Demographic Structure and Private Savings: Some Evidence from Emerging Markets

This paper tests the life cycle hypothesis that private saving rises with a higher percentage of working population and fall with higher percentages of the young and retired groups. Consistent with this hypothesis, our results from annual data for fourteen emerging markets suggest that age structure is a prime determinant of national saving. The results reveal a significant positive (negative) relationship between the national saving ratio and the percentage of working (children) population groups in the majority of the countries. The results are less conclusive regarding the statistical relationship between national saving and the elderly population group and several explanations for the apparent weak relationship are discussed.Cet article vérifie l’hypothèse du cycle de vie et des effets sur l’épargne. Les résultats sur quatorze marchés émergents suggèrent que la structure de l’âge est le déterminant principal de l’épargne nationale. Il y a aussi une relation positive (négative) significative entre le taux d’épargne national et le pourcentage de population qui travaille (les enfants) dans la plupart des pays. Les résultats sont moins clairs sur les relations entre l’épargne nationale et le group le plus âgé; ce qui est interprété dans l’article

Measuring the Performance of the Kuwaiti Banking Sector Before and After the Recent Financial Crisis

The objective of this research is to investigate the determinants of the performance of the Kuwaiti banking sector before and after the recent financial crisis over the period of 2006-2012. The data utilized is based on the yearly financial statements of the Kuwaiti banks that are listed on Kuwait Stock Exchange over the same period. There are several methods have been used to identify the determinants which impact the performance of the banking sector. In this research, a ratio analysis technique is considered efficient and more reliable method than other approaches. Other factors such as trend, government regulations and other economic factors are also included. The study found that the overall banking sector performance increased considerably in the first two years of the analysis. A significant change in trend is noticed at the onset of the global financial crisis in September 2008, reaching its peak before the global financial crisis. This resulted in decreasing the profitability, return on equity, assets and capital. Keywords: Banking Sector, Financial Performance, Financial ratios, Interest Spread Rate, Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE), Growth Ratios, Financial Crisis

excavación, prospección, toponimia y restauración

UIDB/04666/2020 UIDP/04666/2020Tell el-Farʽa, situated some 11 km northeast of the West Bank city of Nablus, on the central mountains of Palestine, was identified in 1931, by the north American orientalist William Albright, as the ancient city of Tirzah. Nowadays, this hypothetical identification became dominant. Fifteen years later, beginning in 1946, the École biblique et archéologique française, of Jerusalem, under the supervision of the Dominican father Roland de Vaux, undertook nine archaeological seasons at Tell el-Farʽa. The work, conducted by the French team, has led to identification of seven major periods, from PrePottery Neolithic to Iron Age. After a long period of archaeological inactivity, since 1961, Tell el-Farʽa has become again the centre of a research project, coordinated by an international team with University of A Coruña, NOVA University, Lisbon, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Palestine, through the Department of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage. In 2017 and 2018, the two first campaigns took place and in October 2019 the third season had the surveying the wadi el-Farʽa and surrounding areas in order to understand the regional settlements and the political and economic influence of ancient Tell el-Farʽa between the Chalcolithic and Iron Age; study of toponymy of Tell el-Farʽa and its region; and restoration and valorisation of an Iron Age house excavated by the École biblique team in 1951. following objectives: studying architecture, material culture and absolute dating concerning Iron Age;publishersversionpublishe

Demographic structure and private savings in selected countries of the Oceania region

This paper tests the life cycle hypothesis that private saving rises with a higher percentage of population working and falls by higher percentages among the young and the retired, using the case of selected Pacific Island countries. Our results provide strong empirical evidence that age structure is a prime determinant of national savings. The results reveal a statistically significant and positive relationship between national savings ratio and the percentage of working population groups. The research also revealed a statistically significant and negative relationship between national savings and percentage of retired population. Policy makers need to set up measures that improve the economic welfare of the working age population, such as instituting and enforcing minimum wage laws, encouraging compulsory savings for private and public sector workers, adjusting wages to inflation on a consistent and regular basis, providing tax rebates to low-income earners and those providing care for the elderly family members and improving the private sector business environment so as to facilitate the absorption of more working age population.Cet article teste l’hypothèse du cycle de vie; selon laquelle l’épargne privée augmente avec un pourcentage plus élevé chez la population active et diminue avec des pourcentages plus élevés chez les jeunes et les retraités. On utilise le cas de certains pays insulaires du Pacifique. Nos résultats apportent de solides preuves empiriques que la structure de l’âge est un facteur déterminant de l’épargne nationale. Les résultats révèlent une relation statistiquement significative et positive entre taux d’épargne nationale et le pourcentage de groupes de la population active. L’étude a également révélé un lien statistiquement significatif et négatif entre l’épargne nationale et le pourcentage de retraités. Les conclusions de cette étude ont certainement des implications au niveau des politiques. Les décideurs politiques doivent mettre en place des mesures qui améliorent le bien-être économique de la population en âge de travailler; comme l’instauration et l’application de lois sur le salaire minimum; encourager l’épargne obligatoire pour les travailleurs du secteur privé et public; l’ajustement des salaires à l’inflation sur une base constante et régulière; offrir des remboursements fiscaux aux personnes à faible revenu et ceux qui dispensent des soins pour les personnes âgées de la famille et améliorer l’environnement des entreprises du secteur privé afin de faciliter l’absorption de la population en âge de travailler

Weed control in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.)

Master of Scienc

Stoma-free survival after anastomotic leak following rectal cancer resection: worldwide cohort of 2470 patients

Background: The optimal treatment of anastomotic leak after rectal cancer resection is unclear. This worldwide cohort study aimed to provide an overview of four treatment strategies applied. Methods: Patients from 216 centres and 45 countries with anastomotic leak after rectal cancer resection between 2014 and 2018 were included. Treatment was categorized as salvage surgery, faecal diversion with passive or active (vacuum) drainage, and no primary/secondary faecal diversion. The primary outcome was 1-year stoma-free survival. In addition, passive and active drainage were compared using propensity score matching (2: 1). Results: Of 2470 evaluable patients, 388 (16.0 per cent) underwent salvage surgery, 1524 (62.0 per cent) passive drainage, 278 (11.0 per cent) active drainage, and 280 (11.0 per cent) had no faecal diversion. One-year stoma-free survival rates were 13.7, 48.3, 48.2, and 65.4 per cent respectively. Propensity score matching resulted in 556 patients with passive and 278 with active drainage. There was no statistically significant difference between these groups in 1-year stoma-free survival (OR 0.95, 95 per cent c.i. 0.66 to 1.33), with a risk difference of -1.1 (95 per cent c.i. -9.0 to 7.0) per cent. After active drainage, more patients required secondary salvage surgery (OR 2.32, 1.49 to 3.59), prolonged hospital admission (an additional 6 (95 per cent c.i. 2 to 10) days), and ICU admission (OR 1.41, 1.02 to 1.94). Mean duration of leak healing did not differ significantly (an additional 12 (-28 to 52) days). Conclusion: Primary salvage surgery or omission of faecal diversion likely correspond to the most severe and least severe leaks respectively. In patients with diverted leaks, stoma-free survival did not differ statistically between passive and active drainage, although the increased risk of secondary salvage surgery and ICU admission suggests residual confounding

Stoma-free Survival After Rectal Cancer Resection With Anastomotic Leakage: Development and Validation of a Prediction Model in a Large International Cohort.

Objective:To develop and validate a prediction model (STOMA score) for 1-year stoma-free survival in patients with rectal cancer (RC) with anastomotic leakage (AL).Background:AL after RC resection often results in a permanent stoma.Methods:This international retrospective cohort study (TENTACLE-Rectum) encompassed 216 participating centres and included patients who developed AL after RC surgery between 2014 and 2018. Clinically relevant predictors for 1-year stoma-free survival were included in uni and multivariable logistic regression models. The STOMA score was developed and internally validated in a cohort of patients operated between 2014 and 2017, with subsequent temporal validation in a 2018 cohort. The discriminative power and calibration of the models' performance were evaluated.Results:This study included 2499 patients with AL, 1954 in the development cohort and 545 in the validation cohort. Baseline characteristics were comparable. One-year stoma-free survival was 45.0% in the development cohort and 43.7% in the validation cohort. The following predictors were included in the STOMA score: sex, age, American Society of Anestesiologist classification, body mass index, clinical M-disease, neoadjuvant therapy, abdominal and transanal approach, primary defunctioning stoma, multivisceral resection, clinical setting in which AL was diagnosed, postoperative day of AL diagnosis, abdominal contamination, anastomotic defect circumference, bowel wall ischemia, anastomotic fistula, retraction, and reactivation leakage. The STOMA score showed good discrimination and calibration (c-index: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.66-0.76).Conclusions:The STOMA score consists of 18 clinically relevant factors and estimates the individual risk for 1-year stoma-free survival in patients with AL after RC surgery, which may improve patient counseling and give guidance when analyzing the efficacy of different treatment strategies in future studies

Global variation in postoperative mortality and complications after cancer surgery: a multicentre, prospective cohort study in 82 countries

© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licenseBackground: 80% of individuals with cancer will require a surgical procedure, yet little comparative data exist on early outcomes in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared postoperative outcomes in breast, colorectal, and gastric cancer surgery in hospitals worldwide, focusing on the effect of disease stage and complications on postoperative mortality. Methods: This was a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of consecutive adult patients undergoing surgery for primary breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer requiring a skin incision done under general or neuraxial anaesthesia. The primary outcome was death or major complication within 30 days of surgery. Multilevel logistic regression determined relationships within three-level nested models of patients within hospitals and countries. Hospital-level infrastructure effects were explored with three-way mediation analyses. This study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03471494. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and Jan 31, 2019, we enrolled 15 958 patients from 428 hospitals in 82 countries (high income 9106 patients, 31 countries; upper-middle income 2721 patients, 23 countries; or lower-middle income 4131 patients, 28 countries). Patients in LMICs presented with more advanced disease compared with patients in high-income countries. 30-day mortality was higher for gastric cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (adjusted odds ratio 3·72, 95% CI 1·70–8·16) and for colorectal cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (4·59, 2·39–8·80) and upper-middle-income countries (2·06, 1·11–3·83). No difference in 30-day mortality was seen in breast cancer. The proportion of patients who died after a major complication was greatest in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (6·15, 3·26–11·59) and upper-middle-income countries (3·89, 2·08–7·29). Postoperative death after complications was partly explained by patient factors (60%) and partly by hospital or country (40%). The absence of consistently available postoperative care facilities was associated with seven to 10 more deaths per 100 major complications in LMICs. Cancer stage alone explained little of the early variation in mortality or postoperative complications. Interpretation: Higher levels of mortality after cancer surgery in LMICs was not fully explained by later presentation of disease. The capacity to rescue patients from surgical complications is a tangible opportunity for meaningful intervention. Early death after cancer surgery might be reduced by policies focusing on strengthening perioperative care systems to detect and intervene in common complications. Funding: National Institute for Health Research Global Health Research Unit

Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 licenseBackground: Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide. Methods: A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study—a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3·85 [95% CI 2·58–5·75]; p<0·0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63·0% vs 82·7%; OR 0·35 [0·23–0·53]; p<0·0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer. Interpretation: Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised. Funding: National Institute for Health and Care Research