R4D China

Poverty and vulnerability in rural China: effects of taxation. CPRC Working Paper No. 156.

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:39:00 GMT

Miscellaneous K. S. Imai, X. Wang and W. Kang 2009 PRC Working Paper No. 112, Chronic Poverty Research Centre, London, UK, ISBN: 978-1-906433-59-8, 27 pp. This paper studies the impact of taxation on poverty and ex ante vulnerability of households in rural China based on national household survey data in 1988, 1995 and 2002. It has been confirmed that i) poverty and vulnerability have reduced significantly with a great deal of geographical disparity, ii) education, land, and access to infrastructure and irrigation facilities are among the key factors to reduce vulnerability, and iii) the highly regressive tax system increased farmers poverty and vulnerability. The abolishment of rural tax since 2006 would thus have a significant negative impact on both poverty and vulnerability of rural households.

Genetic Selection and Trait with Jinmai 47 Analysis of Introgression Lines Genetic Background.

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:12:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Chen, W.L.; Jing, R. L.; Liu, H.M. and Chang, X. P. 2009 Journal of Triticeae Crops (2009) 29 (2) 206-211 [in Chinese with english abstract]. Research was conducted to reveal the genetic basis of traits related to drought resistance in wheat．

Relationships between carbon isotope discrimination and leaf morphophysiological traits in spring-planted spring wheat under drought and salinity stress in Northern China

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:49:00 GMT

Miscellaneous L. Zhu, Z. S. Liang, X. Xu, S. H. Li, J. H. Jing and P. Monneveux 2008 Australian Journal of Agricultural Research (2008) 59 (10) 941-949 [doi: 10.1071/AR07476] The relationships between carbon isotope discrimination (Δ) and some morphophysiological traits such as specific leaf dry weight (SLDW), gas exchange parameters, and relative water content (RWC) were studied in a collection of 20 bread wheat cultivars (landraces, released cultivars and advanced lines) in three locations of the Ningxia region (North-East China), i.e. Yinchuan (limited irrigation conditions), Huinong (limited irrigation conditions + salinity) and Guyuan (rain-fed conditions). Relationships between Δ, grain yield (GY), and harvest index (HI) and above-ground biomass (AGB) were also analysed. Differences in the measured traits between different locations were highly related to the variation in water availability. Positive correlations were noted between Δ and HI and grain yield. Flag leaf Δ was positively correlated with RWC at anthesis, and negatively associated with SLDW at grain filling. Significant and negative correlations between Δ and dry matter weight per plant at anthesis and biomass at maturity were noted. Leaf temperature (LT) was found to be negatively correlated with Δ and gs. The findings suggest that Δ may be a useful indicator reflecting wheat yield, harvest index, and water status under irrigation and rain-fed conditions in the Ningxia region.

Genetic diversity of Chinese common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) landraces assessed with simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers.

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:01:00 GMT

Miscellaneous X. Zhang, M. W. Blair and S. Wang 2008 TAG Theoretical and Applied Genetics (2008) 17 (4) 629-640 [doi: 10.1007/s00122-008-0807-2] Common beans were introduced from the Americas to China over 400 years ago and presently constitute an important export crop in many areas of the country. Evaluation of the genetic diversity present in Chinese accessions of common beans is essential for conservation, management and utilization of these genetic resources. The objective of this research was to evaluate a collection of 229 Chinese landraces with 30 microsatellite markers to evaluate the genetic variability, genepool identity and relationships within and between the groups identified among the genotypes. A total of 166 alleles were detected with an average of 5.5 alleles per locus for all microsatellites. The landraces were clustered into two genepools with two subgroups each. The level of diversity for Chinese landraces of Andean origin was higher than for the Chinese landraces of Mesoamerican origin due to the presence of more infrequent alleles in this first group. The range of marker prevalence indices was from 0.288 to 0.676 within the Andean group and from 0.426 to 0.754 within the Mesoamerican group. Two subgroups were identified in each genepool group with one of the Mesoamerican subgroups arising from introgression. Gene flow (N m ) was 0.86 or below between subgroups from different gene pools and 2.6 or above between subgroups within the genepools. We discuss the existence of a secondary center of diversity for common beans in China and the importance of inter genepool introgression.

Relationship between carbon isotope discrimination and grain yield in spring wheat under different water regimes and under saline conditions in the Ningxia Province (North-west China).

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:39:00 GMT

Miscellaneous X. Xu, H. Yuan, S. Li, P. Monneveux 2007 Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science (2007) 193 (6) 422-434 [DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-037X.2007.00281.x] The relationship between grain yield and carbon isotope discrimination (Δ) was analysed in wheat grown under different water regimes in the Ningxia Province (north-west of China). When the association was significant, the relationships between grain yield, Δ and other drought tolerance related traits, such as leaf ash content (ma), chlorophyll concentration (Chl), relative water content (RWC), stomatal conductance (gS) and the ratio of internal CO2 leaf concentration to ambient CO2 concentration (Ci/Ca), were also examined. Using correlation analysis, the relationships were determined during two consecutive years in a set of 20 spring wheat cultivars (landraces, improved varieties and advanced lines) under rainfed and irrigated conditions, including saline conditions. The relationship between Δ and yield within environments highly depended on the quantity of water stored in the soil at sowing, the quantity and distribution of rainfall during the growth cycle, and the irrigation before anthesis. Δ predicted grain yield under limited irrigation (post-anthesis water stress) but not under pre-anthesis water stress (rainfed conditions), fully irrigated and saline conditions. Under limited irrigation, grain Δ correlated significantly to grain yield leaf ma at heading and maturity. It also significantly positively correlated to Chl, RWC, gS and Ci/Ca assessed at anthesis. A precise characterization of the timing and intensity of the abiotic constraints experienced by the crop is consequently needed before implementing the use of Δ in wheat breeding programmes.

Fighting The Battle Against Disease - Leeds Researchers Take On The World

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:52:00 GMT

Miscellaneous 2006 Medical News Today, 02 Mar 2006 This news reports the start of the COMDIS programme fighting malaria, TB and HIV.

COMDIS Bulletin 1

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:46:00 GMT

Miscellaneous L. Brehmer 2009 COMDIS Bulletin 1, Autumn 2009. 6 pp. The aim of this bulletin is to allow COMDIS partners to share updates with each other. It contains information on events, activities and new projects in the COMDIS programme.

COMDIS Brochure

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:14:00 GMT

Miscellaneous 2009 2 pp. This updated brochure introduces the COMDIS programme on HIV, malaria and tuberculosis.

Development Research Centre for the Future State (Research Scheme R8490) Annual Report 1 July 2008 30 June 2009

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:40:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Institute of Development Studies 2009 73 pp.

Progress on the 3 programmes is reported:

1.Public Action and Private Investment
Progress has been steady. Key activities/achievements have included the PAPI 2009 cross cutting workshop attended by representatives of all the major projects. This workshop was also attended by Max Everest Phillips (DfID) and representatives from the Africa Power and Politics RPC and the Institutions for Pro Poor Growth RPC. Closer ties with these RPCs which carry out research in similar themes have been highlighted as having great potential to deepen the research and analysis and vastly improve quality through knowledge sharing activities.

The field research on the 'China's investment in Africa' project was completed and work has now entered a new phase. This project has received a lot of attention from the academic and policy making community. Jing Gu the lead researcher has been highly active in presenting her work and publications are being finalised. Additional funding for this project was recently obtained for the work to continue.

There has been good progress in the Egypt project with a number of publications in the final stages of writing or publication. The projects in Indonesia and Brazil have now been completed with outputs coming from both. The work on particularistic property rights regimes in China is nearing completion. There has been fair progress in the Vietnam project; research partners have been formally identified. With regret the research in Pakistan cannot be completed.

A new project due for completion in March 2010 will attempt to bring some of the key findings of the programme into two publications to answer the core question.

2.Collective Action around Service Delivery (Social Accountability)
Despite good performance as reported in last year's report Modes of Service Delivery in Brazil, India and Mexico (BIM) has experienced some setbacks. It has been formally agreed that Mexico can no longer form part of the project as no researcher of suitable ability could be identified who would be willing to finish the work. There have been some problems with writing up from some of the India researchers, many of whom are younger academics in their early careers. This has led to some delays. Brazil continues to perform well. Despite these setbacks there have been some major achievements especially in the communication of research findings at conferences.

3.State Capacity, Financing the State and Informal Local Governance
Comprising three key research themes (State Capacity, Financing the State and Informal Local Governance), programme three has progressed well over the last year.

There have been some major movements in the taxation work, mainly in communication efforts. The multi country study into the resource curse in Andean countries started and is now nearing completion.

Work into Informal Local Governance institutions has progressed adequately and there is possibility of funding one further stage of work. The multi-country study into donor proliferation in Africa was completed and a research proposal submitted to other funders for follow up work.

Modelling emerging HIV epidemics: the role of injecting drug use and sexual transmission in the Russian Federation, China and India.

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:14:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Grassly, N.C.; Lowndes, C.M.; Rhodes, T.; Judd, A.; Renton, A.; Garnett, G.P. 2003 International Journal of Drug Policy (2003) Volume 14, Issue 1, pp. 25-43 [doi:10.1016/S0955-3959(02)00224-4] Emerging epidemics of HIV in Russia, India and China will largely determine the future course of the HIV pandemic. Injecting drug use has been a major source of new infections in these countries. The evolving role of injecting drug use and sexual transmission in driving these emerging epidemics is investigated using a mathematical model. HIV prevalence projections based on behavioural data for urban Russia result in a wide range of possible outcomes, reflecting uncertainty in estimates of adult sexual behaviour. Surveys of adult sexual behaviour in all the three countries are limited, and represent a research priority if the futures of these emerging epidemics are to be better understood. Analysis of behavioural correlates with adult HIV prevalence reveal the central role of unsafe sex in driving HIV prevalence, even among injecting drug users. However, needle sharing can also play a very significant role, particularly when the potential for heterosexual transmission is limited. These emerging epidemics are more likely to cross higher prevalence thresholds when there is extensive sexual mixing between sex workers and the general population, and to a certain extent between injecting drug users and non-users. Both types of sexual mixing have been documented in Russia, India and China.

DFID support for climate change adaptation in China

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 01:00:00 GMT

Adapting to Climate Change in China (ACCC) is a new DFID funded research project. The project aims to develop and share Chinas experience of integrating climate adaptation into the development process. Many countries are highly vulnerable to the affects of climate change, making adaptation crucial

Don’t just blame the Cows

R4D editor — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:13:46 GMT

Greenpeace funded research undertaken at the University of Aberdeen has shown how agriculture holds a number of solutions for climate change. Many people blame modern farming practices for accelerating climate change. However, this research suggests that it might be time to stop pointing the finger, and work proactively with agriculture to mitigate climate change.

Research has shown that agriculture can play an important role in reducing all of its direct emissions through the process of mitigation. Mitigation involves the sequestration of carbon, and can be achieved through a number of different agricultural practices. For instance, rotating crops with legumes such as peas and beans helps fix nitrogen in the soil and reduce reliance on fertilizers. While reducing tillage helps restore the carbon content of degraded soils, limiting soil disturbance which leads to the release of carbon.

There is no doubt that agriculture produces a significant level of the world’s greenhouse gases (GHG’s) (between 16.8-32.2%). The main GHG’s associated with agriculture are nitrous oxide and methane. Direct emissions come from livestock and the soil, and indirectly from fertilizer production, fossil fuel use and changes in land use, particularly associated with deforestation.

Livestock are the main source of methane, and this is a growing concern given the ever increasing demand for meat in developing countries. These countries have the greatest increase in meat consumption in recent years, increasing by 77% from 1960-1990. Three sources contribute 88% of this increase in developing countries: soil nitrous oxide emissions, methane from livestock and biomass burning.

A striking example of how agriculture may be leading to the acceleration of climate change can be found in Brazil. Between 2001-2004 93,700 square kilometres of rainforest were destroyed to make way for cattle and high energy feed crops. This kind of practice is of great concern because rainforests play a crucial role in the sequestration of carbon. A short term goal must be too stop deforestation, and this deserves major political attention.

China and India are guilty of dramatically increasing their fertilizer and manure use to meet the demands of rapid population growth. However, it is very difficult for other countries to criticise these intensive practices. Farming in many developed countries plays an equal if not more dominant role in climate change acceleration.

The role agriculture plays in accelerating climate change is a global problem. The evidence exists to show that agriculture can play a positive role in mitigation significantly reduce the GHG’s it produces. This is a global problem, which requires global solutions. We cannot expect developing countries, particularly those with tropical forests, to fight this issue alone. Every country and region must understand the role agriculture plays in accelerating climate change, and begin to implement those practices that can significantly reduce its impact.

R4D contains a wealth of knowledge on Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security.

Posted in africa, agriculture, china, climate, communication, development, dfid, Food Security, india, r4d, research, strategy

Adapting to Climate Change in China (ACCC)

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:35:00 GMT

Current

DFID Research are developing a programme of adaptation research for Asia and Latin America, following the African programme which has been in operation since 2006. CRD has also contributed £2m to a separate China Adaptation Research programme which will be co-managed by DFID-China and the Chinese National Development Planning Commission. It is important that the China project is linked closely to the wider Asia project it could provide valuable lessons not only to other parts of China but in due course to other parts of Asia.

Many of the issues in Keeley's report related to adaptation are already being taken up by the China Adaptation Research programme. Some of the other issues related to the Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) Programme will be taken up through ESPA design and are likely to have a China component though ESPA is not concerned only with climate change.

Goal: To improve international knowledge on the assessment of climate impacts and risks, and develop practical approaches to climate change adaptation
Purpose: To develop and share internationally China's experience of integrating climate adaptation into the development process, in order to reduce China's, and other countries', vulnerability to climate change 1. Improved development of and access to climate change science in China.
2. Comprehensive risk assessments, based upon vulnerability and impacts, produced at national and provincial level.
3. Climate risks integrated into planning and management within the three project provinces, and informing national level processes.
4. Awareness and capacity are increased among Chinese policymakers and other key stakeholders to address climate chance adaptation within Chinas development process.
5. Knowledge sharing between China, UK, and other countries in Asia and Africa, to further develop climate change adaptation approaches, and better understand the political economy of adaptation to climate change

New TB Regimens: What Countries Want

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 01:00:00 GMT

A new report from the TB Alliance based on interviews with over 200 key stakeholders explores

The Good Day Centre (Hao Rizi Zhongxin)

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 01:00:00 GMT

The provision of a 'safe space' - the Good Day Centre (Hao Rizi Zhongxin) - in Hanji Township, Linxia, Gansu Province, China, has created conditions under which local women may safely gain access to new knowledge, thanks to the work of the DFID-funded Women's Empowerment in the Muslim Context (WEMC) research programme.

The nature, extent and eradication of homelessness in developing countries

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:34:00 GMT

Completed An in-depth study of homelessness in nine developing countries (Bangladesh, South Africa, China, Zimbabwe, India, Indonesia, Egypt, Ghana and Peru) was conducted. The nine countries chosen for the study presented a range of housing and homelessness situation and degrees of poverty. They gave a range of different cultural experiences and understanding of housing and homelessness. To establish the nature and extent of homelessness in developing countries; to formulate workable definitions of homelessness suitable for developing country situations; to identify innovative practice in eradicating homelessness, in ameliorating its effects and in getting people off the streets; to disseminate findings through electronic and paper means. This will be done in relation to children as well as adults. The international conference on 'Homelessness: A Global Perspective', India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, India, 9-13 January 2006 was developed to disseminate the current findings and to identify ways to take the work forward.

Chinese herbal medicines set to inspire new tuberculosis drugs

Fri, 03 Apr 2009 01:00:00 GMT

Pilot screening of traditional herbal medicines by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences has identified natural product extracts with potential to attack the tuberculosis microbes. The scientists plan to work with the DFID-funded TB Alliance to identify more potential anti-TB agents from natural sources, including microbes and traditional Chinese medicines

The impact of the global financial crisis on developing countries

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 01:00:00 GMT

The Institute of Development Studies (IDS) publishes a series of policy briefs exploring the impact of the global financial crisis on developing countries ahead of the G20 summit

Addressing the emerging water crisis in China

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 01:00:00 GMT

A recent report published by the World Bank reviews China's water scarcity situation and provides recommendations for addressing it.

Improving Educational Evaluation and Quality in China.

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:28:00 GMT

Current Improving the quality of education is a major goal in both developed and developing countries, given the clear links drawn between better student access and outcomes and poverty reduction and stronger economic growth (EFA, 2005). In this context, school effectiveness research has stimulated and focused educational policy makers' attention on the potential to raise overall levels of educational standards and student achievement. For example, western governments such as the UK have placed a strong focus on encouraging schools and teachers to use innovative evaluation methods and data to inform their own evaluations of the education they provide as well as to feed into accountability and inspection frameworks, and these approaches have been linked to improved outcomes (Miliband, 2004). However, in developing countries such as China, raw measures of pupils' academic outcomes and entrance levels to higher education are frequently viewed as the key indicators of school quality. As a result schools with disadvantaged/rural intakes tend to be judged unfairly, while complacency is possible amongst schools with more able pupils and it is difficult to identify best practice. An alternative approach examines the relative progress of pupils during their time at school and this methodology - often referred to as value added - is widely regarded as providing more accurate measures of school effectiveness than the raw results. However, there is very little empirical research evidence on value added measures of school effectiveness in China and this research aims to fill this crucial gap. Thus, the proposed study is a timely investigation of the nature and extent of school effectiveness in China and the local application of innovative school evaluation methods to educational policy and practice in rural and urban secondary schools. The research seeks to provide new insights and extend current theories about:
(i) the impact of student characteristics, and classroom, school and contextual factors on students attainment and progress at school,
(ii) the relevance of these factors in the evaluation of school performance in China and
(iii) how western approaches to evaluating educational quality have been adapted and developed to take account of local contexts and priorities.
It aims to provide quality indepth data to enhance understanding of the complex nature of school effectiveness in China and how local context may play a key role in determining definitions of educational effectiveness & quality. Understanding education quality and evaluation processes also assists in achieving wider goals including social justice and cohesion and equal opportunities, especially for girls and disadvantaged students. The proposed study is an essential and timely investigation of the effectiveness and contextual features of schools in China as well as how innovative methods of school evaluation have been applied locally to educational policy and practice in rural and urban secondary schools. This research has the following objectives:

1. At the national level - to identify and define the dimensions of secondary school effectiveness in China, using innovative quantitative (multilevel) techniques to create "value added" measures for different student outcomes (eg Chinese, maths, English) and student groups (eg by prior ability, gender), across a range of 5+ regional (west & east) LEAs, and to compare and contrast these findings to equivalent results from the UK and elsewhere (eg Thomas 2001). The impact of a variety of student intake, classroom, school and contextual factors on student and school performance will be examined in detail.

2. At the local level - to explore how "value added" approaches and innovative methodology (quantitative and qualitative) has been applied and adapted by an LEA (and may potentially be applied) to reflect local contexts and educational priorities and to develop new tools for school evaluation and self-evaluation.

3. to develop professional knowledge through the understanding of Chinese policy makers, teachers and students conceptualisations of education quality, values and priorities and how these should be evaluated in schools and local contexts.

4. to develop new theoretical insights and models of school effectiveness in China that highlight the potential role and impact of different educational priorities and contexts.

5. to contribute to educational policy development (and capacity building) by providing robust and relevant new evidence, in an area where empirical data is lacking, thereby addressing the issue of how measures of school effectiveness may be contextualised and operationalised within a school evaluation framework in the China given regions and urban/rural locations in China vary considerably in terms of socio-economic and cultural features.

6. to develop guidance for the Ministry of Education on the evaluation, inspection and monitoring of educational quality and improvement in China that takes into account the priorities and contextual features of schools and schooling.

7. to identify and disseminate the key lessons learnt from the project findings that are relevant to education evaluation and policy development in other developing countries and at both primary and secondary phases of education.

8. to connect with MDG goals: improvements to school evaluation methods will stimulate, inform and enhance processes and initiatives aiming to raise student access, outcomes and educational quality, key factors in the drive towards poverty alleviation.

Tropical forests in poverty alleviation: from household data to global-comparative analysis

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 10:53:00 GMT

Current Forests are important to the rural livelihoods of poor people in developing countries. But due to the paucity of quality data on rural household economies in the tropics and sub-tropics, we know very little about just how important forests are, for what specific purposes they primarily serve, and for how many people forests are vital assets. This impedes the design of effective strategies for forest-based poverty alleviation. This project aims to fill these serious empirical gaps by using a uniform methodology to gather high-quality primary household data in about 25 sites with tropics-wide coverage. The global data bank (5-6000 households) with complete annualized income information and other economic and non-economic data will be used for a global-comparative analysis of forest-poverty linkages in rural household economies. Our goal is to analyse the general importance of various forest types in different aspects of rural livelihoods, identify major causes of geographical variation, and point to tangible options for interventions that actively enhance forest-based poverty alleviation. Specifically, we will test for hypotheses related to the alleged pro-poor role of market integration and of collective forest mangement at the local level. The data will also enable tests of broader microeconomic hypotheses regarding the role of natural resources in rural livelihoods, e.g. to what extent natural resources serve as seasonal gap-fillers, as safety nets in response to shocks, and as means of accumulating assets that eventually can lift people out of poverty. The project is integrated into the Poverty and Environment Network (PEN), coordinated by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR). PEN is an ongoing collaborative research effort between CIFOR, a network of PhD students, and external experts from ten universities including the University of East Anglia. PEN data collection is already advanced; we thus seek financial support over a three-year period mainly to establish a global data bank, to undertake the global-comparative data analysis, and to carry out synthesis & dissemination work. Research results will be communicated through a variety of media to the main intended beneficiaries that include academia, donors, multilaterals, and policy makers at different levels. The primary project objective is:
I. To undertake a comprehensive global-comparative analysis of the role of forests and environmental income in preventing and reducing rural poverty, built on a centrally coordinated pan-tropical data bank with high-quality primary household and village data collected though PEN (research outputs);
The secondary project objectives are:
II. To elaborate recommendations for tangible forest-poverty interventions, and feed them into national and global policy processes (policy impacts);
III. To enhance the ability of project partners in using best-practice methods for conducting income-accounting rural household surveys, and to suggest improved research methodologies for future studies of environmental incomes and rural livelihoods (capacity building and methodological innovation).

China's food production is vulnerable to climate change

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 01:00:00 GMT

Climate change will present a major challenge to China in feeding its growing population by the middle of the century according to a report from a three-year bilateral project between the UK and China

SciDev.Net website phase 2

Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:05:00 GMT

Current

SciDev.Net (the Science and Development Network) was set up in 2001 as an organisation dedicated to enhancing the provision of reliable and authoritative information about science and technology for the developing world.

The first seven years of operation of SciDev.Net have seen a steady growth in the content, use and reputation of its website (www.scidev.net).

The SciDev.Net database now contains more than 15,000 news, feature and opinion articles relating to the role of science and technology in developing countries, and the website has more than 38,000 registered users, seventy percent of whom are in the developing world.

The website has become widely recognised as a platform on which scientists and policy analysts from the developing world can express their view on issues related to the sustainable development of their countries and regions.

The growth in the website has been complemented by the development of the organisation's regional activities, including the collection and dissemination of regional news and opinion, the distribution of information about our products and services, and the organisation of capacity-building workshops in science and technology communication.

SciDev.Net's vision is to achieve better-informed decisions by individuals and organisations in the developing world on science- and technology-related issues, and thus the better integration of scientific knowledge and technological innovation into policies, programmes and projects intended to achieve sustainable development at all levels of society.

Production and posting of authoritative news, opinion and analysis about the role of science and technology in meeting the needs of developing countries.
Enhanced capacity in developing countries to present information about S&T accurately and accessibly, and of researchers in such countries to bridge the gap between research, policy, and practice.
Regional networks linking professional communicators, researchers and policymakers.

Launch of a new user-friendly version of the website with an enhanced language capacity.
94% of content written exclusively for SciDev.Net, the majority by developing world authors.
In 2008, SciDev.Net published 662 international news articles and the website received 1.1 million visits and more than 2.5 million page views, 48% of which were from developing countries.
Led several science communications workshops in 2008 including collaboration with the British Council in China and the UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) in Uganda.
Free access to articles about science and technology generated by SciDev.Net, including news, features, opinion articles, reviews and other material
- Publication of content across 6 regional gateways (China, Latin America & Carribean, Middle East & North Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa) and 6 topic gateways (Agriculture & Environment, Climate Change & Energy, Health, New Technologies, Science & Innovation Policy and Science Communication)
- Content available in Chinese, English, French and Spanish
- Over 80% of news articles written by developing country journalists
- Publication of special material addressing key areas of public and political concern, including policy briefs and other material from world-class authorities in the subject area.
Access to material from Science, Nature and other journals not available (free) elsewhere
Science communication workshops
Internships for developing country science journalists

New Research Centre for Women and Gender Studies in China

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 01:00:00 GMT

A capacity-building initiative by the Women's Empowerment in a Muslim Context (WEMC) Research Programme will see the establishment of a Northwest Minorities Research Centre for Women and Gender Studies at the Gansu Academy of Social Sciences in Lanzhou, China.

Low carbon economy task force: China

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:36:00 GMT

Current To support low carbon economy initiatives of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCIED).

Spotlight on Chronic Diseases

Sun, 27 Jul 2008 01:00:00 GMT

SciDev.Net has published a set of articles about the need to prioritise the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases affecting millions in developing countries

COMDIS: Overcoming barriers to tuberculosis treatment and diagnosis

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 01:00:00 GMT

Presentations by COMDIS researchers were made at a meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Global Tuberculosis on 1 April 2008.

Farmer centred agroforestry research and development in eastern China: methods for optimising tree spatial arrangement and fodder value

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 14:41:00 GMT

Completed The need for adaptive research to produce a simple decision-model to optimise understorey crop yield and low-cost methods for assessing the fodder value of tree leaves in agroforestry systems in eastern China was identified in May 1992 by Professor S.M. Newman and scientists of the Chinese Academy of Sciences at meetings in Beijing. 1.)To adapt and develop ecophysiological and agronomic models to optimise yield in agroforestry with emphasis on the understorey.
2.)To adapt and develop methods for assessing fodder value of tree species within the context of farming systems. Since the project start-date all work has been carried out by Fountain Renewable Resources under sub-contract from Silsoe College. The progress can be summarised by the following activity headings:

Detailed literature review of existing work on agroforestry modelling in China and elsewhere.

Identification of suitable modelling approaches with respect to the required outputs.

Development of candidate models into a 'user-friendly format'.

Meetings with the Silsoe staff, planning of future workshops, staff appointments, and equipments acquisitions.

Gordon Brown supports research on climate change with China and India

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 01:00:00 GMT

The UK prime minister Gordon Brown's visits to China and India have strengthened the relationship between the two biggest developing countries and rich nations in fighting climate change according to a recent article in SciDev.Net: 'UK chief boosts climate ties with China and India'

Research for development priorities – Suggestions from China

euforic — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 15:00:13 GMT

In October 2007, consultation workshops were held in Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, South Africa, and Uganda to discuss future priorities for DFID research, 2008-2013. This posting gives a flavour of the China discussions.

The main conclusions of the research consultations include:

Chinese researchers recognised the significance of DFID’S role in development research in China
The research themes resonate with current development priorities within China
Engaging China in research on global development issues is imperative if progress is to be maintained in reducing poverty and promoting sustainable development on a global scale
As China becomes a significant global actor, engagement in collaborative research efforts will in itself constitute a global public good
Chinese collaboration in international research programmes needs to be based on identification of research priorities that are responsive to demand, informed by shared interests and undertaken from an understanding of China’s interests and incentives for engagement; and research topics that are framed in ways that are sensitive to political and policy priorities in order to ensure policy support and impact.
Short studies could be commissioned to fill knowledge gaps on the context and constraints for global partnerships.

Download full report

To prepare its future research strategy, DFID launched a public consultation exercise in 2007.

Between August and November 2007, some 600 people responded to an online survey throut the DFID web site. A further 12-question survey coordinated by Euforic mobilised a further 100 contributions as well as longer submissions from DNet Bangladesh and the Forum for African Agricultural Research. A series of face to face meetings were also held in Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda.

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Economic analysis of health sector regulation: a cross-country study with China,Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Regulations are formal mechanisms by which governments influence the behaviour of various actors within the health sector. They establish 'rules of the game' by which individuals, groups and organisations interact and therefore they can play a significant role in influencing how well policy objectives can be met. Also, because regulations potentially impose significant costs and benefits on actors within the health sector, they can affect the performance of various organisations and health programmes. This suggests that an evaluative approach can be usefully applied to the subject of regulation although, to date, there has been little attempt to do so through conventional economic evaluation methods. Health economic analysis, as typically applied, tends to assume a given regulatory framework and as a consequence, alternative regulatory models have not been subject to much evaluative scrutiny. This shortcoming has particular relevance to developing countries where organisational capacity within government agencies is often lacking and thus, a properly functioning regulatory framework unlikely to be commonplace. This major research programme uses an adapted economic evaluation framework to consider key variables that influence the way in which health sector regulations operate. This is undertaken at two levels. At the first level, the evaluation examines the costs incurred by a government agency (or agencies) or other relevant regulatory bodies in undertaking the monitoring and enforcement activities required to achieve certain levels of compliance. The second, broader level examines the costs and outcomes of the regulation to the wider community and thus seeks to address the normative, and more important, issue of social value. Essentially, it is through its capacity to enable/hinder certain activities rather than any intrinsic value that can be attached to compliance that determines the value of a regulation to society. At this level, regulations can be judged by specific criteria such as transactions costs imposed upon industry and the promotion of safety and access to health services and products. The five case studies entail economic evaluations of various forms of regulations across different low and middle-income countries (LMICs) that address, from slightly differing angles, these crucial normative questions.

Aid salary discrepancies and development workers' performance

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Current

Reducing poverty in general, and meeting the Millennium Development Goals in particular (World Bank, 2004), depends significantly on boosting the effectiveness of Technical Cooperation (Manning, 2006). Much of the continuing debate on this type of aid focuses on its overhead costs, including expatriate pay (Action Aid, 2005). However, largely absent from the debate to-date are the perspectives of expatriate and local development workers themselves. Salaries between national and expatriate workers, across volunteers and experts, and also between local personnel working for different agencies are often quite discrepant. These discrepancies constitute a veritable elephant in the parlour of poverty reduction efforts. According to the Paris Declaration, best practice in aid work means pay should be "aligned" and "harmonised" across worker groups (World Bank, 2005). Although pay may not necessarily be a primary motive for development workers, discrepancies in pay nonetheless have the potential to influence perceptions of organisational justice, which can in turn affect work performance (Colquitt et al, 2001). Moreover, because injustice is a motivation for much aid itself, perceptions of unfairness in aid work may have an inherent salience and undermine its necessary constituents, especially cooperation and capacity building. It is therefore important to identify under what conditions salary discrepancies are counter-productive.

In this project we seek to:
(1) document the extent of salary discrepancies in aid work;
(2) explore their consequences for work performance, and
(3) determine the potential for salary alignment and harmonisation to boost cooperative work performance, build capacity and more effectively address the challenges of poverty reduction.
Our focus is thus on increasing the effectiveness of those working at the coalface of poverty reduction, by considering how discrepant reward systems affect their performance.

(a) Innovate new micro measures of pay discrepancy, alignment and harmonisation.

(b) Assess the motivational constructs of guilt, superiority, indignation, and withdrawal using reliable and valid (multiitem) measures.

(c) Broaden the scope of criterion variables to include the job performance indicators job satisfaction, mental health/emotional resilience, and intentions to leave versus stay in the job (brain drain).

(d) Test for robust versus context-contingent links between (a) and (b).

(e) Test for linkages between (b) and (c), thereby linking pay discrepancy, alignment and harmonisation to individual work performance in technical cooperation projects.

(f) Create a psychometrically sound instrument that allows for the motivational affects of pay discrepancy on work performance to be assessed in other settings.

(g) Contribute to poverty reduction through enhancing the work performance of aid workers.

Practically, this project will stimulate evidence-based practice in job specification, selection, training, and psychosocial care for aid workers. By focusing on directly improving the performance of development workers involved in poverty reduction, we hope that our research will contribute to the building of intellectual and social capital, and in so doing improve the situation of those in poverty (Clemens et al, 2004).. Our assumption is that technical cooperation rarely succeeds in reducing poverty if its workers are blocked from cooperating by pay discrepancy.

In addition to the external impacts, the project itself brings together a team of senior and junior researchers from a range of disciplines. Within the project we encourage interaction between team members so that we may maximize capacity building within the project.

Quality-assured TB care for poor people in resource-constrained settings (Equi-TB) (LSTM)

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Current There is widespread consensus on the need for a systematic approach to TB control and the DOTS strategy has been adopted in many settings. However, even in settings where TB control is delivered through well-functioning, 'model' programmes, there is evidence that the poorest people face significant barriers to accessing care, or are excluded altogether. Little is known of how many 'missing' cases there are in different settings. It is likely that those who are excluded are the poorest and suffer the greatest burden of the disease. The proposed Knowledge Programme will address these knowledge gaps by generating practical strategies for finding and treating cases in disadvantaged sectors of communities. TB as a chronic and stigmatised disease entrenches people's poverty and exacerbates exclusion from mainstream society. Therefore finding and treating missing cases will lead to improved health, increased life expectancy and improved productivity. Research into mechanisms for reducing the time required to establish TB diagnosis for the poorest.

Performance benchmarking your irrigation services

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 01:00:00 GMT

Benchmarking procedures are promoted to improve the management of agricultural water services

Are TB patients in China taking their drugs?

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 01:00:00 GMT

Effective tuberculosis control is a priority for the Government of China. In Chongqing Province the numbers of registered TB patients has increased due to better detection and service provision

Reducing CO₂ Emissions with Family-Hydro

Wed, 04 Jan 2006 01:00:00 GMT

Project R8150 worked to stimulate the family-hydro market by reducing installation costs.

R4D China

Poverty and vulnerability in rural China: effects of taxation. CPRC Working Paper No. 156.

Genetic Selection and Trait with Jinmai 47 Analysis of Introgression Lines Genetic Background.

Relationships between carbon isotope discrimination and leaf morphophysiological traits in spring-planted spring wheat under drought and salinity stress in Northern China

Genetic diversity of Chinese common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) landraces assessed with simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers.

Relationship between carbon isotope discrimination and grain yield in spring wheat under different water regimes and under saline conditions in the Ningxia Province (North-west China).

Fighting The Battle Against Disease - Leeds Researchers Take On The World

COMDIS Bulletin 1

COMDIS Brochure

Development Research Centre for the Future State (Research Scheme R8490) Annual Report 1 July 2008  30 June 2009

Modelling emerging HIV epidemics: the role of injecting drug use and sexual transmission in the Russian Federation, China and India.

DFID support for climate change adaptation in China

Don’t just blame the Cows

Adapting to Climate Change in China (ACCC)

New TB Regimens: What Countries Want

The Good Day Centre (Hao Rizi Zhongxin)

The nature, extent and eradication of homelessness in developing countries

Chinese herbal medicines set to inspire new tuberculosis drugs

The impact of the global financial crisis on developing countries

Addressing the emerging water crisis in China

Improving Educational Evaluation and Quality in China.

Tropical forests in poverty alleviation: from household data to global-comparative analysis

China's food production is vulnerable to climate change

SciDev.Net website phase 2

New Research Centre for Women and Gender Studies in China

Low carbon economy task force: China

Spotlight on Chronic Diseases

COMDIS: Overcoming barriers to tuberculosis treatment and diagnosis

Farmer centred agroforestry research and development in eastern China: methods for optimising tree spatial arrangement and fodder value

Gordon Brown supports research on climate change with China and India

Research for development priorities – Suggestions from China

Economic analysis of health sector regulation: a cross-country study with China,Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa

Aid salary discrepancies and development workers' performance

Quality-assured TB care for poor people in resource-constrained settings (Equi-TB) (LSTM)

Performance benchmarking your irrigation services

Are TB patients in China taking their drugs?

Reducing CO2 Emissions with Family-Hydro

Development Research Centre for the Future State (Research Scheme R8490) Annual Report 1 July 2008 30 June 2009

Reducing CO₂ Emissions with Family-Hydro