Economic Analysis of Import Demand for Poultry Meat in the G.C.C. Countries

The aim of this paper is to analyze the demand function for poultry imports in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries as a whole during the period 1979-1992. It also aims at forecasting the future import demand for poultry in the GCC until the year 2005. This demand function was estimated using three functional forms: the linear, the logarithmic, and the semi-logarithmic. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) method was utilized to estimate these relations using time series data (1979-1992). Results showed that: (1) The aggregate data for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are best represented by the semi-logarithmic form. Import demand for the GCC countries is affected mainly by real import price for poultry, real national income, and population. (2) Price elasticity of import demand for the aggregate data for the GCC countries is estimated at -0.93, while the income elasticity is found to be 0.36. It is expected that poultry imports will reach 534.000 tons in the year 2005. this amount could be reduced to 514.000, 496.000 tons if the real import price increased by 10%, 20% or 30%, respectively, following the implementation of GATT

Saudi Arabia Mental Health Surveillance System (MHSS): mental health trends amid COVID-19 and comparison with pre-COVID-19 trends

Background: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on populations’ mental health has started to emerge. Objectives: To describe the mental health trends of the risk of major depressive disorder (MDD) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) between May and August 2020. It also compares the results with pre-COVID-19 results and identifies risk factors associated with increased likelihood of being at risk of MDD and GAD. Method: This study utilizes repeated cross-sectional design, at national-level coverage of mental health screenings via computer-assisted phone interviews conducted in four waves monthly (between May and August 2020). Arabic-speaking adults from Saudi Arabia were recruited via a random phone list. The questionnaire includes the Arabic version of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). Pre-COVID-19 comparison was done using the PHQ-2 score to allow for comparison with a previous and similar national study conducted in 2018. Results: Across the four waves, 16,513 participants completed the interviews, with an overall response rate of 81.3%. The weighted national prevalence of people at risk of MDD was 14.9% overall, and 13.8%, 13.6%, 16.8%, and 15.3% in Waves 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. The weighted national prevalence of people at risk of GAD was 11.4%, overall, and 10.9%, 10.7%, 12.4%, and 11.7% in Waves 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. The weighted national proportion of individuals who were at risk of MDD and GAD at the same time was 7.4% overall. The risk of MDD on PHQ-2 increased by 71.2%, from 12.5% in 2018 to 21.4% in 2020. Conclusions: The risks of MDD and GAD in this study are relatively high. These results can help decision makers to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the population’s mental health and the most-impacted subgroups

Welfare and Distribution Effects of Water Pricing Policies

Water demand, Equivalent variation, Social welfare, Income distribution,