Transaction Costs and Cattle Farmers' Choice of Marketing Channels in North-Central Namibia

About 70% of the Namibian population depends on agricultural activities for their livelihood. Moreover, agriculture remains an important sector to Namibia because its national economy is widely dependent on agricultural production. Cattle producers in the Northern Communal Areas (NCAs) have an option to market their cattle via the formal or informal markets. Efforts have been made to encourage producers to market their cattle through the formal market; however, limited improvement has been observed. In this study a number of factors have been analysed to determine its influences on cattle marketing decisions. Factors influencing the marketing decision of whether or not to sell through the formal market are analysed using the Probit model. Factors influencing the proportion of cattle sold through the formal market on condition that a producer uses the formal markets to sell cattle are analysed with the Truncated model. Testing the Tobit model against the alternative of a two-part model is done using Cragg’s model. Empirical results revealed that problems with transport to MeatCo, improved productivity, accessibility to market-related information and access to new information technology, are some factors significantly affecting the decision of whether or not to sell through the formal market. Payment arrangements by MeatCo, animal handling, accessibility to new information technology, age of respondents and lack of access to marketing expertise, are some factors influencing the proportional number of cattle sold through the formal market. The results suggest that substantially more information is obtained by modelling cattle marketing behaviour as a two decision-making instead of a single decision-making framework.Cattle marketing, decision-making, formal markets, transaction costs, Livestock Production/Industries,

Mapping the relationship between knowledge management and information architecture

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 106-115).This dissertation defines knowledge in terms or traditional epistemological ideals and as a strategic resource. Knowledge management is defined in terms or the ability or organizations to manage knowledge as a strategic resource in order to gain all advantage from it. In the knowledge management framework, knowledge is presented as a continuum consisting of tacit, implicit and explicit knowledge. Tacit and implicit knowledge is managed through the acknowledgement of the social nature of knowledge. One method to achieve this is communities of practice. On the other end of the spectrum, explicit knowledge is very close in nature and character to information. Due to the expansion of available information resources the design and structure of information (explicit knowledge) for effective retrieval has become very important. Information architecture is a field that specializes in the design and structure of information for effective retrieval. Traditional information architecture tools such as metadata and subject classification address some of the issues, but experience difficulty in heterogeneous environments such as the Internet. Topic maps are considered as a possible solution to the concerns of metadata classification and subject based classification. Due to the extent and nature of the information recorded in a topic map, it becomes an information resource in itself. Topic maps also act as an enabling technology for knowledge management as it maps the complex relationships between concepts and include a range of information resources. The conclusion of this dissertation is the representation of a conceptual model based on the themes developed in this dissertation. The main advantage of the conceptual model is the clear and direct link between knowledge management and information architecture

A Stochastic Budgeting Analysis of Three Alternative Scenarios to Convert from Beef-Cattle Farming to Game Ranching

The main objective of this paper is to evaluate the profitability and financial feasibility of three alternative scenarios to convert from beef-cattle farming to game ranching. The analyses acknowledge the importance of quantifying the probability of failure or success when making investment decisions. Risk is incorporated into a standard net present value analysis using risk simulation. De-trended historical auction prices of live game and on-the-hoof prices of weaner cattle were used to quantify price variability. The stochastic net present value analyses indicate that game ranching is more profitable than cattle farming. Although an investment in a limited number of common game species is financially feasible, the cash flow analysis indicates a decreasing probability of making more money with game when annual cash flows are compared to those generated by means of cattle farming. Both the high-value game species scenarios are financially unfeasible during the first five years. These infeasibilities stem from a high probability of not covering instalments to finance game purchases, the extent to which these instalments are not covered, and the high probability of shortfalls in consecutive years.Game ranching, profitability, financial feasibility, risk simulation, Agricultural Finance, Farm Management, Livestock Production/Industries,

Die betekenis van ’n radikaal skrif- matige filosofie vir die leyvens- praktyk

[he author’s point of departure is founded on the reciprocation between practical life and Philosophy. He points out the centuries-old distinction and division between theory and practice and rejects it, seeing that it is man who “does thinkingly” and who “thinks while doing”. One’s view of the world, one cosmoscope (which is a nun-scientific vision on reality) constitutes a bridge between religion and Philosophy and can be strengthened after a scientific justification via Ontology from the field of theoretical knowledge. The relationship between Philosophy and practical life has to be determined from the angle of the religious unity of both. Prom this it emerges that practical and scientific knowledge do not differ in terms of worth of content, but only in terms of their own irreplaceable nature. Their basic relationship should then be typified in terms of reciprocal service

Die verbondeling in verband

Daar is dikwels en deur groot outoriteite al geskryf oor die mens in die samelewing. Hier wil ons egter die saak probeer aanraak uit ’n nuwe hoek, veral om die Skrifbeligting van die siening te benader. Vanselfsprekend verg hierdie benaming ’n skrifmatige mensbeskouing, maar ook ’n skrifmatige verbandsbeskouing. Die mens staan egter nie slegs in verhouding tot sy medemens nie maar ook in verhou­ ding tot stof, plant en dier. Boweal staan die mens in verhouding tot God, en hierdie verhouding is deurslaggewend vir al die ander verhoudinge waarin die mens hom bevind. Tog staan die mens ook in verhouding tot homself; wie kan die diepere roersele van die menslike siel peil, wie weet van die wroeginge, vreugde, leed en genot van die mens beter as hyself? Ook hierdie aspek verdien ons aandag. Op volledigheid kan nie aanspraak gemaak word nie, dit is ook nie my bedoeling nie. Die bedoeling is maar om die omvang van die tema aan te dui, die gedagtes te prikkel en veral om aan te spoor tot nuwe denkoriëntering waarin ook terminologies gebreek behoort te word met die neo-skolastiek binne reformatoriese lyn

Tracking the risk factors and impact of an intervention to reduce the spread of the HIV

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 177-184)

'n Prinsipiële begronding van die Apartheidsbeleid

As ons saam ’n paar gedagtes wil wissel oor die prin- sipiële begronding van die apartheidsbeleid, dan is dit seker nodig dat ons in die eerste plek moet kom tot ’n duidelike om skrywing van begrippe. Ons moet m ekaar van die begin af reg verstaan anders sal die bespreking uitloop in ’n Babelse verwarring, aangesien uit verskillende lewens- en wêreldbe- skouing verskillende antw oorde op dieselfde probleem moontlik is. Ons stel dit derhalwe baie duidelik dat ons uitgangspunt die Calvinistiese lewens- en w êreldbeskouing is en dat van hieruit, derhalwe in die lig van die Calvinistiese Skrifinterpretasie, gesoek sal word na die beginsels wat aan die apartheidsbeleid ten grondslag lê. Die moontlike verskilpunte wat mag ontstaan, moet dan na die w ortel toe deurgevors w ord om vas te stel of die standpunte op dieselfde fondam ent wortel. En dan kan gestel word dat die Calvinistiese siening nog maar in sy kin- derskoene staan, dat die Calvinisme vandag ook nog deur- drenk is van nie-Calvinistiese gedagtes en dat die suiwerings- proses ’n taak vir geslagte is. Wat ek gaan aanbied m oet nie as Evangelie beskou word nie, m aar moet gesien word as ’n ernstige poging om uit ons lewens- en w êreldbeskouing te kom tot ’n prinsipiële begronding van die apartheidsbeleid

Lewe, dood en onsterflikheid in die Wysbegeerte

Aangesien Wysbegeerte hom met die werklikheid besig hou, die werklikheid soos dit gegee is, en aangesien alle wysgere deur alle eeue met dieselfde werklikheid te doen het, daarom, omdat lewe, dood en onsterflikheid(?) deel van hierdie werklikheid is,het ook die wysgere deur die eeue heenbespiegelinge oor hierdie aspek van diewerklikheid gehad

Interventions to improve hand hygiene compliance in patient care

Background Health care‐associated infection is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Hand hygiene is regarded as an effective preventive measure. This is an update of a previously published review. Objectives To assess the short‐ and long‐term success of strategies to improve compliance to recommendations for hand hygiene, and to determine whether an increase in hand hygiene compliance can reduce rates of health care‐associated infection. Search methods We conducted electronic searches of the Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, Embase, and CINAHL. We conducted the searches from November 2009 to October 2016. Selection criteria We included randomised trials, non‐randomised trials, controlled before‐after studies, and interrupted time series analyses (ITS) that evaluated any intervention to improve compliance with hand hygiene using soap and water or alcohol‐based hand rub (ABHR), or both. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently screened citations for inclusion, extracted data, and assessed risks of bias for each included study. Meta‐analysis was not possible, as there was substantial heterogeneity across studies. We assessed the certainty of evidence using the GRADE approach and present the results narratively in a 'Summary of findings' table. Main results This review includes 26 studies: 14 randomised trials, two non‐randomised trials and 10 ITS studies. Most studies were conducted in hospitals or long‐term care facilities in different countries, and collected data from a variety of healthcare workers. Fourteen studies assessed the success of different combinations of strategies recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) to improve hand hygiene compliance. Strategies consisted of the following: increasing the availability of ABHR, different types of education for staff, reminders (written and verbal), different types of performance feedback, administrative support, and staff involvement. Six studies assessed different types of performance feedback, two studies evaluated education, three studies evaluated cues such as signs or scent, and one study assessed placement of ABHR. Observed hand hygiene compliance was measured in all but three studies which reported product usage. Eight studies also reported either infection or colonisation rates. All studies had two or more sources of high or unclear risks of bias, most often associated with blinding or independence of the intervention. Multimodal interventions that include some but not all strategies recommended in the WHO guidelines may slightly improve hand hygiene compliance (five studies; 56 centres) and may slightly reduce infection rates (three studies; 34 centres), low certainty of evidence for both outcomes. Multimodal interventions that include all strategies recommended in the WHO guidelines may slightly reduce colonisation rates (one study; 167 centres; low certainty of evidence). It is unclear whether the intervention improves hand hygiene compliance (five studies; 184 centres) or reduces infection (two studies; 16 centres) because the certainty of this evidence is very low. Multimodal interventions that contain all strategies recommended in the WHO guidelines plus additional strategies may slightly improve hand hygiene compliance (six studies; 15 centres; low certainty of evidence). It is unclear whether this intervention reduces infection rates (one study; one centre; very low certainty of evidence). Performance feedback may improve hand hygiene compliance (six studies; 21 centres; low certainty of evidence). This intervention probably slightly reduces infection (one study; one centre) and colonisation rates (one study; one centre) based on moderate certainty of evidence. Education may improve hand hygiene compliance (two studies; two centres), low certainty of evidence. Cues such as signs or scent may slightly improve hand hygiene compliance (three studies; three centres), low certainty of evidence. Placement of ABHR close to point of use probably slightly improves hand hygiene compliance (one study; one centre), moderate certainty of evidence. Authors' conclusions With the identified variability in certainty of evidence, interventions, and methods, there remains an urgent need to undertake methodologically robust research to explore the effectiveness of multimodal versus simpler interventions to increase hand hygiene compliance, and to identify which components of multimodal interventions or combinations of strategies are most effective in a particular context