In recent years, the volume and frequency of fraudulent practices in Nigerian banks have been on the increase. According to the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the…
Abstract
In recent years, the volume and frequency of fraudulent practices in Nigerian banks have been on the increase. According to the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the level of reported fraud in Nigerian banks rose from N804m in 1990 to N3,199m in 1998. Furthermore, the proportion of actual/expected loss to the amount involved in fraud rose from 3 per cent in 1990 to 22 per cent in 1998. Perhaps the highest fraud ever reported in any particular year by a Nigerian bank occurred in 1998 when United Bank for Africa plc wrote off N786m on account of fraud. The growing scope and scale of fraud in the Nigerian banking industry is not surprising, given the rising profile of the country as a corrupt and fraudulent nation. For instance, a recent survey by Transparency International, a German‐based international organisation that interviewed business people worldwide, listed Nigeria as the second most corrupt country in the world. The country also has a poor reputation concerning drug trafficking. It has, for instance, been asserted that:
Prior to the 1986 adoption of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in Nigeria, the government was the main player both in the practice and regulation of banking in the…
Abstract
Prior to the 1986 adoption of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in Nigeria, the government was the main player both in the practice and regulation of banking in the country. At the time, this arrangement was expedient given the government objective of preventing the domination of a very important sector of its economy by foreigners. Under this pre‐SAP dispensation, however, the government role as both owner of many of the large banks and regulator of the banking industry sometimes brought the government into conflict with itself. The adoption of SAP, which has led to government divestment of its shares in most banks, has now extensively altered the relationship between banks and the government (regulators). The aim of this paper is to help better understand the various forces that impact on the regulatory process for banks in Nigeria. It will also suggest ways of making regulation more effective in an era of structural adjustment.
Service is a vital, multi‐dimensional ingredient of the relationship between customers and their bank, or, more especially, their branch. Further, word‐of‐mouth recommendation is…
Abstract
Service is a vital, multi‐dimensional ingredient of the relationship between customers and their bank, or, more especially, their branch. Further, word‐of‐mouth recommendation is a valuable source of new business and is often based upon the range of services available. It is therefore an important function of branch management to monitor on a daily basis the quality of service given to customers and, more globally, for Head Office management to have available an occasional measure of the levels of service available at individual branches.
The Government's vision for social care highlights choice and control by individuals. This paper draws on findings from a King's Fund study and considers how far collaborative…
Abstract
The Government's vision for social care highlights choice and control by individuals. This paper draws on findings from a King's Fund study and considers how far collaborative commissioning is ready to meet the challenges of ensuring a diverse menu of flexible, integrated services for people using either direct payments or individual budgets. It concludes that more needs to be done to build commissioning skills, and other investment in developing the care market will be needed to deliver the Green Paper's aspirations.
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The development of a national strategy for carers underlines the importance of making the connections between all the different policies which impinge on carers. This needs to be…
Abstract
The development of a national strategy for carers underlines the importance of making the connections between all the different policies which impinge on carers. This needs to be mirrored at a local level, where there are some moves to embed support to carers within mainstream health and social services. However, achieving positive change for carers' needs not only more coherence about carers' relationship with the whole system of care, but also better ways of monitoring services.
Because of the intangible and inseparable characteristics of the bank services, every bank needs to locate these services and branches at locations which provide accessibility to…
Abstract
Because of the intangible and inseparable characteristics of the bank services, every bank needs to locate these services and branches at locations which provide accessibility to the greatest numbers of both major categories of potential customers—private individuals and firms (i.e. corporate customers). This article presents the major channels of distribution for banking services and the four main types of quantitative techniques available for bank branch location decisions—economic, spatial, bivariate and multiple regression methods. The article indicates the leading bank distribution strategies—defensive, offensive and rationalisation strategies—and attempts to assess the impact of new technology developments—particularly of Electronic Fund Transfer Systems (EFTS) and Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs)—on the future of distribution of bank services and branch location.
THE FIRST NATIONAL STRATEGY for carers promises a new direction and new emphasis in policy, with measures which will enhance the quality of life for all carers. The strategy does…
Abstract
THE FIRST NATIONAL STRATEGY for carers promises a new direction and new emphasis in policy, with measures which will enhance the quality of life for all carers. The strategy does attempt to address the current gap between policy and carers' experience, but many questions remain about its coherence with other policies and implementation locally. Criteria are suggested for evaluating the success of the strategy and its impact on carers.
Janice Robinson, Penny Banks, Angela Greatley and Jan Stevenson
The NHS Plan promises improvements in the National Health Service that could benefit many people with long‐term illness or disability. Some longstanding problems concerning the…
Abstract
The NHS Plan promises improvements in the National Health Service that could benefit many people with long‐term illness or disability. Some longstanding problems concerning the funding and provision of their care and support will remain unchanged. Moreover, there are dangers of new conflicts between the NHS and local government that may hinder the delivery of integrated services and health improvement strategies.
The literature on precarious and insecure work rarely examines how workers with jobs in large bureaucratic firms experience insecurity. Current theories suggest two approaches…
Abstract
The literature on precarious and insecure work rarely examines how workers with jobs in large bureaucratic firms experience insecurity. Current theories suggest two approaches. First, workers might focus on their individual occupation and detach their commitment from firms that no longer reciprocate long-term commitments. Second, employees might respond with increased organizational commitment because leaving an employer creates risks of uncertainty. Based on in-depth interviews with 22 financial services professionals, this paper refines our understanding of when workers focus on intra-organizational career development. This happens when large firms offer opportunities for advancement and foster loyalty. I develop the terms spiral staircase and serial monogamy career. A spiral staircase career results when workers take entrepreneurial approaches to advancement that include lateral job changes and vertical promotions within a firm. When the local labor market has multiple firms in their sector, career advancement may take an intermediate form, in which workers spend medium-to-long-term stints with multiple organizations. I call this the serial monogamy career. My research shows how sector characteristics and geography can impact worker commitment and mobility in insecure environments.