1,721,174 research outputs found
Die GAP, Subsidiarität und öffentliche Güter: Marktversagen, Politikversagen, Bürokratieversagen
No full textDie GAP, Subsidiarität und öffentliche Güter: Marktversagen, Politikversagen, Bürokratieversagen
No full textAre lessons being learnt from the replication crisis or will the revolution devour its children? Open Q science from the editor's perspective
No full textAbstract The scientific production system is crucial in how global challenges are addressed. However, scholars have recently begun to voice concerns about structural inefficiencies within the system, as highlighted, for example, by the replication crisis, the p-value debate and various forms of publication bias. Most suggested remedies tend to address only partial aspects of the system's inefficiencies, but there is currently no unifying agenda in favour of an overall transformation of the system. Based on a critical review of the current scientific system and an exploratory pilot study about the state of student training, we argue that a unifying agenda is urgently needed, particularly given the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) as a tool in scientific writing and the research discovery process. Without appropriate responses from academia, this trend may even compound current issues around credibility due to limited replicability and ritual-based statistical practice while amplifying all forms of existing biases. Naïve openness in the science system alone is unlikely to lead to major improvements. We contribute to the debate and call for a system reform by identifying key elements in the definition of transformation pathways towards open, democratic and conscious learning, teaching, reviewing and publishing supported by openly maintained AI tools. Roles and incentives within the review process will have to adapt and be strengthened in relation to those that apply to authors. Scientists will have to write less, learn differently and review more in the future, but need to be trained better in and for AI even today
A meta-analysis of general and partial equilibrium simulations of trade liberalisation under the Doha Development Agenda
No full textFarmland Investments in Africa: Whats the Deal?
No full textLarge-scale foreign investments in African farmland are rising and may contribute to agricultural productivity growth and economic development. However, host countries sometimes have to wait longer for the economic benefits to arrive than initially expected. In this respect, the timing of project development is crucial and depends on the economic incentives provided to the investors. We therefore present a dynamic stochastic programming model that reflects the typical bargaining situation concerning large land deals in Africa and allows the effect of market- and country-specific risks and taxation to be assessed. The model shows that commodity price volatility increases the value of the land development option, but slows down the land development process. Furthermore, it shows that host country attempts to negotiate fixed commitments to the speed of project development may run counter to the structure of economic incentives at the project site. The applicability of the model is demonstrated for a recent 10,000-hectare cotton project in Ethiopia. Response surface estimations suggest that Ethiopia has negotiated a contract under which it will receive about half the expected total project value, as long as it levies the regular corporate tax rate
Observations on the seasonal labour force offer in German agriculture
No full textSeasonal farm workers from Central- and Eastern European (CEE) countries temporarily migrate to Germany each year and provide important labour input for a high revenue branch of German agriculture. The demand for seasonal farm labour increased dramatically between 1994 and 2006, mainly due to extended production of asparagus and strawberries. However, the supply of seasonal farm labour from CEE countries declined for the first time in 2006 and this has created severe problems for German farms that depend on such labour. The German government had aimed to restrict farm tabour migration in order to enhance the employment in agriculture of jobless German residents. However, the results of this attempt have been disappointing. The regional concentration of labour intensive crops does not match the regional concentration of unemployment within Germany, and the regulation of social welfare payments in Germany sharply reduces employment incentives for low paid, temporary work in Germany. At the same time, the liberalization of tabour migration between EU member states has created new, often more attractive job opportunities for migrant workers from CEE, for instance in Britain. Policy makers in Germany did not take these fundamental socio-economic relations sufficiently into account when they decided to impose restrictions on the farm labour supply from CEE, although the efforts of the German tabour administration, to match jobless Germans with available seasonal jobs are understandable and have had some limited success. The gap in farm labour supply that has occurred since 2006 will oblige farmers to adjust production strategies through higher wages and innovative forms of legal work contracts (Ltd. & Co. GbR) with CEE workers. Incentives to increase mechanization and resort to informal employment of CEE workers will also grow, but are subject to restrictions
A Preliminary Analysis of the Impact of a Ukraine-EU Free Trade Agreement on Agriculture
No full textAgriculture including food products is of particular interest for Ukraine. However, in free trade agreements involving the European Union, agriculture is always given special treatment and subject to less and slower liberalization than other sectors. This paper employs the standard Global Trade Analysis Project model in order to assess how World Trade Organization accession affects agriculture in Ukraine, and how potential bilateral tariff cuts may interact with potential productivity gains within Ukrainian agriculture. The results indicate that, due to trade liberalization, Ukraine can expect gains from a more efficient allocation of its resources in line with comparative advantage, leading to an increase of production and exports of wheat, other grains, and oilseeds, but also of several processed food products that benefit from less expensive intermediate inputs. However, Ukraine’s exports are concentrated on a small Former Soviet Union countries because they fail to meet quality standards elsewhere. When Ukrainian production of these products increases due to increased allocative efficiency, exports to Russia increase further and prices there fall, generating negative terms of trade effects that largely offset the allocative gains. Ukrainian imports of agricultural products increase as well, partly because Ukrainian consumers switch to higher quality imported goods even though domestic production increases. Regarding free trade agreement negotiations with the European Union, these results highlight for Ukraine the fact that improved agricultural productivity will help to get most out of improved market access. However, the results also highlight for Ukraine the great importance of adopting internationally accepted quality standards in order to diversify its export structure
Observations on the seasonal labour force offer in German agriculture
No full textSeasonal farm workers from Central- and Eastern European (CEE) countries temporarily migrate to Germany each year and provide important labour input for a high revenue branch of German agriculture. The demand for seasonal farm labour increased dramatically between 1994 and 2006, mainly due to extended production of asparagus and strawberries. However, the supply of seasonal farm labour from CEE countries declined for the first time in 2006 and this has created severe problems for German farms that depend on such labour. The German government had aimed to restrict farm tabour migration in order to enhance the employment in agriculture of jobless German residents. However, the results of this attempt have been disappointing. The regional concentration of labour intensive crops does not match the regional concentration of unemployment within Germany, and the regulation of social welfare payments in Germany sharply reduces employment incentives for low paid, temporary work in Germany. At the same time, the liberalization of tabour migration between EU member states has created new, often more attractive job opportunities for migrant workers from CEE, for instance in Britain. Policy makers in Germany did not take these fundamental socio-economic relations sufficiently into account when they decided to impose restrictions on the farm labour supply from CEE, although the efforts of the German tabour administration, to match jobless Germans with available seasonal jobs are understandable and have had some limited success. The gap in farm labour supply that has occurred since 2006 will oblige farmers to adjust production strategies through higher wages and innovative forms of legal work contracts (Ltd. & Co. GbR) with CEE workers. Incentives to increase mechanization and resort to informal employment of CEE workers will also grow, but are subject to restrictions
Meta-analysis of general and partial equilibrium simulations of Doha Round outcomes
No full textQuantification of welfare changes due to trade liberalization plays a crucial role for political decision making. However, significant differences in simulated gains from liberalization do not serve to increase confidence in quantitative assessments based on trade models. A meta-analysis of trade simulations under the WTO Doha Round is employed to identify model characteristics that influence the magnitude of simulation results. Findings from a simple regression model are plausible and show that each simulation experiment represents a complex interaction of model characteristics and experimental settings that may not easily be communicated to nonexperts. Meta-analysis proves to be useful for empirically assessing this complexity. Copyright 2007 International Association of Agricultural Economists.
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