scholarly journals Land Quality, Development and Space: Does Scale Matter?

2014 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-112
Author(s):  
Luca Salvati

This study analyzes empirically the relationship between land quality decline and the spatial distribution of per capita income observed in Italy at different spatial scales and geographical divisions. The aim of this contribution is to verify if a decline in land quality has higher probability to occur in economically disadvantaged areas and if scale may influence this relationship. Per capita income was considered a proxy indicator for the level of socio-economic development and life quality in the investigated area. Changes over time (1990–2000) of a composite index of land quality and per capita income in Italy were regressed at four spatial scales: (i) 20 NUTS-2 regions, (ii) 103 NUTS-3 prefectures, (iii) 784 local districts designed as Local Labour Market Areas (LLMAs), and (iv) 8,101 LAU-1 municipalities. Different specifications were tested, including first, second and third order polynomial equations. Linear models allowed the best fit for data examined at all spatial scales. However, elasticity of the dependent variable to per capita income varied considerably according to scale suggesting that developmental policies may have a limited impact on land quality in vulnerable southern Italian areas compared to northern and central Italy. This study suggests that geographically disaggregated data simulating different spatial levels of governance may offer further insights compared to cross-country datasets indicating targets for multi-scale policies possibly preventing a poverty-desertification spiral.

2020 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 323-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vadim Radaev ◽  
Yana Roshchina ◽  
Daria Salnikova

Abstract Aim Previous studies on youth drinking showed opposite trends for high-income and low-income countries. In Russia, a recent decline was observed in the prevalence of alcohol use, particularly among younger cohorts. This study aims at disentangling age and birth cohort effects to better understand the dynamics of abstinence and the volume of alcohol consumption. Methods Data were collected from annual nationally representative panel surveys from 2006 to 2017. Data included 34,514 individuals aged 14–80. We estimated mixed-effects binary-choice models for percentage of abstainers and mixed-effects linear models with Heckman correction for alcohol volume. Integer variables of age and age-squared were used. Period was defined with a dummy variable using 2012 as the dividing line associated with a new Russian alcohol policy. Birth cohorts were defined as 13 groups from 1930–1939 to 2000–2003. Controls were per capita income, education, marital status, composition of households, body weight, ethnicity, residence type, regional per capita income and regional climate. Results In both genders, percentage of abstainers increased and drinking volumes declined. Age for both genders showed u-shaped trend for abstinence and inverse u-shaped trend for alcohol volume. Controlling for age effects, cohorts born after 1990 demonstrated the strongest increase in abstinence for both genders and the strongest decrease in alcohol volume for males. The period of 2012–2017 had the effect of increasing the abstinence and decreasing the alcohol volume. Conclusion Downward trend in alcohol consumption in Russia is partially attributable to increased abstinence and reduced alcohol volume among younger cohorts.


1973 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-437
Author(s):  
Sarfaraz Khan Qureshi

In the Summer 1973 issue of the Pakistan Development Review, Mr. Mohammad Ghaffar Chaudhry [1] has dealt with two very important issues relating to the intersectoral tax equity and the intrasectoral tax equity within the agricultural sector in Pakistan. Using a simple criterion for vertical tax equity that implies that the tax rate rises with per capita income such that the ratio of revenue to income rises at the same percentage rate as per capita income, Mr. Chaudhry found that the agricultural sector is overtaxed in Pakistan. Mr. Chaudhry further found that the land tax is a regressive levy with respect to the farm size. Both findings, if valid, have important policy implications. In this note we argue that the validity of the findings on intersectoral tax equity depends on the treatment of water rate as tax rather than the price of a service provided by the Government and on the shifting assumptions regard¬ing the indirect taxes on imports and domestic production levied by the Central Government. The relevance of the findings on the intrasectoral tax burden would have been more obvious if the tax liability was related to income from land per capita.


1993 ◽  
Vol 32 (4I) ◽  
pp. 411-431
Author(s):  
Hans-Rimbert Hemmer

The current rapid population growth in many developing countries is the result of an historical process in the course of which mortality rates have fallen significantly but birthrates have remained constant or fallen only slightly. Whereas, in industrial countries, the drop in mortality rates, triggered by improvements in nutrition and progress in medicine and hygiene, was a reaction to economic development, which ensured that despite the concomitant growth in population no economic difficulties arose (the gross national product (GNP) grew faster than the population so that per capita income (PCI) continued to rise), the drop in mortality rates to be observed in developing countries over the last 60 years has been the result of exogenous influences: to a large degree the developing countries have imported the advances made in industrial countries in the fields of medicine and hygiene. Thus, the drop in mortality rates has not been the product of economic development; rather, it has occurred in isolation from it, thereby leading to a rise in population unaccompanied by economic growth. Growth in GNP has not kept pace with population growth: as a result, per capita income in many developing countries has stagnated or fallen. Mortality rates in developing countries are still higher than those in industrial countries, but the gap is closing appreciably. Ultimately, this gap is not due to differences in medical or hygienic know-how but to economic bottlenecks (e.g. malnutrition, access to health services)


This paper focuses upon the magnitude of income-based poverty among non-farm households in rural Punjab. Based on the primary survey, a sample of 440 rural non-farm households were taken from 44 sampled villages located in all 22 districts of Punjab.The poverty was estimated on the basis of income level. For measuring poverty, various methods/criteria (Expert Group Criteria, World Bank Method and State Per Capita Income Criterion) were used. On the basis of Expert Group Income criterion, overall, less than one-third of the persons of rural non-farm household categories are observed to be poor. On the basis, 40 percent State Per Capita Income Criteria, around three-fourth of the persons of all rural non-farm household categories are falling underneath poverty line. Similarly, the occurrence of the poverty, on the basis of 50 percent State Per Capita Income Criteria, showed that nearly four-fifths of the persons are considered to be poor. As per World Bank’s $ 1.90 per day, overall, less than one-fifth of rural non-farm household persons are poor. Slightly, less than one-fourth of the persons are belonging to self-employment category, while, slightly, less than one-tenth falling in-service category. On the basis of $ 3.10 per day criteria, overall, less than two-fifth persons of all rural non-farm household categories were living below the poverty line.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 163
Author(s):  
Celeste Perrucchini ◽  
Hiroshi Ito

Empirical evidence suggests an overall convergence in terms of GDP and per capita income occurring among the European Union (EU) Member States. Nevertheless, economic inequalities have been increasing at the regional level within European Union countries. Through the review of relevant literature, this study analyzes the increasing inequalities from an economical point of view, focusing on Italy and the UK as examples. First, a general overlook of the empirical evidence of the GDP and per capita income at national and sub-national levels will be presented. Second, an explanation of the possible causes of the results will be proposed through the use of economical and sociological theories. The findings of this research might uncover the relative inefficacy of EU Cohesion policies and point towards the necessity for deeper and more thoughtful measures to continue the convergence of Member States while preserving internal equilibria. This paper ends with discussions for the future directions of the EU.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 130-151
Author(s):  
Fernanda Andrade de Xavier ◽  
Aparna P. Lolayekar ◽  
Pranab Mukhopadhyay

We study the effect of revenue decentralization (RD) and expenditure decentralization (ED) on sub-national growth in India from 1981–1982 to 2015–2016 for 14 large (non-special-category) states. Our study provides evidence that both RD and ED play a defining role in India’s sub-national growth in this three-and-a-half-decade period. We use a panel data model with fixed effects (FE) and Driscoll and Kraay standard errors that control for heteroscedasticity, autocorrelation and cross-sectional dependence. To test for causality between growth and decentralization, we use the Granger non-causality test. The regression analysis is supplemented with the distribution dynamics approach. We find that: (a) While decentralization Granger-caused economic growth, the reverse causality effect of growth on decentralization was not significant; (b) Economic growth increased significantly after liberalization; (c) Decentralization, capital expenditure and social expenditure had significant positive impacts on economic growth; and (d) States that had high levels of decentralization also had high levels of per capita income, while states that had low decentralization also exhibited low per capita income.


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