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Taking a livelihood perspective to study tourism has become popular in recent years, but as an essential part of livelihood analysis, institutional processes have not yet received enough attention. This study focuses on the influences of formal and informal institutions on small tourism businesses in rural areas. A case study was conducted in Hong Kong, and the entitlements framework was adopted as an analytical tool. Based on qualitative data generated from field study, this paper describes how different groups of residents rely on institutions at multiple levels to gain assets and make legitimate effective use of them through operating small tourism businesses. Results indicate that the interaction between formal and informal institutions is mediated by a variety of organisations, particularly implementation authorities at the frontline, and determines residents’ access to assets and the tourism market and subsequently, affects their start-up and operation of small tourism businesses. Informal institutions play a vital role in creating a favourable situation for local residents. However, this role may not satisfy small business owners who are non-local residents.

Gender and development are among the two most important components of any economy to sustain its perpetual and sustainable economic growth in both the long as well as short run. The role of women in parliament and the interrelationship between gender and development is critically analysed. Women's representation in parliament is the dependent variable and the predictor variables considered are gender development index, female access to assets, female labour force, and country GDP per capita. Data were collected from the UNDP human development report for the period 2015 to 2021-2022 and World Bank for 188 countries of which finally 159 were considered to develop the model based on data availability. We have used the theoretical lens of social stratification theory and gender role theory to frame the hypothesis. A random effects model-based panel regression analysis of the data indicated a strong positive relationship between gender development index and the dependent variable, but no relationship between female labour force, and access to assets. The study addresses a critical gap in policy and development of the literature on gender, politics, and development using a global data set, establishing the importance of indicators such as gender development index, and laying down the path for future research on the subject.

This paper describes the process of evaluating a self-reported perceived improvement in access to finance asset scale. The scale was administered as one component of a livelihood asset scale as part of an evaluation of a humanitarian mine action programme which removed explosive remnants of war from rural communities in Lao PDR. Previous research into developing such scales has mainly used factor analytic techniques. Using an example of a “perceived improvement in access to finance assets scale”, we demonstrate the use of Rasch measurement as a means to validate the psychometric properties of asset scales. The paper illustrates the diagnostic tools and information provided by Rasch measurement, highlighting its benefits as an alternative to factor analytic techniques where rating scales are used. In addition, the paper provides an example of how subjective, experiential understandings of access to assets can complement more objective measures.

Relying on contributions from the International Movement ATD Fourth World, this book deals with questions such as:What does it mean to live in poverty, and especially in extreme poverty? How can very poor people be reached through development projects? How can we assess whether projects succeed in changing the lives of the poorest individuals? In answering these questions, the emphasis is on exploring what type of knowledge is needed to fight extreme poverty. A key argument is that apart from academic knowledge, a concerted effort is needed to listen to the knowledge of poor people themselves, as well as to the knowledge of practitioners who are engaged with them on a daily basis to fight poverty. After the introductory chapter, the text of a speech by Joseph Wresinski (founder of the International Movement ATD Fourth World) at a congress of social scientists held at UNESCO, is reproduced. The next contribution is based on comments by the International Movement ATD Fourth World on the World Bank’s World Development Report 2004 Making Services Work for Poor People. Thereafter, case studies are provided on participatory approaches to attacking extreme poverty in both developing countries (Madagascar and Tanzania, as well as Bolivia, Guatemala, and Peru) and developed countries (the United States and Belgium).

As the first output from the gender and governance in rural services project, this report presents descriptive findings and qualitative analysis of accountability mechanisms in agricultural extension and rural water supply in India, Ghana, and Ethiopia, paying specific attention to gender responsiveness. The gender and governance in rural services project seeks to generate policy-relevant knowledge on strategies to improve agricultural and rural service delivery, with a focus on providing more equitable access to these services, especially for women. The project focuses on agricultural extension, as an example of an agricultural service, and drinking water, as an example of rural service that is not directly related to agriculture but is of high relevance for rural women. A main goal of this project was to generate empirical micro level evidence about the ways various accountability mechanisms for agricultural and rural service provision work in practice and to identify factors that influence the suitability of different governance reform strategies that aim to make service provision more gender responsive. Three out of four poor people in the developing world live in rural areas, and most of them depend directly or indirectly on agriculture for their livelihoods. Providing economic services, such as agricultural extension, is essential to using agriculture for development. At the same time, the rural poor need a range of basic services, such as drinking water, education, and health services. Such services are difficult to provide in rural areas because they are subject to the \"triple challenge\" of market, state, and community failure. As a result of market failure, the private sector does not provide these services to the rural poor to the extent that is desirable from society's point of view. The state is not very effective in providing these services either, because these services have to be provided every day throughout the country, even in remote areas, and because they require discretion and cannot easily be standardized, especially if they are demand driven. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and communities themselves are interesting alternative providers of these services, but they too can fail, because of capacity constraints and local elite capture. This triple challenge of market, state, and community failure results in the poor provision of agricultural and rural services, a major obstacle to agricultural and rural development.

By all measures, poverty in Africa as a whole has increased and deepened. But in fact, Africa contains a number of undocumented success stories of poverty reduction. This book presents case studies of thirteen of these success stories, giving grounds for some real hope, and providing useful learning for all ? policymakers, governments, businesses, service providers, NGOs, and donors.

The conflicts in Europe and the former Soviet Union of the 1990s left in their wake nearly 10 million refugees and internally displaced persons. Even where peace treaties or ceasefires have brought on end to open conflict, about half of those originally displaced remain, a decade later, in an uncertain status, with no immediate possibility of a return home. Long-term, conflict-induced displacement has created both conceptual and operational challenges for development agencies concerned with poverty reduction. Living in Limbo analyzes the special nature of displacement-induced vulnerability along several dimensions, including material well-being, employment, shelter, and human and social capital. The study draws on the authors’ field work as well as extensive review surveys, studies and poverty assessments in 13 countries. A detailed analysis of the causes and characteristics of displaced vulnerability, Living in Limbo provides pragmatic operational recommendations for policymakers and practitioners in both development and humanitarian agencies.

Many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have made youth inclusion a top priority in their development agendas. This is aimed at overcoming social, technical, and institutional obstacles and providing fair and significant opportunities for the growth of young people. Inclusive agricultural value chain development (VCD) is being used to address youth unemployment in the region. The Nigerian government and its partners have invested in aquaculture VCD to create employment opportunities for young men and women, but the participation rate is low, at around 2%. Further, research and practices focusing on rural youth inclusion in VCD is scant, with biases towards urban youth inclusion. This study explored youth engagement in the aquaculture value chain and how the chain features and context shape inclusive mechanisms/patterns of youth inclusion in VCD processes. We used the integrated livelihood asset framework, access approach, and VCD approaches to present an analysis of conditions influencing the inclusion of young men and women in the aquaculture VCD in Nigeria. Accordingly, two youth inclusion strategies were identified: investment and risk management strategies. Young men and women from better-off households adopt investment strategy and dominate the production function. They use their resources, social networks and support from youth-focused aquaculture projects to invest in production functions. Those adopting a risk management strategy dominate the processing, distribution, and marketing functions. They dominantly use social networks, support from aquaculture projects, and Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) to mitigate risks. The high demand for fresh and processed fish, supportive policies, and youth-centered aquaculture projects encourages the engagement of young men and women to adopt either of the strategies. However, they face challenges such as high-cost and low-quality inputs, lack of tailored services, inadequate infrastructure, and sociocultural norms. This study contributes to youth inclusion literature, provides a comprehensive theoretical lens for understanding youth inclusion in VCD, and offers insights into the specific case of young men and women’s engagement in the aquaculture sector in Nigeria.

This paper discusses real world examples of utility initiatives to address the issue of substation cyber security in the context of both industry best practices and the global standards organizations seeking to provide a blueprint for security implantation. The authors provide an overview of existing technologies for securing IP and Ethernet communications networks and end devices. One of the aspects helping secure access to utility networks are centralized secure access management systems that facilitate authentication and authorization of users and devices while increasing productivity by reducing manually repetitive tasks. A commercial implementation of such a system is described. The authors also provide a brief overview of the latest industry efforts in standardization and describe selected focus groups, initiatives and institutions that are developing cyber security guidance for the electric power industry. Finally the authors describe practical experience from deploying a secure remote access management system at a large transmission utility in the United Kingdom. Key challenges, issues and experience from system design and implementation are presented. (8 pages)

This paper analyzes livelihood change and livelihood sustainability of households in the upland part of the Lembang subwatershed, West Sumatra, in response to changes in the natural resource management context during the last decade. Using the sustainable livelihood framework (SLF), we measured livelihood changes at two separate points in time, 1996 and 2006, and assessed their environmental, economic, social, and institutional sustainability. We found that people with a low income had less access to capital assets than people from middle- and high-income groups. Our analysis revealed, however, that access to capital assets increased over time, and that poor households experienced economic improvement, indicating an overall increase in economic sustainability. Environmental sustainability, however, is threatened by intensive agricultural practices such as high agrochemical input and intensive soil tillage on steep slopes, leading to pollution and soil erosion. Social sustainability is also a matter of concern: while social exclusion has been reduced, income inequity has increased. Institutional sustainability is likely to remain uncertain, as local institutions for natural resource management are still weak, despite the fact that decentralization has been implemented during the last 8 years. External facilitation is needed to improve the livelihood of upland people while, at the same time, enhancing the sustainability of watershed management. Strengthening local institutions, conserving natural resources, and promoting environmentally sound agricultural practices are the three most important policies to be promoted within the watershed.