Non-profit Sector in Pakistan: Government Policy and Future Issues

The non-profit sector remains relatively small and underdeveloped in Pakistan. During the decade of the 1990s, it has demonstrated some nascent growth resulting from a number of favourable factors like the return to democracy, the growing push towards deregulation and privatisation, the process of globalisation and the emergence of international coalitions of civil society and the deterioration in the financial position of governments which has limited the public provision of social services. The objective of this paper is to examine the role played by government policy in fostering this process of growth of the non-profit sector of Pakistan and to review the key issues faced by the sector at this time. Of particular concern are, first, the overall posture of the government towards the non-profit sector, the types of policies in place, and the underlying philosophy or principles that guide policy-making. Second, the forms of support to the non-profit sector by different levels of government. Third, the posture of international organisations and supranational governments towards local non-profit organisations and, forth, the major issues facing the non-profit sector at the present time. The objective of this paper is to analyse government policy towards the nonprofit sector in Pakistan over the last two decades and review some major issues facing the sector at the present time. It is important to note that analysis presented here does not cover the period of current government.

The analysis of the key doctrines of Boko Haram (Jama’at Ahl-I- Sunnah Li Al-Da’wati Wa Al-Jihad).

The issue of Boko Haram has received considerable critical attention. It is one of the contemporary threats of the globe . They created a devastation that is having an adverse impact on Islam and the socioeconomic situation in the region and in some parts of Africa. There is a growing body of literature on Boko Haram, mostly focusing on the political aspects. Little emphasis has been put on the religious approach. This study is important because it will approach the issue from a religious perspective. This will be done by analyzing some of their doctrines to challenge and correct some of their misconceptions of Islam. Moreover, being a Nigerian from the North East and specifically from Borno state (Borno is the main center of Boko Haram), I have a special interest to study Boko Haram\u27s religious perspective and views to correct misconceptions and spread awareness which may help in terminating the crisis of Boko Haram

Factors Affecting Performance of Healthcare Workers During COVID-19 in Pakistan

Healthcare workers are one of the most affected communities at the global level during the pandemic of COVID-19, and Pakistan is no exception. Pakistan allocates merely less than 1% of its GDP for the healthcare sector, that is why, in most of the cases, healthcare workers are bound to serve without adopting standard safety measures while dealing with patients. The need for proper Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) has been felt more than ever during the occurrence of COVID-19 due to its quick transferability from an infected person to a healthy one. Until now, some 62 healthcare workers, including 42 doctors, have lost their lives and 5,367 have contracted coronavirus. Healthcare workers already serving without PPEs went under serious life threat after the coronavirus pandemic, and this fear has adversely affected their role as frontline warriors against COVID-19. In the given scenario, healthcare workers have not only to be worried about their own lives but also their families back at home. The current study aims at investigating variables such fears of healthcare workers about contracting coronavirus, its adverse effects on their performance, and resultantly the provision of compromised healthcare services to patients. This is mainly a qualitative study, whereas primary data were collected through telephonic interviews of 30 healthcare workers (15 doctors and 15 nurses) currently performing their duties in healthcare centres. Sources of secondary data include online journal articles, daily newspapers, government reports, and official websites. The findings of the study show that lack of proper safety kits and training of preparedness and safety has put the lives of healthcare workers at high risk and they are unable to perform their duties in the proper/appropriate way owing to their exposure to the risk of contracting coronavirus. The healthcare workers are conflicted about serving and saving the patients or securing their own lives

Factors Affecting Investment Decision Making: Evidence from Equity Fund Managers and Individual Investors in Pakistan

Traditional theories of finance assume that investors behave rationally in the stock market, but according to behavioral finance investors behave irrationally while making their investment decisions. Behavioral finance explains the effect of investor psychology on their investment decision making.Purpose - The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of behavioral factors such as heuristics, risk aversion, use of financial tools and firm-level corporate governance on investment decision making.  Design/Methodology/Approach – This study use questionnaire technique for primary data collection from equity fund managers and individuals who invested in commercial banks, insurance companies and stock exchanges of Pakistan. The study collected 100 responses from individuals and equity fund managers. To accomplish the objective we use correlation analysis and regression analysis technique.Findings –The study concludes that Heuristics, Use of financial tools and Firm level corporate governance have positive and significant Impact on investment decision making, whereas Risk aversion has negative and significant impact on investment decision making. Moreover, all behavioral factors, firm level corporate and investment decision making have positive and significant relationship with each other. Stock exchanges and regulatory authorities may use these results to educate investors about behavioral factors. Findings of this research study may help to increase the investor’s confidence. Keywords: Behavioral factors; Investment decision making; Use of financial tools; Firm level corporate governance; Equity fund managers; Individual Investors

Effect of Light Intensity on the Total Flavonoid and Total Phenolic Contents of Mikania Micrantha and Tridax Procumbens

Flavonoid and phenolics are secondary metabolites produced by plants in response to harsh environmental conditions. Light is one of the most important factor that affects their production. Mikania micrantha and Tridax procumbens are plants belonging to Asteraceae family, and they have bioactivity due to their flavonoid and phenolic contents. The objective of the research is to determine the effect of varying light intensities on the total flavonoid and total phenolic contents of M. micrantha and T. procumbens using three solvents (ethanol, methanol and water). Total flavonoid contents was determined based on the aluminium chloride colorimetry method while total phenolic contents was determined based on the folin-chiocalteau reagent. The results obtained in the study shows that ethanol recovers more flavonoid and phenolic than the other solvents (P < 0.05). Besides, T. procumbens had more flavonoid and phenolic content compared to M. micrantha (P < 0.05). Nevertheless, the flavonoid and phenolic contents recovered from sun exposed plants was more than that recovered from shaded plants (P < 0.05). This leads to a conclusion that high light intensity can increase the concentration of flavonoid and phenolic of M. micrantha and T. procumbens

A Corpus Based Study of the Errors Committed by Pakistani Learners of English at Graduation Level

Man is bound to make mistakes. Language learning is totally a process of trial and error. As language errors are the topic of this paper, let us provisionally define language errors first as an unsuccessful bit of language. Though errors were considered a sin in the past, now the linguists stress the importance of learners’ errors. These errors are helpul to teachers, researchers, and learners themselves (Corder 1967).  Error analysis is the process that determines the incidences, nature, causes and consequences of the unsuccessful language i.e. errors. Keeping in mind the recent trends in language teaching, studying learners’ output is important to define the parameters of learning second language. The present corpus based work intends to find errors made by Pakistani learners of English at graduation level, when their production is in written form. The learner corpus used for this research Pakistani component of ICLE (International Centre for Learner English). It contains 0.2 million words in total, written in the form of argumentative essays, by the learners of English at the graduation level and is POS tagged using CLAWS7 POS tagger. Keywords: Error Analysis, Learner Errors, Corpus Based Error Analysis, Learner Corpora, Pakistani Englis

Sub-acute toxicity study on tartrazine in male albino rats

The study aimed to compare the sub-acute toxicity of tartrazine azo dyes that is used extensively as food colorant at low and high dose on biochemical parameters, lipid profiles and histological abnormalities. Twelve male albino rats were grouped into 3 groups of 4 rats each. Group 1 was fed normal diet and water, Group 2 was administered tartrazine 7.5mg/kg body weight and Group 3 was administered tartrazine 75mg/kg body weight. The albino rats were sacrificed after 7 weeks; tissue and blood samples were collected to assess the histopathological changes, lipid profiles and biochemical parameters of the liver and kidney. The findings revealed significant elevation (P < 0.05) in serum total cholesterol (TC) (4.88±0.31mg/dl to 8.18±0.45 mg/dl), triglyceride (TG) (0.92±0.05 mg/dl to 1.63±0.14 mg/dl), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) (3.59±0.26 mg/dl to 7.05±0.39 mg/dl), urea (42.35±2.43 mg/dl to 50.53±2.96 mg/dl) and creatinine (0.97±0.05 mg/dl to 1.46±0.17 mg/dl), alanine amino transferase (ALT) (12.87±2.64 U/L to 37.74±5.76 U/L), aspartame amino transferase (AST) (47.33±3.92 U/L to 134.88±6.51 U/L) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) (76.80±8.58 U/L to 124.01±1.51 U/L) levels in groups administered low and high doses of tartrazine and significant decrease in high density lipoprotein (HDL) (0.81±0.05 mg/dl to 1.11±0.10 mg/dl), in comparison to the control. Furthermore, Periportal lymphocytic infiltrates and moderate mesangial cell proliferation were observed in kidney and liver respectively of rats administered tartrazine at both low and high dose. Hence, excessive use of tartrazine for long time may result in kidney and liver toxicity

Acute hypotensive and diuretic activities of Berberis vulgaris root bark aqueous extract in normal rats

The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of intravenous administration of Berberis vulgaris root bark aqueous extract (BRBD) on the cardiovascular and renal functions of healthy normotensive rats. The different doses of BRBD 1, 10 and 20 mg/kg were administered intravenously (i.v) in normal rats. Blood pressure, diuretic activity and serum renal profile were analyzed. Intravenous injection of BRBD at the different doses of 1, 10 and 20 mg/kg showed a dose-dependent reduction in mean arterial blood pressure (

Konseptualissasi Bimbingan Karier bagi Siswa Berkebutuhan Khusus

Transisi dari pendidikan dasar, pendidikan menengah dan pendidikan tinggi dan akhirnya ke dunia kerja dirasakan menjadi tantangan bagi remaja. Siswa berkebutuhan khusus menghadapi tantangan tambahan dalam pengembangan karier dan transisi dari sekolah ke dunia kerja. Untuk memfasilitasi siswa berkebutuhan khusus, maka perlu adanya program bimbingan karier yang direncanakan secara komprehensif guna memudahkan proses transisi yang mereka jalani. Tujuan utama bimbingan karier adalah mempersiapkan siswa berkebutuhan khusus saat ini untuk menjadi anggota masyarakat yang mandiri dan berkontribusi baik sekarang maupun di masa depan. Metode yang digunakan dalam artikel ini adalah literature review. Hasil dari penulisan artikel ini adalah program bimbingan karier yang komprehensif bagi siswa berkebutuhan khusus meliputi lima tahap perkembangan secara berurutan dan bertahap. Fase-fase tersebut adalah kesadaran karier, eksplorasi karier, pendidikan pra vokasi, pendidikan vokasi, dan pendidikan pasca vokas