Methodology (guide 1000) †Research Design Essay

The current study employs a descriptive-comparative design, with nutrition knowledge, lifestyles, and health behaviours being compared. The scores of the two groups (normal weight and obese groups) were analyzed using the Chi-square to determine if they had a relationship with being obese. Tthe study is descriptive in nature as frequencies, means, and frequency distributions were computed to describe the samples used in the study. Samples and Sampling Plan Hong Kong residents between 18 to 40 years old is the population for this research study. Since the total population for the survey is very large, due to time limitations a sample size of 60 was taken for the survey, with 30 allotted to the normal weight group and the rest to the obese sample. Purposive sampling method is adopted for this research. The selection of employees for the experimental group was made on the basis of their participation in the stress management workshop. To ensure the effectiveness of the study, employees belonging to all levels of management, service time, sex groups and age are selected to participate in the survey. There shall be two samples used in the study, namely, 1) normal weight group and 2) the obese group. Both groups shall be chosen using purposive sampling. Purposive sampling is a popular research recruiting method, as the sample size does not have to be determined at the beginning of the project. It is also an advantage for this study, as the sample size will be constrained by time and available resources (Mack, Woodsong, MacQueen, Guest & Namey, 2005). This study will make use of purposive sample to select respondents. This was based on respondents’ willingness to participate and being available during the period to complete the surveys. Informed consent need to be taken into consideration at the start of any research project. Consent is about participants making a reasonable choice to take part in the study, and, as such, their aspirations need to â€Å"fit† with the goals of the research (Mason, 1997). The researcher will ensure that the participants were fully informed. In addition the researcher discussed the potential consent form with their supervisor and colleagues. This will highlight to the researcher potential ambiguities in meaning, confusing sentences and missing information that are likely to invalidate the measures (Patton, 2000). Informed consent requires the awareness of the researcher that participation is dependant on an individual’s understanding of the goals of the study, and what is expected of the participant. Informed consent will ensure respect for the dignity of the participant (Mack et al. , 2005). Coercion into participation will be avoided at all costs, as the study requires that participation be voluntary (Mack et al, 2005). Thus, informed consent was to ensure the well being of participants as its priority. Additionally, participants would be made aware that their responses would directly contribute to a sharing of knowledge on nutrition knowledge, lifestyles, and health behaviours among Hong Kong residents. In addition, respondents will be reassured that the data collected would be kept confidential. No incentives will be provided for participation in this study. Results collected from the final analyses will be made available to respondents on request. Procedure The respondents who are legible for participation were contacted to ask for their permission in participating in the study. They were sent formal letters or emails indicating this purpose. Calls were made to these individuals to confirm their willingness to participate in the study. This study is meant to research on nutrition knowledge, lifestyles, and health behaviours of normal weight and obese individuals in Hong Kong. The primary source of data is the responses to a questionnaire (see Appendix A). A preliminary study is done on the responses collected from 5 respondents. The questionnaire was then altered based on their suggestions. During pilot testing, wording of some questions is improved to make it more understandable to the respondents. Some questions were eliminated from the questionnaire and new questions were added on the basis of the respondents’ comments. The process was repeated once again to arrive at the final questionnaire to be used on the sample. The data collection period occured over a period of 15 days. The research hypotheses were not divulged rather respondents were only informed that the study aims to determine differences in nutritional knowledge, lifestyles, and health behaviours between normal weight and obese individuals, and so contribute to research on this topic. It is anticipated that respondents are less likely to guess the hypotheses, and so less likely to exhibit socially desirable responses in order to â€Å"please† the investigator. Respondents were called to administer the survey via telephone. Each respondent was told that the completion of the survey will take about 10 minutes and they were asked to email a signed consent form if he is amenable to the terms of participation. In all cases, consent forms were printed and stored separately to consent forms, and each questionnaire booklet was identified only with a respondent number. On completion of the study, respondents were thanked, and were briefly informed of the study’s hypotheses. Respondents were also informed that the results of the study will be made available to them on request following submission of the final thesis. References Adamson, A.J.,  Rugg-Gunn, A.J.,  Butler, T.J.,  & Appleton, D.R. (1996). The contribution of foods from outside the home to the nutrient intake of young adolescents.   Journal of Human nutrition and Dietetics, 9(1), 55-68 Department of Health, Hong Kong. (2006). Obesity. Retrieved on October 20, 2006 from http://www.dh.gov.hk/english/main/main_chp/surveil_pr_dig_kncd_obesity.html.

A Critical analysis of The film “Platoon” Essay

The Vietnam War was on everyone’s mind in 1960s and 1970s in our country. It was the center of much of America’s troubles during this time, but only the soldier’s who fought in that war knew the true madness that was Vietnam. Oliver Stone began writing Platoon because the Vietnam War was â€Å"a pocket of our history nobody understands.† (Schuer t24) Platoon is a movie which should be viewed by everyone, not only for its cinematic qualities but for its historic insight as well. Platoon is an Orion Pictures production, filmed in 1986. Written and directed by Oliver Stone it tells the gruesome story of a Vietnam War not known by the American public. Tom Beringer, who plays the experienced Sergeant Barnes, was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category along with Willem Defoe who plays Sergeant Elias. Charlie Sheen plays Chris Taylor, an idealistic student who had dropped out of college, joined the army, and volunteered for Vietnam. His idealism and view of war in general rapidly change during the course of the film. The character is based off the director Oliver Stone, who dropped out of Yale to join the war effort. Chris and the rest of the soldiers are unaware of what they are getting into and are given little time to prepare. â€Å"Trapped in the cage of front-line life, living (if they’re luck) from moment to moment, values that apply elsewhere fade out for Barnes and others† (Kauffman 24). While serving his time Taylor experience the war in its full spectrum, from the homesickness and the comradery of the men to the nightmares of battle. Read Also:  Critical Evaluation Essay Topics The enemy is the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong but you rarely view them except as shadowy figures in the jungle or momentarily illuminated by the light of a flare. There are no defined battle lines and the combat scenes lead you to believe that the enemy is everywhere. The line between good and evil is blurred or nonexistent in this film. Sergeant Elias is portrayed as a caring, intelligent leader who escapes reality through the use of drugs. His nemesis, Sergeant Barnes, is portrayed as an efficient fighting machine who will stop at nothing to get the job done. You soon realize that he, too, is just doing everything to ensure his own survival. Platoon shows how the War affected the soldiers, and how none of them felt  that they were fighting for a reason. The film shows the Vietnam experience from the average soldier’s point of view. In the beginning Chris Taylor is very ignorant and his chances of survival are slim. The movie went beyond just showing battles, with the showing of the moral dilemmas that the soldiers faced. The film does not in any way glorify the war in Vietnam. It is a gritty look at what the soldiers endured while serving their country. The men in the platoon come from all walks of life and all over the country. However they all share the same desire to serve their time and get as far away from the fighting as possible. There is not one soldier in the jungle whose mind is not irrevocably warped by the ravages of war. Some critics complain that the character development in the story is weak and there is no plot. J.P. Stern of U S News and World Report states that â€Å"The Central Plot tension – the battle for a young private’s soul between a â€Å"good† sergeant who has retained humanity and a â€Å"bad† sergeant who has become a killing machine is not very tense.† However, the introduction of the entire cast in the film is what sets the film apart from others like it. There are no real heroes in this movie and no real villains. There is just a group of frightened men fighting for survival in their own ways and counting the days until they can leave the country. Nearly the entire film is set in a very thick jungle with tall grass and a beautiful landscape. All of the soldiers are forced to walk through thick jungle with biting insects, and hidden trip wires. The camera is always moving to give a sense of confusion and disorientation. Shots of wounded men screaming and constant gunfire makes you feel like you are in the middle of it all. The violence and paranoia that plagued the soldiers are constantly evident.†Complaints about the violent nature of his work elicit from Stone what might be called the journalist’s defense that’s just the way it is. (Ansen 56) In order to accurately tell the story Stone could pull no punches. Platoon was instantly acclaimed upon it’s release as the first truly authentic look at Vietnam since the end of the war. It was nominated for many academy awards including, best picture, best film editing, best sound, best director, best cinematography, best writing, and best supporting actor. The film won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best film editing, best sound,  and best director. Richard Corliss of Time Magazine states that â€Å"Stone’s film is a document written in blood that after almost 20 years refuses to dry.† Yet behind all of the prestige and awards it was given, Platoon holds an underlining message. â€Å"Charlie Sheen is America in its innocence, and the jungle is the dark, confused mystery that the war remains for us twenty years later† (Evans 78). Platoon is more than just a gory war movie; it is a realistic look at world that we would never want to experience. Works Cited 1. Ansen, David. â€Å"A Ferocious Vietnam Frenzy† Newsweek 5 Jan. 1987: 57. 2. Corliss, Richard â€Å"Platoon† Time Magazine 26 Jan. 1987:54-61. 3. Kauffmann, Stanley. â€Å"An American Tragedy† The New Republic 19 Jan. 1987: 24-25. 4. Schuers, Fred. â€Å"Soldier’s Story† Rolling Stone 29 Jan. 1987: 22+. 5. Stern, J.P.. â€Å"Parable in the Jungle† U S News and World Report 2 March 1987: 78.

Sati & Sutee Tradition in India - History of Sati Tradition Research Paper

Sati & Sutee Tradition in India - History of Sati Tradition - Research Paper Example Hinduism contains a collection of scriptures written for over four thousand years. Among these writing, discrepancies on widow burning led many to exalt the act while others condemned it in the name of religion. During Vishnusmriti, widows were provided with two options: celibacy or immolation. The Ninayasindu later declared sati as a widow’s essential duty; so did the Puritans of the 6th century. These texts went further to elaborate on how the act was to be performed. In the years that followed, religious leaders and followers deified women who sacrificed themselves and became sites. Regardless of the religious interpretation of the act, the practice became deeply embedded in Indian culture. This presented new challenges to people trying to eradicate it. In addition, the social value accorded to widows who sacrificed themselves presented more barriers. Widows were perceived as worthless, with very low social status making a life for them unbearable. Widows who did not want to go ahead with the practice were coerced, physically forced or threatened onto the pyre. In many cases, the male relatives played a significant role in a widow’s decision to pursue sati. The demise of sati is attributed to British ruling during the 19th century. The British colonialist had refrained from interfering with Indian tradition, culture, and practices. The British rarely tried to enforce change in Muslim or Hindu practices. The governor general to India, however, in the 19th century wondered whether the British government should take measures to eliminate static.

The Importance of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings Essay

The Importance of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings - Essay Example Angelou at first made a decision to create the autobiography because very few had been published for young African American girls in America. She aimed to show to her fellow people that in spite of the hindrances and the miseries they suffered, there was an overflowing wit and love to be felt and experienced in the African American society (Elliot 1989). Certainly, the narrative has a quite definite importance for young African American girls. This essay will attempt to provide an account of the importance of Maya Angelou’s highly celebrated autobiography. Oprah Winfrey, in her interview with Angelou in 1993, explained how significant the story was to her because she was able to see her own experience in the narrative (Megna-Wallace 1998). However, in spite of her novel objectives, Angelou discovered that when she started writing the narrative her audience and thoughts transformed (Megna-Wallace 1998): â€Å"I saw it was not just for black girls but for young Jewish boys and old Chinese women† (p. xii). The fame of the autobiography survives not merely because it keeps on being instructive on subjects of gender and race, but also due to its complete story of survival. This importance of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings deals with the general and specific components of the autobiography of Angelou. It starts with an emphasis on the literary components of the narrative: its main themes, setting, plot, genre, perspective, and others. This literary importance sketches the journey of Angelou from a timid, anxious, and lonely girl to an adolescent who endures countless frustrations and pains and becomes known as a self-sufficient and confident young woman. The importance of the narrative involves particular topics raised by the story and the specific historical event it depicts. An importance such as this presupposes that a literary piece like I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a vibrant tale of not only a single

Short written presentation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Short written presentation - Assignment Example The housing market was not unaffected with foreclosures, evictions and the resultant massive unemployment. The crisis contributed to the failure of many businesses, it reduces the consumer earnings and a reduction of overall economic activity (Anon, 125). The current European debt crisis is attributed greatly to this crisis with countries affected taking austerity measures that have had far more adverse effects on the citizens of these countries. This paper analysis how the crisis led to decreased lending and how this affected the economy. During the summer in 2007, the lending market experienced drastic disruptions with the market for asset-backed commercial disintegrating while the interbank market stagnated. The financial crisis created a fright that led financial institutions to seek to run through other financial institutions as a way of mitigating the escalating financial risks. These institutions suffered greatly when the lenders increased their lending requirements as a way o f reducing lending. The banks hoarded liquid asset as a reaction to a number of factors. One, there was a rising concern solvency of these interbank operations. Moreover, the banks were experiencing an increase in the risk of their asset collection. Moreover, they could predict a risk related to draw-down of a long line of committed credit. Besides reducing lending, the banks used several other measures to management liquidity. These range from one bank to another depending on the pressure they felt for having liquid assets. During the crisis, the banks increased their liquid asset by selling assets such as government securities and treasuries. This enabled them to accumulate huge reserves in the central bank which was lucrative as they would earn huge balances from the large reserves. The banks also invested more in mortgage backed securities from Fredie Mac and similar banks whose security was guaranteed by the government (Anon, 1230. The liquidity hoarding was seen to be common a cross all banks irrespective of their sizes. The reduction in lending was seen to be different on the local and foreign banks. The foreign banks reduced lending compared to the local banks. This is because; the financial shock such as the one that was experienced has been seen to transmit negative effects to the foreign subsidiaries. A research conducted showed that there was no decrease in lending in both local and foreign banks in the fiscal year 2008 to 2009 (Anon, 69). This could be probably because the effects of the crisis had just started to be felt. However, in the following fiscal year, foreign lending was seen to have reduced by 5% more than the local banks. This is a reason why foreign investment across Europe reduces at a greater rate compared to local investments. The effects of the crisis are still being felt by banks around Europe and the globe in general. Banks have been restricted to in order to improve their immunity against the effect of such crisis. This is eithe r through government conditions or the banks initiatives. The banks have also been forced to adapt to the changing economic climates. They now have to deal with a shrinking economy in the advanced economy and increasing economic opportunities in the emerging economies such as China. It is evident that the decrease in lending has a detrimental effect on investment. This is because with reduced lending or greater credit requirements, investors will shy away for making investments. The uncertainty of the market also discourages

Management (definition) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management (definition) - Essay Example The perspectives hence interpolate the events in the organization for instance rules and regulations, trade unions, conflicts differently, (Dale 2001). The unitary organization is viewed as being harmonious and integrated whole unit just like a united family. The management and the rest of the staff members all shares a common goal and they lay a lot of emphasize on cooperation that is mutual. This perspective approaches the organization paternally where it requires all the employees to be loyal. 1. This perspective approaches the organization as a one harmonious and integrated entity. This makes the employees feel wanted by the organization. They hence develop a lot of commitment, derive job satisfaction from what they do and this in the long run increases the organizational productivity. The organization life is mutual and people are friendly towards each other, (Mark 2001). 2. The organization is guided by a common objective. This is very advantageous as all the members of the organization including the management and staff cohesively works towards the attainment of a common goal which is unanimously agreed upon by the two parties as a whole. There is therefore the spirit of togetherness in the every day life of the organization. 1. ... The trade union serves as a representative of the employees to the employer and assists the employees in making trade agreements, in collective bargaining and negotiations. In a unitary organization therefore, the employees are not represented and their voice is not raised. They remain loyal to the organization and cooperate with the management, (Hoyer 2001). 2. Organizational conflicts are perceived to be disruptive to the normal running of the organization. They are associated and are said to result to the breakdown in communication, friction between individuals, and agitation. By shielding the organization from healthy conflicts, this perspective bars the organization from realizing the benefits of a healthy conflict. Healthy conflicts keep the employees and the management as well informed on the general feeling of the organizational issues. The conflicts also bring home the various points of views from the different people in the organization. 3. The organization only recruits employees who do not demonstrate a pluralistic character. This blacklists potential employees from working in the organization. In regard to this, the organization may leave out the best talent. This may affect the firm's productivity as well as the life of the organization. The pluralist perspective From this perspective, the organization is viewed as having divergent and powerful sub-groups of which each group has its individual loyalties that are legitimate, set objectives as well as its own leaders. These sub-groups primarily are the employees and the management, (Thomson and Rampton 2003). Advantages The responsibilities or the management lessens since all the management does is co-ordinate the employees in the organization as well as the organizational life. The burden

MS Project and Team Leadership Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

MS Project and Team Leadership - Assignment Example Identifying and eliminating unnecessary spending is the need of the hour and can take us back on track. Together we need to explore all possible avenues to limit spending and even change the financial strategies if required. As you all know failure to stick to the budget can seriously hinder the project and have negative effects on the organization as well. Usually high performance is linked with increase in productivity and better and speedy results. A high performance team is one in which every member strives to achieve better results, is capable of solving problems faster and readily adapts to change. On the other hand, one poor performer in a team can take the whole team down and lower the productivity (De Dreu & Weingrate, 2003; Shepperd, 1993). It is said that the performance of an employee depends directly on motivation and the attitude of the employee (Akanbi, 2011). Sometimes an otherwise capable team member underperforms because he is uncertain of his roles and responsibilities and does not know what is expected of him (Coutu, 2009). This lack of clarity reflects on the work. In such cases the leader should explain the role clearly and then discuss with the team member what the priorities should be. Leaders can help such team members through consistent feedback. Feedback helps the team members to identify their goals and direction. For instance in case of this project, if the team member is not clear about the overtime policies than the overtime plan he designs will not be acceptable. Lack of motivation is another reason why a team member may underperform (Davidson et al, 2005). In such cases the underperformer can be improved through carefully targeted training. The leader must understand that no two employees can be motivated the same way. Some team members get motivated when treated as an equal. Leaders can motivate such team members by

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy Term Paper

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy - Term Paper Example In this sense, Dr. Thunder can be asserted as being a low-involvement brand. There have been no major advertising campaigns run by Wal-Mart to market Dr. Thunder as a brand. For this reason, the recommended marketing strategy is a newly developed. The reason behind developing a new marketing strategy for Dr. Thunder is to highlight the subliminal attraction of the brand, as the brand name is similar to internationally popular Dr. Pepper. Market Size, Performance and Growth From the review of U.S Census on the size of the market segment to which the marketing campaign of Dr. Thunder would target, it has been found that the marketing campaign would target around 3 million Americans. Over the past 10 years, it has been noticed that the target market segment has grown for about 7.7% (United States Census Bureau, 2013). Moreover, the target segment would expand by another 8.9% in the coming ten years. Upon understanding the dynamics of soft drink industry in USA, it is found that the foll owing three factors have an impact on the consumer behavior of this industry: 1. The top most influential factor in this regard is health concerns amongst consumer circles. Consumers perceive that carbonated or fizzy drinks have wrong affects on their health and thus avoid drinking soft drinks at all or usually purchase these drinks. 2. Size and design of the packaging also influences consumer behavior. If a soft drink is offered in a glass bottle, it is not possible for customers to take it home or travel along with a bottled soft drink. On the other hand, a canned or plastic bottled soft drink would be seen as facilitating and thus consumers would prefer to purchase it. 3. Lastly, the soft drink industry in the world is perceived as the most competent and saturated industry. Presence of single handedly market share sweeping companies like Pepsi and Coca Cola makes it difficult for other brands to survive in the market (Mise, Nair, Odera, & Ogutu, 2013). Reference Group and Diffusi on of the Marketing Campaign Soft drink brands are usually more popular amongst younger target audience. For this reason, it can be asserted that the most influential reference group for Dr. Thunder would be the social circle of teenagers. As the majority of the US population is comprised by young generation, and the social circle of young audience is identified as the most influential reference group, it can be suggested that a marketing strategy focused on targeting a younger audience would achieve the quickest diffusion rate. Moreover, adopting a deterministic model would help Wal-Mart to the state of acceptance by a particular segment of buyers of Dr. Thunder and overcome the flaws in production and marketing strategies. The diffusion determinants pertaining to Dr. Thunder are the perceived health advantages to customers, low riskiness in purchase, easy to use packaging of the drink and ability to quench thirst (Saha & Theingi, 2009). Diffusion Enhancement Strategy To enhance th e diffusion rate for Dr. Thunder, the marketing strategy would primarily target college and school students. Moreover, the target audience belonging to the age bracket of 25-30 years would also be focused in the marketing strategy. To attract the attention of the target audienc

Researching and Developing a New Business Venture Essay

Researching and Developing a New Business Venture - Essay Example The paper also focuses on the micro level evaluation of the restaurant industry, with the help of Porter’s five forces model. Subsequently, the paper accentuates on the micro-level restaurant industry evaluation, with due consideration to the economic viability of the restaurant business model. The paper further confers the mission and the aspiration of the team. Finally, the paper concludes with the discussion of the rationale for the attractiveness of the new venture and cites reasons for the same. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Introduction 4 Micro-Level Market Assessment 5 Macro-Level Market Assessment 7 Macro-Level Industry Assessment 8 Micro-Level Industry Assessment 10 Team Assessment 13 Summary and Conclusions 15 References 16 Bibliography 19 Introduction The paper comprises of a customer feasibility assessment for setting up an Afro-Caribbean restaurant in Allerton, a suburb in Liverpool, United Kingdom. The paper initially focuses on the micro-level assessment of the market for the restaurant. This assessment is focussed on identifying the target market segment for the Afro-Caribbean restaurant, its size and growth opportunity. The assessment also accentuates on the needs of the target group and the suitability of the restaurant’s cuisines in meeting those needs. ... Conclusively, the paper discusses the rationale for the attractiveness of the new venture and cites reasons for the same (Mullins, 2007). Micro-Level Market Assessment The potential target market for an Afro-Caribbean restaurant in Allerton, Liverpool would be the British Afro Caribbean community and other ethnic groups residing in the area as well as the British population who have a liking for Caribbean foods. The total population of Allerton has been estimated to be around 30,000 (VDC Group, 2011). It has been observed that a decent magnitude of ethnic population resides in the Allerton region and its vicinity. Bernstock (2007), had stated in his study on the meal preference of Afro-Caribbean people that a clear correlation could be identified amid the African-Caribbean populace interviewed and their consumption preference, with an obvious inclination for Afro Caribbean cooking. This was despite the fact that there have been considerable cultural and social changes that has been o bserved amongst the Afro Caribbean population in the United Kingdom over the years (Caterer and Hotelkeeper, 1986). Additionally, the rapidly increasing statistics of ‘Black and Minority Ethnic’ restaurants imply that there is huge potential for a restaurant business, catering Afro Caribbean foods (Bernstock 2007). This is particularly true for Allerton because this neighbourhood of Liverpool does not have any prominent eatery dedicated solely to Afro Caribbean cuisines. During the recent years, a significant market has emerged for the category of cuisine, often referred as the ‘ethnic’ food. The augmented production of ethnic food in the UK lately is partially a response to the expanding group of African and other Ethnic communities in the UK. However, the growth in

International Economic History Since 1870 Essay

International Economic History Since 1870 - Essay Example The industrial and manufacturing base was strengthened with electrification and military expansion contributing towards strengthening the country’s economy through the development of a strong domestic base. The strength of Japan’s institutions played a significant role in the strength of its economy, so that even after the Second World War and subordination to the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, Japan was able to re-emerge as one of the strongest economies of the world (Allen 1981). Japan’s economy has demonstrated a remarkable rise as compared to other countries, and the period of significant economic growth has been marked by three spurts in growth in the 1910s, the 1930s and 1960s. There have been several reasons that have been proffered for the meteoric economic rise of Japan. Perhaps this can best be summed up in the words of one Japanese economist, â€Å"Japan is an example of a fantastically creative response to defeat†¦.[which] brought about †¦.a far greater scale of devastation in the economy of Japan, necessitating a fresh renovating start in almost every aspect.† (Tsuru, 1993, p 67) The long period of Tokugawa rule could be viewed as an isolationist state, or as some researchers have postulated a period of peace and stability that fostered initiatives by the State to improve economic conditions within the country (Ohkawa and Rosovsky, 1973). During the period of enforced isolation, the economy of Japan was inextricably linked with politics and the culture of the shogun and daimyo ensured that a strictly regulated internal system flourished within the country, which enabled sustained domestic growth. The role of the State in fostering economic growth has also been supported by Mosk(2001) and Minami (1994), who have highlighted the achievements of the Togukawa era , when there was a high level of urbanization

Control being over business by government Essay Example for Free

Control being over business by government Essay What are the arguments for and against, greater control being exercised over business by government? How do these arguments differ between the countries of the group members? We would like to start the answer by an example of USA when they were heavily involved in the industrialization and expansion. People of all different occupations were involved in some part of the industrial revolution. However there was a debate over the government intervening in the building of infrastructure. Chief Justice John Marshall made many landmark court decisions which played a role in defining the business climate that developed during the industrial revolution and strengthened the central governments control over the business. Thus finally the government was involved in the early stages of the industrial revolution. The governments decision of this era laid the ground work of the future U.S. growth of the nation. Without these pro-business decisions, the United states would not have made the change from being agriculturally dependent to the industrialized nation it is today. [www.historyteacher.net/USProjects/myessay21.htm] Hence it sounds better in some situation and it doesnt in some. For example in China, local governments stand passively by as private firms aggressively reject long-standing official right because the government officials in south China are increasingly anxious to shed their responsibility for economic management. Also they fear the risks and dangers associated with the more complete market system that has emerged during the 1990s. As a result, Chinas southern provinces have already begun the process of separating government from business, while, in the north, leading officials emphasize the slogan separate government from enterprises but, fearing slow growth, practice the opposite. [www.pitt.edu/~tgrawski/paper98/china.html] To what extent do you think a change of government in a) UK would affect the business community? b) the countries of group members? It can have a great impact on businesses in UK or in other countries like India, China etc. For example: Regulatory systems can be improved to provide faster access to exploration land and clarification of aboriginal disputes, taxes such as corporate taxes, income taxes etc can be reduced, Business leaders can hope for a complete overhaul of the resource-rich provinces economic structure, Economic growth can be affected by change in government, it is expected that the new government can come up with creative solutions on how to reduce government indebtedness during its term, the new government will aim to solve deficit of balance of payments by boosting production through attracting direct foreign investments, also new government can change the manufacturing scenario in the country like instead of importing products, they can plan to manufacture in their own land which will indirectly reduce the unemployment in the manufacturing field. Also it can provide grant to those regions in which unemployment is high. [http://www.rba.hr/web/pdf/rrr/rba-rrr-012-2003-12-18.pdf] What are the implications of privatising a public sector business organisations? With privatization programs still active in several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, there is a growing debate on effects on economic development. To address such issues the representatives of privatization agencies of different nations established the African Privatization Network (APN) in November 1995. APN aims at promoting the concept of privatization and encouraging its implementation in African countries by sharing legislation and other relevant documentation; studying the nature and scope of privatization in each country according to its special circumstances and needs; and monitoring the process of privatization in Africa, identifying problems and obstacles and offering advice where required. The positive view of privatization suggests that it went ahead, in spite of domestic opposition, because politicians and bureaucrats perceived real benefits to themselves and their supporters. They could influence the sales to their own benefit, while, on the other hand, a more focused public sector improved service delivery. A well functioning private sector is essential for increasing economic growth and thus reducing poverty. Yet international development institutions recommend sophisticated policies to improve the business environment that governments in developing countries cannot successfully implement. The result is often a worsening of private sector performance. The promotion, support, financing, marketing and management of small and medium sized enterprises and industries is the core business of any privatisation programme. [ http://www.developmentgateway.org/node/130679/]

When primary participants talk to interpreters Essay Example for Free

When primary participants talk to interpreters Essay To be realistic about an interpreters role, we can examine several more examples of the way speakers interact and take turns. In this first example, І look at Ð ° turn in which Ð ° primary participant speaks directly to the Interpreter. Because examples from this case study corpus are relatively limited, І will add another example that appeared in an interpreter membership association newsletter, interpreters complain frequently about the propensity of primary participants to address utterances directly to interpreters. They imply that the primary participants should know better; they should know that interpreters only relay messages; they do not answer or speak directly to participants. Interestingly, their complaints seem to focus on the participant who is the professional or institutional representative, generally Ð ° speaker of Ð ° majority language, not the citizen or client, who speaks Ð ° minority language. Asking Ð ° question or speaking directly to an interpreter affords an opportunity to study the interaction around this dilemma, to examine different responses, and to learn whether primary participants are confirming or denying the role performance of the interpreter. S: FILMING? pointing at the researcher FILMING? І: [to the researcher] FILMING? Are you filming? R: yes І: YES [to the Student] The Student wants to know if filming has begun so he poses the question to the Interpreter. The Interpreter then asks the Researcher (who understands ASL) first using ASL, and then asking in English. Because the camera lens was fogged and the Researcher could not see clearly (Ð ° problem that cleared up), she did not respond to the signed utterance. When she heard the question, she answered in English, and the Interpreter relayed the answer to the Student. Although the Interpreter does relay this query from the Student, he is supposed to relay this question to the Professor as the other primary participant. In interpreting ideology, interpreters are not supposed to answer direct questions; rather they should pass on the question to allow the primary speaker to answer (see Metzger 1995: Chap 5). The Researcher is an ancillary participant who is supposed to be ignored because she is filming the event. But the Interpreter did relay the question on to Ð ° participant other than himself. That leaves two questions to be asked: To whom was the question directed? Why didnt the Interpreter relay the question to the Professor? Let us begin with the second question. The Interpreter did not relay the question to the Professor because she was answering the telephone and was speaking to the person who called. In conversational interaction, one primary participant can be called to attend to other matters or conversations, Ð ° perfectly ordinary occurrence in interaction. For example, when І accompany my mother to the lawyers office, the lawyer occasionally interrupts the meeting to answer Ð ° phone call or conduct Ð ° side conversation with his secretary. While he is engaged, my mother and І talk over what she and her lawyer are discussing or something else entirely. In this interaction, when the Professor is otherwise engaged, the Student can and does ask the Interpreter Ð ° question about the other activity at the meeting. So the Interpreter does not relay the question to the Professor because the question was not directed at her. Now lets consider the first question: To whom was the question directed? Because the Student could see the Professor uses the phone and because he asked the Interpreter, rather than turning around and asking the Researcher, and simply pointed in the direction of the Researcher, the question seems to be directed at the Interpreter. Most likely, the Student thought that the Interpreter could answer because video cameras generally have lights that come on when filming my point here is that Ð ° primary participant spoke directly to the Interpreter when the other primary participant was not attending to the interaction and had absented herself from the interaction with the Student. Participants act and react to interpreters as potential conversational partners and seem unaware that the task of interpreting should preclude treating an interpreter as Ð ° potential interlocutor. To primary participants, then, it must seem natural, even ordinary, to interact with interpreters as capable human beings who can answer and ask questions. This might suggest to interpreters that primary participants are never going to act as though interpreters are not also real participants in the interaction. It also suggests that interacting directly with an interpreter does not come about arbitrarily, but rather because of other social norms that govern interaction when Ð ° primary participant is interrupted and moves the focus off the reason and purpose for coming together. My next example is drawn from an article in Views (January 1998), the newsletter of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Ð ° North American association of sign language interpreters. In this article, the author presented an example similar to the previous one: Ð ° primary speaker asks an interpreter Ð ° question. The situation was Ð ° doctors office where Ð ° Deaf patient was being examined. During the examination the doctor turns to the interpreter and asks, How did you get into the field? Is sign language hard to learning? The dilemma presented to readers was that the interpreter was asked Ð ° question by the doctor but was not sure how to handle this situation or who should answer the question. The author suggested that determining Ð ° solution is Ð ° matter of ethics and that knowing ways of solving ethical dilemmas assists interpreters, particularly beginning interpreters, in arriving at good solutions. Although І agree that student interpreters should be trained to solve ethical dilemmas, under the scrutiny of discourse analysis, this particular phenomenon might not be an ethical problem but rather an ordinary happenstance in the interactional process of discourse. We can begin by noting that no other information is provided about the meeting and its progress. The doctors question is presented in isolation. As the preceding example demonstrated, it matters what the other participants are doing. We do not know what the patient is doing, what was said prior, or what is said afterward. This is the point about studying interpreters in actual interaction. Utterances do not arise on their own but are created in and reflected by the ongoing situation, and understanding or interpreting utterances is based on and is particular to that context. The patient could be changing clothes, could be having her temperature taken, or could be in the bathroom. The next thing to consider is that whether or not people are engaged in purposeful activity that may have serious consequences, such as Ð ° medical exam, they also monitor relationships, attitudes, and feelings. When doctors examine patients, it is not out of the ordinary to engage in small talk which seems to put everyone at ease. Nor is it unusual, when patients are unavailable for conversation, for doctors to engage in brief conversations with other person(s) in the room. Once, while my teenager was having her temperature taken, Ð ° doctor turned and began chatting with me about the extreme heat we were experiencing that summer. In general, all the participants engaged in interaction are available for conversation (Goffman 1967). In some ways, professionals, such as doctors and lawyers, experience Ð ° sense of being hosts within their spaces and thus attempt to acknowledge all the participants within the space, either by conversation or nonverbally.

Humanism and the Baroque Periods of Art

Humanism and the Baroque Periods of Art Humanism, specifically during the Renaissance, was a huge movement towards the human mind as a whole and how individuality in expression of thoughts and ideas was celebrated. Tradition was not something to be blindly followed anymore. One might argue that humanism played the biggest role in creating the Renaissance. This was because of the huge focus on studying Roman and Greek texts, which gave a new outlook on their modern world focused on the human ability. Painting was influenced by humanism by becoming more realistic while also keeping forms classic. It also heavily focused on the human experience. The two paintings I found to show this well were The School of Athens by Raphael and The Tribute Money by Masaccio. In The School of Athens it is clear education is the main theme, which makes sense because humanism during that period had a lot to do with educating and thinking for yourself. The Tribute Money portrays a biblical scene in which Jesus performs a miracle to satisfy the t ax payment. It has multiple things going on from the story at the same time and the people are all doing different things. They are both great examples of focusing the attention towards everyday life. You can also see that, in every person depicted, they have a mind of their own. They look in different directions and are carrying out different actions, there is no one true center focus. Secularism and naturalism can be seen throughout Renaissance art as well. There is less focus on church scenes and more focus towards the outdoors and creating an environment of the world. They aimed for accuracy in the paintings as well, which can be seen especially well in The Tribute Money. If you look towards the feet there are cast shadows and the lighting is used to create a much more realistic scene had there not been shadows. What can also be seen is the movement of the people depicted, except for Jesus, which sets the scene as more of a photo in time instead of a perfectly posed scene that w as recreated. The Baroque period was started around the 1600s. It is thought to be that the most important pieces of history relating to the Baroque period were the reformation and the Counter Reformation. The Catholic Church declared at the Council of Trent that art was to depict religious ideas and themes. It focused on the most dramatic point in the story, compared to Renaissance art which focused more on a casual portrayal of the scene. Baroque art is very dramatic and uses light to dramatize the scene even more. The technique used, in reference to the lights and darks, is called chiaroscuro. It used harsh lights and dimly lit scenes to make the painting even more dramatic. The color use was also very dramatic, although they might not be bright the emotional appeal behind colors was used to help stimulate and evoke emotion in the viewer. The common themes behind Baroque art were visions, ecstasies, death, and overall intense moments. One big difference in style between Baroque and Renaissance art is that the planes and depth in Baroque is much more limited than in Renaissance which had clearly defined planes and objects or people in the planes. Renaissances use of perspective gave them realism, which didnt allow the emotion that was trying to be depicted. It fell a bit flat, but Baroque came along and solved this issue by their use of style and lighting to bring back the emotion that was lost in the Renaissance period. Two pieces of art from the Baroque period that showcase this are The Ecstasy of St. Teresa by Giovanni Bernini and The Conversion on the Way to Damascus by Caravaggio. The Ecstasy of St. Teresa held a very common theme in Baroque art, a meeting of the divine and human. The sculpture is of the moment St. Teresa recalled an angel coming down and piercing her with an arrow of love. The way light is used on the sculpture is Baroque in every sense, from the light coming down from a yellow tinted window above and wooden rods falling from behind being lit the sam e. The Conversion on the Way to Damascus is a great example of how Caravaggio used light and dark to create drama and emotion. It is a dimly lit scene with harsh light coming from out of view, lighting one side of the horse and Paul, while the man in the back is slipping away into the darkness. John Donne was known for his unusual style in writing. He had abstract verses, weird lengths, and often confusing metaphors. Although he went against the grain of writing at the time, he was given a better appreciation in later times. His unique style stemmed from religion and lust. He expressed both in a way those had not done before him, and it worked. I read that he was an Anglican minister, which gave his many contradictions live. His life was a bit of a contradiction seeing as he wrote about the physical nature of life and death while also weaving spirituality into his poems. Thomas Wyatt, on the other hand, took much of his ideas from Petrarch, although he did write poems of his own. They were more consistent in style. All of the sonnets we read by Wyatt were octaves followed by a sestet, and he had consistency in most of his writing. This is unlike Donne who was sporadic and had little continuous style. One thing they had in common was their impact on the poetry of their times , both could be called innovators. The poems of Donne were also livelier in the sense that they had more emotion. They both had poems dealing with thoughts that might run through your head at certain times in your life, which I enjoyed. Wyatts poems were more pleasing to me, aesthetically, because I can enjoy poems more when they have a consistent theme and style. His writing is very similar, and I was able to get more into it when I was able to understand the rhyme scheme. His theme behind his sonnets that we read was dealing with love and a loss of love. I was able to understand these even more as well because, as most everyone, has loved and loss that love at some point in their life. Not specifically a romantic relationship but any relationship allows you to feel those emotions and they are powerful, which made me enjoy them more. Aesthetics, to me, is almost indescribable. It is all around us, beautiful and appreciative. What makes it interesting is everyone views and appreciates the visual and literary arts in their own subjective way. It brings up questions that are hard to answer. What is beauty? These questions are what made aestheticism a movement to begin with. To find something aesthetic is to have a sense of beauty and emotion, the art itself provokes emotion within. To me, an artwork that sticks out as aesthetic are sculptures, specifically marble. David by Michelangelo is what stands out to me the most. When I saw the David in person, I was not stuck pondering the idea or sitting there thinking purely intellectually about the statue, but instead had this emotion fill me that almost made my jaw drop. The sheer size alone had me breath taken and in awe. I think what makes something aesthetically important to me is the understanding of the time and craftsmanship it took to create it. The David is 17 fe et tall and pure marble. Michelangelo took more than two years to create it as well. All that I learned after, which made it even more appealing, but even in that moment I knew there was something beautiful and great about the piece. It is hard to describe why I liked it so much at the time, but I think that is why some of the beauty in art is so amazing, an indescribable appreciation and affection for the piece. It can be a different piece or everyone, which Im sure will be seen by the responses to this question. Aesthetics of art is beautiful because of the subjectivity it innately has within. Whatever you are to find beautiful is justified, even if no one else does.

I am going to discuss is Kindertransport and my own piece The adoption :: Drama

I am going to discuss is 'Kindertransport' and my own piece 'The adoption' Danielle Grennan May2003 Performance Evaluation =============================================== The work I am going to discuss is 'Kindertransport' and my own piece 'The adoption'. I saw 'Kindertransport' in October 2002 at the Redbridge Drama Centre; my own piece was devised and performed in May 2003 also at the Redbridge Drama Centre. Both pieces have very similar themes about mother and daughter relationships and the difficulty of giving children away. Although both pieces are set in different periods of time. The theme of mother and daughter relationship is not very comprehensible so it is quite hard to act. My contribution to 'The adoption' was the part of the daughter, Clare Andrews, I had to be very aware of what a child of 11 would of felt like finding out she was adopted and had been lied to by the main person in her life. It was quite a difficult part to play and I personally feel I did not do it justice partly because of the time we had to prepare the piece and I did not learn the part as much as I would of liked to. I looked for articles on the Internet about mothers who have lost their daughters as part of my presentation. I also played a clip from 'Buffy the vampire slayer' showing this issue. I found many articles about this subject and they helped me to understand the emotions and anxieties of mothers who have lost their daughters. I think it did support our piece because by giving it more realistic feelings and emotions felt by mothers. Our piece was set in the modern day and 'Kindertransport' was set in the 1930s and modern day. Both pieces were about having to give your daughters away for various reasons. In 'Kindertransport', due to the historical background, the mother had to give her child away for its own safety because it was the time of the Holocaust. In our piece the mother had to give her daughter away because of her age and her parents. But in both pieces both mothers come back for their daughters and they chose to stay with their adoptive mothers. The characters in our piece were just general middle class people in modern times dealing with this hard but common issue. The characters in 'Kindertansport' were very different, the real mother and daughter are Jewish German citizens trying to escape the Jewish persecutions and the adoptive mother and the daughter's daughter are just modern day middle class people similar to the characters in our piece. This was shown by accents for the different nationalities.

Free Essays - I Havent Got a Dime for College :: College Admissions Essays

I Haven't Got a Dime for College Growing up I've met the best of people and I've met the worst of people. My father has always been my hero. He loved, provided for and took care of two children and a sick wife everyday for twenty years. I look at his picture in my wallet each day and wonder if I can ever measure up to him. I thought my cousin had agreed to lend me $15,000 so that I could attend a decent college. I agreed to sign a promissory note. I showed up at the New City Brewery to sign the papers and pick up the check. I read the paper. It said for $30,000 I was selling him my interest in a vacation cabin our grandmother bought fifty years ago. The check however was only for $15,000. "I don't understand." I pushed back his Mount Blanc pen and the unsigned contract. Bill folded his arms. "In 1956 your father borrowed $6,000 from my father and I want it back." He flashed a mean smile that I hadn't seen since 1957 when the bank took away my family's house. My father took me to my cousin's house to ask for his outgrown clothing for me. That day my cousin handed me a book along with some clothes from his hamper and gave me this same vicious smile. The book was "The Prince and The Pauper". My father worked sixty hours a week for the next fifteen years paying off debts and sending his children to college. He stopped paying old debts when my mother's medical bills made that impossible. He died a few years later. I've missed him every day. I hadn't used that small cabin at the lake in a decade.

Tariffs and the War on Terrorism :: Terrorists Terror September 11 Essays

Tariffs and the War on Terrorism In March 2002, the Administration of the President of the United States under George W. Bush placed a rigorous tariff on imported steel. The United States uses the protective tariffs important for two reasons, according to a press release by the Administration1. One reason is to expand the domestic economy that has, according to some experts been in a â€Å"slump† or â€Å"retraction† since spring 2001. (It was even more â€Å"aggravated† by the events of September 11) Second, to protect important-Union based steelworker jobs in the United States. The steelworker jobs are key to the â€Å"National Security of the United States†2, according to the Bush Administration. Despite Federal Reserve Chairman of the Board, Alan Greenspan, stating later in the month that the US economy was â€Å"well under way into expansion†3, the Bush Administration saw an absolute need to put into action the tariffs. The steel tariffs are going to largely affe ct many nations that are supporting the US in the â€Å"War against Terrorism†, as well as the US relations in these nations. By taking into account historical occurrences, expert analysis based on economics, and scholarly study it can be concluded that these tariffs have the potential to encompass diverse effects on the US and the alliance it has in the â€Å"War against Terrorism†. History has witnessed tariffs to have varied affects on the events that are associated with conflicts and wars. Tariffs are designed to â€Å"protect domestically made products and for the state that uses them to collect specific commodities† 4. M.J Daunton, in a The English Historical Review article5, points to the conflict amongst the European alliances and the reasons for the First World War being indirectly based on tariffs. The pre-First World War alliances were based on both security and industrial purposes. When the alliance that was set up amongst the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, it was largely because of the resources of production and the agreements that were arranged between corporations and industries in the countries. Germany, for example, had a highly advanced steel industry and used many resources that came from the Austrian-Hungarian Empire as well as the Asian-Mediterranean Ottoman Empire. Rivaled by the Britis h and the France to their west, these countries saw â€Å"open-trade† with these competing countries as being harmful to their domestic economies and industries.

Physically Visiting the Markets and Use of Telephone/Mobile Phone

Marketing of Major Fish Species in Bangladesh: A Value Chain Analysis a power of fishries industry loaded with more documents Physically visiting the markets and use of telephone/mobile phone are the common sources of collecting market information for all value chain actors. Fellow traders are also a source of market information for the value chain actors except processing plants. Processing plant and LC paikers mainly depend on email/internet to obtain market informationMd. Ferdous Alam Research Fellow, Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia Md. Salauddin Palash Assistant Professor Department of Agribusiness and Marketing, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh Md. Idris Ali Mian Professor, Department of Agribusiness and Marketing, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh Madan Mohan DeyProfessor, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, USA November 2012 _____________________________________ A report submitted to Food and Agriculture Organization for the project entitled A Value-chain Analysis of International Fish Trade and Food Security with an Impact Assessment of the Small-scale Sector Marketing of Major Fish Species in Bangladesh: A Value Chain Analysis Table of Contents Section |Section title |Page | | |Glossary of terms |iv | | |Abbreviation |v | | |Weights, Measures and Conversions |v | | |Local and Scientific names of the species of fish considered |v | | |Acknowledgements |vi | | |Executive Summary |vii | | 1 |Introduction †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |1 | | 2 |Statement of the Problem †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |2 | | 3 |Methodology †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |3 | | 4 |Results and Discussion †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |5 | | 4. 1 |Overview of fish marketing practices †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ | 5 | | 4. 1 |Buying and selling †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |5 | | 4. 12 |Grading †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |10 | | 4. 13 |Storage †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |11 | | 4. 14 |Transportation †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |11 | | 4. 15 |Financing †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |13 | | 4. 6 |Market Information †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |15 | | 4. 17 |Packaging †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |16 | | 4. 18 |Pricing †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |17 | |4. 2 |Fish Marketing Channels †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |17 | |4. 3 |Characteristics of Market Participants †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |21 | |4. 4 |Value addition costs by different actors †¦ †¦ †¦ â € ¦ |23 | |4. | Marketing Margin †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |28 | |4. 6 |Distribution of Value Addition Cost and Net Profit †¦ †¦ †¦ |32 | |4. 7 |Intermediaries Share to Consumers’ Taka †¦ †¦ †¦ |33 | | 5 |Conclusion †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |34 | | |References †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |39 | List of Tables Table |Title of tables |Page | |1 |Distribution of samples from different areas †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |5 | |2 |Percent of tilapia fish transacted by value chain actors †¦ †¦ †¦ |6 | |3 |Percent of Rohu fish transacted by value chain actors †¦ †¦ †¦ |6 | |4 |Percent of Catla fish transacted by value chain actors †¦ †¦ †¦ |7 | |5 |Percent of Pangas fish transacted by value chain actors †¦ †¦ †¦ |8 | |6 |Perc ent of hilsha fish transacted by value chain actors †¦ †¦ †¦ |8 | |7 |Percent of shrimp transacted by value chain actors †¦ †¦ †¦ |9 | |8 |Sources of finance of major carps, pangas, and tilapia fish |14 | | |Farmers and intermediaries †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ | |9 |Sources of finance of hilsha fish Farmers and intermediaries †¦ †¦ |14 | |10 |Sources of finance of shrimp farmers and intermediaries †¦ †¦ †¦ |15 | |11 |Sources of market information for Farmers and intermediaries †¦ †¦ |15 | |12 |Pricing methods followed in selling fish in Bangladesh †¦ †¦ †¦ |17 | |13 |Total marketing cost of different intermediaries involved with major carps, pangs and tilapia marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |24 | |14 |Total marketing cost of different intermediaries involved with hilsha marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |25 | |15 |Total marketing cost of different intermediaries involved with shrimp marketing†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ | | | | |27 | |15 |Total marketing cost of different intermediaries involved with shrimp marketing (continued) | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |27 | |16 |Marketing margin of Aratdar involved with major carps, pangs and tilapia marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |29 | |17 |Marketing margin of Inter-district Paiker involved with Pangas fish marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |30 | |18 |Marketing margin of Paiker involved with major carps, pangas and Tilapia marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |30 | |19 |Marketing margin of Retailer involved with major carps, pangas and tilapia marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ 30 | |20 |Average net marketing margin of different intermediaries for major carps, pangas and tilapia fish | | | |m arketing in Bangladesh †¦ †¦ †¦ |31 | |21 |Average net marketing margins of different intermediaries involved with hilsha fish marketing | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |31 | |22 |Average net marketing margin of different intermediaries involved with shrimp marketing in Bangladesh | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |32 | |23 |Percentage distribution of value addition cost and profit by intermediaries and fish marketing system| | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |33 | |24 |Share of intermediaries to in consumer’s Taka according to distribution channel †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |34 | List of Figures Figure |Title of figures |Page | |1 |Mode of transport used by farmers and intermediaries for movement of major carps, pangs and tilapia | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |11 | |2 |Mode of transport used by farmers and intermed iaries for movement of Shrimp †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |12 | |3 |Mode of transport used by farmers and intermediaries for movement of Hilsha †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ | | | |†¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |13 | |4 |Value chains of major carps, pangs and tilapia | | | |in Bangladesh †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |18 | |5 |Value chains of hilsha in Bangladesh †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |19 | |6 |Value chains of shrimp in Bangladesh †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |20 | |7 |Components of costs for carps, pangs and tilapia †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |26 | |8 |Components of costs for Hilsha †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |26 | |9 |Components of costs for Shrimp †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |26 | List of Boxes Box |Title of Boxes |Page | |1 |Gradin g practices of different species of fishes †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |10 | |2 |Packaging practices of fish marketing in Bangladesh †¦ †¦ †¦ †¦ |16 | Glossary of Terms |Arat |Generally an office, a store, or a warehouse in a market place from which an Aratdar conducts his | | |business | |Aratdar |Main actor in the fish distribution system.An Aratdar arranges or negotiates sales for the sellers | | |on a commission basis. He often acts as a wholesaler. He is also a main provider of fisheries credit | | |to the fishers | |Paiker/Bepari |A Paiker is a middleman in the fish marketing chain; often covers the assembly function in the chain,| | |acting as Dadandar at the same time; depending on the location sometimes also referred to as | | |wholesaler or retailer. They are also called Bepari |Nikari |A Nikari is an informer middleman who does not have the ownership of fish but sets a bridge between | | |buyers and sellers and receive commission from Farme rs and fishers | |Faria |Farias are intermediaries usually operating in the hilsha marketing process who purchases small | | |quantity of fish from fishermen far away from the market and carry it to the terminal point and sell | | |it to Aratdar or retailer | |LC Paiker |These intermediaries purchase hilsha fish from fishermen through Aratdar and export to overseas | | |market. They are authorized LC (Letter of Credit) holder to export. | |Account Holder |They are intermediary and operate in the shrimp supply chain. They act as the commission agent and | | |constitute the major profit making actor in the shrimp value chain. Account Holders are very powerful| | |as they are the party who supply shrimp to the processing plants. Processing plants are made to buy | | |shrimp from the Account holders only. |Dadan |This is a kind of loan given to the fishermen by Aratdars and mohajans (traditional money lenders) | | |on condition that fish are required to be sold to them compulsorily. Som etimes prices are | | |predetermined | |Koyal |Koyals are persons who conduct the auction for the Aratdars. They organize the auction by offering | | |initial price of the lot to the assembled buyers. They then loudly inform the prices offered by the | | |buyers before the auction participants. The process is repeated by them until final price is fixed | | |up. | Abbreviations Acronym |Full title | |FAO |Food and Agricultural Organizations of the United Nations | |DoF |Department of Fishery | |ADB |Asian Development Bank | |FGD |Focused Group Discussions | |LC |Letter of Credit | |NGO |Non-government Organizations | |Tk |Taka, Bangladesh Currency | |USDA |United States Department of Agriculture | Weights, Measures and Conversions Exchange rates (Jan 2011) 1 US dollar ($) = Tk75. 00 1 Maund = 40 Kg Local and Scientific names of the species of fish considered Local name | Scientific name | |Rohu | Labeo rohita | |Catla | Catla catla | |Pangas | Pangasius hypophthalmus | |Tilapia | Ore ochromis nilotica | |Hilsha | Tenualosa ilisha | |Giant Tiger Shrimp | Penaeus monodon . | |Giant River Prawn | Macrobrachium rosenbergii | |Vennamei (whiteleg) shrimp | Litopenaeus vannamei | | | | AcknowledgementsThe authors wish to thank the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and Norwegian Agency for International Development (NORAD) for the technical implementation and funding respectively of the project entitled â€Å"A Value-chain Analysis of International Fish Trade and Food Security with an Impact Assessment of the Small-scale Sector†. We are also grateful to Dr. Audun Lem, Senior Fishery Industry Officer, Policy and Economics Division, Fisheries and Aquaculture Department of FAO, Rome, for providing overall administrative support in conducting the project activities. The authors express sincere appreciation to Professor Dr.Trond Bjorndal, Director, CEMARE, the University of Portsmouth, UK for his keen interest in this value chain paper. His critical comments and professional suggestions have been highly helpful in organizing the paper. Prof. Dr. Daniel V Gordon of the University of Calgary, Canada deserves appreciation for his suggestions and comments during the value chain study workshop held in Japan, which helped the authors to organize the paper. The authors express sincere appreciation to the graduate students of the Faculty of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, for conducting the field surveys in various fish markets.The opinions of the participating members of the focused group discussion conducted in Khulna have been highly valuable and the authors thank them for their input. The different fish market intermediaries, who by sacrificing their valuable time, participated in the survey are also highly appreciated. Finally, the first author expresses deep sense of gratitude to the Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies and the Universiti Putra Mal aysia for approving him to be involved in this project. Executive Summary Background of the project Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations is implementing a research project entitled a value-chain analysis of international fish trade and food security with an impact assessment of the small-scale sector with the financial support of NORAD.The objective of the project is to achieve a better understanding of the dynamics of relevant value-chains in international fish trade and arrive at policy recommendations. The project aims at analyzing the distribution of benefits in the value-chain and the linkages between the relative benefits obtained as well as the design of the chain. The project also aims at making comparisons between domestic, regional and international value-chains with the view to understand better how developing countries can increase the value derived from their fishery resources. Twelve countries (10 developing and 2 developed countries) are parti cipating in this project including Bangladesh. This report is based on the cross section component of the value chain analysis of Bangladesh fish marketing. Objectives of the studyThe study addresses the overall fish marketing system of Bangladesh with particular emphasis to the extent of value addition during the process of marketing of rohu, catla, pangas, tilapia, hilsha and shrimp. The specific objectives of the study are to: i) identify different marketing channels and intermediaries involved therein and their roles in fish marketing, ii) determine the extent of value addition in terms of costs in successive stages of fish movement, and iii) determine marketing margins of the intermediaries. A related, complementary study deals with price transmission mechanism across seafood value chain in the country (Sapkota-Bastola et al. 2012) Location of study and dataThe study is conducted in i) Trishal, Bhaluka and Muktagaca upazila (sub-district) under Mymensingh district of north-cent ral Bangladesh, ii) Dupchacia sub-district under Bogra district of northern Bangladesh, iii) Dumuria sub-district under Khulna district of southern Bangladesh, iv) Sadar sub-district of Chandpur district of south-central Bangladesh, and v) Jatrabari area of Dhaka district. A combination of participatory, qualitative and quantitative methods is used for primary data collection. Total sample size of the study is 200 comprising of 35 Farmers, 75 brokers and marketing agents, 5 depot owner, 2 processing plants and 73 retailers. Value chains (marketing channel) The longest supply chain involves six intermediaries for live Pangas (fish farmer, nikari, paiker, aratdar, retailer and consumer).Two supply chains identified for carps and tilapia involve five intermediaries (fish farmer, aratdar, paiker, retailer and consumer) and 4 intermediaries (fish farmer, aratdar, retailer and consumer) respectively. Supply chain of hilsha comprises of six intermediaries, namely fishermen, aratdar, paiker , aratdar, retailer and consumer for the distant domestic market. Two other identified channels for hilsha marketing involve respectively five intermediaries (fishermen, aratdar, paiker, retailer and consumer) and four intermediaries (fishermen, aratdar, retailer and consumer) for the local markets. The overseas hilsha marketing channel involves four intermediaries namely, fishermen, aratdar, LC paiker and overseas consumers.Domestic supply chains for shrimp marketing involve four intermediaries (shrimp farmer, aratdar, retailers and consumer) for local market and five intermediaries (shrimp farmers, aratdar, paiker, retailer and consumers) for distant markets. Three overseas supply chains are identified for shrimp marketing. The involved intermediaries are at most six, namely, shrimp farmer, aratdar, bepari, account holder, processing plant and overseas consumer. Characteristics of intermediaries Fish farmers and fishermen are the first link in the fish marketing channels. They are the supplier of fish to the market. Nikari (informer) is a middleman who does not have the ownership of the product but establishes a bridge between buyers and sellers and receive commission from farmer @0. 50 Taka/kg in the study areas in case of major carps.Faria, another type of intermediary, is found in hilsha marketing system who purchases a small quantity of fish form fishermen far away from the market and carry it to the terminal point and sell it to aratdar or retailer in the study areas. Paiker or bepari handles large volume of fish. They purchase fish from fish farmers at farm or through aratdar in the local market and sell them to the retailers through aratdar or commission agent in secondary market. LC paiker (licensed trader/exporter) purchase hilsha fish from fishermen through aratdar and sell (export) their entire product to overseas market. Aratdars negotiate sales of fish on behalf of the producers/ seller. Aratdars arrange selling of fish through an auctioning sys tem and receive a commission. Aratdars often act as a supplier of dadan.Shrimp depot owners are the permanent shopkeepers having their own premises and staffs in markets and act as the middle functionary between farmers and commission agents. Their shops (establishments) are called ‘Depot’. This group of traders mostly offers dadon – cash as loans to farmers, in return for buying the shrimp at a pre-fixed price, which may be well below the market level. Account holders act as the commission agent and constitute the major profit making actors in the shrimp value chain. They finance paikers and farmers and give credit to the processing plants. Retailers, the last intermediaries of fish marketing channel, do not have any permanent establishment but they have fixed places to sit in the market places or wandering with hari (aluminium pot) on head from door to door. Buying and sellingFarmers (producers) sell 5-12% of rohu, catla, and tilapia directly to paikers and 85- 95% is passed on to aratdar and subsequently purchased by paiker . Only a small portion is sold directly to retailers. For pangas, farmers sell 54% to paiker directly, 46% indirectly to paiker via aratdar and only 3% to retailers. Hilsha shows a different picture where fishers sell 16% to faria directly. Most intermediaries purchase fish from aratdars. In the study, 24% goes to faria, 16% to paikar, 12% to LC paiker and 32 % to retailers via aratdars. For shrimp, major portion (65%) is sold to bepari and paiker through aratdar. Depot owner is also an important party for the farmers to sell shrimp. Paikars and retailers transact (buy and sell) most of the traded fish through aratdars.Thus aratdar is the most important intermediary in the fish marketing chains and is only involved in negotiating sales on behalf of the sellers on a commission basis. In general, farmer/fisher, aratdar, paiker, and retailers are the important intermediaries playing notable role in the marketing of fish. Account holders are intermediaries and operate in the shrimp supply chain. They act as the commission agent and constitute the major profit making actor in the shrimp value chain. Account holders play a significant role in shrimp marketing. Marketing functions Grading Grading is an important activity in fish marketing as different sizes of fish fetch different prices.Grading facilitates buying and selling of fish. Most fish are graded on the basis of size (weight). However, in the case of hilsha, location (source of capture/catch) is also a factor in the grading procedure. Hilsha harvested from river (river Padma) and from sea (called fishes from Nama’s) are often differentiated in terms of their prices. Usually, hilsha caught from Padma river fetch higher price. Fish are graded into three categories namely, small, medium and large depending on size (weight). However, weights across species vary depending on species graded. Shrimp has a different grading system than fish. Her e grading is based on number of pieces forming one kg. StoragingThe storage function is primarily concerned with making goods available at the desired time. It enables traders to obtain better prices for their products. Being a highly perishable commodity, fish requires extremely specialized storage facilities matching the seasonal demand. In the shrimp industry, only the processing plants use proper storage systems in order to be able to export to the world market. Other intermediaries use only ice to transport fishes from one place to another. Surprisingly, no refrigerated van is used in Bangladesh to transport fish. Live pangas is transported from one place to another place using water in the plastic drums. TransportingFish farmers and intermediaries use various modes of transportation such as van, rickshaw, truck, passenger bus, pickup, Nasimon (locally made pick-up type van for transporting passengers and goods), head load etc, to transfer products from the producing areas to t he consumption centres. Ice is used while transporting the fish as most carriers are non-refrigerated. Rohu, catla, hilsha and other assorted fish often are sold in the urban areas with refrigerated vans to a very limited scale by the DoF, BFDC and some private firms. Financing Most of the fish farmers/ fishermen, aratdars, paikers and are self-financed. Other sources of finance for the farmers are banks, friends and relatives, and dadon. Aratdars and paikars also borrow from banks, NGOs, and friends and relatives.However, finance of hilsha fishermen come totally from aratdar/mahajon (who provides dadan). Fishermen receiving dadon from aratdars/mohajans are bound to sell their produce to them, sometimes at predetermined prices, which in most cases are lower than prevailing market prices. Farmer, aratdar, bepari and retailer involved in shrimp transaction are self-financed. Depot owners use a combination of own fund, bank, NGO and aratdars for shrimp financing. Paikers use dadon from aratdars besides their own fund to run their business. Account holders partly and processing plant owners mostly depend on bank loans to accelerate the business operations. Market informationPhysically visiting the markets and use of telephone/mobile phone are the common sources of collecting market information for all value chain actors. Fellow traders are also a source of market information for the value chain actors except processing plants. Processing plant and LC paikers mainly depend on email/internet to obtain market information. Packaging ‘Bamboo, tied with rope and polythene is used by farmers, paikers and retailers of major carps, pangas and tilapia fish for packaging. Agents also use plastic drum to transport fish (mostly pangas) in live form. Now a day’s ‘plastic crate’ is commonly used by all types of intermediaries in Bangladesh. Steel and wooden’ box are used in hilsha fish marketing by paikers, beparis and LC paikers. ‘Box†™ made of cork sheet is widely used by Account holders and processing plant owners in shrimp marketing and LC paikers in hilsha fish marketing. Pricing Depot owner, bepari and account holder of shrimp marketing chain follow prefixed prices set by the processing plants. Farmer, aratdar, paiker, LC paiker, and processing plants practice open bargaining, auction and going market prices method for fixing price of their products in varying degree. Retailers follow open bargain for selling their fish to consumers. Value addition Value is added when products pass different stages and move from one intermediary to another.The different cost components required for successive movement of fish are transportation, basket packaging, icing, wages and salaries, aratdar’s commission, house rent, security, electricity, telephone, personal expenses, tips-donation, wastage, dadon cost, government taxation, subscription for cooperatives (for hilsha), export packaging (shrimp). Total value add ed cost per maund (40 kg) is Taka 953. 13 for carps, pangas and tilapia; Taka 3707 for hilsha and Taka 5036 for shrimp. For carps, pangas and tilapia. The top three cost components are transportation, aratdar’s commission, and icing. For hilsha, the cost items are aratdar’s commission, transportation, and basket (packaging). For shrimp, the top three cost additions are aratdar’s commission, transportation, and salaries for shrimp. Marketing marginNet marketing margins per maund of carp, pangas and tilapia for farmers, aratdars, inter-district paikers, paikers and retailers are Tk3257, Taka 54, Taka 194, Taka 337 and Taka 633 respectively. The net margins of hilsha are Taka 297 for aratdars, Taka 228 for inter-district paikers, Taka 902 for LC paiker, Taka 520 for paiker and Taka 1223 for retailers. Farmer’s net marketing margin per maund of shrimp is Taka 20366 followed by processing plant (Taka 1650), retailer (Taka 1524), paiker (Taka 1417), depot owner s (Taka 1006), bepari (Taka 720) and aratdar (Taka 201). Retailers enjoy the lion’s share of the total marketing margin. Distribution of value addition cost and profit For major carp, pangas and tilapia, major cost and profit are borne by paikers (32. 03 % of the total cost) and retailers (51. 8 % of the total net profit) . For hilsha and shrimp marketing, major costs are incurred by inter district beparis, LC paikers, paikers and fishermen but major net profits are reaped by retailers and processing plant owners . Farmers in shrimp marketing bear the major marketing cost (23. 70 % of total cost) because they have to pay the aratdar’s commission. Farmers’ share of consumer Taka Farmers’ share of the consumers prices for different fishes seem to be reasonable except for hilsha fish. Farmer received 67%, 72% and 76% share of the consumer’s Taka for major carp-pangas-tilapia, shrimp (overseas value chain) and shrimp(domestic value chain) respectively. However, for hilsha, the major share (46%) of consumer Taka goes to mahajon, and fishermen receive only 31%. Price spread per kg ranges from Taka 39. 83 to Taka 177. 50. Conclusions and recommendations The study reveals that the value chain of major carps, pangas, tilapia, hilsha and shrimp are long and very complex. Fish flows to a number of channels from the producing centers. Fish sold in a particular market may originate through more than one channel. There are involvements of many intermediaries in the channel. Involvement of some intermediaries seems to be redundant whose presence just adds a cost to the consumer and a loss to the fisher.Fish purchased by consumers in Bangladesh mostly consists of the primary product and does include limited marketing services. Non-existence of good road and transport networks with the landing (assembling) centers deprive small-scale artisanal riverine fishers to get fair price due to their inability to sell directly to the assembling points/l anding centers Contact fish farming arranged by some super stores tend to reduce the existence of number of intermediaries making the channel shorter. Bulk of the fish sold in the markets is unprocessed. An emerging new phenomenon in fish marketing in Bangladesh is the availability of fish in super markets, who are increasingly becoming important retailers.Beparies and paikers bear the most cost of marketing while retailers enjoy the lion’s share of the profit. Farmers receive relatively higher share (approximately 70%) of the retail value for all species under study except for hilsha. Though fish marketing in Bangladesh is beset with a number of problems, there have been a number of positive changes that are expected to improve fish marketing environment in the country. These positive drivers include, i) the shift from subsistence to commercial fish farming, ii) emergence of super-markets, and iii) a changing social attitude towards fish marketing, as it is increasingly cons idered as a less dishonourable job as was thought in the past.Although private bodies control the most of fish marketing, for better fish marketing, government should also play active role in providing physical facilities like refrigerated storage, refrigerated vans, good market places with related facilities like water, ice, electricity, drainage facilities and sitting arrangements etc. Development of road networks is greatly needed, which is a responsibility of the government. Monitoring needs to be done to ensure that market regulations are be strictly followed. 1. Introduction Large number of different types of water bodies both inland and marine makes Bangladesh one of the most suitable countries of the world for freshwater aquaculture. The freshwater inland aquaculture production in Bangladesh is the second highest in the world after China (FAO, 2009).The total annual fish production is estimated at 2. 90 million tonnes in 2009-10 (Bangladesh fiscal year: 1 July-30 June), of w hich 1. 35 million tonnes (46. 62%) are obtained from inland aquaculture, 1. 02 million tonnes (35. 53%) from inland capture fisheries, and 0. 52 million tonnes (17. 85%) from marine fisheries (DoF, 2010). The main production systems for freshwater aquaculture in Bangladesh are extensive and semi-intensive pond poly-culture of Indian major carps and exotic carps, which account for 80% of the total freshwater aquaculture production. The remaining 20% are mainly from catfish, tilapia, small indigenous fish and rice-fish farming (ADB, 2005). Presently, 1. million people are engaged full time and 12 million as part time in fisheries sector in the country for livelihood and trade. Another 3. 08 million fish and shrimp farmers are cultivating fish both at subsistence and commercial level (Shah and Ahmed, 2006). In Bangladesh, fish farming is currently one of the most important sectors of the national economy. Within the overall agro-based economy of the country, the contribution of fish p roduction has been considered to hold good promise for creating jobs, earning foreign currency and supplying protein. About 97% of the inland fish production is marketed internally for domestic consumption while the remaining 3% is exported (Hasan, 2001).A large number of people, many of whom living below the poverty line, find employment in the domestic fish marketing chain in the form of farmers, processors, traders, intermediaries, day laborers and transporters (Ahmed et al. 1993, Islam, 1996; DFID, 1997; Kleih, 2001a? 2001b). Traditionally, people of Bangladesh like to eat fresh fish. However, chilled and dried fish are also marketed currently in large quantities in the towns and cities. Utilization and marketing distribution of fish is around 70 % fresh fish, 25% dried, and the other forms of locally processed fish include fermented products and frozen products (Islam et al. 2006). The export market of value added products is highly competitive, involving changes in type of pro ducts, forms and packaging as well as consumer behavior.Export of fish, shrimp and other fishery products were considered as non-conventional items before the independence of the country. It has increased many-folds during the last decades and the country is earning foreign exchange to minimize the trade gap. In this case the dried coastal and marine fish, the marine finfish and organism even other than fish, could be on the top of the list of export earning items (Kamal, 1994). Bangladesh exported fish and fisheries products worth Taka 32,106 million in 2009-10 of which frozen fish and shrimp shared more than 90% of the total exports of the fishery products and attained 3. 7% of total export earnings of Bangladesh (Bangladesh Bank, 2011).Since fish production in Bangladesh is increasing over the years, its disposal pattern is very important as growers, wholesalers, retailers and consumers- all are affected due to value addition in the marketing process. For the sustainability of th ese stakeholders, fish marketing studies are very necessary. Thus, the present study is conducted to examine the fish marketing system, supply chain and value addition to determine the pulling factors for enhancing production, processing and marketing of different species of fishes in Bangladesh. 2. Statement of the Problem The value chain describes the full range of activities which are required to bring a product or service from conception, through the different phases of production and delivery to final consumers (Porter, 1980; Kapilinsky and Morris, 2000).Value-chain analysis looks at every step a business goes through, from raw materials to the eventual end-user. The goal is to deliver maximum value for the least possible total cost (Investopedia, 2011). Market chain analysis aims to provide information on profitability for the various agents along the market chain (Ferris et al. , 2001). Economic value chain analysis describes the range of activities required to bring a produc t to the final consumer and, in the case of international products, the extent to which intermediaries/agents gain from participating in the chain (Jacinto, 2004). A traditional food industry value chain consists of the producer, processor, wholesaler, exporter, importer, retailer and consumer.There are mainly three sets of reasons why value chain analysis is important (Kaplinsky and Morris, 2000). These are: i) with the growing division of labour and the global dispersion of the production of components, systematic competitiveness has become increasingly important, ii) efficiency in production is only a necessary condition for successfully penetrating global markets, and iii) entry into global markets which allows for sustained income growth – that is, making the best of globalilsation- requires an understanding of dynamic factors within the whole value chain. Fish is a highly perishable commodity and its quality deteriorates very rapidly.Therefore, its quality cannot be kep t unaffected for human consumption for a long time. Production and consumption areas are also widely separated. Consumers of this country normally like indigenous carps, shrimp, catfish and other small species as food fish. Production of cultured fish can be increased by making best utilization of the existing inland resources through modern and scientific methods of fish culture and fishing techniques. But the ultimate consumers have to depend on an effective marketing system to be able to purchase fish at reasonable prices. Similarly, successful and sustainable fish culture also depends on an effective distribution system.Analysis of value chains requires detailed micro-level data, which are not available in Bangladesh and are often difficult to obtain in most countries. The present study takes the first steps to collect primary data and to identify the marketing channels and value addition of tilapia, pangas, rohu, catla, shrimp and hilsha in Bangladesh. This study analyzes how m arket intermediaries operate along seafood value chains, and demonstrates how the revenue from seafood trade is distributed over the entire seafood value chain. This report also provides information on aquaculture/fisheries products in Bangladesh to support the statistical report linking the value chain in fish supply.Finally, this study is expected to also provide some useful information to traders, fish farmers and policy makers to help them formulate programmes and policies related to the concerned fish production and marketing. A related, complementary study (Sapkota-Bastola et al. 2012) provides an in-depth analysis of the linkage between various segments in the seafood value chains in the country. The report is organized in 5 sections. Following introduction in the first section and problem statement in the second section, the third section presents methodology followed in the study. Results and discussions are discussed in section 4. Concluding remarks and future fisheries va lue chains are provided in section 5. 3. MethodologyThe study was conducted in i) Trishal, Bhaluka and Muktagaca sub-districts under Mymensingh district of north-central Bangladesh, ii) Dupchacia sub-district under Bogra district of northern Bangladesh, iii) Dumuria sub-district under Khulna district of southern Bangladesh, iv) Sadar sub-districts of Chandpur district of south-central Bangladesh and v) Jatrabari area of Dhaka district. These areas have been identified as the most important sources for pangas (Pangasius hypophthalmus), rohu (Labeo rohita), catla (Catla Catla), tilapia (Oreochromis nilotica), hilsha (Tenualosa ilisha) and shrimp/prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii, Penaeus monodon, and Litopenaeus vannamei). Primary data were collected from fish market agents of Trishal, Valuka, Muktagaca and Mechua Bazar of Mymensingh district, Dupchacia and Fate Ali Bazar of Bogra district, Kharnia, Dumuria, Rupsha, 5-No. hat and Moylapota Bazar of Khulna district, Station, Pal Bazar a nd Biponibag of Chandpur district and Jatrabari, Shanir Akhra, Ajompur and Abdullahpur Bazar of Dhaka district for the study. Surveys were conducted for a period of three months from November 2010 to January 2011. These surveys involved the inspection of the study areas in terms of fish distribution and marketing systems. A combination of participatory, qualitative and quantitative methods was used for primary data collection. A total of 4 Focus Group Discussion (FGD) sessions were conducted with actors involved in fish distribution channel (1 FGD in each area). Table 1 shows the sample intermediaries from different study areas. In this study, purposive sampling technique was used for selecting the sample. Total sample size of the study was 200.The interview schedules were prepared according to the need of the objectives of the study. In order to collect data, one set of interview schedule for all actors involved in value addition process was prepared. The draft interview schedule w as pre-tested amongst a few respondents by the researcher themselves. In this pre-testing much attention was given to elicit new information which was originally not designed to be asked and filled in the draft interview schedules. Thus, some parts of draft schedules were improved, rearranged and modified in the light of the actual experiences gained from the field tests. Then the final interview schedules were prepared based on the result of the pre-test.After the collection of data they were scrutinized and carefully edited to eliminate possible errors and inconsistencies contained in the schedules while recording them. The first step was to look into the data of each and every interview schedule to ensure consistency and reliability with the aims and objectives of the study. After completing the pre-tabulation task, they were transferred to an Excel sheet from the interview schedules. In this study tabular technique was followed to illustrate the whole scenarios of fish marketing . The sum, mean, averages, percentages, gross costs and margins etc. are the simple statistical measures employed to examine the value chain analysis of different species of fishes. Table 1. Distribution of samples from different areas |Study Area and fish species | | | | | | | |Respondents | | | |Mymensingh |Bogra |Dhaka |Chandpur |Khulna | | | |Pangas/ |Pangas/ |Pangas/ |Hilsha |Hilsha |Shrimp |Total | | |tilapia/ rohu/ catla|tilapia/ rohu/|tilapia/ rohu/ | | | | | | | | |catla/ hilsha | | | | | | | |catla | | | | | | |Farmer |10 |5 | |5 |5 |10 |35 | |Paiker |15 |4 |3 | |10 |3 |35 | |Total |56 |29 |25 |20 |29 |41 |200 | 4.Results and Discussion 4. 1 Overview of fish marketing practices 4. 11 Buying and selling Fish marketing practices in Bangladesh is the combination of a series of functions or services that are performed by several institutions and market participants like marketing agents, brokers, wholesalers, retailer, exporter and manufacturer in order to transfer the product s from farm-gate to the ultimate consumers both at home and abroad. Marketing system may be thought of as the connecting link between specialized producers and consumers (Kohls, 2005). An efficient marketing system is essential for earning fair profit for the fish farmers and traders.Marketing functions may be defined as major specialized activities performed in accomplishing the marketing process of concentration, equalization and dispersion (Kohls, 2005). In the study areas, the whole marketing of fish has been broken down into various functions such as buying and selling, transportation, grading, storaging, weighing, financing, market information and pricing. The activities involved in the transfer of goods are completed through buying and selling functions. Aratdars do the functions of negotiation between buyers and sellers of fish and help them at their own business premises on receipt of commission. They do not take the ownership of the products.Tilapia fish farmers sell 85% o f their fish to paiker through aratdar, 12% to paiker directly and the final 3% to retailer. Paikers sell 77% of their fishes to retailers and 23% to retailers through aratdars. Retailers sell the entire fish to ultimate consumers. Paiker of tilapia fish purchases 92% from farmers through aratdar and 8% directly from farmers. Retailer purchases 89 % from farmers through aratdar and 11% from farmers. Consumer purchases 100% of tilapia from the retailers in the study area (Table 2). Table 2. Percent of tilapia fish transacted by value chain actors | |Purchase from (%) |Sold to (%) | |Value chain actor| | | |Farmer | |Paiker |8 |92 | | |Farmer | |Paiker |8 |92 | |Value chain actor|Farmer | |Paiker |11 |89 | | |Farmer | |Paiker |50 |50 | | |Fisher men | |Faria |100 |- |- |- |- | |Retailer |- | | |Farmer |Faria |Farmer via Aratdar|Bepari |Depot owner |AC Holder |Retailer | |Faria |100 |- |- |- |- |- |- | |Depot owner |40 |20 |40 |- |- |- |- | |Paiker |- |- |100 |- |- |- |- | |Bepari |- | - |100 |- |- |- |- | |A/C Holder |30 |- |- |50 |20 |- |- | |Processing plant |- |- |- |- |- |- |- | |Retailer |- |- |20 |80 |- |- |- | |Consumer |- |- |- |- |- |- |100 | Source: Field survey, 2010. Table 7. Percent of shrimp/prawn transacted by value chain actors (Cont†¦. | |Sold to (%) | |Value chain |Faria |Retailer via Aratdar | |actor | | | |Rohu |Weight |Large: 2. 5 kg above, Medium: 1. 0 kg to 2. 5 kg, Small: Less than 1 kg | |Catla |Weight |Large: 3. 0 kg above, Medium: 1. 5 kg to 3 kg, Small: Less than 1. 5 kg | |Tilapia |Weight |Large: 300 gm above, Medium: 150 gm to 300 gm, Small: Less than 150 gm | |Pangas |Weight |Large: 1. 5 kg above, Medium: 1 kg to 1. kg, Small: Less than 1 kg | |Shrimp |Weight |Golda: U-5, 6/8, 8/12, 13/15, 16/20, 21/25, 26/30 | | | |Bagda: 8/12, 13/15, 16/20, 21/25, 26/30, 31/40, 41/50 | |Hilsha |Weight |Large: Above 1 kg, Medium: 800gm to 1000 gm, Small: Less than 800 gm | | |Location |Catching from river, Catching from sea | Source: Field sur vey, 2010. 4. 13 Storage The storage facilities help buyers and sellers to reduce the wide fluctuation of prices between peak and lean seasons. The storage function is primarily concerned with making goods available at the desired time and enables traders to receive better prices for their products. Because of high perishability, fish requires extremely specialized storage facilities matching the seasonal demand.Only the processing plants in the shrimp industry use proper storage systems for export to the world market. Other intermediaries use only ice to transport fishes from one place to another. Surprisingly, no refrigerated vans are used in Bangladesh to transport fish. Live pangas is transported from one place to another using water in the plastic drums. If the distance is long, water is then changed twice or thrice depending on the distance. Though all intermediaries use ice during marketing, their use of ice in fish is not scientific for which quality of fish gets affected. W hile retail selling, some use ice and some do not. 4. 14 TransportationTransportation is a basic function of making goods available at proper place and it creates place utility. Perishable goods must be moved as early as possible from the producing centre Figure 1. Mode of transport used by farmers and intermediaries for movement of major carps, pangas and tilapia Source: Field survey, 2010. Figure 2. Mode of transport used by farmers and intermediaries for movement of shrimp Source: Field survey, 2010. to the consumer centre. So transportation is essential for highly perishable commodities like fish. Adequate and efficient transportation is a cornerstone for the modern marketing system (Kohls and Uhl, 2005, p. 319).In the study areas, the fish farmers and intermediaries use various modes of transports such as van, rickshaw, truck, passenger bus, pickup, Nasimon (locally made pick-up type van for transporting passengers and goods), head load etc, to transfer product from the produci ng areas to the consumption centre. Figures 1, 2 and 3 show different modes of transport used by the intermediaries to transport fish from one place to another. 4. 15 Financing The financing function is the advancing of money by someone to carry on the business. For effective operation, financing is of crucial importance in the whole marketing system of fish. The source of finance for the value chain actors in the study areas are shown in Tables 8, 9 and 10.Table 8 shows that most of the fish farmers, aratdars, paikers and retailers of major carps, pangas and tilapia are self-financed. Other sources of finance for farmers are banks, friends and relatives, and dadon. A minor portion of Aratdar’s sources of finance are banks and friends and relatives. Paikers take loan from banks, NGO and friends and relatives. In addition to the use of their own fund, retailers also borrow from NGOs and friends and relatives. Figure 3. Mode of transport used by the farmers and intermediaries f or movement of hilsha fish Source: Field survey, 2010. Table 8. Sources of finance of major carps, pangas and tilapia fish farmers and intermediaries Sources of finance |Market participants (%) | | | |Farmer |Aratdar |Paiker |Retailer | |Own fund |86 |96 |82 |76 | |Bank |9 |3 |11 |0 | |NGO |- |0 |5 |16 | |Friend and relatives |4 |1 |2 |8 | |Dadon from Aratdar |1 |0 |0 |0 | |Total |100 |100 |100 |100 | Source: Field survey, 2010.Table 9 shows that most of the fish aratdar, bepari, paiker and retailer of hilsha are self-financed. Other sources of their finance are banks, NGOs, friends and relatives and dadon. It is worth mentioning that finance of hilsha fishermen come totally from aratdar/mahajon (who provides dadan). This dadon of the aratdars /mohajans makes fishermen very vulnerable as it is tied up with conditions. Fishermen receiving dadon from aratdars/mohajans are bound to sell their produce to them, sometimes at predetermined prices which in most cases are lower than the prev ailing market prices. Moreover, they also deprive the fishers while weighing the produce. About one-fourth of the LC paikers business is run by bank loans. Table 9.Sources of finance of hilsha fish farmers and intermediaries |Sources of finance |Market participants (%) | | |Fishermen |Aratdar |Bepari |Paiker |LC Paiker |Retailer | |Own fund |3 |90 |95 |80 |74 |99 | |Bank |0 |9 |5 |10 |24 |0 | |NGO |0 |0 | |0 |2 |1 | |Friend and relatives |0 |1 | |0 | | | |Dadon from Aratdar |97 | | |10 | | | |Total |100 |100 | | |100 |100 | Source: Field survey, 2010. Table 10 shows that in the case of shrimp, most of the farmers, aratdar, bepari and retailers are self-financed. Depot owners use a combination of own funds, bank loans, NGO and aratdars for shrimp marketing. Only 20% of depot owners procure loans from banks while 5% and 3% received from NGOs and dadon giving aratdars respectively. However, a majority of depot owners use their own fund for the business. 34% of the paikers take dadon Ta ble 10.Sources of finance of shrimp farmers and intermediaries |Sources of finance |Market participants (%) | | |Farmer | | |Farmer |Depot owner |Aratdar | |Basket |Bamboo, Rope and Polythene |40 kg |Farmer, Paiker and Retailer | | | |20 kg |Retailer | |Drum |Plastic |40 kg |Farmer, Paiker | | | |20 kg |Retailer | |Crate |Plastic, Polythene |40 kg |Depot owner (shrimp), Paiker, Bepari, Account holder | | | | |(Shrimp), Retailer | |Steel box |Steel sheet |250 kg |Paiker, Bepari (hilsha) | |Wooden box |Wood, Polythene |160 kg |Bepari, Paiker, LC paiker (hilsa) | |Box |Cork sheet |40 and 20 kg |LC Paiker (hilsha), Account holder, Processing p