Hazard Perception and Demand for Insurance Among Selected Motorcyclists in Lagos, Nigeria

This study examines hazard perception effects on the demand for insurance withspecial focus on motorcycle riders in Lagos state. For this purpose, the researchershave been able to examine selected hazard perception determinants and theireffects on the insuring attitude and desire of motorcycle riders. An explanatoryresearch design was employed and a convenience sampling type of the nonprobabilitysampling technique was adopted.  Data was gathered by interviewsconducted at motorcycle parks along the Lagos-Badagry expressway.  The sampleconsisted of 126 respondents made up of commercial motorcycle riders within thesample areas. Data collected was analysed using multiple regression technique.The study was able to establish some level of contributory linkage between hazardperception and demand for motorcycle insurance. The findings show that whiledread and trust both appeared to have significant effect, publicity and controllabilityboth have positive contributory effect; furthermore, choice expressed an inverserelationship with demand for insurance among the motorcycle riders. The studytherefore recommends pre-loss and post-loss measures among the motorcycleriders so that unforeseen motorcycle risks can be managed. Also, insurancecompanies should endeavour to invest more on enlightening the motorcycle riders in order to lessen their dread of loss outcome, and thus, design policy that can instil trust in motorcycle riders in insurance as a loss control measure

What are the Determinants of Working Capital Requirements of Nigerian Firms?

The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of working capital requirements of thirty non-financial firms listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange between 2004 and 2011. Panel data methodology was employed and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) used as estimation technique. The Working capital requirement (firm’s net working capital deflated by total assets) was used as dependent variable. Regression results reveal that five explanatory variables- firm’s leverage, size, industry classification, return on asset and operating cycle are significant factors that determine the firms’ working capital requirements for the period under study. The outcome of this study supports the findings of some previous studies and is also consistent with financial theory. Keywords: Working Capital Requirements, ROA, Leverage, Size, Pecking Order, Nigeria.

Knowledge sharing behaviour by librarians in federal universities in Nigeria

The ongoing debate in the international community’s is on the evaluation of knowledge sharing and its impact on organisational effectiveness. Librarians play a pivotal role in helping the university to realise the objective of teaching, learning and research. Librarians provide access to information resources and services to support the vision and mission of their parent institution. Knowledge are being created daily in organisation, hence, they should be shared. Although, there have been researches on knowledge sharing by librarians in Nigeria but the focus have always been on sectional part or on one or two geo-political zones, without national study as scope of study. This study therefore investigated knowledge sharing by librarians in federal universities in Nigeria. The population of study comprised 654 librarians from 40 federal universities in Nigeria. A total enumeration technique was used to cover 654 librarians. The descriptive statistics was employed for data analysis. 518 respondents filled and returned the questionnaire, given a response rate of 79.2%. The results revealed that the level of knowledge sharing by librarians is high ( =98.47. SD =11.54). The channel of knowledge sharing by librarians varies significantly from face-to-face to the use of social media. Significant difference exists on knowledge sharing by librarians based on the universities. The study concludes that librarians are not only knowledge managers but also knowledge disseminators. Therefore, library administrators should establish as well as formalised knowledge sharing hours in the library so that the culture of knowledge sharing can be maintained among the librarians. Recognition and incentives be given to librarians who share knowledge so that they can share more knowledge

Management Accountants’ Functions and Control System in Informal Sector’s Business Decisions in Nigeria

This paper examined the effects of Ownership-Controls and Management Accountant(s) functions indecision making process of informal businesses (SMEs) in Osun State of Nigeria. Disparity cases that areoften experienced by Management Accountants on decisions and that of business Owners in informalbusiness sectors – One-man businesses, partnership businesses and other private companies necessitate thisstudy. Many Accountants in the informal business sectors are suffering from a lot of hardships through self - designed decisions usually imposed by business Owners at the expense of information generated throughcalculated parameters on business decisions. The study used both Simple Percentage Method andDescriptive Data Analysis Method (DDAM) to evaluate 10 informal businesses in Osogbo, the capital city ofOsun State of Nigeria. The study revealed that most informal Businesses failed due to the fact that Ownersare always ignoring the advice of Management Accountants in vital business decisions. The paperrecommends proper utilization of MCS principles in line with information supplied by ManagementAccountants in both formal and informal sectors of Nigeria economy so as to aid the function and servicedeliverance potentials and subsequent improvement in SMEs results in Nigeri

Self-efficacy, Information Accessibility and Utilization as Determinants of Creativity of Managers in Packaging Companies in Nigeria

This paper investigated self-efficacy information accessibility and utilization as factors determining creativity of managers in packaging companies in Nigeria. The research design adopted for the study was survey method. The study population comprised 540 managers in eleven packaging companies in Nigeria. The questionnaire was used to collect data from the 540 managers out of which 485 responded and valid for analysis given a response rate of 89.8 percent.The study revealed that self-efficacy, information accessibility and utilization had significant positive correlations with the creativity of the respondents. In addition, self-efficacy, information accessibility and utilization were found to be significant determinants of creativity of the managers in the packaging companies in Nigeria.It is therefore recommended that the Board of management in these companies should give much attention to self-efficacy, information accessibility and utilization when planning to improve the creativity of their managers. They should endeavour to encourage their managers to make intensive use of information and have wide access to available information resources internally and externally for better creativity. Keywords: Self-Efficacy, Information Accessibility, Information Utilization, Managers, Packaging Companies, Nigeria

Efficacy of Different Rates of Formulated Neem Seed Oil and Frequency of Application on the Control of Flower Thrips Infesting Early Maturing Pigeonpea Cultivar in Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria

Thrips (Megalurothrips usitatus Bagnall) population dynamics on early maturing pigeonpea flowers was carried out in the Postgraduate Teaching and Research Farm, Department of Crop Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Owerri Imo State beginning from May 2009, 2010 and July 2010. In this study, thrips (M. usitatus) population management using formulated neem seed oil (F-NSO) at different doses and spraying frequencies was examined. The experiment was laid out in 3 x 5 factorial comprising three rates of neem seed oil, 2 ml (4.2l ha-1), 4 ml (8.3l ha-1), 6 ml (12.5l ha-1) with 0ml (0l ha-1), and synthetic pyrethroid (cypermethrin) 0.72 ml (1.5l ha-1) as check plots and three intervals of application: once a week, once in two weeks, and once in three weeks. Results from formulated neem seed (F-NSO) control measures showed non-significant (p<0.05) effect on the population of M. usitatus even at higher dosage of once a week 2 or 3 weeks of spraying in a four spraying regime. The application of synthetic pyrethroid (SPY) at once a week in a four spraying regime affected significantly (p<0.05) the population of M. usitatus on the flowers of early maturing pigeonpea. Keywords: Improved pigeonpea, Thrips, flowers, population, formulated neem seed oil, rates, and frequencies

Bidirectional Synchronization of Two Identical Jerk Oscillators with Memristor

In this paper, the case of introducing memristor as a coupling component when synchronizing two identical simple chaotic oscillator (3-D Jerk equations) were observed. Also, the numerical simulation of the phase portraits are in good agreement with the MultiSIM and experimental simulations. Due to the complex chaotic dynamics of this oscillator, the realization of the electronic circuit involving two identical Jerk oscillator with memristor as coupling component were synchronized via bidirectional coupling and further applied to secure communication

Socio-Economic and Environmental Impact of Indiscriminate Burials on Property Transactions in Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

Throughout history, almost all societies have employed different practices of disposing off the dead and one such form is cemetery or burial ground. In the western part of Nigeria, tradition demands that chiefs are not buried in public cemeteries but in secret locations preferably at home.  However, this practice have been flawed and currently, not only chief are buried at home but anybody.  Corpses are now buried indiscriminately in homes, front and back gardens without any recourse to the effect this practice have on the environment. . In view of the foregoing, the study delved into the socio-economic and environmental impact of indiscriminate burial within residential neighbourhood on property transaction in Ado- Ekiti, Western Nigeria. Questionnaire were structured and administered on tenants, landlords, government officials and professionals alike. Stratified sampling technique was adopted in that the city of Ado-Ekiti being the state capital was found suitable and was subsequently divided into the twelve political wards.  Two Hundred and Fifty (250) questionnaire were administered. Emphasis was played on buildings with evidence of tomb. Research findings proved that this practice was rampant especially in the core of the city and that no official (Planned) cemetery could be identified. The study identified the following demerits: environmental degradation; difficulty in land acquisition for public use; property devaluation; spiritual and psychological disturbance. Some of the coping measures suggested include: need for official provision of cemetery by government agencies, religious bodies and social organizations; need to enact enabling laws; public enlightenment and appeals and government at various levels to be more involved in the provision of mass housing to aid easy implementation of basic environmental laws among others Keywords: burial-ground, environment, indiscriminate, property value, socio-economic

Schematic Structure of National Data Harmonization System for Identity Management

Imagine a web-application in which a user can query varieties of information about an individual (like name, age, state of origin, driver’s license number, national identification number, etc.). This information would be stored on different databases, each having its own schema. Often times, these resources are replicated in different locations and on different platforms. Hence, the need for data harmonization or integration. Data harmonization addresses this issue by considering these external resources as materialized views over a virtual mediated schema resulting in “virtual data integration”. When mediated schema is queried, the solution transforms the result into appropriate queries over the various and existing data sources. This paper focuses on data harmonization that cuts across different governmental database and incorporating them all into a centralized view and this is possible as a result of development and implementation of a webbased databank application