Economics Commons^™

The Need For Standardization Of Aggregates For Concrete Production In Ethiopian Construction Industry, Abebe Dinku

International Conference on African Development Archives

Concrete is one of the versatile and widely used building material in the world construction industry. Fine and coarse aggregates make about 70% by volume of concrete production. It goes without saying that the quality of concrete is thus strongly influenced by aggregate’s physical and mechanical properties as well as chemical composition of the parent aggregate making material. This calls for a critical identification and classification of aggregates so that they are used to meet the intended purpose.

In this article, the physical, mechanical, and chemical properties of aggregates are reviewed. The sources and modes of production of coarse and …

Ethiopia In The World Economy: Trade, Private Capital Flows, And Migration, Kenneth A. Reinert

International Conference on African Development Archives

Economic globalization can be evaluated with reference to at least three dimensions: trade, private capital flows, and migration. For each of these dimensions, pathways can be identified through which economic globalization can alleviate or contribute to poverty. This paper makes a preliminary examination of the pathways between globalization and poverty for the case of Ethiopia. As one of the world’s poorest countries, Ethiopia’s integration with the world economy takes on specific features. It is highly dependent on the exports of a few goods, has imported a large amount of arms, is largely excluded from global FDI flows, benefits from relatively …

Socioeconomic Impact Of Export Oriented Agricultural Production On Farmers, In Eastern Ethiopia, Adem Kedir

International Conference on African Development Archives

This study was undertaken to assess the socio-economic impact of producing export oriented agricultural crops on the livelihoods of the farmers, in eastern Ethiopia. A random sample of 305 farmers was studied. Comparisons were made between producers and non-producers using the Z- test and regression analysis. It was found that producers of export oriented crops are better off than the non-producers in terms of sending children to elementary school, housing conditions and ability to finance their families’ food requirements. The impact of father’s education, number of children and livestock ownership on the improvements in the livelihoods of the farmers and …

The 3rd Eaf-Earo & Wmu-Cadpr International Symposium On Ethiopian Development Studies, June 18-19, 2005, The Ghion Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sisay Asefa

International Conference on African Development Archives

Introductory remarks for Third International Conference on Development Studies in Ethiopia, June 18-19, 2005, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Electoral Systems, Ethnic Fragmentation And Party Systems Volatility In 31 Sub Saharan African Countries, John Ishiyama

International Conference on African Development Archives

This paper thus addresses two primary issues. What is the relationship between the types of electoral systems that have been used to govern initial elections in the democratizing states of Africa and the degree to which party systems volatility has emerged? What other factors impact on the levels of volatility? I examine the above questions using data from 31 African countries. I find that most of the factors often cited as impacting on party systems development do not account for the level of legislative volatility. However, the dominance of the ruling party in the first election following democratic transition does …

Integrated Agricultural Development Strategies In The Anrs: Lessons From The Amarew Project, Brhane Gebrekidan, Yitayew Abebe, Fekadu Yohannes, Elias Zerfu, Habtemariam Kassa

International Conference on African Development Archives

The Amhara Micro-enterprise development, Agricultural Research, Extension and Watershed management (AMAREW) Project is a USAID/Ethiopia Mission funded initiative established in July 2002 to provide technical assistance in integrated agricultural development in the Amhara National Regional State (ANRS). The Project works to strengthen agricultural research, extension, watershed management, capacity building, and micro-enterprise development in the ANRS by collaborating with its ANRS partners in strategically selected two pilot watershed sites and five pilot food-insecure woredas.

The Project is being implemented by a Virginia Tech led Consortium (Virginia Tech, Cornell University, Virginia State University and ACDI/VOCA) in collaboration with its ANRS Primary Partners …

Immigrants And Their International Money Flows 2005-06, Western Michigan University

Werner Sichel Lecture Series

Workers' remittances, the repatriated earnings of immigrant workers, have captured the attention of policymakers and researchers. For a number of developing nations these inflows of funds are their largest source of foreign exchange earnings--exceeding official aid, direct foreign investment, and goods export earnings. Despite the fact that these inflows are large and are becoming larger, we know very little about either the determinants of international transfers or about their impacts on receiving economies. WMU's forty-second lecture-seminar series "Immigrants and Their International Money Flows," will address a myriad of issues relating to these growing international money transfers.

Examining The Relationship Between Community Residents' Economic Status And The Outcomes Of Community Development Programs, Christopher R. Larrison, Eric Hadley-Ives

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In designing and implementing community development interventions the economic status of targeted participants is a demographic characteristic worth considering. The findings from this research indicate that even within the limited economies of rural Mexican villages there are variations in economic status that affect the ways in which the outcomes of community development programs are perceived. The poorest of the poor are likely to be less satisfied with development projects than those with average or better-off economic status. This is true whether a development project uses a bottomup approach or a top-down approach. The more participatory approach does not attenuate the …

Measuring And Indigenizing Social Capital In Relation To Children's Street Work In Mexico: The Role Of Culture In Shaping Social Capital Indicators, Kristin M. Ferguson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Drawing from social capital theory, this study assessed the relevance of existing conceptions of social capital-largely from the United States and Canada-in the Mexican context, in an effort to contribute novel variables to the street-children literature. Using a cross-sectional survey design, 204 mothers of street-working and non-working children were interviewed within one community in Monterrey, Nuevo Le6n, Mexico. Factor analysis was used to corroborate the internal construct validity of two dimensions of social capital: family social capital and community social capital. Findings reveal that culture can play an influential role in how social capital indicators are defined and measured.

Review Of Western Welfare In Decline: Globalization And Women's Poverty. Catherine Kingfisher. Reviewed By Silvia Borzutsky., Silvia Borzutzky

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Catherine Kingfisher, Western Welfare in Decline: Globalization and Women's Poverty. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2003. $49.95 hardcover, $21.95 papercover.

Determinants Of Aggregate R&D, Role Of Fiscal Policy, And The Effects Of Government R&D On Economic Growth, Ashraf Galal Mohamed Eid

Dissertations

This dissertation contains three essays on research and development (R&D): determinants, the role of fiscal policy, and the effects of government R&D on economic growth. The first essay is an attempt to study the determinants of aggregate R&D expenditure in both emerging and developed countries with special attention to patent rights protection and technology transfer. The main findings are: (1) patent protection helps R&D but overly burdensome protection can limit access to new innovations and thus slow down the rate of research and development, and (2) technology transfer, through imports and FDI, has a positive and significant effect only if …

Investment And Capital Flows Under Uncertainty And Capital Market Imperfection In Oil Producing Countries, Mohamed Gaber Hassan Elsayed

Dissertations

This dissertation analyzes and estimates the interactions between domestic investment and each type of capital flow under uncertainty and capital market imperfection in 13 oil-producing countries from 1981 to 2003. First, we discuss the recent development in investment theories under uncertainty, irreversibility, and imperfect capital market. Secondly, decomposing uncertainty into permanent and transitory components--based on C-GARCH--we constructuncertainty measures of broad macroeconomic variables in addition to oil price.

Thirdly, a model of four simultaneous equations is developed to capture dynamic interactions. My contribution is twofold. First, not only do we consider the impact of uncertainty and credit market imperfection on investment, …

Essays On The Econometrics Of Financial Volatility, Yasemin Bardakci

Dissertations

My dissertation consists of three essays on the econometric analysis of financial volatility.

My first essay is titled "The Runs Test for Volatility Forecastibility: Extensions and Comparisons with Tests for GARCH." Recently, Diebold and Christoffersen (2000) introduced a test for forecastable volatility. In this paper, I compare the size and the power of the runs test and the optimal LM test for GARCH by Monte Carlo simulation. For high frequency returns the LM test has superior power to the runs test. For low frequency returns however, the tests have very similar power. I also propose a switching variance model. For …

Regional Economic Development: Current Issues 2004-05, Department Of Economics

Werner Sichel Lecture Series

"Regional Economic Development: Current Issues" is the 41st annual public lecture-seminar series organized by the Department of Economics at Western Michigan University. This year's series will explore this important topic as seen by six leading academics and practitioners in the field. The series is directed by Professor Bassam Harik of the Economics Department. and is co-sponsored by the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. The public is cordially invited to attend the lectures. Jn addition to the public lecture, each guest will present a seminar aimed at the economics faculty and graduate students.

Presidents, Profits, Productivity, & Poverty: A Great Divide Between The Pre- & Post-Reagan U.S. Economy?, Richard K. Caputo

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper examined profits, productivity, and poverty in the United States from 1961 through 2002. Results indicated that the "great divide" thesis regarding the U.S. economy before and after the Reagan administration depends on which measure of the economy is the focus of attention. In addition, on some measures where before and after differences were detected, the nature of those differences was paradoxical. Corporate profits as a share of national income, for example, were highest in Democratic rather than Republican administrations and despite the increased income inequality of the post-Reagan years, individual and family poverty rates remained relatively constant after …

Three Essays On Financial Intermediation, Capital Formation, And Economic Growth And Development, Md. Habibur Rahman

Dissertations

This dissertation contains three essays on financial intermediation, capital formation, and economic growth and development. The first essay presents a theoretical model explaining the role of financial intermediation in capital formation and economic growth. It outlines a model of search and matching equilibrium in financial economies where a lender owns capital and an entrepreneur owns entrepreneurial skill and output is produced when search generates a meeting between a lender and an entrepreneur. It is shown that investment in capital and skill is inefficient in autarky due to search frictions and an externality. We examine the autarkic equilibrium under bargaining-without-search and …

Taylor-Based Monetary Policy Rules: Are They Forward-Looking, Data Congruent, And Asset Price Responsive?, Rajeev Sooreea

Dissertations

This dissertation presents three essays to analyze a class of Taylor-based monetary policy rules that forms the basis of contemporary monetary policy decisions. The first essay examines whether policy rules are forward-looking. It proposes the methodology that, if the parameters of the Taylor rule change when the mechanism generating inflation changes, that is the Lucas critique applies, then inflation is not superexogenous for the parameters of the rule. In this case where superexogeneity fails, the rule is forward-looking. However, the results indicate that, although there is structural break in the inflation volatility process as evidenced by a model of heteroskedastic …

Essays On Monetary Policy In Bangladesh, Sayera Younus

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Foreign Direct Investment In Developing Countries: Uncertainty, Trade And Welfare, Adugna Lemi

Dissertations

The objectives of this three-essay thesis are first, to analyze the role of economic and political uncertainty in affecting FDI flows; second, to test competing hypotheses that explain the determinants of sales of affiliates of U.S. multinational firms to alternative destinations; and third, to investigate the welfare impact of FDI flow on local firms in a host country. These issues are interrelated, as uncertainty is one of the main impediments in developing countries to attract foreign direct investment, and uncertainty in turn affects business practices of foreign affiliates in a host country. The combined effects of uncertainty and business practices …

Reflections On Development In Ethiopia, Paul B. Henze

International Conference on African Development Archives

I visited Ethiopia frequently and traveled extensively in all parts of the country during the Derg period. I observed firsthand the deleterious effects of the Derg's attempt to turn the country into a communist "people's republic".[1] Since the fall of the Derg in May 1991, I have made fifteen visits to Ethiopia, usually for periods of several weeks, totaling well over a year of travel in the country in all. During these same years I have also spent time in sixteen other post-communist countries, ranging from Slovenia and Armenia to Mongolia, observing the political, economic and social problems of recovering …

Ethnic Federalism In Ethiopia: Background, Present Conditions And Future Prospects, Alem Habtu

International Conference on African Development Archives

In 1991 Ethiopia established an ethnic federal system that gave full recognition to ethnic autonomy, while maintaining the unity of the state. Its new constitution created a federal system largely consisting of ethnic-based territorial units. The constitution aspires to achieve ethnic autonomy and equality while maintaining the state. The federal system is significant in that its constitution provides for secession of any ethnic unit. It encourages political parties to organize along ethnic lines, and champions an ethnicized federal state with a secession option. As an exception to the general pattern in Africa, it is a worthy case study. The paper …

School Choice And Policy Response: A Comparative Context Between Private And Public Schools In Urban Ethiopia, Berhanu Seboka

International Conference on African Development Archives

Given today’s appetite and search for better quality education in Ethiopia, coupled with meager educational budget available for the sector, little attention has been given to see the comparative advantage of demand side financing in education. In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the state-run education system was criticized for being elitist, rigid and irresponsive. Today, more than ever, there is a constant public out cry for access to quality educational services both in urban and rural settings. The starting point for school choice is the availability of private schooling. School choice is believed to increase the efficiency of educational services …

Regional Differences In Hiv Prevalence In The Light Of Prevailing Socio-Economic Conditions: A Preliminary Comparison Of Northeastern And Southern Africa, Lemma Merid

International Conference on African Development Archives

Preliminary investigation shows that HIV prevalence in most of the Northeast African countries is lower than the prevalence in their Southern Africa counterparts. This has led some in the Northeast to think that their situation is much better, and they should not be worrying as much. This however is a mistake. Since prevalence levels adjust through changes in new infections (incidence) and death, there is some indication that the latter may outweigh in the Northeast. The paper argues that given the much better economic and social welfare conditions in the South, the infected are likely to live longer than their …

Education And Economic Performance In Sub Sahara Africa, Paulos Gutema, Mekonnen Bekele

International Conference on African Development Archives

In Sub Sahara Africa, where the process of economic growth is almost enigmatic, schooling is being considered, in most parts of the region, as a factor that may help resolve the mystery. This paper aims at examining the degree of growth effect of schooling in this region. Following the endogenous growth model developed by Lucas (1988) that considers human capital as one factor of production and schooling as means of human capital accumulation, two results of schooling are explicitly stated: accumulation of privately owned and publically owned human capital. By developing a growth estimating equation containing these two types of …

Blending Of Traditional And Modern Technologies Through Science, Berhanu Gizaw

International Conference on African Development Archives

While the developed world benefits from the modern explosion in technology, countries such as Ethiopia are still reliant on the methods of there fore fathers for essential every day tasks like farming, cooling and provision of clean water. These tasks are often physically demanding, very costly in terms of time and energy, and, in many such societies, are often carried out by female members of the family. Additionally, they may cause damage to the local ecology and environment such as the deforestation and soil erosion arising from the use of trees for firewood. Western technologies are of little or no …

Ethiopian Macroeconomic Modeling In Historical Perspective: Bringing Gebre-Hiwot And His Contemporaries To Ethiopian Macroeconomics Realm, Alemayehu Geda

International Conference on African Development Archives

Much of the macroeconomic analysis in Ethiopia is hardly linked to the country’s pioneer development thinkers. The latter, however, articulated the Ethiopian development problems and what should be the appropriate policy direction to address them nearly a century ago. This articulated development thinkers of the early 20th century Ethiopia had captured the imagination of prominent Ethiopian historians and their students. Ethiopian economists seem to lag behind in appreciating the theoretical insight of these pioneer development thinkers. This article is aimed at bridging this gap. The paper will, first, reviews the economic ideas of theses reformer-intellectuals and then build a linear …

The Future Impact Of Adoption Of Soil Conservation Strategy At Family Level In The Highlands Of Ethiopia, Senait Regassa, Werner Doppler

International Conference on African Development Archives

In the highlands of Ethiopia, soil erosion is a bottleneck to maintain land productivity. In order to mitigate the problem of land degradation, the Soil Conservation Research Project (SCRP) developed and disseminated a number of soil conservation techniques. The studies done so far dealt with the impact of these techniques on yield and profitability of farming. However, poor farmers take not only yield and profitability into consideration but also many other factors. This study was initiated to assess the future impact of adoption of bund construction on family income, external labour requirement, cash balance, credit need, and dependence on purchased …

Land Tenure And Land Management Technology: A Case Study From The Central Ethiopia, Workneh Negatu

International Conference on African Development Archives

Land in Ethiopia is a public property. Farmers have use right to transfer or lease use rights of agricultural land. Thus, land tenure systems under the existing public ownership of land derive from official allocation by local government authorities and/or through transfer of land use rights. Farmers' practice of leasing agricultural land in the country is mostly limited to a few years, for instance to maximum of three years in one agreement. The common types of transaction of agricultural land include inheritance, cash renting, sharecropping and gift. The process and act of land transfer among land users, however, is often …

Land Tenure And Land Management In The Highlands Of Northern Ethiopia, Berhanu Gebremedhin, John Pender, Simeon Ehui

International Conference on African Development Archives

Land tenure security is important to encourage investment in land improvements as well as the development of efficient land markets. In Ethiopia, empirical analysis is required to find out the effect of the current land tenure system on farmers’ propensity to invest in land improvements, and the development and functioning of land markets. Data collected from 50 communities in the highlands of Tigray in 1998 was used to investigate the functioning of land markets, and determine the relationship between perceived land tenure security and land investments in the region. We found out that informal land markets (sharecropping and fixed rental) …

Policy Options For Improving Market Participation And Sales Of Smallholder Livestock Producers: A Case Study Of Ethiopia, Simeon Ehui, Samuel Benin, Zelekawork Paulos

International Conference on African Development Archives

Market access plays an essential role in assuring better income and welfare levels for smallholder livestock producers, and thus contributes to poverty alleviation. This is even more so in the Ethiopian context where livestock play an essential role in the economy. Making use of the Heckman estimation procedure, this paper identifies policy and technology options to increase participation and sales of smallholder producers in livestock markets in Ethiopia, based on data from 934 household surveys conducted between 1999 and 2001 in the highlands of Tigray and Amhara regions in northern Ethiopia. The analysis demonstrates that physical capital (ownership of different …