The Punic tombs of the Maltese islands

This study analyzes the distribution of the Punic tombs found thus far in various parts of the Maltese Islands. It also discusses the main burial methods and customs which the natives of these islands practiced in the Punic Period.peer-reviewe

On the Impact of Financial Inclusion on Financial Stability and Inequality: The Role of Macroprudential Policies

Financial Inclusion - access to financial products by households and firms - is one of the main albeit challenging priorities, both for Advanced Economies (AEs) as well as Emerging Markets (EMs), even more so for the latter. Financial inclusion facilitates consumption smoothing, lowers income inequality, enables risk diversification, and tends to positively affect economic growth. Financial stability is another rising priority among policy makers. This is evident in the re-emergence of macroprudential policies after the global financial crisis, minimizing systemic risk, particularly risks associated with rapid credit growth. However, there are significant policy tradeoffs that could exist between both financial inclusion and financial stability, with mixed evidence on the link between the two objectives. Given the importance of macroprudential policies as a toolbox to achieve financial stability, we examine the impact of macroprudential policies on financial inclusion - a potential cause for financial instability if not carefully implemented. Using panel regressions for 67 countries over the period 2000-2014, our results point to mixed effects of macroprudential policies. The usage (and tightening) of some tools, such as the debt-to-income ratio, appear to reduce financial inclusion whereas others, such as the required reserve ratio (RRR), increase it. Specifically, both institutional quality and financial development appear to increase the effectiveness of macroprudential policies on financial inclusion. Institutional quality helps macroprudential policies boost financial inclusion, with mixed effects as a result of financial development, but the results are more significant when we include either institutional quality or financial development. This leads us to believe that macroprudential policies conditional on better institutional quality and financial development improves financial inclusion. This has important policy implications for financial stability

Pleomorphic adenoma of the nasal septum : a case report

Polypoid nasal lesions are commonly encountered in clinical practice and all should be examined histologically. The authors report a case of pleomorphic adenoma arising in the nasal septum in salivary-type tissue. The interest of this case is both in the relative rarity of the condition, and also in its being the first such report in local practice.peer-reviewe

TECHNICAL CHANGE, MARKET INCENTIVES AND RURAL INCOMES: A CGE ANALYSIS OF UGANDA'S AGRICULTURE

In Uganda, as in much of sub-Saharan Africa, poverty is concentrated in rural areas. Because agriculture accounts for a large share of incomes for these households, policies and external shocks that affect agriculture, including shifts in world prices, changes in agricultural productivity, and reductions in marketing costs, may have significant effects on rural poverty. In this paper, we use a Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model of the Ugandan economy, explicitly designed to capture regional variations in agricultural production and household incomes, to examine the implications of these policy changes and shocks. Simulation results suggest that a doubling of area planted to coffee (the government's target) would increase rural consumption by less than 2.0 percent, because of an estimated 10 percent decline in the world price of robusta coffee and an 11.3 percent real exchange rate appreciation of the Ugandan shilling. Smaller productivity increases in food crops may have greater potential to raise rural incomes, provided that markets perform well and producer incentives are maintained. A five percent increase in agricultural productivity raises consumption by 1.3 to 2.1 percent among rural households and lowers food prices by 3.4 to 3.8 percent relative to the CPI, thus benefiting households with high food consumption shares. Reducing agricultural marketing margins by 30 percent leads to increases of 2.3 to 4.1 percent in consumption of farm households, with the largest gains in regions where consumption out of own production is lower.International Development,

Gelatin Properties of Goat Skin Produced by Calcium Hydroxide as Curing Material

Application of strong bases as curing materials has been widely applied in commercial gelatin industries, but the application of weak bases has not been much done. Application of strong bases as a treatment was not economical and assumed to affect human health. Studies were conducted on the properties of goat skin gelatin manufactured using weak base types of Ca(OH)2 and then compared with properties of commercial gelatin. Skins from Bligon goats of 1.5 to 2.5 years old was used as the raw materials and Ca(OH)2 100 g/l as curing materials. The 2x3 factorial completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications was used as a design study. Two curing times (2 and 4 days) and three concentrations (3, 6, 9% v/v) were used as treatments, and commercial gelatin (pure (P) by Merck, food grade (Fg) and pharmacy standards (Ps)) were used as control. Gelatin produced from goat skins using Ca(OH)2 had properties similar to that of commercial gelatin. The heavy metals (Pb, Cu and Zn) contained in goat skin gelatin still meet the INS standards. The optimum production of gelatin has been generated through the application of 4-day curing time at a concentration of 9% (v/v)