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1 – 10 of over 2000The purpose of this study is to examine how the tourism economy affects local food availability, access, utilization and stability in dessert-prone agricultural heritage sites…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine how the tourism economy affects local food availability, access, utilization and stability in dessert-prone agricultural heritage sites. Specifically, the study aims to explore the relationship between the tourism industry and local agricultural practices and how this connection influences food security in the Siwa Oasis, located in the Western Desert of Egypt.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employs a qualitative exploratory research design using in-depth interviews and focus groups to investigate the impact of the tourism economy on food security and identify potential benefits and limitations for food security in the region.
Findings
The research reveals that the tourism economy in Siwa Oasis has only a marginal contribution to food security. The study highlights a lack of a strong connection between the tourism industry and local agricultural practices within the heritage site. As a result, the potential benefits and synergies that could be achieved between tourism and agriculture have not been fully realized, leading to a limited impact on food stability.
Research limitations/implications
This study primarily relies on qualitative data from Siwa Oasis, Egypt, which may limit the generalizability of findings beyond this specific context. Additionally, while the study provides valuable insights into the complex relationship between tourism and food security, it does not quantitatively measure the magnitude of tourism's impact. Future research could incorporate quantitative methods for a more comprehensive understanding of this relationship in diverse desert-prone regions. Finally, the study highlights the need for more integrated approaches to enhance food security through tourism, but the specific strategies and policy recommendations require further investigation and adaptation to local contexts.
Practical implications
This study underscores the need for tourism development strategies that prioritize food security in desert-prone areas like Siwa Oasis. Policymakers and stakeholders should promote sustainable tourism practices that enhance local agriculture, create diversified income sources and foster equitable benefits for communities. Moreover, recognizing the seasonal nature of tourism, interventions to address food shortages during off-peak periods are crucial. Efforts should also focus on skill development and gender-inclusive opportunities within the tourism sector to ensure broader community participation. Additionally, collaborations between tourism and agriculture should be encouraged to optimize food availability and stability while preserving cultural food traditions.
Originality/value
This study adds original insights by examining the specific impact of the tourism economy on food security in dessert-prone agricultural heritage sites. The study's originality lies in its exploration of the untapped potential for synergy between the tourism and agricultural sectors and the implications for local food security. This research contributes to understanding how tourism can improve food security in specific contexts and provides valuable insights into sustainable development in heritage sites.
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Jarita Duasa and Nur Hidayah Zainal
The purpose of this study is to adopt quantile regression to investigate the impact of several factors on per capita income of participants of micro-financing scheme (Amanah…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to adopt quantile regression to investigate the impact of several factors on per capita income of participants of micro-financing scheme (Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia [AIM]), who are mostly women at different point on the income distributions.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses data collected from a survey on respondents who are the participants of AIM program using convenience sampling in Perak and Kelantan.
Findings
The empirical results show that the value of asset, value of loan, household size, ratio of spending to income and dummy state are consistently giving similar impacts on per capita income of participants at different quantiles.
Originality/value
However, age negatively and significantly affects per capita income only at middle and lower quantiles but not at higher quantile of per capita income.
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The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of Islamic microfinance services (IMFS) on women’s empowerment in rural Bangladesh.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of Islamic microfinance services (IMFS) on women’s empowerment in rural Bangladesh.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on a multi-stage sampling technique. The primary data are collected through a face-to-face survey of 389 women respondents who have received IMFS from the Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited. Cronbach’s alpha test is conducted to test the reliability and internal consistency of collected data. Paired-sample tests, logit regression and proportion hypothesis tests are conducted to measure the impact of IMFS on women’s empowerment. Descriptive and inferential statistics are used to interpret the data.
Findings
The study reveals that IMFS have led to structural transformation in the occupation dynamics of the respondents’ families from agriculture to retail businesses. IMFS have had a significant positive impact on household income, savings and expenditure; have improved standard of living and human capital formation; and have enhanced all three dimensions of empowerment, namely, economic empowerment (ECEM), socio-cultural empowerment (SCEM) and familial empowerment (FLEM). Of them, ECEM and SCEM have positively contributed toward overall women’s empowerment, while FLEM has a negative but insignificant impact on overall empowerment. The respondents’ perception also supports the finding that IMFS have benefited rural women and empowered them.
Originality/value
The study is based on primary data. It leads to an inquiry as to whether women are dominant in familial affairs. If so, it may reduce the state of happiness and overall women’s empowerment. There is a clear gap in the existing literature about this inquiry.
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Arun Chockalingam, Shaunak Dabadghao and Rene Soetekouw
Basel III regulations require banks to protect themselves against strategic risk. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive and measurable definition of this risk and proposes a…
Abstract
Purpose
Basel III regulations require banks to protect themselves against strategic risk. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive and measurable definition of this risk and proposes a framework to estimate economic capital requirements.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper studies the literature and solicits expert opinion in formulating a comprehensive and measurable definition of strategic risk. The paper postulates that the economic capital for a bank’s strategic risk should be estimated using the cost of equity as the profitability threshold, rather than zero and develops a simulation-based framework to estimate economic capital.
Findings
The framework closely matches the actual economic capital outlay for strategic risk from our case study of ABN AMRO. It is shown that a bank’s strategic growth plans can fall into one of two scenarios based on risk-return characteristics. In one scenario, the required economic capital outlay will increase, and decrease in the other.
Practical implications
This framework is generalizable and makes use of widely accepted and used practices in banks, making it readily implementable in practice. It does not introduce errors resulting from model selection, parameterizations or complex calculations.
Social implications
Society would be worse off in the absence of banking and lending services. Banks need to take risks to grow and stay competitive. The framework facilitates better strategic risk management, protecting banks from collapse and reducing the need for taxpayer-funded bailouts.
Originality/value
The paper provides a measurable and practitioner-verified definition of strategic risk and proposes a simple framework to estimate economic capital requirements, a crucial topic, given the threats and increased levels of strategic risk facing banks.
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Prabal Barua, Syed Hafizur Rahman and Maitri Barua
The nature of farm animals in the marginalized group of people is varying hurriedly. Livestock is used to add to cash earnings and increase food security, hence helping as a vital…
Abstract
Purpose
The nature of farm animals in the marginalized group of people is varying hurriedly. Livestock is used to add to cash earnings and increase food security, hence helping as a vital component in the household’s source of revenue strategies, particularly at marginal planter’s level. The present study was conducted to assess the numbers of livestock farmers in the study areas, their livelihood options, the value chain of the farmers in different marketing channels and recommendation for the sustainable value chain of the livestock production cycle.
Design/methodology/approach
The study precise the baseline condition of marginal livestock farmers for access to value chain activities in terms of inputs, outputs, support services, production, yield, income and enabling environment to enhance livestock farming in the study area. The study was conducted through stratified random sampling of the context using some research tools like in-depth interviews, household surveys, expert opinions and focus group discussions. Structured questionnaires were developed to address issues, such as current livestock farming practices, access to support services, capacity and income.
Findings
The study revealed that this particular context is lagging behind to establish goat value chain activities in the targeted areas. The farmers do not have basic knowledge of goat farming, and the value chain actors are not working properly. The support services are not appropriate to turn the goat farming production to a standard level. Value chain of livestock and livestock products and their goals are essential to develop an idea on learning, investment, market access, sales assurance and quality. Variation in institutional contexts of end markets is linked to different types of coordination and control of enabling environment throughout the chains.
Practical implications
Livestock is an integral component of the complex farming system in Bangladesh as it serves as not only a source of meat protein but also a major source of farm power services as well as employment. Strong private sector alliance along with public–private ventures can bring sustainable agriculture value chain development in these most vulnerable coastal communities in Bangladesh. Strengthening the weak financial structure, reducing power imbalances in the governance structures and low political intervention in community-level organizations, and resolving socio-cultural and environmental concerns are the major concerns on the development of value chains in Bangladesh.
Originality/value
Geographical position and climatic condition of Bangladesh have made her coastal areas one of the highly productive areas for livestock production in the world. The study was conducted through qualitative and quantitative analysis, and after finding the authors recommended for sustainable value chain approach for livestock production to a marketing channel for improving the financial condition and self-employment for the communities.
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Jason Donovan, Nigel Poole, Keith Poe and Ingrid Herrera-Arauz
Between 2006 and 2011, Nicaragua shipped an average of US$9.4 million per year of smallholder-produced fresh taro (Colocasia esculenta) to the USA; however, by 2016, the US market…
Abstract
Purpose
Between 2006 and 2011, Nicaragua shipped an average of US$9.4 million per year of smallholder-produced fresh taro (Colocasia esculenta) to the USA; however, by 2016, the US market for Nicaraguan taro had effectively collapsed. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the short-lived taro boom from the perspective of complex adaptive systems, showing how shocks, interactions between value chain actors, and lack of adaptive capacity among chain actors together contributed to the collapse of the chain.
Design/methodology/approach
Primary data were collected from businesses and smallholders in 2010 and 2016 to understand the actors involved, their business relations, and the benefits and setbacks they experienced along the way.
Findings
The results show the capacity of better-off smallholders to engage in a demanding market, but also the struggles faced by more vulnerable smallholders to build new production systems and respond to internal and external shocks. Local businesses were generally unprepared for the uncertainties inherent in fresh horticultural trade or for engagement with distant buyers.
Research limitations/implications
Existing guides and tools for designing value chain interventions will benefit from greater attention to the circumstances of local actors and the challenges of building productive inter-business relations under higher levels of risk and uncertainty.
Originality/value
This case serves as a wake-up call for practitioners, donors, researchers, and the private sector on how to identify market opportunities and the design of more robust strategies to respond to them.
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Mohammad Jashim Uddin, Md. Tofael Hossain Majumder, Aklima Akter and Rabaya Zaman
This paper aims to explore the effects of bank diversification (i.e. diversification of income and diversification of assets) on Bangladeshi banks’ profitability.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the effects of bank diversification (i.e. diversification of income and diversification of assets) on Bangladeshi banks’ profitability.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a dynamic panel data model with system generalized methods of moments, the authors examine an unbalanced panel data from 32 banks spanning 318 bank-year observations from 2007 to 2016.
Findings
The findings indicate a significant positive association of income diversification and asset diversification on bank profitability. Therefore, the results show that banks can generate profit from diversification of income and diversification of assets.
Originality/value
One of the rare attempts to investigate the relationship between diversification and profitability in Bangladesh’s banking sector is this report. The authors anticipate the results to have major consequences for Bangladeshi bank regulators and other related economies.
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Juliette Amidi, Jean Mikhael Stephan and Elias Maatouk
Lebanon has been subject to important reforestation activities which resulted in the establishment of several cedars, pine and other mixed forest stands on communal lands. These…
Abstract
Purpose
Lebanon has been subject to important reforestation activities which resulted in the establishment of several cedars, pine and other mixed forest stands on communal lands. These stands are not designated for timber production but rather for nonwood forest products (NWFPs), landscape restoration and for environmental services. The study aims at valuating old reforested sites from the perspective of rural communities neighboring those reforested stands.
Design/methodology/approach
To assess the non-timber goods and services provided by these forest ecosystems, 13 reforested sites located in different regions in Lebanon were selected. The socioeconomic assessment was done using questionnaires distributed to locals that have close interactions with the neighboring forests; it included, among others, a double-bonded dichotomous contingent valuation (CV) related to their willingness to pay (WTP) for reforestation and forest management activities.
Findings
Results of the goods and services assessment revealed that the forests have multifunctional uses with ecotourism as a major activity in all forest types. The CV showed that 75% of respondents did express a WTP. Most of the respondents did so, thus giving a great importance to intrinsic values of the forests. Lower income did not negatively affect the WTP of respondents but rather age and the educational level did. Other factors such as forest type, forest surface and the biodiversity status of the sites did not have an impact on WTP.
Practical implications
These results are very informative for governmental policies seeking funds to perform reforestation programs for environmental objectives, involving local communities in co-funding these programs would help insure the sustainable conservation of reforestation sites.
Social implications
Despite their relative low income, poor communities are willing to pay to sustain forests and their ecosystem services.
Originality/value
It is the first time that a CV is used for ecosystem services regenerated from 50–60 years old reforested sites in a semiarid region, where trees are not planted for timber production. It is one of the few examples were lower income did not affect the WTP for forests providing environmental services on communal lands.
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Elmon Mudefi, Wilson Akpan and Alice Stella Kwizera
The primacy of commerce in livelihood security cannot be overstated. However, in a rural context defined by involuntary socio-ecological displacement, commerce can assume a…
Abstract
Purpose
The primacy of commerce in livelihood security cannot be overstated. However, in a rural context defined by involuntary socio-ecological displacement, commerce can assume a sociologically distinct character, with far-reaching implications. Based on first-hand encounters with victims of the devastating 2014 flood in Tokwe-Mukorsi, Zimbabwe, this paper analyses how the processes of “recreating” village markets in the resettlement site of Chingwizi impacted the victims’ experiences of resource provisioning and livelihood security.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative data were collected through 10 in-depth interviews, 10 key informant interviews and two focus group discussions, five years into the flood victims’ resettlement in Chingwizi. The data analysis focused on the dynamics around the recreation of village markets, and the consequences of this on the household economic standing of the resettled flood victims.
Findings
The paper reveals how the formation of village markets in Chingwizi was influenced not primarily by the ethno-commercial and ethno-economic impulses reminiscent of life in their ancestral home but mostly by new, disruptive dynamics and challenges unique to the resettlement site. The paper elucidates the constellation of factors that, together, exacerbated the flood victims’ overall socio-economic dislocation and disadvantage.
Originality/value
The study provides a systematic understanding of the dynamics of ethno-commerce, particularly on the evolution of village market activities and livelihoods, among Zimbabwe’s Chingwizi community over a period of five years into their resettlement. It brings to the fore, the often ignored, but significant nuances that 'village market' formation and livelihoods recreation takes in a resettlement context.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-09-2023-0682
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Thong Le Pham, Nghiem Tan Le, Nhi Nhat Phuong Ho and Thanh Cong Le
This study aims to analyse the consumption inequality between farm and non-farm households in rural Vietnam, using the data from the 2016 Vietnam household living standards survey.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyse the consumption inequality between farm and non-farm households in rural Vietnam, using the data from the 2016 Vietnam household living standards survey.
Design/methodology/approach
The present paper applies the “recentered influence functions (RIF)” in “Oaxaca-Blinder (OB)” type decomposition as proposed by Firpo et al. (2018) to allow for the flexible distribution of the outcome variables and the non-randomness of non-farm employment that violates the classical linearity assumption.
Findings
Non-farm households have significantly higher per capita consumption expenditure than farm households for the entire distribution. The gap in expenditure is large at low percentiles and narrowing with higher percentiles. At 10th percentile, the gap is estimated at 27.1%, but it is decreasing to 11.1% at 90th percentile. Most of the gaps are explained by the differences in the observed characteristics between farm and non-farm households such as ethnicity, education, income, internal transmittances and household composition. Non-farm households are endowed with more productive factors that result in higher per capita consumption expenditure.
Originality/value
Gaps in ethnicity and education are found to be key predictors of the inequality in consumption expenditures between farm and non-farm households, then, government policies that are aimed at increasing access to non-farm employment and education for ethnic minorities and for rural poor households are pathways to improve rural household welfare and hence reduce inequality.
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