Socioeconomic Evaluation and Ranking of Infrastructure Projects

For most of the last century, the role of private and public sectors in the infrastructure projects were clear. For instance, public authorities were generally in charge of financing and building new infrastructures. Over the last decade, that position has begun to change. Faced with pressure to reduce public sector debt and, at the same time, expand and improve public facilities, governments and public authorities have looked to private sector finance, and have invited private sector entities to enter into long-term contractual agreements which may take the form of construction or management of public sector infrastructure facilities by the private sector entity, or the provision of services (using infrastructure facilities) by the private sector entity to the community on behalf of a public sector body. This paper deals with the new issues raised by the public-private partnerships system or, more generally, by any system in which the new infrastructure is partially financed by its users. Is there, in this case, a new economic rationality of public authorities? Particularly, is there an optimal way to rank projects? This paper discusses the choice by the public authority of the most efficient investing programme in irrigation water infrastructures. More specifically, it studies the optimal ranking of project implementation when these projects are partially self-financed by their own revenues. In this case, the optimal investment programme must be defined under a constraint of annual subsidies. This paper demonstrates that the optimal ranking is not necessarily the ranking of decreasing socioeconomic internal rate of return. This counter-intuitive result can be demonstrated by a general approach. Analytical calculations are not useful in this discrete problem because each programme is an ordered subset of projects. Therefore, there is no continuous variation linking the various programmes and the usual tools of optimization, such as differential calculus, are useless. Thus, we adopt here a discrete optimization analysis based on standard techniques in the physics area, such as Monte Carlo sampling.

Drivers of consumer’s adoption of innovative food

Over the last years, food safety, health and environmental issues are a few among many other reasons that force consumers to adopt new innovative food products – organic, private label, genetically modified and functional – as part of their consumption. This spectacular shift of the consumption forwards “innovative” food products attracts the interest of the analyst as it can shed new light on consumer’s behaviour and on modeling and understanding better his long-term behaviour. Thus, this study attempts to investigate the factors that influence consumer’s decision in purchasing either traditional or new innovative products and to what extend this shift between those two groups of products is related to pre-defined elements. This is achieved by employing both descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis. Two-step cluster analysis was used to explore the different levels of innovative products adoption and a categorical regression model was estimated to determine the relation between consumer’s characteristics and willingness to adopt innovative products.adoption, consumption, food, innovative products, multivariate analysis., Agricultural and Food Policy, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Agro-Food Dynamics in a Region's Growth

Regional development depends highly in the allocation of developing funds -through development policies- among the various sectors of regional economies. In order to safeguard the most efficient use of investments analytical tools visualizing the economy as a whole in the form of a general equilibrium should be adopted. In this paper the role of agro-food sectors and agriculture in regional economic growth is examined. Despite the diminishing contribution of agriculture and agro-food sectors in the formation of an economy’s gross output and employment, their indirect influence upon the rest of the economy most of the times is not completely cast up. It is evidence that over the last two decades the share of agriculture in Greece’s GDP is substantially dropped. This fact many times used as a guide to support decisions in directing regional developing funds far from agriculture. On the other side, food sector’s share in processing industries is growing and its contribution and interrelation with other sectors has not been well assessed. Thus in the present paper, the indirect contribution of agro-food sectors in a region’s economy is measured and compared to non-agricultural sectors. Linkage relationships and interdependencies between food and non-food sectors are sought and their role in strengthening the regions growth is contemplated. The identification of such relationships is very important, as the path to development in some regions is very sensitive to sectoral interdependencies. To accomplish the aforementioned objectives, an Input-Output framework was employed in a regional level (Thessalia, Greece). Utilizing an employment based Location Quotient (LQ), developed by Flegg et al (1995) -the FLQ- the national I-O table is regionalized for the Greek (NUTS 2) region. The regionalization procedure was performed by following the hybrid GRIT technique. Employing the regional I-O table, linkage coefficients, that identify the dynamics of key sectors, were estimated. In addition the regional output generated due to food sector and non-food sector activity traced out to compare the relative dynamics. Results clearly demonstrate that the nexus of food non-food sectors is determinant in regional growth plans and the particular interdependencies, in every particular region, must carefully considered.

Fisheries policies impacts consideration towards the development of rural coastal areas

The current study aims to examine the effectiveness of fisheries policies and specifically of the Greek Operational Programme for Fisheries, 2007-13. In specific, aims to examine and assess possible impacts generated, in the regional economy of Voreio and Notio Aigaio from its four axis, with particularity to the forth one. For this a regional Input-Output model was built in order to capture direct and indirect impacts in terms of output, employment and income. Results indicate that the dynamics of the fisheries sector in the regional economy are very weak and along with the continuous shrinking of the sector, leads to the necessity of supporting alternative vocational activities for the development of coastal rural areas. Though, results indicate that the funds attributed to such policies are very small, resulting in very weak generated impacts in the regional economy. And thus it is not expected current policies to seriously affect the development of such regions through the promotion of alternative to fishing activities.rural coastal areas, operational fisheries programme, impact analysis, regional analysis, Community/Rural/Urban Development, R11, R15, R58, Q22,

EXPLORING THE COMPETITIVENESS, OF THE GREEK FISHERIES SECTOR

The debt crisis in Greece has revealed the prolonged problems of the Greek economy and led to drastic fiscal consolidation measures and reforms in labour, products and services. However, structural changes must be escorted by the application of an aid strategy of introspection in order to develop the dynamic sectors of the Greek economy and promote Greek exports to international markets. The fisheries sector is a successful example for Greek agricultural enterprises. Aquaculture products are the major export products in the Greek food industry, representing a significant value of total food exports. The present study aims to identify and analyse the competitive position of the Greek fisheries sector to the EU market through the assessment of specific intra-industry trade indices. Data were obtained for five major EU producer and exporting countries and key intra-industry trade indices were estimated. The results indicate that the image of the Greek fisheries sector seems dynamic and productivity allows the Greek market to export and be competitive. Trade balance remains positive and growing steadily, confirming the export orientation of the sector. It is worth mentioning that the sector competes and outperforms developed economies and specialist fleets such as Italy, Spain, France and Denmark

Revamping Local and Regional Development through local regional management practices

through local regional management practices. Local and regional development is facilitated often upon the implementation of local and regional management practices by the government and civil authorities in a specific geographic area. Another unique and exciting way to reevaluate international development programs is via local and regional management techniques. They are inspiring locals to think strategically rather than waiting for solutions. Thus, they may have a big impact, but their effectiveness might be limited by local capacity issues, coordination issues, and a lack of robust local institutions. Capacity development programs must be suitably matched to local realities to promote beneficiary participation. Building capacity may be done on various scales, with various short- and long-term goals, and using various techniques. Beneficiaries need more intensive focused assistance, at least in the near future, to complete the particular research needed to put a request for review and funding into action. The proliferation of jobs, a rise in the standard of living, better income, and better opportunities are all important dimensions of regional and local development. Keywords: local development, region development, management practice

Input-Output Models and Derived Indicators: A Critical Review

Input-Output literature can be characterized as complicated and chaotic. The complications concern the nomenclature of concepts for the derived indices from the multipliers’ models, their mathematical expressions and computable applications. The terminologies’ inconsistencies often end up to a deviation between the description for these indices and their actual computation, or/and to a misunderstanding as for their usefulness and outcomes. The aim of the paper is to help the readers to face the weaknesses in the literature. In this way, the paper provide an overview with a critical look to the constructed multipliers’ matrices and their derived indicators from the I-O models, and elaborate the causes for the scrutinized confusions. The paper proposes both terminological and computational adjustments and differentiated approaches for the models and their indices, in order to ameliorate their capabilities and to exploit their peculiarities for the developmental patterns. Alternative interpretative ways and applicable expansions are suggested.JEL Codes - C18, C31, C67, F43, O2

Decomposition Analysis for the Comparison and the Comprehension of Conventional Input-Output Impacts’ Indicators: An Empirical Paradigm

Sometimes, the priorities in the growing patterns create dubiousness, surprises and are proved unsuitable to re-form and redress the distortions of economy, magnifying them or even emerging news. When the external or the individual interferences are remained out of the planning, then the knowledge of why the various indices yield conflicting sectoral rankings can help the policy-makers to plan ameliorated strategies. In this paper a decomposition analysis for the components of conventional backward linkages’ (BLs’) indices and the corresponding type I multipliers (t.I-Ms’) has been taken place, in order to support the comparison and the comprehension of conflictions that are recorded on their derived sectoral rankings. For the empirical paradigm, data from the Greek economy have been used. The indicators’ appropriateness for the developmental planning has been scrutinized giving an emphasis on the model’s causality, the initial exogenous stimuli and the “intrasectoral initial trends for impacts’ generation”. The analysis provides a proof that the BL’s indices are strongly tendentious and the t.I-Ms’ are preferable for the medium-to-long run growing planning.JEL Codes - C18; C67; E61; O2

The adoption of water saving irrigation practices in the Region of West Macedonia

The use of irrigation water for agricultural production requires innovative and sustainable research and an appropriate transfer of water saving technologies. The main aim of this paper is to explore the irrigating behaviour of farmers examining factors affecting their decision to adopt novel water saving practices. In order to achieve the above aim both summary statistics and multivariate methodologies are employed. In particular, a two-step cluster analysis was used to explore the different adoption levels of water saving practices and a categorical regression model was estimated to explain this variation. Data were collected through a survey addressing 400 irrigators, carried out in 2008 in a typical Greek rural area. Results show that although respondents have already adopted several water saving practices the current irrigated agriculture cannot be sustained in a sustainable manner.adoption-diffusion, extension, irrigation, water saving, water policy, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Crop Production/Industries, Farm Management, Land Economics/Use,

Exploring Treated Wastewater Issues Related to Agriculture in Europe, Employing a Quantitative SWOT Analysis

AbstractSuWaNu is a research project funded within the EU Commission FP7 framework where one of the objectives is to identify impediments and factors of success for sustainable water treatment and nutrient reuse options. For this purpose several European regional clusters have been framed (in Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Malta and Spain) while, through a quantitative SWOT analysis, have been identified and quantified the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the treated wastewater sector focusing on the economical regional aspects, on research innovation potential and on market exploitation and penetration. The analysis of the contributions of the different clusters included in the SuWaNu project has provided a detailed description of the reclaimed water sector in the European agriculture. After the analysis of more than 200 strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats provided by the partners of the project, this study includes a complete description of the use of reclaimed water in the European agriculture. These findings have been used as the fundamental cognition for the development of a joint action plan and several other business plans in the selected regions. A brief discussion on empirical modelling and results, especially regarding the Greek case study, is shown in this paper. A more detailed discussion can be found in the SuWaNu project report, available through the website (http://www.suwanu.eu)