The Russian Financial Crisis and Workers’ Remittances to Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic
Pages 327-343
Mirzosaid Sultonov

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1929-7092.2016.05.29

Published: 19 December 2016

Abstract: In this paper, we estimate the link between remittances and key macroeconomic variables of the host country (Russia) and the world’s most remittance-dependent economies of Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic. We mostly focus on the relationship during the ongoing Russian financial crisis. In particular, we estimate the responses of remittances to a shock in the exchange rate and per capita income in Russia and those of the key macroeconomic fundamentals of Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic to a shock in remittance inflows. The empirical findings show that remittances serve as a channel to transfer the negative effects of the global and the Russian financial crises from the Russian macroeconomic fundamentals to the macroeconomic indicators of Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic.

Access to Debt Finance: Which Policies Work? Empirical Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa
Pages 327-343
Prosper Senyo Koto

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1929-7092.2016.05.28

Published: 14 November 2016

Abstract: Are the structural policy reforms effective in reducing debt financing constraints on formal sector enterprises in sub-Saharan Africa? We do not know. And the reason is the relatively limited research on the effectiveness of policies in the credit market. Using policy variables from the World Bank and the Enterprise Surveys data, the analysis involves three-way error component models. The results are indicative that taken together; structural policy reforms reduce debt financing constraints, at least, as it pertains to working capital needs. There is heterogeneity in the results. Changes in the business regulatory environment benefit large firms more than small ones. Financial sector reforms affect enterprises of all sizes relatively equally. For all the twelve countries, together, trade sector reforms initially increase the likelihood of access to debt finance by 20 percent until a policy threshold, beyond which progressive reforms in the trade sector reduce the probability by as much as 13 percent. Also, not all countries experience the same effects from trade sector reforms. The result is robust to different indicators of credit constraint and measures of structural reforms. The results have implications on the World Bank’s push towards reforms on trade policy across countries.

Revisiting Islamization of Courses in Economics with Special Emphasis on the Operational Aspect
Pages 298-309
Ataul Huq Pramanik

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1929-7092.2016.05.26

Published: 20 August 2016

Abstract: Knowledge immune from the moral and ethical principles based on a belief system as that of Islam has failed to address the hydra-leaded problems facing the world. Knowing about truth is possible not just by using acquired knowledge based on human reasoning or intellect. In other words, knowing is about ‘becoming’ or ‘being’. The state of ‘being’ requires a continuous process of searching for the truth i.e. reality. However, given the diversity in human knowledge based simply on rationality and reasoning, it is a stupendous task to integrate the acquired knowledge of a discipline like that of economics with revealed knowledge i.e. on Islamic world view (IWV). This study attempts to identify the existing courses in Economics based on so-called conventional wisdom and suggest the process of integrating the knowledge of IWV usng the sources derived from the Quran, Sunnah, Qiyas and Ijtihad. As for the operationalization, this study involves different potential stake-holders such as, institutions, teachers, students, sharia scholars, parents, and lastly the markets as components of demand and supply side.

Standardization of a SYBR Green Based Real-Time PCR System for Detection and Molecular Quantification of Babesia bovis and B. bigemina in Water Buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis)
Pages 44-52
Dasiel Obregón, Marcio D. Rabelo, Rodrigo Giglioti, Thalita B. Bilhassi, Thalita A. Néo, Belkis Corona, Pastor Alfonso, Rosangela Z. Machado and Marcia C.S. Oliveira

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1927-520X.2016.05.02.4

Published: 30 November 2016

Abstract: Water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) is a potential reservoir for Babesia bovis and B. bigemina in tropical regions, but the epidemiological evidence of their reservoir competence is limited, especially due to the lack of diagnostic tests capable of detecting and quantifying the low-level parasitemia present in the carrier animals. In this paper we present the standardization process of a SYBR Green based real-time PCR system (qPCR), consisting of two single qPCR assays, for the detection and quantification of B. bovis and/or B. bigemina. Both assays were optimized in similar protocols, including reagent concentrations and thermocycling parameters, so it is possible its use as a multiple qPCR in a single run. Both single assays showed a suitable analytical performance, especially by allowing detection of a greater number of carrier animals when compared with nested PCR assays (nPCR) against a reference panel of 60 DNA samples extracted from blood of both, infected- and non-infected buffaloes. Furthermore, a mathematical algorithm to convert the qPCR outcomes in percent of infected red blood cell was used, and was found that the estimated parasitemia in carrier buffaloes within the reference sample panels were close to those described in carrier cattle. This method could be a useful tool for epidemiological studies on the participation of the bubaline specie in the epidemic process of bovine babesiosis.

Editorial: Theoretical and Empirical Islamic Economics
Pages i
Hassan B. Ghassan

Published: 18 August 2016