforms of specific pension systems, we first discuss reasons for why governments should engage in pension provision in the first place. As the basis of this analysis we utilise the standard framework that identifies five rationales for state intervention (Diamond, 1977): market failure, paternalism, redistribution, revenueraising and administrative efficiency.

Perceptions of the Governance of the Australian Superannuation Industry

Pension (superannuation) funds around the world increasingly perform a critical role in the provision of retirement income. The size of the financial assets held by the pension fund sector has a significant impact on the supply and movement of funds in the world’s capital markets. In this context, it is important for policy makers, regulators, market participants and beneficiaries to ensure the integrity of pension assets and outcomes. A key element of such integrity is a robust governance framework. In this exploratory study I investigate the superannuation governance framework in the Australian APRA regulated superannuation industry. The Australian superannuation market is of particular interest because of the mandatory requirement of superannuation contributions and the management of these assets in a range of for profit and not for profit institutions. This study explores the perceptions of good governance in superannuation among practitioners in the industry, through which I analyse elements of best practice and areas for future reform, thus adding to both the body of knowledge and policy recommendations.

Urban sustainability through strategic planning: A case of metropolitan planning in Khulna city, Bangladesh

Planning is a crucial element for any development initiative. Planning entails choice making in pursuit of stated goals e.g. improving living conditions for individuals and societies. Planning initiatives are employed within social systems that are governed by institution, and planning intervenes with and may reconfigure these institutions resulting in social change. This paper discusses how urban sustainability can be achieved through strategic action in urban development by analysing the planning process of Khulna city, Bangladesh. This paper reviews different scholarly articles to draw a conceptual framework for identifying the interface of strategic planning, components of strategic action planning and urban sustainability. Based on this conceptual framework this paper identifies the scope of achieving urban sustainability through analysing the current planning practice of Khulna city, Bangladesh. This paper identifies that though the Khulna city plan adopted the approach of strategic planning but it failed to comply with its theoretical notion to achieve the issues related to urban sustainability. Analysis reveals that in terms of social attribute that recognizes the interest of different group of people the exiting planning packages is not sustainable. Similar phenomenon have been observed in terms of recognition of gender and marginalized people in planning, equitable provision of income and employment generation, peoples’ participation in planning and polices for ensuring equitable access to infrastructure services. Therefore the existing planning package of Khulna city failed to achieve the issues of urban sustainability through its adapted strategic planning approach.

Valuation of environmental and social functions of the multifunctional Cypriot agriculture

The multifunctional farming sector in Cyprus poses threats on the island’s water resources, but highly contributes to the protection of the cultural identity and to the provision of incomes and employment in its rural areas. These services are externalities, as farmers are not remunerated in markets for the environmental and cultural services they provide, nor for the fact that they maintain vivid rural areas. This paper presents an application of the Choice Experiment method, in order to evaluate these non-traded outputs of Cypriot agriculture. The results of the empirical analysis demonstrate that the Cypriot public is in favor of a less intensive pattern of agriculture. Furthermore, Cypriots are willing to pay in order to mitigate adverse environmental effects of agriculture, to improve cultural heritage and to safeguard the continuation of farming trade on the island. The estimated benefits often exceed income losses from changes in the cropping pattern towards extensification, which verifies that EU rural development policies are regarded as beneficial by the public.

Conservation of indigenous cattle genetic resources in Southern Africa's smallholder areas: turning threats into opportunities - A review.

The current review focuses on characterization and conservation efforts vital for the development of breeding programmes for indigenous beef cattle genetic resources in Southern Africa. Indigenous African cattle breeds were identified and characterized using information from refereed journals, conference papers and research reports. Results of this current review reviewed that smallholder beef cattle production in Southern Africa is extensive and dominated by indigenous beef cattle strains adaptable to the local environment. The breeds include Nguni, Mashona, Tuli, Malawi Zebu, Bovino de Tete, Angoni, Landim, Barotse, Twsana and Ankole. These breeds have important functions ranging from provision of food and income to socio-economic, cultural and ecological roles. They also have adaptive traits ranging from drought tolerant, resistance to ticks and tick borne diseases, heat tolerance and resistance to trypanosomosis. Stakeholders in the conservation of beef cattle were also identified and they included farmers, national government, research institutes and universities as well as breeding companies and societies in Southern Africa. Research efforts made to evaluate threats and opportunities of indigenous beef cattle production systems, assess the contribution of indigenous cattle to household food security and income, genetically and phenotypically characterize and conserve indigenous breeds, and develop breeding programs for smallholder beef production are highlighted. Although smallholder beef cattle production in the smallholder farming systems contributes substantially to household food security and income, their productivity is hindered by several constraints that include high prevalence of diseases and parasites, limited feed availability and poor marketing. The majority of the African cattle populations remain largely uncharacterized although most of the indigenous cattle breeds have been identified.

Managing supply chain risks and vulnerabilities through collaboration: Present and future scope

Risk is everywhere and part of every operation. Therefore, today, risk management is becoming critical part of the organizations’ long term goals. Capabilities to managing diverse risks are considered important attributes that differentiate a successful business from others. To acquire such capabilities, firms are increasingly pursuing multiple risk management strategies. Although significant work has been done in the area of supply chain risk management, the research lacks a unified framework exploring relationship between risk perception, risk management, collaboration and firm performance. We further highlight that the agri-food industry plays a critical role in many countries through the provision of employment, income and contribution to economic development. However, this industry is largely untapped in the extant literature of supply chain risk management. The current paper attempts to bridge these gaps in the existing literature. The analysis is based on a pilot test comprising five semi-structured interviews with the managers of firms at different nodes within the Australian citrus supply chain. The findings suggest that the firms are highly vulnerable to various risks due to perishable nature of products, uncertain weather conditions, changing consumer preferences and stringent and rapidly changing food safety regulations. Based on the results of study and insights from the existing literature, we propose a conceptual framework to examine the relationship between perceived risks, risk management and firm performance. Our framework also examines the moderating role of collaboration in managing risks and improving firm performance in a supply chain. The framework is underpinned by the key assumptions of contingency theory and relational view. This paper provides theoretical contributions by integrating and extending contingency theory and relational view from organizational studies into supply chain network perspective. The findings of the paper also enhance managers’ understanding of divergent risks and appropriate risk management measures to mitigate them. Specifically, this paper emphasizes for a strong vertical and horizontal collaboration among the firms within the supply chain. This paper contributes to the extant literature in the field of supply chain risk management as well as agri-food supply chains by investigating the risks faced in supply chains and how they determine the risk management strategies undertaken by firms to maintain or enhance performance. The paper adopts holistic approach, as opposed to the many past studies which focus on either supply side risks or demand side risks. In doing so, this paper extends the unit of analysis from dyadic to a network perspective.

Woody Species Richness, Use Diversity and Management in Agroforestry Practices: The Case of Assosa District Benishangul Gumuz Region, Ethiopia

Natural resource depletion particularly forests is the major problem to be addressed in Assosa district. Hence, this study is intended to identify agroforestry types, species richness, use diversity and management of the woody species. Woody species inventory, key informant discussions and questionnaire survey were employed to assess the problem. The findings of the study identified 4 agroforestry practices namely homrgardens, parklands, alley cropping and on-farm boundary of which only homegardens and parklands were dominant. A total of 57 woody species were found from both homegardens and parklands. Homegardens and parklands had 21 species in common. Household respondents and key informants identified, provision of food, fodder, shade, firewood, income and improvement of soil fertility as use diversity; fencing, coppicing, pollarding, pruning, cultural pest/disease control and slant-cut of mango trees as management types and land tenure insecurity, prevalence of pests/diseases, scarcity of water and less survival of seedlings as the major woody species management problems. Therefore, land certification, water resource development, integrated pest management, training of farmers and further research on the cultural management practices are key recommendations for further development of agroforestry in the study area.

Indigenous cattle breeds and factors enhancing their variation, potential challenges of intensification and threats to genetic diversity in Uganda

SummaryIndigenous cattle support approximately 26.1 percent of Ugandan families through provision of food and income in addition to the supply of socio-cultural wealth and security. Cattle keepers have developed and maintained variations of indigenous cattle phenotypes and genotypes suited to their agro-ecological zones through traditional management practices and socio-cultural aspects. The Ankole (Bos taurus indicus), East African shorthorn Zebu (Bos indicus) and their crossbred cattle constitute the main indigenous breeds, adding up to 93.3 percent of the Ugandan herd. With intensions to increase productivity, state policies encourage livestock farmers to upgrade local genotypes towards high yielding exotic dairy cattle. This if not appropriately planned is likely to result into loss of local genetic diversity, well endowed with resilience to local climatic conditions, endemic diseases and feed resource constraints. Here in, we review literature related to indigenous cattle in Uganda including how diverse landscapes, local management practices and socio-cultural aspects have enriched patterns of indigenous cattle variations. Then we highlight potential challenges of intensive management, increased selection for higher productivity and threats to genetic diversity of indigenous cattle populations. Since indigenous cattle vary with landscapes and socio-cultural values, have taken decades to establish, efforts to save them through genetic diversity studies, conservation and farmers sensitization should be undertaken immediately.

Farmers and forest conservation in Malawi: the disconnect between attitudes, intentions and behaviour

Malawi’s unique flora and fauna are threatened by high levels of deforestation and forest degradation. In addition to the many ecosystem services provided by the country’s forests, most of the rural population of this poor country are highly dependent on forests for provision of food, firewood, medicine, building materials and income. This study examined farmers’ attitudes and behaviour in relation to cutting down forest trees in two rural districts in Malawi using the theory of planned behaviour as a conceptual framework. A survey was administered to 200 household heads in Mzimba and Chiradzulu districts. With strongly negative attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control, farmers were aware of the negative consequences associated with cutting down forest trees, the lack of social support and obstacles encountered when cutting down forest trees. The intention to cut down forest trees was generally low. However, farmers were highly dependent on forest resources, especially in the north, which is caused by high levels of poverty and a lack of alternative income opportunities. We conclude that poverty alleviation and livelihood diversification are crucial for addressing the overexploitation of forest trees in Malawi.

Beveridge’s rival: Juliet Rhys-Williams and the campaign for basic income, 1942–55

Historians of Britain’s post-war welfare state have long been aware of the shortcomings of the social insurance model, but the political impact of the Beveridge report has tended to obscure the alternative visions of welfare canvassed in the 1940s and 1950s. This article examines the social activist Juliet Rhys-Williams’ campaign for the integration of the tax and benefit systems and the provision of a universal basic income, which attracted wide interest from economists, journalists, and Liberal and Conservative politicians during and after the Second World War. Though Rhys-Williams’ proposals were not adopted, they helped establish a distinctive ‘social market’ perspective on welfare provision which has become central to British social policy debates since the 1960s and 1970s.