Apple’s Fdi and Globalization Essay

Globalization- Today the world has become a global village where each and every thing is interlinked.The concept of global village or global merger is based on the grounds of globalization. Now thequestion arises in one ¶s mind what is globalizationThe term globalization means the concentration of world economy in to a single international market rather than many national markets. For example, the APPLE INC, an American multinational corporation that concentrates in computer hardware and software components. It assembles its best known product i.e. ‘mac’ computer, best selling phone ‘iphone’ in china. This is because the cost of production is low due to cheap labour force. Thus globalization involves:- Free trade of goods and services Free movement of labour and capital Free access in technology Now, we will discuss the above points with more details. Free trade of goods and services- Based on APPLES INC business operation the company is selling its product such as the ‘iPhone’, ‘MAC’ computer in many countries in the world. Generally it is a US based company which is doing its business world-wide, there are no restriction for the company not to sell its product in any country. So its means free trade of goods and services. Free movement of labour and capital- In regard with APPLE INC it means, apple can move its labour force and inject capital in any country with no restriction. When talking about labour force it means the people who work for APPLE can travel from one country to the other. For instance, officers travel from one country to the other. We normally see in the news that APPLE has appointed new officers in the UK, Germany or the US. Technical team travel from one country to the other when there is a major problem where other technician can not figure out what the problem is. In terms of capita l, it means APPLE has invested capital to make industries where its product are made and assembled. They have factory in china and other countries in the world. Free access in technology- It means the the software of APPLE i.e. the ‘iOS’ are being used in many countries in the world. This is because the products that APPLE is selling use iOs software and these products are being sold in many countries in the world, so it means the technology is being freely moving from one country to the other. This encourages globalization. Another example is, a potential customer from Bangladesh looking to buy a shirt, he looks on the ‘New look’ website. It normally making the sense that, a customer can access the catalogue from any where of the world. This is commonly known as globalization. Apple Inc. is an American based multinational company whose stocks are listed in the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ (National Association of Securities DealersAutomated Quotations) under the symbol AAPL. The company specializes in the design,development and manufacturing of electronic equipments like computers, software and smart phones. Business strategy: Apple is currently working on the differentiation strategy by putting unique elements in the design and development of its products. The differentiation strategy is defined as a strategy that aims to develop the products and or services that have unique characteristics that are well liked by the customers and are valued by them. This strategy enhances the market position of the companies with respect to their counterparts (Porter, 1998).The success of the company in the global markets is due to its extensive focus on the market research and development for the development of its products and services. With reference to its business strategy, the company is in a continues process to build and advance the robust platform that can enhance the listing of third party content like mobile phone apps, games etc on its online stores or its iTunes store (Apple Inc.,2010). Markets and Distribution The customer segments of the company are divided into various categories. The needs of the main customers markets it caters are of small and medium businesses, education sectors,large corporations, government departments and other related markets. In order to meet the needsand wants of these consumer markets, the company is utilizing direct and indirect distributionchannels including online sales services, retail stores and direct sales force as well as third partysellers, retailers etc. Using direct sales contacts with the customers is, believed by the company,leveraging its product sales and has demonstrated as an advantage to the company over itscompetitors. In order to maximize its sales and to make sure that the buyers are receiving highquality experience, the company is in a process to expand and improve its existing channeldistribution network (Form 10-k S EC Filing, 2010). Competition The company faces aggressive competition from the other market players. According toHoover (2011) the top three competitors of Apple Inc. in United States are Fujitsu TechnologySolutions (Holding) B.V., International Business Machines Corporation and MediaNet Digital,Inc. respectively. The needs of the markets it caters are highly competitive in nature due to the ever changing and advancing technological environment and the rapid introduction of new technology based products. The main competitors of the company are following cost leadership strategies by reducing the prices of their products or by maintaining low profit margins to maintain their market share. There are various forces that can impact the business and profitability of Apple. These factors may include the marketing mix  ± product, price, place, promotion strategies, product performance, the quality and reliability of the product, innovative designs as well as then availability of up to date software services.Moreover, some of the competitors of the company have number of resources which they can utilize against the company to provide the product and service offerings related to Apple,offer the business and consumer products and services similar to Apple ¶s products at low price range(Form 10-k SEC Filings, 2010). Products and Services Apple is currently using in house manufacturing system for the production of all of its products. All the products like Mac, iphone, ipad and ipod etc. are designed, developed and marketed via its main manufacturing hub which is located in the USA. But, as mentioned earlier,the company is outsourcing the production of some of its product parts to the various international and national supply chain partners; subcontractors. Some of the components of its products, ipod, are outsourced to its subcontractor in Hong Kong from where it is sent to theoutsourced production plant of the company (Linden et al, 2007).Some of these components are of high cost. While the other products like hard drive andflash memory etc. are sent to the other companies or outsourcing companies like Toshiba inJapan or Samsung in Korea. Large number of its components is of low cost. The metalcomponents of the products are made by the outsourcing unit in Taiwan called Foxconn and the plastic components are products by the outsourcing units in Singapore (Brown, 1998, p.198).Finally these parts are assembled in the China and then transported to its sales outlets across theworld (Kahney, 2008).Outsourcing plants:It has built its integrated manufacturing and design facilities in the various countries for example in California, Singapore etc. This global network allows the company to develop andlaunch the products in its markets of America, Asia and Europe. It produces its products, for example ipads, in the Shanghai, China which has given it a cost saving advantage and lead to theincreased profitability for the company (Chaffin, 2002). But on the other hand, this outsourcing has increased the downsizing and unemployment rate in the home country (Rodriguez-Clare,2011).some of the outsourcing plants managed by the company are showing troubled situations for Apple. ConclusionThe economy of the world has now become free from any boundary. All the countries are now considered integrated with one another as one global market for carrying out variousactivities like trade, relations, etc. Evaluate: Evaluate; From one perspective, Apple’s world could not be rosier and its future shinier. Rising from the rubble of a disintegrating company in 1997, Apple has reached the pinnacle of success in 15 short years. With a market capitalization of over $500 billion, Apple is amongst the most valuable and highly profitable companies in the world. When it comes to customers, Apple is a bold innovator that leads the industry into new directions and forces others to follow. However, when it comes to the management of its supply chain and treatment of workers in the Chinese factories that make its products, it hides behind the constraints of prevailing industry practices. Foxconn and its China-based subsidiaries are owned and controlled by the Taiwan-based Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. Most of Apple’s worker-related problems were focused on Apple’s manufacturing partner Foxconn and its subsidiaries. Reports over the past few years have described instances of Foxconn employees committing suicide, presumably from working in an extremely high stress environment. In addition there are reports of deplorable living conditions, underage workers, below-standard wages, involuntary labor, and health hazards associated with the use of toxic chemicals and inadequate air filtration systems Finally, in the closing days of 2011, Apple announced with great fanfare that it had joined the Fair Labor Association (FLA. Over the concept , Chinese factories have honed their tactics in concealing problems from the auditors by keeping workers away from plants during audit visits, maintaining multiple sets of accounting books and workers’ personnel files, coaching workers to give right answers to the auditors’ questions in terms of working hours, wage rates, and overtime, et cetera, with promises of bonuses if the auditors were satisfied and implied threats of punishment if serious problems were identified. Thus a highly choreographed audit allows for certain violations—albeit manageable—to be disclosed and promises for corrective action to be taken. Cutting out excessive hours would entail additional costs. For example, a reduction in the average working hours from the current 60-70 hours per week to 48 hours per week would entail approximately a 30 percent + increase in the labor force to maintain the current rate of output. The Indicators of Globalization There are three main economic and ï ¬ nancial indicators of globalization, these are: †¢ international trade in goods and services †¢ the transfer of money capital from one country to another †¢ the movement of people across national borders. Of the three, international trade and foreign investment are the most important. Each of the three indicators will be examined in turn. International Trade International trade means that countries become more interconnected through the exchange of goods and services, that is, through imports and exports. Multinational companies (MNCs) are major traders and account for a large proportion of international trade, with signiï ¬ cant proportions accounted for by trade between subsidiaries within the same company. So for example, Ford makes gearboxes in its factory in Bordeaux and exports them to its assembly plants in other European countries. Around one half of US manufactured exports and more than 60% of its imports ï ¬â€šow within MNCs. International trade has increased more rapidly than global output which has been increasing by around 3% per annum. 2004) Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) FDI is the main source of investment in developing countries. Recent year FDI has increased in these countries due to three reasons: – †¢ The rise of multinational companies †¢ Liberalization of world capital market †¢ Liberalization of world economies As in regard to APPLE INC, it has built factories in china to make its product so it has invested in china which is foreign direct investment. In the recent years FDI has increased in this country due to three reasons: – †¢ The rise of multinational companies †¢ Liberalization of world capital market †¢ Liberalization of world economies The advantages of these FDI are as the following: – †¢ This FDI will allow a country to invest more than their saving. It is a crucial source of investment in a country such as in china where it is difficult to encourage savings. FDI also helps to increase the import than the export. Again a FDI can be assumed as an injection which, in terms has a large multiplier effect in the economy. It creates demand in the receipent country and hence helps to increase real GDP. †¢ FDI helps to increase the employment in a country. For instance, the investment by apple in chine has created jobs for Chinese people to work and earn a living. They, sometimes offer higher wages than other national companies which helps to increases the living standard of that country. For e.g. in 1999 30 million people were employed in the developing countries directly or indirectly by the multi national companies. This has a positive externality in the economy in the long run. †¢ Sometimes FDI goes in the tradeable goods sextor of a country. Thus the c ountries export performance may increase and the country may enjoy higher competitiveness. The disadvantages if these FDI are as the following: – †¢ Multinational companies, such as APPLE tends to send back their profit to their country. This may create a balance of payment deficit in the receipient countries if they fail to increase their export earnings. †¢ Apple tends to use expertise of staffs from their country so the benefit that should come from employment becomes insignificant. †¢ Multinational companies such as these APPLE tends to locate their factories in the urban areas so there may be an increase in inequality in the economy. Again it may create pressure in the urban sector. †¢ There is a risk of tends that multinational companies such as APPLE tends to exploit the natural resources of a country like gas, coal, electricity. Thus in the long- run there may be an environmental degradation and the country may suffer from natural degradation. †¢ Deficit in the long- run- However, FDI may have positive impact on a country but they tend to be fuelled only in some developed countries.

Columbia River Pulp Company Inc

CORP. received refinanced approval of its long term debt from Toronto – Dominion Bank (AD Bank) amounting to $200 million based on floating rate. The floating interest rate represents the significant risk that needs to be mitigated through hedging products. There were some hedging products that AD Bank offered to CORP., swaps, caps, or collars, or some combination? There were definite trade-offs between these hedging products In terms of flexibility, interest rate protection, and true cost. Andrew Theatre, Chairman of CORP., had to decide on the amounts and maturities of the various transaction hedging offered.Issue Business Kraft Market pulp Is a truly global commodity, which prices changing quickly In response to capacity changes, inventory levels, and purchase levels. While market alp is produced in about 25 countries, historically more than two-thirds of world output has come from five northern countries : the united States, Canada, Sweden, Finland, and Norway. One major c hange in the global pulp market was the mid – sass launch of pulp futures markets . While these markets were not an immediate success, there was enough trading volume to sustain at least market, the Pulped/ Finish Options Exchange.It was hoped that futures markets, widely used to trade futures in commodity products – such as copper, aluminum, sugar, and coffee – would bring more price stability to the pulp market and even out some of the extreme price fluctuations that have plagued the global market pulp Industry. Price levels for market pulp as shown below : In 1978, CORP. had financed the original cost of the mill from a group of united States insurance companies. The insurance companies was in doubt about the quality of their loans. This was because of the cumulative operating losses over the 1982 – 1986 period which totaling $ 39. 1 million.CORP. was unable to meet the repayment schedule on the debt. So, in march 1988, CORP. approached Toronto  œ Dominion Bank (AD Bank) to refinance $200 million of its long term debt. On July 21 , 1988 CORP. received reedit approval from AD Bank Board. CORP. received rationalization financing a $200 million, seven year reducing, revolving term facility and a $25 million operating facility from the syndicate of six international banks. The floating rate borrowing options and bank lending margins were shown below : The use of floating rate debt to finance fixed assets represents significant risks If the interest rates increased.The risk can be offset through interest rate swaps, caps, and collars. In order to partially engage ten Tolling rills rate on ten mans ten Dank syndicate had included a positive covenant in the credit agreement which effectively arced the company to lock in fixed rates of interest on its debt. This covenant stated the following : within 90 days after closing, the borrower will arrange interest rate swaps or similar hedging arrangements so that a total of $100 million of debt has a term of at least three years and an interest rate not to exceed 12%.

Basic Counseling

A married woman had a conflict with her best friend because of money. She needed so much in putting up her business and for its permits. As she waited until the business grows up, she needed more for the benefit of her family. Her husband was sick and had no capacity of providing for the whole family. She had no choice, but to borrow money and take the risk of being a first time business woman.The friend lent her so much with incurring interests of almost 25 percent of the total debts. The woman was not able to pay on time because of the problems that came her way the past few months.Due to that, a feud arose. The situation of her husband became worse that required her to spend much and work a little harder. Because of working and too much thinking, she developed insomnia that led to her body losing weight. One of her children had to stop studying because she could not longer subsidize his needs. There were many speculations spreading in their place. There were a lot of stories made out of the problem that they were having. Some even exaggerated the issue that put the married woman and her family in a very humiliating situation. All eyes were on them that made them feel really bad.The family members, especially the mother did not wan to go out anymore to socialize and came to the point of just lying down in the bed and doing nothing. She feared even the mere fact of opening their gate when someone visits and was scared of facing their relatives due to unwanted questioning. She stopped functioning well even in the house that led to some misunderstandings between her and her husband and the children themselves. She even heard from her sister that her son did not want to admit to his classmates how they are related, because he never wanted to be asked and be treated unequally by others.Instead of talking to the friend that she owed from, she opted to cut the communication between them by not answering her calls and hiding every time she comes to their house. That made the feud worse. Because the friend thought she really never wanted to pay, she tried asking legal advices to sue the married woman. The woman never cared at all. It seemed like her financial problem let her identity change. She was never the same woman again. One day, as she was sleeping in the couch, she heard people talking outside. Mush to her realization, they were the police in their place trying to look for her.She went out and was brought by the police in heir office for some interrogation. Although very much ashamed of the neighbors watching them, she never tried hiding her face, because as much as she wanted to, the people around her would still know that it was her. So she believed there was no chance of escaping from embarrassment. Her friend, together with the police, asked her so many things about their issue and asked her to sign in a contract saying she would pay in months time together with the incurred interests. She was very much ashamed of what happened. She always cried.Her family sympathized so much with her. They were findings way to help her in paying and cheered her up for her to forget her problem even in a little while. Soon they discovered it was futile doing that. What they did was invite relatives to visit her who were all telling her that everything would turn out right. To their disappointment, it did not help too much. Even being obedient to her did not do too good in the problem. Although everyone noticed that she was needing help, nobody succeeded in making their part. She cried more and slept less. Her physical appearance talked much about what she was suffering then.She never talked about the debt and chose to walk away from the situation as much as possible. Because it seemed like it was helping, the family never mentioned about it anymore. But time went by, the due date was coming. And there, the problem started again. The same scenarios were seen regarding her behavior. I believe that the situation is not just a shal low one. It talks about money; therefore it needs to be dealing with some more legal and psychological advices. The family members, as noted, never bothered asking how the problem started and were the money was used.Nobody even asked the history of the feud and the reason why the woman was so much affected with the issue. It is just stated that they found ways to cheer her up and to help her, without even knowing the proper way of doing it and the best things that woman needed. She was not asked how much she was needing. They can also ask the help of a professional for her easy recovery on the matter. They might have used the counseling techniques for the subject to easily cope up with the situation. According to a website regarding counseling skills, it is very important to listen and communicate well to make up the major part of good counseling.What these kinds of people actually needs is the assurance that they are accurately heard by their peers and listeners. It is always best to see them calm down after they tell you their insights on the matter. They must also do probing because that is the only way to find out what else they are feeling, other than what is being asked of them. They must have used open-ended questions for them to be able to elaborate on their answers and freely state what they are feeling. Through that, the person’s burden will be lessened and would feel better. It is always good to have your feeling voiced out and revealed in a free manner.Given the freedom of speech, one gets the feeling of relief and loses the tension that she or he is experiencing. Communication is a very useful tool in helping a person feel better after a very depressing experience. In fact, many people who experienced unaccepted death of relatives and other related issues seek the help of professionals for counseling. The counsel must not be very formal in dealing with this. He or she must chose the most comfortable position while talking to the client and must show interest for the client to feel open about the situation and say more of what he or she is undergoing.What they only wanted is for them to be heard. They may use empathetic responses to the clients as they share their stories. Through this, the client would see that the counsel was able to attend well to his or her story and fully understood what she or he is feeling at the moment. They can also use the method of summarizing and paraphrasing the problem of a client. The counsel must ask the client what she or he is feeling and narrate it according to his or her desire. After hearing the client’s side, the counsel will then repeat what the she or he said to clarify issues and make sure he or she heard the client right.The counsel must use his or her own words in repeating the story for them to be ale to see the experience in a different view or perspective. By seeing it that way, the person will recognize new feelings that was not experienced believe and will therefo re be enlightened with everything. The role of the counsel is so vital because it is them who take part in the counseling. Without their proper knowledge on the right way of counseling, the purpose of it will be futile. The aim of helping the person in any manner will be useless because the rules were not executed properly.They must have a wide knowledge on counseling aside from the basics to have a successful one. Knowing the counseling techniques will be a stepping stone to be a very effective counsel that everyone looks for nowadays. In general, listening to the client, probing for further information, asking open ended questions for freedom in answering, giving emphatic responses for affection, summarizing and paraphrasing stories can be useful techniques in counseling. Many people must apply this in real life events. The person being interviewed is a woman with sic children. Four of which are boys and the rest are girls.She was a member of a broken family and had a very traumat izing experience when she was younger. Her education was sponsored by her Aunt who believed so much in her potentials and talents. She had a lot of friends in and out of school. She never bothered approaching people for friendship, instead the other people go to her to introduce themselves. She was a woman with full confidence and courage. She used to join beauty and academic contests where she gained a lot of fame and awards. She was known by everyone, because she has the beauty, the brains and the attitude.Everyone was her friend and all of them were kind to her. She came from a remote area and married a man whom she met in tertiary school. They were a happy couple then. They had all the things that they need, without forcing anyone in working. They both have good jobs that are able to provide for the needs of their family. They were indeed a happy family surrounded with love and care. It just by fate that the husband suffered from arthritis that later turned into the worse versio n of it. Every joint was already infected which made him paralyzed and bed ridden. There were no ways for him to work anymore.That was the start of all the financial problems. The husband needed therapies as the children needed support for their education. The woman did not give up, instead she worked harder and found ways to earn more. The cooperation that they have is the family is one of the strengths that they are so proud of. Their children were cooperative and everyone was industrious. They always make sure that they make their part in the house chores and responsibly do the tasks assigned to them. The woman was brave and was courageous in all the problems and challenges that come her way.She was kind to everyone that made it possible for other people to also treat her well. She is educated and was able to finish her degree with several achievements. She was always doing her best to be on top. She was technically a career woman and a successful one. Her weaknesses include her financial constraints. A lot of things get affected with her problems with money. She had been asking people to lend her some and promised to give it back in a particular day. She lost her word of honor that is why many people do not trust her at all.She had difficulty in building that trust since she did not do what she promised to the people around her. Also, because of working too much and spending a lot of time outside their home, she lost track of her children. Her family, on the other hand, did not know her at all that much. They had difficulty dealing with her because they did not know the approach to use for them to be able to start the conversation the right way. She already lost her identity outside the home and has been opting to choose going out with other people than her family.The problem that she is currently dealing with right now is the treatment and prejudice of other people towards her. A lot of the people around have not been the same anymore. Every relationship that she has with others is very civil. The intimacy of her relationships with others was lost. A lot of things changed. She’s thinking that it has something to do with her recent problem with money. She never wanted to discuss and explain to them the issue, so it ended up losing intimate relationships. Her companions are never the same people again. She also lost her confidence in everything that she does.She never asked about her old friends and just remained as she is now after the incident. Although many people stare at her when she passes by or even if strangers never forget to glance at her when she’s out, she never dared explain. She believed that everything happened for the love that she has for her family. Nowadays, a lot of people are seeking help because of some problems dealing with interpersonal issues, including relationships with other people. It is not always that they get the best solution to their problems or even get the half of the satisfaction that they need when they ask for counseling.The main purpose why they seek help is for them to minimize the emotional burden that they are having every time they think of their problems. Also, they are aiming to lessen its effects on the people near them and their daily activities. It is sometimes very serious that it even causes their dysfunction in the society. Culture is a very big factor that mold every individual and their behavior in the society. That thing makes them. It continuously affect their being as they grow older. They can adopt it even if they move out of the place where it came from.It is already difficult removing what you got in the set of culture that your society got. Every person has differences in cultural background and orientation. Each is brought up differently, thus require different approaches in counseling. According to Broom et. al in the book called Sociology: A Core Text with Adapted Readings, cultures vary in their ways of guiding human behavior. Underst anding the clients cultural background would be a very big help in giving off solutions and in the counseling itself. Knowing one’s orientation and composition will be a very big factor in deciding how to approach a client.The counsel will find it easier dealing with him or her, since she somewhat got the technique in counseling the client well. There will be a very little difficulty. There are clients who are sensitive with words and who may get offended once talked to in a manner that another client needed. Some may never want talking about the family. This may be because the client came from a broken one or had a traumatizing experience inside his or her family. Some may not want dwelling too much on personal issues like the sexual ones. Knowing this will have a great impact on the role of the counsel in active listening.Cultural competence is very much relevant in dealing with this kind of issues since they are dealing with people in cross-cultural contexts. According to a website, â€Å"Cultural competence is a set of congruent behaviors, attitudes and policies and strategies that join in a system, agency, or among professionals and enable them to work effectively to cross-cultural situations both in prevention and treatment contexts† (Cross, Dazron, Dennis and Isaacs, 1989). Cultural competence therefore is the ability to deal with the problems of people and relationships coming from different places with different cultural background.It is important to have that ability because today counseling is in demand. It will be very useful applying that ability in giving the right solutions. It is true that each person who asks for counseling has his or her own story that we must understand both in his or her context and ours. Cultural competence also helped in the relationship between the counsel and the client. It is a pre-requisite to an open relationship, which can lead to honesty and sincerity, which can make the counseling easier and more per sonal. Let us take for example the case that I have mentioned above.The woman lives in a remote are. There are probably very few people there, which means that only a number of persons know her and talk about if ever they do. Her situation now is very much different since she is living in the city where a lot of people see her everyday. Her sensitivity of gossips probably rooted out of that fact. She may not be used to people doing that to her. She is also famous in school. She had a lot of friends. Everyone knew and adored her. But her setting changed into somewhat chaotic when she gained friend whom put her into shame later on.Her trauma might have come from the reality that she is not used of being betrayed and treated in a not so nice manner. She came from a broken family, which might have taught her the values of having a beautiful family. After the family members that she has now gets affected with what she was going through, she already gave up because of the fear of having t he same kind of family again. She had a reputation in the place where she came from. Remember, she had the beauty, the brains and the attitude, so she can’t accept the fact that she became laugh stuff in the place where she is living now.The culture in their place is very much different with the culture that she is witnessing now. Moreover, her experiences in academic and beauty contests were the reasons why she was talked about in that remote area where she came from and not about debts. The counsel must find the most efficient way to hip her by studying her cultural background and be aware of the present differences. The role of the counsel is not basically to listen, but to understand. How more can he understand if he does not even know where the client came from and the cultures that brought him up?If the counsel is able to help her out of this, she may be able to function well again. She can go back to work and provide the needs of her family. She will again understand w hy she works alone and why her friend did that to her. She may go back to her normal life and be confident again with actions. She may even discover that she also sinned by not facing her friend to talk about the matter. And who knows, she may have her lost relationships back. The efficiency of a counsel can be seen on the client. I have presented in this paper that counseling plays an important role in the society.They can help patients change for the better and realize what is wrong with them by just listening and understanding their cases. In the past, counseling is just done to mentally ill patients. But now, even the mere fact that you are sad can already require professional counseling. We can’t deny that one of its purposes is to lessen attempts of suicide and other things that a patient can do due to too much depression. The counsel must be very responsible about this because ending up an interpersonal problem somewhat depends on them. They must find a way to learn wh at must be learned in order for them to be called as such.Their primary roles must given attention to by enhancing their talents in helping people with problems. References Bonjean, C. M. , D. Broom, and L. Broom. 1990. Sociology: A Core Text With Adapted Readings. California: Wadsworth Publishing Company. Cultural Competence and Professional Psychology Training. (2008). Retrieved December 7, 2008, from Goliath Website: http://goliath. ecnext. com/coms2/gi_0199-159598/Cultural-competence-and-professional-psychology. html. Counseling Skills: Basic Counseling Skills for Any Situation. (n. d). Retrieved December 7, 2008, from http://www. askmikethecounselor2. com/counselingskills. html.

Phase3 DB International Business Disputes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Phase3 DB International Business Disputes - Essay Example This assignment provides a compressive discussion on the consequences that a business would face for operating within states that have not agreed with the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. It also gives detailed information on whether a business should or should not engage in business with nations that have not conformed to the requirements of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. One of the major consequences for transacting business with states that have not conformed to the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods is that only the contract laws of such nations will apply (Ferrari, 2012). This implies that an enterprise that wishes to engage in such business in capable to inadequate treatments in accordance with the laws of the state that has not agreed with the terms of the CISG. The contract law of such a nation may not be accommodative to foreign businesses. It is for this reason that such nations may be weaker in ensuring that the contractual balance between foreign and indigenous businesses is maintained. Businesses that wish to operate within states that have not agreed with the terms and conditions of the CISG may have to face importation or exportation restrictions according to the governing laws. It is important to note that different nations have different laws governing the importation and exportation of certain goods. However, the CISG standardizes the importation and exportation of goods across borders. Therefore, a business that wishes to transact business with states that have failed to embrace this international law may have to face the restriction of the importation or exportation of certain goods. According to article 68 of the CISG, the risk of damage of goods is passed to the buyer once the goods have been delivered. However, an enterprise engaging in business

Operation Management Exam Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Operation Management Exam Questions - Essay Example In production and operations management, three types of capacity are often referred to: Potential Capacity - The capacity that can be made available to influence the planning of senior management (e.g. in helping them to make decisions about overall business growth, investment etc). This is essentially a long-term decision that does not influence day-to-day production management Capacity, being the ability to produce work in a given time, must be measured in the unit of work. Brooks (1995) writes about a "man hour", the amount of work performed by an average worker in one hour. As Brooks (1995) notes, there is a problem with this capacity that organization, training and co-ordination activities could more than outweigh the potential benefits of having extra staff working on a task. In Capacity Management there are usually two potential constraints - time and capacity. Time may be a constraint where a customer has a particular required delivery date. In this situation, capacity managers often plan backwards, i.e. they allocate the final stage of the production tasks to the period where delivery is required; the penultimate task one period earlier and so on. This process helps identify whether there is sufficient time to meet the production demands and whether capacity needs to be increased, even if temporarily. One of the objectives of capacity management is to deliver best practices that establish a communications framework between IT operations and the business. This is essential for ensuring that the capacity management process works toward meeting the business capacity requirements. The typical problem is that IT operations often work with measures of computer performance, megabytes of storage, or other expressions of capacity or throughput. At the same time, the business is using expressions such as sales effectiveness, market share, time to market, profit, cash flow, and return on investment (ROI). (Microsoft 2006) PART B Discuss the capacity management strategies available to a manufacturing company who produce a range of domestic air conditioning units and experience peaks and troughs in demand in line with summer and winterer seasons. The most durable solutions to manage capacities in manufacturing of domestic air conditioning units come under the category of adjusting capacity correcting measures depending on the season. Of course, implementation and use of these strategies may actually require changing existing management approaches, and this is not necessarily simple to do. Alternative, temporary measure can be implemented, but then consideration must be given to both the near and longer term incentives and impacts that these measures create. Ultimately, the actual adoption of Capacity Management is a political decision and, as such, may not necessarily relate directly to the most technically efficient

The Lottery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Lottery - Essay Example I cant help but wonder about how primitive these townspeople were during the 1940s to think that sacrificing a member of the town to the â€Å"Rain Gods† will help them with their farming problems. I am further disturbed by the murderous instinct that seems to proliferate within the townspeople. There is no sense in the lottery that they perform every year. Unless they only do it to keep the population of their town down to a manageable level. It would seem to me that everyone in the town is resigned to their fate of eventually winning the lottery to lose their lives. There is nothing magnanimous about this forced personal sacrifice. As Tessie Hutchinson put it before the first stone hit her on the head, â€Å"Its not fair!† I found it truly disturbing to read a story that considers murdering a town member to be a yearly ritual and way of life for everyone involved. That is why the date itself, June 27, is just a normal day for everyone involved but brings panic to whomever gets the black dot during the lottery draw. In the case of Mrs. Hutchinson, that was one day in particular when she should have just stayed in bed. Although Mrs. Hutchinson thought of the lottery as a regular part of life, she never truly imagined that she would ever become an unwilling participant in the ritual. Hence her distraught screams when her family was drawn and she ended up receiving the black dot. The fact that the towns people considered the act of murder that they were just about to accomplish as something normal in their lives begs one to wonder if these people had a conscience at all. The Lottery in all is not a short story for the faint of heart. It is a heart wrenching story that has strong elements of suspense. Almost like a modern slasher flick. Mrs. Hutchinson never saw her demise coming. Her death is truly senseless because the townspeople did not even have a solid idea as to why they had to kill

Modern operating system Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Modern operating system - Research Paper Example Microsoft’s Windows on the other hand is the opposite and it does not allow the users to bring about the changes in the source code or modify it. Apple Inc itself is a closed source operating system. The open source nature of Android makes it relatively flexible and more appealing towards the programmers. The added advantage of open source operating system is the presence of platforms and online societies supported by the given operating systems developer companies. The open source function provides the respective operating system an edge in the context of software support and software development. Android exhibits support for Linux based kernel, but this is not to be confused with the Linux operating system. The libraries of Android operating system vary considerably from those of the Linux operating system. The use of Dalvik Virtual machine by Android is a characteristic feature of Android which gives it an edge over the contemporary operating systems as well as the Linux op erating system. The run time features include Dalvik as well as the libraries functions support. The Windows O.S kernel has seen considerable improvement in the recent times. It provides features such as System on Chip (SOC) along with the feature of User Mode Driver Framework (UMDF). In the recent times, the Microsoft O.S has come up with a dynamic outlook in the form of user platform and SOC supported kernel. Apple’ I.O.S kernel is a derivate of Unix Based system, however it does not copy or resemble the kernel of Linux or Android for each has its own designated and specific kernel.

What do you feel is an appropriate balance between being successful Essay

What do you feel is an appropriate balance between being successful financially and the need to serve others by giving back - Essay Example Being successful financially is really a huge achievement but fixing an aim to only spend that money on your self, is that a big deal, a genuine feat? There is not a single way to create wealth and enlarge it, there is a huge literature concerning this. In fact there are countless people in this world who have no real ideas about their fortunes, but the ones who remember to give back to the community, they are not so very common. There is nothing like donating a chunk out of that huge pie to someone dying of hunger. Only a little generosity is required on part of all of us and a miraculous change can be produced in no time. That is my perspective when talking about what I plan to do with my wealth. Be it a small team or a big conglomerate, being successful economically and financially needs social responsiveness to be keenly observed. This is the demand of the present global economy. Taking care about who actually needs to be helped out is another big issue. One’s hard-earned fortune should carefully be devoted to those who intend to use that money in order to better their situations. The point is, if the process of ‘giving back’ is only applicable when one has finally established a stable business or if it is a life-long process applicable at any point? I think this is not just about donating a few dollars, giving back can also be about engaging oneself in useful volunteer work. In fact taking time out and making some destitute old man living in some old home, feel that he is not all alone in the world and bringing a smile to his face, that is also about giving back. One cannot limit oneself to giving back by the aid of some dollars, since it is also about whether one can bring any real change in the life of deserving people that can make them live again. Self-consciousness is the right motive for creating a positive balance between being

Find out in great detail about the quotes Research Paper

Find out in great detail about the quotes - Research Paper Example Capa was urging photographers to get near and feel the energy of their subjects, which is likely to deliver a more intimate and emotional image with considerable impact to the viewer. In the same token as cultural objects, photographers derive meaning from their context with the most essential aspect in photography being to interact naturally with the subject (Marien 281). The composition of photography can be dictated by the photographer’s position relative to the subject. Indeed, up close snap shots isolates and puts emphasis on the subject, but the photographer should live room for cropping without distortion of the subjects and the surroundings. James Nachtwey James Nachtwey has covered stories from a war zone in places such as Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo, Rwanda, and South Africa. The images of destruction and slaughter inspired James to become a war photographer. The quote expresses the significance of pictures in bearing testimony for the photographer and all humanity, and the events captured by the camera lens provide irrefutable evidence, especially during war times (Marien 289). Pictures provided a living proof of events and a permanent proof that cannot be forgotten. Pictures capture both good and bad times can be employed as an advocacy tool, especially highlighting things that cannot be forgotten, and which must not be repeated. ... Pictures offer inferential anchoring and representation to enable the audience the experiences depicted, besides acting as a testimony (Warner 86). Robert Frank Frank’s photography gained prominence at a time when the sphere of American existentialism and Beat generation hauteur was at its peak, at a time when there was an emphasis on cool, self-absorbed rebelliousness within the face of narrow social conformity. As such, Frank can be considered as part of a wide artistic resistance movement seeking to use photography as a vehicle that expresses their creative self (Marien 340). The quote emphasizes the role of individuals to exploit photography as a potent tool that photographers can exploit to exhibit their creative self, but the photographer is not truly alone but in the company of his or her subjects. Photography provides a process of self-discovery and introspection; moreover, photography provides individuals with a stage on which they can share intimate visual experience s with others. Indeed, photography is an intensely personal journey, whereby in creating an image and disclosing the images to others, individuals are also disclosing a part of what is inside them. The images and descriptions aids individuals to gain insight into their own potential for generating own potential for creative and highly personal image making. Duane Michals Michals argue that the best part of individuals is not what they see, but what they feel. Individuals are not their eyeballs but their mind; hence, people have the capacity to define their medium, instead of waiting for the medium to define them. The most powerful aspect of photographs lies in making people see things in new ways. Photographers should pave  the way  by

Application of Machine Tools Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Application of Machine Tools - Assignment Example The tools are made involving more than one process where there is also application of other specialized machines and different tools of trade. Machine tool is a critical aspect in the industrialization of any country due to the position it plays in the economic advancement. The milling gauge is an example of a machine tool application. The machine is used in the manufacturing of arc welding and equipment used for cutting. The milled taper gauge is made with a tapered tip. This is because the tips are used in conditions that are limited to mobility and access to specific areas that need to be welded commonly inside a corner. The way that a milled taper gauge is made is critical and ensures an efficient outcome in the final process. There are several tools and machines used to make a milled taper gauge. The tapered tips on the gadgets are mounted on the front of the torch and normally hard to see around in tight spaces. As such, the gadget is made to have a longer and thinner tip to al low the welder more visibility and movement with ease. The tapered gauge is made using a series of tools and processes whereby the incorporation of a cutter to size up the correct size of the tip is crucial (Snyder, 2004). The process of making a milled taper gauge starts with the measurements where the accurate measurements must be made before deploying the use of a cutter tool to size the taper tips. The size is the initial consideration that should be calculated before setting off to use other machines and tools. After the measurements, the cutter is a crucial component, and it plays a great role in ensuring a taper gauge looks the way it should (Liang, 2005). The cutter is used to cut the size of the tip in different sizes as required. One gauge could have several tips with different sizes. This depends on the work the gauge is allocated to do. The milling gauge is used to cut unwanted parts of a machine tool while converting it into a usable machine of works. This makes the pro cess of making the milling gauge be specific and advanced to give room for a hundred-percent efficiency and reliable machine application tool. The taper is made of a low cost, simple, and versatile tool mounting system that uses the holders alongside tapered shanks. There is also use of a matching hollowed spindle that helps to clip the object during work. Tools that have tapered shanks are inserted into the matching inlets and forced into the place. They are then made to stay there through friction, where in some cases the friction needs to be increased with the use of a drawbar. The drawbar is a long bolt that holds the tool into the clipping area using more force to increase the friction. Caution needs to be exercised during the process of manufacturing a taper gauge since the joints and the connection points require accurate measurement to ensure it becomes a successful taper gauge. This means that any error that deviates from the norm can lead to a spoilt taper gauge which cann ot be ideal to work as an application tool. The taper gauge itself is an important machine that is very useful in a workshop. Clipping the tools in its expected place is a critical undertaking that is determined by the process used to make the gauge taper. To ensure that a taper comes out as an efficient machine, its parts are made and organized in a specified way to enable perfect handling of objects while working on them. There is a sequence of

APPENDIX F Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

APPENDIX F - Assignment Example Write an equation that illustrates this situation. Use the same variables you used in part a. c) Use the equations from part a and b of this exercise as a system of equations. Use substitution to determine how many of each type of floor plan is available. Describe the steps you used to solve the problem. For part B: The x-axis intercept will be when y=0 or when x= 0 and for y-axis intercept will be when x= 0 , it will be at y = 0 This implies the straight line will be passing through point (0,0) mathematically called the origin. a) The sales representative here tells you they also have two floor plans available, but they only have 38 homes available. Write an equation that illustrates the situation. Use x and y to denote floor plan #1 and floor plan #2 respectively. b) The representative tells you that floor plan #1 sells for $175,000 and floor plan #2 sells for $200,000. She also mentions that all the available houses combined are worth $7,200,000. Write an equation that illustrates this situation. Use the same variables you used in part a. 3. You recently started the paperwork to purchase your new home, and you were just notified that you can move into the house in 2 weeks. You decide to hire a moving company, but are unsure which company to choose. You search online and are interested in contacting two companies, Heavy Lifters and Quick Move, to discuss their rates. Heavy Lifting charges an $80 fee plus $35 per hour. Quick Move charges $55 per hour with no additional fees. Answer: Let us tabulate the calculated cost of hiring against the required hours: Then graph for the range is drawn using MS Excel. The graph shows that after we cross the threshold of four hours and go above it in requirement, then the heavy Lifters offer a better

Educator In Community Essay Example for Free

Educator In Community Essay Initial assessment should focus on learning styles and knowledge level of students. This can be accomplished by asking the expectation of students, activities that they want to participate in and through an assessment of existing skills and competencies. The nurse educator must then mediate the course objectives with the result of these tests: assessment of the class must be bridges with the target outcomes for students (Priest, 2004). Instructional strategies should include literature, practical demonstrations and activities as well investigative or research activities. Reading materials should be supported by activities that will allow the students to experience what they have read. Further reinforcement should be done through participation in discussions and research activities. Processing by students of the strategies and assessment by the teachers performance can then be used to determine shat activities or strategies is most effective for the class (Gay et al, 2006). Testing of students should assess their understanding of the significance of each element in the educational program. Evaluation of which teaching strategy, literature, practical or research based activities, should be done as a means of initial assessment and to gauge what strategy will be used in the program. Similar settings for health education should be assess individually, either anonymously or through personal or written by students, as well as a group to promote collaboration among participants and the nurse education. Nurse educators in community and staff education settings have to be sensitive regarding their audience and at the same time must not discriminative regarding the level of learning requires of their students (Blair, 2004; Priest, 2004). This entails effective assessment tools to gauge topic knowledge and the learning style of students (Gay et al, 2006). Nurse educators must expect that strategies must respond to the characteristics of their audience rather than the reverse and that. This will entail constantly redeveloping teaching methods to allow communities to work collaboratively with nurse educators in promoting long-term and sustainable health programs.

Why Is Assessment Carried Out Nursing Essay

Why Is Assessment Carried Out Nursing Essay Although some questions may appear similar, there are subtle differences that need to be considered if you are sign-posting one answer to another. Criteria Number Assessment Criteria 1.1 Explain the functions of assessment: Why is assessment carried out? What is the purpose of assessment? What does assessment measure? What are the anticipated outcomes of assessment? Assessment is carried out as a way of compiling information about an individual or group to ascertain development needs. It is an integral part of both learning and teaching/coaching and allows the assessor to identify strengths, weaknesses and gaps in learning, enabling them to plan for the next steps in their learning by providing feedback to the individual and agreeing targets. Assessment may be used for 3 main reasons Pre-Assessment To categorize or identify the development stage at which an individual or group is currently performing at. This will provide a benchmark relative to a predetermined criteria and/or standard. Formative Assessment Once a baseline measure has been ascertained, an intervention can then be planned for. This allows the assessor to highlight specific areas of the assessment and target the intervention towards the needs of the individual or group. Using this approach enables the assessor to establish clear programme objectives. Summative Assessment Evaluating is just as important as the assessment itself. It is a process that can determine the growth and progress of the individual or group. This is why it is important to assess before and after the implementation of any programme as the effectiveness of the programme can be measured according to the difference between the two assessments. Continuous or formative assessment, is required not only of the individual and/or group but also of the product of learning, and then compared to the criteria and/or standards set out by the awarding body, (if applicable). This allows for assessment to be integrated into the teaching and learning process and links closely to what we assess, when we assess and why we assess. Assessment is not the be all and end all of teaching, but rather a process that maps a students progress and achievements during a specified timescale. Using the feedback given to them from assessment, the student will have an understanding of their target/s and be able to discuss with the assessor where they currently stand in relation to this target. From here, the student should have a better understanding of how they can achieve the desired outcome.. 1.2 Define these key concepts and principles of assessment: Fair Reliable Valid Safe and manageable Suitable to the candidate needs Fair Fairness in assessment ensures that the individual is given equal opportunities to be successful in reaching their objective. Reliable Reliability in assessment is essential. This would mean for example that if we repeated an assessment on a student, or they were observed by another assessor, then the results should be consistent across the board. Valid Assessment needs to be valid. What this means is that it assesses what it is supposed to assess. An example of this would be if I were to assess a student on their ability to coach a sports session. I could get the candidate to write up on how to coach a session, however, this would not allow me to assess whether or not they could physically coach a session and as such the method would prove to be invalid. A correct method would be to actually watch them coach a session Safe and Manageable Planning in depth and complicated assessments could have a negative effect as they can become completely unmanageable. When putting a plan together, the time management of the individual and/or group, as well as the assessors, should be taken into consideration and not become a burden. Suitable to the candidate needs Assessment should always take into consideration the needs of the individual and /or group. The criteria of most programmes can be assessed in a variety of ways which enables the assessor to steer the individual and/or group to the desired outcome by utilising different methods based on the candidates personal circumstances. 1.3 Explain the responsibilities of the assessor with regard to: Planning Assessing Constructive feedback It is up to the assessor to organise any assessment programme that the individual/ group will embark on. Both the candidate and the assessor will need to agree on the most suitable source of evidence to use for the particular unit/s and agree upon an achievable target date, along with times and places for the assessment to take place. It may also be necessary for the assessor to contact any staff, management, company or organisation to relay their intentions of assessment, as some places of work can have very strict guidelines in place, for example- the prison service, and authorisation would need to be sought. The assessor needs to ensure that the planning is holistic with the aim of looking at the overall picture. The range of assessment methods and strategies to be used should first be checked with the awarding body. This will clarify if the chosen method is suitable as evidence. Any prior learning would also have to be taken into account during the planning process. The assessor would need to seek out this information at the beginning to reduce ant duplication. Both formative and summative assessments and be used to assess the performance, knowledge and understanding of the individual, who will need to provide evidence of assessment criteria for the assessor to check over. It is the assessor responsibility to ensure they have an up to date copy of the criteria to which they intend to assess. Based on this they can then provide feedback to the individual on how to achieve the required result if the requirements have not been met. However, the assessor has a responsibility to the candidate to ensure that the correct assessment methods are being used for the task at hand All resulting decisions will then need to be recorded and justified. When providing feedback, the assessor should ensure they identify and reinforce any strengths witnessed from the evidence. Praise on achieving aspects of the criteria is essential for further progress to occur. At this point, it is important to remember to focus on the activity/ task and not the person. The assessor needs to be objective, and not allow the feedback to get personal. It is deemed as poor practice to begin labelling the candidate as lazy or uninterested for example. The assessor needs to steer the conversation towards what was actually seen, heard, or read. On discussing areas for improvement whereby the individual has fallen short of the desired result, the assessor and the individual would need to define and agree on the arising issues and work together to construct a solution, setting out new aims and objectives and ways of how these can, and will be achieved. It is imperative that any feedback be given as close to the activity as possible. This will allow for a more accurate account of the assessment. 1.4 Identify the company and industry rules and regulations relevant to assessment in your own area of practice? The College and the Awarding Bodies used within the department strive to ensure that there are no unnecessary barriers when it comes to assessing sports students. The requirements and assessment methods in place for students offer a flexibility to enable a wide range of individuals to be able to demonstrate the level of competence required to meet the standards in a fair and reliably way. To ensure this is carried out correctly, the college is required to provide an Internal Verification Policy and Assessment Plan, that highlights the objectives, strategies and procedures that show that the department is approaching assessment in the correct manner, which is in line with both college and national requirements. This allows the IV to check that assessment is being carried out and is consistent across the board. Any internal verification done within the department must be completed by someone not teaching on the course being run. All assessors, internal and external verifiers must be of a standard set out by the NGB/Awarding Bodies for which they need to monitor any changes and implement these accordingly. Any work that has been assessed by an unqualified assessor would need to be counter signed by a qualified assessor. This is to ensure that the evidence, methods and processes that have been used have been checked and authenticated. 2.1 Compare the strengths and limitations of a range of assessment methods with regard to your individual learners? 3.1 Identify the key factors to consider when planning assessment? Consider: Readiness of the Learner Time constraints Workplace requirements Location 3.2 Evaluate the benefits of a holistic approach to assessment? Consider: The opportunities for observation 3.3 Explain how to plan a holistic approach to assessment 3.4 Summarise the types of risks that may be involved in assessment in your own area of responsibility. Consider both HS risks and business risks. 3.5 Explain how to minimise risks through the planning process. Consider: Correct Legislation Policies and Procedures 4.1 Explain the importance of involving the learner and others in the assessment process? Consider: Motivation Range of experience and understanding How to involve expert witnesses 4.2 Summarise the types of information that should be made available to learners and others involved in the assessment process e.g.: Documentation Policies Procedures Skills analysis outcomes Others 4.3 Explain how peer and self-assessment can be used effectively to promote learner involvement and personal responsibility in the assessment of learning? Consider: Development of analytical skills Understanding of specifications Self reflection of own performance 4.4 Explain how assessment arrangements can be adapted to meet the needs of individual learners e.g. Time consideration, work/shift patterns etc. Confidentiality issues Consideration of learning styles Variation of assessment methods 5.1 Explain how to judge whether evidence is: Sufficient Are the requirements met and how do you know? Authentic Is it the learners own work and how do you know? Current Have the working practices around that activity changed since the evidence was produced? 5.2 Explain how to ensure that assessment decisions are: Made against specified criteria Refer to your standards Valid Accurately measured using a method that suits the situation Reliable Ensuring the same results regardless of who is assessing Fair That equality diversity and individual needs have been considered 6.1 Evaluate the importance of quality assurance in the assessment process? 6.2 Summarise the quality assurance and standardisation procedures in your own area of practice including: Internal procedures QCF and awarding institute guidelines 6.3 Summarise the procedures to follow when there are disputes concerning assessment in your own area of practice: Internal and external procedures, including appeals 7.1 Explain the importance of following procedures for the management of information relating to assessment. Give consideration to: The NVQ code of practice 2006 Regulatory arrangements for the QCF 2008 Company policies and procedures Awarding institutes policies and procedures 7.2 Explain how feedback and questioning contribute to the assessment process? 8.1 Explain legal issues, policies and procedures relevant to assessment, including those for confidentiality, health, safety and welfare. Give consideration to: Data protection Child protection Safeguarding Health and safety 8.2 Explain the contribution that technology can make to the assessment process? 8.3 Evaluate the requirements for equality and diversity and where appropriate bilingualism in relation to assessment? 8.4 Explain the value of reflective practice and continuing professional development in the assessment process?

The State Of Food Security In Botswana

The State Of Food Security In Botswana About 25,000 people die every day according to the United Nations report (www.unicef.org ) due to hunger, this happens because of increase in food prices resulting in at least one billion people around the world suffering. The UN and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) are working very hard to come up with the solutions to the global food scarcity and high food prices, which started the beginning of mid- 2008. The under investment in the agriculture sector has caused a silent crisis, which was worsened by the creation of a booming bio-fuel industry in which food crops are used for fuel instead of as food for eating (FAO 2008). In addition, the recent global financial crisis affecting the economies of the countries, led to loss of job to millions of people around the world thus deepening poverty. The World Food Summit 2009 (WFS) estimated that the number of hungry people could increase by a further 100 million in 2009 and pass the one billion mark. The FAO director Diouf showed a concern on the issue by saying the following words: The silent hunger crisis affecting one sixth of all of humanity poses a serious risk for world peace and security. We urgently need to forge a broad consensus on the total and rapid eradication of hunger in the world.(www.fao.org) The world is faced with all the challenges which reduce the level of access to food by all leaving many people with hunger. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, one third of the population is well fed, and one third is starving while the remaining one third of the population is under-fed. With these statistics it shows that there is not enough food for everyone in the world. The global food insecurity situation has worsened and continues to pose a threat for humanity. With the increase in food prices and transportation costs remaining high in developing countries, the number of people suffering from hunger has been increasing rapidly in recent years (FAO 2009). This increase in food insecurity has negative effects on gender equality and education, and it undermines the efforts of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Objectives and scope of the study Poverty estimates indicate that 30.3 percent of the population in Botswana is below the poverty line (CSO HIES Report 2002), that is, nearly one-third of the population. Though Botswanas poverty rate declined from 59 percent to 47 percent in 1985 and 1994 respectively, there is still evidence of high poverty as indicated by the report. In 2002/3, the national income poverty was estimated to be 33 percent and subsequently stood at 30.2 percent in 2005/06. The recent FAO (2009) statistics indicates that about 500,000 people in Botswana are food insecure mainly because they do not have access to quality food. For an import dependent country like Botswana, increase in prices due to high transportation costs and use of food crops for bio-fuels results in a decline of the countrys import capacity (Steven 2000). With macroeconomic policies that have proven to be efficient, competitive and sustainable in past years (BOB Annual Report 2008), the results from the FAO report and statistics of poverty rates in Botswana informs this discussion on what could be reasons leading to high rates of food insecurity in Botswana. The paper will discuss how policies and strategies on food security can be implemented to assist Botswana to achieve her intended goals of reducing poverty and the level of food insecurity, the effectiveness of the policies that have been put in place; the impact of the climate conditions on the food production and the effects of trade liberations. Management of natural resources and good implantation of agricultural policies are the most important determinants of food supply. Furthermore, the efficient support of markets, from the government have the capacity to improve the performance of appropriate roles each sector either the private sector or government in order to assist in curbing failing policies is important (Robinson 1997). These issues will be discussed in detail to analyse the situation in Botswana. Chapter 2: FOOD SECURITY Introduction There are various conceptual development of thinking on how to define food security, different writers have differing definitions. Whenever the title is introduced in the study, it is important to look closely to find an explicit definition because of its intensity. Food security is a widely debated topic, given that it affects people across the globe. Diseases, famine, wars are the major contributors to food insecurity especially in the sub Saharan African continent (Lado 2001) The World Bank (1986) defined food security as permanent access to sufficient food by all people at all times for an active, productive and healthy life, and this definition together with the FAO definition are widely accepted by institutions and organisations (Stevens 2000). The FAO (1998) defines food security as the right of everyone to have access to safe and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger. Looking closely into the definitions, they seem to capture the most important components of food security which is the guarantee (availability) of having access (accessibility) to enough food (utilization) at any given time (Stevens 2000). These three components will be discussed further in the next section. Furthermore, a situation whereby people have the right to enough food leads to a healthy and productive life, and this is determined by access to and availability of food. Accessibility to food has a close relationship to economic growth and poverty. The poor usually do not have enough means to gain access to food in the required quantities (Alversen 1997). Habbard (1995) and Lado (2001) also provide a similar definition, these definitions indicates that people should be confident that food will always be accessible easily by having the economic right in order to maintain a healthy status. There are no satisfactory definitions of food security, hence there are some other alternative ways of describing it. Some researchers use terms such as food crisis, famine, and food insecurity to come up with suitable definition (Sen 1981). FAO defines food insecurity as a situation whereby people do not have adequate physical, social or economic access to food. In order to be able to define food security, it is prudent to differentiate between the household level and the national level of food security. Kotze (2000) explains household level as having enough food to ensure a minimum intake for all members of the household, while at the national level food insecurity exist because the countrys food production and trade entitlements becomes problematic. If the countrys production level becomes insufficient, it jeopardizes access to food by all, and also leads to inadequate supplies. In conclusion, food security can be defined as access to physical and economic means by all groups of people at all times in order to meet their dietary demand and food preferences for an active and healthy life. History of food security Food security has been in the public eye for many decades. The example provided by Tannehill (1988) of Julius Caesar struggle with the spiraling cost of food subsidies in ancient Rome shows the historic trend of interests in the evolution thinking of food security. The FAO report indicates that the food security concept started in the 1970s at a global food crisis meeting that was discussing the international food problems. The reduction in the food supply and instability of prices on basic foods led to the World food conference that was held in 1974 (ODI 1997). Maxwell (2001) characterized the history of thinking about the food security since the 1970s as a progressive conceptual development. Since the mid-1990s, more approaches based on the livelihoods approaches have dominated the discussions of poverty and food insecurity analysis. Since then, there have been more programs initiated to embark on fighting the food insecurity level in the world. Different approaches have been adopted to assess, monitor and map the way forward of food insecurity and vulnerability. A number of models have been developed and adopted by development countries in order to curb the problem of food insecurity. In the case of FAO for example, they came up with a program of refining the social economic analysis by expanding national food availability to include household and individuals (Devereux 2004). Components of food security Food security can be determined by different components which are related to the definitions provided earlier. Stevens (2000) explains these components of food security as the determining sets of factors. These components are availability, accessibility, utilization and vulnerability. All the form components conforms to the definition of the World Bank (1998) which is the guarantee (availability) of having access (accessibility) to enough food (utilization) at any given time by all people (vulnerability) (Stevens 2000). Causes of food insecurity Different studies show that there are many causes of food insecurity in the world. In the Sub Sahara continent, the increase in food insecurity is a result of poor economic and social conditions such as the population growth, natural disasters, and also political disturbances plays a major role. The southern Africa countries most have a bad climatic condition as reported by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP 2005) and SADC monitoring unit. Furthermore, these poor weather conditions results in low production of Agricultural goods thus affecting food availability and utilization. Other contributors to food security will be discussed in depth, and these are as follows: Natural disasters, Low production of agricultural commodities, falling process of agricultural commodities, Scarcity of land, Unequal distribution of food and resources, Lack of purchasing power, Political instability and Population growth. CHAPTER 3: FOOD SECURITY IN BOTSWANA Brief description of Botswana Economic policies Botswana gained independence in 1966, during that time, the economy was dominated by the agriculture sector which comprised of mainly cattle farming, and it contributed about 40 per cent to the countrys GDP. Since then, the country enjoyed rapid economic transformation which placed Botswana on top of the list of countries in the African continent (CSO statistical bulletin 2006). In 1968 the economy of Botswana was mainly dependent on minerals such as diamonds. The mining sector now contributes about 51 per cent to the countrys GDP dominated by the diamonds, while the agricultural sector showed a decline in share of the GDP thus contributing about 4 per cent (CSO 2006). The most drastic changes in the economy were seen in the 1990s due to the decrease in diamond prices globally, (BOB 2008). These challenges resulted in the country to come up with other alternatives, hence decided to diversify the economy by looking into other sectors such as tourism, agriculture and textile manufactu ring (BIDPA). The IMF 2008 report indicates that economic growth has picked up especially in the non mining sector. Inflation has decreased stabilizing the targeted range by the central bank, though inflation risks remain (BOB 2008). Despite these structural economic changes, however the country is faced with high incidence of poverty, unemployment, and HIV/AIDS (IMF 2008). The country depends heavily on imports mainly from the neighboring country South Africa. Minerals and beef exports accounted for 85 and 4.4 per cent, respectively, of total exports in 2009 (CSO monthly trade report 2009). On the other, 22.0 percent and 13.3 percent of machinery equipment and food respectively shows the highest number of imports. Therefore, food remains the most important component of the import bill in order to meet the shortfall in most basic food commodities that the country cannot produce. Due to its land lock position, Botswanas economic development is vulnerable to external influences. The country is easily affected by the unstable political regional situation in southern Africa. Population trend The population of Botswana is approximately 1, 7 million. , leaving it in the 144th position amongst 193 nations in the world (UN). The population growth rate is estimated to be 2, 4 per cent per annum (CSO, 2009). The population in Botswana is unevenly distributed, with 54 per cent of the population living in the urban areas and 46 percent living in the rural areas (CSO stats update 2009). The main problem leading to the slow growth of population is mainly due to the high prevalence rate of HIV aids which stood at 17.1 percent in 2002. Agricultural polices Botswana started to adopt food security policies since the 1970s, and the policies were mainly to promote self sufficiency. In 1991, a shift in the policy from self sufficiency to food security was seen whereby the government, banks and donors, farmers worked together in order to fulfill the intentions of the policy (BOB 1990). In 1972, the Botswana Rural strategy was launched aimed to increase the level of production and improving the market facilities in the rural areas and creating rural employment opportunities. As part of its National Development Plan (NDP), a policy known as Accelerated Rural Development Program (ARDP) was formulated in 1973. Later in 1975, another program called The Tribal Grazing Land Policy (TGLP) aimed at maintaining optimal balance between the people, land and livestock (GOB 1972). As a way of showing commitment to availability of food to the people, the government in 1985 approved a National Food Strategy Policy for formulation and implementation of whole range of food security related programs (www.moa.gov.bw). Furthermore, the government introduced other programmes in line with the NDPs such as The Arable Land Development Programme (ALDEP) which was aimed at assisting small-scale farmers in increasing cereal production to promote self-sufficiency. The small farmers were provided with subsidies by the government to buy capital inputs such as farm implements, draft power and fencing. Another program called The Accelerated Rainfed Arable Program (ARAP) was launched. It provided farmers with short term assistance to help them recover from the drought season. During the NDP 6, the government allocated more funds to the agricultural sector, subsectors such as arable farming was targeted. The Financial Assistance Policy (FAP) programme was introduced to provide capital and labor grants to dairy farming, irrigated agriculture, poultry and small stock farming (Sigwele, 1991). Recently, the government reviewed all these policies to come up with new schemes that will increase the level of food production in the country. Certain constraints were identified such as non committal by farmers after receiving funds from the government (MOA 2006). The government also provided farmers with training skills and increased the budget on research and development to increase knowledge on achievements of self-sufficiency. However, with all the good initiatives by the government, the unfavorable climate conditions in Botswana made it difficult for the government to achieve the priorities of attaining self sufficiency programs due to periodic droughts (MOA 2006). Health Botswana has achieved remarkable advances in terms of achieving good health status. In order to achieve the goals of reducing poor families economically and socially, providing access to good health facilities will help to maintain good health status among people. The government should provide health programs , medication which everyone can access for free in order to enhance productivity and self reliance. The government of Botswana has shown commitment to improve its health status by increasing the allocation of resources to the health sector. In the past decades, we have seen the health sector given between 5 and 8 percent share. More hospitals have been constructed in various villages and proper training of personnel has been a major investment of the government. (www.gov.bw). Though Botswana is faced with challenges of high HIV prevalence rates and Malnutrition which has severely affected the economic and agricultural situation of the country, there is has been a substantial change in the health system, this is proven by the improvement of survival indicators (CSO stats update 2009). The government is trying to allocate resources evenly across the country through its implementation of the NDPs, but sometimes it fails to achieve this goal. Hence they may be some instances in which other regions get more developments than the others. This leads to most rural areas being disadvantaged and resulting in more health facilities it urban areas. People in the urban areas are better off as they can easily access the hospital due to good transportation systems. These differences may contribute more to the inequality and household poverty in Botswana. When people are ill or malnutrition, they cannot contribute positively to the production of food hence affecting the agriculture sector. Education Education is very important to the development of humanity creates better opportunities an choices for individuals. It empowers people to improve their welfare through increasing productivity and offer potential chances to improve standards of living. If more people are not educated, they cannot adapt easily to new innovation skills and technologies for agriculture, hence hampering government programmes to support food- self sufficiency, economic achievement and social prosperity. Climate and Environmental impacts Research has indicated that Botswanas climate change projections are vulnerable to climate change, posing a negative impact on the water resources and crop production. As currently there is no policy which deals with the problems caused by climate change, instead there are some recommendations that the government is trying to implement from the various studies that were conducted, a number of national policies are already in place responding to climate change. The government has demonstrated a high level of concern for environmental issues in the country. The climate of Botswana is distinguished by both high temperatures and low rainfall. There is disparity in rainfall in various districts. The northern part of the country usually gets more rain than the other parts of the country. The CSO report further indicates that the total land area of Botswana is 581,730 square kilometers where most of the land is infertile due to the predominant sandy soils and the unreliable and low rainfall. The land is differentiated into two types which are, The Kalahari Sandveld covering 77.2 percent of the land area and Eastern Hardveld covering 22.8 percent of the total land area (CSO 2008). The soils around the country are comparatively all poor. With its given conditions of weather, Botswana does not have suitable area of producing more food because the physical and climatic characteristics are not suitable for food production. This variability is of critical importance to food security and the populations use of the environment. Water and Sanitation Botswana is a water scarce country in southern Africa region due to its unfavorable weather conditions. Statistics shows that Botswana records high evaporation rates and low rainfall rates. There is concern about the low levels of water which are not able to meet the demand of the growing population and the economic expansion activities. The consumption of water has increased over the years and yet on the other hand water levels are declining manly due to drought seasons, especially in urban areas. The government of Botswana has adopted some imitative policies to provide and accelerate sanitation services with the aim of improving health conditions of the public. This was seen by an adoption of the Waste Management Bill of 1998, which resulted in the establishment of the Sanitation and Waste management Department (www.gov.bw). Sanitation promotes dignity, safety and privacy especially for women and girls. Clean, safe toilets and hand-washing facilities at home and school help increasing the childrens ability to learn. Improving health status helps individuals to earn a better living. With effective sanitation in place, it means that the environment will be safer and cleaner for all activities thus allowing children to play activities in clean environments. Families will also be able to prepare safe food and keep cleaner homes. Having access to clean water and good sanitation infrastructure leads to reduction in poverty and food insecurity (CSO Stats Update 2009). According to CSO report, about 84 per cent of urban residents have access to safe water. Government approach to food security The government of Botswana demonstrates the commitment to poverty alleviation through various programs. Botswana signed the United Nations global declarations for the improvement of human conditions and the Millennium Declaration of 2000. Botswana is also a signatory to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child (1990); the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979); the SADC Gender and Development Declaration; the International Conference on Population and Development (1994); and the World Food Summit (Rome 1996). The government of Botswana has managed to adapt and implement good strategies towards poverty reduction and food security through its polices to alleviate poverty such as the Vision 2016, The National Policy on Rural Development, NDPs , the National Poverty Reduction Strategy and other policies, As part of its commitment to poverty reduction and food security, Botswana has adopted a United Nations Millennium Declaration from which the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) integrates the eradication of poverty and hunger. In order for the government of Botswana to mainstream poverty eradication and hunger, the government came up with the Vision 2016 strategy which its main aim is to propel the socio economic and development into a competitive, winning and prosperous nation. This strategy is aligned to the countries National Development Plan 9 which is currently active and also it is aligned to the MDGs. Furthermore they provide guidance on how the agriculture sector will be productive and sustainable, and how they will make positive changes to the economic development, poverty alleviation programs and food security by the year 2016 (Vision 2016 document, 2003). CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSIONS In this chapter, I will look into the trends of data on Households methods of obtaining food, field and harvest size, Number of meals per day consumed by each member of the household, Level of trade statistics and other elements that are contributors to food insecurity. And also some case studies that have been done in the past about the situation of Botswana on food security. 4.1 Food Production Deficiency Botswana has a semi- arid climate, only five percent of the land is suitable for arable farming (FAO 2008 Statistics). This makes it difficult for the country to have support for food production in order to meet the demands of the consumers. In developing countries, the arable land use is deviating from its use of farming to industrial base thus resulting in number of farmers reducing (Brown 1995). In Botswana, a similar case is shown by a decline in the level of food production as indicated by figures 1, 2 and 3. Since 1995, the production level of food is insufficient, maize, millet and other crops are manly affected until 2005. This poses to be a threat to the level of food security in Botswana because if food production reduces, many people will not be able to have access to food. As compared to other countries, for example China, as a developing country is undergoing through some process of industrialization, their agricultural land has seen some land use changes to industries, housing and infrastructure leading to a decline in the arable land base. Similarly, a decline in the farming base has been experienced in developed countries, such as Japan. Japan produces about 47% of its calories and relies on imports from other countries. Before in 1960, Japan had about 11.75 million farms which declined to 3.13 million in 1992. Furthermore estimates shows that the economically active population in agriculture will be older hence a less number of people will be left in the agriculture sector (Mikishi Okada Association, personal communication, 1996). From this research, we can see that the global world is becoming more food insecure with shortage of land for farming playing a major role. For the world to run away from poverty, they should take land as a very important resource. If developed countries and developing countries increases the levels of urban agriculture, may be countries will begin to bear fruits by creating conducive environment for food stability (UNDP 1996). In order to achieve this, countries should come up with good policies in land tenure and maximise the local food production as a strategy to stabilise world food resources. Water is becoming increasingly scarce in Botswana. A number of countries throughout the world experience water shortages (Nicholas 1994). To enhance proper implementation of policies on food security, governments has to increase their expenditure on agriculture sector in order to promote agricultural production. But this has important implications for water availability. Water scarcity is not currently a major issue in Botswana only, even in the entire world, hence it more attention is needed by policy makers and should not be neglected. Not only the irrigation agriculture will be affected, all other sectors are affected by lack of water. It should be recognised that a land-use decision is also a water-use decision. A plan based on improving rain-fed agriculture through adoption of measures to make better use of rainfall brings trade-offs in that there may be less runoff to satisfy the water needs of downstream users and environmental functions. Planning for future food security req uires integrated analysis of land-use and water resources issues (Gowing 2003). The agriculture sector in Botswana is composed of the livestock sub sector and farming sub- sector. The sectors include a traditional system and a commercialized system. The livestock contributes about eighty percent to the agriculture sector (Agriculture Census Report 2004). The above figure 4, shows a decline in the livestock population. Botswana is deficient overall in food production under the current state of technology due to drought. The decline in population of the cattle is mainly due to higher recorded numbers of animal mortality cases. Botswana is mostly affected by the Foot and Mouth Disease which affects the growth of livestock population (CSO Stats brief 2008). 4.2 Employment and Inequality in urban and rural areas The agriculture sector share on Botswanas GDP has shown a decline, it stood at 3.7 percent and 1.8 percent in 1994 and 2008 respectively (CSO stats brief 2008). The cause in the decline is mainly due to the fact that from the previous analysis, we have seen that the food production reduced, and the population of the livestock reduced. The 2002/03 HIES report shows that 21.20 percent of the population in Botswana is employed by the agriculture sector and this was the highest sector at national level. The agriculture sector further employs 50.3 percent of people in the rural areas leaving a problem of rural inequality due to economys primary reliance on cattle sub sector. Moreover, even in the livestock sector, there is a substantial inequality. The data shows a skewed distribution of ownership of resources. The report further shows that even though agriculture sector employs a large proportion of the population, the income earned is lower in general as compared to other sectors. Only a minority of the population owns cattle and farming land while the rest depend on agriculture by working, they do not have cattle of their own. About 80 percent of rural households produced insufficient food to feed themselves, and the average household produce less than half of its daily caloric requirement (HIES 2002/03). In rural areas, there are more single households headed by females than in urban areas. They are mostly affected by food insecurity as they are unable to feed and provide substantial care for their families (FAO 2000). This resulted in Botswana adopting strategies that can help the country in its diversification programs in order to alleviate poverty. 4.3 Food Consumption According to the FAO, the food  [1]  consumption refers to the amount of food available for human consumption as estimated by the FAO Food Balance Sheets. The data used was extracted from the FAO statistical database, however the actual food consumption recorded may be lower than the quantity shown as food availability depending on the magnitude of wastage and losses of food in the household, e.g. during storage, in preparation and cooking, as plate-waste or quantities fed to domestic animals and pets, thrown or given away. Food consumption per person is the amount of food, in terms of quantity, for each individual in the total population. Figure 5 shows food groups and the quantities consumed. From the figure, it can be seen that cereals excluding beer and milk excluding butter are the mostly consumed food category, even though showing a decline over the period. From a food security point of view, this is not a good sign of progress for the countrys state of food security. The starchy roots and alcoholic beverages follows as the most consumed food category in Botswana. The 2002/03 HIES report also indicates a shift in consumption patterns of households. Alcohol and Tobacco category remains the highest consumed food after the food category (HIES 2002/03). Research has shown that alcohol has a negative relationship towards food security because households members spend more of their disposable income on alcohol rather than buying food, thus resulting in lack of access to food by other members of the household. In Botswana research has shown that high intake of alcohol has a positive relationship in contribution to high prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS (BIAS II 2005). CHAPTER 5: CONCULSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusions will be made on the basis of the data analysis, and also after discussing the policies aimed at improving the level of food security by the government, how effective are they implemented by policy makers, and then will discuss what the government should learn from other countries who fairing well in maintaining low values of food insecure people.