Food Price Volatility in Ethiopia: Public Pressure and State Response

The global market, variable agricultural production and irregular trading practices have marked food price volatility in Ethiopia over the last decade. However, the recent decline in global prices of food and fuel, coupled with state intervention in managing the supply of consumer goods, have brought some stability to food prices in 2014/15. While the safety net and price control measures could help mitigate the aggravation of impacts of food price increases on poor families, a more comprehensive food security approach is necessary. The article argues the importance of enhancing the purchasing power of the people

The National Strategy for Mine Action in Sri Lanka 2010

The National Strategy for Mine Action in Sri Lanka 201

Developing third-party purchase (3PP) services: New Zealand third-party logistics providers’ perspectives

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the opportunity for third-party logistics providers (3PLs) to develop further value-added services for their clients, focused on purchasing. The provider perspectives on third-party purchase (3PP) services are examined in conjunction with their business environment, with a survey informed by transaction cost economics. Design/methodology/approach: New Zealand 3PL providers were surveyed, and 166 responses were received. Structural equation modeling was used to test the conceptual model. Findings: From the perspective of 3PL providers, uncertainty, frequency and transaction size, but not asset specificity, are significantly associated with client value from a 3PP service. While asset specificity in investments is not required by 3PLs, they need a high frequency of orders, sufficient order size and low levels of uncertainty as supporting conditions for the development of 3PP services. Research limitations/implications: The sample focuses on 3PL providers and therefore does not address the behavioral characteristics of users or customers of the services. Originality/value: This study shows that 3PP services may be further developed by 3PL providers to improve the value offered to their clients

‘A Last Resort and Often Not an Option at All’: Farming and Young People in Ethiopia

Development policies in Ethiopia emphasise agriculture as the pathway to industrialisation. Policies allude to the need for a new generation of young, literate and trained farmers to transform the agricultural sector and bring about the required growth in agricultural output. The success of this strategy largely depends on the willingness of the new generation of literate rural youth to take up agriculture as a potentially rewarding livelihood. This article investigates, based on fieldwork conducted in two rural kebeles of Ethiopia, whether young rural people have this willingness to take up agriculture. It examines the factors that contribute to both the desirability (and undesirability) of agriculture as a future livelihood. Findings revealed that very few young people and their parents were considering farming as a possible option for a future livelihood. For others, farming/agriculture might be a last resort

Balance of Payments Support Aid in Japan:

Summaries The paper presents an overview of the historical evolution of BOP support aid in Japan, including changes in its policies and modalities. Organizational set?up and evaluation methodologies of official donor agencies such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, OECF and EXIM are explained. The methodologies are analyzed in the following two ways: items covered in the evaluations and analytical methods. Lessons and suggestions from their evaluations are as follows: objectives of structural adjustment programmes should be clearly defined; direct indicators for impact should be selected in correspondence with policy measures categorized; and the impact of other factors than structural adjustment, especially project aid, should be separated

Predicting management development and learning behaviour in New Zealand SMEs

Despite concern on the part of policy makers to raise managerial capability in SMEs, there is little evidence on the key drivers of owner-manager participation in management development programmes. The authors argue that such participation is poorly understood. The paper develops a predictive model of the drivers of participation in sources of learning by owner-managers. It tests a theoretical model, based on the small firm as a learning organization, which posits that participation is driven by owner-managers\u27 learning orientation and the extent of their belief in self-improvement. The implications of the results are discussed in light of the provision of management development programmes. <br /

Adult Cognitive and Non-cognitive Skills: An Overview of Existing PIAAC Data

As of summer 2019, more than 60 PIAAC datasets from participating countries worldwide were available for research purposes. These datasets can be differentiated, for example, in terms of their accessibility, the extent of the information provided, the population group in focus, and the design of the underlying study. PIAAC Public Use Files, for instance, are freely available and are therefore highly anonymised, whereas PIAAC Scientific Use Files are available only for scientific research purposes and provide access to more detailed variables. The majority of the PIAAC data are available as public use files, but some participating countries (e.g. Germany and the United States) have also made several scientific use files or other extended file versions available to the research community. Some of the available PIAAC datasets focus on specific population groups - for example, the incarcerated adult population in the United States. Regarding the design of the underlying studies, most available datasets are cross-sectional, but some longitudinal data already exist (e.g. PIAAC-L in Germany). The present chapter provides an overview of the structure, accessibility, and use of the PIAAC datasets available worldwide

East Asian Welfare States in Transition

Summaries After the spectacular economic crisis of late 1997, there has been a call for social welfare reform as well as economic restructuring in East Asia. Covering Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, this article first seeks to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the East Asian welfare states. Second, it examines the pressures for reform of the welfare systems. Finally, it addresses the question of whether the low spending East Asian welfare regimes will be maintained in the future. The strength.of the East Asian welfare states mainly lies in their promotion of an ideology of developmentalism and their relatively low cost; while their weakness is that they tend to reinforce socio?economic inequalities. Economic recession and socio?economic pressures as well as inefficiencies within the welfare states create pressure for change. The governments in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan have responded with reform measures appropriate to these nations' social and political context. Despite different policy responses, the welfare states in these countries will become more expensive, although they will remain low spenders among the developed nations

Identifying factors for job motivation of rural health workers in North Viet Nam

BACKGROUND: In Viet Nam, most of the public health staff (84%) currently works in rural areas, where 80% of the people live. To provide good quality health care services, it is important to develop strategies influencing staff motivation for better performance. METHOD: An exploratory qualitative research was carried out among health workers in two provinces in North Viet Nam so as to identify entry points for developing strategies that improve staff performance in rural areas. The study aimed to determine the major motivating factors and it is the first in Viet Nam that looks at health workers' job perception and motivation. Apart from health workers, managers at national and at provincial level were interviewed as well as some community representatives. RESULTS: The study showed that motivation is influenced by both financial and non-financial incentives. The main motivating factors for health workers were appreciation by managers, colleagues and the community, a stable job and income and training. The main discouraging factors were related to low salaries and difficult working conditions. CONCLUSION: Activities associated with appreciation such as performance management are currently not optimally implemented, as health workers perceive supervision as control, selection for training as unclear and unequal, and performance appraisal as not useful. The kind of non-financial incentives identified should be taken into consideration when developing HRM strategies. Areas for further studies are identified