VILLAGE AND DEVELOPMENT
Year:2019 | Volume:22 | Issue:3 (87) |Papers Count:9

This study aimed at evaluating the new settlement centers in nomads areas in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province of Iran, using TOPSIS model. It was an applied research conducted in a descriptive and analytical method. Statistical Society included 1500 households with 306 samples in 22 new settlements of nomads community. The evaluation of new settlements was carried out using 31 indicators in 2016. The study results showed that six settlements had the high score (0. 6-1), seven settlements had the moderate score (0. 4-0. 599) and nine settlements had the weak score (0-0. 399); in addition, among the studied dimensions, economic and environmental dimensions indicated the worst condition while the best condition belonged to physical and social dimensions. Finally, it was concluded that the success in locating the new settlement centers and the sustainability of existing settlements required attention to all the economic, social, physical and environmental dimensions through an integrated sustainable development approach.

Sustainable management and exploitation of natural and semi-natural ecosystems require adequate information about the economic values of ecosystem services. This study aimed at estimating the value of tourism on the margin of Zayandehrood river in the area of Azadegan village of Ben County in Iran as well as studying the role of tourism in the development of this village. For this purpose, the economic value was estimated in contingent valuation method (CVM) using the general preferences approach and the logit model. The required data were collected by completing 554 double-duplex selection questionnaires in the studied village in 2017. The study results showed that the variables of age, education and income of respondents had significantly positive effects and the variables of household size and the proposed amounts of money (BID) had significantly negative effects on willingness to pay (WTP). Also, each person's WTP was estimated 8490 IR rials per month and the total value of tourism on the margin of the river was estimated to be 6, 888 million IR rials. Therefore, policies for investment in rural development might be taken with due consideration to this valuable endowment.

This study aimed mainly at investigating the effects of rural tourism on improvement of rural people's social welfare in Barfejin village of Hamedan County of Iran in 2017. It was an applied and descriptive-correlation study using a quantitative approach in a survey method. The statistical population included 436 persons, among which 205 people were selected using the Kerjcie and Morgan table in a random sampling method. The required data were collected through a questionnaire, the questions of which were arranged in three parts. The data analysis was conducted in a path analysis method using a structural equation modeling through WarpPLS. The study results showed that the variables including educational level, economic effects of tourism, infrastructural effects of tourism, agricultural effects, and social capital had direct impacts on social welfare while the highest impacts were related to the infrastructural effects of tourism on the rural people's employment with the path coefficient of 0. 502 and the effects of the social capital produced by tourism on the social welfare with the path coefficient of 0. 372.

This study aimed at sociologically analyzing the challenges of modern rural management in Miyandoab County of Iran. It was conducted in a descriptive-analytical method in terms of its purpose. In order to analyze the obtained information, Grounded Theory and factor analysis were used. Field data in the qualitative part was obtained through semi-structured interviews with the Village Administrators [Dehyaran] who achieved 39 observations with theoretical saturation. In addition, the statistical population in the quantitative part (questionnaire) included 120 individuals of the village administrators. The results of qualitative research showed that the most important challenges faced by the village administrators were job insecurity, poor motivation, lack of individual ability, organizational weaknesses, regulatory weaknesses, financial weaknesses, and so on. Also, the quantitative results showed that the six main factors facing rural modern management with totally 62. 97 percent of variance in the studied area included job insecurity, financial weakness, lack of motivation, lack of income generation, negative attitudes of people, and prejudices of Village Councils.

Access to adequate and favorable food and optimal nutritional health is one of the main axes of development. Over recent decades, the issue of nutrition has taken new dimension while the concept of human development has been highlighted. The increasing population and the need for further expansion of communities due to human food supply caused experts and scientists to adopt different solutions for this problem. This research applied a hierarchical process to prioritize options and criteria for improving the food security among rural households in Iran. For this purpose, first, according to the identified criteria and options, the required data were collected from 20 selected samples of the faculty members who were experts in the issues related to the livelihoods and food security, based on paired comparisons of data, through a questionnaire; and then, the data were analyzed. The results showed that the weakness of support system for the agricultural sector was the main challenge of food security among the rural communities, followed by the challenges of rising food prices, climatic and environmental changes, underdevelopment of the rural communities, etc.; in addition, the livelihood diversification was found to be the main strategy for food security among the rural communities, followed by some other strategies including the improvement of manufacturing and compilation patterns, improving supply chain and food value, increasing financial and physical efficiency in production patterns, better farm management and adaptation to climate change, empowerment of rural communities, empowerment of rural communities, sustainability, etc.

Limited financial capability of rural people causes an increased need for capital or credits in rural areas. Microcredits can provide the cash required for the rural people’ s production activities. Therefore, this study aimed at evaluating the microcredit effects on rural sustainable development in selected villages of Torbat-e-Jam County of Iran. For this purpose, the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) model was used for analyzing the data collected from 309 rural households through questionnaire. The results obtained from the post estimation test for quality balancing covariate variables showed that the heterogeneous was improved, and average (mean) and median bias decreased to lower than 20 percent. Also, the PSM results indicated a positive effect of the microcredits on the sustainable development indicator; in another words, the sustainable development indicators related to the households accessed to the credits increased four percent, compared with the households accessed no credits. According to the study findings, it might be suggested to expand the institutions of the cooperative and extension services, to support local microfinance institutions, to create and expand participatory structures, and to increase the capacity of microfinance institutions to respond to increasing finance demand

Government policy is one of the factors affecting the agricultural activities. This study aimed at investigating these factors using a qualitative approach and Grounded theory in two counties of Turkmen and Gomishan in Golestan province of Iran during the period of 1981-2011. Field studies were carried out through the selection of 32 snowball participants. The results showed that the four policies of cultivating and developing strategic products, diversifying into economic activities by creating industrial settlements in rural areas, damming and modernization, leveling and drainage of land were the main policies affecting the agrarian production and productive agrarian activities in the studied area; in addition, there were positive consequences including an increase in rural employment and improved soil capacity as a result of two policies of diversification of economic activities and land leveling and drainage as well as the negative consequences of lowering economic benefits, changing crop patterns, reducing water supply, raising livestock costs and the reduction of livestock breeding resulted in the instability of agricultural activities and rural economy as well as the weakness of crop production activities.