The purpose of the paper is to test and analyze the equilibrium economic relationships of the East Africa Community (EAC).
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to test and analyze the equilibrium economic relationships of the East Africa Community (EAC).
Design/methodology/approach
To attain the study's purpose the authors applied the Johansen cointegration test, including long-run structural modeling (LRSM), vector-error-correlation-model (VECM) and variance-decomposition (VDC).
Findings
At I(1), both Philips‐Peron (PP) and Kwiatkowski–Phillips–Schmidt–Shin (KPSS) tests show that the East Africa member states' economies are cointegrated. The result was further substantiated by the tests based on Johansen cointegration and VECM procedures, showing significant long-run and short-run economic relations. The result further reveals that despite some uncommon issues among member states such as Tanzania and Kenya, however, their economic relationships remain significant though it is negative. Moreover, the finding revealed positive and significant short-run economic relationships between Kenya, Burundi and Rwanda.
Originality/value
The paper applies the cointegration techniques in the context of EAC. The result is likely to be adding value to the policymaker and also to the existing literature on the subject. This may trigger policy implications and open new research direction within the region and out.
Details
Keywords
Thalia Anthony, Juanita Sherwood, Harry Blagg and Kieran Tranter
Frank Nana Kweku Otoo, Manpreet Kaur and Nissar Ahmed Rather
Internal control systems are critical to an organization's efficiency and promotes the adherence to norms and rules. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of…
Abstract
Purpose
Internal control systems are critical to an organization's efficiency and promotes the adherence to norms and rules. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of internal control systems on banking industry effectiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 15 commercial and 20 rural banks. The hypothesized relationships were supported by the data. A structural equation modeling was applied in testing the conceptual model and hypothesis. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to establish validity and reliability of the dimensions.
Findings
The results show that organizational effectiveness was significantly impacted by three dimensions of internal control systems: control activities, control environments and risk assessment. However, the impact of monitoring of control on organizational effectiveness was not significant. The results also show a nonsignificant impact of information and communication on organizational effectiveness.
Research limitations/implications
Since the current study concentrated on the banking sector with its distinct characteristics, the generalizability of the conclusions may be limited.
Practical implications
The study's findings may aid decision-makers and stakeholders in the adoption, designing and implementation of proactive internal control system to enhance operational efficiency, effectiveness and competitive advantage.
Originality/value
The study advances the literature by empirically evidencing that internal control systems impact organizational effectiveness.
Details
Keywords
How often, I wonder, does the reader look up from his favourite newspaper to consider how it is done? Those ingenious comparisons, the revealing statistics, the background to the…
Abstract
How often, I wonder, does the reader look up from his favourite newspaper to consider how it is done? Those ingenious comparisons, the revealing statistics, the background to the news, published at high speed and, on the whole, accurately, how are they arrived at?
Al-Qaeda is conventionally portrayed as a monolithic, hierarchical organization whose activities – coordinated by the network's leader Osama bin Laden – are the source of…
Abstract
Al-Qaeda is conventionally portrayed as a monolithic, hierarchical organization whose activities – coordinated by the network's leader Osama bin Laden – are the source of international terrorism today. Al-Qaeda is considered a radical tendency within the broader Islamist Salafi movement, legitimizing its terrorist operations as a global Islamist jihad against Western civilization. Al-Qaeda's terrorist activity today is considered, “blowback” from long finished CIA and western covert operations in Afghanistan.
The conventional wisdom is demonstrably false. After the Cold War, Western connections with al-Qaeda proliferated around the world, challenging mainstream conceptions of al-Qaeda's identity. Western covert operations and military – intelligence connections in strategic regions show that “al-Qaeda” is a network whose raison d’etre and modus operandi are inextricably embedded in a disturbing conglomerate of international Western diplomatic, financial, military and intelligence policies today. US, British, and Western power routinely manipulates al-Qaeda through a complex network of state-regional and human nodes. Such manipulation extended directly to the 9-11 hijackers, and thus to the events of 9-11 itself.11This paper advances an original argument based partially on research in Ahmed (2005), supplemented here with significant new data and analysis. Also see Ahmed (2002).
Rahul Dandage, Shankar S. Mantha and Santosh B. Rane
The purpose of this paper is to review the risk categories which are predominant in international projects and to rank them according to their effect on project success.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review the risk categories which are predominant in international projects and to rank them according to their effect on project success.
Design/methodology/approach
A literature survey of peer-reviewed journal articles, survey reports and books on project management is used as the research methodology. One among the various multi-criteria decision making methods named as Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to the Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) has been used to rank the risk categories according to their importance. The data for TOPSIS were collected through questionnaire as the research instrument.
Findings
The findings derived from evaluation of the publications led to the identification of eight different types of risk categories associated with international projects. The TOPSIS method resulted into political risks, technical risks and design-related risks as the top three risk categories in international projects. Contractual and legal risks and fraudulent practices-related risks are relatively low-ranked risk category.
Research limitations/implications
The findings will be useful in successful implementation of international projects as the knowledge of risk categories and their ranking will help project manager to plan the risk response strategies. A larger sample size for decision makers and more variety of projects can give more exhaustive risk categories and their ranking.
Practical implications
This paper explores eight different risk categories in international projects. It represents the ranking of risk categories according to their importance in project success. This will be helpful to project managers for developing a general framework for planning the appropriate risk response strategies.
Social implications
Governments of many countries around the world are encouraging their industries to undertake and successfully complete projects in foreign countries. However, many industries experience failure in projects as they fail to implement the risk management (RM) effectively in international projects. This research work provides the risk categories in international projects and their ranking which can assist in developing strategies to respond the risk appropriately.
Originality/value
This paper uses the TOPSIS method for ranking major types of risk categories in international projects. It might represent new opportunities for rigorous and relevant research that would contribute to an in-depth knowledge of RM methodologies.