Saving and borrowing in rural Uganda

Sub-Saharan Africa has languished in recent decades - a period in which countries elsewhere in the world (especially in East and Southeast Asia) have made substantial progress in terms of economic and human development. It is widely recognised that high levels of savings, together with investment in physical and human capital, have been among a number of key factors that have led to such success. Uganda is an economy in sub-Saharan Africa that has shown some promise of success in the 1990s. It has enjoyed macroeconomic stability and a rapid rate of economic growth. However, in some other respects, the country retains features that give cause for concern for future development. Poverty in the rural areas remains widespread, and the domestic savings rate is amongst the lowest in the world. Drawing on the results of a survey carried out in 1997, this paper explores the reasons underlying the persistence of poverty in rural Uganda, and investigates aspects of saving and borrowing behaviour in households. The potential role of microcredit arrangements in alleviating poverty (and in generating a flow of savings) is examined, and the conditions that may favour success in the operation of microcredit schemes are evaluated

Saving and borrowing in rural Uganda

Sub-Saharan Africa has languished in recent decades - a period in which countries elsewhere in the world (especially in East and Southeast Asia) have made substantial progress in terms of economic and human development. It is widely recognised that high levels of savings, together with investment in physical and human capital, have been among a number of key factors that have led to such success. Uganda is an economy in sub-Saharan Africa that has shown some promise of success in the 1990s. It has enjoyed macroeconomic stability and a rapid rate of economic growth. However, in some other respects, the country retains features that give cause for concern for future development. Poverty in the rural areas remains widespread, and the domestic savings rate is amongst the lowest in the world. Drawing on the results of a survey carried out in 1997, this paper explores the reasons underlying the persistence of poverty in rural Uganda, and investigates aspects of saving and borrowing behaviour in households. The potential role of microcredit arrangements in alleviating poverty (and in generating a flow of savings) is examined, and the conditions that may favour success in the operation of microcredit schemes are evaluated. Keywords; Uganda, sub-Saharan Africa, poverty, structural adjustment, savings, financial markets JEL classification: O16

The Norwegian Ombudsman for Children on child participation: Perceptions, impacts and dilemmas

The adoption in 1989 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has seen a quantum leap in the recognition- and expansion of initiatives to uphold children’s participation rights. The Ombudsman for Children plays an important role in promoting children’s rights, thus stressing the importance of authorities taking children’s opinions and experiences into consideration when making decisions which affect them. This article examines how the staff at the Ombudsman for Children in Norway understand and experience child participation through expert meetings and expert groups, in which children are regarded as the experts. The findings suggest that the existence of a consultative approach, where children’s views influence decisions, depends on the effectiveness of the Ombudsman’s representative function. While there is evidence of the recent growth of platforms for children to express their views, the core elements of participation largely remain monopolized by adults. We argue that active participation should be deliberately promoted beyond adult-led realms, and extended to ordinary contexts in which children interact with the society.publishedVersio

The Norwegian Ombudsman for Children on child participation

The adoption in 1989 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has seen a quantum leap in the recognition- and expansion of initiatives to uphold children’s participation rights. The Ombudsman for Children plays an important role in promoting children’s rights, thus stressing the importance of authorities taking children’s opinions and experiences into consideration when making decisions which affect them. This article examines how the staff at the Ombudsman for Children in Norway understand and experience child participation through expert meetings and expert groups, in which children are regarded as the experts. The findings suggest that the existence of a consultative approach, where children’s views influence decisions, depends on the effectiveness of the Ombudsman’s representative function. While there is evidence of the recent growth of platforms for children to express their views, the core elements of participation largely remain monopolized by adults. We argue that active participation should be deliberately promoted beyond adult-led realms, and extended to ordinary contexts in which children interact with the society

“You have to talk to those who were there…” Promoting children’s participation : a case of expert meetings and groups within the ombudsman in Norway”

Master's thesis in Social work with families and childrenThe adoption in 1989 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has seen a quantum leap in the recognition of, and growth of initiatives to fulfil children’s participation rights. This article discusses findings of a study on the character, relevance and challenges facing expert meetings and groups – a primary approach by the ombudsman for children in Norway to promote their participation. While these initiatives provide a forum through which children express their views, the core elements of participation largely remain an adult monopoly. Although the ombudsman is mandated to represent the views ensuing from expert meetings and groups, there are no clear mechanisms to follow-up on and ensure their uptake by relevant authorities. We conclude that participation needs to be deliberately encouraged beyond adult constructed realms, to those natural spaces within which children routinely

“You have to talk to those who were there (Utøya)…”: promoting children’s participation: a case of expert meetings and groups within the ombudsman in Norway

The aim of this study was to investigate expert meetings and groups as a distinctive approach to promoting the participation of children and young people within the context of the children’s ombudsman in Norway. To achieve this broad objective, specific questions revolving around the rationale, character, significance and bottlenecks of expert meetings and groups were formulated. Premised on the findings of this investigation, the study would then draw implications for policy and practice within the field. A qualitative approach, in particular case study design was selected to facilitate collection of data and analysis of the resulting findings. This included collecting data about the case using in-depth / qualitative interviews and analyzing relevant documents. Coding and analysis of primary data drew inspiration from a constructivist grounded theory approach, while in analyzing secondary data, this approach was complemented with qualitative content analysis. The entire coding and analysis procedure was facilitated by NVivo’s powerful analytical tools. In general, the choice of a qualitative approaches for this study was informed by their ability to deliver a thick understanding of the research phenomena, and describe the findings giving due consideration to the relevance of the context The findings of this investigation have revealed that expert meetings and groups have a clear premise; essentially as a fulfillment of children’s fundamental and democratic right to actively participate in society as competent citizens, in accordance with evolving capacities. At the same time, these initiatives are intended to provide a powerful empowerment force through which to underscore the plight of children, so that predominantly adult run systems can take conscious child sensitive precautions, both those required to alleviate present indignity, and prevent future reoccurrences. The study observes that the character of expert meetings and groups celebrates a firm grounding in the basic principles required for achieving an effective and ethical participatory ethos. The findings further point to an array of individual, organizational and wider system benefits accruing from these initiatives. Outstanding benefits include; providing a platform for the realization of children’s rights, propelling active empowerment for participants, and learning outcomes for adults; while consciously challenging the system to effect quality and more child friendly services. Amidst such gains, the ombudsman acknowledges that the promise of participation lies in the power to inculcate within society an all-round value system; that both celebrates children’s competency, and demonstrates genuine commitment to engage with them respectfully as equals. Such a model of participation should not be restrictively interpreted in view of tokenistic information giving and collaborative engagement; when the fundamental premises for according children and young people an equal opportunity to influence the agenda for consultation or other forms of participation largely remain an adult monopoly. Even more pertinent is that participation should not be constructed as a magic wand wielded by adults to exterminate problems in particular situations where the wellbeing of children is threatened. To the contrary, participation must be visibly seen, felt and robustly encouraged in natural settings within which both adults and children are in constant interaction. It must be a norm which all children everywhere can experience for a right, anytime, anywhere. Nevertheless, practical realization of a participatory ethos of this nature in many contexts presents real, conflicting and daunting dilemmas with which both children and adults must collaboratively grapple. In conclusion, this study draws on the pool of benefits reported, to argue the case for establishing independent national human rights institutions for children; and for concerted efforts among duty bearers to develop pragmatic solutions for realizing their participation rights within the diversity of natural settings. This study raises the question on possible mechanisms and responsibility centres to follow-up on the uptake and redress of recommendations by the ombudsman, ensuing from expert meetings and groups. A complementary question is how to achieve a participatory culture described above. Satisfying these dilemmas lay outside the scope of this study, but will nevertheless be important for maintaining the institution’s relevance as a credible voice and watchdog for children’s rights. More importantly, it is a question to which children everywhere merit valid, honest, quick, respectful and uncensored accountability from across civilizations world over

A model of monetary policy in Uganda

The overall objective of the thesis is to model the main channels of monetary policy in Uganda. The aim is to facilitate not only an examination of the state, conduct, transmission, role, effectiveness and long-run implications of monetary policy in the high-inflation developing dual `war-torn' Ugandan economy but also short- to medium- term quarterly macroeconomic forecasting. The shortcomings of the financial modelling strategy and the portfolio balance approach of Tobin and Brainard (1971) are analysed and a new approach is developed. The preference for drawing inference on the `best' specific dynamic simultaneous-equations model, using the more efficient nonlinear 3SLS, is discussed. Bank of Uganda financing of the government budget deficit through Ways and Means advances is examined and the role of the monetary authorities in influencing portfolio behaviour is explored. Further government intervention in determining the structure and level of nominal interest rates and in bridging the gap between the parallel `Kibanda' market and official exchange rates is analysed. An examination of financial sector - real sector linkages is more revealing than an isolated examination of the financial sector based on a quarterly model during 1981 Q1 - 1988 Q1. The external influence of the IMF and the World Bank on monetary policy is quantified. Political and economic regime structural shifts are analysed. In addition to a full multicollinearity analysis, an influential analysis is conducted to locate influential data points corresponding with quarterly IMF Conditionality and the governments' economic policy reforms. The model also captures the balance of payments position, external debt servicing burden and financing gaps. The impotence or adverse nature of most within- and across- equation effects of the policies and reforms reflect the costly mistakes of relying on the IMF global or continent-wide macroeconomic forecasting models and pinpoint monetary targets. It also reflects the underlying structural rigidities in the economy, poor management and other institutional weaknesses. The usefulness of the `best' specific dynamic system derives from the practical use of the quarterly model as an adequate and credible short- to medium- term policy - oriented forecasting device.</p

Saving and borrowing in rural Uganda

Sub-Saharan Africa has languished in recent decades - a period in which countries elsewhere in the world (especially in East and Southeast Asia) have made substantial progress in terms of economic and human development. It is widely recognised that high levels of savings, together with investment in physical and human capital, have been among a number of key factors that have led to such success. Uganda is an economy in sub-Saharan Africa that has shown some promise of success in the 1990s. It has enjoyed macroeconomic stability and a rapid rate of economic growth. However, in some other respects, the country retains features that give cause for concern for future development. Poverty in the rural areas remains widespread, and the domestic savings rate is amongst the lowest in the world. Drawing on the results of a survey carried out in 1997, this paper explores the reasons underlying the persistence of poverty in rural Uganda, and investigates aspects of saving and borrowing behaviour in households. The potential role of microcredit arrangements in alleviating poverty (and in generating a flow of savings) is examined, and the conditions that may favour success in the operation of microcredit schemes are evaluated. <br><br> Keywords; Uganda, sub-Saharan Africa, poverty, structural adjustment, savings, financial markets <br><br> JEL classification: O16