The Effects of Urban Green Space on Depressive Symptoms of Mid-Aged and Elderly Urban Residents in China: Evidence from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study

The aim of this study is to assess the impacts of urban green space on depressive symptoms among Chinese urban residents aged 45 and older. In total, 7397 urban respondents were included in this study. Each respondent participated in the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study Wave 3 (2015). Environmental-level variables were retrieved from the National Bureau of Statistics database. Both unadjusted and adjusted methods were used in the multilevel regression analysis. Almost one-third of the sample population suffered from depressive symptoms (31.20%). The multilevel logistic regression model showed that green coverage ratio of city-built districts is negatively associated with the prevalence of depressive symptoms among urban mid-aged (OR = 0.79, p < 0.05) and elderly (OR = 0.75, p < 0.05) residents, and the public recreational green space helps to reduce elderly people’s depressive symptoms (OR = 0.77, p < 0.05). This study adds insights about the impact of green space and other environmental factors on depressive symptoms among mid-aged and elderly urban dwellers. It is important to provide enough and accessible overall urban green spaces; additionally, attention should also be paid to specific green space forms such as public recreational green space.

Citizens' Use of the Internet and Public Service Delivery

This article examines citizens' use of the Internet as a popular feedback mechanism, and argues that it can help improve institutional performance. Specifically, it assesses the relationship between Internet penetration rate and public service delivery across 31 first-level administrative divisions in People's Republic of China from 1997 to 2014. A hierarchical linear modelling was conducted using secondary data released by the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Internet Network Information Centre. The result shows a positive relationship between Internet penetration rate and public service delivery when controlling for GDP per capita and education level. The positive relationship increases over time in general. The implications of Internet use for performance-based legitimacy and its impact on political change (or stability) in the authoritarian context are further discussed.

ECONOMIC VIABILITY OF BASALT-BASED BRAKE PAD IN NIGERIA

The economic analysis reveals the basic information on the expenditure and profit to an investor who is willing to invest on the production of basalt-based brake pad in Nigeria, Nigeria has huge demand of brake as revealed by data obtained from National Bureau of Statistics Abuja (NBS). The analysis was based on deductive economic analysis which assumptions were made and arrived at particular result and the costing was based on Activity-Based Costing (ABC) where overhead and indirect cost were assigned to the related product. The economic analysis will give an insight to an investor (s) who has been skeptic about investing in the manufacturing of brake pad in Nigeria. The analysis revealed that the total capital require for this investment is #54,520,184.00 to set up a manufacturing plant with a capacity of 12,960 pieces of brake pad per day with a depreciation period of ten years. It also showed that if the line will run at 75% efficiency, the annual production is 2,566,080 pieces of brake pads. The unit cost of production is #520.85, unit selling price is #572.935, interest before tax of #6,797,983.869, break-even quantity of 861,019pieces, payback period of eight months. The annual total cost of production is #1,373,924,104.00, annual total sales revenue of #1,470,309,952.00.Twenty-seven people are require for manning the plant.It is clear from above information the investment is worthwhile because of the good payback period and considering the huge demand in Nigeria.

THE MASS MEDIA AND COVID-19 VACCINATION IN IMO STATE: AN EXTRAPOLATIVE ANALYSIS

This study sought to examine the influence of the mass media in mobilizing the masses for the Covid-19 vaccine. The study was anchored on Health Belief Model (HBM). The researcher adopted the survey research design. The population of this study is the population of residence of Imo state which according to the 2016 projected population is 5,408,756 (National Bureau of Statistics, 2016). The Taro Yamen’s formula was used to arrive at a sample size of 399. The questionnaire was the research instrument used for the data collection. Findings revealed that over 70% of the residents are highly aware of the covid-19 vaccine. However, the knowledge of the vaccine is low as the average mean of 2.3 indicated that residents in Imo State are not knowledgeable about the covid-19 vaccine. This is probably the reason why findings revealed that at an average mean of 1.9, residents in Imo State seem not to want to accept the intake of the covid-19 vaccine. The researchers recommended thus residents of Imo State should endeavor to get their news through reliable sources in order to have a good mental disposition towards the vaccine; and that people in Imo State should endeavor to go and take the covid-19 vaccine. This will help close the gate to the high rates of death recorded as a result of the covid-19 vaccine.

Emulsi Sereh Wangi untuk Konservasi Cagar Budaya Berbahan Batu dan Bata

Cagar budaya berbahan batu terletak di dalam ruangan maupun di luar ruangan sangat rentan terhadap kerusakan dan pelapukan. Kerusakan dan pelapukan pada cagar budaya dapat disebabkan oleh faktor internal yaitu material penyusun benda itu sendiri maupun faktor eksternal yaitu lingkungan benda itu berada. Jenis kerusakan dan pelapukan terdiri dari fisis, kimia dan biologi. Pelapukan yang terjadi pada cagar budaya berbahan batu akibat faktor biologi disebabkan oleh pertumbuhan ganggang/algae, lumut/moss, lumut kerak/lichen. cara mengatasi lumut selama ini dilakukan dengan pembersihan secara mekanis kering, mekanis basah dan bahan kimia menggunakan hyvar XL. Sedangkan untuk mengatasi lumut kerak/lichen secara kimiawi dengan menggunakan AC 322 terdiri dari ammonium bikarbonat, sodium bikarbonat, disodium salt EDTA, CMC, Arkopal dan air. pembersihan dengan cara mekanis kering dan basah tidak mengatasi pertumbuhan lumut karena bersifat hanya memindahkan spora tidak membunuh lumut. Sedangkan penggunaan bahan kimia seperti Hyvar XL dan AC 322 dapat mencemari lingkungan. Bahan yang diuji sebagai bahan alternatif ramah lingkungan untuk membunuh koloni lumut dan lumut kerak/lichen adalah emulsi sereh wangi. Emulsi sereh wangi terdiri dari minyak atsiri sereh wangi dan surfaktan tween 80. Variasi konsentrasi bahan yang diujikan yaitu 3%, 5%, 7% dan 10% dengan konsentrasi surfaktan tween 80 sebesar 5%. Pengujian bahan skala lapangan dengan cara penyemprotan bahan pada batu yang ditumbuhi koloni lumut dan lumut kerak/lichen. Parameter yang diamati adalah pengamatan visual terhadap perubahan warna, nilai ΔE perubahan warna sebelum dan setelah dilakukan pengujian, dan dampak penggunaan emulsi sereh wangi 10% pada batu segar. Hasil pengujian yang telah dilakukan menunjukkan bahwa penggunaan emulsi sereh wangi dapat menjadi bahan alternatif ramah lingkungan untuk membunuh koloni lumut pada cagar budaya berbahan batu. Bahan emulsi sereh wangi konsentrasi 3%, 5%, 7% dan 10% secara visual atau kualitatif dapat membunuh lumut dalam durasi kontak 24 jam dan emulsi sereh wangi konsentrasi 5%, 7%, dan 10% dapat membunuh lumut kerak/lichen dalam durasi kontak 48 jam, dilihat dari perubahan warna lumut dari hijau menjadi kecoklatan dan layu mengering. Sedangkan secara kuantitatif pengukuran perubahan warna dengan menggunakan alat kolori meter dilihat nilai LAB kemudian dihitung nilai ΔE dengan software colortool. Perubahan warna lumut setelah kontak 24 jam dengan emulsi sereh wangi konsentrasi 10%, dilihat dari nilai ΔE2000 sebesar 8,5721 sedangkan perubahan warna lumut kerak/lichen setelah kontak 48 jam denilai ΔE2000 sebesar 7,2063. Untuk mengetahui dampak penggunaan bahan terhadap batu bersih/segar, kontak dengan bahan selama 6 hari dilakukan pengukuran nilai ΔE2000 sebesar 3,4592, penggunaan bahan emulsi sereh wangi 10% tidak merubah warna batuan. Berdasarkan National Bureau of Standards GB7705-87 (National Institute of Standards and Technology), suatu benda dikatakan memiliki warna yang sama jika memiliki nilai ΔE ≤6.

Growth Elasticity of Poverty in Nigeria: Empirical Analysis

This study examined growth elasticity of poverty (GEP) in Nigeria, using elasticity procedure with data from the 2020 World Bank World Development Indicators and Nigerian National Bureau of Statistics (2020), covering the period 1992-2019. The findings showed 77.1% of the GEP coefficients as positive; signifying failure of economic growth to alleviate poverty in the country. It is therefore imperative for Nigeria to initiate and implement policies covering employment generation, good governance, reduction in all forms of inequalities, functional education, among others for growth to engender poverty reduction among the citizens.

Government Expenditure and Its Effect on Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in Nigeria

This study examined government expenditure and its effect on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in Nigeria. This was undertaken given that Nigeria is a democratic underdeveloped economy seeking sustainable development. The Millennium Development Goals, the predecessor of SDGs, did not achieve much and now there are the Sustainable Development Goals to finance in the face of a volatile mono-economy, corruption, weak budgetary system, decaying infrastructure and security challenges. The specific objective of this study is to analyze the structure and trend of government expenditure from 1986 to 2020. The study adopted an ex-post-facto research design. Secondary data was obtained from publications of the Central Bank of Nigeria, National Bureau of Statistics, Transparency International and the World Bank. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used for analysis. The findings of the study revealed that recurrent expenditure outlay is higher than capital expenditure, the economic and social service sectors expenditure is inadequate to foster any meaningful sustainable development and, corruption is rife in the country. Hence, the study concludes that there are indications that the SDGs just like its predecessors, the MDGs, is on the verge of achieving poor outcomes if urgent measures are not taken to correct this. So, the study recommends that the structure of government expenditure should be reversed and made adequate; environmental sector expenditure should be disaggregated for easy inference to ensure that the issues of environmental degradation are dealt with; and agencies such as the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Nigerian Police and other security agencies should be strengthened.

Green Credit, Environmental Pollution and High-Quality Development of Green Economy

Based on the panel data of 30 provinces (cities and districts) in China from 2003 to 2019, this paper uses the Green Development Index System jointly formulated and released by the National Development and Reform Commission, the National Bureau of Statistics, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Central Organization Department to construct a comprehensive index system which can calculate the high-quality development index of green economy, and research the impact of green credit, environmental pollution and high-quality development of green economy. The results show that: (1) The improvement of green credit is conducive to promoting the high-quality development of green economy. Considering the high autocorrelation of the high-quality development of green economy, the impact of green credit on the high-quality development of green economy is still robust and does not depend on the specific metrology. (2) With Moran Index, it is found that the high-quality development of green economy has spatial characteristics. By using Spatial Dobbin Model (SDM), it is found that under both (0,1) weight matrix and geographical distance weight matrix, the impact of green credit on the high-quality development of green economy is positive, forming a positive spatial spillover effect on the high-quality development of green economy in surrounding areas. (3) By using the Intermediary Effect Model,it can be seen that environmental pollution plays a partial intermediary effect between green credit and high-quality development of green economy. There is a transmission channel of "green credit → environmental pollution → high-quality development of green economy". (4) By using Panel Quantile Regression Model, it is found, with the improvement of high-quality development of green economy, that the promotional effect brought by green credit increased.

The correlation between economic development and self -employment of the population in Kazakhstan

The purpose of the article is to determine the place of self-employment in the development of the economy of Kazakhstan and analyze its relationship. In the specifics of the development of the market economy of Kazakhstan, the development of the labor market is always in the spotlight. The functioning of the national economy directly depends on the dynamism and state of this labor market. The problem of unemployment in the labor market is one of the most important indicators of economic development. It is known that an increase in the unemployment rate has a negative effect on the development of the economy, accordingly, the economic and social burden in the state increases. One of ways out of this problem is to involve the unemployed in economic activity through selfemployment and the creation of individual jobs. This practice makes it possible to eliminate the social consequences of the rise in unemployment for many countries in the cyclical development of the economy by opening their own enterprises without hired workers. The information base of statistical analysis in the article is mainly the data of the National Bureau of Statistics of the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms of the Republic of Kazakhstan. To determine the correlation between self-employment and economic development in Kazakhstan, the main economic indicator - the dynamics of GDP growth was obtained.

An Audit into the Nature of Operations of Agro-processing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Uganda

The agro-processing Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs) form an integral part of the manufacturing sector in Uganda. To effectively facilitate product certification among MSMEs, there is a need to fully understand the nature of their operations so that appropriate interventions can be put in place. This study assessed the status quo of operations at selected MSMEs in Uganda. A semi-structured paper-based questionnaire was administered to the owners, managers, or supervisors of the 40 selected agro-processing MSMEs enrolled under the project "Empowerment of the Agro-Processing Industry to meet the Quantity and Quality Standards for the Local and Export Market", a programme enhancing the practical skills of students at Makerere University dubbed the "EAPI Project." The seven-section questionnaire consisted of both quantitative and qualitative questions focusing on (i) product optimization, (ii) raw material verification and storage, (iii) good manufacturing practices, (iv) measuring and testing equipment, (v) product assessment, presentation, and storage, (vi) waste and pest management, and (vii) infrastructure and energy utilization. The results indicate that only 23.7% of agro-processing MSMEs clearly understood the standards. Packaging was the most optimized parameter (74.4%), followed by texture and sensory properties (59% and 51.1%, respectively). About 74% of the agro-processing MSMEs were compliant in declaring the raw materials on the product label. Results indicated that maintenance of valid medical certificates, routine inspection of personnel, and provision of protective gear ranked low, with a score of 1 out of 10. Inadequate documentation was a cross-cutting issue for all operations, yet it was a driver for GMPs. There is a need to strengthen the understanding and practice of Food processing standards from the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS), in the agro-processing MSMEs through continuous human and institutional-capacity development programs.