Rice Subsector Development and Farmer Efficiency in Nepal: Implications for Further Transformation and Food Security

With economic development agricultural systems in the Global South transform from subsistence farming to higher productivity with market integration and increase in rural income and food security. In Nepal, agriculture continues to provide livelihoods for two-thirds of the predominantly rural population, largely at a subsistence-level. Rice is the staple food and covers the largest land area but yields are relatively low, with an annual import bill of USD 300 Million. The study uses data from 310 households from two distinct rice producing areas to assess farmers' rice production systems. It analyses farmers' rice production efficiency using a stochastic frontier production function to suggest how to advance the transformation of Nepal's rice sector. Our study finds that while agriculture related services such as access to inputs, information, markets, irrigation, and finance have generally improved, paddy farmers are only able to achieve 76% of potential output. Small/marginal farms were relatively less efficient than medium and large farms. Women farmers faced unequal access to technologies and have lower productivity than men. Unavailability of labor and capital, land fragmentation, and the lack of consistent access to seed and fertilizers contribute to reduced efficiency. Public and private sector investments are needed to enhance the timely and adequate access to quality seeds, fertilizers, processing facilities, and equipment services. Adopting a market systems approach through cooperative farming, targeted delivery of extension services, and linkages with rice millers can promote inclusive growth and improve rice food security in Nepal.

Assessment оf the Economic Potential of Change in the Population of Modern Ukraine

The influence of the macroeconomic factor on the long-term trends of reproduction the population of Ukraine since independence is considered. Based on the author’s concept of “demoeconomic niche” the results of calculation of two options for estimating the “current” (per year) economic potential of population changes in Ukraine on the criteria of conditionally autonomous consumption of population and the actual subsistence level (including necessary payments) were analyzed. The potential for population decline according to the first criterion is considered as a pessimistic (maximum) estimate (–30 million in 2019), according to the second - as an optimistic estimate (–2 million in 2019). The aim of the study was to perform a statistical analysis of the relationship between demographic and economic indicators of population reproduction in Ukraine and their relationship with certain options for assessing the economic potential of population change to determine their greater or lesser relevance to demographic and economic realities. Novelty: the assessment of the economic potential of population change is performed within the economic and demographic methodology developed and maintained by the author (based on the macroeconomic concept of “demoeconomic niche”). Research methods: to study the statistical relationship between indicators used methods of correlation and regression analysis (linear models), as well as a comparative analysis of the results of calculations with the actual dynamics of demographic and economic indicators. Calculations were made by means of PPP STATISTICA 8.0. A statistical analysis of the relationship between demographic and economic indicators and their relationship with the studied options for assessing the economic potential of Ukraine population change was performed to determine compliance with demographic and economic realities. All-time series of indicators (30 and 22 years) subjected to statistical analysis are translated into a single form of annual increments to ensure comparability, as a percentage of the value of the initial year of analysis. The direct linear relationship of GDP changes with the dynamics of the total fertility rate and average life expectancy at birth was recorded, and close feedback - with the dynamics of the migration balance. It is noticed that changes in GDP and the total fertility rate for the whole and rural population have cophase quasi cyclic fluctuations with a 3-4 year lag of reaction delay. It is shown that the assessment of the economic potential of population change by the criterion of conditionally autonomous consumption of population is closely statistically dependent on macroeconomic indicators and economic dynamics. The assessment based on the criterion of the actual subsistence level (including necessary payments) depends more closely on the indicators that directly reflect the well-being of households. It turned out that the adequacy of the assessment based on the criterion of conditionally autonomous consumption of population gradually decreases over time due to the peculiarities of the calculation algorithm, growing inaccuracy can only be neglected at intervals of +/-5 years from the base year. The adequacy of the assessment according to the criterion of the actual subsistence level (including necessary payments) depends on the correspondence to the real cost of life values for each year of the observation period, these values need to be clarified.

Information model of material and technical and financial resources in housing in Ukraine and Europe: accounting and management aspect

The purpose of the study is to form an information model of material, technical and financial resources in construction, based on identifying and taking into account the existing initial conditions and developing proposals for their improvement at the level of accounting and management by improving the documentation process. The article examines the relationship between material, technical and financial resources in housing construction. It is proposed to consider the information resource as the main resource, because it has an impact on the formation of all other resources, and therefore, in fact, manages them. This gives rise to new types of resources that are somewhat changing the pace and direction of governance and the global economy as a whole. The potential possibility of the working population of Ukraine to purchase housing by making two hypotheses is calculated. The first hypothesis concerns the ability of the working population to save money from wages, if the working person can live according to the subsistence level. The second hypothesis calls into question the first. At the junction of these hypotheses, appropriate conclusions are formed regarding the improvement of sources of financing for housing construction. Due to the study of problematic aspects of housing construction, a model of material, technical and financial resources in the context of digitalization has been formed. The derivative conditions of such resources are singled out here, namely: assistance in the restoration of natural resources; search for alternative resources; saving time; optimization of material costs; the emergence of a new type of currency; speed of calculations. Based on their research, it is proposed to improve financial and management accounting for the formation of new synthetic and analytical accounts, internal and intermediate management documents and the methodology of financial accounting.

Cluster analysis of border areas in the southern part of Siberia

The purpose of the work is to carry out a comparative analysis of the location of the regions, to determine the location and status of each border region, to identify the constituent entities of the Russian Federation with the similar position and problem situations. The present work solved the problem of multidimensional data classification using the grouping method and cluster analysis. We conducted a comparative analysis of the regions using three criteria: social, economic and territorial. The following indicators were used: for the social criterion – the ratio of average per capita income to the subsistence level; for economic – the level of real fiscal security; for territorial – population density (people/km2). The method of cluster analysis was applied, and a dendrogram was constructed for the border regions of Southern Siberia in order to present the data in a visual form. Determining the status of a region according to three criteria gives an advantage over the traditional types of ranking and groupings from viewpoint of the objectivity of determining the rating position of a region, analysis of current social-economic problems.

The living standard of the rural population of Kazakhstan as a socio-economic category

The study was carried out within the framework of targeted funding of the Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan "Development of the concept and mechanisms of balanced territorial development of the economy and society of Kazakhstan." Methods - abstract-logical, monographic, graphical, comparative and cluster analysis. Results - in order to compare the living standards of rural areas of the country's regions, grouping of regions was carried out with justification of such indicators as growth rate of the number of rural residents; the share of the employed and self-employed in the total rural population; villagers' income; proportion of residents whose material well-being is below the subsistence level; share of expenses for food products and paid services. The results of the conducted cluster analysis are presented and groups of regions with similar living conditions, social security and characteristic problems are identified, which makes it possible to determine the main directions of regional policy for improving living standards in the countryside for each of them. Conclusions - the authors have developed recommendations for the implementation of measures aimed at increasing the level of livelihoods in rural areas that are of interest to regional and local government agencies, labor and social protection authorities in Kazakhstan, preparation of policy documents to improve the socioeconomic situation of rural residents.

Problems of Information Support for Social Assistance to the Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The article deals with the actual problems of providing targeted social assistance to the population during the economic crisis. The research subject is a set of measures to stabilize the income of the population, implemented by the Government of the Russian Federation in 2020 during the most acute phase of the crisis associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the research is to analyze and summarize the practice of social assistance to the population, to identify problems and prospects for using the monetary approach to neutralize the negative socio-economic consequences of the restrictions associated with the pandemic. The main aspects of the analysis involve measures to stabilize the income of the population, including measures to support employment in the economy and stabilize labor income, as well as measures of targeted social assistance to households implemented in Russian practice. In the research, the monetary approach is considered in a broad context, extended to the criteria determining the resource provision of households and the population property status, the characteristics underling the households grouping by the degree of need, and targeted assistance measures implemented in the cash transfers form. The results of the research revealed a number of problems with the monetary approach using in the implementation of the anti-crisis strategy in the Russian Federation in its simplified version, focused on the indicators of household monetary income without taking into account other components of disposable resources. Additional challenges in identifying targeted social assistance groups during the pandemic were associated with the established practice of building structural groupings of households, based on the dichromatic principle, as well as the transition from 2021 of russian statistics to the new principles of calculating the minimum subsistence level, which is the basic criterion for determining the property status of the population. Improving the effectiveness of social assistance measures to the population in the Russian Federation during economic crises involves adjusting the existing methodological and information base used in assessing the degree of household need. If detailed statistics are available, the corresponding monetary indicators can serve as an information basis for identifying the objects of targeted social assistance. Such indicators, by analogy with foreign practice, can also be supplemented by non-monetary characteristics that determine the degree of household need on other grounds, on the basis of combination of which their groups can be identified in accordance with the priorities and types of social assistance provided. The article was prepared within the framework of the RANEPA state task research.

Economy of households under conditions of pandemic instability

The purpose of the academic paper lies in assessing the state of income, expenditure and savings of households under conditions of pandemic instability. The research methodology is based on the statistical analysis of data on income, resources and savings of households in Ukraine for 2010-2020. The scientific novelty involves identifying the positive and negative effects of the pandemic on the household economy. Conclusions. The positive and negative effects of the impact of spreading the pandemic on the household economy have been revealed in the research, and as a result, the decline in economic activity and the growth of unemployment in Ukraine. It has been determined that in the period of 2020 pandemic, costs decreased by 2% and resources increased by 3%. In 2020, the share of expenditures on food and non-alcoholic beverages increased from 46,6% to 48,1% in 2019, and on non-food goods and services - decreased from 41,5% to 39,8%. The population with per capita equivalent total income per month, below the actual subsistence level, was 8,9 million people in 2019 (23,1%), in 2020 – 8,8 million people (23,2%). Despite experts’ assessments of the likely increase in poverty as a result of COVID-19 spreading under two scenarios (according to the absolute criterion, it will increase from 27,2 to 43,6%; according to an absolute criterion, it will increase from 27,2 to 50,8%). It can be noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on the poorest sections of the population with low incomes. It has been determined that in the context of social-economic impact of COVID-19, families who find it more difficult to diversify their own incomes are the most vulnerable ones. The following categories have been most affected by the pandemic (they will have had the largest increase in poverty compared to the baseline scenario), namely: households with three or more children; single parents with children; households with children under three; single retirees over 65 years.Along with this, thanks to the monetary policy that has ensured a stable level of inflation and return on deposits, the share of household deposits has increased the most in the last ten years to 27%. However, it is worth noting that quarantine and the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a trend towards a partial flow of population resources from time deposits to card and savings accounts. After all, citizens sought to have free money in case of unforeseen expenses due to the uncertainty of the future development of events. Key words: households, income, resources, consumer expenditures, economic crisis, pandemic instability, quarantine restrictions.

BUSINESS ECONOMICS: DISADVANTAGES OF COUNTRY INFLUENCE TOWARDS STAFF MOTIVATION

Annotation. The priorities of business development of business enterprises through incentives and motivation are substantiated. It is established that the motivational mechanisms of any enterprise should be built with the participation of state and regional government and take into account the interests of employees. The connection between staff motivation and financial incentives is determined. The imbalance of remuneration of personnel of different professional categories on the example of energy workers is theoretically and practically substantiated. The system of remuneration of workers in the energy sector has been studied. It is substantiated that with a constant subsistence level for able-bodied persons and an increase in the minimum wage, there will be a further leveling of the prestige of professions and a disparity in wages. The legal framework for the system of remuneration and motivation of staff is analyzed and it is established that the business economy of the enterprise should be based on the principles of effective system of interaction between the state and the region, strengthening ties between other business structures and developing a rational incentive mechanism. The research conducted in this article makes it possible to form a vision of the irrational system of motivation of employees of different categories and the need for state regulation of a holistic set of tasks and goals for the effective functioning of business. The business economy of the enterprise should be based on the principles of effective interaction between the state and the region, strengthening ties between other business structures, as well as developing a rational motivational mechanism, which is supported by constituent documents at the government level and takes into account the interests of employees and owners. Such a system will help to solve the main problems in personnel management at the enterprise and with the correct interaction of motives and incentives will be interdependent elements of the overall development of business, region and state

Life on the margins

The Congested Districts Board was set up in 1891 to ameliorate the living conditions of some of the poorest people in Ireland living on the western seaboard. A remarkable number of writers emerged from these areas to create first-hand accounts of life on the margins. The fiction of Patrick McGill, Seamus Ó Grianna, and Peadar O’Donnell graphically evokes the politics of poverty in Donegal. The romantic image of the Aran Islands, cultivated by Synge, is somewhat surprisingly echoed by the Irish language poet Máirtín Ó Direáin and the fiction writer Liam O’Flaherty, both of whom came from Aran. The life of fishing and farming just above subsistence level is graphically evoked in the Blasket Island autobiographers, Tomás O’Crohan, Maurice O’Sullivan, and Peig Sayers.

Social gradients in health vary between rural and urban Turkana

Background and objectives: Low socioeconomic status (SES) is consistently associated with chronic stress, poor health, and premature death in high income countries (HICs). However, the degree to which SES gradients in health are universal, or even steeper under contemporary, post-industrial conditions, remains poorly understood. Methodology: We quantified material wealth and several health outcomes among a population of traditional pastoralists, the Turkana of northwest Kenya, who are currently transitioning toward a more urban, market-integrated lifestyle. We assessed whether SES associations with health differed in subsistence-level versus urban contexts. We also explored the causes and consequences of SES-health associations by measuring serum cortisol, potential sociobehavioral mediators in early life and adulthood, and adult reproductive success (number of surviving offspring). Results: High SES predicts better self-reported health and more offspring in traditional pastoralist Turkana, but worse cardiometabolic health and fewer offspring in urban Turkana. We do not find robust evidence for either direct biological mediators (i.e., cortisol) or indirect sociobehavioral mediators (e.g., adult diet or health behaviors, early life experiences) of SES-health relationships in either context. Conclusions and implications: While social gradients in health are common in non-human primates, small-scale human societies, and HICs, we find that relationships between wealth and health can vary dramatically within a single population. Our findings emphasize that under different economic and societal circumstances, social status effects on health may manifest in very different ways.