Village and Development
Year:2013 | Volume:15 | Issue:4|Papers Count:12

The objective of the present study is to apply an ordinary least square technique to a data set of the period 1968-2007 to examine effective pricing and non- pricing determinants of total factor productivity in Iran's agricultural sector. An index for total factor productivity is estimated by application of Cobb-Douglas production function. The results indicate that non-pricing determinants, excluding economic efficiency, have positive and significant relationship with total factor productivity; while Inflation rate, and the dummy variable representing drought have significant and negative relationship with total factor productivity. The impact of exchange policies on the mentioned productivity is positive but statistically insignificant. Macroeconomic policies can influence the growth of total factor productivity through the change of price factors in parallel with non-price factors.

Irrigation water is a necessary source for production and livelihood activities for households. Establishing a balance between consumption demand for water and its supply is always necessary to ensure the adequacy of water for agriculture, sustainable management of. irrigation system and provision of water for other requirements. The present study applies descriptive and inferential statistics to achieve the objectives of the study. 350 producers are selected from 6 areas. The barriers to optimal management of water resources can be counted as economic, financial, planning, extension and educational factors. The factors can explain 40.56 percent of the variance in dependent variable.

The present study is an applied research and statistical population consists of all the rural heads of household in areas stricken by earthquake in Barn county, from which a sample size of 156 is selected by multi stage proportionate to size sampling method. The data is collected by a questionnaire and its reliability is analyzed by Cronbach's o. The results indicate significant and positive relationship between the levels of participation as dependent variable, and age, education, primary and secondary occupations, work experience, being a model farmer, membership in village council, income from agriculture, incentives, and village council activities. Also, the dependent variable has positive and significant relationship with damage extent, number of the family members lost in the earthquake and the trust of earthquake victims to those in charge of reconstruction.

The purpose of the present study is to identify the impacts of extension trainings on rural households and livestock breeders; the study is a quasi experiment evaluation research, which is carried out in Faridan county of Esfahan province in 2004. The required data are collected from a samples size of 262 from control and experiment groups. The results indicate that extension trainings can promote the level of information, job awareness, level of skills, application of modem livestock breeding, social participation and collective actions. The trainees believe that the trainings have positive impacts on the promotion of their creativity and innovation, general and professional information, management and self-confidence. The study recommends the raising of the time devoted to extension trainings in an organized and consolidated program, the provision of sufficient financial resources for the implementation of the program, more attention to women and their training, and the application of purpose - oriented evaluation model for the assessment of extension trainings.

Indigenous knowledge is the accomplishment of a community over the lifetime of its generation in a particular environment and enables the community to achieve sustainable livelihood in its environment. The present study is a survey that explores, describes and analyses the role of indigenous knowledge in conservation of soil and water resources in rural areas of Khoresh Rostam districit in Khalkhal county. Data are collected from related documents, field observation, interview and questionnaire, and Chi Square test is applied to it. The results indicate that the studied area is endowed with rich soil and water resources. Rural people identify and employ indigenous and local mechanisms for the conservation of water and soil. These mechanisms have significant impacts on optimal management of soil and water resources.

Rural youth has a significant share from active population seeking employment. Agricultural sector has considerable potential, and with the possession of appropriate conditions can attract labor force and prevent uncontrolled migration to urban areas, where unemployment is highly prevalent. The present study is an attempt to examine the attitudes of rural youth to employment in agricultural sector in Gonbad-e Kavous county. The study is a descriptive/correlation survey. The statistical population consists of 39057 rural youth of the county in 2011 from which a sample size of 347 is selected by a stratified proportionate to size technique. More than half of the respondents evaluate residence in rural areas as desirable. Correlation results indicate that age, level of education, desirability of village residence and entrepreneurial spirit among rural youth have significant and positive relationships with the attitude of rural youth. The attitude of women and men varies significantly. Also, the attitudes of those with previous experience in entrepreneurial initiative differ significantly from those with no experience. Multivariate regression analysis reveals that entrepreneur characteristics such as ambiguity tolerance, challenging personality, and pragmatism can explain the variance in dependent variable.

the women position is undeniable in sustainable development and conservation of water resources particularly in rural areas. The present study is an attempt to analyze the role of women in proper consumption of agricultural water resources. The study applies two separate logit models to a set of data that is collected by a questionnaire from a sample size of 300 rural women in Khorasan Razavi province; in addition 35 questionnaires are collected from the experts in the field. The study is a survey and the results indicate that rural women are not very active in irrigation, due to cultural belief prevalent in the area, task difficulty, and unfamiliarity with the task. It is necessary to introduce rural women to water conservation techniques since they have an indirect impact on their family members and those around them. Finally, appropriate and practical solutions will be discussed.

The present study identifies and analyses social problems of fishermen working with seine cooperatives in Golestan, Mazandaran and Gilan provinces in 2009. To this end, a literature review is carried out to configure the formation of social problems and study framework. The model is assessed by a data set collected through interviewing 53 cooperatives' managing directors and 106 fishermen. The results reveal insurance as the main problem facing fishermen which is affected by the type of work in the cooperative, the quality of connecting road, the place of fishing, number of children, the education level of the board of directors' chairman, the education level of managing directors, the duration of living in the present residence and age. Totally, the mentioned variables can explain 42 percent of changes in dependent variable, i.e. fishermen insurance.