South Asian Journal of Social Studies and Economics

The objective of this paper is to study the long-term sustainability of fiscal policies in CEMAC, following the pioneering approach of Hamilton and Flavin [10]. Over the period from 1992 to 2012, first and second generation panel stationarity tests suggest that total public expenditures, total revenues, the primary budget balance and public debt are stationary. As a result, fiscal policies are sustainable in the long run within the area. There is a unidirectional causality between government revenues and expenditures. Decisions to increase expenditures are made on the basis of the availability of revenues.

Zari-Zardozi is a type of hand embroidery and usually done on apparels for embellishment with the help of needle, threads and metal wires. This handicraft work has been taken as patrimonial art in the artisan family. Even a strong presence of this art in the domestic and international market in last decade of 20^th century and the first decade of the twenty first century, the plight of labourers was not improved and became so miserable. This descriptive research has been done on Zari-zardozi labourers of different villages of Bareilly, a western Uttar Pradesh’s district famous for this handicraft. There was 150 rural household samples were collected randomly to depict Zari-zardozi labourers’ present actual condition with their socio-economic background.

There are two types of workers involved in this sector. One, who are doing this work as their main occupation and engaged in that throughout the year while others are temporary workers whose main occupation is some other but to earn sufficient or to use their holidays, they work for some hours or few days in a month or year. The nature of employment may affect the labour productivity. This paper would try to know the age-group, education, technical qualifications, wages variance between permanent and temporary labourers. With the help of Zari-Zardozi labourers’ inputs it would suggest the major factors affecting wages and would prescribe the possible measures to increase their income.  Along with it, this study would try to assess their quality of life up to some extent with socio-economic condition of them. Minimum wage payment, skill development and social welfare schemes within the ambit of structural change of selling may be helpful to improve their poverty ridden condition

Aim: To determine the profitability of adding value to roasted meat by the processors in Mubi-north Local Government Area of Adamawa State.

Methodology: Cross sectional data was taken from 70 roasted meat processors through semi-structured questionnaire. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics and value addition model.

Results: Result of the study revealed that majority (88.57 %) of the roasted meat processors were male who were within the age range of 26 and 55, with most (84.28 %) having formal education. Also, it was found that chicken (720) processing had the highest margin of value addition among five different type of meat captured. More also, processors perceived value addition on roasted meat (suya) to be profitable. The processors reported poor storage facilities and inadequacy of finance for the purchase of input as the most worrisome.

Conclusion: It was therefore concluded from the result that, amidst the stated constraints, value addition activity was said to be profitable. However, encouraging the teeming youth to engage in the business of value addition to meat products, provision of cold rooms together with constant power supply and policies that ensure easy access to loans and credit facilities were measures recommended for encouraging processors and improving profitability on suya processing.  

The objective of this article is to study the effect of multilateral surveillance criteria on the cyclical behavior of fiscal policy in CEMAC. Using a linear regression model and estimated by fixed-effect ordinary double least squares on panel data from 1992 to 2012, we find that the surveillance criteria adopted in 2001 increased the pro-cyclicality of fiscal policy.

Purpose: Sri Lankan government has recognized small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as the backbone of the economy. Export is the most adapted internationalization mechanism by SMEs. Export activities of SMEs are caused to reduce trade balance deficit, increase capital inflow, increase employment, create balance of payment surplus and increase the production. In the most of the developing countries, considerable amount of total export activities is performed by SMEs. However, a few numbers of SMEs are exporting in Sri Lanka. The purpose of this study is to identify the factors that influence on export engagement of SMEs in Sri Lanka.

Methods: Explanatory research approach followed by quantitative method used in this study. Based on literature, financial capability, management capability, government policy and marketing information were selected as influencing factors on export engagement of SMEs. Scope of the study consisted with SMEs in the manufacturing sector, located in Western province. A structured questionnaire was used for the primary data collection.

Findings: The survey was conducted on 151 SMEs. The multiple regression analysis results revealed that 72.6% of the variation in export engagement can be explained by financial capability, management capabilities and government policies. However, marketing information was not a significant determinant of export engagement of SMEs. Among the factors, management capability recorded the highest beta value (beta = 0.487) followed by financial capabilities. 

Research Implications: This study helps to enhance the development of the country through assisting the SMEs to enhance their exports by having a better understand about the factors influence for export engagement of SMEs. The SMEs which are not engaged with export, can get a knowledge about the most important factors of the export-engaged enterprises have.

Further Study Suggestions: Future studies might concern in depth analysis of problems face by SMEs when engaging with exports and remedies for those problems by using many sample size within a long period of time.