Local ageing patterns in Flanders

Résumé L’article analyse la variation géographique du vieillissement démographique en Flan­dre. Nous examinons les évolutions combinées de la population âgée de plus de 65 ans et de celle des 20 à 49 ans, ainsi que leur lien avec la croissance naturelle et la migration. Les séries temporelles utilisées concernent la période 2001-2015 et proviennent du Registre National de Population publiées par l’office belge de statistique (Statbel). Elles sont complétées par les Projections démographiques pour les municipalités flamandes 2015-2030, préparées par le Gouvernement flamand. Les municipalités sont regroupées sur la base d’une analyse typologique des séries temporelles sur la composition de la population, l’évolution de la population de 65 ans et plus et de la population de 20-49 ans ainsi que sur les changements dans la migration nette et la croissance naturelle. La typologie issue de cette analyse discerne six modèles de vieillissement dont les plus proéminents sont : un important et ancien vieillissement à la côte ; un futur vieillissement dans le Limbourg oriental et dans le nord de la province d’Anvers et, finalement, une croissance démographique et un vieillissement limité dans le centre de la Région flamande. Abstract The paper analyses the geographic variation in demographic ageing patterns in Flanders. We examine the combined evolutions of the elderly population aged over 65, and the young adult population aged 20-49, in relation to natural growth and migration. The data concern time-series on the period 2001-2015 from the National Population Register as published by the Belgian statistical office (Statbel). We complemented the time series with the Population Projections for the Flemish Municipalities, 2015-2030, prepared by the Flemish Government. A Finite Mixture Model is applied to cluster municipalities on the basis of population composition, change in the population aged 20-49 and over 65, and change in net migration and natural growth. We discern six ageing patterns. The most prominent ones are: first, a strong ageing in the past along the coast; second, a strong future ageing in Eastern Limburg and the North of the province of Antwerp; and third, population growth and limited ageing in the center of the Flemish Region. &nbsp

Structure, différentiation sociale et action les parcours emploi-famille dans deux villes mexicaines, Guadalajara et Monterrey

The aim of the thesis is to apply concepts of modern social theory such as "agency", "social inequality" and "resources" to a quantitative study of women’s labour market participation and fertility in two major Mexican cities, Guadalajara and Monterrey. Using different data sources on the last three decades of the twentieth century, such as labour market surveys, censuses and retrospective surveys, we searched for statistical methods to measure these concepts as closely as possible. First, a classical labour market and demographic analysis describes the productive and reproductive resources in both cities. Next, a recursive partitioning analysis indicates the elements of social differentiation fragmenting women’s access to these resources. Finally, a sequence analysis provides an insight to individual work-care trajectories. In a nutshell, we found that in Guadalajara, the small familial businesses offer a more differentiated labour market favourable for women’s labour market participation even when they have family care responsibilities. In Monterrey the economic structure was dominated until recently by large-scale industry in which women participate much less. Consequently, the situation in Guadalajara encourages more continuous work-care trajectories and allows a large variation in timing and intensity of both, work and fertility. In Monterrey, on the contrary, the variability in work-care trajectories is much lower and women tend to abandon the labour market after marriage. These differences between the cities and also between generations are most apparent for women with lower educational levels, whose options depend to a large extend on external conditions.L'objectif de la thèse est d'appliquer les concepts "action", "inégalité sociale" et "ressources", empruntés à la théorie sociologique moderne, à une étude quantitative de la participation des femmes au marché du travail et de la fécondité dans les deux grandes villes du Mexique, Guadalajara et Monterrey. En utilisant différentes sources de données sur les trois dernières décennies du XXe siècle, telles que les enquêtes du marché du travail, des recensements et des enquêtes rétrospectives, nous avons cherché des méthodes statistiques pour mesurer ces concepts aussi précisément que possible. Tout d'abord, une analyse démographique et du marché du travail classiques décrivent les ressources productives et reproductives des deux villes. Ensuite, une analyse de partition récursive indique les éléments de différenciation sociale qui fragmentent l'accès des femmes à ces ressources. Enfin, une analyse de séquence donne un aperçu des trajectoires individuelles emploi-famille. Nous avons constaté qu’à Guadalajara, les petites entreprises familiales constituent un marché du travail diversifié favorable à la participation féminine au marché du travail, même quand les femmes ont des responsabilités familiales. À Monterrey, la structure économique a été dominée jusqu'à récemment par la grande industrie dans laquelle la participation des femmes est plus faible. Par conséquence, Guadalajara incite à des trajectoires qui combinent l’emploi et la famille et nous y trouvons une très grande variation dans le calendrier et l'intensité de ces activités. A Monterrey, la variation dans les parcours emploi-famille est beaucoup plus faible et les femmes ont tendance à abandonner le marché du travail après le mariage. Les différences entre les villes et les générations sont les plus marquées parmi les femmes d’un faible niveau d'éducation, dont les options dépendent en grande partie des conditions extérieures.(DEMO 3) -- UCL, 201

The uncounted poor in EU-SILC: A statistical profile of the income and living conditions of homeless people, undocumented immigrants and travelers in Belgium

status: publishe

More Than a Roof: A Statistical Profile of Homeless People in Belgium

The current living conditions of homeless people in Belgium are alarming, as they do not only suffer from the lack of integration into the Belgian society, but they are often faced with inadequate living conditions, limited access to necessary services, mental and physical health problems, and a precarious socio-economic situation. The goal of this chapter is to fully exploit the statistical profile and the living conditions of homeless people in Belgium such as their demographic profile, including nationality and education, housing situation, income, participation in the labour market, and health profile. Nationwide socio-demographic data on homelessness in Belgium are very scarce. Specific ‘satellite surveys’ were carried out to collect data from groups excluded from the statistics, that should be comparable to the mainstream EU-SILC data. Our analysis confirms that roofless people are deprived of more than just a roof, all homeless people experience severe financial hardship, one in six to seven homeless adults (mainly men) is ‘in work’ with highly irregular and precarious jobs. Moreover, homeless people tend to suffer more from stress and mental health issues and more than one third of them are disabled or chronically ill.status: publishe

Armoede tussen de plooien. Aanvullingen en correcties op de EU-SILC voor verborgen groepen armen

nrpages: 225status: publishe

Patterns of mobility into and out of poverty: the role of work and education. : first results of the INCLUSIM microsimulation model

In the paper we present a dynamic micro-simulation model to examine short and long term mobility in and out of poverty in a context of educational deprivation and work opportunities. Using eight waves of the Belgian Household Panel Study transformed into monthly data, we estimate a dynamic selection model for poverty, conditional on educational attainment and work status. We then present paths in and out of poverty, for individuals without lower and higher secondary education and without work at the beginning of the observation period. Our results point out that work and educational resources play a different role in the short and longer term. A lack of lower secondary qualification renders people much more vulnerable to (extreme) poverty and reduces their chances to escape this condition. By contrast, without higher secondary education, up- and downward mobility is not different from that of the total population. Without work, the immediate risk of falling below the poverty threshold or below the minimum income is high. This situation, however, seems to be mostly temporary

"It is challenging... oh, nobody likes it!" : a qualitative study exploring Mozambican adolescents and young adults' experiences with contraception

BACKGROUND: By focusing upon formal sex education programmes, the Mozambican government has significantly enhanced the general health of adolescents and young adults. However, when it comes to contraception, little is known about how adolescents and young adults actually behave. METHODS: Based upon a qualitative study in two settings in Maputo province – Ndlavela and Boane – this paper explores the knowledge and practices of contraception among adolescents and young adults. A total of four focus group discussions, 16 in-depth interviews, four informal conversations, and observations were equally divided between both study sites. RESULTS: Discrepancies between what adolescents and young adults know and what they do quickly became evident. Ambivalent and contradictory practices concerning contraceptive use was the result. As well, young people had numerous interpretations of risk-taking when not using contraceptives. These inconsistencies are influenced by social and medical barriers such as restricted dialogue on sexuality among adolescents and young adults and their parents and peers. Additionally, ideas about indigenous contraceptives, notions of masculinity and femininity, misconceptions and fear of the side effects of contraceptives, make people of all ages wary of modern birth control. Other barriers include imposed contraceptive choice – meaning no choice, overly technical medical language used at clinics and the absence of healthcare workers more attuned to the needs of adolescents and young adults. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents and young adults have numerous – often erroneous – opinions about contraception, leading to inconsistent use as well as vague perceptions of risk-taking. Moreover, social norms and cultural gender roles often contradict and hinder risk-avoiding behaviour. Therefore, in order to improve young people’s health, policymakers must address the reasons behind this ambivalence and inconsistency

PromISS: Protein Microscope for the International Space Station

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Counterdiffusion protein crystallisation in microgravity and its observation with PromISS (Protein Microscope for the International Space Station)

peer reviewedThe crystallisation by counterdiffusion is a very efficient technique for obtaining high-quality protein crystals. A prerequisite for the use of counterdiffusion techniques is that mass transport must be controlled by diffusion alone. Sedimentation and convection can be avoided by either working in gelled systems, working in systems of small dimensions, or in the absence of gravity. We present the results from experiments performed on the ISS using the Protein Microscope for the International Space Station (PromISS), using digital holography to visualise crystal growth processes. We extensively characterised three model proteins for these experiments (cablys3*lysozyme, triose phosphate isomerase, and parvalbumin) and used these to assess the ISS as an environment for crystallisation by counterdiffusion. The possibility to visualise growth and movement of crystals in different types of experiments (capillary counterdiffusion and batch-type) is important, as movement of crystals is clearly not negligible