Three essays on technical non-tariff measures in developed countries and African countries' international trade in agricultural products

L'objectif de cette thèse est d'analyser les implications économiques des mesures techniques non tarifaires (MTNT) en vigueur dans les pays développés sur le commerce international de produits agroalimentaires des pays Africains. De façon plus spécifique, elle s'intéresse à trois questions principales. La première, qui est plus générale, est de savoir quel est et qu'est-ce qui détermine l'effet net de l'ensemble des mesures techniques non tarifaires en vigueur dans les pays de l'OCDE sur les exportations Africaines de produits végétaux. La deuxième question, plus spécifique, cherche à savoir quels sont les effets de la conformité aux mesures de limites maximales de résidus (LMR) de pesticides sur la production, l'offre d'exportation et la demande d'importation. Finalement, la troisième question consiste à déterminer quel est l'impact direct des rejets de produits à la frontière des pays Européens du système d'alerte rapide pour les denrées alimentaires et les aliments pour animaux (RASFF) sur les exportations Africaines de fruits et légumes comestibles. Nous traitons ces différentes questions à travers trois essais. Dans le premier essai, nous analysons de façon théorique l'effet net des MTNT sur le commerce bilatéral et proposons une approche empirique robuste pour évaluer cet effet. Ensuite, nous évaluons les effets d'entrave et d'amélioration ainsi que l'effet net des MTNT en vigueur dans les pays de l'OCDE sur les exportations africaines de produits végétaux. Nos résultats théoriques montrent que l'effet net des MTNT sur le commerce bilatéral agrégé dépend non seulement de l'élasticité de substitution et de l'élasticité du coût marginal par rapport aux MTNT, mais aussi du paramètre de forme de la distribution des coûts marginaux qui dépend de la technologie. En plus, nous constatons que pour une élasticité de substitution donnée, seules les entreprises ou les pays caractérisés par un coût marginal inférieur à un coût marginal seuil et une productivité supérieure à un niveau de productivité seuil connaîtront un effet net positif du commerce vers une destination donnée. Pour nos investigations empiriques, nous estimons une équation de gravité sectorielle en utilisant la base de données des MTNT publiée par la CNUCED et le WITS, combinée aux données commerciales transversales pour 2017 de UN COMTRADE/WITS. Les données couvrent 53 pays africains exportant 40 produits végétaux à 4 chiffres du Système harmonisé (SH) vers 35 pays membres de l'OCDE. Nos résultats empiriques montrent à la fois des effets d'entrave (diminution de 3,099%) et d'amélioration (augmentation de 2,056%) des MNT en vigueur dans les pays de l'OCDE sur les exportations africaines de produits végétaux. Ensemble, ces effets produisent un effet net négatif et significatif, ce qui indique que les MNT en vigueur dans les pays membres de l'OCDE constituent des obstacles pour les exportateurs Africains de produits végétaux. Dans le second essai, nous démêlons théoriquement et empiriquement les effets des LMR pour les pesticides sur la production, l'offre d'exportation et la demande d'importation. Nous adoptons une approche de modélisation basée sur les coûts et les bénéfices associés aux normes de sécurité sanitaire des aliments et utilisons notre cadre théorique pour évaluer les effets empiriques nets des LMR de pesticides sur la production de mangues en Afrique et le commerce avec les pays membres de l'OCDE. Théoriquement, nous montrons que les effets des LMR sur la production sont négatifs tandis que leurs effets nets sur le commerce bilatéral peuvent être positifs, nuls ou négatifs selon que l'effet de la qualité perçue par les consommateurs sur la demande d'importation est supérieur, égal ou inférieur à l'effet du coût de mise en conformité sur l'offre d'exportation. Nous utilisons des données transversales pour 12 pays africains qui ont produit et exporté des mangues conformes aux LMR vers 31 pays de l'OCDE en 2016, et nous constatons que, d'une part, les effets nets des LMR de pesticides sur la production de mangues sûres sont négatifs. D'autre part, ils sont positifs sur le commerce des mangues entre les pays africains et les pays membres de l'OCDE. Nos résultats impliquent que le renforcement ou l'imposition de LMR strictes pour les pesticides dans les pays développés peut favoriser les échanges commerciaux alors qu'ils entravent fortement la production dans les pays africains. Dans le dernier essai, nous évaluons l'effet des refus d'importation des pays Européens sur les exportations Africaines de fruits et légumes comestibles, au cours de la période 2008 à 2018. De façon plus spécifique, nous estimons l'effet moyen des rejets aux frontières des pays du réseau RASFF sur les marges extensive et intensive de commerce de fruits et légumes comestibles pour 45 pays africains. Nous utilisons les données sur les rejets aux frontières issues de la base de données en ligne du RASFF avec les données sur les exportations Africaines provenant de la base de données de WITS des Nations Unies. Nous estimons la version canonique de l'équation de gravité sectorielle d'Anderson et al. (2004) en utilisant l'estimateur du Pseudo poisson maximum de vraisemblance (PPML) de Silva et al.(2006) en combinaison avec l'approche robuste d'estimation à deux étapes avec inclusion de résidus (2SRI) de Terza et al.(2008). Nous constatons qu'une augmentation du nombre de refus d'importation par un pays du RASFF une fois dans l'année en cours entraîne une diminution du nombre de partenaires commerciaux en Europe pour les pays africains de 0,018% pour les légumes comestibles et de 0,143 % pour les fruits comestibles. En outre, nos résultats montrent qu'un refus d'importation supplémentaire diminue la valeur des exportations de légumes comestibles des pays africains de 0,045%. Cependant, nous constatons que les refus d'importation des pays du RASFF une fois dans l'année en cours entraînent une augmentation de la valeur des exportations de fruits comestibles des pays africains de 0,126%. Par ailleurs, nos résultats valident explicitement l'hypothèse d'endogénéité du nombre de refus d'importation et mettent en évidence les effets directs et les effets de contagion des rejets aux frontières. Ce dernier résultat signifie qu'une augmentation du nombre de rejets à la frontière d'un produit donné (par exemple un fruit frais) au cours d'une année précédente entraîne une augmentation du nombre de rejets à la frontière pour ce produit et les produits voisins (par exemple un légume frais) au cours de l'année suivante.The objective of this thesis is to analysis the economic implications of technical non-tariff measures (TNTMs) in force in developed countries on the international trade of agricultural and agri-food products of African countries. More specifically, we focus on three main issues. The first more general question is: what is and what determines the net effect of the set of TNTMs in OECD countries on African exports of plant products ? The second, more specific, question is: what are the effects of compliance with maximum residue limit (MRL) for pesticide on production, export supply and import demand ? Finally, the third question is to determine: what is the direct impact of product rejections at the border of European countries of the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) on African exports of plant products ? We address these different questions through three essays. In the first essay, we theoretically analyze the net effect of technical non-tariff measures (TNTMs) on bilateral trade and suggest a robust empirical approach to evaluate this effect. We assess the impediment, enhancement and net effects of the TNTMs in force in OECD countries on African exports of plant products. Our theoretical findings highlight that the net effect of the TNTMs on aggregate bilateral trade depends not only on the elasticity of substitution and the elasticity of marginal cost with respect to the TNTMs but also the shape parameter of the distribution of marginal costs which depends on the technology. In addition, we find that for a given elasticity of substitution, only firms or countries characterized by a lower marginal cost than a cutoff marginal cost and higher productivity than a threshold productivity level will experience a positive net effect of trade to a given destination. For our empirical investigation, we estimate a sectoral gravity equation using the non-tariff measures (NTMs) database released by UNCTAD and WITS combined with cross-sectional trade data for 2017 from the UN COMTRADE/WITS database. The data cover 53 African countries exporting 40 Harmonized System (HS) 4-digit plant products to 35 OECD member countries. Our empirical results show both impediment (decrease of 3.099%) and enhancement (increase of 2.056%) effects of the TNTMs in force in OECD countries on African exports of plant products. Together, these effects yield a negative and significant net effect, which indicates that the TNTMs in force in OECD member countries are obstacles for African exporters of plant products. In the second essay, we disentangle theoretically and empirically the effects of the MRLs for pesticides on the production, export supply and import demand. We adopt a modelling approach based on the costs and benefits associated with food safety standards and use our theoretical framework to assess the empirical net effects of the MRLs for pesticides on African mango production and trade with OECD member countries. Theoretically, we show that the production effects of MRLs are negative while their net effects on bilateral trade can be positive, zero or negative depending on whether the consumers' perceived quality effect on import demand is greater than, equal to or less than the compliance cost effect on export supply through the unconditional expected standard-compliant production. We use a cross-sectional data set for 12 African countries that produced and exported MRL-compliant mangoes to 31 OECD countries in 2016, and find that, on the one hand, the net effects of MRLs on the production of safe mangoes are negative. On the other hand, they are positive on mango trade between African and OECD member countries. Our results highlight that the tightening or imposition of strict MRLs for pesticides in developed countries may be trade promoting while they severely impede production in African countries. In the last essay, we assess the effects of European countries' import refusals on African exports of edible vegetables and fruits from 2008 to 2018. We specifically estimate the average effects of the RASFF countries' border rejections on the extensive and intensive margins of African countries exports of edible vegetables and fruits. We use the border rejections data from the RASFF online database and export data on 45 African countries from the UN WITS database. We estimate the canonical version of the sectoral gravity equation of Anderson and al. (2004) using the Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood (PPML) estimator of Silva and al. (2006) in association with the robust twostage residual inclusion (2SRI) approach of Terza and al. (2008). We find that a single increase in the number of import refusals by a RASFF country in the current year leads to a decrease in the number of trade partners in Europe for African countries by 0.018 percent for edible vegetables and 0.143 percent for edible fruits. In addition, our results show that one additional import refusal decreases the export value of African countries' edible vegetables by 0.045 percent. However, we find that RASFF countries' refusal to import once in the current year leads to an increase in the export value of African countries' edible fruit by 0.126 percent. Furthermore, our results explicitly validate the hypothesis of the endogeneity of the number of import refusals and highlight both the direct and spillover effects of border rejections. The latter result means that an increase in the number of border rejections for a given product (for instance, a fresh fruit) in a given year leads to an increase in the number of border rejections for a product and its neighboring products (for instance, a fresh vegetable) in the next year

High voltage command board (CREAM experiment)

Board which realize the interface between the CREAM experiment primary computer unit and the High Voltage generator units (2 x 50 units) located near the PMT matrix

Local Community

This study aims to analyze smallholder farmer

Analyze of Domestic Price Incentives for Rice Production in MALI

In Mali, rice is the subject of particular attention in terms of public policies. The authorities encourage its production to provide income for producers, for domestic consumption and for a net exporting country. However, local rice remains highly competitive with imported rice.In addition, food insecurity across the country is a major developmental issue that threatens health, productivity and often the survival of the population. This study helps overcome developmental problems due to food insecurity, which necessarily begins with an accurate assessment of the factors that influence the production of staple foods, namely rice. Therefore, the main aim of this study is to analyze the factors influencing rice production in the country and to examine more closely the relationship between rice production and rice sold on the domestic market. The study used a linear logarithmic model with the amount of rice produced as a dependent variable and the price of domestic rice, imported rice, and rice import price.The results show that domestic rice is more expensive than imported rice per ton, supporting the argument that rice imports undermine domestic rice production as a viable income-generating activity. The self-sufficiency rate is 93%, with strong imports from Asia, especially from Thailand, and hardly any exports. However, in order to control price and still increase rice production, the government should be able to purchase the rice from the farmers and then sell them to private retailers to put projects in place for reduce barriers to the transmission of prices between international and domestic prices along the marketing routes: Development of the road network (feeder roads) markets and reduction of illegal controls, in particular. Keywords: Rice production; Domestic prices for rice; Food security; Incentives; MALI

Physical Modeling of Coupled Water and Heat Flow Within a Borehole Heat Exchanger Array in the Vadose Zone

This thesis is focused on characterization of the heat transfer and water flow processes in a physical model of a borehole array in an unsaturated soil layer. The overall goal is to develop a dataset for validation of coupled thermo-hydraulic flow models used for simulating the efficiency of heat injection or extraction from soil-borehole thermal energy storage systems. The physical model consists of a layer of unsaturated silt compacted atop a layer of sand within an insulated, 0.53 m-tall, 0.6 m-diameter cylindrical tank. A water table was imposed at the top of the sand layer. Three steel "U"-tube pipes were inserted through the silt layer into the top of the sand layer to represent a triangular array of geothermal borehole heat exchangers, and several tests were performed with different heat exchanger spacings. Heated fluid was circulated through the steel pipes to inject heat into the unsaturated silt layer at a constant rate, during which time changes in volumetric water content and temperature were measured at different depths along the center of the silt layer using dielectric sensors. The thermal conductivity and specific heat of the silt were also monitored using a thermal probe at the center of the soil layer at mid-height. The temperature of the silt at different distances from the heat exchangers, the inlet and outlet temperatures of the fluid, as well as the temperature and relative humidity of the air at the soil surface were monitored. Regardless of the heat exchanger spacing, the temperature of the unsaturated silt layer was observed to increase to a relatively steady-state value after a short period of time. Dielectric sensor measurements initially show an increase in water content at all depths in the soil, indicating that that water is moving away from the heat exchangers, albeit at a slower rate than the heat flow process. Further, water was observed to condense at the soil surface, indicating that water vapor moved upward though the soil layer due to buoyancy. In the test with the smallest radial heat exchanger spacing of 80 mm, after the initial increase in water content, a sharp decrease in water content was observed. This indicates that water was driven from the center of the array into the surrounding soil, and that a convective cycle of water phase change did not occur for this small heat exchanger spacing. In the test with the greatest radial heat exchanger spacing of 300 mm, the soil in the center of the array did not experience a decrease in water content after the initial increase, which may indicate that a convective cycle was formed. In the case of the test with an intermediate heat exchanger spacing of 160 mm, an intermediate behavior was observed. In the tests, downward liquid water flow due to gravity could not be confirmed through evaluation of the water content data. This phenomenon, which is expected if a convective cycle of water phase change is observed in the array, may have been observed for longer testing times. The thermal conductivity measured using the thermal probe was observed to increase significantly during the heating process, and was observed to be a function of both the degree of saturation of the soil and the temperature. In the case of the smallest radial borehole heat exchanger spacing, the thermal conductivity of the soil inside of the array was observed to decrease as the water content decreased, while the thermal conductivity outside of the heat exchanger array was observed to increase with increasing radial location. This confirms that the borehole spacing can have an important effect on the long-term heat storage in the vadose zone, and that small spacings may lead to an increase in thermal energy transfer to the soil outside of the array. In the case of the largest radial borehole heat exchanger spacing, a stable increase in thermal conductivity of the soil within the array was observed. As expected, the heat storage in the unsaturated soil within

Potential for agronomical enhancement of millet yield via Jatropha curcas oilcake fertilizer amendment using placed application technique

This study carried out at the ICRISAT research station of Sadoré in Niger aimed at determining the impact of placed application technique of Jatropha oilcake on millet agronomic parameters. The experimental design was a randomised blocs including five treatments and four replicates. Control was plots without fertilizer while J_100 g, J_200 g, and J_300 gwere plots receiving 100 g , 200 g and 300 g of Jatropha oilcake respectively per seed hole and the plots NPK_6 g were receiving 6 g of NPK (15, 15, 15) per seed hole. ANOVA test was used for data analyses. Only the Control had significantly low number of tillers. At the end of the vegetative period J_300 g has the highest plants. J_300 g induced 196% increase of grain yield compared to the Control. The substitution of NPK (15,15,15) by 100 g, 200 g and 300 g of Jatropha oilcake per seed hole induced 79 - 52.93%, 92 – 72.23% and 152 – 100.65% increase of grain yield respectively compared to the Control in 2009 and 2010. With regard to the grain yield in 2009 and 2010, 100 g of Jatropha cake per seed hole can replace the current 6 g (NPK) per seed hole.Keywords: Jatropha oilcake, NPK (15, 15, 15), millet (H.K.P), placed application, fertilizer, Sadoré –Nige

Lipome intramédullaire: à propos d'une observation

Les lipomes intramédullaires sont des lésions bénignes rares qui représentent environ 1% de l'ensemble des tumeurs de la moelle épinière. Nous rapportons un nouveau cas de lipome intramédullaire non dysraphique confirmé histologiquement. Il s'agissait d'une patiente âgée de 46 ans ayant bénéficié d'une biopsie chirurgicale pour un lipome médullaire il y a 6 mois. Nous ne disposons pas de documents radiologiques antérieurs à cette chirurgie. Elle présente actuellement des rachialgies, des troubles sensitifs, des troubles de la marche et une faiblesse musculaire d'aggravation récente. L'IRM médullaire objective une formation en hypersignal T1 et T2 bien limitée de 8 cm x 2,5 cm prenant le cône terminal. L'imagerie par résonance magnétique occupe une place primordiale dans l'exploration des lipomes intramédullaires, elle permet le diagnostic précoce et ainsi une prise en charge chirurgicale avant la survenue de complications neurologiques irréversibles

Conclusions of ten years of maternal death surveillance and response in the health district of commune V of Bamako, Mali

Background: The purpose of this study was to report the findings of the local maternal deaths surveillance and response (MDSR) committee in the health district of Municipality V of the district of Bamako. Methods: It was a retrospective study over a period from January 2009 to December 2017. We have compiled all the findings of the local MDSR committee from the health district of Municipality V. The data was generated from the Local Health Information System (LHIS). We made a simple entry of text and tables using Word and Excel software. Results: During the study period, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) was 219/100,000 live births. The study was about 140 cases of maternal deaths that occurred in health facilities. The middle age of the patients was 28.01 years. Most of the deaths occurred in the postpartum period, with 106 cases. In 92.12%, the deaths were from direct obstetric causes (DOC), including hemorrhage 70%, eclampsia 7.85%, obstructed labor 7.14%. Seven deaths (5%) were from indirect obstetric causes (IOC), including anemia 3.57% and malaria 1.73%. In 2.58%, the deaths were from undetermined causes. Deaths were preventable in 80%. The response included, among other things, the notification of cases and the implementation of the recommendations made. In 70% of cases, the recommendations issued were implemented. Conclusions:  The MMR remains high in Municipality V of the district of Bamako. These deaths were mostly from DOCs, with hemorrhage as the main cause. These deaths were mostly preventable.

Liquid versus gel handrub formulation: a prospective intervention study

INTRODUCTION: Hand hygiene is one of the cornerstones of the prevention of health care-associated infection, but health care worker (HCW) compliance with good practices remains low. Alcohol-based handrub is the new standard for hand hygiene action worldwide and usually requires a system change for its successful introduction in routine care. Product acceptability by HCWs is a crucial step in this process. METHODS: We conducted a prospective intervention study to compare the impact on HCW compliance of a liquid (study phase I) versus a gel (phase II) handrub formulation of the same product during daily patient care. All staff (102 HCWs) of the medical intensive care unit participated. Compliance with hand hygiene was monitored by a single observer. Skin tolerance and product acceptability were assessed using subjective and objective scoring systems, self-report questionnaires, and biometric measurements. Logistic regression was used to estimate the association between predictors and compliance with the handrub formulation as the main explanatory variable and to adjust for potential risk factors. RESULTS: Overall compliance (phases I and II) with hand hygiene practices among nurses, physicians, nursing assistants, and other HCWs was 39.1%, 27.1%, 31.1%, and 13.9%, respectively (p = 0.027). Easy access to handrub improved compliance (35.3% versus 50.6%, p = 0.035). Nurse status, working on morning shifts, use of the gel formulation, and availability of the alcohol-based handrub in the HCW's pocket were independently associated with higher compliance. Immediate accessibility was the strongest predictor. Based on self-assessment, observer assessment, and the measurement of epidermal water content, the gel performed significantly better than the liquid formulation. CONCLUSION: Facilitated access to an alcohol-based gel formulation leads to improved compliance with hand hygiene and better skin condition in HCWs

Antibiotic resistance and plasmid transfer capacity in biofilm formed with a CTX-M-15-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate.

International audienceTo characterize a CTX-M-15-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate that was identified during an outbreak involving 16 patients who had undergone endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography between December 2008 and August 2009. The strain was also detected in one endoscope used for these examinations. Disc diffusion assays, MICs and isoelectric focusing were used to characterize the plasmidic CTX-M-15 β-lactamase. PCRs were used to check for the presence of genes associated with virulence or antibiotic resistance. Antibiotic tolerance tests and plasmid transfer were carried out in both planktonic and biofilm conditions. The strain belonged to sequence type 14 and to the virulent capsular serotype K2, but produced little glucuronic acid. It contained a 62.5 kb conjugative plasmid carrying the bla(CTX-M-15), bla(OXA-1) and aac(6')-Ib-cr genes and harboured few virulence genes (uge, wabG, kfu and mrkD). The strain was highly resistant to cefotaxime (MIC 516 mg/L) and the presence of this antibiotic at sub-MIC concentrations enhanced biofilm formation. The isolate was susceptible to ofloxacin (MIC 2 mg/L), but the bactericidal effect of this antibiotic was greater in planktonic cultures and 6 h old biofilm than in 24 or 48 h old biofilms. The K. pneumoniae strain was notable for its ability to transfer its plasmid, especially in biofilm conditions, in which the rate of plasmid transfer was about 0.5/donor. These findings demonstrate the ability of this strain to survive in a hospital environment and to transfer its extended-spectrum β-lactamase-encoding plasmid