NETSSAF - a multidisciplinary collaboration towards more sustainable sanitation in West Africa: main results

The MDG sanitation target is, at current progress, unlikely to be met in SubSaharan African countries. One of the most important reasons is the lack of capacities of the various stakeholders, active in the sanitation field. To contribute in bridging the gap and in enhancing NorthSouth and SouthSouth cooperation, NETSSAF, a project funded by the European Commission, with its consortium of 19 partners has set up objectives aiming at creating synergies from different sectors to support the largescale implementation of sustainable sanitation systems in periurban and rural areas in West Africa. Several valuable results have been obtained, which aim is to propose feasible solutions for the achievement of MDGs. The consortium has worked hard and believes on the potentialities of the use of such results – Dissemination and capacity development materials, systematization and characterization of sanitation systems, Sanitation Yellow Pages, Participatory Planning Approach, to boost progress in sanitation coverage in Africa. Therefore, current discussions are on how to continue working together in implementation and capacity building projects, as well as in the improvement of the materials developed in NETSSAF (translation to French and local languages) and their further dissemination, that will lead on the real implementation of the Sustainable Sanitation solutions

Business performance in Thailand before and after the 1997 financial crisis

http://www.baf.cuhk.edu.hk/asia%2Daom/index.htm

The influence of real estate risk on market volatility

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the causal relationship between risk experienced within the real estate industry and that of the overall market in the UK context. The motivation behind this research is to investigate whether the real estate sector transmits risk to the wider marketplace and whether this phenomenon existed, or was exacerbated, during the most recent financial crisis. Design/methodology/approach – The study was undertaken over a 20-year timeframe, from 1990 to 2010, with special attention being awarded to the global financial crisis (GFC) period from 2008 to 2010. The paper first undertakes graphical modeling of market and industry volatilities in an attempt to identify which industry drives market uncertainty. This is followed by quantitative computation of industry-specific volatility, which is employed in examining the relationship between these volatilities using block exogeneity/Granger causality tests. Rolling sample analysis and impulse response functions are employed as robustness tests to substantiate the main results. Findings – First, the analysis confirms research that finance industry volatility is a leader in driving market volatility. Second, it expands on these findings to identify the real estate sector as being a key source of this causal relationship. It finds that real estate risk is the one that regularly drives finance industry volatility over the 20-year sample period. Third, and most importantly, it emerges that the causal link between the real estate sector and market volatility is at its strongest leading up to the most recent financial crisis. More specifically, the real estate investment trusts sub-sector of real estate industry volatility is the one that has the strongest unidirectional relationship with market-wide volatility, both directly and indirectly, through driving the finance industry volatility during the GFC. Originality/value – These findings are significant for market participants, such as pension funds, which need to protect their assets from a stock market crash. Furthermore, anticipating a downturn by observing the trends in real estate sector volatility is highly advantageous in informing their trading strategies now and into the future. Policy makers likewise need a signal of an impending credit crunch and can utilize real estate market statistics to pre-empt a freezing up of the credit markets.Chee Seng Cheong, Anna Olshansky and Ralf Zurbrueg

Pricing assets with higher moments: Evidence from the Australian and US stock markets

This paper investigates the importance of higher moments of return distributions in capturing the variation of average stock returns for companies listed in the leading S&P US and Australian indices. We find that Australian stocks are more negatively skewed but less leptokurtic than US stocks. As a result, we find that co-skewness plays a more important role in explaining Australian returns while co-kurtosis is consistently influential for US stock returns. We postulate that the differences in results are related to the underlying firm characteristics of the companies in the two indices, where principally the Australian firms are noticeably smaller than their US counterparts and concentrated in a smaller number industry sectors. This implies that for many smaller exchanges around the world higher moment characteristics displayed by the US market may not be applicable. We also show our results are robust to partly explaining average stock returns in the presence of size, value, and momentum effects. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Phuong Doan, Chien-Ting Lin, Ralf Zurbrueg

The sanitation-health nexus

The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of halving the proportion of the population without sustainable access to basic sanitation by 2015 is still very far from being achieved. Much remains to be done particularly in Africa and Asia. Availability, accessibility, functionality, and correct and continued use and maintenance of sanitary facilities are key to sustainable improvements. Reasons for frequent failures of sanitation programmes are weak intersectoral collaboration, as well as inappropriate technical solutions that do not sufficiently consider aspects of local ownership and socio-economic, cultural, and political perspectives. Only improved practices and sustained use of improved facilities and services can lead to significant health and environmental outcomes. Integrative cross-sectoral planning of waste management is crucial in achieving a positive impact on both health and the environment. Recovery and reuse of resources from wastes while ensuring health safety, for example, can contribute to change and promote sustainable development. The links between health, waste, and the livelihood potential in waste are important elements in achieving equitable improvements that benefit the most vulnerable population segments

Financial analysts' forecast accuracy before and after AIFRS

We examine whether financial analysts‟ forecast accuracy differs between the pre- and post- adoption of Australian Equivalents to International Financial Reporting Standards (AIFRS). We find that forecast accuracy has improved after Australia adopted AIFRS implying that it has aided analysts in their market valuation of firms. As a secondary objective, this paper also investigates the role of financial analysts in reducing information asymmetry in the Australian capital market. We find evidence that the information effect of more analysts following a stock helps to improve forecast accuracy by bringing more firm-specific information to the market.Chee Seng Cheong, Mahmud Masum and Ralf Zurbrueg

The role of financial analysts in the Australian capital market

Chee Seng Cheong, Mahmud Al Masum and Ralf Zurbruegghttp://www.melbournecentre.com.au/13th_Finsia_MCFS_Conference.htm

Municipal solid waste management and adverse health outcomes: A systematic review

Municipal solid waste (MSW) can pose a threat to public health if it is not safely managed. Despite prior research, uncertainties remain and refurbished evidence is needed along with new approaches. We conducted a systematic review of recently published literature to update and expand the epidemiological evidence on the association between MSW management practices and resident populations’ health risks. Studies published from January 2005 to January 2020 were searched and reviewed following PRISMA guidelines. Eligible MSW treatment or disposal sites were defined as landfills, dumpsites, incinerators, waste open burning, transfer stations, recycling sites, composting plants, and anaerobic digesters. Occupational risks were not assessed. Health effects investigated included mortality, adverse birth and neonatal outcomes, cancer, respiratory conditions, gastroenteritis, vector-borne diseases, mental health conditions, and cardiovascular diseases. Studies reporting on human biomonitoring for exposure were eligible as well. Twenty-nine studies were identified that met the inclusion criteria of our protocol, assessing health effects only associated with proximity to landfills, incinerators, and dumpsites/open burning sites. There was some evidence of an increased risk of adverse birth and neonatal outcomes for residents near each type of MSW site. There was also some evidence of an increased risk of mortality, respiratory diseases, and negative mental health effects associated with residing near landfills. Additionally, there was some evidence of increased risk of mortality associated with residing near incinerators. However, in many cases, the evidence was inadequate to establish a strong relationship between a specific exposure and outcomes, and the studies rarely assessed new generation technologies. Evidence gaps remain, and recommendations for future research are discussed