title: Harnessing the private sector for rural development, poverty alleviation and HIV/AIDS prevention

authors: Lim, Steven

subjects: rural development

abstract: In resource-constrained developing countries, mobilizing resources from outside sources may assist in overcoming many development challenges. This paper examines the Thai Business Initiative in Rural Development (TBIRD), an NGO-sponsored program that brings together the comparative advantages and self-interest of rural villages, private sector firms and a facilitating NGO, to improve social and community health outcomes in rural areas. We analyze key issues in the program with data from Northeast Thailand. We find that the TBIRD program appears to improve the income earning and other prospects of the TBIRD factory workers. Further, TBIRD factory employment exhibits a pro-poor bias. A key impact is to provide jobs for people who might otherwise be at increased risk of HIV infection through poverty-induced decisions to migrate to urban centres and participate in the commercial sex industry. This program adds another important tool for development planners in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

text: Harnessing the private sector for rural development, poverty alleviation and HIV/AIDS prevention In resource-constrained developing countries, mobilizing resources from outside sources may assist in overcoming many development challenges. This paper examines the Thai Business Initiative in Rural Development (TBIRD), an NGO-sponsored program that brings together the comparative advantages and self-interest of rural villages, private sector firms and a facilitating NGO, to improve social and community health outcomes in rural areas. We analyze key issues in the program with data from Northeast Thailand. We find that the TBIRD program appears to improve the income earning and other prospects of the TBIRD factory workers. Further, TBIRD factory employment exhibits a pro-poor bias. A key impact is to provide jobs for people who might otherwise be at increased risk of HIV infection through poverty-induced decisions to migrate to urban centres and participate in the commercial sex industry. This program adds another important tool for development planners in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

year: 2007-01

title: No significant links between somatognosia, stereognosia, and hypermobility: sensory processing unlikely to drive common complaints in hypermobile population

authors: Hanzlíková, Ivana

subjects: Asymptomatic hypermobility

abstract: Background: Previous research has demonstrated impaired proprioception and poorer responses to tactile deep pressure, visual-tactile integration, and vestibular stimuli in individuals with generalized hypermobility, potentially leading to sensory processing issues. Therefore, we aimed to explore the influence of hypermobility on somatognosia and stereognosia. Methods: Forty-six participants were assessed using the Beighton score and categorized into three groups: non-hypermobile (n = 20), symptomatic hypermobile (n = 13), and asymptomatic hypermobile (n = 13). Somatognosia was evaluated using the shoulder width test in the vertical plane and pelvic width test in the vertical and horizontal planes. Stereognosia was assessed with Petrie’s test. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was examined the relationship between the Beighton score and measures of somatognosia and stereognosia. An unpaired t-test was used to compare variables between hypermobile (both symptomatic and asymptomatic) and non-hypermobile individuals, while a one-way ANOVA was used to compare data between the three groups. Results: No significant relationship was observed between Beighton scores and measures of somatognosia and stereognosia. The t-test revealed no statistically significant differences between hypermobile and non-hypermobile groups in the shoulder width, two pelvic widths, and Petrie’s tests (all p ≥ 0.105). Similarly, one-way ANOVA showed no statistically significant differences between the three groups across these tests (all p ≥ 0.177). Conclusions: The results indicate that somatognosia and stereognosia are not significantly related to the Beighton score and do not significantly differ between the groups studied. These sensory processing functions are unlikely to contribute to the common complaints reported by hypermobile individuals. Clinical trial number: Not applicable.

text: No significant links between somatognosia, stereognosia, and hypermobility: sensory processing unlikely to drive common complaints in hypermobile population Background: Previous research has demonstrated impaired proprioception and poorer responses to tactile deep pressure, visual-tactile integration, and vestibular stimuli in individuals with generalized hypermobility, potentially leading to sensory processing issues. Therefore, we aimed to explore the influence of hypermobility on somatognosia and stereognosia. Methods: Forty-six participants were assessed using the Beighton score and categorized into three groups: non-hypermobile (n = 20), symptomatic hypermobile (n = 13), and asymptomatic hypermobile (n = 13). Somatognosia was evaluated using the shoulder width test in the vertical plane and pelvic width test in the vertical and horizontal planes. Stereognosia was assessed with Petrie’s test. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was examined the relationship between the Beighton score and measures of somatognosia and stereognosia. An unpaired t-test was used to compare variables between hypermobile (both symptomatic and asymptomatic) and non-hypermobile individuals, while a one-way ANOVA was used to compare data between the three groups. Results: No significant relationship was observed between Beighton scores and measures of somatognosia and stereognosia. The t-test revealed no statistically significant differences between hypermobile and non-hypermobile groups in the shoulder width, two pelvic widths, and Petrie’s tests (all p ≥ 0.105). Similarly, one-way ANOVA showed no statistically significant differences between the three groups across these tests (all p ≥ 0.177). Conclusions: The results indicate that somatognosia and stereognosia are not significantly related to the Beighton score and do not significantly differ between the groups studied. These sensory processing functions are unlikely to contribute to the common complaints reported by hypermobile individuals. Clinical trial number: Not applicable.

year: 2025

title: From the rākau to the ngākau

authors: Derby, Melissa

subjects: research

abstract: The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) in Aotearoa New Zealand has funded 11 National Science Challenges (NSC), which aim to tackle a series of big questions affecting wellbeing in society. One Challenge, A Better Start: E Tipu E Rea, is investigating four key focus areas that children encounter in their early development and is seeking to identify the factors that contribute to forming a solid foundation for fostering wellbeing and lifelong success. Central to the principles of this Challenge is the Treaty of Waitangi in that the Treaty provides a framework to guide whānau engagement, policy change, and praxis. This article describes how a ‘ngākau’ rather than a ‘rākau’ approach to shaping research inquiry within this Challenge facilitates more authentic and mana-enhancing whānau engagement in research interactions (Macfarlane, 2019). The development of a whānau questionnaire is drawn on to illustrate the ngākau approach in practice.

text: From the rākau to the ngākau The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) in Aotearoa New Zealand has funded 11 National Science Challenges (NSC), which aim to tackle a series of big questions affecting wellbeing in society. One Challenge, A Better Start: E Tipu E Rea, is investigating four key focus areas that children encounter in their early development and is seeking to identify the factors that contribute to forming a solid foundation for fostering wellbeing and lifelong success. Central to the principles of this Challenge is the Treaty of Waitangi in that the Treaty provides a framework to guide whānau engagement, policy change, and praxis. This article describes how a ‘ngākau’ rather than a ‘rākau’ approach to shaping research inquiry within this Challenge facilitates more authentic and mana-enhancing whānau engagement in research interactions (Macfarlane, 2019). The development of a whānau questionnaire is drawn on to illustrate the ngākau approach in practice.

year: 2021