Smallholder Farmers and Collective Action: What Determines the Intensity of Participation?

Collective action through farmer groups can be an important strategy for smallholders to remain competitive in rapidly changing markets. Previous research has analysed determinants of farmer participation in groups, equating participation with group membership. However, within groups the commitment of members can vary, as marginal benefits and costs are not the same for all individuals, and opportunities to free‐ride exist. Low participation in collective activities may reduce the ability of groups to provide useful services to its members. This article investigates determinants of member participation intensity, using the example of farmer groups in Kenya. The role of individual and group characteristics is analysed with survey data and regression models. Previous benefits that members received through the group positively influence their intensity of participation in group meetings and collective marketing, suggesting that reciprocity motives play a role. Low participation can mostly be attributed to structural and institutional conditions, such as group size and the timing of payments for collective product sales. More diversified farmers are less likely to sell collectively when group marketing activities only concentrate on one particular commodity. Since smallholders are often highly diversified, the focus of farmer groups should also be broadened. Further policy implications are discussed.     

Stakeholders’ perception of defragmentation of new plots in a land consolidation project: Given the surprisingly different Slovak and Czech approaches

There is a fundamental difference in the way of merging the fragmented plots of one owner within a land consolidation (LC) in Slovakia (the Slovak Republic, SK) and the Czech Republic (CZ). All the scattered shares of a single owner in SK are merged into a minimum amount of new plots in the proportion of 1/1; the shares of one owner in CZ are merged only to a group of owners who are on the same ownership title.Through an LC project a Slovak owner automatically acquires sole ownership and the Czech one remains in an unchanged ownership in equal shares. Authors wondered what general public and the owners themselves in particular think of these two ways of merging. A simple online questionnaire for all surveyed groups (representatives of owners, public administration officials, LC designers/experts) for a virtual model territory was created. The results based on the questionnaire (563 responses, 10–25% estimated rate of return, were evaluated at the time of preparing the contribution) show that there is a clear preference (90–98%, estimated margin of error 5–16%) for the exclusive ownership. The (surprising) differences in merging as well as subsequent findings provoked an informed debate about the causes which is still pending.     

农村妇女土地权益保护的困境与对策探析

研究目的：探寻完善农村妇女土地权益保护制度不足的途径。研究方法：社会调查法，逻辑分析法。研究结果：在出嫁、离婚等涉及农村妇女的集体成员身份变动时，其土地权益难以得到充分保护，丧偶妇女（未改嫁）则因成员身份不发生变动，其土地权益的保护状况较好，故农村妇女土地权益未受到充分保护的根源在于集体土地所有权主体制度的缺陷。研究结论：针对集体土地所有权主体制度的不足进行股份合作社改造，是解决农村妇女土地权益保护问题的重要途径。     

重庆市农民合作社可持续发展影响分析

[目的]不同区域的农民合作社所处的发展环境和阶段不同,影响合作社可持续发展的因素也存在差异。通过探析重庆市农民合作社可持续发展的影响因素,提出针对性的政策建议,以期为农民合作社可持续发展提供重要参考。[方法]文章基于重庆市323个农民合作社的问卷调查数据,将影响农民合作社可持续发展的因素分为人力资源、运行机制、经营效果和外部环境4类,利用二元Logistic模型,对农民合作社可持续发展及其影响因素进行实证分析,在此基础上提出相关政策建议。[结果]普通成员的文化程度、管理者能力、合作社的组织结构完善性、成员对合作社的信任度、合作社的盈利能力、合作社的带动能力、政府的支持作用等对农民合作社的可持续发展具有显著正向影响,政府对内部事务的干预对农民合作社的可持续发展具有显著负向影响,其中管理者能力的影响远远高于其他因素。[结论]该文提出通过规范内部治理机制、提升人力资源素质、完善危机预警机制、优化外部发展环境和加强合作文化建设等政策含义,推动农民合作社可持续发展。     

基于产权与利用视角的台中市土地变化分析

[目的]以我国台湾省台中市为研究对象,利用多源统计数据,对其2011—2015年土地产权变化及土地利用变化进行分析,以揭示台中市几年来土地产权变化和土地利用变化的主要特征。[方法]文章主要采用描述性分析和统计分析方法。[结果](1)2011—2014年台中市共计增加登记土地产权面积621 hm2,公私共有产权土地面积先减少后增加,至2014年达到643hm2。(2)已登记非都市土地总面积,从2011年起处于先减少、后增加的趋势,特别是2014年已登记非都市土地总面积增加较多,相对于2013年增加了1.4196万hm2。(3)都市发展区中的住宅用地、商业用地、文教用地、特定专用区的面积皆有增长,而工业用地、公共设施用地、其他区的面积有所下降;非都市发展区中的保护区面积比较稳定,而农业区、风景区和河川区的面积处在调整的状态。[结论](1)台中市私有土地面积占比处于下降趋势,但整体不是非常明显;土地所有制包括公有、私有和公私共有等多种形式完全可以共存;东南亚人取得的土地所有权数量在总体上增减变化不大;(2)台中市都市发展区用地虽有增长但增幅较小,而都市区土地、非都市区土地内部的用途竞争导致了各类用地功能区的面积此消彼长;土地所有制对城市用地扩展没有构成制约,即土地所有制不是城市发展的分歧所在;(3)非都市土地转换为都市土地,不仅取决于各类土地竞租能力的差异,还取决于都市发展计划与土地使用分区管制,土地用途转换应以经济高质量发展与居民社会福利增进为目标。最后,提出完善土地权利结构体系,增加公有土地面积占比来保障社会公共福利等政策建议。     

国外地质勘查组织特点和发展趋势

国外地质勘查组织一般包括两大类 :一类是从事国家地质调查的组织 ,另一类是勘探公司。文章分析了国外地质调查机构的特点和发展趋势 ,论述了国外勘查公司的组织模式、管理机构、勘查组织的形式和类型、决策方式、勘查程序等     

河北省林权制度演进的动因分析

河北省林权制度演进的动因主要包括国家意志的改变、农民需求的变化、人口数量的变化、森林资源稀缺程度的变化、要素和产品相对价格的变化等几个主要方面。以制度变迁理论、时间序列分析和供求理论对相应因素进行深入分析,结果显示:诸多动因相互作用推动了河北省林权制度的演进。因而,在制定林权政策时,要综合考虑各方面因素的影响以及相互之间的关系以期达到一个均衡状态。     

La Participation des Adhérents Dans Leurs Coopératives Agricoles: Une Étude Exploratoire du Secteur Céréalier Français

When a farmer joins an agricultural cooperative, he or she undertakes to participate in the cooperative economically, as a co‐operator, and also in its administration, as an associate. Yet, today, researchers and directors of cooperatives are observing a drop in member participation in both spheres. The goal of this paper is to build a typology of the members of grain farmer agricultural co‐operatives in France, based on the members’ participation, and then use a multinomial probit model to identify the factors that come into play and result in a member belonging to a given category in the typology. We make the hypothesis that attitudes with respect to organizational involvement and the member's confidence in his or her co‐operative can explain these differences in behavior, along with individual variables tied to the member and his or her farm business, and variables associated with the co‐operative to which the member belongs. Following the analysis of the participation behavior of the 290 members in the sample, the members can be grouped into three distinct categories: “individualists,” “good soldiers,” and “engaged.” The results of the multinomial probit model on these three categories show, in particular, that attitude toward organizational involvement has a significant effect, as do the presence of storage on the farm and the size of the cooperative on the probability of being an “individualist” rather than a “good soldier” or “engaged.”     

中国地质调查科技发展态势和关键词共词聚类分析

以《中国地质文摘数据库》为统计源,采用关键词词频及关键词的共词聚类分析方法,对国内1993-2008年间的地质调查科技文献开展科学计量学分析,并勾勒出2001年以来我国地质调查科技的研究热点与主题结构,主要包括:①近年来我国地质调查科技研究逐步受到重视,高校、中央和地方公益性地质调查机构是当前我国地质调查研究与创新研究成果的最主要贡献者;②地质调查科技工作中的技术开发、技术应用已经成为最重要的研究领域,包括地质调查主流程信息化技术、水工环地调相关技术;③根据关键词词频聚类结果,当前地质调查科技可归纳为7个主要研究领域,并对其特征进行了简要的归纳和概括。     

林业上市公司资本结构及其影响因素的实证研究

利用主成分分析方法将反映林业上市公司资本结构影响因素的总资产、总资产增加率等15个指标归纳为两个主成分(“公司规模与盈利性”、“股权结构与成长性”),并以这两个主成分为解释变量,以资本结构度量指标为被解释变量进行多元线性回归分析,以测度这两个主成分影响林业上市公司资本结构的方向和程度。     

林业上市公司股权结构对经营绩效影响的实证分析

运用因子分析法求得12家林业上市公司的综合经营绩效得分,对11个原始财务绩效指标进行了处理,在此基础上,进一步运用多元线性回归模型的分析方法研究了林业上市公司股权结构对经营绩效的影响方向和影响力度。得出如下结论:股权集中程度对经营绩效存在显著的正向影响,国有股比例与经营绩效之间呈现显著的负相关关系。基于研究提出建立大股东股权制衡的股权集中度结构;适度地降低国有股比重等对策建议。     

农村土地调查地类确认的原则

地类确认是土地利用现状及变化情况调查的核心内容,其准确程度直接关系着土地初始调查和变更调查工作的成败.我国现行土地利用分类体系共分为12个一级类、5-6个二级类,农村土地调查涉及8个一级类,38个二级类,其特点有三,即按照类型的,按照土地用途、经营特点、利用方式和覆盖特征分类,城乡统一分类.农村土地调查地类确认的原则是功能性原则、便于管理原则、标准性原则、轻重有序原则和稳定性原则.     

农户金融合作行为及其影响因素研究

本文以浙江省农户为研究对象,通过实地调查获得相关数据,在统计分析和计量模型等实证分析的基础上,研究农户金融合作行为及其影响因素,为下一步农村信用社产权制度改革提供理论依据。研究表明,从总体来讲,影响农户金融合作行为的因素很复杂;尽管农户对农村信用社的认同感比较高,但是入股意愿并不强;农户对这次农村信用社产权制度改革是比较满意的,农户偏好的产权制度是股份制和股份合作制。因此,要按照农户金融合作行为来安排农村信用社产权制度,建立真正属于农民自己的农村金融机构。     

农村土地“三权分置”的新制度经济学分析

[目的]从新制度经济学视角梳理农村土地"三权分置"的制度变迁过程,并对"三权"各自的权能进行分析,针对现存集体所有权主体缺失、土地承包权权能混乱、土地经营权性质不清等问题解释其原因并提出对策建议。[方法]运用文献综述法、对比法对农村土地试行"三权分置"后集体所有权、农户承包权、土地经营权各自权能进行划分和界定,理顺三者关系。[结果](1)"三权分置"是农村土地产权权能的进一步分解与细化,集体所有权被赋予更完整的土地所有权能;(2)"三权分置"过程中承包地流转路径得到进一步强化,打破土地承包经营权的"成员权"限制;(3)土地经营权的市场性功能与农户承包权的福利性功能同时增强,进一步减少土地对农民的束缚。[结论]"三权分置"是解决农地无人耕种、推动农村土地适度规模经营的重要途径,合理界定"三权"的权能、理顺"三权"的经济学关系、破解法律制度障碍是"三权分置"的改革重点和方向。     

Does community ownership affect public attitudes to wind energy? A case study from south-west Scotland

This paper presents the results of a study of public attitudes to onshore windfarm development in south-west Scotland. Specifically, it explores the influences of different development models on attitudes to windfarms by comparing public attitudes towards a community-owned windfarm on the Isle of Gigha with attitudes towards several developer-owned windfarms on the adjacent Kintyre peninsula. The study, conducted in 2006, used a questionnaire-based survey (n = 106) to test the hypothesis that community ownership would lead to greater public acceptance of windfarms. It also examined the attitudes of both residents and tourists towards the impacts of onshore windfarms on landscapes and seascapes, including cumulative impacts. The data show that the Gigha respondents were consistently more positive about wind power than were the Kintyre residents. However, the differences were differences of degree rather than diametrically opposing viewpoints. The most significant concerns about windfarms were intermittent production and visual impact, but majorities in both areas nevertheless regarded their visual impact as positive. The data also indicate that local attitudes could become even more positive if future windfarms were owned by local communities. The fact that the residents of Gigha have affectionately dubbed their turbines ‘the Three Dancing Ladies’ is indicative of the positive psychological effects of community ownership. These results support the contention that a change of development model towards community ownership could have a positive effect on public attitudes towards windfarm developments in Scotland.     

MARKETING COOPERATIVES IN MIXED DUOPOLIES

This paper analyses a market in which agents with different ownership structures compete with each other by simultaneously choosing quantities. In the first part of the paper, the government can choose to support the formation of a marketing cooperative by a group of farmers, or to establish a public marketing firm. The resulting market structures will thus be a duopoly of one marketing cooperative and one private wholesaler, or a mixed duopoly including a public firm. The equilibrium outcomes of the two market arrangements are analysed and the welfare implications compared. It is shown that both consumers' surplus and total welfare are higher in a mixed duopoly with public firm than in a mixed duopoly with cooperative, which is in turn socially superior to a pure private duopoly. In the second part, agents' incentives with regard to choice of ownership structure are discussed and analysed in a two-stage game.     

The Role of Ownership in Determining the Rural Economic Benefits of On‐shore Wind Farms

The development of the wind energy sector is often promoted as a means of supporting rural economies. This paper focuses on how the ownership structure of on‐shore wind power plants (external, farmer or community) affects the size and distribution of impacts within the rural part of a region. Empirical analysis is based on a regional computable general equilibrium model of North East Scotland with the results compared to those generated from a standard social accounting matrix multiplier analysis. With no local ownership, while rural GDP increases, there is almost no effect on household incomes due to the limited direct linkages of the on‐shore wind sector. Local ownership increases the household income benefits but there are still limited positive spill‐over effects on the wider economy unless factor income is re‐invested in local capital. With re‐investment, farm household ownership gives rise to the largest increase in total household income but community ownership gives rise to the largest increase in rural (non‐farm) household incomes and welfare. The results contribute to the on‐going debate about the opportunity cost of external asset ownership in rural areas.     

Patterns in Technical Efficiency and Technical Change at the Farm‐level in England and Wales, 1982–2002

English and Welsh farm‐level survey data are employed to estimate stochastic frontier production functions for eight different farm types (cereal, dairy, sheep, beef, poultry, pigs, general cropping and mixed) for the period 1982 to 2002. Differences in the relative efficiency of farms are explored by the simultaneous estimation of a model of technical inefficiency effects. The analysis shows that, generally, farms of all types are relatively efficient with a large proportion of farms operating close to the production frontier. However, whilst the frontier farms of all types are becoming more efficient through time because of technical change, it is also the case that the efficiency of the average farm for most farm types is increasing at a slower rate. In addition, annual mean levels of efficiency for most farm types have declined between 1982 and 2002. The factors that consistently appear to have a statistically significant effect on differences in efficiency between farms are: farm or herd size, farm debt ratios, farmer age, levels of specialisation and ownership status.     

城市化进程中的股份合作制：对广州市石牌村的观察

本文对广州市天河区石牌村在城市化进程中股份合作制形成、发展的历程进行了梳理，提出在当前阶段，股份合作制所面临的根本问题是，土地不能改变其所有权性质，不能作为资产进入到股份合作制企业的所有者权益体系中，只能以集体所有共同开发的形式存在。在这种情况下股权一旦流动，便代表对集体土地所有权和收益权的流失，因此股权的封闭和内部流转也就不可避免。这使得股份合作制的发展面t临着诸多限制。进行下一步改革的重点在于明晰产权，逐步向外开放，同时创新经营管理体制。     

公益林管护费用补偿研究

从产权是否受限和管护费用是否发生两个角度对不同权属公益林的补偿性质进行分析的结果表明:国有林场公益林不存在产权变更或受限带来的经济损失补偿问题,只有管护费用的补偿;而集体和个人所有公益林因产权受限而存在经济损失和管护费用的双重补偿。在此基础上,为不同权属公益林所共同面对的管护补偿问题构建了一个超边际经济学分析框架,并在分工视角下对公益林补偿进行数理分析的结果表明:公益林管护费用的补偿标准应该是介于完全自给自足的林业经济结构U(Ayz)和完全专业化的生产公益林结构U(B1)之间。