Search Results (268)

Against the backdrop of increasingly frequent extreme weather events and heightened market price volatility, investigating the relationship between agricultural insurance and farmers’ livelihood resilience is crucial for ensuring rural socioeconomic stability. This study utilizes field survey data from 1196 households across twelve county-level divisions (three cities and nine counties) from China’s Hainan and Yunnan provinces, specifically in natural rubber-producing regions. Using propensity score matching (PSM), we empirically examine agricultural insurance’s impact on household livelihood resilience. The results demonstrate that agricultural insurance increased the effect on farmers’ livelihood resilience by 1%. This effect is particularly pronounced among recently poverty-alleviated households and large-scale farming operations. Furthermore, the analysis highlights the mediating roles of credit availability, adoption of agricultural production technologies, and production initiative in strengthening insurance’s positive impact. Therefore, policies should be refined and expanded, combining agricultural insurance with credit support and agricultural technology extension to leverage their value and ensure the sustainable development of farm households. Full article

Against the backdrop of ecological civilization construction and regional coordinated development strategies, functional zone (MFOZ) planning guides national spatial development through differentiated policies. However, a prominent conflict exists between the ecological protection responsibilities and regional development rights in restricted and prohibited development zones, leading to a vicious cycle of “ecological protection → restricted development → poverty exacerbation”. This paper focuses on the synergistic mechanisms between ecological compensation and targeted poverty alleviation. Based on the capability approach and sustainable development goals (SDGs), it analyzes the dialectical relationship between the two in terms of goal coupling, institutional design, and practical pathways. The study finds that ecological compensation can break the “ecological poverty trap” through the internalization of externalities and the enhancement of livelihood capabilities. Nevertheless, challenges remain, including low compensation standards, unbalanced benefit distribution, and insufficient legalization. Through case studies of the compensation reform in the water source area of Southern Shaanxi, China, and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union, this paper proposes the construction of a long-term mechanism integrating differentiated compensation standards, market-based fund integration, legal guarantees, and capability enhancement. The research emphasizes the need for institutional innovation to balance ecological protection and livelihood improvement, promoting a transition from “blood transfusion” compensation to “hematopoietic” development, thereby offering a Chinese solution for global sustainable development. Full article

This article investigates the political cost of poverty in democracies marked by deep social divisions. We develop a probabilistic voting model that incorporates clientelism as a strategic tool employed by elite political parties to secure electoral support from non-elite voters. Unlike models based on ideological proximity, our framework conceptualizes party competition as structured by the socioeconomic composition of their constituencies. We demonstrate that in contexts of high inequality and widespread poverty, elite parties face structural incentives to deploy clientelistic strategies rather than universalistic policy agendas. Our model predicts that clientelistic expenditures by elite parties increase proportionally with both inequality (GINI index) and poverty levels, rendering clientelism a rational and cost-effective mechanism of political control. Empirical evidence from a cross-national panel (2013–2019) confirms the theoretical predictions: an increase of the 1 percent in the GINI index increase a 1.3 percent in the clientelism, even after accounting for endogeneity and dynamic effects. These findings suggest that in divided democracies, poverty is not merely a condition to be alleviated, but a political resource that elites strategically exploit. Consequently, clientelism persists not as a cultural residue or institutional failure, but as a rational response to inequality-driven constraints within democratic competition. Full article

The generation of fine coal particles during mining and processing presents significant environmental and logistical challenges, particularly in coal-dependent, developing countries like South Africa (SA). This review critically evaluates the technical viability of fine coal briquetting as a sustainable waste-to-energy solution within a SA context, while drawing from global best practices and comparative benchmarks. It examines abundant feedstocks that can be used for valorization strategies, including fine coal and agricultural biomass residues. Furthermore, binder types, manufacturing parameters, and quality optimization strategies that influence briquette performance are assessed. The co-densification of fine coal with biomass offers a means to enhance combustion efficiency, reduce dust emissions, and convert low-value waste into a high-calorific, manageable fuel. Attention is also given to briquette testing standards (i.e., South African Bureau of Standards, ASTM International, and International Organization of Standardization) and end-use applications across domestic, industrial, and off-grid settings. Moreover, the review explores socio-economic implications, including rural job creation, energy poverty alleviation, and the potential role of briquetting in SA’s ‘Just Energy Transition’ (JET). This paper uniquely integrates technical analysis with policy relevance, rural energy needs, and practical challenges specific to South Africa, while offering a structured framework for bio-coal briquetting adoption in developing countries. While technical and economic barriers remain, such as binder costs and feedstock variability, the integration of briquetting into circular economy frameworks represents a promising path toward cleaner, decentralized energy and coal waste valorization. Full article

This research investigates the role and effectiveness of Türkiye’s social security system and transfer expenditures in addressing poverty. Social security mechanisms are designed to alleviate poverty by helping individuals meet their essential needs. In Türkiye, transfer payments offer temporary relief, particularly to disadvantaged populations; however, they may also foster long-term dependency. Although the immediate impacts of such transfers are widely discussed in the academic literature, their contribution to alleviating structural poverty remains underexplored. This study focuses on how transfer expenditures influence individuals’ ability to achieve lasting well-being. The Turkish context is especially relevant due to recent institutional shifts in social security policy and the increasing politicization of social assistance. Employing data analysis at the regional level, this study assesses the effectiveness of social transfers and explores their structural role in poverty reduction. It also provides policy suggestions aimed at developing more inclusive and durable strategies. The results are intended to offer broadly applicable insights for other developing countries through the lens of Türkiye’s experience. Full article

Rural post-poverty alleviation areas are not on a solid developmental footing and therefore remain at risk of returning to poverty in the midst of rapid urbanization. Vulnerability assessment of socio-ecological systems is critical for identifying risks and enhancing resilience in rural areas transitioning out of poverty. Based on research data from 2012, 2017, and 2022 in the post-poverty alleviation areas of Hunan Province, this research establishes a Vulnerability-Scoping-Diagram (VSD) assessment framework for rural development vulnerability and Spatially-Explicit-Resilience-Vulnerability (SERV) analysis model from a socio-ecological system perspective. It comprehensively analyzes the spatial and temporal variations of the Rural Development Vulnerability Index (RDVI) in the study area. Geodetector is used to explore the main factors influencing the spatial and temporal variability of RDVI, and vulnerability type zones are classified by combining the dominant elements method. The findings indicate that: (1) The rural development vulnerability index of post-poverty alleviation areas in Hunan Province has obvious characteristics of spatial and temporal differentiation. The RDVI in western Hunan and southern Hunan is always high, while the RDVI in ChangZhuTan and Dongting Lake regions decreases year by year. (2) The RDVI of post-poverty alleviation areas in Hunan Province is determined by the three dimensions of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptability, exhibiting significant spatial and temporal variations. (3) Spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that areas with similar rural socio-ecological vulnerability in post-poverty alleviation areas of Hunan Province were significantly clustered spatially. (4) The core influencing factors of RDVI in Hunan’s post-poverty alleviation areas have shifted from natural disaster risk to multiple risk dimensions encompassing social resource load and ecological environment risk superimposition, resulting in more complex and diversified influencing factors. (5) By combining results from the RDVI assessment with the dominant elements method, the regions can be classified into multiple vulnerability type districts dominated by multiple elements or single-element dominance, leading to corresponding development suggestions. The study aims to examine the process of changes in vulnerability within rural development in post-poverty alleviation areas and its causal factors from a socio-ecological system perspective. This will provide a foundation for policy formulation to consolidate the results of post-poverty alleviation and promote the sustainable development of rural areas. Full article

Poverty is a multifaceted phenomenon impacting millions globally, defined by a deficiency in both material and immaterial resources, which consequently restricts access to satisfactory living conditions. Comprehensive poverty analysis can be accomplished through the application of mathematical and modeling techniques, which are useful in understanding and predicting poverty trends. These models, which often incorporate principles from economics, stochastic processes, and dynamic systems, enable the assessment of the factors influencing poverty and the effectiveness of public policies in alleviating it. This paper introduces a mathematical compartmental model to investigate poverty within a population ($\psi \left(t\right)$), considering the effects of immigration, crime, and incarceration. The model aims to elucidate the interconnections between these factors and their combined impact on poverty levels. We begin the study by ensuring the mathematical validity of the model by demonstrating the uniqueness of a positive solution. Next, it is shown that under specific conditions, the probability of poverty persistence approaches certainty. Conversely, conditions leading to an exponential reduction in poverty are identified. Additionally, the semigroup associated with our model is proven to possess the Feller property, and its distribution has a unique invariant measure. To confirm and validate these theoretical results, interesting numerical simulations are performed. Full article

Energy and environmental policies in the sector of buildings aim to achieve climate targets while ensuring affordable energy services for households. This study uses the Greek residential sector as a case study and focuses on energy poverty, examining both established and novel energy poverty indicators for its measurement, analyzing the key determinants of energy poverty, and developing statistical models to identify energy-poor households. The same models are also used for assessing the effectiveness of policies and measures implemented or planned to address energy poverty with a view to develop synergies with policies aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Energy poverty levels in Greece ranged from 8.4% to 19.6% in 2021, depending on the energy poverty measure used. The evaluation of the policies aiming at tackling energy poverty showed that deep energy renovations, combined with space heating system upgrades, can reduce energy poverty by 69–99%. Shallow energy renovations and upgrades of space heating systems, implemented either individually or in combination, are less effective. Finally, while the various subsidy schemes for vulnerable households do not significantly affect energy poverty levels, they play a critical role in alleviating the depth of energy poverty and improving the quality of energy services provided to households. Full article

(1) Objective: This study aims to investigate how transitional housing and the FCBP programme function as infrastructure for improving mental health and building family capacity among low-income households in Hong Kong, introducing the Urban Graduation Approach, adapted from the rural Graduation Approach, as an adaptation of proven poverty-alleviation strategies to urban contexts. (2) Methods: We conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 24 residents of transitional housing participating in the Family Capacity Building Planner (FCBP) programme, an important component of The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Trust-Initiated Project—JC PROJECT LIFT in uplifting residents and enhancing their overall well-being, analysing their experiences through thematic analysis focused on housing transitions, service utilisation, and well-being outcomes. (3) Results: Transitional housing provides essential infrastructure for improving residents’ well-being through both physical improvements and integrated support services. Participants reported significant mental health benefits, with reductions in stress and anxiety directly attributed to increased living space, improved privacy, and better environmental conditions. The FCBP programme functions as soft infrastructure that enables residents to access support networks, enhance family relationships, develop employment skills, and build self-efficacy. Together, these interventions address the multidimensional challenges of urban poverty while fostering sustainable improvements in residents’ capacity to achieve housing security and economic stability. (4) Conclusions: The integration of transitional housing with capacity-building services demonstrates the effectiveness of the Urban Graduation Approach in addressing urban poverty. This model highlights the importance of viewing housing not merely as a physical shelter but as a comprehensive infrastructure for well-being that combines spatial improvements with targeted social support. Policy implications include the need for the continued development of integrated housing models and the scaling of successful elements to broader social housing programmes. Full article

With the nationwide completion of China’s large-scale Poverty Alleviation Relocation (PAR) initiative in 2020, the government’s poverty alleviation efforts have officially entered the “post-poverty era”. However, many regions still lack well-established sustainable development mechanisms and face a potential risk of returning to poverty. To better stabilize the achievements of poverty alleviation, this study examines the potential risk of returning to poverty after the first Five-Year Transition Period (2021–2025) from a livelihood space perspective and proposes optimization directions for PAR policies in future poverty reduction efforts. Research findings indicate that simply altering geographical conditions is insufficient to achieve stable poverty alleviation. The production space of relocated populations is vulnerable to the stability and precision in resource supply, which may lead to recurring poverty due to policy discontinuities and administrative preferences. Meanwhile, improvements in living spaces are constrained by imbalances in household income and expenditure. This study also found that, on the one hand, changes in residential patterns break the original boundaries of administrative villages by incorporating migrants from different villages into concentrated communities, leading to the expansion of weak-tie networks while, on the other hand, the relocation process disrupts some of the migrants’ original strong-tie networks, and the concentration and clustering of impoverished groups in relocation communities further lead to the contraction of these networks. Additionally, the unique characteristics of relocation communities generate exorbitant governance costs and population management difficulties that far exceed the service provision and administrative capacities of community organizations. In the long run, this situation proves detrimental to normalized community governance and dynamic poverty relapse monitoring and interventions. Accordingly, this study proposes relevant policy recommendations from the following four aspects, i.e., strengthening endogenous development capacity, improving social security mechanisms, expanding social support networks, and enhancing organizational governance capabilities, aiming to provide both a theoretical basis and a decision-making reference for future poverty alleviation efforts. Full article

Market-oriented agriculture functions as a critical mechanism by which rural farmers can alleviate poverty and enhance food security, and it is actively promoted in Côte d’Ivoire. However, household food security varies across commercialized farmers depending on context and region. This paper examines variations in food security between different market-oriented vegetable-farming households in rural northern Côte d’Ivoire. Using cross-sectional data from 200 vegetable farmers, this study employs an endogenous switching regression model to address potential selectivity bias. The results show that market-oriented farming is positively associated with higher food-consumption scores, greater dietary diversity, and increased caloric intake. Moreover, nonparticipants or semi-subsistence farmers are expected to achieve better food-security outcomes under market-oriented conditions. Key factors influencing the adoption of market-oriented farming include market proximity, access to extension services, and education level. This paper advocates for policies tailored to specific environments, such as rural smallholder farming communities, that support local markets and encourage entrepreneurship, especially among women and youth, and ensure the accessibility of improved inputs, thereby supporting market-oriented agriculture and enhancing food security. Full article

Effectively measuring the income-generating effects of government subsidies is an important issue in assessing agricultural policies and implementing precision poverty alleviation. This study utilizes panel data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) to screen a sample of 13,583 individual residents. We empirically analyze the impact of government subsidies on income inequality among farm households using fixed effects models, quantile regressions, and mediated effects models. Our study found that the following results: (1) The mechanism of subsidy action combines the functions of increasing income and regulating income distribution. Marginal benefits to low-income groups are more obvious. (2) Increasing productive agricultural inputs can reduce the income gap of farmers, which is more significant than the direct subsidy of funds. (3) The incentive effect of subsidies is strongest in the Northeast and weakest in the East. Compared to middle-aged and older farmers, the utility level of the subsidy is stronger in the youth group. Full article

A robust body of research examines the association between socioeconomic status (SES), particularly its economic dimension, income poverty, and child maltreatment rates. However, several key questions regarding this relationship remain underexplored. Utilizing a critical literature review, this article finds that some forms of child maltreatment (i.e., sexual abuse) do not correlate with income poverty. Moreover, evidence about the effects of other dimensions of SES, including employment and education is not monolithic. The complexity of this relationship is further influenced by the data source and unit of analysis. Studies using administrative data and analyzing SES at the family or household level frequently report a strong correlation between SES and child maltreatment. However, this relationship weakens (or in some cases disappears) when examined at the neighborhood or regional level using self-report data. Our findings also suggest that the overrepresentation of minority groups in child maltreatment statistics can be, at least in part, attributed to economic disadvantages. Furthermore, social cohesion appears to buffer the effects of income poverty and material hardship, highlighting the role of inequality in weakening social networks and exacerbating socioeconomic stressors. A developing body of literature demonstrates the link between income inequality and child maltreatment rates and indicates that policies aimed at addressing the impact of SES on child maltreatment should not only focus on alleviating poverty-related factors, such as material hardship, unemployment, and housing instability, but also target broader class disparities as the common root of many social problems. Full article

Energy poverty, defined as a households’ limited ability to secure affordable energy, has become a key issue in the energy transition debate due to its impact on well-being, health risks, and social inequality. We investigate its health impacts using two-way fixed effects and high-dimensional fixed effects models, two-stage least squares, and quantify additional medical costs during extreme cold events with grouped fitting regression. We assess the effect of China’s Photovoltaic Poverty Alleviation Program using the Difference-in-Differences-in-Differences technique. Our results show that energy poverty significantly worsens household health deprivation, extreme cold events further increase medical costs in southern regions, while northern energy-poor families reduce healthcare spending to cover heating costs, and the Photovoltaic Poverty Alleviation Program significantly reduces both the medical burden and catastrophic medical expenditure among energy-poor households. These findings underscore the need for energy transition policies that combine targeted subsidies, health support during cold seasons, and wider deployment of modern heating technologies to protect vulnerable families and ensure a fair, resilient energy transition. Full article

As a pivotal force in the development of hydropower and water conservancy, the evolution of China’s reservoir resettlement policies has garnered significant attention. Over the past seven decades, the nation has made remarkable strides in implementing resettlement initiatives, effectively contributing to poverty alleviation and water resource management. However, emerging challenges, including diminishing opportunities for new reservoir construction, the expiration of post-relocation support policies, and the current emphasis on high-quality development, reveal critical gaps in the existing research. Specifically, macro-level analyses of policy evolution remain scarce, particularly concerning the interrelation between two cornerstone components: land acquisition compensation policies and post-relocation support policies. To address this gap, this paper adopts a holistic historical perspective to analyze the evolution of China’s reservoir resettlement policies across four distinct stages, focusing on the development of two key policies and their interrelations. The findings reveal that each stage of China’s reservoir resettlement policies is characterized by unique thematic priorities, with their interrelations gradually evolving toward greater synergy. Nevertheless, challenges persist, including insufficient per capita farmland allocation and industrial decline in resettlement areas. Accordingly, this paper proposes optimization strategies that encompass policy innovation, multi-stakeholder participation, digital management, and the enhancement of resettlement agencies. China’s experience in fostering policy synergy offers critical insights into institutional evolution while providing valuable references for other countries seeking to refine their reservoir resettlement frameworks. Full article