scholarly journals Assessing the awareness and adoptability of pellet cookstoves for low-income households in Lusaka, Zambia

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 41-50
Author(s):  
Mukuka Mpundu Mulenga ◽  
Anders Roos
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
City Council ◽  
Government Policies ◽  
Wood Fuel ◽  
Qualitative Approaches ◽  
Limited Supply

Wood fuel, charcoal, and firewood comprise over 70 percent of the national energy consumption in Zambia, as only about 25 percent of the population has access to electricity. Replacing charcoal braziers with cookstoves using sawdust pellets can support sustainable energy provision in urban Zambia while reducing deforestation on the countryside. However, acceptability of pellet cookstoves remains low, while the demand for wood fuel is increasing. The study investigated the acceptability of pellet cookstoves, in view of governmental policies, in the Matero-George compound, Lusaka. Qualitative approaches were applied, and respondents were households, and officers at the Departments of Energy and Forestry, and at Lusaka City Council. Factors shaping the stoves’ acceptability included their convenience, possibility of reusing pellets, their long-term cost advantages, and the perceived health benefits of pellets. The barriers included limited supply of pellets, combustible pellet cookstoves, stove size, maintenance costs, cooking traditions, and government policies for dissemination, sensitisation, and communication about pellet stoves. This study demonstrated that implementation of pellet cookstoves at the local level depends on a multitude of contextual factors, and confirms the need for relevant policy instruments if such energy consumption is to be accepted.

scholarly journals Forest Conservation and Renewable Energy Consumption: An ARDL Approach

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 255
Author(s):  
Pablo Ponce ◽  
María de la Cruz Del Río-Rama ◽  
José Álvarez-García ◽  
Cristiana Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Causal Link ◽  
Forest Area ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Renewable Energy Consumption

Deforestation shows the constant environmental degradation that occurs worldwide as a result of the growth of economic activity and the increase in population. This research examines the causal link between renewable energy consumption, GDP, GDP2, non-renewable energy price, population growth and forest area in high, middle- and low-income countries. Based on data obtained from World Development Indicators, the autoregressive distributed lag model, with a time series, is used to examine the long-term cointegration relationship between the variables. The results justify the existence of a joint long-term relationship between the variables analysed for the middle-income countries and low-income countries. When the forest area is not at its equilibrium level, the speed of adjustment is slow (0.44% and 8.7%), which is typical of the nature of this natural resource. An increase in the consumption of renewable energy is associated with an increase between 0.04 and 0.02 square kilometres of forest cover, respectively. The research does not show evidence about the equilibrium relationship in the short term. Growth in renewable energy consumption is one of the main drivers for preserving the forest area. Therefore, those responsible for making economic policies must aim their measures towards the use of clean energy.

scholarly journals Equity at the Ballot Box: Health as a Resource for Political Participation Among Low-Income Workers in Two United States Cities

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cydney M. McGuire ◽  
Sarah E. Gollust ◽  
Molly De Marco ◽  
Thomas Durfee ◽  
Julian Wolfson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Voter Turnout ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Health Resources ◽  
City Council ◽  
Marginal Effect

Objective: The purpose of this study is to identify health resources associated with propensity to vote at the local-level among low-wage workers in two United States. cities. Literature confirms individuals of lower income have a lower propensity of turning out to vote, yet few studies have focused on low-income populations to identify the variation in factors associated with voting within this group. Furthermore, few studies have investigated health and voter turnout at the local-level. In this study, we examine factors related to political participation at the local-level within a low-wage sample, examine mental, physical, behavioral, and social health and their association with voter turnout, and assess if these relationships differ by city.Methods: We use cross-sectional survey data from a sample of 974 low-wage workers in Minneapolis, MN and Raleigh, NC. We computed descriptive statistics and employed a logistic regression to predict their likelihood of local voter turnout, with the key independent variables being health resources, such as self-rated health, body mass index (BMI), mental disability, smoking status, and health insurance status. We employed a logistic regression fully interacted with a city indicator variable to assess if these associations differed by city.Results: In both cities, less than 50 percent of respondents reported voting in the last election for mayor or city council. About three-quarters of the sample reported food or housing insecurity and the majority of respondents reported utilizing some government assistance, such as supplemental nutrition programs. BMI greater than 30 was significantly associated with lower likelihood of voter turnout compared to those of lower BMI status (marginal effect = −0.10, p = 0.026). Never smoking or quitting was significantly associated with higher likelihood of voter turnout compared to those who reported being a current smoker (marginal effect = 0.10, p = 0.002). Those with health insurance were significantly more likely to report voting compared to those without any insurance (marginal effect = 0.10, p = 0.022). These results did not significantly differ by city.Conclusions: Our research suggests low-wage workers face significant health burdens which may impact their propensity to vote at the local-level, and these associations do not significantly vary by city despite demographic and political differences between two jurisdictions.

Aspects of the Evolution of the Romanian Tourists’ Preferences Concerning the Domestic Tourist Destinations

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-28
Author(s):  
Aniela Bălăcescu ◽  
Radu Șerban Zaharia
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Model ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Medium Term ◽  
Tourist Destinations ◽  
Tourism Management ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
On Line ◽  
The One ◽  
Long Term Studies

Abstract Tourist services represent a category of services in which the inseparability of production and consumption, the inability to be storable, the immateriality, and last but not least non-durability, induces in tourism management a number of peculiarities and difficulties. Under these circumstances the development of medium-term strategies involves long-term studies regarding on the one hand the developments and characteristics of the demand, and on the other hand the tourist potential analysis at regional and local level. Although in the past 20 years there has been tremendous growth of on-line booking made by household users, the tour operators agencies as well as those with sales activity continue to offer the specific services for a large number of tourists, that number, in the case of domestic tourism, increased by 1.6 times in case of the tour operators and by 4.44 times in case of the agencies with sales activity. At the same time, there have been changes in the preferences of tourists regarding their holiday destinations in Romania. Started on these considerations, paper based on a logistic model, examines the evolution of the probabilities and scores corresponding to the way the Romanian tourists spend their holidays on the types of tourism agencies, actions and tourist areas in Romania.

Attracting foreign capital as a factor in ensuring the country's economic growth

2020 ◽  
pp. 34-41
Author(s):  
Taras Malyshivskyi ◽  
Volodymyr Stefinin
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Foreign Direct Investment ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Direct Investment ◽  
Foreign Capital ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Current Trend ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Foreign Capital Inflows

The article examines the relationship between attracting foreign capital in the form of foreign direct investment and ensuring economic development. In particular, the analysis of the current structure of the economy is indicated, its raw material character is pointed out and, based on other researches, the necessity of its reform is substantiated, as Ukraine will remain a low-income country if the current trend continues. This is due to the fact that countries with a raw material structure of the economy are characterized by a low level of economic complexity, and therefore are not able to generate high levels of income in society. As a result, the expediency of stimulating the attraction of investment resources into the country’s economy, in particular in the form of foreign direct investment, is substantiated. The dynamics of attracting foreign direct investment to Ukraine and a number of other countries for the period from 1991 to 2019 is analyzed and the key negative factors that deter foreign investors from investing in the economy of Ukraine are indicated. As a result of the analysis, divergent trends in the economic development of Ukraine and other analyzed countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Turkey, Romania, Hungary) were identified, which contributed to economic stagnation and restrained economic growth and development. Taking into account the analysis, as well as based on the concept of investment and innovation growth, it is proposed to use the experience of Israel to improve the country’s investment attractiveness and stimulate foreign capital inflows by adapting the Yozma program to Ukrainian realities. According to our estimates, the adaptation of this program to the Ukrainian economy will attract about $ 350 million over a five-year period of venture capital alone. In addition, programs such as YOSMA can also be implemented at the regional or even local level. We believe that the use of this tool will improve the investment attractiveness of the country, as well as provide sufficient financial resources to modernize the domestic economy and ensure rapid economic growth.

scholarly journals The long term effect of pulmonary tuberculosis on income and employment in a low income, urban setting

Thorax ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. thoraxjnl-2020-215338
Author(s):  
Jamilah Meghji ◽  
Stefanie Gregorius ◽  
Jason Madan ◽  
Fatima Chitimbe ◽  
Rachael Thomson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Disease Onset ◽  
Treatment Completion ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Setting ◽  
Financial Strain ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Health Seeking ◽  
Tb Treatment

BackgroundMitigating the socioeconomic impact of tuberculosis (TB) is key to the WHO End TB Strategy. However, little known about socioeconomic well-being beyond TB-treatment completion. In this mixed-methods study, we describe socioeconomic outcomes after TB-disease in urban Blantyre, Malawi, and explore pathways and barriers to financial recovery.MethodsAdults ≥15 years successfully completing treatment for a first episode of pulmonary TB under the National TB Control Programme were prospectively followed up for 12 months. Socioeconomic, income, occupation, health seeking and cost data were collected. Determinants and impacts of ongoing financial hardship were explored through illness narrative interviews with purposively selected participants.Results405 participants were recruited from February 2016 to April 2017. Median age was 35 years (IQR: 28–41), 67.9% (275/405) were male, and 60.6% (244/405) were HIV-positive. Employment and incomes were lowest at TB-treatment completion, with limited recovery in the following year: fewer people were in paid work (63.0% (232/368) vs 72.4% (293/405), p=0.006), median incomes were lower (US$44.13 (IQR: US$0–US$106.15) vs US$72.20 (IQR: US$26.71–US$173.29), p<0.001), and more patients were living in poverty (earning <US$1.90/day: 57.7% (211/366) vs 41.6% (166/399), p<0.001) 1 year after TB-treatment completion compared with before TB-disease onset. Half of the participants (50.5%, 184/368) reported ongoing dissaving (use of savings, selling assets, borrowing money) and 9.5% (35/368) reported school interruptions in the year after TB-treatment completion. Twenty-one participants completed in-depth interviews. Reported barriers to economic recovery included financial insecurity, challenges rebuilding business relationships, residual physical morbidity and stigma.ConclusionsTB-affected households remain economically vulnerable even after TB-treatment completion, with limited recovery in income and employment, persistent financial strain requiring dissaving, and ongoing school interruptions. Measures of the economic impact of TB disease should include the post-TB period. Interventions to protect the long-term health and livelihoods of TB survivors must be explored.

Limits of the current implementation of incremental housing

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Goran Ivo Marinovic
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Housing Policy ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Bank Loans ◽  
Housing Project ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Specific Location ◽  
Current Implementation ◽  
Incremental Housing

In the case of conventional public housing, urban planners and policymakers design the layout of a housing project in a specific location and then estimate how many households can afford a home. This housing policy has been pursued as a legitimate solution for housing low- and middle-income households where the houses are individually financed by bank loans or mortgages raised by the occupants. John Turner criticised conventional housing solutions by affirming that ‘developing governments take the perspective of the elite and act as if the process of low-income houses were the same as in high-income countries and the same as for the small upper-middle class of their own countries’. Bruce Ferguson and Jesus Navarrete extend this argument with their critique of distributing finished houses to low-income populations and then requiring long-term payments, which are harmful to the beneficiaries. They note that ‘governments think of housing as complete units built by developers that households must purchase with a long-term loan rather than as a progressive process’.

scholarly journals Influences on catch-up growth using relative versus absolute metrics: evidence from the MAL-ED cohort study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie A. Richard ◽  
Benjamin J. J. McCormick ◽  
Laura E. Murray-Kolb ◽  
Pascal Bessong ◽  
Sanjaya K. Shrestha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Cognitive Outcomes ◽  
Absolute Difference ◽  
Maternal Height ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Poor Growth ◽  
Micronutrient Status

Abstract Background Poor growth in early childhood has been considered irreversible after 2–3 years of age and has been associated with morbidity and mortality over the short-term and with poor economic and cognitive outcomes over the long-term. The MAL-ED cohort study was performed in eight low-income settings with the goal of evaluating relationships between the child’s environment and experience (dietary, illness, and pathogen exposure, among others) and their growth and development. The goal of this analysis is to determine whether there are differences in the factors associated with growth from 24 to 60 months using two different metrics. Methods Across six MAL-ED sites, 942 children had anthropometry data at 24 and 60 months, as well as information about socioeconomic status, maternal height, gut permeability (lactulose-mannitol z-score (LMZ)), dietary intake from 9 to 24 months, and micronutrient status. Anthropometric changes were in height- or weight-for-age z-score (HAZ, WAZ), their absolute difference from the growth standard median (HAD (cm), WAD (kg)), as well as recovery from stunting/underweight. Outcomes were modeled using multivariate regression. Results At 24 months, almost half of the cohort was stunted (45%) and 21% were underweight. Among those who were stunted at 24 months (n = 426), 185 (43%) were no longer stunted at 60 months. Most children increased their HAZ from 24 to 60 months (81%), whereas fewer (33%) had positive changes in their HAD. Linear regression models indicate that girls improved less than boys from 24 to 60 months (HAZ: -0.21 (95% CI -0.27, -0.15); HAD: -0.75 (-1.07, -0.43)). Greater intestinal permeability (higher LMZ) at 0–24 months was associated with lower relative and absolute changes from 24 to 60 months (HAZ: -0.10 (-0.16, -0.04); HAD: -0.47 (-0.73, -0.21)). Maternal height (per 10 cm) was positively associated with changes (HAZ: 0.09 (0.03, 0.15); HAD: 0.45 (0.15, 0.75)). Similar relationships were identified for changes in WAZ and WAD. Conclusions The study children demonstrated improved growth from 24 to 60 months of age, but only a subset had positive changes in HAD and WAD. The same environmental factors were associated with growth from 24 to 60 months regardless of metric used (change in HAZ or HAD, or WAZ and WAD).

Trajectories of adolescent poly-substance use and their long-term social and economic outcomes for males from low-income backgrounds

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francis Vergunst ◽  
Nicholas Chadi ◽  
Massimiliano Orri ◽  
Camille Brousseau-Paradis ◽  
Natalie Castellanos-Ryan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Economic Outcomes
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