The Privatization and Project Finance Adventure: Acquiring a Colombian Public Utility Company

Colombia is an exciting new arena for the international practitioner structuring project finance and privatization transactions. The sectors of the economy that are attractive targets for most multinationals (MNCs) entering Colombia are the energy, oil and gas, mining, water, and telecommunications sectors. In most cases, MNCs in these sectors consider investments in Colombia when the Colombian authorities announce a plan for the privatization or capitalization of state-run companies that have a monopoly on business. Often the MNC becomes aware of the privatization, concession, or capitalization project via an official announcement by the Colombian government calling for bids or an invitation informing the MNC that it is qualified for the particular project or a specific aspect of the project. When a client is interested in participating in the bid process, it will most certainly, unless it has participated in other bids in Colombia, approach counsel and its other advisors with assumptions of how the bid should be structured, from both a Colombian and U.S. angle. In these instances, the only option for counsel and other advisors is to listen and take note. The following key questions must be considered under this scenario: what type of restrictions exist under current privatization laws; what form of business association should be used; what is the tax treatment regarding business associations, dividend treatment, technical services and assistance contracts, and repatriation of profits; do foreign exchange regulations hinder the availability of using inter-company loans and foreign currency operations; how should the due diligence review be performed; and how should local counsel be chosen

The Privatization and Project Finance Adventure: Acquiring a Colombian Public Utility Company

Colombia is an exciting new arena for the international practitioner structuring project finance and privatization transactions. The sectors of the economy that are attractive targets for most multinationals (MNCs) entering Colombia are the energy, oil and gas, mining, water, and telecommunications sectors. In most cases, MNCs in these sectors consider investments in Colombia when the Colombian authorities announce a plan for the privatization or capitalization of state-run companies that have a monopoly on business. Often the MNC becomes aware of the privatization, concession, or capitalization project via an official announcement by the Colombian government calling for bids or an invitation informing the MNC that it is qualified for the particular project or a specific aspect of the project. When a client is interested in participating in the bid process, it will most certainly, unless it has participated in other bids in Colombia, approach counsel and its other advisors with assumptions of how the bid should be structured, from both a Colombian and U.S. angle. In these instances, the only option for counsel and other advisors is to listen and take note. The following key questions must be considered under this scenario: what type of restrictions exist under current privatization laws; what form of business association should be used; what is the tax treatment regarding business associations, dividend treatment, technical services and assistance contracts, and repatriation of profits; do foreign exchange regulations hinder the availability of using inter-company loans and foreign currency operations; how should the due diligence review be performed; and how should local counsel be chosen

Locating Malangatana: decolonisation, aesthetics and the roles of an artist in a changing society

This thesis responds to the dearth of detailed studies of pioneering African modernists; and the need for fresh theoretical frameworks for the interpretation of their art. Building on recent scholarship that applies decolonisation as an epistemic framework, it argues that a productive decolonial discourse needs to consider concurrent forms of nationalism and cultural agency in both the anti/colonial and postcolonial periods. Central to this approach is an analysis of the aesthetic responses of artists to the experiences and legacies of colonialism. This thesis is grounded in a study of Malangatana Valente Ngwenya (1936-2011), Mozambique’s most celebrated artist. It draws substantially on archival material and rare publications, mostly in Portuguese. The artist’s career is located within changing social and political contexts, specifically the anti/colonial period, and the promise and collapse of the postcolonial revolutionary project, with the pervasive influence of the Cold War highlighted. Following the advent of globalisation, the artist’s role in normalising postcolonial relations with Portugal is foregrounded. Parallel to his contribution to Mozambican art and society, Malangatana features prominently in surveys of modern African art. The notion of the artist fulfilling divergent social roles at different points in time for evolving publics is linked to an analysis of his emergence as a composite cultural sign: autodidact; revolutionary; cultural ‘ambassador’; and global citizen. The artist’s decolonial aesthetics are positioned in relation to those of his pan-African peers, with four 6 themes elaborated: colonial assimilation; anti-colonial resistance; postcolonial dystopia; and the articulation of a new Mozambican identity. Key to this analysis is an elaboration of the concept of the polemic sign, initially proposed by Jean Duvignaud (1967), adapted here to interpret the artist’s predilection for composite visual signs that, in their ambivalence and often provocative significations, resist processes of definitive translation. It is argued that through a juxtaposition of disparate forms of signs, and the simultaneous deployment of semi-realist and narrative pictorial strategies, the artist develops a complex, eclectic and evocative aesthetic that requires critical and open-ended engagement. The thesis concludes with provocative questions regarding the extent to which the artist’s aesthetics reflect hegemonic national narratives, or act to unsettle these. of a new Mozambican identity. Key to this analysis is an elaboration of the concept of the polemic sign, initially proposed by Jean Duvignaud (1967), adapted here to interpret the artist’s predilection for composite visual signs that, in their ambivalence and often provocative significations, resist processes of definitive translation. It is argued that through a juxtaposition of disparate forms of signs, and the simultaneous deployment of semi-realist and narrative pictorial strategies, the artist develops a complex, eclectic and evocative aesthetic that requires critical and open-ended engagement. The thesis concludes with provocative questions regarding the extent to which the artist’s aesthetics reflect hegemonic national narratives, or act to unsettle these

“Only People Who Know It Here Speak Well of It...”: The Location of Social Housing in Brazilian Cities and Effects of Territorial Stigmatization

In Brazil, social housing estates have acquired a reputation as substandard housing and places of the poor. Throughout the second half of the 20th century, housing policies that were designed on a national and local level focused on the fight against the growth of favelas in Brazilian cities. Often, the inhabitants of favelas were resettled to public housing estates (conjuntos habitacionais) in the urban peripheries where they did not have access to infrastructures and public services. This has contributed much to the bad image of social housing. In their daily life, the residents are subjected to a multilayered process of stigmatization. This article considers a conjunto that was established in the central area of Belo Horizonte in the 1940s. Even though its location brought important advantages, the inhabitants suffer from the stigma of being dwellers of a housing complex (“moradores de conjunto”). By analyzing contemporary sources and oral history interviews, this article aims to contribute to the discussion about the location of social housing in Brazilian cities and the effects of territorial stigmatization. Furthermore, the focus is on recent developments which show that there are several ways how stigma can be reduced or even reversed

RACIONAMENTO DE CRÉDITO NO BRASIL: EVIDÊNCIAS EMPÍRICAS PARA O SETOR EMPRESARIAL NO PERÍODO 2000 - 2005

Uma avaliação empírica da existência de racionamento de crédito, segundo Stiglitz e Weiss (1981), requer o estudo do impacto da política monetária sobre o mercado de crédito, em especial sobre a taxa de juros dos empréstimos. Desta forma, o objetivo deste artigo é analisar as relações dinâmicas existentes entre a taxa de juros praticada pelos bancos nas operações de crédito destinadas às empresas e a taxa de juros do mercado monetário brasileiro com vistas a evidenciar a existência de racionamento de crédito no Brasil. A importância da análise do fenômeno “racionamento de crédito” decorre do fato de que, existindo racionamento de crédito, a política monetária pode afetar o produto real sem grandes mudanças nas taxas de juros. Como resultado, verificou-se que existe uma relação de equilíbrio de longo prazo entre as taxas de juros das operações de crédito destinadas ao segmento empresarial (TAC) e a taxa básica de juros da economia (SELIC) que reflete a Política Monetária na medida em que essas variáveis co-integram. Essa relação de equilíbrio no longo prazo indica que os ajustes nas taxas de juros das operações de crédito decorrentes de alterações da política monetária não ocorrem integralmente no curto prazo, indicando uma certa rigidez dessas taxas. O processo de ajustamento das taxas de juros das operações de crédito rumo ao equilíbrio é lento, precisando de quatro meses para eliminar o desequilíbrio, o que demonstra o seu grau de rigidez, ou, mais especificamente, o seu grau de viscosidade. Essa viscosidade ou rigidez das taxas de juros caracteriza a existência de racionamento de crédito no Brasil.---------------------------------------------An empirical evaluation of the existence of credit rationing, according to Stiglitz and Weiss (1981), requires a study of the impact of monetary policy over the credit market, in special the loan interest rate. Thus, the objective of this study is to analyze the dynamic relations between the interest rate used by the banks on the credit operations for companies and the interest rate of the monetary Brazilian market. The importance of the analysis of the “credit rationing” phenomenon is due to the fact that, existing credit rationing, the monetary policy might affect the real product without significant changes on the interest rates. As result, it was observed that there is a long term equilibrium relation between the interest rates on the credit operations used in business segment (TAC) and the basic interest rates of the economy (SELIC) which reflects the Monetary Policy as long as these variables co-integrant. This long term equilibrium relation indicates that the adjustments on the interest rates of credit operations due to changes in the monetary policy do not occur entirely in short term, indicating some interest rates rigidity. The adjustment process of the interest rates in credit operations towards the equilibrium is slow, needing four months to eliminate the disequilibrium, which shows its level of rigidity, or more specifically, its level of viscosity. This viscosity or rigidity of interest rates characterizes the existence of credit rationing in Brazil.Política Monetária, Controle de Crédito, Política de Crédito, Taxa de Juro, Monetary Policy, Credit Control, Credit Policy, Interest Rate, Financial Economics,

Different adaptation strategies of two citrus scion/rootstock combinations in response to drought stress

Scion/rootstock interaction is important for plant development and for breeding programs. In this context, polyploid rootstocks presented several advantages, mainly in relation to biotic and abiotic stresses. Here we analyzed the response to drought of two different scion/rootstock combinations presenting different polyploidy: the diploid (2x) and autotetraploid (4x) Rangpur lime (Citrus limonia, Osbeck) rootstocks grafted with 2x Valencia Delta sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) scions, named V/2xRL and V/4xRL, respectively. Based on previous gene expression data, we developed an interactomic approach to identify proteins involved in V/2xRL and V/4xRL response to drought. A main interactomic network containing 3,830 nodes and 97,652 edges was built from V/2xRL and V/4xRL data. Exclusive proteins of the V/2xRL and V/4xRL networks (2,056 and 1,001, respectively), as well as common to both networks (773) were identified. Functional clusters were obtained and two models of drought stress response for the V/2xRL and V/4xRL genotypes were designed. Even if the V/2xRL plant implement some tolerance mechanisms, the global plant response to drought was rapid and quickly exhaustive resulting in a general tendency to dehydration avoidance, which presented some advantage in short and strong drought stress conditions, but which, in long terms, does not allow the plant survival. At the contrary, the V/4xRL plants presented a response which strong impacts on development but that present some advantages in case of prolonged drought. Finally, some specific proteins, which presented high centrality on interactomic analysis were identified as good candidates for subsequent functional analysis of citrus genes related to drought response, as well as be good markers of one or another physiological mechanism implemented by the plants. (Résumé d'auteur

Study of the efficacy of Korean Red Ginseng in the treatment of erectile dysfunction

Aim: To examine the treatment efficacy of Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) in impotent men with erectile dysfunction (ED). Methods: A total of 60 patients presenting mild or mild to moderate ED were enrolled in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study in which the efficacies of KRG and a placebo were compared. the patients received either 1 000 mg (3 times daily) of KRG or a placebo. Results: the five-item version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) score after the treatment was significantly higher in the KRG group compared with that before the treatment (from 16.4 +/- 2.9 to 21.0 +/- 6.3, P 0.05). in the KRG group, 20 patients (66.6%), reported improved erection, significant in the global efficacy question (P 0.05). Conclusion: Our data show that KRG can be an effective alternative to the invasive approaches for treating male ED.Univ São Paulo, Div Urol Clin, Sector Sexual Med, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Discipline Urol, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Discipline Urol, São Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc