Assessment of remittance and its impacts on economic growth in Nepal

This study delves into the issues related to remittance and its role in the Nepalese economy. Remittance is found to have positive association with human capital formation and financial development while negative impact on productivity and international trade in Nepal. Nepal is one of the leading nations of sending workers abroad received approximately US$ 6.29 billion of remittances, almost 25 per cent of its GDP in 2017/18. The investment of remitted amount in unproductive sectors like consumption expenses rather than in productive sectors has resulted in an increment in overall import. The remitted income has occupied a major position of financing which exceeds all the foreign aid and investment in recent years. Thus, the Government of Nepal should make an appropriate policy to maximize the benefit of remittance and retain the manpower to the sustainable economic growth and development sector of the country

Analysis of agricultural growth and its determinant factors in Nepal

This paper critically analyzes the trajectory of agricultural growth and its determinants in Nepal. Agricultural growth is vital for stimulating overall economic growth. The World Bank research shows strong statistical link between agricultural and overall economic growth in less developed countries. Economic growth and agricultural growth in Nepal also show strong correlation (r = 0.7501***). Agricultural transformation is characterized by declining share of agriculture in national employment and GDP, and increasing share of secondary sectors like industry, service and manufacturing. However, this structural shift seems unplanned and ungoverned in case of Nepal. The contribution of agriculture to GDP is continuously declining, but, the growth of secondary sectors likes industry and manufacturing still looks stagnant. At this incipient stage of agricultural transformation, productivity growth in agriculture is both a necessary as well as sufficient condition for the development of economy as a whole. Agricultural growth depends on institutional (agricultural credit and land holdings), infrastructural (irrigated area, farm mechanization, electricity, storage, transportation, agricultural market), technological (high yielding varieties or improved seed, fertilizers and pesticides) and socioeconomic factors (population, poverty and literacy). Policies strengthening these determinants can help Nepal in achieving targeted sustained economic growth

Social media use among American Indians in South Dakota: Preferences and perceptions

Social media use data is widely being used in health, psychology, and marketing research to analyze human behavior. However, we have very limited knowledge on social media use among American Indians. In this context, this study was designed to assess preferences and perceptions of social media use among American Indians during COVID-19. We collected data from American Indians in South Dakota using online survey. Results show that Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat are the most preferred social media platforms. Most of the participants reported that the use of social media increased tremendously during COVID-19 and had perceptions of more negative effects than positive effects. Hate/harassment/extremism, misinformation/made up news, and people getting one point of view were the top reasons for negative effects.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, 2 Tables, Appendix Tables (7