scholarly journals The Exclusive Nature of Inclusive Productive Employment in the Rural Areas of Northern Ethiopia

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1044-1060 ◽  
Author(s):  
Crelis F Rammelt ◽  
Maggi Leung ◽  
Kebede Manjur Gebru
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Development Policy ◽  
Northern Ethiopia ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Sociology Of Work ◽  
Poverty Threshold ◽  
Self Reliance ◽  
Shed Light ◽  
Productive Employment

Inclusiveness, with its emphasis on productive employment, has become central in development policy. From this perspective, unwaged-work is condemned for not being sufficiently productive; that is, for failing to lift incomes above a poverty threshold. However, insights from the sociology of work reveal a range of unwaged activities that are potentially highly productive in their contribution to self-reliance. The article explores whether these activities are undermined by the promotion of inclusiveness. The case study takes place in Tigray, Ethiopia. Through semi-structured interviews, the activities of different households were classified according to a typology of work based on the work of Gorz, Illich, Wheelock, Taylor, Williams and others. Results show the heterogeneous character of work and shed light on the meaning of productivity. The article ends with a discussion on the risk that inclusiveness may be achieved by replacing activities ‘that count’ with activities ‘that can be counted’.

Adaptation Trajectories of Dismissed Workers: A Critical Case Study of the Lithuanian Radio-Electronics Sector

2021 ◽  
pp. 095001702110412
Author(s):  
Žilvinas Martinaitis ◽  
Audronė Sadauskaitė ◽  
Mariachiara Barzotto
Keyword(s):  
Older Workers ◽  
Critical Case ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Sociology Of Work ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Skill Sets ◽  
Radio Electronics ◽  
Economic Shock ◽  
Critical Case Study

This article explores why some dismissed workers adapt successfully to the changing structure of an economy, while others remain trapped in low-quality jobs and experience deskilling. The associated case study relies on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 50 former employees of four bankrupt radio-electronics factories in Lithuania. It is found that workers with ‘inherited’ skills that are deep and technical are able to enter high-quality jobs when new firms emerge, recombining the physical, financial and human assets of destitute factories for new productive uses. However, if such economic opportunities are scarce, workers with inherited broad skill sets are relatively more successful in transitioning to services from manufacturing. Further, in line with the literature of the sociology of work, women and older workers are found to face more acute challenges in adapting to the economic shock associated with dismissal.

Sustainable Entrepreneurship, Family Farms and the Dairy Industry

2022 ◽  
pp. 898-916
Author(s):  
Vanessa Ratten ◽  
Leo-Paul Dana
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Family Farms ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Regional Competitiveness ◽  
Agricultural Industry ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
International Standing ◽  
Entrepreneurial Strategies

There has been increasing recognition that for regional competitiveness in rural areas there needs to be a focus on sustainable farming initiatives especially for family farms that are competing with global conglomerates. Family farms, whilst declining in number, are the purpose of this paper studying the rural entrepreneurship in family farms as they are at the heart of rural communities and the overall agricultural industry and comprise a high percentage of total farms. This paper takes a case study approach using in-depth semi structured interviews to delve into the types of entrepreneurial strategies that are distinctive of family farms in terms of their sustainability approach to farming. Dairy farms in the West Victorian area of Australia are studied and the findings suggest that family farms can increase their regional competitiveness and international standing by focusing on their collaborative, social and sustainable entrepreneurial strategies.

scholarly journals Where are they working? A case study of twenty Cuban-trained South African doctors

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Munirah Motala ◽  
Jacqueline Van Wyk
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
South African ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Career Choices ◽  
Medical Training ◽  
Sampling Strategy ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Primary Care Level

Background: The year 2017 marked the 21st anniversary of the South African Cuban Medical Collaboration (SACMC) programme that offers disadvantaged South African (SA) students an opportunity for medical training in Cuba. Graduates are expected to return to practice at a primary care level in rural communities; however, little is known about the professional trajectories and career choices of graduates from the programme.Aim: This study explored the reasons why students enrolled in the programme, their professional and career choices as graduates and their career intentions.Setting: The study setting was the whole of SA although participants were primarily drawn from KwaZulu-Natal.Methods: An exploratory, qualitative case study used a purposive sampling strategy to gather data through semi-structured interviews from participants.Results: Graduates (N = 20) of the SACMC programme were all practicing in local SA settings. Participants preferred the SACMC programme as it offered them a full scholarship for medical training. Nineteen doctors had fulfilled their obligation to work in rural areas. Thirteen doctors are engaged in primary healthcare practice, either as private practice generalists or as public service medical officers. Three doctors had completed specialty training: one doctor was training towards specialisation, one doctor was employed at national government and two doctors were employed as medical managers. At the time of the study, 11 doctors were practicing in rural locations and 19 had indicated a long-term intention to work and live within South Africa.Conclusion: The participants of this study who graduated from the SACMC programme are fulfilling their obligations in rural communities. They all intend to contribute to the SA medical workforce in the long-term.

scholarly journals Community Policing and the Syrian Refugee Community in Wellington District

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yvette Tohill
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Community Policing ◽  
Syrian Refugees ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Refugee Community ◽  
Syrian Civil War ◽  
Refugee Experience ◽  
Shed Light ◽  
Mixed Nature

Relationships between the New Zealand Police and refugee communities are largely unresearched. This case study focuses on Syrian refugees in the Wellington region of New Zealand. Syrian refugees are notable by their numbers since the onset of the Syrian Civil War in 2014, and Greater Wellington is an area where many have been re-settled. Police are a key symbol of the state and interaction with police can leave defining impressions. This study researches refugee experiences in New Zealand through semi-structured interviews with police and others who have worked with Syrian refugees. It seeks to shed light on the mixed nature of the refugee experience and the opportunities for improvement that exist. Community Policing studies in New Zealand have not previously included aspects of ethnicity beyond New Zealand Maori, and this study may therefore assist in more generally understanding the strengths and challenges of Community Policing and refugee communities in New Zealand.

Unbanked to banked: reintermediation role of banks in e-government services for financial inclusion in an Indian context

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessy Nair ◽  
Mohith Kumar Jain
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Government Services ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to develop a framework to implement electronic delivery systems for connecting federal government with rural citizens using banking infrastructure as a reintermediation platform; and second, to understand the challenges faced by banks in reintermediation for financial inclusion (FI). Design/methodology/approach This exploratory research adopts case study method to gain insights of the challenges faced by banks in e-government services for FI. In-depth structured interviews are conducted with key respondents: branch managers heading banks in rural areas. Findings Preliminary results based on in-depth interviews with branch managers of banks suggest that banks leverage facilitators called Bank Mitras (BM) (friends from bank as per the local language) to disseminate services offered by the banks to rural customers at each village. However, a key challenge faced by banks is the increased dependency on bank employees to complete the process of e-government transactions by the beneficiaries because of trust factor. Research limitations/implications This exploratory research builds on the case study approach using in-depth interviews with the branch managers of five banks as key respondents to develop the preliminary research framework for FI. Practical implications Policymakers can design banking systems to enhance transparency by implementing technologies and decentralizing routine transactions to citizens by enhancing the role of facilitators (BM). Social implications FI aims to reach out and empower citizens with banking facilities for disbursing e-government services. This process needs to be refined for the rural population of India to understand and better use the e-government services and schemes. Originality/value Insights from in-depth interviews with key respondents of the banks were collated and augmented with literature to enhance the rigor of the exploratory research.

How Australian manufacturing firms perceive and understand the concepts of agility and flexibility in the supply chain

2015 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 246-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sajad Fayezi ◽  
Ambika Zutshi ◽  
Andrew O'Loughlin
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Manufacturing Sector ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Shed Light ◽  
Sector Data

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to address an important question which centres on investigating how do manufacturing businesses perceive and understand the concepts of agility and flexibility in their supply chains (SCs). Design/methodology/approach – A case study approach was utilised and data were gathered from semi-structured interviews with ten organisations in the Australian manufacturing sector. Data analysis was conducted using analytic techniques based on, for example, pattern matching and cross-case synthesis. Findings – Findings confirmed that there is some ambiguity concerning the understanding of the terms agile and flexible, both within and between organisations. The implications are that there is often little consistency in the way the terms are operationalised and then applied. In this regard, and to inform future research, the paper offers empirically grounded definitions for SC agility and flexibility. Moreover, four propositions are developed and discussed which shed light on the dynamics of agility and flexibility in the SC. Originality/value – This is one of the first empirical studies to address some of the apparent inconsistencies between organisational applications of agility and flexibility, and their impact on SC operations.

scholarly journals Community-Based Ecotourism Management: The Case of a Cooperative in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-170
Author(s):  
Jorge Ramos-García ◽  
Juan Pedro Ibarra-Michel ◽  
Mónica Velarde-Valdez
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Collaborative Work ◽  
National Commission ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Natural Protected Areas ◽  
Community Residents ◽  
The Government

Abstract Nature-based ecotourism has been a growing trend, especially in rural areas where balance with the environment is desirable and it turns into a driver for economic and social development. An ecotourism cooperative operating in the “El Verde Camacho” Sanctuary, is an example of collaborative work between the government experts and the community. The cooperative was created with the support of the National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP, in Spanish Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas), developed and funded by this government office, it involved the advice of experts in ecology as well as cooperative’s management and residents of “El Recreo” community. This study aims to describe the involvement process and community management as well as the benefits derived from ecotourism according to the reviewed literature; a case study with a qualitative approach was defined in the Sanctuary in this regard. Semi-structured interviews were used to discover community members’ perception of management involvement and benefits of ecotourism. The findings show positive opinions of community residents.

Sustainable Entrepreneurship, Family Farms and the Dairy Industry

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 114-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa Ratten ◽  
Leo-Paul Dana
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Family Farms ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Regional Competitiveness ◽  
Agricultural Industry ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
International Standing ◽  
Entrepreneurial Strategies

There has been increasing recognition that for regional competitiveness in rural areas there needs to be a focus on sustainable farming initiatives especially for family farms that are competing with global conglomerates. Family farms, whilst declining in number, are the purpose of this paper studying the rural entrepreneurship in family farms as they are at the heart of rural communities and the overall agricultural industry and comprise a high percentage of total farms. This paper takes a case study approach using in-depth semi structured interviews to delve into the types of entrepreneurial strategies that are distinctive of family farms in terms of their sustainability approach to farming. Dairy farms in the West Victorian area of Australia are studied and the findings suggest that family farms can increase their regional competitiveness and international standing by focusing on their collaborative, social and sustainable entrepreneurial strategies.

Perceptions of water, sanitation and health: a case study from the Mekong Delta, Vietnam

2009 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 699-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Herbst ◽  
S. Benedikter ◽  
U. Koester ◽  
N. Phan ◽  
C. Berger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Mekong Delta ◽  
Basic Knowledge ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Hygiene Behaviour ◽  
Hygiene Measures ◽  
Health Related

In the Mekong Delta in the south of Vietnam about 5.7 million people lack access to safe drinking water and 10 million people in rural areas live without adequate sanitation. Between May and August, 2007 a survey was carried out in An Bin, a peri-urban ward in the Mekong Delta, to gain insight into water, sanitation and health as well as to health-related hygiene behaviour. The study employed a combination of quantitative (standardized questionnaire) and qualitative (focus group discussions, semi-structured interviews) methods. The most important features in the choice of drinking water sources are matters of hygiene and the taste of the water. The majority (74%) of the 120 households surveyed indicated their ownership of a sanitation facility, but the fish pond toilet (64%) which is predominantly utilized is considered to be unimproved sanitation. The local peri-urban population link water and hygiene to health, but sanitation instead to environmental pollution. This and other outcomes lead to the assumption that people have a basic knowledge of proper hygiene behaviour. However, hygiene measures such as hand washing are put into practice in an untimely manner, most likely due to a misconception of risks and/or a lack of background knowledge of cause–effect relationships as well as ingrained habits.

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