Smoking During Pregnancy Essays

Smoking During Pregnancy Essays Smoking During Pregnancy Essay Smoking During Pregnancy Essay A pregnant women and her unborn baby are sensitive to the effects of our environment, this include drugs, disease and stress. One of the legal drugs that exist is nicotine. Through smoking, nicotine is readily absorbed from tobacco smoke in the mouth, upper respiratory tract and lungs into the blood stream in which they are carried to all parts of the body (Fried Oxorn 1980, p. 26). Nicotine, carbon monoxide and other toxic substance of tobacco smoke is dangerous during pregnancy. Smoking during pregnancy is one of the bad habits that can bring complications to the baby.During the pregnancy there are potential problems associated with smoking such as increased the chances of miscarriage and stillbirth, having high risk premature baby and low birth weight infants. According to US Department Health and Human Services 1980 study (cited in Wakefield Wilson 1988, p. 5) that aside from birth weight, the risk of spontaneous abortion, fetal death and neonatal death rises directly with incr easing levels of maternal smoking during pregnancy. It is also know the increased risk of abruption placentae, placenta previa and bleeding early in pregnancy or late pregnancy is also related to smoking.In addition, there is evidence that smoking have long term effects to the child such as reduced physical growth, slightly poor performance on intelligence test, and some behavioural disorders in the child of school age (Fried Oxon 1980, p. 111). If the pregnancy is planned it is important to a mother-to-be to know how harmful smoking to the foetus is. There are studies that the women do not have the clear perception of the effects that smoking might have on the foetus and the risks involved.The best way to minimize the risk and complications of smoking is through quitting smoking cigarettes before becoming pregnant. However, if smoking cannot be given up entirely the pregnant women should at least decrease the amount of cigarettes smoked to decrease the severity of effects to the f oetus. Quitting smoking is beneficial to the mother-to-be and to the baby. Activities such as sports, exercise and listening music can divert the mind away from smoking. There are no harm of trying to quit smoking but if this will not working there are support strategies to help quitting effectively.

Professional Versus Persona judgement in accounting world Essay

Professional Versus Persona judgement in accounting world - Essay Example Personal judgment emanates from an individual based on personal views, values, and opinions. On the other hand, professional judgment emanates from a set of guidelines stipulated by relevant bodies in the respective profession. In the accounting world, the main accounting bodies that govern professional judgment are; The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and The International Federation of Accountants (IFAs). Personal judgment may be biased due to subjective reasoning from the accountant. Cottone, (2001) states â€Å"accountants need to move from psychologically based ethical decision-making models to socially constructed decision-making models.† Ethical issues that arise in accounting ought to be handled in objective reasoning (professional judgment) as opposed to empathetic and irrational reasoning (personal judgment). There are numerous users of financial information (managers, investors, lenders, employees, and shareholders). It is prudent that accountants apply the accounting guidelines in line with the Code of Professional Conduct stipulated by AICPA to put the interests of all users of financial information into consideration. In a situation whereby an accountant applies personal judgment to solve an ethical concern, he or she may end up favoring one party. Such acts may be considered discriminatory and may lead to legal action being taken against such accountants. All acco untants should bear in mind that â€Å"professional judgment results in wisdom from experiences being applied in ethical decision-making processes† (Lehr and Sumarah

Benefits, impediments and critical success factors in B2C Annotated Bibliography

Benefits, impediments and critical success factors in B2C - Annotated Bibliography Example instead it provides insight that may be important for conducting future studies and development of theories while paying emphasis to obstacles and success faced by thousands of companies that have adopted and are adopting e-business techniques. In this study, the case study approach was used in which eight case studies were studied and analyzed while focusing on the benefits that a company expects to gain from e-business system and the benefits that the company actually gains and secondly the focus was on what are the issues experienced by those who implement e-business solutions and thirdly, the focus was on locating the critical reason that leads to the success of businesses that adopt e-business solutions (Dubelaar, 2005, p.1254). A total of eight companies were studied by the researchers, six of these companies had online existence and two of these companies were those who operated mainly through physical outlet, but they even had limited online existence. The study concluded that the major obstacles for companies in adopting an e-business solution were issues in operations, technology, leadership and lack of effective design for their business. The reasons that led to the successful application of e-business solutions were: application of doing business online and offline combined, delivering high value, customer retention and satisfaction, keep a bird’s eye on the activities of the competitors and lastly trust building. The researchers believe that if an e-business solution is to work in the factor of the company, the adoption of the solution should be relevant to the business, value adding to customers and should provide ease of operation for the organization. Since various businesses are adopting various e-business solutions such as selling over the internet and advertising, this journal article helps students learn what they have to do as managers to ensure that their business experience success as they adopt one of the e-business strategies and how

Media and public relation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Media and public relation - Essay Example Inclusion of an organization in the definition of PR may result into a misunderstanding of what PR really entails thereby yielding confusion of linkage between PR and other communication modes advanced by an organization such as advertising. As such, it is important to note that unlike most of the other communication modes by organizations, PR does not require direct payments. In fact, this seemingly forms the basic distinction between PR and advertising in relation to advancing marketing communication. Additionally, the Primary goal of PR is to inform the publics thereby giving them a sense of the desired perspective towards the particular party in play. PR can be used in various different platforms such as business organizations and government related matters. Nevertheless, for this particular paper the focus will lie more on the factors affecting the historical development of PR in relation to two countries, Germany and the United States (US). The choice of these two countries is mainly based on the fact they are among the first pioneers of PR hence are at a better position of exploring much of the history attached to PR. Some of the factors considered to affect PR development range from cultural to political and the general development of the country among others. Modern PR plays numerous roles in favor of its users through persuasion and consequently getting the desired results. One of the most common applications of modern PR by different organizations is lobbying. Lobbying involves use of communication strategies to persuade the government to act in favor of the particular party in play. For example, an organization may write to a congress member seeking a vote against a certain bill that may impact negatively to the organization if it is passed. Such an action is considered lobbying since it expresses an opinion regarding to a particular legislation. Similarly, ancient communications have some traces of lobbying hence qualifying them as

Economic Growth And Development Of Nigeria Economics Essay

Economic Growth And Development Of Nigeria Economics Essay Agriculture is an important sector in the developing world. It contributes to economic growth and development as well as a major employer to majority of the people of Sub-Saharan Africa including Nigeria, especially those in the rural areas. This study investigated the role of agriculture to Nigerias economic growth and development. Secondary data were used for the analyses and were obtained from various publications of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Variables used for the estimations included overall gross domestic product (GDP) of Nigeria, agricultural GDP, government spending on agriculture, credit to agriculture and the population engaged in agriculture. The data cover the period between 1981 and 2010. Growth and Cobb-Douglas production models were estimated. The results showed that overall GDP, agricultural GDP, and government spending to the agricultural sector of Nigeria generally assumed upward trends during the period. Credit t o agriculture and government spending to the agricultural sector were the factors found to significantly influence the contribution of agriculture to national economic growth and development. It is concluded that agriculture continues to play important role in the economic growth and development of Nigeria. It is recommended that policies should be formulated to encourage the flow of more credit to the agricultural sector of Nigeria. Besides, it is important that the government of Nigeria to increase its spending on the agricultural sector since this positively and significantly influence the contribution of agriculture to national economic growth and development. 1.1 Background to the Study Nigeria is one of the largest countries in Africa, with an estimated population of about 158 million (World Bank, 2010). The country has highly diversified agro-ecological conditions, which makes it possible for the production of variety of agricultural products. Furthermore, agriculture constitutes one of the most significant sectors of the economy (Manyong, et. al., 2005). Agriculture in Nigeria employs about 70% of the working population and contributes with about 60% to the national income (Oluwasanmi, 1966). Its contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) accounted for about 40% in 2010 (CBN, 2011). During the early days of independence, Nigeria was and still is relatively self-sufficient in food production, and foreign exchange earnings from agricultural exports have been used over the years to support in financing imports needed for economic growth and development (Anderson, 1970). The role of Agricultural production in Nigeria is not only to provide the food needed to feed the rapidly growing Nigerian population, but also to provide the money and materials needed for industrialization and for bringing the country into the industrial and technical age (Oyenuga, 1967). In order to carry out this role, the agricultural system needs to be reorganized and new techniques of production have to be introduced, such as the use of more efficient implements, improved seed varieties and fertilizers. To do this, the country not only needs to co-ordinate its agricultural research projects and provides capital but also to make available trained field staff who can ensure the acceptance of these innovations by peasant farmers (Oluwasanmi, 1966). This is because majority of the peasant farmers live in rural areas where there is a high level of illiteracy and they hardly accept change. Despite the fact that Nigeria is buoyantly endowed with agricultural and other natural resources, the agricultural sector is still growing at a very slow rate. It is only a little over half of the countrys agricultural land is under cultivation (Manyong et al, 2005). Increased use of mechanization will help, but this is not going to be easy given that about 63% of the farms in Eastern Nigeria and 45% of them in Western Nigeria are less than an acre in size and many of them are much smaller (Oyenuga, 1967). The agricultural sector remained weak during the oil boom decade of the 1970s, and this accounted largely for the declining share of its contributions to economic growth and development of the country. The trend of the share of agriculture in national GDP reflects a substantial variation and long-term decline from about 60% in the early 1960s through to about 49% in the 1970s and only about 22% in the 1980s. It is believed that unstable and often-poor economic policies (of pricing, trade and exchange rate), the relative abundance of the sector and the negative impact of oil boom were all important factors responsible for the decline in agricultural sectors contributions to national economic growth and development. Since the oil boom of the 1970s, there has been a severe increase in the incidence and drama of poverty in the country as a result of the unstable performance of the agricultural sector, which employs majority of the poor. As a result of the dwindling performance of agriculture in the country, government have over many years formulated and implemented various policies and projects aimed at putting back the agricultural sector to its vital place in the economy. But with evidence from empirical literatures, no significant success has been achieved due to several problems confronting the performance of the sector (Yusuf, 2005). However, the contribution of agriculture in both gross domestic product (GDP) and non-oil GDP increased in the 1981-2000 periods. The share of total bank credit going into the agricultural sector increased rapidly between the 1981-1985 and 1991-1995 periods and then declined in the 1996-2000 periods. The share of the federal Governments capital expenditure going to the agricultural sector declined immensely over the periods. The share of total employment by the agricultural sector also declined. Generally, there was unstable growth performance of the agricultural sector between the periods 1981 to 2000, with some evidence of inconsistencies of trends, probably due to uncertainties in policies and policy implementation. Some of the problems leading to poor performance of the agricultural sector in the country include technical issues, resource constraints as well as socio-economic problems and organisational constrains. It has been observed that in past policies of the pre-structural adjustment period, sector-specific agricultural policies were made to improve agricultural marketing, to cut down production cost, and to enhance product prices as incentives for increased agricultural production. Important policy instruments are for agricultural commodity marketing and pricing, input supply and distribution, input price, Subsidy, land resource use, agricultural research, agricultural extension and technology transfer, agricultural mechanisation, agricultural cooperatives, agricultural water resource and irrigation development. Macro policies, institutional policies and legal frameworks complemented sector-specific policies. The structural adjustment period was enhanced more by structural adjustment pol icies. Problems to agricultural policy strength include policy instability, policy inconsistencies, weak policy formulation, poor policy implementation, and harsh institutional framework for policy coordination (Idachaba, 2005). With reference from the dual economy model, early writers predicted economic development as a growth process that needs the re-allocation of factors of production from a weak, low-productivity agricultural sector to a modern and commercialized industrial sector with higher productivity and more returns (Lewis, 1954). As a primary sector, agriculture was seen to contribute significantly to economic growth and development by providing labor and food to the industrialization process. However, this idea was taken away by the era of the Green Revolution in Asia during the late 1960s and early 1970s. The possibility of restructuring traditional agriculture into a modern sector shows agricultures capability as a growth sector and its effective role in emphasizing broader d evelopment (Adelman, 2001). Although the advantage of connectivity between agriculture and non-agriculture in achieving the growth and development process had long been recognized (Hirschman, 1958, Johnston Mellor, 1961), post-Green Revolution economists stressed the role of agriculture in rural growth and development (Haggblade, Hammer, Hazell, 1991; Haggblade, Hazell, Brown, 1989; Hazell Haggblade, 1991; Hazell Roell, 1983). The vital advantage of agricultural growth on rural development was found to be effective in countries (e.g. Nigeria and other developing countries) where small farms dominated agriculture (Rosegrant Hazell, 2000). Therefore, given massive rural poverty and small-scale farming in Africa, the conventional wisdom of agriculture emphasizes a strong role for agriculture in African growth and development. With reference to the conventional wisdom of agriculture, it is important that policy objectives to promote the role of agriculture in economic growth and development in Nigeria should be realistic and capable of transforming a backward agriculture, and at the same time would also encourage industrial growth and development. The experience of other developing countries has shown that policies that promote industrial development at the expense of agriculture have resulted in food shortages and economic stagnation. Given Nigerias present stage of development, a large-scale industrialization scheme that will tend to shut out 70% of the population who are engaged in rural pursuits is not the best for the long-term interests of the country (Adeyokunnu, 1971). This is contrary to the idea behind early development strategies advocated by Rosenstein Rodan, Nurkse, and Hirshman among others, who emphasized industrial development as the main source of economic growth and development and were biased against the agricultural sector (Schiff and Valdes, 1998). This work is principally concerned with showing empirically the role of agriculture to economic and development of Nigeria. It draws on the long standing empirical studies on the role of agricultural sector to economic growth and development across the world. Widespread rural poverty in Africa and the success of Asias Green Revolution suggests that agriculture is a key sector for African development. Since almost all rural households depend directly or indirectly on agriculture, and given the sectors large contribution to the overall economy, it might seem obvious that agriculture should be a key sector in economic growth and development. Most African countries have failed to meet the requirements for a successful agricultural revolution, and productivity in African agriculture lags far behind the rest of the world. This has recently led to renewed debate within the international development community concerning the role of agriculture in African economic growth and development. This study will therefore contribute to the debate. 1.2 The Problem Statement Decline on the role of the agricultural sector in terms of its contribution to Nigerias economic growth and development in the last three decades made the government to establish different agricultural schemes and programmes to enhance agricultural productivity in the country, which includes River Basin Development Authorities, National Accelerated Food Production Project, Agricultural Development Project, Operation Feed the Nation, Green Revolution, National Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure, Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme Fund, National Special Programme for Food Security, Root and Tuber Expansion Project as well as National Fadama I and II programmes. This shows that aagriculture has been an important sector in the Nigerian economy for many years, and is still a major sector even with the oil boom. Basically it generates employment opportunities for the growing population, reduces poverty and contributes to the growth and development of the economy. Economic history provides sufficient evidence that agricultural revolution is important and a pre-condition for economic growth and development, especially in developing countries like Nigeria (Woolf and Jones, 1969; Oluwasanmi, 1966; Eicher and Witt, 1964). The basis of the problem in the Nigerian economy is as a result of poor concentration of the agricultural sector by the Government towards focusing more on a mono-cultural economy based on oil. Agriculture was the mainstay of the Nigerian economy before the discovery, exploration and exportation of oil and over dependence on its revenue for economic expenditure. Agricultural export was contributing to GDP with about 72% between 1955 and 1969 before it fell down to 35% because of the oil crises of early 1970s (CBN, 2002). Nigeria used to be one of the world leading countries in the exportation and production of some major agricultural products between 1940 and 1950. There is evidence from statistics which shows that the export of agricultural products in Nigeria accounted for over 75% of total exports in 1960 (Ekpo and Egwaikhide, 1994). This has changed in recent times as economic growth and development of Nigeria in recent times solely depend on the earning from oil exports that account for over 95%, but contribute with less than 25% in the real gross domestic product (RDGP). This over dependence on oil has affected the countries market forces as well as its economic growt h and development (Okoh, 2004). Because crude oil is an exhaustible asset, it is not advisable for Nigeria to depend on it for sustainable economic growth and development. Therefore, the need to push into competitive market in advanced countries with our agricultural commodities has to be considered, in order to achieve a prosperous economic growth and development in Nigeria (Thirlwall, 1999). Considering the large size of the Nigerian agricultural sector and its important role in the economy, positive reform and adjustment policies are needed in order to improve the overall performance of the countrys economic growth and development (Kwanashie et al., 1998). Besides the oil sector, agricultural sector contributes significantly to the Nigerian economic growth and development because of its rich resource base. Nonetheless, these endowments have to be used wisely so as to diversify the economy and reduce over dependence on the oil sector and on importation. As a result of unstable oil price and continues increase in the price of import goods, the Nigerian economy is not consistent. All these issues have negative effects on the countrys balance of payment, employment and other sectors productivity as well as the purchasing power of the people (Bukar, et al., 1997). At present, impact of the Nigerian agricultural sector to economic growth and development of the country is not as it was in the past periods (NPC, 2000). Nigerian agriculture is still traditional as it was in the pre-independence period (Adewumi and Omotesho, 2002). Even with the existence of the two major rivers in the country (river Niger and river Benue) the agricultural sector is still predominantly rain fed (NPC, 2004). Productivity in the Agricultural sector has declined seriously over the years and this has led to high incidence of poverty levels (Jeter, 2004). Results from the World bank data indicate that over 70% of Nigerians are living below the poverty line (less than $1 per day), showing that there has been an astronomical growth in the level of poverty in the country most of which is associated to poor agriculture since from independence up till today (Chigbu, 2005). Those engaged in farming are mostly rural people, cultivating small area of land using traditional tool s and getting low productivity (NPC, 2004). The problem therefore is that there is limited understanding of the role of agriculture in economic growth and development of Nigeria in recent times. This study seeks to address this gap by empirically examining the role of agriculture to economic growth and development of Nigeria. 1.3 The Research Questions The questions that this study sought to answer are: What are the trends and growth of agricultural gross domestic product (AGDP) relative to the overall gross domestic product (GDP) of Nigeria? What have been the commitments of successive governments in Nigeria to the agricultural sector in terms of public spending in the sector? What have been the contributions of agriculture to the economic growth and development of Nigeria over the past three decades? 1.4 The Research Objectives The main objective of this study is to examine the role of agriculture to economic growth and development of Nigeria. Specifically, the study seeks to: Describe the trends and growth of agricultural gross domestic product (AGDP) in relation to overall GDP of Nigeria. Examine the trends and growth of spending of successive Nigerian governments on the agricultural sector. Estimate the contributions of agriculture to economic growth and development of Nigeria over the past three decades. 1.5 Justification of the Study Policy makers can make use of the outcome of this study in multi-dimensional form. This can be done in terms of interwoven nature of rural employment with agriculture, food security and agricultural productivity. This is because the findings will provide the basis that economic growth and development in Nigeria should be led by agriculture and that the success of plans and policies implemented in the other sectors are depended on agricultural developments for their successful implementation. The outcome of the study will also help policy makers to critically examine the various key possibilities of promoting economic growth and development in Nigeria with regards to the role of agriculture in economic growth and development. Some of these which are of relevant to policy may include issues of: How different alternative economic growth and development states can be achieved using agricultural sectors contribution with the view to decide which one is the best. How societal welfare can be improved from a lower stage to a better stage using agricultural sectors contribution to the economy. How to identify all areas in which the agricultural sector fails and to consider corrective measures. How to evaluate different policy options that have been used to improve agricultural sector as well as determine their implications and consequences on the economic growth and development of Nigeria. How to provide a framework in which different agricultural growth policies can be compared using value judgement and common sense. How to make a critique of different postulates about how agricultural development policies can be improved so that it can provide a menu for better policy measures. 1.6 Scope and Organisation of the Study The scope of this study is to look at the role of agriculture to economic growth and development of Nigeria spanning the last three decades (i.e. 30 years). The study is organised into five main chapters. Chapter one is the introduction which consists of the background to the study, the problem statement, the research questions, the research objectives, the justification of the research and the scope and organisation of the study. Chapter two is the literature review which consists of literature on Agricultural Production in Africa and Nigeria, Agricultural Production and Economic Growth and Development, Commitments of governments to Nigerian agriculture, Agriculture as a Source of Employment for Poverty Reduction, Finally, summary of the literature review and conclusions. Chapter three is the methodology employed in order to achieve the research objectives which consists of profile of Nigeria, the theoretical and model specifications, data types and sources of data. Chapter four is presentation of the results and discussions. Chapter five is the summary of the findings, conclusion and recommendations. After this are the references and appendix. CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction This chapter presents an overview of the relevant empirical literature in the subject matter. The chapter is divided into five main subsections. The first subsection is presentation of Agricultural Production in Africa and Nigeria. The second subsection is presentation of Agricultural Production and Economic Growth and Development. Commitments of governments to Nigerian agriculture are presented in the third subsection. The fourth subsection brings to light literature on Agriculture as a Source of Employment for Poverty Reduction. Finally, summary of the literature review and conclusions drawn are presented in subsection five. 2.2 Agricultural Production in Africa and Nigeria There is a growing argument over whether agriculture is still playing important role in economic growth and development in sub-Saharan Africa. Agricultures theorists explain that, in most of the African countries, only the agricultural sector has sufficient scale and growth-linkages to significantly influence aggregate growth and development. Achieving such growth and development will have to do with a large sector like agriculture, which accounts for one-third of gross domestic product (GDP) for the subcontinent as a whole, and an even larger share for two-thirds of African countries. Economists also explain that agricultures poor performance leads to inadequate investment and policies that are historically biased against the agricultural sector (Fan, Zhang, Rao, 2004; Schiff Valdez, 1992; Timmer, 2005). They show the large benefits from investing in rural infrastructure and agricultural technology, and the growth and development potential from catching up to the productivity leve ls of other developing countries. During the period from 1990 to 2004, African industry, including mining and mineral-based manufacturing, grew at 1.9% per year compared to 2.5% for agriculture (World Bank, 2006). This is an indication of the importance of agriculture to economic growth and development across Africa. By contrast, there are others who doubt whether or not agriculture can successfully generate sufficient growth and development in Africa today. This doubt shows the poor performance of agriculture, weak institutions for rural growth and development, and worsening agro-ecological conditions in most of the African countries (Collier, 2002; Ellis, 2005; Maxwell Slater, 2003). The large size of the agricultural sector may be the reason for Africas failure to grow and develop, especially since past experience forecasts a significant decline in the importance of agriculture over time in successfully developing countries (Collier, 2002). For those who argue that agriculture should not be put at the center of African growth and development, although the sectors sufficient growth and development linkages proved very strong during Asias Green Revolution, it may not be so much in Africa because of a more integrated global environment (Hart, 1998). Border prices determine food prices more than domestic supply when imports can enter freely, which reduces the need to invest in domestic agriculture to maintain urban food prices and real wages and hence industrial competitiveness. Under these conditions, it is difficult for agriculture to play important role of economy-wide growth and development as well as facilitating the economic transformation shown by theory or witnessed in the past successes of other developing countries. Agricultures skeptics therefore tend to be more concerned of African industry, emphasizing that mining and manufacturing may bring viable alternative sources of growth and development. Despite contrasting opinions on the relative importance of agriculture in generating overall growth and development, there should presumably be less contention surrounding the role of agriculture in poverty reduction, which is one of the key issues for achieving economic growth and development. This is especially so given the importance of agricultural incomes for Africas poorest populations. However, even among agricultures advocates, there are conflicting views over what should be the focus of an agricultural growth and development strategy for low-income Africa (Dorward, et al., 2004). Some suggest that the best opportunities for African farmers lie in high-value commodities and, given poor domestic demand in Africa, that production should focus on export markets. Small-scale farms are seen as irrelevant due to international competition and the growing difficulties of supply-chains for both domestic and foreign markets (Reardon, Timmer, Barrett, Berdegue`, 2003). It is argued tha t rural dwellers should plan on diversifying incomes away from agriculture (Ashley Maxwell, 2001) and focus on going to urban areas (Ellis Harris, 2004). On the other hand, others argue that rural income diversification has been a reality in Africa for many years (Barrett Reardon, 2000; Reardon et al., 2003) and has yet to achieve significant income growth. Furthermore, income diversification is not a significant positive phenomenon, especially if diversification is due to stagnant agricultural growth and development (Haggblade, Hazell, Reardon, 2002) or if migration is as a result of growth in low-productivity urban activities (Lipton, 2004). The biggest market benefits for majority of African farmers comes from domestic and regional markets for staples/food crops (Diao Hazell, 2004; Rosegrant, Paisner, Meijer, Witcover, 2001). 2.3 Agricultural Production and Economic Growth and Development Provision of sufficient food for the growing population puts agriculture at the center of current growth and development issue in developing countries. This is because the level of population growth in most developing countries is far more than the level of agricultural production and growth. Malthusian theory of population growth is becoming true in these countries; hence, the need to grow and develop agriculture to meet the food requirement of the people is very important. Looking at the Malthusian theory, if food supply fail to meet demand then food prices will rise. This will also have effect on workers wages and subsequently affect industrial profits, investment and overall economic growth and development in the society (Uniamikogbo, 2007). On the supply of raw materials to the industrial sector, agriculture have been seen as the major requirement for industrial growth and development because of the sectors role in providing the necessary raw materials for industries (Child, 2008; Uniamikogbo, 2007 and Abayomi, 2006). As a result of this, the need for increasing agricultural productivity has to be considered. There is the need therefore to put more emphasis on increasing domestic output rather than focusing more on the expansion of export to finance growing food export. This means that, agriculture is the most influential sector in developing countries. It should then make a significant contribution to the overall investment requirements needed by the industrial sector such as lowering the amount of raw materials supplied from abroad by increasing the output produced locally. Agriculture has been the main stay of the Nigerian economy providing employment and source of livelihood for the teeming population. It contributes with over half of the GDP of the Nigerian economy during much of post-independence in the country. Nonetheless, the role it plays in the economic growth and development of the country has gone down over the years due to the overwhelming and dominant role of the crude oil sector in the economy, on which the country extensively depends. With the high food demand in Nigeria, the country has to make use of its abundant natural resources and to take advantage of its current democracy to increase the volume of crop production towards satisfying the food and nutritional requirement of the rapidly growing population and to ensure food security in the country (Enoma, 2010) . Therefore, agriculture can be characterized as the source of national wealth and economic growth and development in Nigeria. Agricultural Development economists have researched significantly on how agriculture can best contribute to overall economic growth and development. Looking at Lewis theory of development, Todaro and Smith (2003) indicated that the underdeveloped economy consists of two sectors, which are the ancient and traditional agricultural sector characterized by zero marginal labor productivity and the modern industrial sector. In his historical approach to the process of economic growth and development, Rostow (1960) distinguishes five stages of economic growth and development, which are: Traditional society; Pre-conditions for takeoff; Take-off; Drive to maturity; and Age of high mass-consumption. According to Rostow, the take-off stage is the most important figure in the life of a society when growth becomes its normal condition. The significance and importance of the traditional society make a decisive breakthrough and a multiple interest gets built into the society structure with agricult ure playing significant role at this stage. From this theory, it is evident that agriculture plays a significant role in the first three stages of economic growth and development (Traditional society, pre-conditions for takeoff and takeoff stages). The agricultural sector greatly influences industrial and economic backbone from which a countrys economic growth and development can take off. Therefore, beyond reasonable doubt, agricultural activities are usually concentrated and more practiced in the less-developed countries where there is an urgent need for rural transformation, redistribution, poverty alleviation and socio-economic growth and development (Stewart, 2000). Indeed, agriculture has a significant role in an economy, without it a country will surely depend on importation from other countries to feed its population. The essential contribution of agriculture to economic growth and development has been an on-going subject of debate among development economist, several theorist argue that growth of the whole economy relies on the development of agricultural sector (Schuttz, 1964, Gollin, Parente and Rogerson 2002). The growth and development of the agricultural sector could result to national output increase through its effect on rural incomes and provision of resources for transformation into an industrialized economy (Eicher and Staatz, 1984; Dowrick and Gemmmell, 1991; Datt and Ravallion, 1998; Thirtle, Lin and Piesse 2003). Johnston and Mellor (1961) reported that agriculture improves and contributes to overall economic growth and development through various inter-sectoral linkages. Which include, provision of surplus labor to the industri al sector; supply of food for domestic consumption; creation of market for industrial output; provision of domestic savings and industrial investment and generation of foreign exchange from agriculture export earnings to finance import of intermediate and capital goods respectively. However, In addition to the above-mentioned direct market-based linkages, Timmer (1995) found out that agriculture indirectly contributes to economic growth and development through its caloric nutrient intake provision to the poor, food availability; stable food prices and poverty reduction. Going by all the debated arguments, it is clear that agricultural growth and development has played a historically important role in the process of economic growth and development. However, acts from developed countries as well as developing countries indicate that agricultural sector has been the engine that contributes to the overall growth and development of a countrys economy. Agriculture therefore plays an important role in achieving economic growth and development. 2.4 Commitments of Governments to the Agricultural Se

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Marketing Orientation focuses on identifying and meeting the hidden needs of the consumer (Unknown, 2013). The textbook states that there are five marketing orientations; social marketing, production, strategic marketing, customer and sales (Daniels, Radebaugh, & Sullivan, p. 595). Avon addresses the customer, production, strategic marketing and social marketing by granting each country the independence of selecting products based on the demand of the consumer as well as to develop those products. Distribution of the products is also considered as it pertains to each individual country. For example, door to door sales are not allowed in China so Avon launched beauty boutiques, beauty country and independent stores throughout the country to accommodate the law of the land. Avon’s sales has increased dramatically as the company expands its’ footprint globally. There are a few reasons why Avon is so dependent on its foreign operations in comparison to the home operations. For one, Avon recognizes that competition at home in the beauty industry has increased immensely. The business has done so well and grown so much that there is hardly any remaining untouched market space in the United States for the products. To expand would mean that the company would have to take sales from competitors. A feat in my opinion the company cannot easily take on. A customer can purchase whatever brand of beauty product of their choice from any store that sells that product so unless that customer is not in a position to do this they may be less likely to purchase from Avon. Additionally with security concerns being the way they are in today’s society no one takes pleasure from anyone knocking on their door trying to persuade them to buy a p... ... Additionally the nearness of the customer and supplier are of absolute importance to ensure costs are kept to a minimum. The current dynamic and competitive environment of businesses today is not without challenge. Avon is faced with having to compete with quick market changes and must enhance their ability to innovate as well as remain attentive to the various trade rules and differences in each country. The cost to examine and expand a product line in the global market could be very high. Having to increase quality throughout the entire product line may be tough. Delivering the right products at the right cost, at the right moment and in the right quality are key factors to Avon global success. Avon must maintain an effective supply chain management system in order to save the company money as well as help to provide great value of products to the customers.

Globalization of the U.S. Subprime Mortgage Crisis Essay

The U. S sub prime Mortgage Crisis upset the world financial markets. The economy of the United States of America could combat the mortgage foreclosures for its efficiency. The global investors were wary of the fact that the sub prime mortgage crisis is a symptom of some unknown problems that the US economy is suffering from. In 1994, an almost insignificant less than 5% of all the mortgages in the U. S were sub prime. However by 2005, the figure had risen drastically to 20%. Sudden changes in the banking system were responsible for this increase. Earlier, mainly commercial banks were used to serving the American societies and they mainly offered fixed charge mortgages. In Detroit and in Boston this figure was 24. 6% and 15% respectively, whereas in California this figure was 14%. After a long period of stable interest rates with only a small downward trend, the rates started increasing. This decreased the demand for homes and hence causing a decrease in home prices. There was competition between the mortgage finance companies and mortgage brokers and the traditional banks in offering some new products. This growing competition produced a number of mortgage products and choices like sub prime loan of different varieties for the American consumers. Homeowners could not combat the increases in payments or even sell their homes because of market price depreciation. Almost 77% of the homes were overvalued in big cities like California (Enoch & Charles, 2007). Causes of the current U. S sub prime mortgage crisis. There seems to a common consensus that periods of rapid credit growth are accompanied by loosening lending standards. The former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan pointed in his speech to the Independent Community Bankers of America in 2001 that there was an unfortunate tendency among bankers to lend aggressively at the peak of a cycle and noted that this aggressive kind of lending could result to bad loans. This therefore means that the credit boom in America had a hand in causing the current sub prime crisis. Indeed more of the major banking crisis in the last a quarter a century occurred at times that there was an extremely fast credit growth. However not all credit booms are immediately followed by a banking crisis. For instance in a study by Barajas et al (2007), of the 135 credit booms that were identified, only 23 of them preceded a systematic banking crisis with this proportion increasing to 31 if the non-systemic episodes of financial distress are included. However almost half of the banking crisis were preceded by a credit boom. Larger and longer-lasting credit booms and those that have coincided with higher inflation and lower growth are more likely to end up in a crisis. Booms associated with fast rising assets and real estate prices are also more likely to lead to a crisis. The increase in home prices in early 2000 was completely unrealistic and made the homeowners believe that home prices will continue increase and make future refinancing and subsequent mortgages quite profitable. The loose standards made them believe that in buying expensive homes than they could have afforded with the traditional fixed rates loans and more expensive than they can afford now with their adjustable mortgage loans resetting. Most of the players in the mortgage market contributed to the crisis. Homeowners, brokers, lenders, rating agencies regulators, investors and central banks all played a role in the crisis. The homeowners ran into flexible loans with no understanding of them and even some lied on stated income loan applications (Giang, & Anthony, 2007, p. 39). The lenders hurriedly offered riskier loans to borrowers as loan products with adjustable rates transfer great part of a risk from the lender to the borrower. This risk transfer is the reason was the main contributing factor as to why the offered higher commission to brokers if they sold adjustable loan. Brokers were also controlled by greed and started offering adjustable mortgages to borrowers who would qualify for prime loans. However, lenders never expected such huge foreclosures and extreme flooring of house prices. Central banks and other huge investors have experienced significant losses as a result of mortgage asset devaluation. The risk of investing in securities backed by mortgage never came to realization as should have been. The investor mainly relied on investment grade ratings applied to mortgage backed securities by rating agencies. Historical data backed models are mainly used by rating agencies to provide investment rating. Mortgage backed securities have excellent historical date whereas adjustable mortgage loans and their innovative variations being new products on the mortgage market have no historical data. The regulators missed to prevent the crisis through legislation that would regulate higher lending standards. They can play a great role in prevention of an economic crisis (Eric, 2008). Global Spread of the U. S sub prime mortgage The recent volatility in the global financial markets due to the US sub prime mortgage has not spared banks throughout the world. In Saudi Arabia, banks have been able to absorb only minimal exposure to distressed loans. For instance, Saudi Basic Industries Corporations have faced some constraints. Superficially, the happenings of the global market seems little unaffecting to Saudi Arabia. However since the peaking of the US stock markets, the Tadawul All-share Index has been maintaining an upwards trend. For instance, strong demand meant that investors accepted a lower yield than previously indicated for a SABIC bond in the month of July 2007. In this case, the bulk of demand came from Middle East and mainly from Saudi Arabia. Other bonds issued by the Gulf Cooperation council suffered and a greater caution could likely have had an impact on investor perceptions of Saudi Arabia risk. Higher credit spread had increased the cost of borrowing even after taking into consideration any reduction in the Federal funds rate. Even though the costs of borrowing were not high to deter borrowing, the prospect of issuing debt had deteriorated forcing the companies to revise their plans. This placed an opportunity to large Saudi investors who are not reliant on new or foreign borrowing and therefore were better positioned to acquire foreign assets, generally at lower prices than prior to recent market moves. Saudi Arabia has been developing its mortgage market though the mortgage law is still to be approved, the housing finance industry is beginning to take off and there are loans available for homeowners to secure. However with the legal and regulatory infrastructure not in place, the crisis in the US has slowed the growth. The crisis in the US also hit demand and thus prices for other commodities produced by Saudi Arabia such as plastics. Lastly, due to the exchange rate peg, the interest rates were cuts further and this further the riyal weakened along with the dollar (Gerry & Paul, 2007). European country such as the United Kingdom and Spain faces an even larger housing problem as lenders are becoming more cautious. This implies that consumer spending in Europe is also experiencing the crunch of the US sub prime crisis. The current slowdown impacts on all parts of the chemical industry as housing is a key source of chemical demand. Sectors that directly supply the housing and automotive sector in the West are hardest hit. In the United Kingdom, though there are different circumstances, the effect of the US sub prime mortgage crisis are being experienced. First, there are fewer mortgages given to people of less credit worthiness compared to the other mortgages in the market in the UK whereas in the US this proportion is significantly large. In addition, about half of the borrowers in this proportion of sub prime mortgage in the UK do not have a history of significant payment problems. Secondly, the interest rates in the UK have been relatively stable compared to the US where there had been rapid rises in interest rates. Thirdly, in the UK, the house prices have been booming compared to the Us where the house prices have been decreasing leaving borrowers mired in negative equity and unable to sell their homes in order to service their loans. Finally, the lending criteria in the UK are much stricter than in the US that have been loose. However, despite all these the effect of the US sub prime mortgage crisis is being felt in the UK with the Bank of England taking a warning of then dangers of bailing out institutions that had taken reckless lending decision for profits. It also leads to the Bank of England cutting interest rates at the start of 2008. The US sub prime mortgage crisis has an impact on the Germany economy where the hardest hits are the German banks. The Industrial bank in Germany managed a fund that had invested in credit portfolios, which included US sub prime real estate loans. Commerce bank, which is the second largest bank in Germany, reported that the US subprime mortgage market had cost it 80 million euros in the second and last quarter of the financial year 2007. In the financial years 2007/2008, IKB expects that the crisis will influence negatively on its projected earning of 280 euros (Christopher, 2008). References Christopher B. L. (2008). The Next Slum, The Atlantic Monthly.New York: Oxford university press. Enoch and Charles. (2007). Rapid Growth in Credit: Endless Boom or EarlyWarning? New York: International Monetary Fund and Palgrave. Eric Janszen. (2008). The next bubble: The markets for tomorrow’s big crash. London: Harper’s press. Gerry, G. & Paul, F. (2007). A House of Cards: from fantasy finance to global crash. London: Lupus Books. Giang, H. and Anthony. (2007). â€Å"The Varying Effects of Predatory Lending Criteria on Mortgage Applications†, Reserve Bank of St. Louis Review 89(1), pp. 39-59.