The political economy of food subsidy reform: the case of Egypt

This paper examines the political economy of food subsidy reform efforts in Egypt. Egypt provides a case of a country with a large food subsidy program that has been relatively effective as a social safety net, but a program that is also expensive and poorly targeted to the needy. Policy discussions about strategies to improve the system’s performance run into the extreme political sensitivity of the issue of food subsidies in Egypt. Food subsidies are perceived to be important in promoting political stability and providing some legitimacy to a political system where civil liberties are limited. Egypt therefore illustrates the dilemmas facing policymakers and others contemplating food subsidy reform in developing countries where there are concerns that reform may spark political unrest. This paper argues that even in cases where food subsidy reform is a highly politicized issue, there are still a number of pragmatic policy steps that can be taken that meet the twin goals of reforming the system in ways that better target the poor while functioning more efficiently.     

新经济和传统产业的发展

以信息产业为代表的新经济对发展中国家是一副良方,面对新经济要大力发展我国的教育事业,加快提高全民族的科学文化素质,广泛普及先进的信息技术,提高竞争力,使传统经济借新经济之力和获取更大的生命力。     

The political economy of satellite business

Satellite communications systems are the outcome of the fusion of big governments, high technology and big business, whose needs they meet. As a major growth sector they are becoming extremely important in economic terms. But satellite communications raise wider issues of the relationships between rich and poor countries and within rich countries. They will crucially influence the location of economic activity and the future prospects for countries in terms of access to information, decision making and income. The article discusses these questions and suggests how Europe might improve its position. It also argues that participation in public policy on satellite communications should be opened to a wider range of parties.     

The political ideology of food

Using data from a survey of over 700 Americans, we sought to measure and investigate the nature of citizen’s political ideologies in relation to food. Results reveal that a majority of respondents can be classified as “food statists,” desiring more government action in the realm food and agricultural relative to the status quo. People’s ideologies with regard to food were multidimensional, falling along lines related to food health and quality, food safety, and farm subsidies. Respondents were most in favor of additional government action related to food safety. Food ideology was related to conventional measures of political ideology with, for example, more liberal respondents desiring more government involvement in food than more conservative respondents, but the relationship was far from determinative, suggesting food ideology represents a unique construct in its own right.     

The political economy of the Korean telecommunications reform

South Korea proclaimed a gradual economic liberalization ever since the early 1980s. Regardless of her vow to do so, however, most of liberalization efforts turned out to be a sheer rhetoric. In sharp contrast, genuine market liberalization and regulatory reforms are being introduced in the telecommunication sector, which is unprecedented in the Korean economic history. Why and how could Korea pursue such a full scale market liberalization and regulatory reforms in the telecommunications sector? Though it is argued that a regulatory convergence in economic management is found in everywhere in the world, the particular speed, scope, and/or processes of a country’s telecommunication reform cannot be understood correctly without examining the structures and institutions of the Korean political economy and of the telecommunications industry. This paper examines the causes and consequences of the Korean telecommunication reform by analyzing the relevant institutional changes both in domestic and international, which largely affect the interaction among those involved in the process of market liberalization and regulatory reforms.     

Population,food and agricultural development: A medium-term view

Trends identified in 86 developing countries over the last 15–20 years indicate that the increase in food production was less than that in domestic demand for food in as many as 53, and 34 failed even to keep up with population growth. The author presents the likely perspective for the next 10 years. His analysis focuses on accelerating the increase in food production; an equitable and efficient distribution particularly among the poorer sections of the population; increasing employment in agriculture and related sectors; and increasing the share of developing countries in expanded trade in agriculture products.     

The role of managers' political networking and functional experience in new venture performance: Evidence from China's transition economy

Drawing upon the resource‐based view and transaction cost economics, this study aims to examine how various types of managerial resources (i.e., political networking and functional experience) can be beneficial to new ventures in a transition economy. Using survey data from a sample of new ventures in China's high‐technology industries, we demonstrate that managers' political networking and functional experience are positively related to new venture performance. We also find that the positive relationship between functional experience and new venture performance is moderated by the type of ownership of the ventures and the level of dysfunctional competition in their environments. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The political economy of a productivist agriculture: New Zealand dairy discourses

The New Zealand dairy industry faces political and commercial pressure to improve its environmental performance on the one hand while maintaining economic efficiency and commercial competitiveness in a global marketplace on the other. The growing scale and intensity of dairy production have caused significant cumulative environmental impacts. The industry response to political pressures for improved environmental performance has involved a narrow focus on water quality and pasture management. It is consistent with an approach which seeks to maintain size and industrial leverage in the face of global trade competition. This paper explores the productivist constructions of environmental management by the New Zealand dairy industry in the context of global economic competition and notes an alternative response inspired by an ethic of sustainability. It suggests that despite global pressures of economic competition, it is possible to incorporate non-material values into farm management provided these are recognised and rewarded.     

比较优势与中国经济发展

发挥比较优势，利用当地有利条件形成竞争优势．这样的产业就不需要政府扶持．可以占有很大的市场空间．随后就能实现再投资和产品技术的升级．这样的发展才是可持续的．既有利于经济发展．又有利于社会问题的解决，还有利于构建和谐社会。     

The political economy of monopoly and competition: A critique of monopoly and stagnation theory

This paper examines critically the Kaleckian theory of monopoly capitalism proposed by Cowling (1982). The supply side of the model is shown to be incapable of providing an aggregate degree of monopoly and the neglect of inter-sectoral competition is highlighted. On the demand side, there is little indication of the source of stagnationary tendencies; it is the emphasis on collusion over conflict which underpins stagnation. The model is characterised by its emphasis on distribution and exchange at the expense of production relations, and is an inadequate representation of ‘monopoly capitalism’.     

Induced innovation and agricultural development

Dr Ruttan reviews the five general models in the literature on agricultural development: the frontier, conservation, urban- industrial impact, diffusion and high pay-off input models, and finds them lacking. He outlines a model of agricultural development which treats technical change as endogenous to the development process, rather than as an exogenous factor operating independently of it. This leads to an emphasis on the strong relationship between technological and institutional change and a call for institutional innovation that will result in a more effective realisation of the new technical potential.     

Supplier involvement in new product development in the food industry

Purchasing and supplier involvement as one possible explanatory factor of product development success has been gathering growing attention from both managers and researchers. This paper presents the results of a Dutch benchmark study into supplier involvement in product development, and discusses the topic more specifically in the context of the food industry. Regarding supplier involvement, this industry has not been studied intensively, although its specific characteristics make continuous development of new products imperative and the amount of outsourcing of production and development has increased substantially. The benchmark was conducted by means of an existing framework which has not yet been applied to the food industry. The food company in the benchmark study performs consistently better than companies from other industries. At the same time, the results of a similar case study carried out at a Scandinavian food company show contradictory results. By comparing the Dutch and the Scandinavian case, we illustrate that our analytical framework can explain these different results in terms of the underlying processes and pre-conditions, thereby validating its application to the food industry.     

US food stamp policy — political considerations

The author analyses the political factors which influence reform of the US food stamp programme. After discussing the reasons for the failure of the Ford Administration's proposals he examines the Carter Administration's efforts and discusses future alternatives to the food stamp programme.     

绿色食品包装的发展趋势—兼谈防止白色污染的对策

绿色食品，绿色包装，白色污染。这是当今的热点话题。绿色食品包装，涉及的范围十分广泛。首先是所采用的包装材料完全符合食品包装的法规标准。要达到这项要求，首先要了解所采用的材料包装特性，要研究在包装印刷制袋工艺过程中，不使用对人体有害和影响环境卫生的原材物料。还要研究包装容器使用后的回收再生利用，或对高分子包装材料废弃物能在自然条件下降解，不影响生态环境卫生等各个方面。一、绿色食品包装要符合卫生法规标准“民以食为天”。为了保障人民群众的身体健康，对食品包装印刷材料，要完全符合卫生标准，不允许有害物质…     

食品包装网出新一空间

网络食品的需求 实现网上营销,对食品的包装及所销售食品的选购都有特殊要求.网上营销购物的食品包装,除了要满足一般食品包装的实用美观等要求外,还要求能够满足客户"分类集装"食品的包装需求.     

Economic and agricultural development in West Asia and North Africa : The need for agricultural research

This paper analyses the role of agriculture in the economic development of West Asia and North Africa, with special reference to the interactions between oil wealth, population growth, agricultural development and the need for agricultural research. Since the 1960s agricultural supply lagged behind demand, which grew rapidly as a result of population increases and rising incomes. Following the oil recession of the 1980s it was felt that the development of the agricultural sector should be less dependent on other sectors, particularly oil. The possible roles of agriculture in the region's future economic development are outlined, with the implications for agricultural research. Special attention is given to the natural resource constraints affecting the region's agriculture (particularly water), and to the issues influencing the identification of research priorities.     

Taking measures in times of crisis: The political economy of obesity prevention in Spain

This article reports on a qualitative analysis of the measures proposed at the international level, but with a special focus on those adopted in Spain during the last decade. Analyzing biomedical definition of obesity as an epidemic and costly disease, this text aims is to unpack the conceptual structure of the obesity prevention model, and to reflect on the limitations of a top-down pattern of health education and communication in health that, focusing on individual aspects of lifestyles, has involved very little citizen participation in general, and less still by those diagnosed as overweight. In the process of translating international guidelines into national action plans, the effects of historical changes and socioeconomic interests have been largely ignored, and the symbolic and material needs of the stakeholders have gone unrecognized. The discussion considers the minor role attributed in public health policy to the food and eating as social practice, to the specific structural factors that have taken on greater importance during the economic crisis – job insecurity, depressed wages, austerity measures – and to the social determinants of the differential distribution of obesity – social class, gender, ethnicity, age – and suggests that this inattention to their impact may underlie the failure of these strategies to halt the apparently growing obesity rate.