Compensation and benefit sharing: Why resettlement policies and practices must be reformed

Many public and private sector projects, such as hydropower dams or mines, trigger forced population displacement but fail to resettle people sustainably and instead cause their impoverishment. Social science research has found that one root cause of such failures and of impoverishment is asset dispossession and the insufficient financing of resettlement. Most governments, however, state that （1） compensation alone is sufficient for restoring the income and livelihood of those displaced, and （2） resources to supplement compensation with additional financing are not available. The author critiques and rejects these positions. He offers a theoretical analysis of the limits and flaws of compensation payments for expropriated assets, and argues that resources are available for supplementing compensation with financial investments for resettlers＇ development. The sources for supplementary financing are the economic rent （windfall profits） generated by natural resource projects such as hydropower or mining and the regular stream of benefits generated by all projects that require resettlement. Further, the author argues that financial investments in resettlers＇ welfare are indispensable and what benefit sharing is feasible. Therefore, both should become basic principles of resettlement legislation and practice. In addition to theoretical analysis, the author documents with empirical evidence that some countries （China, Brazil, Canada, Columbia and Japan） already make investments additional to compensation for post-displacement reconstruction. The author sums up his argument in these key points： （1） Compensation alone cannot prevent the impoverishment of resettlers and cannot in itself restore and improve their livelihoods; （2） Additional financing is needed for direct investments in resettlement with development; （3） Compensation levels must be increased; （4） Financing resources are available in most cases for investing in resettlers＇ development, but allocation of investments depends on the political will of governments and project owners; （5） Firm opposition to displacement and under-compensation is growing in many countries and the strength of resettlers＇ demands and political opposition does influence allocation levels; （6） Mechanisms for benefit sharing and transfer are known arid effective and these mechanisms Can be adjusted todifferent country and economic sector conditions; （7） The introduction of benefit-sharing rules requires legislative enactment for robust application.

Benefit Sharing on Transboundary Rivers: Case Study and Theoretical Exploration

Benefit sharing on transboundary rivers is an approach to address equitable and reasonable development and utilization of transboundary water resources(TWR). Through analyzing a few typical benefit sharing cases, this paper provides a systematic discussion of the theory of TWR benefits sharing. TWR features a kind of common pool resources(CPRs). Its benefit sharing subjects are the riparian countries. The shared benefits usually include flood prevention, power generation, navigation, irrigation, contributions to society and culture, etc. The benefit sharing modes mainly include shared benefits and responsibilities, reciprocal rights and obligations, equal benefit distribution, cost proportion-based benefit sharing, and demand-based benefit sharing. The first step in the realization process of benefit sharing is the sharing of data and information. Second is the benefit identification and evaluation. Third is the establishment of a mechanism to guarantee the benefit sharing. The conditions for realizing benefit sharing depends on, first, if the riparian countries are willing to cooperate with each other;second, whether the cooperation can bring incremental benefit or cost reduction in comparison with unilateral operation;and third, if the benefit distribution is equitable and reasonable and can stand the test of time.

Characteristics:Evidence from the“Enclave Economy”in the PRD Region

Paired assistance is an important means for developed regions to help lessdeveloped regions achieve common prosperity.Despite its advantages,governmentmandated paired assistance tends to be less effective due to the lack of economic incentives for assisting localities.Therefore,local governments in China have explored an incentivecompatible paired assistance model.Based on the paired assistance between cities in the Pearl River Delta(PRD)region and the eastern,western and northern parts of Guangdong Province,this study designed a natural experiment for the network relationship of paired assistance.Empirical results based on industrial and commercial registration data and land transfer data indicate that paired assistance has enhanced bilateral investment linkages,and that the inter-regional benefit sharing mechanism has incentivized assisting localities to provide paired assistance.Our heterogeneity analysis reveals that a shorter distance between assisting and beneficiary localities may lead to better results of paired assistance.This study contributes to the understanding of incentive mechanisms for local government cooperation and offers insights for balancing regional development and achieving common prosperity.

Connecting the World with Shared Benefits

“New Era,Shared Future.”On November5th,the first China International Import Expo(hereafter referred as CIIE)was grandly opened.With a total exhibition area of300,000square meters,the first session of the CIIE attracted more than3,600companies from172countries,regions and international organizations,and over400,000purchasers from China as well as overseas to explore business deals.

Beijing Residents Share Benefits from Economic Growth

Residents in the Chinese capital received one more boon as winter sets in free inoculations of a vaccine against influenza for people at 60 or older the day the ruling Communist Party of China opened its 17th Congress. From October 15 to November 15, 2007, according to the Beijing Municipal Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, any person born before October 1, 1947 and registered as a permanent resident in the city may visit any hospital or clinic near his or her home for the inoculation free of charge.

Benefit-Sharing Mechanism of Hydropower Development:Nujiang Prefecture in Yunnan

Southwestern China contains rich hydropower resources and a high concentration of impoverished people. The acceleration of hydropower development is an important way for promoting the development of impoverished areas and improving the livelihood assets of rural households. Taking Nujiang Prefecture as our focal area we conducted enterprise interviews and government discussions to arrive at a benefit-sharing mechanism for hydropower development. We found that heavy tax burdens on enterprises, low compensation standards, unreasonable electricity prices and weak development conditions are the main reasons that hydropower development is not accompanied by local economic development and improvement in the livelihoods of rural people. Based on a specific factor model and the theory of persistent income, a theoretical model is proposed and used to assess the scenario before relocation and the scenario after relocation. On this basis, policy recommendations for benefit-sharing mechanisms of hydropower development are proposed.

Progress in the Research on Benefit-sharing and Ecological Compensation Mechanisms for Transboundary Rivers

Transboundary rivers have important geopolitical and geo-economic connotations, but riparian states of transboundary rivers are often driven by their own rapid population growth and economic development to become involved in regional conflicts about the development and use of water resources. Therefore, finding a balance between the need for fair and reasonable development of water resources and the effective protection of environment from an ecological perspective has become a major problem faced by the international community. This paper begins with consideration of international water laws related to transboundary rivers and then reviews advances in the research on benefit-sharing, ecological compensation mechanisms, and adaptive management systems. We believe that existing international water laws form a complete legal system and that more attention needs to be paid to transboundary cooperation and sustainable water resource use. With respect to how transboundary water conflicts are resolved, there is a trend to move away from single water resource allocation（a zero-sum game） to benefit-sharing in order to achieve a win-win situation for riparian states, but there are still some difficulties in transboundary ecological compensation. In China, the central government has paid attention to horizontal ecological compensation between upstream and downstream, offering guidance to promote establishment of inter-province ecological compensation. Based on existing practice, horizontal ecological compensations are still in their infancy, small in scale, supported by a weak legal system, lacking market mechanisms to encourage their use and relying on fiscal transfers as the method of payment. In the future, China will need to intensify its research on legal system development, international cooperation, and benefit-sharing as these impact transboundary water resources. Because government can be seen as a management department with multiple identities（enabler, regulator and buyer）, to improve adaptive transboundary ecological compensation mechanisms, government must develop as soon as possible data sharing platforms, standards of water consumption behaviors and intergovernmental policies（or ordinances）.

Discount between H Share and A Share from the Perspective of China

The effect of strict segmentation on pricing in the context of the Chinese stock markets was investigated. As an effective complementary to domestic A share market, H share market has played an important role in attracting foreign capital flows into mainland and as an open window for foreign investors to know Chinese enterprises. However, H share has received little attention by researchers. Considered that H share market enjoys relatively more free information and has a greater and faster access to global news sources, The discount between H share and A share is mainly studied in this paper. By constructing the model and based on proposed hypotheses, the empirical test confirms information asymmetry between foreign investors and domestic investors, liquidity effects, diversification effects are significant factors in explaining discounts on H share from the cross-section data.

Legal framework for the sharing of pathogens:Issues and recommendations

The sharing of pathogens is of great significance for the continuous and comprehensive testing and monitoring of viral samples,vaccine and drug development,and the study of drug resistance and mutability of viral samples.This paper reviews the current legal framework in the field of pathogen sharing,analyzes existing issues,and proposes recommendations to improve the legal framework of pathogen sharing.