From Farm to Firm
From Farm to Firm

Author:

Publisher: World Bank Publications

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 0821386239

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The process of rural-urban transformation presents both opportunities and challenges for development. If managed effectively, it can result in growth that benefits everyone; if managed poorly, it can lead to stark welfare disparities and entire regions cut off from the advantages of agglomeration economies. The importance of rural-urban transition has been confirmed by two consecutive World Development Reports: WDR 2008 Agriculture for Development; and WDR 2009 Reshaping Economic Geography. Focusing on Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, this book picks up where the WDRs left off, investigating the influence of country conditions and policies on the pace, pattern, and consequences of rural-urban transition and suggesting strategies to ensure that its benefits results in shared improvements in well-being. The book uncovers vast inequalities, whether between two regions of one country, between rural and urban areas, or within cities themselves. The authors find little evidence to suggest that these inequalities will automatically diminish as countries develop: empirical and qualitative analysis suggests that spatial divides are mainly a function of country conditions, policies and institutions. By implication, policymakers must take active steps to ensure that rural-urban transition results in shared growth. Spatially unbiased provision of health and education services is crucial to ensuring that the benefits of transition are shared by all. But connective infrastructure and targeted interventions also emerge as important considerations, even in countries with severely constrained fiscal and administrative capacity. The authors suggest steps for navigating the tricky political economy of land reforms. And they alert readers to potential spillover effects that mean that policies designed for one space can have unintended consequences on another. Policymakers and development experts, as well as anyone concerned with the impact of rural-urban transition on growth and equity, will find this book a thought-provoking and informative read.

Agriculture and Rural Development Planning
Agriculture and Rural Development Planning

Author: H. David Akroyd

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-10-24

Total Pages: 269

ISBN-13: 1351960105

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This book meets the needs of teachers and students of agriculture and rural development project and programme planning, planners employed by governments in developing countries and by external financing agencies. Project planners must understand the aspirations of rural families and their local leaders, the national development and sector planning goals and policies of their governments and the development goals and policy priorities perceived by external financing agencies in relation to their countries. These areas are not always consistent and trade-offs may be required. However it is recognised that poor project planning is a major constraint to the sustainable realization of project and programme objectives and sector goals. Illustrated with case studies and logical framework matrices, this book presents well-established and relatively new practices followed in the context of agriculture and rural development project and programme planning. Although based on experiences gained in Africa, the issues described are relevant to planning problems encountered in other developing regions of the world. It addresses the main factors which affect the success of planning such as a government's ability to guarantee macro-economic stability and sound sector development policies; the shift from 'top-down', bureaucratic to 'bottom-up', participatory planning approaches and the roles played by external financing agencies. It explains key technical, financial, economic, environmental, socio-cultural, equity, gender and institutional-strengthening issues concerning planning in rural areas and reviews the planning tools and approaches available. The procurement of goods and services, the disbursement of funds and monitoring and evaluation requirements are examined in detail.

Land in Transition
Land in Transition

Author: Martin Ravallion

Publisher: World Bank Publications

Published: 2008-04-07

Total Pages: 218

ISBN-13: 0821372769

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This book is a case study of Vietnam's efforts to fight poverty using market-oriented land reforms. In the 1980s and 1990s, the country undertook major institutional reforms, and an impressive reduction in poverty followed. But what role did the reforms play? Did the efficiency gains from reform come at a cost to equity? Were there both winners and losers? Was rising rural landlessness in the wake of reforms a sign of success or failure? 'Land in Transition' investigates the impacts on living standards of the two stages of land law reform: in 1988, when land was allocated to households administratively and output markets were liberalized; and in 1993, when official land titles were introduced and land transactions were permitted for the first time since communist rule began. To fully assess the poverty impacts of these changes, the authors' analysis of household surveys is guided by both economic theory and knowledge of the historical and social contexts. The book delineates lessons from Vietnam's experience and their implications for current policy debates in China and elsewhere.

Rationalizing Rural Area Classifications for the Economic Research Service
Rationalizing Rural Area Classifications for the Economic Research Service

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2016-02-05

Total Pages: 191

ISBN-13: 0309380561

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service (USDA/ERS) maintains four highly related but distinct geographic classification systems to designate areas by the degree to which they are rural. The original urban-rural code scheme was developed by the ERS in the 1970s. Rural America today is very different from the rural America of 1970 described in the first rural classification report. At that time migration to cities and poverty among the people left behind was a central concern. The more rural a residence, the more likely a person was to live in poverty, and this relationship held true regardless of age or race. Since the 1970s the interstate highway system was completed and broadband was developed. Services have become more consolidated into larger centers. Some of the traditional rural industries, farming and mining, have prospered, and there has been rural amenity-based in-migration. Many major structural and economic changes have occurred during this period. These factors have resulted in a quite different rural economy and society since 1970. In April 2015, the Committee on National Statistics convened a workshop to explore the data, estimation, and policy issues for rationalizing the multiple classifications of rural areas currently in use by the Economic Research Service (ERS). Participants aimed to help ERS make decisions regarding the generation of a county rural-urban scale for public use, taking into consideration the changed social and economic environment. This report summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

Reflecting Transformation in Post-socialist Rural Areas
Reflecting Transformation in Post-socialist Rural Areas

Author: Maarit Heinonen

Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing

Published: 2021-03-04

Total Pages: 310

ISBN-13: 1527566943

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The rural reforms in many post-soviet countries produced a number of unintended consequences. The reforms were guided by ideals of romanticized society of family farmers; they were to be the basis of the rural middle-class, together with owners of non-agricultural SME’s, acting as guardians of democracy and common good. The guidelines were set by advisers from World Bank and IMF, who preferred family farms or individual farms over the collective enterprises. In most countries the result was nothing like those envisaged by reformers. Instead of efficient and productive family farms, the result was almost complete de-capitalization of agriculture and collapse of production. The reform was destructive not only as far as production is concerned, but more importantly to rural communities. Social ties, which were based on the collective farm as the main economic and social resource for local community, were eroded. Only from the turn of this decade some early stages have been visible of new developments in economic and social life in post-socialist rural areas. The result is that now, more than fifteen years since the beginning of agricultural reforms, the key agricultural producers in Russia, Baltic countries and elsewhere are very large capitalist farms or large agricultural holding companies. This anthology is based on the presentations given at the 5th Aleksanteri Conference 10 – 11 November 2005 in Helsinki, Finland, and it is devoted to the analysis of some of these issues. The volume is divided into two parts, in the first part the focus is on the patterns and problems of transformation of post-socialist agriculture and agricultural policies while the second part is focuses mainly on efforts to revitalize rural communities and issues of local development.

Rural Youth at the Crossroads
Rural Youth at the Crossroads

Author: Kai. A Schafft

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-12-30

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 1000289559

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Featuring chapters by an international group of scholars and academics, Rural Youth at the Crossroads discusses the challenges and contexts facing youth from rural communities in countries with legacies of socialism undergoing social, political, and economic transition. The chapters employ a variety of sources and approaches to examine rural youth outcomes, and the well-being and sustainability of rural areas. The book focuses particularly on career and educational goals, the often contradictory relations between rural schools and communities, majority-minoritized group relations, community engagement, and political attitudes. Individual chapters examine these questions and dynamics within Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Serbia, and Vietnam. In total the volume represents a unique and timely comparative discussion of the relationship between youth and rural development within transitional societies, and the challenges and opportunities for enhancing the well-being and sustainability of rural communities. Aimed at informing strategies to revitalize rural social space, this book is targeted towards social scientists with interest in sociology and rural sociology, demography, education, youth development, community/regional development, rurality, public policy, and identity formation in transitional contexts. As such, this book will have international appeal to researchers, educators, and policymakers in transitional countries, and to those interested in these topics, regions, and communities.

Navigating the Transition from High School to College for Students with Disabilities
Navigating the Transition from High School to College for Students with Disabilities

Author: Meg Grigal

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2018-07-16

Total Pages: 201

ISBN-13: 1317389158

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Navigating the Transition from High School to College for Students with Disabilities provides effective strategies for navigating the transition process from high school into college for students with a wide range of disabilities. As students with disabilities attend two and four-year colleges in increasing numbers and through expanding access opportunities, challenges remain in helping these students and their families prepare for and successfully transition into higher education. Professionals and families supporting transition activities are often unaware of today’s new and rapidly developing options for postsecondary education. This practical guide offers user-friendly resources, including vignettes, research summaries, and hands-on activities that can be easily implemented in the classroom and in the community and that facilitate strong collaboration between schools and families. Preparation issues such as financial aid, applying for college, and other long-term planning areas are addressed in detail. An accompanying student resource section offers materials for high school students with disabilities that secondary educators, counselors, and transition personnel can use to facilitate exploration and planning discussions. Framing higher education as a possible transition goal for all students with disabilities, Navigating the Transition from High School to College for Students with Disabilities supports the postsecondary interests of more than four million public school students with disabilities.

Rural Transition in Azerbaijan
Rural Transition in Azerbaijan

Author: Zvi Lerman

Publisher: Lexington Books

Published: 2010-02-15

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13: 0739143182

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The book demonstrates that reform policies_including privatization of land and the shift from collective to individual farming_have a significant impact on agricultural growth, rural incomes, and poverty alleviation. The analysis spans more than 40 years of agricultural and rural development in Azerbaijan, based on country-level statistical data and original farm and household surveys.

Rural Adaptation in Russia
Rural Adaptation in Russia

Author: Stephen K. Wegren

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2022-05-19

Total Pages: 146

ISBN-13: 1317977084

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The current dominant approach to Russian peasant behaviour emphasizes rural resistance to reform in broad terms, and to the introduction of market forces in particular. Bringing together some of the finest scholars on rural Russia, this groundbreaking volume examines this perception with an analysis of both historical and contemporary patterns of rural adaptation in Russia. Four articles included analyze peasant responses in the post-Soviet era, and focus on: * the relationship between poverty and rural adaptation * the social origins of private farmers in southern Russia and Ukraine * response patterns by large farms (formerly collective and state farms) * household adaptation using a standardized set of criteria. This fascinating book gives an illuminating picture of the ways in which peasants respond to new environmental conditions and stimuli created by reform. The substantive material included draws on fieldwork and survey data collected from rural Russia, from the Stolypin reforms in the pre-Soviet era, and collectivisation of agriculture during the 1930s in the Soviet era. This book was previously as a special issue of The Journal of Peasant Studies.