MGS / Institute for Gender and Youth Studies

MSCAGR / Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness / Poverty and unemployment are the main problems facing many people in the Vhembe District Municipality. Due to these main problems, most people turn into farming as a tool to reduce poverty, ensure food security and create employment in their rural communities. Because of high production and marketing costs, farmers often find it difficult to pool their resources together in order to raise farm income and substantially improve their living conditions. In order to deal with this problem, farmers form cooperatives to pool their resources for increased agricultural productivity, employment creation and poverty reduction. The study assessed the role of agricultural cooperatives in poverty reduction within the rural communities of the Vhembe District Municipality. The research study was a combination of both qualitative and quantitative research method. There are 70 agricultural cooperatives producing field crops and vegetables in Vhembe District. A clustered random sample of the 4 Local Municipalities within Vhembe District Municipality was employed. It involved the selection of 9 cooperatives from Thulamela, 3 cooperatives each from Makhado and Mutale respectively and 1 cooperative from Musina. Relevant data was collected from both primary and secondary sources. Descriptive and Binary logistic regression modelling was used to analyse data. The study revealed that socio-economic characteristics of respondents have an impact on the role agricultural cooperatives play in reducing poverty. The study further showed that agricultural cooperatives play a significant role in reducing poverty and ensuring food security to members’ households. The respondents showed a positive response in the effectiveness of cooperatives in poverty reduction. The study also showed that cooperatives have a significant role in creating employment opportunities. Cooperatives were also faced with various challenges which hinder their success in poverty reduction. Some of the challenges include; market access, lack of funding, conflicts within cooperatives and high electricity costs. The study concludes by recommending different strategies which will enhance the success of cooperatives in poverty reduction. Further studies concentrating on poverty reduction, food security and employment creation need to be carried-out which will help cooperatives respondents to eradicate poverty in their households and communities.

In the discourse of poverty, there is no scientific consensus on how to measure poverty. In the theory of social exclusion, analyzing poverty goes beyond traditional economic measures of poverty. The theory of social exclusion implies that there is a downward spiral of multidimensional deprivation, creating a vicious circle of social exclusion. According to Jeffrey Sachs, people living in extreme poverty are too poor to accumulate resources to escape poverty, resulting in a poverty trap. The only way to get out of the poverty trap is through investment from outside actors. The aim of this study is to understand what happens with a vicious circle of social exclusion when an outside actor provides such an investment, in this case with a cow.  The results show that investment from outside actors do not disrupt the vicious circle of social exclusion, it is rather a process of which the behavior of the circle changes. When a cow is introduced in the respondent’s lives, they receive resources that help to break unemployment, poverty and social isolation. After introducing the investment from an outside actor, the respondents dispose resources that contributes to inclusion in labor market, monetary resources and social relations, and the cow helps to create a circle of social inclusion

Economic growth alone may not solve the problem of poverty. Our behavioral analyses reveal that human capital is one of the key forces of reducing poverty and promoting economic growth. However, one''s human capital accumulation is restricted by his personal lifetime funds. Then the efficiency of national funds allocation in China is investigated. Results show that an equal allocation of national funds should be adopted by Chinese government, with which the economy can develop in a way both fast and just.:Acknowledgements IV Short Table of Contents VI List of Figures XI List of Tables XIII List of Abbreviations XIV List of Used Symbols XV 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Motivation 1 1.2 Important Concepts 2 1.2.1 Poverty 2 1.2.2 Absolute Poverty and Relative Poverty 3 1.2.3 The Household Responsibility System (HRS) 7 1.3 The Plan and Novelty of theWork 9 2 The Efforts, Features, and Problems of the Reduction of Peasants’ Poverty in the Past Three Decades in China 11 2.1 How Did the Problem of Peasants’ Poverty Originate and Evolve? 11 2.2 China’s Poverty Reduction Efforts 15 2.2.1 Phase 1: Rural Reforms and the Implementation of the HRS 15 2.2.2 Phase 2: County-Based Poverty Reduction during 1986-1993 16 2.2.3 Phase 3: The 8-7 Poverty Reduction Plan during 1994-2000 18 2.2.4 Phase 4: The New Century Rural Poverty Alleviation Plan for 2001-2010 19 2.3 Features of the Peasants’ Poverty Reduction 20 2.3.1 The Overall Achievement Is Remarkable 20 2.3.2 The Decline in the Incidence of Poverty Was Uneven 23 2.3.3 The Role of Human Capital Is Crucial in Income Generating 25 2.3.4 Migration Is a Path out of Poverty, But it Is Restricted by many Factors 26 2.4 Existing Problems in China’s Poverty Reduction Course 31 2.4.1 The Total Funds for Poverty Alleviation Programs Are Insufficient 31 2.4.2 The Official Poverty Line Is Too Low to Reflect the Real Situation of Peasants’ Poverty 33 2.4.3 The Overall Economic Growth Has Become Less Responsive to Poverty Reduction 35 2.4.4 Vulnerability to Poverty Extensively Exists 36 3 Literature Review on the Peasants’ Economic Behaviour 39 3.1 About the Rationality of Peasants 39 3.2 The Economic Behavior of Chinese Peasants before the Land Collectivization Movement in the Late 1950s 43 3.3 The Economic Behavior of Peasants after 1978 under the HRS and the “Hukou” System 45 4 The Job Choice and Land Rent Determination 47 4.1 Assumptions 47 4.2 The Job Choice 48 4.3 The Land Rent Determination and the Corresponding Optimal Farm Scale 50 4.4 The Empirical Evidence 54 4.4.1 Evidence for Proposition 1 55 4.4.2 Evidence for Proposition 2 56 4.4.3 A Case of the Land Rental Activities in L village 61 4.4.4 Summary 64 5 The Human Capital Accumulation 65 5.1 Introduction 65 5.2 The Basic Model 70 5.3 An Extension to the Case of an Imperfect Capital Market 77 5.4 Summary 79 6 The Rural-Urban Migration 81 6.1 A Review of Todaro’s Work 81 6.2 A Review of the Harris-Todaro Model 88 6.3 Remarks on the Above Models 95 6.4 Our Model 96 6.5 Empirical Evidence 101 6.6 Conclusions 102 7 The National Funds Allocation Efficiency in China 103 7.1 Introduction 103 7.2 Literature Review 106 7.3 Possible Relations between the Expected PLE and the PLF 109 7.3 Empirical Analysis 115 7.3.1 The Trends of Per-Capita Income of Urban and Rural Residents 115 7.3.2 The Trends of Per-Capita Earnings of Urban and Rural Residents 117 7.3.3 The Trends of Per-Capita Non-Earning Income of Urban and Rural Residents 118 7.3.4 An Estimate for the Relationship between the Expected PLE and PLF in China 120 7.4 Concluding Remarks 122 8 Review and Conclusions 123 8.1 Review 123 8.2 Conclusions 125 8.3 Suggestions to Further Research 125 Appendix 127 References 132

Theoretical and empirical literature suggest that public expenditure plays very important role in economic growth, especially in the developing countries. Available statistics show that Nigeria’s 5-year average annual real public expenditure/GDP ratio grew during the greater part of the study period 1981-2015, while the 5-year average annual real GDP growth and real GDP per capita growth rates are positive during the same study period, except for 1981-1985 and 1986-1990, respectively. The incidence of poverty, however, maintained upward movement, except for 2006-2010. The foregoing interactions have been seldom, the focus of empirical studies in Nigeria. This study examines the effects of public expenditure on economic growth and poverty reduction in Nigeria from 1981-2015, using variants of two models and simulation exercise: augmented Solow growth model and growth-poverty model. Real public expenditure/GDP ratio is used as the policy variable and the simulation duration is for 5-years, 2016-2020. We use the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing procedure by Pesaran et al. (2001) to estimate the two models, given that the annual data used for the models’ estimations were integrated of order I(1) and I(0) and small sample size. The results from the two models confirmed that public expenditure increases economic growth, though not significant, while economic growth does not reduce poverty. The same findings are confirmed through the simulation exercise. We, however, offer measures that would ensure growth and poverty reduction in Nigeria; public expenditure switch that encourages more investments in capital public expenditure, social sector public expenditure and private capital investment. / Central Bank of Nigeria

Section 27(1)(a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, entrenches everyone's right of access to health care services. The purpose of this dissertation is to determine the manner in which this right must be interpreted and implemented in order to alleviate poverty to the optimal extent possible, in South Africa. As a point of departure, the relationship between poverty and health, as well as the theoretical basis of poverty, is addressed in terms of soft law. Thereafter, the theoretical basis of the right of access to health care service is analysed and explained from both an international and a South African perspective. This is followed by an investigation into international law. The manner in which the United Nations International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is interpreted and implemented and whether or not this contributes to poverty alleviation, is investigated. This is followed by an analysis of the right in terms of the Constitution and case law. Particular attention is paid to the manner in which the courts interpret the right of access to health care services. It is then determined whether the state is implementing the right in such a manner as to contribute to the optimal alleviation of poverty, in South Africa. Finally, a conclusion is reached and recommendations are made as to ways in which the right can be interpreted and implemented to reduce poverty to the optimal extent possible, in South Africa. / Thesis (LL.M.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2010.

Section 27(1)(a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, entrenches everyone's right of access to health care services. The purpose of this dissertation is to determine the manner in which this right must be interpreted and implemented in order to alleviate poverty to the optimal extent possible, in South Africa. As a point of departure, the relationship between poverty and health, as well as the theoretical basis of poverty, is addressed in terms of soft law. Thereafter, the theoretical basis of the right of access to health care service is analysed and explained from both an international and a South African perspective. This is followed by an investigation into international law. The manner in which the United Nations International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is interpreted and implemented and whether or not this contributes to poverty alleviation, is investigated. This is followed by an analysis of the right in terms of the Constitution and case law. Particular attention is paid to the manner in which the courts interpret the right of access to health care services. It is then determined whether the state is implementing the right in such a manner as to contribute to the optimal alleviation of poverty, in South Africa. Finally, a conclusion is reached and recommendations are made as to ways in which the right can be interpreted and implemented to reduce poverty to the optimal extent possible, in South Africa. / Thesis (LL.M.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2010.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study identifies the way in which Brazil was able to achieve significant economic and social development during the Presidency of Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva from 2003 to 2010. The element which makes the achievement of this development extremely interesting is the fact that it was engineered by a traditionally radical Leftist party, the Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT – Workers’ Party) within the context of the globalized world economy. Throughout much of its existence, the PT has called for a radical socialist transformation of Brazilian society. However, once it came to power, it not only rejected radical positions, but acquiesced fully with the constraints placed upon it by global capital. Thus, in addition to describing the process of development in Brazil, this study also attempts to account for the way in which it was achieved. This is done by postulating that the Lula (as he is commonly referred to) administration was successful in solidifying Brazilian economic fundamentals, as well as in significantly reducing poverty and inequality in one of the most unequal societies in the world, because it adopted Third Way economic and social policies. It is argued that, even though there were few clear indications from the government that it regarded itself as following the Third Way, a practical examination of Lula’s economic and social policies indicate that they overwhelmingly conform to the prescripts of the Third Way. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie identifiseer die manier waarop noemenswaardige ekonomiese en sosiale ontwikkeling in Brasilië plaasgevind het gedurende 2003 tot 2010, onder leiding van President Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva. ‘n Faktor wat hierdie ontwikkeling besonder interessant maak, is die feit dat dit plaasgevind het binne die konteks van die globaliseerde wêreldekonomie, onder die bewind van ‘n tradisionele radikale Linkse party, die Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT – Arbeiders Party). Die PT het tradisioneel gestreef na ‘n radikale sosialistiese transformasie van die Brasiliaanse samelewing. Teen die tyd dat dit egter aan bewind gekom het, het dit radikale beleide verwerp en ten volle saamgewerk met globale kapitalisme. Hierdie studie beskyf dus nie slegs die proses van Brasiliaanse ontwikkeling nie, maar poog ook om te verklaar waarom hierdie ontwikkeling plaasgevind het. Daar word aangevoer dat Lula (soos hy algemeen bekend staan) se bewind suksesvol was in pogings om die fundamentele aspekte van die Brasiliaanse ekonomie te versterk, en terselfdertyd armoede en ongelykheid aansienlik te verlaag in een van die mees ongelyke samelewings ter wêreld. Die rede vir hierdie sukses is te vinde in die feit dat die PT regering “Third Way” ekonomiese en sosiale beleide toegepas het. Die studie voer aan dat, alhoewel daar weinig verwysing gemaak is na die “Third Way” deur Lula se regering, ‘n praktiese ontleding van hul ekonomiese en sosiale beleide toon dat Brasilië ‘n geval verteenwoordig van ‘n ontwikkelende land wat die “Third Way” prakties geïmplementeer het.

Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Although Botswana is considered by some indices as an economically successful country, poverty is experienced by 30% of the population. This is considered a very high poverty rate especially when it is compared to other countries on a similar level of economic development. Several policies have been put in place by the Botswana government to relieve the consequences of poverty. One of these policies, the destitute policy, targeted those individuals who are disabled and/or unable to engage in sustainable economic activities, causing such individuals to have insufficient assets and income sources. It was found by the Botswana government that the implementation of the destitute policy aggravates dependency of the destitute on government support. As a result, development workers were expected to lead registered destitute to independence through the implementation of a destitute rehabilitation programme. However, literature suggested that approaches that are used by development workers to enable individuals to engage in sustainable economic activities are often detrimental to the very empowerment purposes that such workers set out to achieve. The objective of this research was therefore to develop a conceptual framework for capacity enhancement of development workers in Botswana. This objective was addressed through applying action research in order to gain in-depth understanding of the perspectives, practices and experiences of the key role players involved in destitute rehabilitation. This was done in one urban district, one semi-urban district and one rural district council in Botswana. This research took place in four phases, all of which were informed by the action research approach. The first phase comprised four cycles of action research. Each cycle encouraged reflection and observation on destitute rehabilitation practices and planning towards improved practices, followed by implementation. It became evident to the researcher that only singleloop learning was practiced by the development workers. Therefore, instead of gaining deeper insight into aspects that influence destitute rehabilitation, the same problems related to destitute rehabilitation practices were repeated by development workers. Reflection on this process created understanding by the researcher on why the expected results were not achieved. Based on this reflection, a literature review was carried out in iv Phase II to develop the final theoretical and methodological frameworks for this research. Phase III consisted of focus group discussions to understand the perspectives, practices and experiences of the different role players in destitute rehabilitation. The data produced in Phase III enabled understanding of how development workers’ capacity was influenced by the system within which they are operating. The results of this research showed that development workers saw themselves in the same state of powerlessness as the destitute and as not being able to influence the system within which they are operating. Phase IV comprised the application of the coding principles of grounded theory to make sense of data related to Phases I and III, followed by the application of critical systems heuristics to make further sense of the data. Based on the understanding that emerged through the application of CSH, a conceptual framework was developed for the capacity enhancement of development workers in Botswana. It became evident in this research that the challenge for the government of Botswana is to not only reduce the number of registered destitute, but to redesign the system within which destitute rehabilitation takes place, by using the conceptual framework developed in this research. The purpose of the conceptual framework is to enable policy-makers and development workers to scrutinise the whole system within which destitute rehabilitation is implemented by engaging the key role players in dialogue on adjustments that need to be made to the system to enhance development workers’ capacity in destitute rehabilitation. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Alhoewel Botswana, gemeet aan sekere maatstawe, as ’n ekonomies suksesvolle land beskou word, leef 30% van die bevolking tans in armoede. Dit kan as ’n buitensporig hoë graad van armoede beskou word, veral as dit vergelyk word met lande met ’n soortgelyke vlak van ekonomiese ontwikkeling. Verskeie beleide is deur die Botswana-regering in werking gestel om die gevolge van armoede te bekamp. Een van die beleide, die sogenaamde beleid vir behoeftige persone, is spesifiek gerig op individue met ’n tekort aan bates of inkomstebronne veroorsaak deur gestremdheid en/of ’n onvermoë om aan volhoubare ekonomiese aktiwiteite deel te neem. Die Botswana-regering het egter bevind dat die implementering van hierdie beleid behoeftiges se afhanklikheid van regeringshulp vererger. As gevolg hiervan word daar van ontwikkelingswerkers verwag om geregistreerde behoeftiges na onafhanklikheid te lei deur die implementering van ’n program vir die rehabilitasie van behoeftiges. Die bevindings uit beskikbare literatuur dui egter daarop dat die metodes wat deur ontwikkelingswerkers gebruik word om behoeftiges in staat te stel om aan volhoubare ekonomiese aktiwiteite deel te neem dikwels ’n negatiewe uitwerking ten opsigte van die beoogde bemagtigingsoogmerke het. Die doel van hierdie navorsing was dus die ontwikkeling van ’n konsepraamwerk vir kapasiteitbou vir ontwikkelingswerkers in Botswana. Die mikpunt is benader deur aksienavorsing toe te pas om ’n grondige begrip te verkry van die perspektiewe, praktyke en ondervindings van al die rolspelers betrokke by die rehabilitasie van behoeftiges. Die navorsing het volgens die aksienavorsingsbenadering in vier fases in een stedelike, een newe-stedelike en een landelike distriksraad in Botswana plaasgevind. Die eerste fase het vier siklusse van aksienavorsing behels. Elke siklus het reflektering en observasie met betrekking tot ontwikkelingswerkers se bestaande rehabilitasiepraktyke aangemoedig. Dit is gevolg deur beplanning vir verbeterde praktyke en implementering van die beplande aksie. Dit het vir die navorser duidelik geword dat slegs enkellus-leer deur ontwikkelingswerkers toegepas is. In stede daarvan om ’n dieper insig in die aspekte wat die rehabilitasie van behoeftiges beïnvloed te verkry, is dieselfde problematiese praktyke met die rehabilitasie van behoeftiges telkens deur die ontwikkelingswerkers herhaal. Nabetragting oor die proses het die navorser die redes laat verstaan hoekom die verwagte resultate nie behaal is nie. Gebaseer op hierdie nabetragting is ’n literatuurstudie tydens Fase II uitgevoer om die finale teoretiese raamwerk en metodologie raamwerk vir die navorsing te ontwikkel. Fase III het fokusgroep-besprekings ingesluit om die perspektiewe, praktyke en ondervindings van die verskillende rolspelers tydens die rehabilitasie van behoeftiges beter te verstaan. Die gegewens verkry gedurende Fase III het die navorser insig gegee in die wyse waarop ontwikkelingswerkers se kapasiteit beïnvloed word deur die stelsel waarbinne hulle werk. Die resultate van hierdie navorsing het getoon dat ontwikkelingswerkers hulself beskou as in dieselfde toestand van magteloosheid as die behoeftiges, en dat dit vir hulle onmoontlik is om die stelsel waarbinne hulle werksaam is te beïnvloed. Fase IV het begin met die toepassing van koderingsbeginsels van gegronde teorie ter opklaring van gegewens verkry tydens Fases I en III, gevolg deur die toepassing van kritieke stelsel-heuristiek, ’n stelsel-denke-benadering, om die gegewens van Fase I en III te integreer. Die insig wat verkry is deur die toepassing van kritieke stelsel heuristiek het bygedra tot die ontwikkeling van die konsepraamwerk vir die kapasiteitsbou van ontwikkelingswerkers in Botswana. Dit het uit hierdie navorsing geblyk dat die uitdaging vir die Botswana-regering nie net is om die aantal geregistreerde behoeftiges te verminder nie, maar om ook die huidige stelsel waaronder die rehabilitasie van behoeftiges plaasvind, te herontwikkel deur die konsepraamwerk wat in hierdie navorsing ontwerp is, te implementeer. Die doel van die konsepraamwerk is om beleidmakers en ontwikkelingswerkers in staat te stel om die rehabilitasiestelsel van behoeftiges te bestudeer deur al die rolspelers in dialoog te betrek sodat veranderinge aan die stelsel gemaak kan word vir kapasiteitsbou van die ontwikkelingswerkers.

This study empirically examines the determinants of government expenditure in South Africa using annual data for the period from 1970 to 2014; and provides an overview of the South African government expenditure. The Johansen-Juselius co-integration test established that there is a long-run relationship between government expenditure and its determinants. The error correction model was used to examine the key determinants. The results of this study show that urbanisation rate, national income, poverty reduction; trade openness lagged one period and the wage rate significantly influence the size of government expenditure. Therefore, the study recommend that government create job opportunities; increase its expenditure in developing rural areas; and find ways to manage the public sector wage bill. The study concludes that population growth, inflation and trade openness in current period are not important in determining government expenditure in South Africa / Economics / M. Com. (Economics)