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- Volume 16, Issue 1, 2013
Asia-Pacific Development Journal - Volume 16, Issue 1, 2013
Volume 16, Issue 1, 2013
The primary emphasis of the Journal is the publication of empirically based, policy-oriented articles, which can engage the attention of policy makers, academicians and researchers. The articles analyze development issues and problems relevant to the Asia-Pacific region. The Asia-Pacific Development Journal is issued twice a year.
Language:
English
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Institutions and the quality of governance: An empirical study on interstate differences in economic development in India
Authors: Bharatee Bhusana Dash and Angara V. RajaEconomic performance is closely linked to the existence of good institutions. However, the quality of governance has also been identified as an important factor that affects economic growth and development. This paper empirically examines the significance of these factors in explaining variations in the per capita GDP of the Indian states and the extent of industrialization across them. Towards this end, indices for institutions—such as the protection of property rights, the efficiency of the legal system at the state level and the rule of law—as well as indicators of the extent and quality of State intervention and political stability, have been constructed to bring them into an empirically testable format. Empirical findings suggest that the quality of governance is significant in explaining the variations in state per capita GDP. Institutional factors play a significant role in explaining variations in the extent of industrialization across the Indian states.
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Public health, urban governance and the poor in Bangladesh: Policy and practice
Author: Ferdous Arfina OsmanAs is the case elsewhere in Asia, urbanization is growing at a rapid pace in Bangladesh. With the increased urbanization, the basic amenities of life are not expanding for the urbanites. Rather, the increased populations have been exerting continuous pressure on the existing limited facilities. The poor, who constitute a large portion (45 per cent) of the urban population, are the principal victims of this predicament and are significantly disadvantaged in access to basic services, particularly public health services. Urban governance has yet to be efficient enough to deal with this urgent issue. The country still lacks adequate policy direction for urban public health and the management of existing services is also quite inefficient. This paper attempts to identify the weaknesses of urban governance that result in the poor having inadequate access to public and primary health services by reviewing the existing policies and institutional arrangements for the provision of services and by examining the extent to which they are put into practice in terms of ensuring access to these services for the urban poor. Thus the study seeks to identify the inadequacies of the policies and practices contributing to the lack of primary and public health services for the urban poor. It draws on the findings of an empirical study conducted in four slums of the capital city of Bangladesh.
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The impact of international and internal remittances on household welfare: Evidence from Viet Nam
Author: Cuong Viet NguyenUsing data from the Viet Nam household living standard surveys of 2002 and 2004, this paper measures the impact of international and internal remittances on the household welfare of remittance-receiving households. It finds that both the income and the consumption expenditures of the recipients increased as a result of international and internal remittances. The impact of remittances on non-food expenditures tended to be greater than the impact on food expenditures. For international remittances, the impact on income was much greater than the impact on consumption expenditures, meaning that a large proportion of international remittances were used for savings and investment. The impact of internal remittances on income was slightly greater than the impact on consumption expenditures. In other words, most of the internal remittances were used for consumption expenditures.
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Balancing private sector development and local-central relations
Author: Edo AndriesseAlthough academics, civil servants and non-governmental organizations involved in development have continued to promote policies for local economies, many localities fail to catch up with average national development patterns. The body of knowledge on this topic has been split into two parts: private sector development (PSD) and local-central relations (LCR). This article argues that, in order for policies to be effective, PSD and LCR should be analysed simultaneously. Drawing on evidence from empirical work conducted in South-East Asia, the article offers policymakers some ways forward. Important features to be reckoned with are the sequencing of policies, the problem of historically rooted disabling institutions, the benefits of local enabling institutions, ethnic tensions and structural opposition from central Governments.
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Opportunities and constraints of organic agriculture in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand
Authors: Arpaphan Pattanapant and Ganesh P. ShivakotiThe application of chemicals in conventional agriculture to increase productivity can result in environmental degradation, bring about economic problems and cause harmful effects on farmers, labourers and consumers. Responding to these problems, a number of nongovernmental organizations and government agencies have been promoting organic agriculture in the province of Chiang Mai in order to assure food safety and at the same time alleviate the poverty of farmers. The present study discusses the organic agriculture movement in Chiang Mai and compares organic agriculture with conventional agriculture in terms of yields, socio-economic considerations and human health aspects. The findings show that organic agriculture could generate significant benefits. However, constraints inherent to organic farming practices and other factors, including off-farm works and perceptions of organic agriculture, complicate the process of organic certification and standards, and to some extent weaken extension efforts in promoting organic agriculture. In order to improve organic farming, there is a need for all stakeholders, namely, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, consumers and farmer organizations, to work together.
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