Asset stripping in Chinese state-owned enterprises

This study addresses the consequences of commercialization and modernization of agriculture on ethnic minority farming communities in Vietnam's upland areas. These communities have been deeply affected by the pro-market reforms introduced nation-wide as the result of economic renovation (doi moi). The study examines the changes in standards of living and quality of life as well as the constraints acting on the development of family farms. Importantly, it investigates the role of government in influencing the process of rural development. Some of the most important findings can be summarized as follows. First, pro-market reforms have led to the diversification of the farm economy. Cash crops, especially tree crops, are now the main component of the household economy. Second, income disparities have increased and poverty remains entrenched in pockets of the upland population. Third, in its effort to restructure the national economy, the central government has decreased its contribution to upland development. The weakening of the social and physical infrastructure hampers farmers' efforts to participate in the market economy. Fourth, because of a general lack of rural industries, few employment opportunities exist outside the farm sector. As a result, many households engage in informal off-farm activities as a survival strategy.     

Private Farming in Russia: An Emerging Success?

The emergence of privately owned peasant farms in the early 1990s was one of the most important reforms in Russia's agrarian sector. Initially failing to become a significant food producer, during its second decade private farming emerged as a success in agrarian reform. This success is analyzed using two levels of analysis. At the macro-level, economic performance, government policy, and AKKOR's relationships with a range of actors are examined. The micro- or household level is examined using survey data from rural households, looking at private farmers' earned income, land holdings, and shifts in employment.     

Game fences in the Karoo: reconfiguring spatial and social relations

In this article, we discuss how farm conversions to wildlife habitats result in the reconfiguration of spatial and social relations on white-owned commercial farms in the Karoo region of the Eastern Cape in South Africa. Farmers and landowners justify such conversions stressing economic and ecological rationales. We illustrate how conversions are (also) a reaction to post-apartheid land reform and labour legislation policies, which white farmers and landowners perceive as a serious threat. They seek to legitimate their position in society and reassert their place on the land by claiming a new role as nature conservationists. We argue that game farms should be interpreted as economically and politically contested spaces for three reasons: (1) whereas landowners present the farm workers' displacement from game farms as the unintended by-product of a changing rural economy, the creation of ‘pristine’ wilderness seems designed to empty the land of farm dwellers who may lay claim to the land; (2) game farms further disconnect the historically developed links between farm dwellers and farms, denying them a place of residence and a base for multiple livelihood strategies; (3) this way the conversion process deepens farm dwellers' experiences of dispossession and challenges their sense of belonging. Game fences effectively define farm workers and dwellers as people out of place. These dynamics contrast government reform policies aimed at addressing historical injustices and protecting farm dwellers' tenure security.     

Exemptions from Compulsory Income Management: A Short “History of the Present”

The historical study of exemptions has focused on escape from protectionist policies designed to control and monitor Aboriginal people in Australia — restricting their freedom of movement, intruding into their family life, and reducing their ability to participate on equal terms in the labour force. In this paper, we consider a contemporary policy — income management — which primarily restricts the freedom to dispose of personal income and has targeted Aboriginal people and communities, both directly and indirectly. Provisions for individual exemptions have been incorporated inconsistently within the many iterations of income management, and Aboriginal people are significantly less likely than others to be granted an exit from this form of financial control. The study reported here is an example of mixed-methods social research, rather than an historiography. We use techniques of historical comparison to illuminate contemporary practices and identify the ongoing influence of settler-colonial governance in the lives of Aboriginal people.     

International labour migration and local rural activities in the Kyrgyz Republic: determinants and trade-offs

This paper uses a representative household-budget survey from the Asian Development Bank to analyse the determinants of international labour migration, distinguishing between seasonal and permanent (long-term) moves and comparing them with determinants of rural local income-generating activities in the Kyrgyz Republic. It has been found that both permanent migration and local nonfarm-wages employment substitute agricultural activities and attract the most educated rural individuals. The difference is that the permanent migration option is unattainable for individuals from poor households with small land holdings. They tend to engage in local nonfarm activities, while those who are educated and have resources to finance the cost of migration choose to leave the country for long periods of time. In contrast to permanent migration, seasonal migration does not require the possession of either higher or vocational education, which can make it potentially less harmful for local development in terms of brain drain.     

Export Growth and Development to Poor Rural Regions: a Meso-Scale Analysis of the Upper Limari

Abstract — The aim of this article is to explore the recent social and economic evolution of a rural region that was formerly one of the poorest in Chile but has been transformed by a productive specialisation in table grapes for export markets. The region is that of the Upper Limari in Chile's semi-arid Norte Chico. The analysis focuses on changes in four interrelated variables: productive investments; land markets; labour markets; and population distribution. Rapid growth in investment, the emergence of dynamic land markets, dramatic increases in labour productivity have transformed the agricultural sector. Small-scale farming has survived poorly due to lack of capital, technical problems and lack of bargaining power with the international fruit companies. The large-scale farmers have enjoyed better conditions and a reconcentration of land has occurred. However, the emergence of new productive activities in an area where labour alternatives have been historically scarce has provided new sources of income. Population is increasing in rural settlements linked to irrigated agroexportation and quality of life indicators have improved. Rural depopulation is not a feature of the region as a whole.     

Charitable giving and the future of NGOs in Russia: what can we learn from individual data?

This study seeks to discuss the survivability of charitable nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in Russia without foreign funding. We use cross-sectional data from a quantitative household survey conducted in April 2016 to investigate common giving patterns of Russians. We find that Russians prefer to give directly to people in need rather than to NGOs; the donations are small, spontaneous, and irregular; they are mainly targeted to supporting the poor and the sick. Involvement in religious activities and higher self-assessed income are two factors that contribute most to the probability of donating. Educated and younger donors are more likely to donate to NGOs compared to donating to particular people/families. The study suggests that private donations to NGOs will decline if no changes in public policy are made. NGOs supporting education, environment, culture, or civil organizations seem to be worst hit.     

The Rescue of Jews in Nazi-Occupied Belgium, France and the Netherlands

The question of why and how gentiles rescued Jews during the Nazi period has been a consistent element in the wider historiography of the Holocaust ever since 1945, not least after the creation of Yad Vashem and the identification and recognition of non-Jews as "Righteous among the Nations". Research on the Holocaust has identified, and continues to identify, individuals who meet the criteria laid down for the award, and the shelves of books devoted to memoirs bear witness to its continued popularity with the book-buying public. However, study of the topic to date has been very narrowly defined, either as sociological enquiry into the nature of altruism, or as the history of a relatively small number of dedicated individuals. This paper attempts to outline the importance of a wider context for the study of rescue under three headings. Firstly, it focuses on the linkages between rescue activities and other forms of resistance during the occupation period. Secondly, it demonstrates the importance of a regional rather than a national approach to the topic. Finally it examines how "rescue" can be seen as having a tradition; for example in the case of Belgium from the experiences of occupation in the First World War, and in the Netherlands from longer-standing rural social traditions of helping those in need.     

Resource Base of Peasants in the Brazilian Amazon: Planning Solutions for Current Problems of Sustainability

Abstract — This is the second paper of a series following a study carried out in the Brazilian Amazon region of peasant livelihoods, their current character and problems of sustainability. It analyses how different people might be affected by environmental degradation in the region by looking at their social and economic activities, the degree of dependency on wild resources, land ownership and the social relations underpinning the structure of the labour force. The study covers three districts within the ecological system of terra firme. Extractivist activities generate income and contribute considerably to food supplies throughout the year. Access to these resources is not generally tied to ownership. Environmental degradation may reduce the future availability of resources or, alternatively, attack health directly. Peasants exposure to these risks is assessed and the long-term sustainability of their livelihoods examined. Possible planning solutions to problems are presented and the more recent debate on the creation of conservation units (SNUC) in Brazil is discussed.     

My Business Pays Me: Labourers and Entrepreneurs Among the Self–Employed Poor in Latin America

Are the independent economic activities of poor people “petty commodity production”—an informal way to earn a subsistence wage? Or are they “microentrepreneurship”, a launching point for capital accumulation and growth? This paper draws on fieldwork in Bolivia, Peru and Guatemala, focusing specifically on the poorest businesses. In–depth interviews indicate that even the smallest–scale producers, merchants and service providers have goals of “improving” their business and “growing” their capital, not unlike their capitalist counterparts. Yet, while growth is desirable, maintaining one's business as a steady source of income is a sufficient achievement for many. Poor self–employed people are both “labourers” and “entrepreneurs”; the key macro–level question becomes, not “Do petty–commodity producers have different goals than capitalist entrepreneurs”, but “What resources are lacking, and what obstacles exist, that keep many microentrepreneurs in low–yield activities, with little opportunity to grow their resources?”     

Re-membering my ways of knowing and learning while ‘learning otherwise’

ABSTRACT

To some people, African languages are insufficiently valued or good for nothing. Such people do not find any economic value in African languages. However, the African renaissance can inject a new lease of life into African languages. The African linguistic renaissance implies uplifting the status and use of African languages. It also means taking African languages into domains where their economic value will rise. This requires a drastic change in how African languages are perceived and treated. This article argues that, as part of the African renaissance, African languages should become income generators or job-creating entities. There is great potential for African languages to attain such economically rewarding status. African languages have slept for so long that they can now be compared to devalued currencies. The article suggests some ways through which a vibrant African languages industry can be developed and sustained.     

日本增加农民收入的途径及启示

农业在国民经济中处于基础地位,增加农民收入是刺激农村消费需求、提高农村购买力、扩大内需的重要途径。日本在增加农民收入方面的成功经验主要包括政府的大力扶持、农业经营模式的完善、全方位的科技研发推广及积极推动城乡互动发展等。从日本经验的总结中我们可以得出一些有益的启示：建立完备的法律法规;完善农民合作经济组织体系;加大政府对农业的补贴及政策倾斜;灵活运用WTO的相关规定和原则;加强农业科技开发的推广和劳动者素质的提高;实现城乡互动发展。     

In Search of Strategies to Face the Economic Crisis: Evidence from Greek Farms

This study examines the strategies – defensive or aggressive, individual or collective – undertaken by sheep farms in a Greek rural area in order to face the repercussions of the economic crisis and their effects on the productivity and economic performance of these farms. The article presents the results of a farm management survey conducted in 2010 and repeated in 2014 in northern Evros, Greece. The mix of strategies – mainly passive – adopted by farmers shows their confusion in the face of crisis conditions, which has resulted in reduced productivity, more use of family labour and a rise in collective actions.     

Mining against the State? Gold Mining and Emerging Notions of Territoriality in Southeastern Venezuela

The current economic crisis in Venezuela has drawn members of Pemón communities to the practice of informal (illegal) gold mining, as mining, undertaken alongside other ‘traditional’ economic activities, is a more effective source of income than waged jobs. The increased involvement of Pemón people in informal mining has encouraged their partial retreat from the state's frontiers, and it reveals transformations in the ways in which local people imagine and relate to the Venezuelan state. These transformations are embodied in both a reorganisation of the space, and in burgeoning notions of land ownership.     

Alleviating poverty through resource provision: The case of a South African agricultural project

The article documents the findings of a qualitative study that assessed the sustainability of providing resources for poverty alleviation. It argues that access to resources does not assure livelihood security. The study also argues that the ability to sustain resources, rather than merely facilitating access, assures poverty alleviation and livelihood security. Using a qualitative research method and the sustainable livelihoods approach, the article assesses the activities and performance of a small group of women in a government-sponsored agricultural project. The findings reveal that exited projects struggle to sustain themselves and that assetting alone – without skills, capacity, sense of ownership and a clear focus – does not yield the sustainability necessary for poverty alleviation. The conclusion is made that although resources are a necessary first step towards poverty alleviation, sustainable resource management should be highly valued in the process. The article recommends that agriculture-based development projects not be seen as the only option for the rural poor, as knowledge of farming is indeed crucial.     

The political economic factors of migration to Bangkok

A new way of urbanization has emerged in China where farmers are urbanizing the rural areas instead of migrating to the large cities. This article addresses the question of why current urbanization takes this direction in which surplus labor has been transferred from agriculture into the industrial and service sectors without leaving the rural areas. The findings indicate that continual population pressure and reform policies in post-Mao China have resulted in strategic development of small towns in the rural areas. In this development, township and village enterprises have been the locomotive of rural urbanization. Institutional constraints could be moved, created, or utilized in a way which can be conductive for social development. The rural urbanization in China could be significant for many developing countries.     

Vice-Premier Li Hsien-Nien gives Banquet in name of Premier Chou En-Lai for Madame Marcos

This article provides empirical light on the debate concerning whether manufacturing firms in China are becoming major innovators. Based on an innovation survey carried out in Jiangsu Province, the article finds that most firms engage in innovative activities but these are mainly of an incremental nature. Radical innovation, as a proportion of sales, is relatively low if compared internationally. Innovation in China is mainly to catch-up and is novel relative to the firm and the domestic market. A small proportion of innovation is new to the world. Intensity and productivity indicators suggest that small, foreign and textile firms are leading innovative efforts. Firms innovate to improve their general competitiveness, including improving product quality and extending market share, obtain income from technology and defend themselves from research and development expenditure by competitors. Innovators value significantly more than non-innovators the range of innovative objectives they seek to achieve. The main obstacles to innovation arise from technical and marketing weaknesses; the perception of these obstacles varies widely between radical innovators and non-innovators. The article concludes that while innovative activities are emerging it will still take some time for China to have a major role in the international division of innovative labour.     

Migration past and present: changing patterns in Kyrgyzstan

Internal and international labour migration is a main livelihood strategy for many people in rural areas of Kyrgyzstan. It is estimated that approximately one-third of the employable population of Kyrgyzstan is working abroad. However, current labour migration phenomena are not exceptional since Central Asia's history has always been characterized by the movement of people, including external and internal, forced and voluntary, legal and illegal, permanent and temporary, ethnically or economically motivated migration. This article gives an overview of the historical and present migration processes with a special focus on three village communities in rural Kyrgyzstan. It deals with the opportunities and difficulties with which labour migrants and their non-migrating family members are confronted today. The results are based on extensive field work in Kyrgyzstan.     

Agrarian transformation in the Russian breadbasket: contemporary trends as manifest in Stavropol'

A team of US and Russian geographers combines field observations with satellite imagery in an examination of how major trends in Russian agriculture are manifest in one of Russia's most productive agricultural regions: Stavropol' Kray. A nationwide pattern of agricultural consolidation during the 1990s (featuring rural depopulation and a reduction in cultivated area and herd sizes upon the termination of Soviet-era subsidization levels) has had decidedly different outcomes in different parts of the vast Russian countryside. This paper – using Stavropol' as a surrogate for regions which by physical attributes, location, and human capital are best positioned to support agricultural activity – identifies a number of developments that may signal a new growth trajectory for agriculture in Russia: evolving specialization of former socialized farms in response to market conditions (in Stavropol' involving the shrinkage of animal husbandry and the release of surplus labor); increased levels of absentee (corporate) ownership of farmland in the more favorable locations; decoupling of the economic fate of large farms (success) from local municipal budgets (deficiency); and the expansion of non-Russian ethnic communities in the countryside, with attendant land use changes.     

Centralized planning and economic reforms in a mountainous region of Vietnam

This study contributes to an understanding of the diversity of agrarian systems in the mountainous regions of northern Vietnam. By examining over 100 small family farms, we identified the major changes in production systems that have occurred over the last 50 years. Access to land, population migration, and individual initiative were the three major factors driving household differentiation. State policies had substantial impacts on all three factors, making the State the key driving force of differentiation. After years of central planning, farmers are now free to make their own choices as they interact with their new environment: the market economy.

Effective farmers' organizations need to be established to provide farmers with the information and decision-making tools they need to adjust their production to fit the market. Somewhere between State control and total independence, community-based natural resource management schemes are needed to ensure that small family farms in the isolated mountainous areas are sustainable in the face of ineluctable macroeconomic changes.