The Impact of Trade Deficit in Nepalese Economy

The objective of this paper is to study and analyze the growth and direction of Nepalese foreign trade along with the causes and recommendations of trade deficit. Efforts have been made to sort out the principal sources of the trade deficit in Nepal. Landlockedness, political instability, lack of export diversification, devaluation of domestic currency, lack of resources, etc. are the major causes of the trade deficit in Nepal. Nepal, being not self-reliant on factors of production, consumer goods and capital goods, needs to import goods from abroad. On another hand, Nepal’s exports are heavily concentrated; both in terms of product and destination. Nepal’s major trading partners are India, China, U.A.E, etc. During the year 2019/20, Nepal exports goods worth RS. 97.71 Billion And import goods worth RS. 1196.80 billion Leading to a trade deficit of Rs.1099.09 Billion. Trade deficit is acting as negative catalyst in the economic growth and GDP of a country. Increased deficit has caused suppressed inflation. Import to export ratio is continuously increasing as demand is increasing and these demands could not be met by the domestic producers. During the year 2019/20, the contribution of trade on GDP of Nepal is 40.65%. No doubt, trade is an engine of economic growth. So, after analyzing barriers in the foreign trade, some of the steps to be taken are recommended which includes the development of competitive ability and enhancement of Human Resources, commodity and market diversification, formulation of strong legal framework and trade policy, incentives for the promotion of export and priority in the agricultural and hydropower sectors.

The assessment of government incentives on savings, Hungary 2006–2019

This study analyses the effectiveness of government incentives on household savings in Hungary prior to the Covid pandemic and the ensuing economic turmoil. Time series pertaining to life insurance, voluntary pension savings, and long-term and short-term government bonds are tested in relation to government incentives. The novelty of this study is the test on complex mix of policy incentives and saving funds. The analysis applies the multiple breakpoint test and OLS regression, based on the behavioural life cycle hypothesis. The conclusion is that in the analysed time period the government incentives had a significant effect and promoted savings behaviour, with the exception of short-term government bonds.

ESPINHEIRA-SANTA: DO EXTRATIVISMO À PRODUÇÃO SUSTENTÁVEL

O uso tradicional de espécies nativas para fins terapêuticos apresenta benefícios diretos e imediatos para distintas populações locais, seja pelo cuidado com a saúde ou pela possibilidade de produção e geração de renda. Porém, podem colaborar com a degradação dos ecossistemas, pelo extrativismo e superexploração, que têm colaborado com o avanço do desequilíbrio ecológico. Deste modo, o objetivo desse estudo foi utilizar a Maytenus ilicifolia para exemplificar o que ocorre em relação à exploração e uso de plantas medicinais no Brasil. O estudo foi conduzido a partir da literatura científica, sendo a busca realizada nas plataformas Scielo, Research-Gate, Scoppus, Web-of-Science e Google Acadêmico. As palavras espinheira-santa e Maytenus ilicifolia foram utilizadas nas buscas. Foram selecionados os artigos que abordassem os aspectos: botânica, ecologia, etnobotânica, fitoquímica, fitotecnia e adulterações. Como resultados, verificamos um grande número de publicações sobre fitoquímica, que a espécie sofre com extrativismo e falsificações, e que o manejo em agroecossistemas é ainda incipiente. Concluímos que são necessários incentivos em políticas públicas para pesquisas, produção e divulgação da espécie. Sua inserção em cadeias produtivas configura a sua conservação on farm, possibilitando um passo efetivo para conservação e preservação da espécie. Palavras-chave: agroecologia; conservação on farm; Maytenus ilicifolia; sociobiodiversidade; agricultura familiar. Espinheira-santa: from extractivism to sustainable production ABSTRACT: The traditional use of native species for therapeutic purposes has direct and immediate benefits for different local populations, whether for health care or the possibility of production and income generation. However, they can collaborate with the degradation of ecosystems, through extractivism and overexploitation, which have collaborated with the advancement of ecological imbalance. Thus, the objective of this study was to use Maytenus ilicifolia to exemplify what happens in relation to the exploration and use of medicinal plants in Brazil. The study was conducted based on the scientific literature, and the search was carried out on the Scielo, Research-Gate, Scoppus, Web-of-Science and Google Scholar platforms. The words espinheira-santa and Maytenus ilicifolia were used in the searches. Articles that addressed the following aspects were selected: botany, ecology, ethnobotany, phytochemistry, phytotechnics and adulterations. As a result, we verified many publications on phytochemistry, that the species suffers from extractivism and forgery, and that management in agroecosystems is still incipient. We conclude that public policy incentives are needed for research, production and dissemination of the species. Its insertion in production chains configures its conservation on farm, enabling an effective step towards conservation and preservation of the species. Keywords: agroecology; conservation on farm; Maytenus ilicifolia; sociobiodiversity; family farming.

Tourism and Livelihood Sovereignty: A Theoretical Introduction and Research Agenda for Arctic Contexts

The need to understand how Arctic coastal communities can remain resilient in the wake of rapid anthropogenic change that is disproportionately affecting the region—including, but not limited to, climate instability and the increasing reach of the tourism sector—is more urgent than ever. With sovereignty discourse at the forefront of Arctic sustainability research, integrating existing sovereignty scholarship into the tourism literature yields new theory-building opportunities. The purpose of this paper is to conceptually analyze the implications of (1) applying both theoretical and social movement ideas about sovereignty to tourism research in Arctic coastal communities, (2) the extent to which these ideas revolve around livelihood sovereignty in particular, (3) the influence of existing tourism development on shifting livelihood sovereignty dynamics, and, ultimately, (4) the opportunities for further research that enables more sovereign sustainable tourism development across the Arctic region. Given the northward march of the tourism frontier across Arctic regions, an exploration of tourism’s influence on sovereignty presents a timely opportunity to advance theory and promote policy incentives for forms of tourism development that are more likely to yield sustainable and resilient outcomes for Arctic communities.

Practical Research Practical Research on Online and Offline Teaching – Taking Baoshan University in Yunnan Province as an Example

Online teaching has both opportunities and challenges. The main issues that are emphasized in this study is on how to grasp and adapt to the situation, strengthen training and policy incentives, establish quality assurance supervision and inspection as well as linkage mechanism, and actively explore the reform mode. From the perspective of management, taking Baoshan University in Yunnan Province as an example, this article summarizes the practical experience of online teaching, analyzes the shortcomings of online teaching, explores the online and offline hybrid teaching, and promotes local colleges to reform their teaching mode.

The effect of commercial health insurance and health policy incentives on health risk assessment of residents

BACKGROUND: Due to the limitations of social medical insurance, commercial medical insurance is necessary. OBJECTIVE: The study aims to analyze the practical effects of commercial health insurance and health policy incentives. METHODS: The health risk assessment is performed referring to data released by China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). RESULTS: The effect coefficient of commercial health insurance for residents’ four-week prevalence is 0.067, with that for residents’ self-evaluation health being –0.032, and that for residents’ rate of medical treatment being 0.094, which is significant at the 0.01 level. Commercial health insurance has different effects on residents’ mental health. The residents who purchase commercial health insurance have 8.2%higher anxiety degree and 7.3%higher depression degree; however, their sleep condition index increases by 5.7%. CONCLUSIONS: Commercial health insurance can’t improve the four-week prevalence or self-evaluation health significantly. Nevertheless, it can improve the medical treatment rate. Commercial health insurance exhibits complicated results in terms of residents’ mental health levels. Although it has definitely improved the quality of sleep and well-being of residents and reduced loneliness, it can negatively affect mental health indexes such as anxiety and depression.

Reed Canary Grass for Energy in Sweden: Yields, Land-Use Patterns, and Climatic Profile

Research Highlights: (1) Reed canary grass (RCG) is analysed in Sweden compared to willow and poplar for 2001–2020. (2) Each crop presents a different land-use and climatic profile. (3) Average yield records of RCG are similar to willow and poplar. (4) There are divergences between trial-based and commercial yields. (5) Existing land-use change patterns suggest meadow > RCG and RCG > cereal. (6) RCG land area is very sensitive to policy incentives. Background and objectives: RCG is an alternative crop for biomass-to-energy due to high yield and frost tolerance. We assess the cultivation in Sweden by using an extensive compilation of data, with emphasis on the extent of the cultivation, climatic profile, land-use patterns, and productivity. Material and methods: RCG plantations are analysed for 2001–2020. A geostatistical analysis is performed to characterize where it is cultivated and the land uses associated. Climatic, productivity, and yield profiles are compared to willow and poplar plantations from experiments and from commercial plantations. Results: The results show that the cultivation of RCG expanded after 2005, with a maximum of 800 ha in 2009, to then decrease to the current levels of about 550 ha. It is mainly grown in colder climatic areas, with lower agricultural productivity than willow and poplar. Mean yields from trials are 6 oven dry tonnes (odt) ha−1 year−1; commercial yields are 3.5 odt ha−1 year−1. RCG replaces meadow land and then is replaced by cereals when abandoned. Conclusions: RCG is an interesting alternative with similar yields (commercial and trials) as other energy crops, but its success is more sensitive to policy incentives.