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This study examines agricultural productivity and farmers' welfare in West Timor, Indonesia. The driving force behind this study is to understand why the welfare of farmers has lagged behind others despite significant growth in the agricultural sector. The main research problem in this study is that while agricultural production has increased significantly in West Timor, the welfare of farmers has not increased as fast as that of non-farmers. To reduce the gap in income between farmers and nonfarmers, the growth of income of West Timor's farmers, as the indicator of their welfare, has to accelerate at least as fast as the growth of non-farmers' income. This target might be achieved if there is an appropriate policy of agricultural development implemented by the government. For this reason, evaluation of the structure of agricultural production, as well as the welfare of the farmers of West Timor, is an important issue that needs to be addressed. This study analyses the structure of agricultural production and the welfare of farmers in West Timor. An econometric method (Three Stage Least Squares) was used in modelling the agricultural system to evaluate the structure of the agricultural production as well as farmers' welfare in West Timor. A simultaneous equations model which consists of eight structural and four identity equations was constructed for the analysis of the structure, the estimation of elasticities from the regression coefficients and the subsequent policy analysis. The data used for the analysis are secondary data published by the Indonesian government. / All data used in the model were time series data from 1979 to 1998 and gathered in the period between January and July 1999. The results of this research found that technical factors such as water availability. pasture capacity and irrigation channels influence the production of agriculture more than economic factors such as the price of products and cost of inputs. Too, population growth and the availability of socio-economic institutions such as cooperatives at the village level. have a significant influence on the agricultural production. Although technical factors influence the production of agriculture more than economic factors, subsequent policy analysis shows that an increase in agricultural credit as well as a reduction in the cost of production will still have a positive impact on the production of agriculture. A policy to increase the price of agricultural commodities at the farm gate, especially the price of live cattle and rice, will increase the profit of farmers, further motivating them to increase their overall production. There are six scenarios of the policy alternatives that are simulated in this study. These are: (1) the scenario of a 10 per cent increase in the size of irrigated areas, (2) the scenario of a 10 per cent increase in the amount of credit, (3) the scenario of a 35 per cent decrease in total cost per hectare of maize cultivation, (4) the scenario of a 10 units increase in the number of cooperatives, (5) the scenario of a 10 per cent increase in the price of live cattle at the farm gate, and (6) the scenario of a 10 per cent increase in the price of rice at the farm gate. / The results of the policy analysis found that the largest positive impact on the agricultural sector output as well as farmers per capita income is derived from the scenario of a 10 per cent increase in the size of irrigated area. The scenarios of increasing amount of agricultural credit and the number of co-operatives have also generated a large positive impact on the agricultural sector output, but with a high increase in farmer population growth. Two other scenarios that have a large impact on the agricultural sector output as well as farmers' per capita income are the scenario of a 10 per cent increase in the price of live cattle and the price of rice. Based on the results of the policy analysis, two main policies that might be undertaken by the government to promote the growth of the agricultural sector and farmers' per capita income are expansion of irrigated areas and improving farmers' access to agricultural credit.

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Even though social work research on violence against women has increased in the last decade (Slayter, 2009), there is little research on social workers’ understanding of disabled women’s experiences of male partner violence (MPV). When there is a gap in research and practice evidence, this may lead to less than ideal work experiences because social workers may be lacking crucial information, to deliver meaningful support and assistance to disabled women. Given these findings, it was essential to hear from social workers who had worked with disabled women who had experienced MPV. The aim of this investigation was to inquire about social workers’ perspectives, theoretical approaches and practice contexts related to disabled women who had experienced MPV. In this collective case study, sources of data that were accessed included federal and provincial government legislation, position documents, provincial archives, academic literature and thematic analysis of ten transcribed interviews of key participants. Findings showed that even though provincial government policies or programs were the main influences on social workers’ practices with disabled women who had experienced MPV, work settings and social workers’ attitudes also played a crucial role in how participants understood disability and male partner violence. Social workers in this current study often found themselves in the middle, trying to respect service users by meeting their needs, while remaining accountable to a system that demanded efficiency and accountability. Social workers often advocated for disabled women because of barriers such as a lack of accessible housing, transportation or work. Factors such as social welfare policies, social work education and training that shaped social workers’ practices could be strengthened to help them to better meet the needs of disabled women who have experienced MPV. / May 2017

The present study deals with the nature of the New Order Government policies toward the Indonesian Chinese ethnic group and the role of Bakom PKB in assisting the New Order Government to formulate and implement the pembauran policy. This study will consider the policy communication framework toward the Indonesian Chinese ethnic group in Indonesia, and discuss the New Order Government policies, and the role of the Bakom PKB within this framework. Two case studies are used to iluminate the role of Bakom PKB in channeling the pembauran policy from the government to the society vice versa. In the case of settling the citizenship status of Chinese descent, the role of Bakom PKB in assisting the New Order Government in formulating and implementing the pembauran policy is obvious right from its establishment. While in the case of the development and implementation of kemitraan (partnership) policy, the Bakom PKB only has a public relation function. The development and implementation of kemitraan policy is carried out by the organisation/association/institutions which are included in the pembauran policy communication networks. There are also discussions on the New Order Government policies concerning the Indonesian Chinese in the period 1966 - 1996, and the communication networks that existed amongst the Bakom PKB, Pokja Inlerdep and private institutions in disseminating the idea of pembauran in the frame of national integration.

The financial tsunami struck the entire world in 2008, leading to global economic downturn and unprecedented loss in the global financial markets. In an already weakened economic environment, investors continued to lose confidence, unemployment soared to an all time high and consumer spending continued to shrink. Thus economic growth continued to spiral downward. After careful consideration of all economic indicators and approaches taken by other countries, the Taiwan government launched the Consumption Voucher Policy in a short period of time. The government launched a variety of economic stimulus packages to revive the economy and restore economic growth as quickly as possible. To make distribution of consumption vouchers in the amount of NTD 3,600 dollars to each person, for which was to be spent within a short period of time, and it was estimated to add 0.66 percent on the economic growth of 2009. The issuance of the consumption voucher which helped to stop the economic free fall by encouraging consumer spending, also demonstrated government efficiency and exhibited cooperation among government authorities and people. The scope of this study is focusing on the causes and effectiveness of the program, and summarizing the data collected to record the first issuance of consumption vouchers.

In Swaziland, maize is important for food security, yet its production is low and the country has not achieved self-sufficiency. Swaziland has had a shortfall in domestic maize production since independence. About 80 percent of the rural population never has enough maize for consumption. The National Maize Corporation (NMC) was established as a self-sufficiency mechanism in 1985. The NMC is the only white maize importer and is also responsible for the stabilisation of domestic prices. The organisation has endeavoured to stabilise Swaziland's maize prices, though they are still high by regional comparisons. This study seeks to investigate the relationship between Swaziland and South African white maize prices in the presence of maize marketing and pricing policy, as implemented by the NMC. The maize marketing policy controls flow of maize imports and exports in Swaziland, while the pricing policy controls the domestic white maize prices. The current pricing relationship between the two countries was compared with a scenario where marketing and pricing policies in Swaziland are absent. This was done in order to gauge the effect that these policies have on the integration of Swaziland into the regional maize market and ultimately how Swaziland maize prices are affected by price transmission process in the presence and absence of these policies. The study used secondary data from the NMC, the Ministry of Agriculture, and journals. Monthly data from 2000 to 2014 are used and econometric time series techniques are applied. The study hypothesised that there is a long-run relationship between Swaziland and South African maize prices, given the current market structure. It also hypothesised the short-run dynamics correct deviations from the long run in a fast and efficient manner. Lastly, it is hypothesised that current policies are not hampering marketing integration or impeding regional price signals to flow through to Swaziland maize markets. The results confirm the presence of a long-run price relationship between the above-mentioned markets. In the presence of the current maize marketing and pricing policy, the error correction term corrected or adjusted the disequilibrium, from long-run equilibrium levels, at a speed of 3.8 per cent per period, indicating relatively slow correction. This could serve as evidence of inefficient integration between the two markets and an indication of weak arbitrage process. Weak arbitrage, in turn, has definite welfare implications in that it leads to inefficient allocation of resources. In comparison to the other scenario, there is a slight difference: when analysing the relationship between import parity and Swaziland domestic prices without policy measures, short-run and long-run relationship between markets are also confirmed. Here the error correction term, however corrected the disequilibrium of the system at a speed of 4.7 percent per period. This shows a slight improvement of efficiency when policies are eliminated. This study could be useful to policy makers in that it imparts knowledge on how world price signals are transmitted to their domestic markets. Understanding the price dynamics could, therefore, facilitate policy formulation related to price and marketing in the white maize industry. The findings of this study could ultimately also inform the self-sufficiency versus food affordability debate. / Dissertation (MSc (Agric))--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / MSc (Agric) / Unrestricted

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Thesis (MScAgric)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In South Africa, sustainable land use and management is paramount as the country’s agricultural natural resources are diverse, complex and vulnerable to degradation. To realise sustainable agricultural production and development, an agro-ecosystem-specific approach entailing soil, water and nutrient conservation agricultural practices is imperative. Conservation Agriculture is one of the agricultural production method that can be employed to ameliorate and prevent the degradation of South Africa’s agricultural land. The major aim of this study was to investigate how the uptake and adoption of conservation agriculture is influenced by economic policies and instruments in South Africa. To achieve this, an interactive research approach was followed initially involving an extensive literature review before scientific and empirical analysis was conducted. Firstly it was noted in the study that currently there is not any specific policy for conservation agriculture that has been promulgated in South Africa, but however there are a number of policies (i.e. Climate change policy, Carbon Tax policy, Land Reform policy, Trade policy, Water policy, Food and nutritional security policy, NEMBA regulations, CRDP, CARA, Organic production policy, Policy on Agriculture in sustainable development and the Environmental policy) that have been drafted which have the potential to positively influence the uptake and adoption of conservation agriculture by farmers across all the farming typologies (i.e. small scale, emerging and commercial farmers). The afore-mentioned policies were described and analysed with the purpose of establishing how they affect conservation agriculture using analysis criteria adopted from the field of political sciences. Criteria of effectiveness, unintended effects, equity, cost, feasibility and acceptability were constantly employed. In this regard, all the policies were tested to see how they affect conservation agriculture and to check if there was any alignment and harmonisation within the policy environment. It was found in this study that an alignment of the aforementioned policies is imperative in order to make the policies politically and administratively feasible which will lead to the swift implementation and effectiveness of the policies in meeting their core objectives. On this basis, it was deduced that the aforementioned policy mix has the potential to advance the uptake and adoption of conservation agriculture to further contribute to an enhanced food security and a sustainable resource base in South Africa. The policy mix analysed in this study, is however under specific constraints. These were identified and subsequently recommendations were made to ameliorate these constraints, in order to make the policies align with each other and to maximise the contribution of the policies towards the advancement of conservation agriculture in South Africa. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Volhoubare grondgebruik en bestuur is belangrik in Suid-Afrika as gevolg van diverse, komplekse en kwesbare natuurlike hulpbronne wat maklik degradeer. As gevolg hiervan moet volhoubare bewaringspraktyke gevolg word wat spesifiek is tot die grond, water en voedingswaarde kompleks van verskillende boerdery-omgewings gevolg word. In hierdie opsig is bewaringsboerdery een metode wat ontplooi kan word om grond-degradasie te voorkom. Die hoofdoel van hierdie studie was dus om te bepaal tot watter mate die aanvaarding van bewaringsboerdery praktyke deur ekonomiese beleid en -instrumente beïnvloed word. Hiervoor is ʼn interaktiewe benadering gevolg tussen ʼn uitgebreide literatuurstudie en ʼn wetenskaplike en empiriese analise. Die eerste belangrike bevinding is dat daar tans geen formele staatsbeleid oor bewaringsboerdery in Suid-Afrika bestaan nie, maar daar is wel verwante beleidsuitsprake (oor klimaatsverandering, die koolstof belasting, grondhervorming, internasionale handel, voedselen voedingsbeleid, NEMBA regulasies, CRDP, CARA, beleid oor organiese produksie, beleid oor volhoubare landbou-ontwikkeling en omgewingsbeleid) wat wel die aanvaarding van bewaringsboerdery praktyke kan versnel. Hierdie stel van beleidsuitsprake is beskryf en ontleed deur middel van ʼn analitiese raamwerk ontleen aan die politieke wetenskappe om hulle potensiële impak op bewaringsboerdery. Die spesifieke kriteria waarop gekonsentreer is sluit in doeltreffendheid, ongewensde gevolge, regverdigheid, koste, implementeerbaarheid en aanvaarbaarheid. Die doel van laasgenoemde was nie slegs om vas te stel hoe hulle bewaringsboerdery beïnvloed nie, maar ook of daar belyning bestaan tussen die verskillende beleidsuitsprake, omdat sulke belyning krities is tot suksesvolle implementering. Daar is dan bevind dat die huidige stel beleidsuitsprake wel die potensiaal het om by te dra tot die aanvaarding van bewaringsboerdery, en dus tot die volhoubare bestuur van Suid-Afrika se hulpbronne. Hierdie bestaande beleidsraamwerk word egter onderwerp aan spesifieke beperkings. Laasgenoemde is dan geïdentifiseer, en is aanbevelings gemaak om dié beperkings aan te spreek om sodoende beter belyning te kry en dus om hulle bydrae tot volhoubare boerdery te bevorder.