Posts Tagged ‘features’
STRUCTURAL FEATURES OF RGANIZATSII AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION IN TRANSITION COUNTRIES
Structural features of agricultural production in transition countries show a wide variety of country-specific and regional characteristics.
The average farm size in Asia today is small – in Bangladesh, China and the delta region in Vietnam, he is only 0,4-0,5 ha. In South Asia the process of reducing the areas will continue, as its rural population is growing at a rate of 1.5% per year and is projected to increase to last until 2020
Since farming on small plots of land requires labor-intensive, it is important to understand whether the densely populated Asian countries to effectively grow cereals and other basic culture in such areas, especially if wages in rural areas will grow.
Population growth and land fragmentation are putting pressure on rural labor market. In India there are 80 million poor peasants with a low volume of assets that can survive only by passing to non-agricultural activities. In addition, millions of landless households depend entirely on employment – in India alone, 82 million of such employment for a worthy reward for a growing rural population – one of the most difficult challenges of our time, especially important for South Asia, Middle East and North Africa, where the number of jobs in non-agricultural activities (and for unskilled labor in general) grows very slowly.
Lack of water. Freshwater is now almost exhausted in many countries, and growing demand for water for urban, industrial and environmental needs warrant a reduction of consumption in agriculture. Lack of water, the consequences of which are enhanced by ongoing climate change, especially felt in the Middle East, North Africa and a number of areas in India and China (chapters 2 and 8). Emphasis on the use of lifting water for irrigation has led many countries to its excessive consumption, lowering groundwater levels and deteriorating water quality.
With regard to the former socialist countries, the structure of their agriculture dominated the giant collective farms under the direct control of the state. The average farm size ranged from 1,157 ha in Poland to 124,770 hectares in Turkmenistan, while, for example in the EU15 or the U.S., the average farm size was 20 and 197 hectares respectively.
In the early 1990s. for privatization and the restoration of property rights followed by a restructuring of the agricultural sector. New owners of land and other assets could withdraw from the collective farms and to create family farms. Some former collective farms have been transformed into cooperative associations of owners selhozaktivov (including land), joint stock companies, limited liability company or partnership. The organizational form of households dependent on means of privatization and government policy. For example, in Albania and the Baltic States was created a lot of small family farms, while in Slovakia, the Czech Republic and most former Soviet republics dominated by large agricultural enterprises.
Economy chooses the structure of production, which gives them a comparative advantage. Large agricultural enterprises, where possible division of labor and does not require control over labor, capital-intensive production of profitable products. Since farms have an advantage in the production of grains and oilseeds, where labor costs are low, and capital intensity is high.
Small farms have the advantage of less capital-intensive production, where possible control over labor, and labor is difficult to measure. For example, in the production of perennial crops (including fruit), which requires considerable labor and low capital.
Additional empirical tests confirm that this specialization of farms is observed both in CEE and the EU, although the breeding and cultivation of field crops (potatoes and sugar beets), the results differ. Thus, in CEE field crops specialized small farms use more labor-intensive technology, and in the EU this production is more capital-intensive.
Multicountry study confirms that in countries where the share of family farms in land use more for growing oilseed crops assigned a smaller portion of land, and by labor-intensive crops – more substantial. In these countries, the ratio of livestock per hectare higher than in countries with a smaller share of family farms.
Thus, agricultural products, production of which the country will be competitive in international markets, determined the structure of farms. High transaction costs impede change the shape of the organization of farms in countries with transition economies in transition, so the correct choice of the structure of production agriculture is more important to choose the form of its organization.
Comparing the efficacy of various forms of economic organization, should also take into account the transaction costs associated with markets. In many transition countries, markets are more suited for large-scale agricultural enterprises, which impedes the development of family farms. Labor-intensive products requires a variety of business agreements and vertical linkages, for example, than capital-intensive products.
FEATURES OF THE USE OF LABOR RESOURCES IN THE AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES
Specificity of utilization of labor resources in agriculture and processing sectors is fairly high season, caused by mismatch between production period and working period. This is especially true for crop production and processing industry. Seasonality leads to a sharp increase in demand for labor during the planting, care of plants, harvesting, processing of agricultural raw materials and to an equally dramatic reduction in its winter season. In animal husbandry, manufacturing, labor costs on a vehicle during the year more evenly.
Seasonality of labor is characterized by several factors.
1. Monthly distribution of labor costs as a percentage of annual. With a uniform employment of monthly expenses are 8.33% (100:12).
2. The extent of seasonality – the ratio of the maximum monthly cost of labor to a minimum:
3. Coefficient of seasonal labor force – the ratio of labor costs in the month of maximum or minimum amount of work on the farm to the average monthly cost of labor:
4. The annual rate of seasonality of work – the ratio of the sum of deviations of actual costs of labor for months on average to the annual labor costs.
Seasonality of labor in agriculture can not be fully overcome, but the experience of many companies shows that it was realistic to minimize it. The practice has developed a variety of ways to mitigate seasonality of labor use in agricultural industries, among which are the following:
1) the maximum possible mechanization of the most labor-intensive production processes and introduction of high technology and equipment used in a busy period. Thus, the use of one yagodouborochnogo combine to allow mechanized harvesting berries, currants, releases 300 – 350 collectors;
2) a combination of farm crops and varieties with different growing periods, as well as industries that contribute to equalization of labor costs. For example, the cultivation of early, mid and late varieties of vegetable crops can be used more evenly labor during planting (planting) and harvest vegetables;
3) development of ancillary industries in the agricultural enterprises, it can take in the winter of agricultural workers;
4) organization of processing and storage of agricultural products in the field of production, ie the development of agro-industrial integration. Thus, in the horticultural farms, where there are loft-room, the demand for labor during the harvest is reduced by 1,5 – 2 times, and in pozdneosenny and winter periods significantly increased employment of permanent workers as a result of the fact that commodity processing and sale of fruit does not hold in harvest time, and after finishing work in the garden;
5) in processing plants during the period of the mass of raw material supply should be performed malotrudoemkuyu products and intermediates, and in the least stressful (winter-spring) period to produce one final product, process, raw sugar, etc.
Reducing the seasonality of labor in the fields of agriculture allows a minimum number of workers producing for years more production.
The special features of the labor force in agriculture is also the need to combine workers of several job functions, which is caused by a variety of work and short deadlines for their execution, the need to work not only in public, but also in personal subsidiary plots, dependence of the results of work on natural conditions. In addition, the use of means of production plants and animals makes specific forms of cooperation and division of labor in the industry.
FEATURES OF AGRICULTURE
In agriculture, the same general economic laws, as in other sectors of the economy. However, they manifest themselves to the circumstances of the industry.
A distinctive feature of agriculture is that as the main means of production here is land. Compared with other means of production land will not wear out, and when used properly, improves its quality parameters.
In agriculture as a means of production are the living organisms, what are the animals and plants. Recent develop on the basis of biological laws. Consequently, the economic reproduction process is closely intertwined with the natural process of development of living organisms.
Agricultural production is carried out on a huge area and scattered in different climatic zones. The final results sometimes depends not on the quantity and quality of resources used and the specific conditions under which production takes place.
Geographic distribution of agricultural production due to the large volume of traffic as the production (grain, potatoes, sugar beet, milk, meat, etc.) as well as equipment and material resources (fuels, lubricants, mineral fertilizers).
One important feature of agriculture is that the products created here taking part in the further process of production. In agriculture as a means of production used the seeds and planting material (grain, potatoes, etc.), animal feed, as well as much of the population in the rehabilitation and expansion of herds of animals. All of this requires additional material resources for the construction of facilities and production facilities (stockyards, storage for feed, storage of seed and planting material, etc.).
An important feature of agriculture lies in the fact that here nude coincides with the period of the working period of production. In agriculture, the period of production consists of the time when the process occurs under the influence of human labor (plowing, processing, sowing and planting, caring for plants, harvesting, etc.) and when it is directly under the influence of natural factors (vegetation of cultivated plants, yield formation, etc.).
The discrepancy between the period of production and the working period is conditioned by seasonal agricultural production. The latter has a significant impact on the organization of production, effective use of technology, human resources, and ultimately on the efficiency of the industry as a whole.
The division of labor, and hence the specialization of production in agriculture is manifested differently than in industry and other sectors of the economy. As for land, labor and material resources are necessary to achieve an optimal combination of crop fields to livestock industries and the development of ancillary industries and trades. In improving the social division of labor must take into account the specific conditions in specific regions.
Undoubtedly, one of the main features of agriculture is the level and conditions of use of technology. Due to the fact that in agriculture tend to move the instruments of production (machinery, combine harvesters, agricultural machinery), and objects of labor (plants) are on the same site, the nature of the technical equipment of agriculture differs substantially from the industrial sectors. The total demand for energy resources is significantly higher compared to the industries. At the same geographical dispersion of agriculture and the seasonal nature of production requires a significant increase in the needs of businesses in technology and basic means of production.
In agriculture, on the other is based organization of labor processes in the fields of crop and livestock production.Here the artist has no permanent job, such as in industry. In the process of agricultural production, depending on season and specific crops and cropping working machine operators perform different kinds of work. Mechanic should be able to work on almost all machines and units, and field crop workers should be able to perform work on the preparation of seeds and planting material, care of plants, forage, harvest. In this kind of work can change not only daily, but depending on the conditions and within one working day.
Reported particularly agriculture, compared with industries require a comprehensive analysis and accounting for the formation of logistics industry, organization and management, determining the economic efficiency of production resources.