Quality Education

Recent globalization processes have changed significantly the conditions and features of female rural-to-urban labour migration in Thailand, particularly in terms of social networks and rural-urban interactions. The Thai case is specifically interesting because the Thai societal model is often said to support female migration better than other cultures. Thai female migrants encounter globalization, especially when they search for employment in the industries of Bangkok and its vicinity, the site of condensing economic globalization. The “feminization of urban employment” and the “feminization of labour migration” actually represent two sides of the same coin.

Thailand continues to feel the impact of a long-standing acquired immunodeficiency syndrome AIDS epidemic. Encouraged by the ready availability of epidemiological and behavioural data, a number of modelling efforts have been undertaken in an attempt to understand the impact of the epidemic since 1990. However, as better models are developed and the course of the epidemic changes, owing to behaviourial modifications as well as advances in therapy, there remains an ongoing need to provide new estimates and projections of the impact of AIDS on the Thai population. This paper projects the important demographic parameters of population size and annual growth rate. In addition, mortality indicators such as the crude death rate, agespecific death rate, infant mortality rate, child mortality rate (1-4 years) and life expectancy at birth are projected. These projections are made through a comparison of two scenarios: in the absence of AIDS and with AIDS. The paper concludes with a discussion of some of the potential social and economic impacts of AIDS.

Breastfeeding is important because of its relationship to child health and birth spacing. It has been well documented that mother’s milk is the best food for the newborn child and that it has a significant impact on reducing infant mortality. In developing countries, breastfed infants experience substantially lower morbidity and mortality risks than infants who are not breastfed, particularly in the first year of life (Knodel and Kinter, 1977; Palloni and Millman, 1986: Pebley and Stupp, 1987: Retherford and others, 1989; Shall and Khanna, 1990). The advantage of breastfeeding in terms of savings on expenditures on alternative food is also important in poor families. There are advantages for the mother too. Not only does breastfeeding help to establish a closer relationship between the mother and infant, but it also helps to delay the resumption of ovulation and thus promotes spacing of births (Van Esterik and Greiner, 1981). Bongaaits and Potter (1983) have pointed out that in populations without access to modern forms of contraception, birth intervals are determined primarily by duration of breastfeeding.

This new textbook of demography combines a discussion of methods of analysis of demographic data with explanation of demographic concepts and research issues.

First sexual intercourse is a significant event in a man’s life, whether or not it happens within the context of marriage. In the wake of the HIV pandemic, sexual initiation before marriage has become a focus of attention. From an intervention point of view, the proportion of young people who are sexually active, especially before they form stable partnerships, is an important area of concern. Early age at sexual debut and the number of pre-marital partners have been shown to be correlated with risk behaviour later in life (White and others, 2000). Contextual data on sexual partners and circumstances are needed to understand and assess the risk associated with early sexual experiences, and thereby design appropriate policies and programmes.

Ethnic differences in fertility behaviour have become increasingly important and of much concern to policy makers, programme planners and managers in many pluralistic societies of the Asian and Pacific region.

We have come a long way since 1960 when the American sociologist, the late Dudley Kirk, called migration the “stepchild of demography”. In the intervening 45 years, that stepchild has become richly endowed indeed with, particularly since the late 1980s, a torrential outpouring of articles, books and research on the topic. Our empirical knowledge has certainly expanded greatly, but whether theoretical and conceptual understanding has seen equivalent refinement might be a matter of some debate. Unquestionably, today, migration has gained a much greater public awareness with government departments in countries in both the developed and the developing worlds, as well as several international organizations, moving the subject towards the top of the political and the policy agenda. Developing countries fear that the loss of their educated and skilled citizens will prejudice their chance of reaching higher levels of development. Developed countries need labour to do certain types of jobs but fear that importing labour will create both social stress at home and conflict with their development policy abroad by “poaching” the best and the brightest. International organizations try to work out how best to manage the flows in the interests of both countries of origin and countries of destination, as well as of the migrants themselves.

The short answer to the question posed by the paper’s title is “no”, although any disease that kills millions should be combated with all the means available. I first addressed this question in an editorial in Social Science and Medicine a decade ago (Caldwell, 1995) and little has changed since then. That view is supported by the evidence found in major recent reports upon which this viewpoint is based (Stanecki, 2004; UNAIDS/WHO, 2004; USAID/US Census Bureau, 2004).

In a traditional viewpoint, migrants are both pushed by lack of opportunities at home and pulled by the hope of economic gain. A search for a better life is often underlying the movements. Development processes affect and are affected by migration flows. Migration can help to achieve this by associating people more closely with available economic opportunities, employment and services. This thesis remains relevant today. Both internal and international migration is on the whole contributing to development and poverty reduction (IOM, 2003). The monies sent back by migrants contribute more to national and local economies than trade in several countries. Registered remittances to the countries of origin were estimated at US$100 billion in 2004. It represents roughly one and a half times official development assistance (Newland, 2004). In addition, a large, unknown amount is transferred through informal channels or to countries that do not report statistics on remittances. A major reason to transfer money through informal channels is the still inadequately developed banking systems in countries of origin. The effects of remittances on development are often complex and contradictory, but seen in a positive light by a majority of researchers.

One promising approach to encouraging contraceptive acceptance and practice has been initiated by a non-governmental organization (NGO) in Thailand, the Population and Community Development Association (PDA). Community-level incentives, directed to the village as a unit and to individuals as isolates, are thought to put less direct pressure on the individual. In addition, the locus of power in such plans may be placed at the community level, as opposed to some higher administrative stratum far removed from the people the programme was meant to serve.