Purchase or Lease of All-Purpose Vehicles for Government Offices

This article compares the costs and benefits for the government of leasing vis-a-vis outright purchase of motor vehicles. It presents two methods through which public managers can estimate and assess the value of procuring motor vehicles either under lease payment or direct purchase. Using data from selected government agencies, the net present values generated suggest that outright purchase of low-end vehicles is preferable to leasing. For high-end models, leasing offers a more practical option. The findings, however, are far from conclusive because assumptions regarding the variables and input data are subject to change. Results can be significantly improved with better and more accurate statistics. To gain sufficient understanding of the issue, factors other than those covered by the study, i.e., economies of scale and entry of commercial banks, must also be explored

Local and Personal Networks in Employment and the Development of Labor Markets: Evidence from the Cut Flower Industry in Ethiopia

経済学 / EconomicsWe examine the roles of local and personal networks in the employment process and the emergence and development of the labor market in Ethiopia’s growing cut flower industry. Using primary survey data of 320 workers randomly sampled from all 64 farms, we find that workers who were recruited informally using the social ties were paid less than the formally-recruited workers at hiring. However, these workers quickly increased their productivity, and the effect of social ties on wages disappeared over time. Further, we find that the development of labor market for this newly-emerged industry took place particularly within the industrial clusters.JEL Classification Codes: O15, Q12, J33http://www.grips.ac.jp/list/jp/facultyinfo/matsumoto_tomoya

Researcher studies nervous system development

Ashley Purdy, who recently finished a master’s degree in biology at VCU and is now pursuing her Ph.D., is studying nerve cells in zebrafish in hopes of unlocking secrets about the human nervous system. The research could shed light on how neurodevelopmental disorders like multiple sclerosis or epilepsy occur

Introduction : user studies for digital library development

Introductory chapter to the edited collection on user studies in digital library development. Contains a general introduction to the topic and biographical sketches of the contributors.peer-reviewe

The development of technology education internationally

The development of technology education within countries and regions is set within the historical, cultural, and political environment. Curriculum, teacher education, and in fact educational research do not sit in isolation from these. Each of the chapters in this section sets out the context for technology education in its respective country and provides a historical and political analysis of the development of technology education as a field of development. The history of technology education is a long one if we consider its development back to the days of craft, and in this section many of the chapters trace the journey from craft through to much broader notions of technology and technological literacy

Development Studies: a guide to finding information

Using the library to find resources relating to development studies (development and emergency practice

Autonomy or Efficiency. An experiment on household decisions in two regions of India.

経済学 / EconomicsDyson and Moore (1983) posit that women in South India enjoy relatively more agency than in the North. Their conclusions have become part of the standard picture of Indian rural society. In this paper, we examine using experimental data the implications of the regional contrast in female autonomy for the efficiency of family decision-making. We take a sample of 1200 couples from one rural and one urban area in the north of India (Uttar Pradesh) and one area in the south (Tamil Nadu) that are often taken to exemplify differences in the autonomy of women and the nature of marital relationships. Generally, we find large-scale and robust evidence of inefficiency and the hiding of assets when this is possible. Men invest more and are more generous to their partners. Women are more willing to invest in a common pool when their income is earned through working and when assets are publicly observable. Regarding the focus of our paper, we find continuing significant differences between North and South and we find relatively little evidence that urban living is associated with changes in the nature of marital behaviour. There are some differences between response to treatment but the key and striking difference between the North and the South is that in both rural and urban sites in the former region household efficiency is considerably greater than in the latter, which does on the face of it suggest a tradeoff between autonomy and efficiency.http://www.grips.ac.jp/list/jp/facultyinfo/munro_alistair