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Abstract Ensuring access to and usage of formal financial services through digital devices can be referred to as “digital financial inclusion” (DFI). In recent years, there has been a growing trend in the use of financial services, including money transfers through mobile phones. This study applies mobile phone subscriptions as a proxy to measure the degree of DFI and explores the individual effects of DFI and remittances and their interaction effects on poverty conditions in developing countries. Using panel data from 2000 to 2020 for 123 countries and employing the dynamic generalized method of moments estimation, the results reveal that DFI and remittance inflows help ameliorate poverty in developing countries. Furthermore, we find that the coefficient of the interaction term between DFI and remittances is statistically significant and positive, suggesting that the impact of DFI on poverty alleviation could weaken as remittance inflows increase in the remittance-receiving country and vice versa.

Abstract The rural social security system is not only a major livelihood issue related to China's rural population, but also an important basis for the sustainable development of rural economy. This article discusses the problem of the failure of the rural social security system to reduce poverty, in a field survey and interview in a village in North China, further analyze was carried out on the derivative path of poverty caused by social security policies, and it was found that the lack of social security policies, obstacles to policy implementation, negative response policies and so on, It makes the security level and poverty reduction ability of rural social security policy appear obvious deficiencies. Based on the analysis of this paper, the corresponding governance countermeasures are put forward. By strengthening poverty governance, improving the implementation environment of poverty governance, improving cognitive bias and improving the efficiency of poverty reduction.

Government initiatives to eradicate poverty in developing countries have included establishing microfinance programs to provide microloans and credit to the less privileged living in peri-urban and rural areas where commercial financial institutions are underrepresented. The study aims to investigate the effect of the South African Microfinance Apex Fund (SAMAF) on poverty alleviation and job creation. This case study targeted 103 beneficiary firms and self-employed individuals to send them questionnaires. The data analysis was primarily exploratory and descriptive. The findings show that the majority, 87%, agreed that the loans they accessed were sufficient for their business plans and needs. In addition, they were able to create at least one additional job after receiving the loan and improve their total business income on average compared to before the SAMAF loan. However, due to the risk of non-repayment of loans by recipients living in informal settlements, most microfinance intermediary institutions were unwilling to expand their operations into such settlements. SAMAF, on the other hand, has flaws, one of which is the slow delivery of funds to microfinance intermediary institutions, which needs to be addressed. The study concludes that to address the credit needs of semi-rural and rural residents, microfinance intermediary institutions must do more to expand into these areas and adopt a more aggressive and creative approach to the development of financial products and expand their access to include more of the poorest and most vulnerable households.

Nurturing venture capital–backed, high-growth entrepreneurship has been strongly promoted as an effective means to achieve local development in impoverished places. Yet, growing evidence has suggested that, despite its notable successes in resource-rich regions, this approach creates limited impact in economically challenged locales. We address this conundrum by calling into question the crux of high-growth entrepreneurship—the pursuit of quick scaling through venture capital financing. Our field research in two entrepreneurship-nurturing organizations in Detroit reveals important heterogeneity in resourcing modes and venture growth in time and space. Specifically, we find that ventures developed through different modes of resourcing (financing vs. local bricolage) grow at different spatiotemporal scales (scaling up toward fast geographical expansion vs. scaling deep toward locally anchored endurance), and consequently generate distinctive yet complementary contributions to their depleted place of origin. Unlike scaling-up ventures whose local impact was explosive yet short-lived, scaling-deep ventures created jobs, products or services, and spillover effects that stayed local and addressed specific local problems. Building on these findings, we challenge the exclusive pursuit of high-growth entrepreneurship for poverty alleviation and suggest that entrepreneurship-driven local development requires cohabitation of ventures growing at varying scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPoverty is a global development challenge. However, its incidence and prevalence rates are higher in specific regions of the Global South. To this end, one of the ways to appreciate the dynamics of poverty is to situate the discussion within the context of geography. Whereas studies are showing that several geographic poverty traps exist in the Global South previous scoping reviews did not give the geography of poverty sufficient consideration, and those that attempted did not cover the entire Global South. Consequently, this study draws on the extensive data and literature on global incidences and prevalence of poverty to investigate the geographies of poverty in the Global South. To achieve this, a scoping review was conducted using PRISMA-ScR criteria. The review revealed that sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia were the hotspots of poverty, with deterministic and possibilistic elements accounting for the phenomenon. It is proposed that enough consideration be given to geographical variables when designing poverty reduction programmes to achieve equity in the fight against global poverty.

AbstractThis paper contributes to the ongoing discourse surrounding aid administration for sustainable development in the post-COVID-19 era. African economies experienced a 1.5% contraction during this period, leading to a 35.85% increase in the number of people living in poverty. The paper addresses the crucial question of aid effectiveness in light of these challenges. Utilizing a systematic review approach, we examine existing studies and identify gaps in the literature related to aid effectiveness. Our analysis focuses on a sample of 84 highly cited peer-reviewed articles from the Web of Science (WoS) database spanning the years 2003–2023. The findings reveal a trend where international donors allocate aid to numerous African countries characterized by weak governance and leadership structures. Consequently, a sizable portion of aid funds fails to reach the intended beneficiaries due to the complex challenges associated with aid administration. In response to these challenges, we advocate the adoption of comprehensive frameworks to monitor rent-seeking behaviour, which often hampers economic growth. This approach aims to address issues of embezzlement by local elites, who disproportionately receive funds on behalf of their constituencies. This will ensure that every allocated dollar of aid reaches its designated recipients. This study is distinct in its contribution by offering insights into various frameworks for aid administration while laying the foundation for improved aid management in transitional economies by providing valuable knowledge to enhance the effectiveness of aid initiatives.

AbstractInformal social and economic systems of kinship, labour relations, child fostering, food sharing and shelter sharing have characterized African societies. These arrangements have played significant roles in household risk management in Ghana in previous times and are still relevant in the management of economic hardships. Within the context of rapid globalisation and modernisation, these social and economic arrangements have changed over time, with some dire ramifications including economic hardships. Using secondary data consisting of literature sources, this paper examines these informal social and economic systems, highlighting their underlying concepts, transformations, and relevance in the prevention and management of risks associated with care, labour, and poverty. The author finds reciprocity and solidarity as the dominant underlying concepts of the social and economic systems understudied. Further, there were transformations in these arrangements contributed by factors, such as scarcity of resources, modernisation, weakening of kinship ties, unmanaged urbanisation, economic monetisation, and economic development. The paper recommends the incorporation of underlying concepts, such as reciprocity and solidarity in social protection policies for sustainable management of risks and economic hardships in the future. This will support poverty reduction efforts and the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal 1 (SDG1).

Eliminating poverty is a shared aspiration of people worldwide. This article analyzes 762 rural poverty-related texts promulgated and implemented by the Chinese Government since 1984 using content analysis based on a three-dimensional framework encompassing the time of policy issuance, policy goals, and types of policy instruments. The study outlines the overall landscape and evolutionary context of the policy system. The results show that, during absolute poverty governance, China's rural poverty governance can be broadly divided into three stages: regional development-oriented poverty alleviation, comprehensive poverty alleviation, and targeted poverty alleviation. Based on the production-oriented welfare model, economic development became the primary goal of poverty alleviation policies, while insufficient attention was given to service support and capacity-building goals. The alleviation of poverty mainly relied on the propulsive force generated by supply-side policy instruments led by the Government and the external driving force generated by environmental policy instruments, with a significant deficiency in the propulsive force produced by demand-side policy instruments. Entering the phase of relative poverty governance, optimizing poverty governance policy instruments requires breaking free from path dependence, following the evolutionary pattern of poverty governance. It involves ensuring that policy instruments support economic development while emphasizing addressing service support and capacity-building goals. It is crucial to increase the frequency of using demand-side policy instruments, stimulate their pulling force on poverty alleviation, and achieve a trend of evolutionary innovation and the collaborative governance of policy instruments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research is to examine and provide guidelines for local governments, communities, academics, and the private sector in planning and implementing poverty alleviation activities that are more effective, efficient, and on target. In addition, the specific objectives of this study are: 1) increasing the rate of regional economic growth through optimizing potential sources of regional income; 2) increasing per capita income; and 3) reducing poverty, unemployment, and socioeconomic inequality in the community. The research was conducted in Palembang City, South Sumatra, Indonesia, in the last 10 years, namely, 2017-2022. The research approach uses qualitative descriptive analysis. Moreover, data sources include secondary data and regional statistics. The results of this study are based on the Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) indicators. Based on the four priority scales in poverty alleviation, namely, Health and Infrastructure (Priority I), Education (Priority II), Food Stability (Priority III), and Population and Employment (Priority IV), a budget approach, through optimizing the regional economy and regional sources of income as well as community empowerment factors, is an important solution to poverty alleviation strategies. In addition, involvement between elements (government, organizations, communities, universities, and institutions) is expected to continue as an effort to realize that poverty alleviation can be overcome optimally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The poverty level of Bangka Belitung Islands Province (Babel) is decreasing; data from September 2022 on Bangka Belitung Islands Province is below the national poverty level (9.71 percent), which places Babel's poverty level in the 2nd lowest position nationally. However, what is problematic and interesting to study is that the majority of poor people in Bangka Belitung are in rural areas, namely, around 42,430 people. The poverty rate in rural areas provides an indication that there are still many problems with equitable development in villages. Although village autonomy has made progress in reducing inequality and poverty, economic inequality and poverty alleviation in villages are quite complex problems. This research attempts to explore problems related to economic inequality and efforts to eradicate poverty in the villages of Bangka Belitung Islands Province with the aim of looking at the factors that cause inequality as well as the efforts made by the village government to reduce poverty rates and inequality in the allocation of village budget. This research uses a qualitative-descriptive-analytic approach by describing field phenomena according to the reality that occurs. To obtain data, researchers used observation and documentation interview techniques by selecting informants based on criteria that had been determined from the start of the research. The findings in the field show that causes of inequality and poverty in Bangka Belitung village include: (1) the lack of community empowerment programs through the village budget to increase human resources in the village; (2) the weakness of poverty reduction programs in the village; (3) the weakness of creative economy programs in the village; (4) weak human resources for the village head and his apparatus in preparing the work program outlined in the RPJMDES to be implemented; and (5) guidance from the provincial and city regency governments to the village government is still far from optimal, so the programs in the village are very monotonous. Then, approaches that have been carried out in a comprehensive and integrated manner to alleviate poverty in rural communities in Bangka Belitung include: (1) increasing access to education; (2) village infrastructure development based on community economic strengthening programs; (3) skills development and training for village heads, village apparatus, and the community; (4) building and supporting entrepreneurship in the village (community empowerment); and (5) allocation of village funds that are right on target and appropriate to community needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to explore the impact of employment inclusion on poverty alleviation and income equality, identify gaps in the literature, and provide factors that hinder or facilitate employment inclusion in Indonesia. The challenge of this research is the persistence of poverty and economic inequality in Indonesia, despite the country's rapid economic growth. A qualitative literature review was conducted to analyze existing studies regarding employment inclusion, poverty alleviation, and income equality in Indonesia. The literature review shows a strong correlation between financial inclusion, economic growth, and poverty reduction, especially in high- and middle-income countries. This report examines the relationship between economic growth and poverty alleviation in Indonesia, the impact of education, unemployment, and poverty on income inequality, and the relationship between government spending, microfinance, and poverty in Indonesia. The results of this research contribute to the existing literature by generating and analyzing key findings on employment inclusion, poverty alleviation, and income equality in Indonesia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The province of South Sumatra is widely known as one of the most prosperous regions in Indonesia. In fiscal year 2022, the region's gross domestic product (GDRP) was Rp 591.603,48 billion, with a per capita income of Rp 68,31 billion. Additionally, this economy grew by 5,23%, exceeding the national average, and contributed Rp 9,98 trillion in actual revenue for the government. Nevertheless, the level of poverty remains significant, at 11.9%. Numerous scholarly studies have been conducted over the past few decades to investigate the interconnections between economic growth, income disparity, and poverty alleviation. The prevailing findings of these studies have consistently demonstrated that there is a positive correlation between economic growth and poverty alleviation. However, the relationship between economic growth and income inequality remains uncertain. This study aims to investigate the interrelationships between economic growth, inequality, and poverty reduction in the province of South Sumatra. The methodologies employed encompass descriptive analysis and panel data analysis. The analysis utilises Gross Domestic Regional Product (GDRP) statistics at the regency level, as well as data from the National Socio-economic Survey and local government budgets spanning the period from 2015 to 2022. The findings indicate that economic growth has turned out to be the result of increasing poverty and income inequality all at once. Growth in the mining and agricultural sectors tends to increase poverty because it is capital-intensive and does not appear to absorb labour from people experiencing poverty. Additionally, increases in income inequality are positively correlated with increases in poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on a harmonized longitudinal dataset covering more than 55,000 smallholder farms in six African countries, we analyze changes in crop productivity from 2008 to 2019. Because smallholder farmers represent a significant fraction of the world's poorest people, agricultural productivity in this context matters for poverty reduction and for the broader achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Our analysis measures productivity trends for nationally representative samples of smallholder crop farmers, using detailed data on agricultural inputs and outputs which we integrate with detailed data on local weather and environmental conditions. In spite of government commitments and international efforts to strengthen African agriculture, we find no evidence that smallholder crop productivity improved over this 12-y period. Our preferred statistical specification of total factor productivity (TFP) suggests an overall decline in productivity of -3.5% per year. Various other models we test also find declining productivity in the overall sample, and none of them finds productivity growth. However, the different countries in our sample experienced varying trends, with some instances of growth in some regions. The results suggest that major challenges remain for agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa. They complement previous analyses that relied primarily on aggregate national statistics to measure agricultural productivity, rather than detailed microdata. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micro and small industries (MSI) play a strategically vital role in supporting the dynamics of the economy, both globally and locally, particularly in the context of poverty alleviation and the enhancement of community welfare. The primary objective of this research is to delve into it in a more detailed and comprehensive manner by thoroughly exploring the potential and support capacity of the government for MSI focused on the development of halal products, with the aspiration of generating a substantial positive impact on overall economic growth and community welfare at a significant level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to analyze the role of Sharia economics in alleviating poverty in Indonesia. The method used in this research is a literature study, which is a series of activities relating to methods of collecting library data, reading and taking notes, as well as processing reading material into research data. Some of the literature that researchers use as data sources are books, journal articles, and news related to the role of Sharia economics in reducing poverty rates in Indonesia. One of the goals of religion is to encourage people from being left behind economically. Poverty is a serious problem that must be sought immediately for a solution because it can have very dangerous impacts, including disturbing one's faith or it could even disappear and that person becomes a disbeliever. The potential for ziswaf in Indonesia is extraordinary. If it can be managed professionally, it will have an impact on the welfare of society. How to overcome poverty can be done with various steps and strategies. The thing that must be done from the start to overcome the poverty that grips our society is to create an economic order that allows for a fair distribution system to be born, encouraging the birth of concern from people who have (aghniya') toward the needy, poor, dhu'afa' and mustard 'affine. One form of concern for Aghniya' is his willingness to pay zakat and issue sadaqah. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explore success drivers of reward-based crowdfunding for poverty alleviation in China. The results from our econometric modeling using data from 4375 reward-based crowdfunding campaigns suggest that poverty alleviation campaigns, as compared to ordinary ones, benefit from higher funded amounts, larger backer numbers, and greater success rates. The results also suggest that poverty alleviation campaigns perform better when the products sold originate from poorer (as compared to wealthier) regions and when price premiums are lower (as compared to higher). We corroborate important findings from the field study with an experimental study, showing that the consumer's feeling of warm glow accounts for the positive effects of poverty alleviation campaigns (as compared to ordinary) campaigns. We expand the applications of warm-glow theory into the context of reward-based crowdfunding campaigns for poverty alleviation and offer new insights into success drivers of such campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to estimate the net effect of China's entrepreneurship policy on back-home migrant workers since 2015. Using survey data from the provinces of; Zhejiang, Henan, and Guizhou with propensity score matching to control selection bias, the study indicates that the overall entrepreneurship policy has a significant positive impact on the probability of entrepreneurial entry. The poverty alleviation effect of the overall policy is greater than its industrial development effect, while the employment effect is not significant. The infrastructure policy's effect on employment, industrial development, and poverty alleviation is greater than the other policies, and the financial policy's effect on these three aspects is not significant. This study contributes to the existing literature by addressing a well-defined gap regarding the net effect of entrepreneurship policy on entrepreneurship entry and provides well-supported and plausible explanations for the inconsistencies among previous studies on policy effect indicators. As a practical contribution, this study provides China and other developing economies with compelling empirical evidence to support the design and amendment of entrepreneurship policy at the national level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Poor adherence to dietary recommendations among persons with type 2 diabetes (T2D) can lead to long-term complications with concomitant increases in healthcare costs and mortality rates. This study aimed to identify factors associated with dietary adherence and explore the barriers and facilitators to dietary adherence among persons with T2D. Methods: A concurrent mixed methods study was conducted in two hospitals in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. One hundred and forty-two (142) persons with T2D were consecutively sampled for the survey. Dietary adherence and diabetes-related nutritional knowledge (DRNK) were assessed using the Perceived Dietary Adherence Questionnaire (PDAQ) and an adapted form of the General Nutritional Knowledge Questionnaire (GNKQ-R) respectively. A purposive sample of fourteen participants was selected for interviews to explore the factors that influence dietary adherence. Qualitative data were analysed using NVivo version 20 software and presented as themes. Furthermore, binary logistic regression was performed using IBM SPSS version 29.0 to identify the factors associated with dietary adherence. Results: Nearly fifty-one percent (50.7%) of the participants in this study had good dietary adherence. In multivariable logistics regression, it was found that increase in DRNK (AOR = 1.099, 95% CI: 1.001–1.206, p = 0.041) score and living in an urban area (AOR = 3.041, 95% CI: 1.007–9.179, p = 0.047) were significantly associated with good dietary adherence. Inductive thematic analysis revealed four facilitators of dietary adherence (access to information on diet, individual food preferences and eating habits, perceived benefits of dietary adherence, and presence of social support) and four barriers (inability to afford recommended diets, barriers related to foods available in the environment, conflict between dietary recommendations and individual eating habits, and barriers related to the social environment). Conclusion: The findings support the need for interventions including continuous dietary education tailored to individual preferences and dietary habits, expansion of poverty reduction social interventions and formulation of policies that will improve access to healthy foods in communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Poverty continues to be a pervasive social problem within the United States despite a plethora of services and government assistance programs. Currently, universal and guaranteed basic income programs are being actively promoted. Method: This review incorporated universal or guaranteed basic income primary reports open to any country and in English from four academic databases including grey literature between January 1, 2013, and April 8, 2023, using randomized controlled trials or quasi-experimental study designs with no specified outcome. Results: Out of an initial 147 articles, four of the primary studies utilized a randomized controlled trial and one used a quasi-experimental design. One study occurred in the United States. Discussion: Despite the increasing implementation of such programs throughout the United States and their associated high cost, evidence is lacking based on their long-term impact and effectiveness. Further study is recommended including stronger evaluations of current and future programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to determine the occurrence of convergence in inclusive economic growth at both the national and regional levels, as well as the factors that drive the increase in inclusive economic growth to reduce regional disparities. The analysis used is sigma convergence, absolute beta convergence, and conditional beta convergence. The data used is a panel consisting of 21 provinces in the Western Region of Indonesia (KBI), including Sumatra, Java and Kalimantan, 13 provinces in the Eastern Region of Indonesia (KTI), namely Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Bali, Maluku and Papua, as well as national level consisting of 34 provinces in Indonesia from 2017 to 2021. This study shows that at the national level, KBI and KTI, there has been both sigma convergence and absolute beta convergence. Conditional beta convergence only occurs at the national level and KBI. Meanwhile, in KTI, there is no process of conditional beta convergence or what can be called divergence occurring. Variables that significantly affect the convergence process at the national level include government expenditure in the economic, health, and social protection sectors, domestic investment, and the open unemployment rate. At the KBI, significant factors include government expenditure in social protection sectors domestic investment and the unemployment rate. At the KTI, significant factors include government expenditures on the economic, health, and social protection sectors, foreign investment, and the unemployment rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cut throat injuries are one of the most challenging surgical emergencies encountered by Ear, nose, throat (ENT) surgeons. If not treated in time, they may lead to death. Prevention of mortality depends on immediate resuscitation by securing the airway by tracheostomy or intubation, prompt control of bleeding, and wound closure. Aims and Objectives: Our study was conducted to observe and analyze: 1. The sociodemographic profile of cut throat injury patients admitted in our hospital. 2. The modes of cut throat injury cases admitted in our hospital. 3. Anatomical region and depth of the cut throat injury patients admitted in our hospital. 4. Treatment of cut throat injury patients given at our hospital. Materials and Methods: This is a prospective study of about 25 cases of cut throat injury presented to the emergency department in our tertiary care hospital situated in the rural area of Tamilnadu (India), between June 2021 and September 2022. Cut throat injury patients were managed by multidisciplinary approach headed by the ENT team. Results: In our study, 72% were males and 28% were females. The peak age of incidence is fourth decade (48%). People with lower socioeconomic status were affected more (40%). Eighty percent of the patients had Zone II injuries. Seventy-six percent of cases presented with active bleeding and 60% of cases came with breathing difficulty. The most common cause of cut throat injury had been found to be suicidal (52%). Sixty percent had laryngeal injuries. Seventy-two percent of the cases were managed with tracheostomy. Conclusion: Our study found that the majority of cut throat injury patients were males of age between 30 years to 40 years from poor socioeconomic status. Social involvement and political motivation, poverty reduction, individual awareness, increase in economic growth along with literacy rate will prevent the cut throat injuries. Early and improved proper management will reduce the mortality and morbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Living at or near poverty can be isolating for individuals and their families. Using the ecological perspective with emphasis on transactions across systems, we examine the social and community capital of urban, low-income individuals to understand the broader terrain that shapes and is shaped by some of their choices, and suggest the implications that our findings might have for anti-poverty initiatives. Data are from interviews with 181 urban residents involved in a federally funded workforce development training, a particular type of social support programming that endeavors to increase the human capital of participants so that they can compete more effectively in the labor market. Findings indicate that respondents have small, homogenous networks, live in resource depleted communities, and have limited sources of social support. We frame this as being caught in "urban silos," in which transactions to more resource-robust systems are minimal to non-existent. While the development of one's human capital is essential, because of these silos, it may not be sufficient for moving an individual and their family out of poverty. Job training, and other anti-poverty initiatives, need to intentionally assist participants in network building so they can better access opportunity pathways that provide jobs and other economic and social resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among south Asian countries, Bhutan has the second lowest poverty incidence; but, there is a large difference in poverty incidence between urban and rural areas. While urban areas registered a very small poverty incidence, 12.0% of rural population were still below the national poverty line in 2017. Poverty is by and large a rural phenominon in Bhutan. Against this background, this study examines whether Bhutan's rural economic growth was pro-poor from 2007–2017 by using the Bhutan Living Standard Surveys. It also conducts an IV probit analysis to explore the determinants of poverty. Even in rural areas, growth is necessary for the reduction of poverty. Besides relying on trickle-down effects from hydropower projects and tourism, promotion of agriculture-based small scale industries is essential for the acceleration of rural economic growth, where further development of basic industrial and transportation infrastructure and socioeconomic facilities is imperative. The country also needs to promote and strengthen basic education since education is found to have played an important role in reducing poverty. Many rural households are vulnerable to poverty. To prevent vulnerable households from falling into poverty, more effective social safety net programs may be necessary based on regional differences in factors affecting living conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we evaluate the role of the high speed railway (HSR) project, one of the largest transportation infrastructure projects in the world, in poverty alleviation in China. This study combines county-level data from the China County Statistical Yearbooks with HSR data from the China Railway Yearbooks. The method of difference-in-differences is applied to examine the HSR connection effect on government expenditure in poverty alleviation across Chinese poverty counties over the period of 2010-2018. The results show that the HSR connection has a significantly positive impact on reducing government expenditure in poverty alleviation. Our results, which are based on alternative measurement of poverty alleviation and possible bias arising from endogeneity issue, are robust. This paper highlights that HSR can help achieve accessibility of rural area and poverty alleviation simultaneously. An understanding of the effect is critical for policymakers to promote intra-regional development, balancing efficiency and regional equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the environmental and socio-economic impacts of energy usage in Kwali Town, Nigeria. It highlights the lack of access to clean energy sources in Sub-Saharan Africa, leading to air pollution and environmental challenges. The study conducted by the University of Abuja reveals that most residents in Kwali have transitioned from farming to other occupations, with 72% having access to electricity. Factors such as availability, affordability, and convenience influence energy choices, with income level playing a role. The study emphasizes the importance of clean energy, sustainable development, and reducing reliance on hydrocarbons through technology development and energy management strategies. [Extracted from the article]

This article deploys neo-Gramscian international relations theory to discuss how the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of our America (ALBA) can be understood as an attempted transnationalisation of the counter-hegemonic historical bloc of social forces that originated with Venezuela's Bolivarian Revolution. The Bolivarian Revolution inaugurated a protagonistic National Constitution which sought to give a central role to civil society and social movements in political life, enfranchising unrepresented people, like indigenous communities. ALBA consists of an attempt to transnationalise this movement by providing a model of regionalization for Latin America that constitutes an alternative to the neoliberal approach embodied in other regionalisation initiatives, such as the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). However, the article argues that ALBA's success as a vehicle for the transnationalisation of counter-hegemony in Latin America has been severely compromised by emerging tensions and contradictions within the Bolivarian Revolution historical bloc, namely between the social movements and the central governments of ALBA's member countries. These contradictions become particularly evident when analysing social movements' struggles about the environmental impacts of massive infrastructure projects promoted by these governments as part of their overall national and regional strategy of economic development and poverty alleviation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research work investigates the relationship between income inequality, poverty reduction strategies, and the Lorenz curve in India from 2015 to 2023, with forecasts extending to 2030. Data from the World Bank reveals positive trends in per capita expenditure and a declining population growth rate. The analysis employs the Lorenz curve to visualize income distribution. While the Gini coefficient remained high at 3.70 in the period, income inequality appears to have stabilized since the COVID-19 pandemic. Interestingly, future projections suggest a remarkable decrease in inequality towards 2030, with the Lorenz curve positioned above the line of equality. This, coupled with rising per capita income and a shrinking population, paints a promising picture towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 1 (eradication of poverty). Regression analysis further strengthens these findings, demonstrating a statistically significant association between per capita income growth and poverty reduction. These results suggest that India's poverty reduction strategies are yielding positive outcomes, but continued policy interventions and investments in social programs are crucial for sustained progress towards a more equitable and prosperous future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ensuring access to and usage of formal financial services through digital devices can be referred to as "digital financial inclusion" (DFI). In recent years, there has been a growing trend in the use of financial services, including money transfers through mobile phones. This study applies mobile phone subscriptions as a proxy to measure the degree of DFI and explores the individual effects of DFI and remittances and their interaction effects on poverty conditions in developing countries. Using panel data from 2000 to 2020 for 123 countries and employing the dynamic generalized method of moments estimation, the results reveal that DFI and remittance inflows help ameliorate poverty in developing countries. Furthermore, we find that the coefficient of the interaction term between DFI and remittances is statistically significant and positive, suggesting that the impact of DFI on poverty alleviation could weaken as remittance inflows increase in the remittance-receiving country and vice versa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the era of networking and information technology, ongoing advancement of the new business pattern "Internet+ " has enabled the Internet to permeate all facets of rural residents' production and life, with profound effects on their daily choices. Can the Internet continue to help people get out of poverty by making rural households less poor? To test the consequences of the Internet usage on farming people's relative poverty as well as its internal mechanisms of action, we use data from the China Family Panel Studies in 2016 and 2018, employing the model of probit as well as the mediation impact theories. The results are as follows: (1) In terms of comparison to farmers who refrain from using the Internet, farmers who do use the Internet have lower levels of objective and subjective relative poverty. Regarding the marginal effects, each extra Internet use metric, a farmer's likelihood of falling into objective and subjective relative poverty is reduced by 3.84% and 2.67%, respectively. (2) Farmers' use of the Internet concerning their business activities has the most prominent effect on their relative poverty alleviation. (3) The poverty alleviation effect of the Internet varies by region, gender, and age. (4) Human capital, social capital, and non-agricultural employment help alleviate the relative poverty of farm households using the Internet. According to these results, the Communist Party of China may be able to minimize relative rural poverty by strongly investing in information infrastructure, offering online training for residents, and stimulating rural human capital. Those findings convey indispensable theoretical suggestions and pragmatic support for generating an everlasting mechanism to lessen relative poverty and accomplish the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to tackle the issues of evaluating the dynamic performance of fiscal poverty alleviation in 22 Chinese provinces (regions) over 2016–2019. First, we open up the internal structure of the fiscal poverty alleviation system (FPAS) and clarify its input-output process as a two-stage series system consisting of the public investment process and poverty reduction process. On this basis, we construct dynamic network DEA models with and without carryover activities for measuring the period efficiency and overall efficiency of FPASs (i.e., FPAS efficiency) and the period efficiency and overall efficiency of evaluation indicators (i.e., indicator efficiency), and also prove the relationship between the two proposed models. Second, we combine the proposed dynamic network DEA models and Bootstrap resampling method to assess the robustness of FPAS efficiency for exploring the risk of returning to poverty for each FPAS. The results show that: (i) the carryover activities have some impact on the FPAS efficiency and indicator efficiency; (ii) the period efficiency shows an upward trend, and most of FPASs or evaluation indicators have been at high efficiency in the sample period, but there is still regional heterogeneity; (iii) there are some differences between the indicator efficiency and there are some inconsistencies between them and the FPAS efficiency; (iv) bootstrap resampling results indicate that several FPASs have a great risk of returning to poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current social and economic outlook at EU-27 level is showing some concerning trends, as it seems that the social outcomes are lagging behind economic results, at a time when the latter are on a declining and concerning trend, as well, due to the inflationary pressures recorded over the last couple of years. Extreme far-right movements gain momentum in countries regarded up to now as stable and consolidated democracies, and the New Member States seem to pick the signals and head towards their own nationalistic and extremist movements, be they far-right or far-left biased. EU-27 had to manage multiple challenges over the last period (2014-2024), aimed at combating climate change, reducing poverty and strengthening the middle-class which was subjected to increased pressures leading to polarization. The issue of polarization brings with it questions related to how the EU-27 citizens are faring, how economic and social measures are implemented and harmonized in combating inequity and inequality. The present paper aims to underpin some of the key issues that have to be dealt with, by including into consideration the CSR-factor which, despite initiatives, has not gained sufficient momentum at EU-27 level. The methodology is based on comparative statistics regarding some indicators relevant for both the social and the economic dimension of the EU-27, for selected central and eastern European countries sharing some similarities as regards geography and historical background. The conclusions show that, in the new context of the ESG-Agenda, and based on the fact that CSR is still a rather new initiative at EU-level, the selected New Member-States have a unique opportunity of using their experience in performing two transitions during a century and a half for making use of CSR tools in a way that might be translated also at EU-27 level. The argument is that their transition from one economic and social system to another, twice in the same century (after the Second World War, and by the end of the eighties), makes these countries to be better equipped for making informed decisions impacting labor market, including by using CSR tools. At the same time, they are also most challenged, as the difficulties they are faced with give way to perceiving sometimes levels of corruption that are exaggerated, and not corresponding to the reality, to considering the private sector (still) as more of a threat than an opportunity, especially for those occupation that become increasingly more obsolete in the context of the digital economy. Moreover, CSR instruments should focus more on young adults – born after the end of the eighties – who are more vulnerable when faced with the ‘histories’ told by either the far-right or far-left propaganda. In brief, in the absence of judicious CSR initiatives in both public and private sector, aiming simultaneously at both social and economic indicators, and according to the current state-of-play, with the emphasis on social, the risks are on increase when trying to reconcile economic growth, combating climate change and poverty alleviation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In China, tourism development is a crucial approach to poverty alleviation. With the consolidation of poverty alleviation achievements and the promotion of rural revitalization, it is of great significance to explore the relationship between tourism development and poverty alleviation from the perspective of multidimensional poverty. Therefore, this study took 28 key assistance counties for rural revitalization in the Sichuan–Chongqing region (hereinafter referred to as "key counties") as the research objects, introduced NPP-VIIRS nighttime light (NTL) data, and a coupling coordination degree (CCD) model to explore the coordination relationship and mechanism between them. The results showed that from 2015 to 2020, the tourism development index (TDI) and estimated comprehensive development index (ECDI) of the key counties increased by 112.57% and 115.12%, respectively. In addition, the spatial differences in tourism development and multidimensional poverty both showed a narrowing trend. According to the results of the CCD model, the key counties basically faced coordination obstacles in the early stage, which were mainly transformed into reluctant coordination and moderate coordination in the later stage. This indicated that tourism poverty alleviation showed a coordinated development trend overall. However, the study also found that there may not be synchronicity between tourism development and poverty alleviation and analyzed the mechanism of their interaction. Overall, the study confirmed the positive impact of tourism development on alleviating multidimensional poverty. In addition, the study found that measuring multidimensional poverty based on NTL data has a high accuracy and can provide support for poverty research. These research results have an important reference value for China to carry out sustainable tourism poverty alleviation and comprehensively promote rural revitalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase in regional economic development disparities, a regional coordinated development strategy is put forward that prioritizes human welfare and holistic social progress over a purely materialistic growth model. To address the challenges of balanced regional development, this paper has developed a multidimensional assessment framework of social development encompassing education, healthcare, culture, and social security. Using the entropy weight TOPSIS method, this study measures the social development level across 296 Chinese prefecture-level cities from 1990 to 2020. It explores the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of China's social development level through the Dagum Gini coefficient decomposition method and exploratory spatial data analysis. The results indicate that (1) the level of social development in China exhibits a fluctuating upward trend over the time series, showing a phase-wise pattern of decline–rise–rise; (2) there is a clear heterogeneity in the level of social development, with a general hierarchy of Eastern, Northeastern, Western, and Central regions in terms of social development; (3) spatially, China's social development level has evolved from a patchy distribution in 1990 to a clustered distribution around urban agglomerations by 2020, with pronounced characteristics of spatial imbalance; (4) the level of social development in China displays varying degrees of spatial clustering, with this trend intensifying over time; and (5) over the period 1990–2020, the overall disparity in China's social development level presents a fluctuating trend, with a notable reduction after an initial increase, and regional disparities following the order of Central, Western, Eastern, and Northeastern regions. This research offers valuable insights for policymakers and scholars seeking to understand and enhance China's social development landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present article has examined the poverty volatility effect of export product concentration using a panel dataset of 120 developing countries over the period of 1980 to 2014. Results, based on the feasible generalized least squares estimator, suggest that export product concentration tends to induce greater poverty volatility in low-income countries but reduces poverty volatility in relatively advanced developing countries. These outcomes reflect the fact that export product concentration reduces poverty volatility in countries that improve their manufactured export performance. Finally, the greater the level of export product diversification (or economic complexity), the higher the degree of poverty volatility reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study investigates the conditioning effect of institutions in the relationship between trade openness and poverty reduction in Sub-Saharan African economies. Employing generalized method of moments, it was revealed that institutions influence the relationship between trade openness and poverty reduction in SSA. Thus, to reduce poverty in the region, SSA economies must first start by opening their economies to international trade. This could be achieved by reducing import and export taxes, focusing more on exporting value-added products and providing relevant training and information for importers and exporters. However, such attempts will be more fruitful in the presence of sound institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Zanzibar public sector's monitoring and evaluation system engaged numerous stakeholders from diverse organizations. The paper assessed the effect of stakeholder Engagement on the effectiveness of the M&E system in the Zanzibar public sector. The study adopted a positivist philosophy and a quantitative approach. Data were collected through a questionnaire constructed with a points Likert scale from 170 implementers of the Zanzibar Strategy for Economic Growth and Poverty Reduction III (ZSSGRP III). Stratified and simple random samplings were used in sample selection. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were applied for data analysis. The results established that stakeholder engagement had a positive and significant effect on the effectiveness of the M&E system. The findings underscored the importance of engaging stakeholders in all stages of M&E including designing, implementation, and reporting. The study suggested the need for the Zanzibar M&E lead agency to enhance fully stakeholders’ engagement throughout the monitoring and evaluation process to nurture their skill mix potential to improve the overall effectiveness of M&E systems in the Zanzibar public sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Promoted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in particular, fiscal austerity measures have been extensively implemented across the world in the last decade as a policy prescription to address the impacts of economic shocks. Consequently, the implementation of austerity has engendered a vast body of austerity impact assessment literature in the Global North, in particular. Although austerity measures have been equally implemented (and longer) in Global South contexts, the same level of intellectual curiosity has not been dedicated to understanding the human and social costs of austerity in the Global South. To help fill this gap, this paper examines the implications of fiscal austerity for the delivery of two complementary programmes linked to Ghana's conditional cash transfer (CCT) — the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme. The paper adopts a qualitative design where semi‐structured interviews are conducted with (a) two LEAP officers, (b) two headteachers and (c) 35 LEAP beneficiaries in northern Ghana. The findings show that within the current context of fiscal austerity, mainly mediated through the government's commitment to "cut expenditures to the bone", the two complementary services have been unfunded and thus do not exist in practice. The non‐existence of complementary services has dire consequences for children's education as well as undermines Ghana's poverty reduction attempts through the implementation of the LEAP programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Namibia and South Africa share land and maritime borders and the interrelated structural challenges of poverty and socio-economic inequalities amidst progressive economic growth that are rooted in their apartheid past and contemporary economic development trajectories. Such inequalities are defined along racial, class, gender and other social locations that either grant privilege, power and access to socio-economic opportunities or result in marginalisation, oppression and resource deprivation. The rationale for this article is linked to the historic call for social work to intensify efforts in promoting social and economic equality. Despite Namibia and South Africa’s geographical proximity and their intertwined histories, there is a dearth of social work studies that offer a comparative critical social work perspective on structural inequalities in these former apartheid strongholds. While social work should actively engage in contesting the structural contradictions of poverty and inequalities amidst abundant resources, the reality is often that of the uncritical acceptance of existing socio-political inequalities, such that the profession’s enunciated commitment to social justice becomes perimetric. Thus, the article argues for the inclusion of critical social work approaches in social work education and practice against a backdrop of ideological divides, political trends and contextual factors that limit social workers’ critical and structural level engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shifting nature of contemporary global politics highlights the growing contestation about power and how it is distributed, with multipolarity as its hallmark and distinguishing feature. Amid the shift to multipolarity, new forms of multilateralism are emerging from the South, which are grounded in 'institutional arrangements led by countries of the Global South' in terms of the origin of initiatives, the drivers of such arrangements and the resources to sustain them. In this context, Southern Multilateralism offers a differ approach to classical Realist thinking where power is 'the final arbiter of things political'. Southern Multilateralism has also given rise to new international institutional arrangements, such as the BRICS‐led New Development Bank (NDB) and its predecessor, the India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) Trilateral Forum and the IBSA Fund Facility for Poverty and Hunger Alleviation. This article compares the IBSA and their Fund with the NDB and argues that there are continuities and linkages between the NDB and the IBSA Fund, which have yet to be examined by scholars; and to be more precise, the NDB has absorbed and reflects, key attributes of the IBSA and their Fund. Moreover, this study concludes by suggesting regional collaboration options for the NDB, led by South Africa, India and Brazil and their respective regions, whereby the NDB can expand its global role and relevance in future via its regional offices, particularly by supporting the regional trade integration plans in Africa, South Asia and South America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Big data technology has become increasingly prevalent in facilitating the delivery of government services and public goods in China and beyond. This article seeks to examine how big data can be leveraged in poverty governance in rural China, and what the political implications are. This phenomenon of big data-driven welfare governance is particularly salient considering the broader context of governmental digital transformation, both within China and globally. This research sheds light on how big data usage functions in poverty alleviation, highlighting general motivations and developments in Chinese data-centric welfare governance. More importantly, this article introduces the novel concept of "digital cybernetic capacity" to examine public sector modernization as big data transforms the landscape of welfare delivery and governance. By delving into the intersection between technology and social welfare, we explicate how the use of big data in social welfare policies can go beyond merely improving information capacity to redefine state capacity. This article argues that such a new governance ecosystem, driven as it is by data technologies, not only provides insights about the transformative resilience of Chinese governance but also opens a new theoretical frontier for research into other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to identify the effect of Muslim entrepreneurs' perceptions of zakat compliance mediated by the intention to pay zakat with subjective norms and religiosity. Quantitative methods were employed in this study. Questionnaires were administered to Muslim entrepreneurs, and we examined the information from 140 participants using the Smart-PLS 3 application. The findings indicate that the direct impact on religiosity yielded significant results, whereas the subjective norm was insignificant. Subsequently, the indirect effect, specifically on religiosity and subjective norms, demonstrated a significant impact between the two. In this study, the theory of planned behavior can be used as a determining factor to identify the impact of Muslim entrepreneurs on zakat compliance. This research suggests that Muslim entrepreneurs' zakat compliance can signal to stakeholders the importance of using zakat payments optimally to achieve poverty reduction goals. Implementing this research not only maximizes institutional benefits in promoting zakat, but also broadens the perspective on zakat compliance among Muslim entrepreneurs based on the theory of planned behavior through intention [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to see the extent of the problem of zakat in alleviating poverty in North Sumatra. This research method uses a descriptive qualitative method with a quantitative approach. For analysis, use the ANP (Analytic Network Process) method with the help of "Super Decision" software. This research uses secondary data originating from the zakat outlook of the BAZNAS Center for Studies and Strategy, accompanied by the opinions of zakat practitioners in North Sumatra. This research was carried out in the North Sumatra Province area and the research was carried out in stages starting from August 2023 to September 2023. The results of the research show that (1) The most priority problem in managing zakat funds in North Sumatra is external problems at 65%, (2) The most priority internal problem is the Amil problem at 70%, (3) The most priority external problem is the Muzakki problem at 49%, (4) The most priority internal solution is the Amil solution at 71%, (5) External solutions the most priority is the Mustahik Solution at 72%, (6) The most priority strategy to be implemented for effective management of zakat funds is Developing the correct mindset for muzakki and mustahik at 61%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Mercados y Negocios is the property of Universidad de Guadalajara, Centro Universitario de Ciencias Economico Administrativas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)