Financing of small and medium enterprises (SMES): facilitation through rotating credit and savings associations (ROSCAs) in Lahore

SMEs are the backbone of Pakistan’s economy but they have limited access to the formal sources of finance. According to the SME Development Authority (SMEDA) of Pakistan, 90% of start-ups exit within four years. The current research was carried out to discover the extent of the contribution of Rotating Credit and Savings Associations (ROSCAs) to the SME, explore their weaknesses and to develop measures to transform them into a significant source of SME finance. The study was conducted in the city of Lahore. Purposive sampling technique was adopted to collect the data from 433 entrepreneurs and eight informants. Nearly 90% of the respondents resort to ROSCAs-financing. The ROSCAs system finance the 386 sampled SMEs to the tune of Rs468 million every cycle. The average contribution per SME is Rs1.08 million per cycle. Only 9.8% of the sampled population had obtained formal loans during the last five years. The current study does not support the findings of SMEDA which reported that 80 to 90% of the start-up's exit within the first four years. The majority of respondents expressed fear of failure of ROSCAs is due to fraud or mismanagement and felt that management of ROSCAs by banks can assist in preventing mismanagement or fraud. Laws and procedures for managing cases of dishonoured checks are very weak. Since ROSCAs are extra-legal and un-registered, ROSCAs-related disputes have to be settled out of courts. Furthermore, the concept of Shirkah al-Wujuh was found to be widely practised in the form of ROSCAs for the interest-free (Islamic) financing of SMEs. The recommendations of the current study can be helpful in fortifying the existing ROSCAs system as well as promoting easy and secure access to finance. Moreover, banks can use these findings to position themselves as guarantor and play effective role in the entrepreneur- driven SME finance market

Minimization of the Stressed State of a Stringer Plate with a Hole and Rectilinear Cracks

This article deals with the problem of minimizing the stress state on the contour of a hole in an un-bounded isotropic stringer plate weakened by two rectilinear cracks. Crack faces are considered to be free of stress.У цій статті розглядається задача мінімізації напруженого стану на контурі отвору в необмеженій ізотропній стрингерній пластині, ослабленій двома прямолінійними тріщинами. Береги тріщин вважаються вільними від навантажень.В данной статье рассматривается задача минимизации напряженного состояния на контуре отверстия в неограниченной изотропной стрингерной пластине, ослабленной двумя прямолинейными трещинами. Берега трещин считаются свободными от нагрузок

Slit system partial closure simulation in a stringer reinforced perforated isotropic medium

On the basis of the methods of the theory of elasticity, a mathematical description of the model of partial closure of a system of slits in a perforated isotropic medium with foreign transverse inclusions is given.На основі методів теорії пружності проведено математичний опис моделі часткового закриття системи щілин у перфорованому ізотропному середовищі зі сторонніми поперечними включеннями.На основе методов теории упругости проведено математическое описание модели частичного закрытия системы щелей в перфорированной изотропной среде с инородными поперечными включениями

The Imperatives of Innovative Sources of Development Finance: Evidence from Nigeria

Innovative source of development finance (ISDF) connote a net additional resources to the total resources involving the application of nontraditional mechanisms for sourcing funds  capable of catalyzing and supporting fund raising through new sources. The objectives of ISDF is to complement the dwindling financial resources for the millennium development goals (MDGs) which was conceived as a complementary financing efforts to drastically reduce poverty level; with its attendant consequences of socio ills like hunger, illiteracy, shelter, HIV/aids, social strife among others by the year 2015. This work is design to shore up support for the good intention of the programme. In the case of Nigeria of which despite the enormous resources endowments, above average of her population are still wallowing in poverty with the visible consequences of these set of the population being subjugated to subhuman live. Wanton corruption had being the bane of meaningful development in the country. Looting of public treasury and misappropriation of funds are widely acknowledging worldwide. Essentially, if the suggested changes in modalities as appertaining to Nigeria are embraced, the programme will go a long way in improving the wellbeing of the average Nigerian populace as envisaged in MDGs. Keywords - Millennium Development Goals MDG), Innovative sources of development finance, Public bad, carbon tax, Special drawing rights (SDR

Funktionsstörungen des Musculus trapezius, des Plexus cervicalis und der Schulter nach Neck dissection

Einleitung Funktionsstörungen der Schulter treten mit unterschiedlicher Häufigkeit nach Neck dissection auf. Die durchgeführten Studien untersuchten den Einfluss einer Trapeziusparese und einer Schädigung des Plexus cervicalis auf die Entstehung einer Schulterfunktionsstörung. Hierzu sollten neue Methoden zur Bewertung der Aktivität des Musculus trapezius entwickelt werden. Die genauen Auswirkungen auf die Lebenssituation des Patienten waren bisher unklar. Methode Zur Bewertung der Trapeziusfunktion wurde eine simultane Oberflächenlelektromyographie und Schulterhebekraftmessung durchgeführt. In Vorversuchen erfolgte die Entwicklung des Versuchsaufbaus. Wir verwendeten eine bipolare Ableitung des oberen und unteren Trapeziusanteils und eine isometrische Schulterhebekraftmessung bei 90° Abduktion. Es wurden frequenz- und amplitudenabhängige Merkmale bei rampenförmig ansteigender Schulterhebekraft berechnet (Root Mean Square, Mean Frequency, Mean Power Frequency, Frequenzverhältnis und Turnanalyse nach Willison). Die Datenanalyse erfolgte unter LabVIEW(r). Die Funktion des Plexus cervicalis wurde anhand einer semiquantitativen Erfassung der Oberflächensensibilität festgestellt. Die Auswirkung der Schulterfunktionsstörung auf die Lebenssituation des Patienten wurde mittels des Constant Murley Scores eingeschätzt. Ergebnisse Die erste Studie beinhaltete 90 Probanden und zeigte einen statistisch signifikanten Anstieg (pIntroduction Functional shoulder disorders after neck dissection have different incidences. The following studies investigated the influence of a trapezius muscle palsy and a damage of the cervical plexus on the frequency of painful shoulder complaints. The consequences for shoulder function and for daily life activities were not yet clear. Methods For assessment of the trapezius function a simultaneous surface electromyography and force measurement were performed. We used a bipolar electrode configuration and an increasing isometric contraction in 90° arm abduction. Frequency and amplitude based parameters (Root Mean Square, Mean Frequency, Mean Power Frequency, Frequency Ratio, Turn Analysis of Willison) were computed and analysed in LabVIEW(r). The cervical plexus function was determined by semiquantitative measurement of the cutaneous sensibility. Shoulder function and restriction in daily life activities were assessed by the Constant Murley Score. Results The first group included 90 probands and showed a statistical significant (

Unveiling Ethereum’s Future: LSTM-Based Price Prediction and a Systematic Blockchain Analysis

Cryptocurrency has emerged as a revolutionary innovation that has been replacing traditional finances and enthralling the worldwide technology landscape. This has gained a lot of popularity worldwide for its potential to enable peer-to-peer transactions and offer opportunities for investment and novelty. Nevertheless, it gives rise to issues concerning regulatory adherence, instability, and security apprehensions, turning them into a topic of continuous evaluation and investigation within the fields of finance and technology. This research paper presents a comprehensive exploration of the historical evolution of “Ethereum” as one of the leading blockchain platforms, with a primary focus on price prediction using a long-short-term memory (LSTM) machine learning model. The study includes various critical aspects of Ethereum, starting from its historical evolution to its potential future scope in scaling solutions and payments, and also covering the insights of Ethereum’s tokenomics, utility, and beyond. In addition, the methodology involves using the LSTM model to analyze data from Ethereum. The accuracy of price predictions is assessed by evaluating error metrics and further improved by visualizing the data through graphs that show indicators. This paper gives an in-depth perspective for anyone who is seeking a holistic understanding of cryptocurrencies, mainly concentrated on Ethereum, and also provides valuable guidance to investors, developers, and enthusiasts, encouraging them to make knowledgeable decisions in the ever-changing blockchain ecosystem

Usporedno istraživanje učinkovitosti postupaka aspiracije injekcijskom iglom i incizijske biopsije u dijagnostici aktinomikoze goveda.

This paper describes clinical and pathomorphological aspects in two spontaneous cases of bovine actinomycosis. Efficacy of Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy (FNAB) and incisional biopsy results are compared. FNAB seems to be a simple and rapid method for presumptive diagnosis of the disease. However, incisional biopsy has an added advantage over the former as it provides information regarding the nature of the pathohistological changes, but diagnose is recently made. Diagnosis was established on the basis of involvement of the mandible with indurated swelling, microscopic finding of sulphur granules and demonstration of Gram-positive interwoven filamentous organisms, along with coccoid forms in the aspirate and in the core of the granulomas. All attempts to culture the organism were unsuccessful. However, Staphylococcus aureus proved to be a concomitant aerobic microbe. Presence of eosinophils in the lesions and their increased numbers in the blood was an additional finding in the present study.Opisani su klinički i patomorfološki nalazi pri pojavi aktinomikoze goveda. Uspoređeni su rezultati polučeni aspiracijskom iglom i brizgalicom te incizijskom biopsijom. Aspiracija iglom i brizgalicom je jednostavna i brza metoda za uzimanje materijala na aktinomikozu. Međutim, incizijska biopsija ima prednost nad aspiracijom jer omogućuje patohistološku pretragu i brzo dijagnosticiranje bolesti. Dijagnoza je bila postavljena na osnovi indurativne otekline mandibule, mikroskopskog nalaza sumpornih zrnaca i dokaza gram-pozitivnih nitastih mikroorganizama istodobno s kokoidnim oblicima u aspiratu granuloma. Bezuspješni su bili svi pokušaji izdvajanja uzročnika. Vrsta Staphylococcus aureus dokazana je kao pridružena aerobna bakterija. Nalaz eozinofila u promijenjenom tkivu te njihov povećani broj u krvi omogućio je dodatno potvrđivanje dijagnoze

Role of Repeat Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumours after Primary Resection: A Retrospective Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Bladder Cancer (BC) is the second most common cancer of the urinary tract. Initial treatment by Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumour (TURBT) helps guide treatment. In High Grade (HG) and invasive cancers, improved staging is achieved by performing a repeat (rTURBT). Aim: To examine the outcome, residual disease, complications, outcomes and quality of procedure of repeat TURBTs at the study tertiary center. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted at the Department of Urology in Government Medical College, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India between October 2018 and December 2019. A total of 123 TURBT’s were performed during the study period, of which 34 were repeat TURBT’s. Case records were examined for each of these patients. Student t-test and Chi-square tests were used to compare data sets. Results: Data was complete for 30 out of 34 patients. There was residual disease in 12 (40%) patients. Upstaging was seen in 2/12 (17%) of patients, down-staging in 0/12, and same stage in 10/12 patients (83%). No disease was seen in 18/30 (60%) of patients. No major surgical complications occurred. In 12 patients of non-invasive, High Grade (HG) tumours, who underwent rTURBTs, 6 (50%) were found to have residual disease. Conclusion: rTURBTs should be performed in all patients with high-grade or T1 tumours. Further studies are required to analyse risk-factors for residual disease which may narrow the indications of rTURBT, thus saving time and costs, and reducing need for an additional procedure

Effect of Fibrinolytic Therapy on ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Clinical Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND: ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is the result of transmural ischemia of the myocardium and is associated with a high mortality rate. Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) is the recommended first-line treatment strategy for patients with STEMI. The timely delivery of PPCI became extremely challenging for STEMI patients during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, leading to a projected steep rise in mortality. These delays were overcome by the shift from first-line therapy and the development of modern fibrinolytic-based reperfusion. It is unclear whether fibrinolytic-based reperfusion therapy is effective in improving STEMI endpoints. AIM: To determine the incidence of fibrinolytic therapy during the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on STEMI clinical outcomes. METHODS: PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were queried from January 2020 up to February 2022 to identify studies investigating the effect of fibrinolytic therapy on the prognostic outcome of STEMI patients during the pandemic. Primary outcomes were the incidence of fibrinolysis and the risk of all-cause mortality. Data were meta-analyzed using the random effects model to derive odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals. Quality assessment was carried out using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. RESULTS: Fourteen studies including 50136 STEMI patients (n = 15142 in the pandemic arm; n = 34994 in the pre-pandemic arm) were included. The mean age was 61 years; 79% were male, 27% had type 2 diabetes, and 47% were smokers. Compared with the pre-pandemic period, there was a significantly increased overall incidence of fibrinolysis during the pandemic period [OR: 1.80 (1.18 to 2.75); I2= 78%; P = 0.00; GRADE: Very low]. The incidence of fibrinolysis was not associated with the risk of all-cause mortality in any setting. The countries with a low-and middle-income status reported a higher incidence of fibrinolysis [OR: 5.16 (2.18 to 12.22); I2 = 81%; P = 0.00; GRADE: Very low] and an increased risk of all-cause mortality in STEMI patients [OR: 1.16 (1.03 to 1.30); I2 = 0%; P = 0.01; GRADE: Very low]. Meta-regression analysis showed a positive correlation of hyperlipidemia (P = 0.001) and hypertension (P \u3c 0.001) with all-cause mortality. CONCLUSION: There is an increased incidence of fibrinolysis during the pandemic period, but it has no effect on the risk of all-cause mortality. The low- and middle-income status has a significant impact on the all-cause mortality rate and the incidence of fibrinolysis