Search results for: agricultural sector

Authors: Sonaal Ramsookmohan

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Legume seeds are common foods in human diet and have been identied as a valuable source of human nutritonn Since they are useful sources of protein; legume proteins are used in many food applicatonsn Critcal functonal propertes are recognized to impact the quality of foodn Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), has been well documented for its immense potental in contributng to food security forming part of daily staple diets in most developing countriesn. In this study, cowpea seeds were used to prepare cowpea four, protein isolates by the salt extractonndialysis method and peptdes by enzymatc hydrolysis using Alcalase and Flavourzymen Functonal analyses such as water absorpton capacity, oil absorpton capacity, emulsifying and foaming propertes were conducted on the cowpea peptdesn The physicochemical propertes determine their potental applicaton in food industries as functonal ingredientsn Cowpea peptdes could increase the value of cowpea by expanding its use, as well as contribute to the legume grain sector.

Keywords: physicochemical, peptides, Cowpea, alcalase, flavourzyme

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Authors: Soroush Mokallaei

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Since ancient times, urbanization engineers have always thought of creating green spaces along with urbanization. Athens and Rome have attempted to construct public gardens around streets and palaces. Since then developing green space has become a part of urban civilization. In medieval ages, all Western cities had palaces and houses with internal gardens. In different sources green belt is defined as a green band of trees and bushes around the cities which has multiple functions. It is said that green belts are not only around the mountains, cities, and rivers but also around houses, subways, and highways. Constructing green belt around cities has different advantages such as: protecting cities against pollution, purifying air, screening dust, being a place for recreation, buffer zone of city internal lands, confronting the phenomenon of heat island, increasing agricultural products, helping to prevent illegal city development, confronting deforestation, preventing flood and increasing subterranean water resources.

Keywords: environment, garden cities, green belt, metropolises

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Authors: Nazlina Shaari

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Sustainability is economic, social and environmental systems that make up the community in providing a healthy, productive, meaningful life for all community residents, present and future. The environmental profile of goods and services that satisfy our individual and societal needs were shaped by design activities. The integration of environmental aspect of product design, especially in textiles present much confusion surrounds the incorporation of environmental objectives into the design process. This paper explores the effective use of waste materials that can contribute to the development of more environmentally responsible practice in textile sector. It introduces key elements of the ecological approach and innovative ideas from waste to wealth. The paper focuses on the potential methods of utilizing sago residue as a natural colour enhancer in natural dyeing process. It will discover the potential of waste materials to be fully utilized to attempt to make the production of that textile more environmentally friendly.

Keywords: sustainability, textiles, waste materials, environmentally friendly

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Authors: S. Sabatino, V. Calderaro, V. Galdi, G. Graber, L. Ippolito

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Climate change is a rapidly growing global threat caused mainly by increased emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) into the atmosphere. These emissions come from multiple sources, including industry, power generation, and the transport sector. The need to tackle climate change and reduce CO₂ emissions is indisputable. A crucial solution to achieving decarbonization in the transport sector is the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). These vehicles use lithium (Li-Ion) batteries as an energy source, making them extremely efficient and with low direct emissions. However, Li-Ion batteries are not without problems, including the risk of overheating and performance degradation. To ensure its safety and longevity, it is essential to use a battery management system (BMS). The BMS constantly monitors battery status, adjusts temperature and cell balance, ensuring optimal performance and preventing dangerous situations. From the monitoring carried out, it is also able to optimally manage the battery to increase its life. Among the parameters monitored by the BMS, the main ones are State of Charge (SoC), State of Health (SoH), and State of Power (SoP). The evaluation of these parameters can be carried out in two ways: offline, using benchtop batteries tested in the laboratory, or online, using batteries installed in moving vehicles. Online estimation is the preferred approach, as it relies on capturing real-time data from batteries while operating in real-life situations, such as in everyday EV use. Actual battery usage conditions are highly variable. Moving vehicles are exposed to a wide range of factors, including temperature variations, different driving styles, and complex charge/discharge cycles. This variability is difficult to replicate in a controlled laboratory environment and can greatly affect performance and battery life. Online estimation captures this variety of conditions, providing a more accurate assessment of battery behavior in real-world situations. In this article, a hybrid approach based on a neural network and a statistical method for real-time estimation of SoC, SoH, and SoP parameters of interest is proposed. These parameters are estimated from the analysis of a one-day driving profile of an electric vehicle, assumed to be divided into the following four phases: (i) Partial discharge (SoC 100% - SoC 50%), (ii) Partial discharge (SoC 50% - SoC 80%), (iii) Deep Discharge (SoC 80% - SoC 30%) (iv) Full charge (SoC 30% - SoC 100%). The neural network predicts the values of ohmic resistance and incremental capacity, while the statistical method is used to estimate the parameters of interest. This reduces the complexity of the model and improves its prediction accuracy. The effectiveness of the proposed model is evaluated by analyzing its performance in terms of square mean error (RMSE) and percentage error (MAPE) and comparing it with the reference method found in the literature.

Keywords: electric vehicle, Li-Ion battery, BMS, state-of-charge, state-of-health, state-of-power, artificial neural networks

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Authors: Niamh Higgins, Dawn Howard

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The Irish agri-food sector is of major importance to Ireland’s manufacturing sector and to the Irish economy through employment and the exporting of animal products worldwide. Infectious diseases and parasites have an impact on farm animal health causing profitability and productivity to be affected. For the sustainability of Irish dairy farming, there must be the highest standard of animal health. There can be a lack of information in accounting for > 1% of complete microbial diversity in an environment. There is the tendency of culture-based methods of microbial identification to overestimate the prevalence of species which grow easily on an agar surface. There is a need for new technologies to address these issues to assist with animal health. Metagenomic approaches provide information on both the whole genome and transcriptome present through DNA sequencing of total DNA from environmental samples producing high determination of functional and taxonomic information. Nanopore Next Generation Technologies have the ability to be powerful sequencing technologies. They provide high throughput, low material requirements and produce ultra-long reads, simplifying the experimental process. The aim of this study is to use a metagenomics approach to analyze dairy cattle faecal samples using the Oxford Nanopore MinION Next Generation Sequencer and to establish an in-house pipeline for metagenomic characterization of complex samples. Faecal samples will be obtained from Irish dairy farms, DNA extracted and the MinION will be used for sequencing, followed by bioinformatics analysis. Of particular interest, will be the parasite Buxtonella sulcata, which there has been little research on and which there is no research on its presence on Irish dairy farms. Preliminary results have shown the ability of the MinION to produce hundreds of reads in a relatively short time frame of eight hours. The faecal samples were obtained from 90 dairy cows on a Galway farm. The results from Oxford Nanopore ‘What’s in my pot’ (WIMP) using the Epi2me workflow, show that from a total of 926 classified reads, 87% were from the Kingdom Bacteria, 10% were from the Kingdom Eukaryota, 3% were from the Kingdom Archaea and < 1% were from the Kingdom Viruses. The most prevalent bacteria were those from the Genus Acholeplasma (71 reads), Bacteroides (35 reads), Clostridium (33 reads), Acinetobacter (20 reads). The most prevalent species present were those from the Genus Acholeplasma and included Acholeplasma laidlawii (39 reads) and Acholeplasma brassicae (26 reads). The preliminary results show the ability of the MinION for the identification of microorganisms to species level coming from a complex sample. With ongoing optimization of the pipe-line, the number of classified reads are likely to increase. Metagenomics has the potential in animal health for diagnostics of microorganisms present on farms. This would support wprevention rather than a cure approach as is outlined in the DAFMs National Farmed Animal Health Strategy 2017-2022.

Keywords: animal health, buxtonella sulcata, infectious disease, irish dairy cattle, metagenomics, minION, next generation sequencing

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Authors: Tiantian Ma

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The district of Doumen, Zhuhai has a sophisticated seabass value chain. However, unlike typical Global Value Chain (GVC) industries, the seabass value chain in Doumen is highly domestic both in terms of production and consumption. Still, since the highly-industrialized and capital-intensive industry involves many off-farm segments in both upstream and downstream, this paper will be utilizing the method of value chain analysis. To be specific, the paper will concentrate on two research goals: 1) the value chain mapping of the seabass industry, such as identifying actors in the hatchery, fish feed, fishponds, processing, logistics, and distribution, 2) the SWOT analysis of the seabass industry in Doumen, including incompetence of the waste disposal, the strategy of marketing, and the supportive role of the government, etc. In general, the seabass industry in Doumen is a sophisticated but not yet comprehensive value chain. It has achieved a lot in industrializing aqua-food products and fostering development, but there are still improvements that could be carried out, such as upholding environmental sustainability and promoting the brand better.

Keywords: agricultural value chain, fish farming, regional development, SWOT analysis, value chain mapping

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Authors: Joaquim Rubens Fontes-Filho, Felipe Buchbinder, Marcelo Desterro

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The study aims to identify the effects of an economic recession on the compensation of executives of listed companies. Market-based and labor environment explanations have received particular attention, both to explain the reasons for a growth in this compensation and to indicate that they may increase agency problems rather than mitigate them. In this sense, labor forces, especially related to the market for executives, contribute to defining the terms of compensation packages and represent a significant external control mechanism to moderate agency problems, but may be of little effect if the executives are entrenched and concentrate enough power to have a say in his/her compensation. Based on a five-year data panel related to executive compensation in 250 listed companies in Brazil, we examine whether the economic recession in the last two years produced any impact in this compensation, controlling for the sector and level of governance of the company.

Keywords: agency problems, executive compensation, control mechanisms, corporate governance

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Authors: Nora Yusma Bte Mohamed Yusoff, Hussain Ali Bekhet

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The rationalization of a gradual subsidies reforms plan has been set out by the Malaysian government to achieve the high-income nation target. This paper attempts to analyze the impacts of energy subsidy reform policy on fiscal deficit and macroeconomics variables in Malaysia. The Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) Model is employed. Three simulations based on different groups of scenarios have been developed. Importantly, the overall results indicate that removal of fuel subsidy has significantly improved the real GDP and reduced the government fiscal deficit. On the other hand, the removal of the fuel subsidy has increased most of the local commodity prices, especially energy commodities. The findings of the study could provide some imperative inputs for policy makers, especially to identify the right policy mechanism. This is especially ensures the subsidy savings from subsidy removal could be transferred back into the domestic economy in the form of infrastructure development, compensation and increases in others sector output contributions towards a sustainable economic growth.

Keywords: CGE, deficit, energy, reform, subsidy

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Authors: Irfan Zafar

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Over the years the Telecom Industry in the country has shown a lot of progress in terms of infrastructure development coupled with the availability of telecom services. This has however led to the cut throat completion among various operators thus leading to reduced tariffs to the customers. The profit margins have seen a reduction thus leading the operators to think of other avenues by adopting new models while keeping the quality of service intact. The outsourcing of the network and the resources is one such model which has shown promising benefits which includes lower costs, less risk, higher levels of customer support and engagement, predictable expenses, access to the emerging technologies, benefiting from a highly skilled workforce, adaptability, focus on the core business while reducing capital costs. A lot of research has been done on outsourcing in terms of reasons of outsourcing and its benefits. However this study is an attempt to analyze the effects of the outsourcing on an organizations performance (Telecommunication Sector) considering the variables (1) Cost Reduction (2) Organizational Performance (3) Flexibility (4) Employee Performance (5) Access to Specialized Skills & Technology and the (6) Outsourcing Risks.

Keywords: outsourcing, ICT, telecommunication, IT, networking

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Authors: Jianli Jiang, Bai-Chen Xie

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The climate issue has aroused global concern. Achieving sustainable development is a good path for countries to mitigate environmental and climatic pressures, although there are many difficulties. The first step towards sustainable development is to evaluate the environmental efficiency of the energy industry with proper methods. The power sector is a major source of CO2, SO2, and NOx emissions. Evaluating the environmental efficiency (EE) of power systems is the premise to alleviate the terrible situation of energy and the environment. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) has been widely used in efficiency studies. However, measuring the efficiency of a system (be it a nation, region, sector, or business) is a challenging task. The classic DEA takes the decision-making units (DMUs) as independent, which neglects the interaction between DMUs. While ignoring these inter-regional links may result in a systematic bias in the efficiency analysis; for instance, the renewable power generated in a certain region may benefit the adjacent regions while the SO2 and CO2 emissions act oppositely. This study proposes a spatial network DEA (SNDEA) with a slack measure that can capture the spatial spillover effects of inputs/outputs among DMUs to measure efficiency. This approach is used to study the EE of China's power system, which consists of generation, transmission, and distribution departments, using a panel dataset from 2014 to 2020. In the empirical example, the energy and patent inputs, the undesirable CO2 output, and the renewable energy (RE) power variables are tested for a significant spatial spillover effect. Compared with the classic network DEA, the SNDEA result shows an obvious difference tested by the global Moran' I index. From a dynamic perspective, the EE of the power system experiences a visible surge from 2015, then a sharp downtrend from 2019, which keeps the same trend with the power transmission department. This phenomenon benefits from the market-oriented reform in the Chinese power grid enacted in 2015. The rapid decline in the environmental efficiency of the transmission department in 2020 was mainly due to the Covid-19 epidemic, which hinders economic development seriously. While the EE of the power generation department witnesses a declining trend overall, this is reasonable, taking the RE power into consideration. The installed capacity of RE power in 2020 is 4.40 times that in 2014, while the power generation is 3.97 times; in other words, the power generation per installed capacity shrank. In addition, the consumption cost of renewable power increases rapidly with the increase of RE power generation. These two aspects make the EE of the power generation department show a declining trend. Incorporation of the interactions among inputs/outputs into the DEA model, this paper proposes an efficiency evaluation method on the basis of the DEA framework, which sheds some light on efficiency evaluation in regional studies. Furthermore, the SNDEA model and the spatial DEA concept can be extended to other fields, such as industry, country, and so on.

Keywords: spatial network DEA, environmental efficiency, sustainable development, power system

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Authors: Stephen Barnes, Ian Mills, Frances Cleary

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Augmented and virtual reality-based applications offer many benefits for the heritage and tourism sector. This technology provides a platform to showcase the regions of interest to people without the need for them to be physically present, which has had a positive impact on enticing tourists to visit those locations. However, the technology also provides the opportunity to present historical artefacts in a form that accurately represents their original, intended appearance. Three sites of interest were identified in the Lingaun Valley in South East Ireland, wherein virtual representations of site-specific artefacts of interest were created via a multidisciplinary team encompassing archaeology, art history, 3D modelling, design, and software development. The collated information has been presented to users via an augmented reality mobile-based application that provides information in an engaging manner that encourages an interest in history as well as visits to the sites in the Lingaun Valley.

Keywords: augmented reality, virtual heritage, 3D modelling, archaeology, virtual representation

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Authors: Wael Bakhit, Salma Bakhit

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This paper employs a quarterly time series to determine the timing of structural breaks for interest rates in USA over the last 60 years. The Chow test is used for investigating the non-stationary, where the date of the potential break is assumed to be known. Moreover, an empirical examination of the financial sector was made to check if it is positively related to deviations from an assumed interest rate as given in a standard Taylor rule. The empirical analysis is strengthened by analysing the rule from a historical perspective and a look at the effect of setting the interest rate by the central bank on financial imbalances. The empirical evidence indicates that deviation in monetary policy has a potential causal factor in the build-up of financial imbalances and the subsequent crisis where macro prudential intervention could have beneficial effect. Thus, our findings tend to support the view which states that the probable existence of central banks has been a source of global financial crisis since the past decade.

Keywords: Taylor rule, financial imbalances, central banks, econometrics

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Authors: Sadia Nasrin Tisha, Mushfika Sharmin Rahman, Javier Orduz

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Machine learning is applied in a variety of fields throughout the world. The healthcare sector has benefited enormously from it. One of the most effective approaches for predicting human heart diseases is to use machine learning applications to classify data and predict the outcome as a classification. However, with the rapid advancement of quantum technology, quantum computing has emerged as a potential game-changer for many applications. Quantum algorithms have the potential to execute substantially faster than their classical equivalents, which can lead to significant improvements in computational performance and efficiency. In this study, we applied quantum machine learning concepts to predict coronary heart diseases from text data. We experimented thrice with three different features; and three feature sets. The data set consisted of 100 data points. We pursue to do a comparative analysis of the two approaches, highlighting the potential benefits of quantum machine learning for predicting heart diseases.

Keywords: quantum machine learning, SVM, QSVM, matrix product state

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Authors: Mohood A. Bamidele, Fadairo O. Olokesunsi, Muhammed A. Yunus

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This research work focuses on tourism and poverty alleviation in Osun State, it delves in the tourism resources of the state and strategic framework that has been put in place to manage the cultural base tourism that is most prominent in the state. The major instrument used for data collection was questionnaire which was designed for the area and data collected were analyzed using statistical table and chi-square analysis. The result revealed that tourism is under development in Osun State and the tourism potential of the state is yet to be exploited, this is due to lack of appropriate policy to master the development and management of tourism resources, poor publicity, awareness, and lack of adequate basic infrastructure. The research work, therefore, recommended, that, there should be proper and appropriate policy, and that the government should take a leading step to develop tourism in Osun State by creating a workable environment to the private sector and given a substantial budgetary allocation to the tourism in the state.

Keywords: appropriate policy, poor publicity, poverty alleviation, substantial budgetary allocation

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Authors: Divya Mohanan, Deepa G. Nair

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The most accepted international definition of sustainable development quoted from the Brundtland Report published in 1987 states that development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This definition serves as a foundation for many fields including the building sector to consider sustainability and focuses on the three pillars of sustainability social, economic, and environment. The building industry due to its multi-faceted nature requires building codes, standards, and certification systems to effectively address the sustainability assessment. In the last decade, many buildings rating systems evolved that address sustainability in one way and many more are on the drawing boards yet to come. This paper attempts to offer a comprehensive literature review of seven popular building rating systems (LEED (US), BREEAM (UK), CASBEE (Japan), GRIHA, LEED, IGBC), scrutinizing their macro-areas, segments of sustainability and thus highlight the need for a framework which addresses the assessment of the building in terms of sustainability as a whole.

Keywords: building rating systems, sustainability, LEED, BREEAM, CASBEE, GRIHA, IGBC

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Authors: Nana Katsitadze, Tamar Atanelishvili, Mariam Kutateladze, Alexandre Tushishvili

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In the modern world, tourism has emerged as one of the most powerful economic sectors, and due to its high economic performance, it is attractive to the countries with various levels of economic development. The purpose of the present paper, dedicated to discussing the current problems of tourism development, is to find ways which will contribute to bringing more benefits to the country from the sector. Georgia has been successfully developing leisure tourism for the last ten years, and at the next stage of development business, tourism gains particular importance for Georgia as a means of mitigating the negative socio-economic effects caused by the seasonality of tourism and as a high-cost tourism market. Therefore, the object of the paper is to study the factors that contribute to the development of business tourism. The paper uses the research methods such as system analysis, synthesis, analogy, as well as historical, comparative, economic, and statistical methods of analysis. The information base for the research is made up of the statistics on the functioning of the tourism market of Georgia and foreign countries as well as official data provided by international organizations in the field of tourism. Based on the experience of business tourism around the world and identifying the successful start of business tourism development in Georgia and its causing factors, a business tourism development model for Georgia has been developed. The model might be useful as a methodological material for developing a business tourism development concept for the countries with limited financial resources but rich in tourism resources like Georgia. On the initial stage of development (in absence of conventional centers), the suggested concept of business tourism development involves organizing small and medium-sized meetings both in large cities and in regions by using high-class hotel infrastructure and event management services. Relocation of small meetings to the regions encourages inclusive development of the sector based on increasing the awareness of these regions as tourist sites as well as the increase in employment and sales of other tourism or consumer products. Business tourism increases the number of hotel visitors in the non-seasonal period and improves hotel performance indicators, which enhances the attractiveness of investing in the hotel business. According to the present concept of business tourism development, at the initial stage, development of business tourism is based on the existing markets, including internal market, neighboring markets and the markets of geographically relatively near countries and at the next stage, the concept involves generating tourists from other relatively distant target markets. As a result, by gaining experience in business tourism, enhancing professionalism, increasing awareness and stimulating infrastructure development, the country will prepare the basis to move to a higher stage of tourism development. In addition, the experience showed that for attracting large customers, peculiarities of the field require activation of state policy and active use of marketing mechanisms and tools of the state.

Keywords: hotel industry development, MICE model, MICE strategy, MICE tourism in Georgia

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Authors: Pakize Ozlem Kurt Polat

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GMO (genetically modified organism) is the result of a laboratory process where genes from the DNA of one species are extracted and artificially forced into the genes of an unrelated plant or animal. This technology includes; nucleic acid hybridization, recombinant DNA, RNA, PCR, cell culture and gene cloning techniques. The studies are divided into three groups of properties transferred to the transgenic plant. Up to 59% herbicide resistance characteristic of the transfer, 28% resistance to insects and the virus seems to be related to quality characteristics of 13%. Transgenic crops are not included in the commercial production of each product; mostly commercial plant is soybean, maize, canola, and cotton. Day by day increasing GMO interest can be listed as follows; Use in the health area (Organ transplantation, gene therapy, vaccines and drug), Use in the industrial area (vitamins, monoclonal antibodies, vaccines, anti-cancer compounds, anti -oxidants, plastics, fibers, polyethers, human blood proteins, and are used to produce carotenoids, emulsifiers, sweeteners, enzymes , food preservatives structure is used as a flavor enhancer or color changer),Use in agriculture (Herbicide resistance, Resistance to insects, Viruses, bacteria, fungi resistance to disease, Extend shelf life, Improving quality, Drought , salinity, resistance to extreme conditions such as frost, Improve the nutritional value and quality), we explain all this methods step by step in this research. GMO has advantages and disadvantages, which we explain all of them clearly in full text, because of this topic, worldwide researchers have divided into two. Some researchers thought that the GMO has lots of disadvantages and not to be in use, some of the researchers has opposite thought. If we look the countries law about GMO, we should know Biosafety law for each country and union. For this Biosecurity reasons, the problems caused by the transgenic plants, including Turkey, to minimize 130 countries on 24 May 2000, ‘the United Nations Biosafety Protocol’ signed nudes. This protocol has been prepared in addition to Cartagena Biosafety Protocol entered into force on September 11, 2003. This protocol GMOs in general use by addressing the risks to human health, biodiversity and sustainable transboundary movement of all GMOs that may affect the prevention, transit covers were dealt and used. Under this protocol we have to know the, ‘US Regulations GMO’, ‘European Union Regulations GMO’, ‘Turkey Regulations GMO’. These three different protocols have different applications and rules. World population increasing day by day and agricultural fields getting smaller for this reason feeding human and animal we should improve agricultural product yield and quality. Scientists trying to solve this problem and one solution way is molecular biotechnology which is including the methods of GMO too. Before decide to support or against the GMO, should know the GMO protocols and it effects.

Keywords: biotechnology, GMO (genetically modified organism), molecular marker

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Authors: Lamia Bouzgarrou, Amira Omrane, Malika Azzouzi, Asma Kheder, Amira Saadallah, Ilhem Boussarsar, Kamel Rejeb

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Introduction: Increasing the women’s labor force participation is a political issue in countries with developed economies and those with low growth prospects. However, in the labor market, women continue to face several obstacles, either for the integration or for the maintenance at work. This study aims to assess the prevalence of premature withdrawal from working life -due to invalidity or medical justified early retirement- among active women in the Tunisian center and to identify its determinants. Material and methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study, over one year, focusing on the agreement for invalidity or early retirement for premature usury of the body- delivered by the medical commission of the National Health Insurance Fund (CNAM) in the central Tunisian district. We exhaustively selected women's files. Data related to Socio-demographic characteristics, professional and medical ones, were collected from the CNAM's administrative and medical files. Results: During the period of one year, 222 women have had an agreement for premature departure of their professional activity. Indeed, 149 women (67.11%) benefit of from invalidity agreement and 20,27% of them from favorable decision for early retirement. The average age was 50 ± 6 years with extremes of 23 and 62 years, and 18.9% of women were under 45 years. Married women accounted for 69.4% and 59.9% of them had at least one dependent child in charge. The average professional seniority in the sector was 23 ± 8 years. The textile-clothing sector was the most affected, with 70.7% of premature departure. Medical reasons for withdrawal from working life were mainly related to neuro-degenerative diseases in 46.8% of cases, rheumatic ones in 35.6% of cases and cardiovascular diseases in 22.1% of them. Psychiatric and endocrine disorders motivated respectively 17.1% and 13.5% of these departures. The evaluation of the sequels induced by these pathologies concluded to an average permanent partial disability equal to 61.4 ± 17.3%. The analytical study concluded that the agreement of disability or early retirement was correlated with the insured ‘age (p = 10-3), the professional seniority (p = 0.003) and the permanent partial incapacity (PPI) rate assessed by the expert physician (p = 0.04). No other social or professional factors were correlated with this decision. Conclusion: Despite many advances in labour law and Tunisian legal text on employability, women still exposed to several social and professional inequalities (payment inequality, precarious work ...). Indeed, women are often pushed to accept working in adverse conditions, thus they are more vulnerable to develop premature wear on the body and being forced to premature departures from the world of work. These premature withdrawals from active life are not only harmful to the concerned women themselves, but also associated with considerable costs for the insurance organism and the society. In order to ensure maintenance at work for women, a political commitment is imperative in the implementation of global prevention strategies and the improvement of working conditions, particularly in our socio-cultural context.

Keywords: Active Women , Early Retirement , Invalidity , Maintenance at Work

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Authors: Belakhdar Salah Brahim

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The Urban management is a major element of social control of public space and thus the functioning of society. As such, it is a key element of a social conception of sustainable development. Also, it is a cross-cutting sector that relies on land management, infrastructure management, habitat management, management of social services, the management of economic development, etc. This study aims to study how urban management focusing on the study of problems related to urban waste management in developing countries. It appears from the study that the city management is to improve infrastructure and urban services in order to increase the city's development and improve living conditions in cities. It covers various aspects including management of urban space, economic management, administrative management, asset management or infrastructure and finally waste management. Environmental management is important because it solves the pollution problems of life and preserve resources for future generations. Changing perceptions of waste has led to the definition of new policies for integrated waste management requirements appropriate to the urban site.

Keywords: urbanization, urban management, environmental management, waste management

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Authors: Albert Gyamfi

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Cocoa plays critical role in the socio-economic development of Ghana. Meanwhile, smallholder farmers most of whom are illiterate dominate the industry. According to the cocoa-based agricultural knowledge and information system (AKIS) model knowledge is created and transferred to the industry between three key actors: cocoa researchers, extension experts, and cocoa farmers. Dwelling on the SECI model, the media richness theory (MRT), and the AKIS model, a conceptual model of web 2.0-based AKIS model (AKIS 2.0) is developed and used to assess the possible effects of social media usage for knowledge creation in the Ghanaian cocoa industry. A mixed method approach with a survey questionnaire was employed, and a second-order multi-group structural equation model (SEM) was used to analyze the data. The study concludes that the use of web 2.0 applications for knowledge creation would lead to sustainable interactions among the key knowledge actors for effective knowledge creation in the cocoa industry in Ghana.

Keywords: agriculture, cocoa, knowledge, media, web 2.0

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Authors: Haga Elimam

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The study has contributed to determine the degree to which the women of Saudi Arabia play an imperative role in the developmental processes. This research provided a twofold objective to motivate Saudi females to take part in the development of society. The quantitative design has been implied for assessing outcomes through descriptive statistics techniques. The data has been analyzed by regression analysis. The outcomes of the study showed that when women were provided with health and educational necessities and adequate opportunities, they were able to contribute effectively in achieving desired developmental objectives for the nation. Saudi women constitute approximately half of the society; thus, they are equally provided health and justice rights. It has been concluded through the results of the study that the nature of Saudi society, customs, traditions, and beliefs affect the role played by women of Saudi Arabia. This study examines the tangible changes that comprised all aspects of life due to international exposure.

Keywords: social development, social service, sustainable development, civil society and educational sector

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Authors: Temesgen Yaekob Ergano, Sure Pulla Rao

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The study on financial development and economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa utilizes System GMM analysis to investigate the relationship between financial development indicators and economic performance in the region. The research findings reveal significant impacts of various financial indicators on economic growth, such as the positive influence of bank liquid reserves to bank assets ratio (R/A), trade openness, and the broad money to total reserves ratio (M/R) on the economic growth of Sub-Saharan Africa. Additionally, the study highlights the negative impact of domestic credit provided to the private sector by banks (D_bank) on economic growth, emphasizing the importance of prudent credit allocation to avoid over-indebtedness and financial crises. These results provide valuable insights for policymakers aiming to foster sustainable economic growth in the region by leveraging financial development effectively.

Keywords: financial development, economic growth, Sub-Saharan Africa, system GMM analysis, financial indicators.

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Authors: Asegid Belay Kebede, Getachew Biru Worku

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The Earth and its inhabitants have faced an existential threat as a result of severe manmade actions. Global warming and climate change have been the most apparent manifestations of this threat throughout the world, with increasingly intense heat waves, temperature rises, flooding, sea-level rise, ice sheet melting, and so on. One of the major contributors to this disaster is the ever-increasing production and consumption of energy, which is still primarily fossil-based and emits billions of tons of hazardous GHG. The transportation industry is recognized as the biggest actor in terms of emissions, accounting for 24% of direct CO2 emissions and being one of the few worldwide sectors where CO2 emissions are still growing. Rail transportation, which includes all from light rail transit to high-speed rail services, is regarded as one of the most efficient modes of transportation, accounting for 9% of total passenger travel and 7% of total freight transit. Nonetheless, there is still room for improvement in the transportation sector, which might be done by incorporating alternative and/or renewable energy sources. As a result of these rapidly changing global energy situations and rapidly dwindling fossil fuel supplies, we were driven to analyze the possibility of renewable energy sources for traction applications. Even a small achievement in energy conservation or harnessing might significantly influence the total railway system and have the potential to transform the railway sector like never before. As a result, the paper begins by assessing the potential for photovoltaic (PV) power generation on train rooftops and existing infrastructure such as railway depots, passenger stations, traction substation rooftops, and accessible land along rail lines. As a result, a method based on a Google Earth system (using Helioscopes software) is developed to assess the PV potential along rail lines and on train station roofs. As an example, the Addis Ababa light rail transit system (AA-LRTS) is utilized. The case study examines the electricity-generating potential and economic performance of photovoltaics installed on AALRTS. As a consequence, the overall capacity of solar systems on all stations, including train rooftops, reaches 72.6 MWh per day, with an annual power output of 10.6 GWh. Throughout a 25-year lifespan, the overall CO2 emission reduction and total profit from PV-AA-LRTS can reach 180,000 tons and 892 million Ethiopian birrs, respectively. The PV-AA-LRTS has a 200% return on investment. All PV stations have a payback time of less than 13 years, and the price of solar-generated power is less than $0.08/kWh, which can compete with the benchmark price of coal-fired electricity. Our findings indicate that PV-AA-LRTS has tremendous potential, with both energy and economic advantages.

Keywords: sustainable development, global warming, energy crisis, photovoltaic energy conversion, techno-economic analysis, transportation system, light rail transit

Procedia PDF Downloads 76

Authors: Azzouzi Fadoua

Abstract:

This study focuses on the diagnosis of the dynamics of natural resources in a semi-arid mountainous weakened by natural vulnerability and anthropogenic action. This is evident in the forms of hydraulic erosion and degradation of agricultural land. The rate of this damaged land is 53%, with a strong presence of concentrated erosion; this shows that balanced and semi-balanced environments are less apparent to the Watershed, representing 47%. The results revealed the crucial role of the slopes and the density of the hydraulic networks to facilitate the transport of fine elements, at the level of the slopes with low vegetation intensity, to the lake of the dam. Something that endangers the siltation of the latter. After the study of natural and anthropogenic elements, it turned out that natural vulnerability is an integral part of the current dynamic, especially when it coincides with the overexploitation of natural resources, in this case, the exploitation of steep slopes for the cultivation of cereals and overgrazing. This causes the soil to pile up and increase the rate of runoff.

Keywords: watershed, erosion, natural vulnerability, anthropogenic

Procedia PDF Downloads 151

Authors: Ģirts Brasliņš, Ilja Arefjevs, Nadežda Tarakanova

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The objective of countercyclical capital buffer is to encourage banks to build up buffers in good times that can be drawn down in bad times. The aim of the report is to assess such decisions by banks derived from three approaches. The approaches are the aggregate credit-to-GDP ratio, credit growth as well as banking sector profits. The approaches are implemented for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for the time period 2000-2012. The report compares three approaches and analyses their relevance to the Baltic states by testing the correlation between a growth in studied variables and a growth of corresponding gaps. Methods used in the empirical part of the report are econometric analysis as well as economic analysis, development indicators, relative and absolute indicators and other methods. The research outcome is a cross-Baltic comparison of two alternative approaches to establish or release a countercyclical capital buffer by banks and their implications for each Baltic country.

Keywords: basel III, countercyclical capital buffer, banks, credit growth, baltic states

Procedia PDF Downloads 396

Authors: Stamatia Nasiakou, Dimitrios Chouvardas, Michael Vrahnakis, Vassiliki Kleftoyanni

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Recent research in the mountainous and semi-mountainous rural landscapes of Greece shows that they have been significantly changed over the last 80 years. These changes have the form of structural modification of land cover/use patterns, with the main characteristic being the extensive expansion of dense forests and shrubs at the expense of grasslands and extensive agricultural areas. The aim of this research was to study the 60-year changes (1960-2019) of land cover/ use units in the rural landscape of Mouzaki (Karditsa Prefecture, central Greece). Relevant cartographic material such as forest land use maps, digital maps (Corine Land Cover -2018), 1960 aerial photos from Hellenic Military Geographical Service, and satellite imagery (Google Earth Pro 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2019) was collected and processed in order to study landscape evolution. ArcGIS v 10.2.2 software was used to process the cartographic material and to produce several sets of data. Main product of the analysis was a digitized photo-mosaic of the 1960 aerial photographs, a digitized photo-mosaic of recent satellite images (2014, 2016, 2017 and 2019), and diagrams and maps of temporal transformation of the rural landscape (1960 – 2019). Maps and diagrams were produced by applying photointerpretation techniques and a suitable land cover/ use classification system on the two photo-mosaics. Demographic and socioeconomic inventory data was also collected mainly from diachronic census reports of the Hellenic Statistical Authority and local sources. Data analysis of the temporal transformation of land cover/ use units showed that they are mainly located in the central and south-eastern part of the study area, which mainly includes the mountainous part of the landscape. The most significant change is the expansion of the dense forests that currently dominate the southern and eastern part of the landscape. In conclusion, the produced diagrams and maps of the land cover/ use evolution suggest that woody vegetation in the rural landscape of Mouzaki has significantly increased over the past 60 years at the expense of the open areas, especially grasslands and agricultural areas. Demographic changes, land abandonment and the transformation of traditional farming practices (e.g. agroforestry) were recognized as the main cause of the landscape change. This study is part of a broader research project entitled “Perspective of Agroforestry in Thessaly region: A research on social, environmental and economic aspects to enhance farmer participation”. The project is funded by the General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT) and the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI).

Keywords: Agroforestry, Forest expansion, Land cover/ use changes, Mountainous and semi-mountainous areas

Procedia PDF Downloads 108

Authors: Molla Tadesse Lakew

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Researchers tried to find out the socio-economic and supply-side constraint factors to adoption. However, they overlooked the role of social networks and relationships among the community. Therefore, the aims of this review were to review the roles and negative effects of social capital. Based on its contents, relevancy, and time duration, only 121 (journals, books, and paper reports) were selected. It concludes that social capital has an indispensable role in facilitating cooperation and connection between members of the farmers' community, informal and experiential knowledge sharing, and access to research-based knowledge and contributes to reducing the transaction cost of adoption. On the contrary, inside the black box of social capital, the negative effects include the exclusion of outsider’s knowledge and experiences, excessive claims on group members, and restrictions on individual freedom.

Keywords: social capital, local institutions, adoption, Ethiopia

Procedia PDF Downloads 97

Authors: Hakan Arslan, Deniz Ekinci, Alper Gungor, Gurkan Bilir, Omer Tas, Mehmet Altun

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Drought is one of the major abiotic stresses affecting the agricultural production worldwide. In this study, Leaf samples were taken from the carrot plants grown under drought stress conditions during the harvesting period. The plants were irrigated in three irrigation interval (4, 6 and 8 days) and Irrigation water regime was set up in pots. The changes in activities of antioxidant enzymes such as glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione s-transferase (GST), superoxide dismutase (SOD)) in leaves of black carrot were investigated. The activities of antioxidant enzymes (GR, GST, SOD) were varied significantly with irrigation intervals. The highest value of GR, GST and SOD were determined in the irrigation interval of 6 days. All antioxidant activity values were decreased in 8 days of irrigation interval. As a result of the study, it has been suggested that optimum irrigation intervals for plants can be used in antioxidant enzymes.

Keywords: antioxidant enzyme, carrot, drought, irrigation interval

Procedia PDF Downloads 221

Authors: N. Degui, Y. Daoud

Abstract:

The study investigates the assessment of micronutrient bioavailability and behavior in saline soils based on the determination of three cations and one anion on three soil profiles affected by secondary salinization in Lower Cheliff. The chemical fractionation method was used for the speciation study (different forms) of micronutrients in these soils. The results show that total form quantities of cations are height than norms in agricultural soils, thus the quantities of anion are lows. At the other hand, the quantities of available forms are lows. Statistical analysis reveals that cationic micronutrients localize preferentially in the coarse fraction of the soil in salty conditions and that sodicity causes a decrease in the iron reserve in the soil. The pH range ‘7.49 - 8.76’ represents a constraint for the complexation of micronutrients by organic matter. The study concluded that quantities of total and available forms of micronutrients in salty soils are influenced by soil properties such as: pH, electrical conductivity and exchangeable sodium.

Keywords: chemical fractionation, micronutrients, salty soils, speciation

Procedia PDF Downloads 159

Authors: Irfan Ali, Srikant Gupta, Aquil Ahmed

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Every country needs a sustainable development (SD) for its economic growth by forming suitable policies and initiative programs for the development of different sectors of the country. This paper is comprised of modeling and optimization of different sectors of India that form a multi-criterion model. In this paper, we developed a fractional goal programming (FGP) model that helps in providing the efficient allocation of resources simultaneously by achieving the sustainable goals in gross domestic product (GDP), electricity consumption (EC) and greenhouse gasses (GHG) emission by the year 2030. Also, a weighted model of FGP is presented to obtain varying solution according to the priorities set by the policy maker for achieving future goals of GDP growth, EC, and GHG emission. The presented models provide a useful insight to the decision makers for implementing strategies in a different sector.

Keywords: sustainable and economic development, multi-objective fractional programming, fuzzy goal programming, weighted fuzzy goal programming

Procedia PDF Downloads 223