Evaluating the impact of Tax-for-Fee reform (Fei Gai Shui) on water resources and agriculture production in the Zhanghe Irrigation System, China

This article questions the effectiveness and viability of rural Tax-for-Fee reform (Fei Gai Shui) on water resources and agriculture production, taking the Zhanghe Irrigation System of China as a case study example. The Fei Gai Shui reform has been heralded as a possible solution for reducing the excessive fiscal burden on peasants. While the reform may achieve in relieving peasant burdens significantly, the initial impact of Fei Gai Shui on water resources and agricultural production indicate least satisfactory trends. The policy shows significant impact on rice yield and area. It might also have profound impact on cropping pattern but it has yet to be seen. Dependence on local water resources such as ponds show significant increase after Fei Gai Shui as it discouraged farmers to rely on regional water sources. Although the lower regional water use under Fei Gai Shui reduced the water charges paid by farmers, the savings were mostly offset by increasing pumping costs in accessing water from local ponds. Without any adjustments, the Fei Gai Shui is likely to cause serious predicament in agricultural sector. It is visioned that local water resources such as water ponds will continue to play an important role in sustaining agricultural production.     

Production costs for consolidated multibank holding companies compared to one-bank organizational forms

Economies of scale and scope for consolidated multibank holding companies (MBHCs) are examined with a translog cost function and are compared with one-bank holding companies (OBHCs) and independent banks. Empirical results indicate that costs curves are generally U-shaped for independent banks and OBHCs but are relatively flat for MBHCs. This evidence implies that banking organizations should prefer the MBHC to one-bank forms at higher output levels. Implications for bank regulatory policy and interstate banking are discussed.     

Ageing in Europe

For many people all over Europe, there is an understanding and an expectation that in old age they will be taken care of by the state. High social security contributions throughout the three or four decades of a working life are rationalised by the prospect of a straightforward transition out of the labour force when the time comes. While this was a reasonable expectation in decades past, a number of factors have combined to cause people all across the continent to feel very anxious about what awaits them once it is time to exit the labour force into retirement. The well-documented demographic transition of many rich European countries is a big factor, as greying populations start to weigh on the sparser younger generations, leading to increasing dependency ratios that would cause any social security system to buckle. The Great Recession has not helped matters, and the austerity measures still crippling many vulnerable European nations will not make anyone in these countries feel optimistic about their post-working lives. The following papers look at different threads of the new reality of ageing in Europe, from pension reform and prolonging the working life to more qualitative aspects such as an analysis of the quality of life of the elderly across Europe. They serve to inform and advise on an important issue that will affect everyone in Europe at some point in their lives.     

Geographical deregulation and competition in U.S. banking markets

The effects of geographical deregulation on competition in banking markets is examined. Using a model that develops an index of competition as proposed by Bresnahan and applied to banking markets by Shaffer, the empirical evidence suggests that geographical deregulation has not had a significant impact on competition. The limited effects of geographical deregulation on competition is consistent with other evidence presented, suggesting that banking markets were already highly competitive. In those states where a significant effect was observed, geographical deregulation increased the degree of competition in some states but had the opposite effect in others.     

Impact of women empowerment on rural development in Southern Punjab,Pakistan

Quality & Quantity - Women play an important role in the development of a country. In Pakistan, efforts are being made to empower women in almost every field of life but in rural areas women...     

COMPARING INCOMES WHEN NEEDS DIFFER: EQUIVALIZATION FOR THE EXTRA COSTS OF DISABILITY IN THE U.K.

Equivalization of incomes for household composition is accepted practice when measuring poverty but other variations in needs are rarely acknowledged. This paper uses data from two U.K. household surveys to quantify the extra costs of living associated with disability. The extra costs of disability are derived by comparing the "standard of living" of households with and without disabled members at a given income, having controlled for other sources of variation. Logit and ordered logit regressions are used to estimate the relationship between a range of standard of living indicators, income, and disability. The extra costs of disability derived are substantial and rise with severity of disability. Unadjusted incomes significantly understate the problem of low income amongst disabled people, and thereby in the population as a whole.     

A DEA model for resource allocation

This paper concerns inverse DEA. The aim is to estimate input/output levels of a given Decision Making Unit (DMU) when some or all of its input/output levels are changed, under preserving the efficiency index. We show that in the case of estimating increased required input vector when the output vector is increased, the current method which uses weakly efficient solution of the relevant multiple objective optimization problem may fail. We propose some sufficient conditions for input estimation.     

Conflict and Confluence: The Multidimensionality of Opportunism in Principal–Agent Relationships

This comparative study explores 499 corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives implemented by 178 corporations in five distinct, institutionally consistent European clusters. This study provides an empirically grounded response to calls to develop comprehensive, nuanced pictures of CSR in the composite European business environment. In so doing, the article stresses three distinct, non-exclusive approaches that characterize the embedding of CSR considerations in corporations’ strategies across Europe and the CSR challenges for corporations operating in different socio-political contexts. Furthermore, the study reaffirms the CSR notion as a contextualized concept, shaped by socio-political drivers, and contributes by bridging macro-level, socio-political facets of CSR with its meso-level, organizational implications.