درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

This study takes a rural development perspective to examine the various reasons behind the use of children under 18 years in cocoa farms in Ghana. Using descriptive research, a sample size of 385 cocoa farmers was selected through the multi-stage sampling technique. The analyses included mean, standard deviation, frequency, percentage, and perception index. Although the level of usage of children on cocoa farms was relatively low (74%), majority of the children were involved in nursing of cocoa seedlings (87.8%), digging of holes for seedlings (76.3%), gathering of pods (55.7%) and heaping of pods (53.9%). Farmers involved children on cocoa farms for the following three reasons; to acquire indigenous knowledge of farming patterns (Mean=2.18), it is a way of life to learn their parents' occupation (Mean=2.18), and income source of the household (Mean=2.11). The challenge most farmers face in the use of children for farm activities is the fact that the children do not meet the required strength/energy (Mean=2.48). Policy efforts towards the complete eradication of using children under 18 years on cocoa farms must take into consideration the rural nature of the environments in which cocoa farming takes place in order not for it to backfire as is the case currently.

Purpose- The goal of this research is to identify institutional variables affecting entrepreneurship in Nesa rural Area in Karaj County.Design/methodology/approach-This is a fundamental, applied research that uses a descriptive survey method for data collection. The statistical population of the research comprises the residents of Nesa Rural district. The sample size was calculated using Cochran's formula (n = 216) and its distribution among the villages was proportional to the number of households in each village and the sampling was conducted using a simple random method. The research instrument is a researcher-designed questionnaire. In this research, the confirmatory factor analysis method was used to assess the validity and reliability of the questionnaire, and the partial least squares path analysis method was adopted to test the conceptual model of the research. The relationship between the variables was measured with the Pearson correlation test.Findings- The findings of the research on the state of entrepreneurship suggest that self-employment driven by a small family business approach, mostly without innovation, has been the predominant entrepreneurial activity in the study area. The results of the conceptual research model showed that the institutional variables of economic stability, transparency and accountability, and educational system and skills training have the most direct impact on the state of rural entrepreneurship. The analysis of fit indices of the model revealed that the coefficient of determination for the dependent variable of the rural entrepreneurial status was 0.683. Accordingly, the independent and mediating variables of the model can explain 68.3% of the variance in the rural entrepreneurial status, indicating the explanatory power of the model.Practical implications- The results of the research suggested that rural entrepreneurship is in a deplorable condition and despite the direct and indirect effects of institutional variables on rural entrepreneurship, institutional factors play a weak and inefficient role in rural areas. Hence, it is necessary to pay attention to the role of institutional factors such as political stability, enforcement of the rule of law among citizens, control of corruption, and payment of rewards in proportion to the endeavors and creativity of individuals to promote rural entrepreneurship.