Machinal as a Play Written in Anger.

Machinal was written by Sophie Treadwell, a woman attempting to make her mark in a male dominated society and in a male dominated work sphere (as an author and playwright). This was in a time when it was considered a tenet of social life to accept a woman’s role was to facilitate the life of the man to whom she belongs. To reach above the kitchen shelf and attempt men’s work or to enter the men’s world was frowned upon and was punished by the social system. A woman in the wrong field or operating socially as equal to a male would either have to work under a different, male, identity or be met by severe criticism and gender based discrimination, her works largely ignored or peremptorily dismissed as inferior. The playwright draws on her experience with and bitterness against the social machine (hence the name Machinal, French for machine like) and tells the tale of an average everywoman who spends her entire, short, life seeking freedom from the role society has cast her in. Her role as defined by society is that of what the society in question considers any decent well bred young woman. She is originally a caregiver for her mother’ working at a job that makes her feel suffocated to earn enough to take care of both of them. Next she becomes a companion, decoration (he chose her for her hands) and sexual partner for her husband who â€Å"buys her† by providing for her mother and making sure she no longer needs to work at the job she hates and finally she becomes a mother caring for her daughter not because of any sense of love but because society refuses to allow her to abandon the child. These separate roles give birth to her rage pushing her to outbursts of rage and anti-social behaviour and ironically in their climax lead to a murder based on pity, not for herself but for her husband. Based on the idea that the play was based loosely on Treadwell’s experiences in a man’s world and the infamous murderess †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. it can be assumed that the emotions that Helen (young woman) experiences are echoes, or perhaps rather intensified images of her feelings. Her mother speaks with the voice of society, having been the one to raise her to be imprisoned in a world where she will never truly experience freedom. Her mother is a symbol of how entrenched the rules of the machine are. Having in her time experienced, surely, the same suppression as her daughter she was still unable to conceive a life outside the machine or to offer that freedom to her child. Instead she denies her the slight pleasure she found in marrying a man who appealed to her insisting that she instead take the practical course of marrying the man with the highest income though what she is offered is a pampered but empty life. It is questionable if she in fact loves her daughter or simply nags her because it is her method of keeping her in line. It begins to seem as though she simply ensures that she herself will be taken care of, so that a rich husband her daughter is an opportunity to jump at, not for Helens benefit but for hers. This would indicate that within the machine all interpersonal relations are determined by such practical considerations as where the power, especially in monetary terms lies and this is always with the men. What is left to the women is only as much as they can wrest from each other by manipulation and deception. This may be what young woman realises causing her to threaten her mother; that she does not in truth love her and simply uses her in and for the purposes that suit her. This They inspire the young not particularly educated or intelligent woman to crystallize the comprehension of her condition though it is one that has been forced on her since infancy and is considered normal by the rest of the machine and her objection and opposition of it succinctly in her statement â€Å"I will not submit† which she repeats like a mantra. This is a role that truly does not inspire her, that of mother, wife and daughter. Though she must also endure her mother’s nagging. She is controlled even unconsciously by men who like her husband who do not recognise their domination She does not like or love him and resents him because she did not choose to marry him but was forced to by her mother, and through her mother, society’s expectations of her. Also at the time of the marriage she disliked his â€Å"fat pressing† hands which to her represented oppression. he viewed it as the lesser of two evils because it would provide the means to provide for her mother and escape her. It would also mean she no longer had to work, being unsuited (or so it seems) to any type of structure. She also marries him despite a strong distaste for him because it is accepted by society that a woman gets married and has children. This is possibly the first major capitulation in her life. The first time she could be said to have had a choice in the direction of her life and in her attempting to find or maintain her (relative) freedom. Machinal by Sophie Treadwell

Data Commentary on Obesity Essay

Introduction After reading and evaluating six articles written by experts on obesity, the data seems to imply that better educating people about how their behavioral lifestyle choices effect their future and current health is the best solution. The six journal articles evaluated and analyzed include: David Freedman’s article, â€Å"How to Fix the Obesity Epidemic,† published in Scientific American in 2011. Green Gregory’s article, â€Å"Physical Activity and Childhood Obesity: Strategies and Solutions for Schools and Parents,† published in Education in 2012. Micheal Wietings article, â€Å"Cause and Effect of Childhood Obestiy: Solutions for a National Epidemic,† published in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association in 2008. George Blackburn’s article, â€Å" Science Based Solutions to Obesity: What are the Roles of Academia, Government, Industry, and Healthcare,† published in 2005 in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. As well a s, â€Å"Obesity Solutions: Report of a meeting,† published in Nutrition Reviews in 1997. Kate Dailey’s article â€Å" Can Laws fix the Obesity Crisis,† published in Newsweek in 2010 Evaluation In his article, â€Å"How to Fix the Obesity Crisis† David Freedman explores topics such as how the US has blindly gone down the path of obesity, what researchers are doing currently to fix the problem, and how these solutions will pan out over future generations. Obese people cost the government millions in medical bills each year while the problem has not hindered. One problem with the research is that many findings challenge one another, which leads to contradicting solutions. Freedman focuses on weight loss programs, such as weight watchers, which have proved successful over recent years. As well as how they have been able to attain success. These programs have shed positive light on the issue, unfortunately there is no way to know if they can maintain success over time and larger populations. David Freedman is a senior editor at Forbes ASAP, and has appeared in many respected journals, such as The Harvard Business Review. The information and statistics stated in his paper are backed by research scientists from respected schools, such as John Hopkins University of School and Medicine, as well as the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Freedman also cites journals such as the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. He begins his arguments by stating facts or statistics from these credible sources, then explains how and why they are relevant, creating a non-biased argument on the issue. The article was written in 2011 and cites statistics as recent as 2010 making all information relevant to the issue as it stands presently. Some experts believe that it is partly the government’s responsibility to fix the problems associated with obesity. Kate Dailey explores this issue in her article, â€Å"Can Laws Fix the Obesity Crisis?† Movements in larger cities such as San Francisco put bans on restaurants, such as McDonalds for advertising high caloric food without also advertising the nutritional facts. These efforts are often shot down early by government officials because of the financial impact they have on corporations. Even when government funds obesity fixes their efforts are too often based on a â€Å"best guess† basis because results of an action are difficult to quantify. Kate Dailey utilizes actual actions governments have taken against obesity in American cities and explains the results that stem from these actions. Newspapers such as the LA Times and San Fransisco Chronicle are primary accounts finding first-hand how these experiments have faired upon implementation. Kate is a senior articles editor at Newsweek, and she reviews hundreds of articles on a broad variety of issues each week. In her article she states both positive and negative impacts of the government taking a stand on obesity, allowing readers to make their own conclusions on the issue. Adult obesity is often preceded by childhood obesity, Gregory Green explores this issue in his article â€Å"Physical Activity and Childhood Obesity : Strategies and Solutions for Schools and Parents.† The youth of today spend more time on passive sedentary activities than they do any others. This  leaves youth not only inactive but also exposed to the ruthless world of advertising by food conglomerates. Obesity does not merely hinder youth physically but mentally as well; once youth see themselves a certain way it is difficult to dissuade their thinking. Parents and schools can play a major role in assisting children by educating them and giving only healthy options when eating. Gregory Green is a Professor at Fort State Valley University where he teaches Health and Physical Education department on top of being the university’s Faculty Athletics Representative . Green consistently cites the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in his article, the leading center for all things disease related, as well as a plethora of articles written by his peers. Green utilizes facts to support claims throughout the paper, which allows him to leave personal opinion and bias out of context. Michael Wieting also explores causes to childhood obesity, and how it links to a lifetime of obesity. Obesity is a caused by â€Å"attacks† on multiple fronts, such as lack of education, genetic factors, and negative advertising by the food industry. Societal factors play large roles against obese children. In urban neighborhoods there is often a lack of open area for activity. Urban areas also lack supermarkets where the healthy food is located. Only in realizing the many causes of obesity is it possible to brainstorm solutions. Advocacy and regulation can play a large role in prevention of the problem while physicians consistently research medical solutions for the obese community. Michael Wieting is a professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Lincoln Memorial University where he is also the Dean of Clinical Medicine. Like Green, Wieting cites the Center for Disease Control and Prevention often throughout his paper. Wieting acknowledges different causes and solutions in his paper, and pulls information from many different scholarly papers written by his peers. His paper avoids bias by explaining multiple viewpoints on the issue, which allows the reader to interpret and make conclusions without any sway from the author. The article was written in 2008 and cites sources from the same year, making the statistics relevant  relevant and current information. George Blackburn reminds readers about the science behind the epidemic of obesity in his article, â€Å"Science Based Solutions to Obesity: What are the Roles of Academia, Government, Industry, and Healthcare.† Scientists are constantly researching reasons behind why some people are obese as well as possible scientific solutions that go beyond the everyday â€Å"go to the gym† solution. As obesity kills more and more people each year, medical institutions are making a point to study the biochemistry behind the issue. Blackburn is an expert in the field of healthcare and nutrition, he currently works as the Associate Director of the Division of Nutrition at Harvard University. Blackburn is on the cutting edge of healthcare information concerning nutrition, which is pertinent to the matter of obesity and fixing the effects obesity has had on the country. The article was written in 2005, however, none of the information in the article has been disproved since the time of publication, which means it is all pertinent to the issue. Blackburn also leaves personal opinion out of the discussion by stating proven facts and explaining why the facts are detrimental to our well-being. In 1997 a workshop entitled â€Å"Obesity Solutions† was held at St. Lukes-Roosevelt Hospital in New York City in order to address the problem of obesity spreading across America. Scientists had begun finding reasons for obesity which went beyond merely overeating and lack of exercise. Genes in the body and proteins encoded by those genes were found to be one of the many causes for obesity. While nutritional food intake and exercise could greatly impact obesity those new discoveries can yield freedoms to obese people they had never before experienced. This report was groundbreaking and paved the way for millions of dollars in obesity research over the decade that followed. Twelve medical professionals had input in the â€Å"obesity solutions† workshop, all of which were qualified by respected institutions to be part of the research. Although the research is almost fifteen years old it has been the  starting pad for larger discoveries and remains as relevant as it was when it was first discovered. Science remains immune to personal bias because results are not interpreted, they are stated. The scientists thoughts and opinions on the topic are absent, therefore having no impact on the paper. Synthesis The scientific and nutritional community agree that obesity needs to be put to an end as soon as possible for the benefit of all. Experts do not always agree as to the best possible solutions to the problem. They argue that certain solutions can bring about better results than others. Obesity may be solved through government lobbying and intervention, through medical intervention utilizing pharmaceutical drugs or surgery, or behavior modification of obese through healthy eating and exercise.. The government plays a huge role in American citizens’ lives even if most people do not notice or realize. The government regulates what we see on television, what the food industry can and can not do, as well as the curriculum American children are taught in school every single day. The government should be taking steps to end the biggest killer in America: obesity. Blackburn argues, â€Å"the need to update and refine school curricula as a key objective in the fight against obesity.† (Blackburn) This is pertinent to success in defeating obesity because there is an unacceptable health illiteracy in America currently. Kids are not taught how to eat healthy until they take health class in tenth grade in most school districts today. Not only are they kept in the dark when it comes to nutritional information, they are not given the opportunity to combat obesity through physical activity. Wieting cites the CDC, â€Å"participation in physical education has declined 30% in the past decade.† (Wieting) This is a direct result of government interference in Wietings opinion due to â€Å"state and federal pressure to improve performance on proficiency tests by reducing-or eliminating-time for recess and physical education classes.† (Wieting) This proves that governments are more worried about bringing tax dollars home than maintaining a healthy lifestyle within the community it serves. Some argue that the government is taking measures to â€Å"combat obesity† when  in reality they have no effect on the problem. Communities are different all over the country, and â€Å"it’s difficult to evaluate the success rates or determine whether what works in one place will play well in another.† (Dailey) In other words, this means it is difficult to implement the same plans in places where climate psychographics are drastically different. In order to succeed, experimentation will have to take place around the country and implementation of different solutions must occur in order to find out what the most successful approach is. The scientific community can gives a helping hand not only in research of the obesity cause, but also scientific solutions. Scientists are able to discover which types of nutrients are able to help the body shed fat. In 1997 at the â€Å"obesity meeting† in New York it was discovered that, â€Å"high protein diets provide the best short term results, however long term effects are similar, if not the same than most diets.† (Albu) This is important for those just beginning to diet, proving that encouraging beginnings to weight loss positively correlates to successful behavior modification. Scientists have discovered differences in the genotypes of healthy people compared to those of obese people. Genes code for different types of proteins in the body, which have specific jobs to do in maintaining health. the protein Leptin is meant to control the body’s food intake, to tell the body it is full when it has had enough to eat. The New York meeting discovered that â€Å"circulating leptin is reduced in obese subjects during times of hypocaloric intake.† (Albu) Obese people do not stop eating because their brains fail to receive the message that they are full; instead they continue to eat an unhealthy amount of food. Behavior modification and lifestyle changes continue to be the front runner as a cure to the epidemic. â€Å"Programs based on behavioral principles are more likely to help people take and keep off weight than other approaches.† (Freedman) This is the conclusion of a study that was funded by weight watchers, completed by an unbiased third party. The conclusions find that changes in lifestyle by consistently tracking calorie intake, keeping an exercise journal, and recording weight values weekly. are frontrunners the  cure for obesity. Weight loss does not happen quickly, but rather at a snails pace and long term change is critical. Today children are brought up into obese lifestyles which they have no control over. Often times obese children know nothing about healthy meal choices or the positive impact of exercise. â€Å"Today’s children spend hours participating in sedentary activities, and eat more fast food and vending machine food than older generations have in the past.† (Green) Green argues that the lifestyle that Generation Y is being raised in and the social norms that they have been taught are acceptable encourage obese behavior. Commentary It is clear that obesity is caused by a multitude of problems ranging from medical conditions which people have no control over, to lifestyle choices which obese people are encouraged to act proactively about. Continued scientific research allows the community to better understand what causes obesity in certain cases. Research may also lead to an end all be all solution to obesity that could save the lives of millions. It is also clear that taking an active part in changing lifestyle can dramatically improve the future wellbeing of the country. Actively teaching people about the negative impacts their choices have on their own lives could save many misinformed, uneducated people. The data seems to imply that better educating people about how their behavioral lifestyle choices effect their future and current health is the best solution. An education system that stresses healthy living through better eating habits as well as an emphasis on physical education could help to fix the behavioral problems seen in many obese victims. Work Cited Albu, J., Allison, D., Boozer, C. N., Heymsfield, S., Kissileff, H., Kretser, A., Krumhar, K., Leibel, R., Nonas, C., Pi-Sunyer, X., Vanltallie, T. and Wedral, E. (1997), Obesity Solutions: Report of a Meeting. Nutrition Reviews, 55: 150–156. Web. 2 Mar. 2014 Blackburn, George L., and Allan Walker. â€Å"Science-based Solutions to Obesity: What Are the Roles of Academia, Government, Industry, and Health Care?† The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 82.1 (2005): 2075-105. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Dailey, Kate. â€Å"Can Laws Fix The Obesity Crisis?† Newsweek.com 16 Nov. 2010. Academic OneFile. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Freedman, David H. â€Å"How To Fix The Obesity Crisis.† Scientific American 304.2 (2011): 40-47. Military and Government Collection. Web. 2 Mar. 2014 Green, Gregory, Brenda Hargrove, and Clarence Riley. â€Å"Physical activity and childhood obesity: strategies and solutions for schools and parents.† Education 132.4 (2012): 915+. Academic OneFile. Web. 2 Mar. 2014 Wieting, Micheal J. â€Å"Cause and Effect of Childhood Obesity: Solutions for a National Epidemic.† The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association 108.10 (2008): 545-52. Web. 2 Mar. 2014.

Learning English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Learning English - Essay Example It is necessary for English learners to become perfect speakers of the language. Regardless of the fact that majority of these learners would be interacting with other second language speakers, learning perfect English is still a crucial aspect of the general learning process. It is necessary for English learners to learn perfect English in order to establish a strong baseline for their English learning, including the grammar, spelling, pronunciation, syntax, and proper usage of the words in a sentence (Sweeney, 2003). Knowing the proper usages of English in a sentence helps reduce communication barriers among speakers and learners (Seagert, 2007). In the current age of cell phones and short messaging services where words are often shortened to fit limited characters in text messages, the importance of learning perfect English has become more important than ever. Without instructions for learning perfect English, improper grammar and spelling would likely become the norm which would cause the deterioration of the English language (Freudenberg, 2009). Moreover, this improper English language would also infiltrate the English of secondary speakers. As their English-speaking counterparts are learning imperfect English, they too would be learning imperfect English. In the end, the quality of the language would be reduced. With more transactions being carried out with secondary English speakers, the burden of learning how to speak perfect English must not be eased or reduced. (Segaert, 2007). The importance of learning perfect English is based on the demands of the English language itself, not with those who would eventually use it (Pakenham, 2004). Moreover, secondary English speakers would also benefit well from the perfect English which is used in communicating with them. The foundation of their English communication has to hinge on the proper application of the English language. Adjustments made on the English language can then be made to incorporate the usage of other foreign words (Cleary, 2004). Throughout the years, the English language has adapted these foreign words into its vocabulary, but the essence and the structure of the English language has not been changed to accommodate a structure more appealing to the secondary English speaker. And this has helped preserve the structure and form of the English language (Cleary, 2004). It is easy to argue that it is unnecessary to learn perfect English because many people speak it only as a secondary language (Kubota, 2009). They point out that not learning perfect English would make the language more relatable to the secondary English speakers; in other words, English would have a more universal appeal if people would not have to pay attention to speaking it perfectly (Kubotam 2009). It may also be important to note that the pressure of knowing and learning perfect English may discriminate against the secondary English speakers who often speak heavily-accented imperfect English (Hojena and Flege, 2006). These arguments however cannot be used as an excuse not to learn perfect

The Relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia Essay

The Relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia - Essay Example The specific aspects of each character of the play as well as the relationships among these different characters have attracted critics to undertake vital studies which bring out essential truths about the play. Thus, the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia is one of the essential topics of discussion with regard to the characterization in Hamlet which can help the readers comprehend the influential aspects of the characterization in the play. There are conflicting views among the critics regarding the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia. While there is an important argument by several critics that the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia was true and a true love story, while another strong view which suggests that it was not true love story. There have been several complex elements in the character of Hamlet as well as Ophelia which make it even more complicated to understand the relationship between the two characters. Along with the complexities in the two characters, t he intricacy concerning the most important theme of the play, i.e. revenge, also make it difficult to make a straightforward conclusion about the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia. ... ctory references to the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia can never be resolved to the satisfaction of everyone May Shakespeare have been purposely ambiguous Hamlet is not a love story. Who first rejected whom is not crucial to the central dramatic issue. Polonius has ordered Ophelia to deny Hamlet access, and she says she has done so. Hamlet has said he would cut himself off from all normal ties, and Ophelia reports that he has, in effect, said good-bye to her, an implication that is confirmed by Hamlet's detached control at the opening of the Nunnery Scene." 1Therefore, it is significant to comprehend the facts about the true nature of the relationship between the two characters. This paper makes a reflective analysis of the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia which is essential to comprehend some of the fundamental aspects of the characterization as well as the overall plot of the play Hamlet. In the play Hamlet, the development of the characters has a major role in determining the plot and themes of the play and the relationship among the various characters is the central factor contributing to the credibility of the tragic elements in the play. Thus, the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia is the single most important factor illustrating the developments of the characters and characterization. There is essential love relationship between the two, though there are critics who disagree with this argument. "He [Hamlet] is in love with Ophelia, and the two lovers are in harmony with one another and with the purest and highest impulses of their own hearts. They are a pair of 'star-crossed lovers,' like Romeo and Juliet, who fell in an unequal strife, from the circumstances of the outer world. Hamlet struggles betwixt love and duty; his malady is as

Ethics and Issues Of International Football Term Paper

Ethics and Issues Of International Football - Term Paper Example There is an enormity of researches and theoretical work written on the subject of ethics.   Accordingly, depending on the writer, schools of ethical thought differ from each other.   Some aver that there are two (2) schools of thought for ethics and others say that there are three (3) schools of thought.   Still, other references have more schools of thought that one can imagine.   According to De Foe, there are three (3) main schools of thought as detailed below The people's good is the highest law. The aim of deontological ethics is to find the most moral behavior and to make that a law or a set of rules for others to follow. The use of deontological ethics is extensive in our world, observed most as laws, rules, and ethical codes. Theories of deontological ethics might suggest that it would be possible to create a complete and comprehensive law that would prevent all negative behavior for all people who follow that law. That which  is evil to one at one time becomes good at another time to someone else. The consequential might state that  in most circumstances  it is wrong to push another human being or to shoot another human being. However, if someone is about to walk in front of a speeding car then through consequence it becomes ethical to push that person out of the path of getting hit. Likewise, if a person is about to detonate explosives inside a building it becomes ethical to shoot them according to consequentialism. This seems to suggest that how ethical the action becomes irrelevant†¦ the results of the action in preventing harm and promoting the most happiness for the most number of people becomes the single benchmark for ethical behavior. I must find a truth that is true for me †¦ the idea for which I can live or die. Moral individualism suggests that a person cannot know what it is to be moral without first discovering what it is within themselves that determines certain behavior be linked to moral or immoral acts. Likewise, he or she must also give others the freedom to undergo this process within them to find their own moral center.   

Operational Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Operational Management - Research Paper Example For this purpose, there are a number of statistical methods that can be employed that provide a means of measuring how controlled a process is. A new material, "super plastic", has recently been employed as the material used in production. With the introduction of this new material, it is important to have a measure on its consistency in producing quality products. Particularly, defects in the form of uneven edges, cracks, scratches, air bubbles, and thickness variations are analyzed to reveal any problems with the new process. Tables 1 and 2 present the number of defects for the new material, "super plastic", as well as the standard material. Since only raw defect data are available, the c-chart would be the best statistical tool to aid in the analysis of the new process. Since we are interested in identifying the reliability of the new manufacturing process, we take all the defects in a day as one figure. Taking the mean of this, the upper control limit (UCL) and the lower control limit (LCL) may be determined using the following formulas. The two charts show that the total defects for both materials are within the computed limits. For the standard material, the number of defects fluctuates around the mean, but there is no apparent trend and there appears to be nothing suspicious with regards to the defect rate. For the new material, however, there appears to be a slightly increasing trend in the daily defect values. During the earlier days, the values were generally below the mean, and in the later days, the values have become generally greater than the mean. This suggests the possibility of the defect count exceeding the limit in the future. This may be due to the equipment used on the new material, or it could be because of the new material itself. It therefore becomes necessary to construct individual control charts for each defect type to attempt to isolate the problem to a particular process. Calculating the means of each defect type, the upper and lower control limits presented in Tables 3 and 4 may be obtained. Table 3. The Upper and Lower Control Limits for the Standard

Business plan outline Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Business plan outline - Assignment Example With Eglinton Avenue being a major road that joins various municipalities, the shop would form a quick drop by joint for travelers and other residents of Midtown Toronto, who are interested in sportswear, especially the young and active, and athletes. The lease rate that I am working with is that of $22.64 per square foot, with restoration provisions requiring a payable cost of $6 per square foot at completion of the lease. This is in view of the current 21 percent average rentals rate for properties of class A, B, and C (Dalglish, 2012). With my business dealing mostly with athletic shoes, the market holds great potential for me as a quarter of the total sales made in shoes within the entire Canada come from athletics shoes. In 2013, the total sale of athletics shoes around the entire country was a $1.3 billion (NPD Group, 2014). The major competitors that Chic&Fun has include Shoeland Discount Store and Foot Solutions, both of which are located along Eglinton Avenue and have annual revenue of $75,456 and $275,690 respectively. Nevertheless, given that I have my shoe production company, I would reduce the cost of production to offer quality shoes at a lower price than my competitors so as to attract more customers and gain a large market share. Given that Chic&Fun will put in a stock of $50,000 in its first year, with a markup of 50% employed on all the products, and assuming that all the products will be sold, then the sales forecast is as below. To protect my business property from any liability, I will seek insurance coverage for corporate liability and property insurance, all of which would sum up to a total of $5000. This would protect my business from any lawsuits. The business will offer different brands of shoes of varying sizes and quality, according to the consumer affordability. The Store’s point of different will include offering the products at reduced cost, given that I have a company that produces the shoes;

Analysis of Dolls house vs. Trifles Research Paper

Analysis of Dolls house vs. Trifles - Research Paper Example The play describes the murder of John Hossack, an event that Glaspell encountered when she was a news journalist at the Des Moines Daily News. Doll’s House’s Theme The rules and regulations that governed the 19th century women have been illuminated greatly by Ibsen in his play. The role of women can, therefore, be described as the dominant theme of the Doll’s House play. It is, however, important to note that a variety of other minor themes are evident in the play. Such include marriage and divorce among others. It is evident from the play that women were highly discriminated and were viewed as lesser beings as compared to men (Berger 45). The author uses a variety of techniques in his effort to show the place of women in the society. For instance, the dialogue in the play shows how men viewed women and how they described them. Sometimes these views were similar and sometimes different to how women viewed themselves. Women were expected to sacrifice a lot for the sake of the men in their lives. Their roles can, therefore, be described as sacrificial. For instance, their marriages were driven as per the desires of their husbands. In addition to this, women had their financial dependence on men. Nora is one of the most symbolic characters in the play portraying the 19th century women. As a result of her social and cultural position, she makes a risky financial agreement with Krogstad in order to spare her father’s life (Bell and Offen 87). ... Mrs Linde, on the other hand, sacrifices marrying the man she loves to marry another man to support her dependent relatives financially. The nurse also portrays this sacrificial role when she gives up her child and look after other people for her financial survival. In addition to this, she views herself lucky to get herself a job though lowly in nature because she sinned when she got a child out of wedlock. During this time in history, women who had born illegitimate babies were viewed as an outcast and stigmatized, with the men responsible often escaping the censure. Marriage as a theme in this play is one of the most important roles of a woman. Once a woman made a good marriage, she would encounter no problems because men were the providers for their families. Since men were the bread earners, women who made a good marriage had no doubt that their families would face less financial problems. The play portrays this when Nora becomes excited and so thankful due to the money she rece ived from her husband to cater for the Christmas shopping (Kotenev 102). Once a woman got married, there were no divorce expectations no matter the nature of the internal relationship between the couples. Doll’s House play illustrates this when Nora decides to leave Torvald and he asks her to consider what people will say about it. This play presents women as men’s possessions. One of the most admirable roles of women in this play is the way they were seen as an object to be admired and not someone to a have a chat. This is illustrated by the numerous pet names Torvald has for Nora (Gainor 45). Nora’s husband often refers to her by the pet names than her actual name. Women were

Business Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Business Management - Essay Example Its worldwide establishment did not happen immediately, rather, the spread into other areas of the United Kingdom and to other, states happened strategically, and involved serious and efficient planning by the founders and stakeholders of the company. Tesco has its stores in many nations, including the United States, China, Korea, India, and Japan among others. It has established many stores, which exceed 4,811 and a staff of workers of over 472,000. Its operations are on a large surface area that is estimated as 94 sq. feet (St. James Press, 2013). When first established, Jack Cohen established it as a grocery, which was a food retailing store. However, as time went by, the founders found it necessary and efficient to diversify into different markets such as clothing, electronics, and financial services. Tesco Company engages itself in a myriad of market operations, including those of extra stores, metro, hypermarkets, express, superstores and home plus. The company was formed with an aim of providing total satisfaction to its customers in order to build customer loyalty. In building customer loyalty, Tesco Company had in mind an aim of retaining its customers. In that way, Tesco Company was sure of dominating the market in no time since it would have had a huge market share composed of the loyal customers. In its venture of diversifying its operations, Tesco ventured and continues to venture into the provisions of both food and non-food products. Some of the non-food products include clothes, beauty products, health and electronic commodities. Not only does Tesco provide the non-food products mentioned above, but also kitchen equipment, stationery products and home entertainment products. It’s worth noting that Tesco also specializes in the service provision. Some of the services Tesco provides include financial services, website selling and telecom services (Laurin, 1977; Tesco Still Top of the Shops, 2007). Tesco’s location strategy Growth of Tesco has been measured using the profits the company makes yearly. The profits are attributed to the large market share the company has over many nations, which are over 14 in number. The profits are all from both the domestic and foreign Tesco business stores. Tesco Company has the largest market share in United Kingdom compared to the share of other renowned companies. Its market share is 35% of the whole country. Tesco’s growth is attributed to many factors, most of which contributed by the environment in which the market stores, and hypermarkets have been set up. Business environment is divided into two; internal environment and the external environment. The internal environment basically involves the leadership, and management put in place in a business or company. It also includes the employee’s contribution to the organization. Without the presence of hardworking and committed workers, attainment of a company’s targets and achievement of objectives would be challenging. Internal environment is one where the management has influence over. On the other hand, external environment is one that the management of a company has little or no control over. It is divided into micro and macro environments. Basically, external environment of a business is influenced by the location strategy of the firm. Location

War and Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

War and Technology - Essay Example During World War One, military officials realized the importance of having up to date weapons to win wars (Stewart 2001)2. During this period, armies used advanced weapons recognized as second generation warfare and realized that machinery and weapons are used to conquer and win battles and the only importance of military officials is limited to occupying the conquered areas. 1Harris, Brice F.  America, Technology and Strategic Culture: A Clausewitzian Assessment. London: Routledge, 2009. Internet resource. 2Neil, Stewart.  The Changing Nature of Warfare, 1700-1945. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2001. Print. During this period armies even realized the importance of transportation as these vehicles were used to transport men and machinery from one end to another. These improvements in technology clearly defined that to gain victory in war; you have to be sound technologically at both the operative and the tactical bases. The belief of technological soundness being the determinant o victory of war was clearly visible in different wars such as the Cold War and Current Wars that take place every now and then. Body After WWII, major nations throughout the earth started developing the technological side of their defense, they started developing and acquiring new kinds of air shuttles, sea transport and weapon, new form of larger missiles and bombs and machinery that is used while nation’s army is fighting in the land (Melko 2001)3. The continuous up gradation of the technological side led to the development of military aircrafts and air transports which had higher degree of accuracy and speed, researchers even developed new forms of surveillance systems to gain higher degree of accuracy during the process of acquiring information, for this purpose GPS systems came into existence. These developments in technological advancements were recognized as 3GW (Third Generation Warfare), these developments were utilized during the period of WWII and during Gulf War th at took place between Iraq and US and later even in different attacks conducted on Iraq starting from 2003 till present date. These wars clearly exhibited that those countries that were able to accept and create technological advancements are the victorious ones. 3Mathew, Melko.  General War Among Great Powers in World History. Lewiston, N.Y: Edwin Mellen Press, 2001. Print. Advanced Technology in Operational Level While creating a strategy before going to war, both the tactical as well as the operational bases of the war are taken into consideration and special importance is given to the technological aspect of these two bases. According to Giulio Douhet, one of the best strategies implemented is the use of air power to destroy the opponent civil population’s willingness to fight (Douhet 2010)4. This strategy was implemented in different wars, for example: during the period of WWI, this strategy was implemented by the German strategists while attacking London and NATO forc es even used the same strategy while attacking Kosovo. This strategic move increases the accuracy at which the war targets are attacked, thus this strategy obtains the optimum result while keeping the collateral losses at the lower end. Advancement in technology has been accepted as morally correct as these advancements increases the probability of armies gaining the accurate intelligence about the legal targets that need to be

Microbial Transformation of Steroids Essay Example for Free

Microbial Transformation of Steroids Essay Abstract Hydroxylations are possibly the most widespread type of steroid bioconversion. Hydroxylations can be used to buildintermediates for further chemical synthesis to provide the steroid molecule with the adequate structure for therapeutic applications. Microorganisms able to hydroxylate steroids in positions C1 to C21 and in position C26 have been reported. 11 ÃŽ ± hydroxylation is regarded as essential for anti-inflammatory action. Present study was promoted to extend the investigations to evaluate potentiality of this local oil contaminated soil isolates for transformation of progesterone. Enrichment is carried out in the inorganic medium providing progesterone as an only carbon source. Metabolites are identified by GC/MS and isolates by 16 s rRNA. 11 ÃŽ ± hydroxyprogesterone is the metabolite identified having 60 percent of yield. and Bacillus circulans Tex 01-S3c has been found most efficient strain. Key words: Hydroxylation of Progesterone, oil contaminated, Bacillus circulans Tex 01-S3c, INTRODUCTION Application of molecular biology techniques and genetic engineering of microorganisms for their improvement as steroid transforming agents are the areas of drug development. Site selection oxygenation, particularly hydroxylation of exogenous steroids is frequent in bacteria genera Bacillus. Several microbial bioconversion of steroids and sterols have been reported, focusing mainly on steroid hydroxylations, ∆1-dehydrogenation and sterol side-chain cleavage. These biotransformations, mostly associated to chemical synthesis steps, have provided adequate tools for the large scale production of natural or modified steroid analogues. The complex structure of the steroid molecule requires complicated, multi-step schemes for the chemical synthesis of steroid compounds. Microbial steroid conversions are performed in mild temperature and pressure conditions and can provide an efficient alternative to chemical synthesis. Screening and isolation of active microbial strains for steroid bioconversion is presently an important part of the research and development effort in the steroid drug industry. Oil contaminated soil is a rich source of variety of bacteria capable of biotransformations and degradations of complex chemicals. MATERIAL AND METHODS 1 gm of oil contaminated soil from different local places was added in the sterile 9 ml saline and 1 ml from this is added in the sterile progesterone liquid enrichment medium (KH2PO4, Na2HPO4. 12 H2O, (NH4)2SO4, MgSO4. 7 H2O, CaCl2. 6H2O, FeSO4. 7 H2O, pH 7) providing progesterone as a only carbon source. As progesterone is not soluble in water, it was dissolved in acetone (50 mg / ml). The flasks are incubated at 300 C for 7 days. Regular microscopic observation and turbidity checking carried out. By serial dilution techniques 0.1 ml was spread on the nutrient agar plates and well isolated colonies are studied for biotransformation potential. The medium of composition (g/liter): glucose, 40.0; peptone, 1.0; KH2PO4 0.74; MgSO4. 7H2O, 1.0; Yeast extract, 1.0 and asparagine, 0.7, pH was adjusted to 7 used for transformation. The cultivation was performed in 250-ml Erlenmeyer flasks each containing 50 ml medium. The flasks were sterilized and inoculated with 2 ml inoculum of 24 hr cultures of the pure organism. The culture flasks were incubated on incubator shaker at 34Â ° C for 48 hr. Thereafter, 50 mg of progesterone, dissolved in 1 ml acetone, was added to each flask and fermentation was continued for another 72 hr. At the end of fermentation, metabolites are analyzed by GC/MS. The efficient bacterium identified by 16S rRNA. Standardization of parameters like temperature, pH, incubation period, carried out spectrophotometrically. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 11 ÃŽ ± hydroxyprogesterone is the metabolite identified having 60 percent of yield. Bacillus circulans Tex 01-S3c is the efficient bacterium identified. Temperature 340 C, pH 6.5, incubation period 60 hours are the optimum parameters for maximum yield. REFRENCES 1. Al-Awadi, S., Afzal, M. and Oommen, S. (2003) Studies on Bacillus stearothermophilus. Part III. Transformation of testosterone. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology 62 , pp. 48-52. 2. Garai S, Banerjee S, Mahato SB (1995). Selective 1-dehydrogenation of progesterone by Aspergillus fumigatus. J Chem Res (Suppl): 408-409. 3. Fernandes, P., Cruz, A., Angelova, B., Pinheiro, H. and Cabral, J. (2003) Microbial conversion of steroid compounds: recent developments. Enzyme and Microbial Technology 32 , pp. 688-705 4. Mahato, S.B. and S. Garai, 1997. Advances in microbial steroid biotransformation. Steroids, 62:332-345. 5. Sameera Al-Awadi, M.A. Fzal and S. Oommen, 2001. Studies on Bacillus stearithermophilus part Transformation of progesterone to a new metabolites 9,10-seco-4-pregnene-3,9,20-trione, Journal of steroid biochemistry and Molecular biology; 78: 493-498. 6. Smith, KF and Kirk, DN (1989) Microbial transformation of steroids-II. Transformations of progesterone, testosterone an d androstenedione by Phycomyces blakesleeanus. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry 32 , pp. 445-451

Social networking Essay Example for Free

Social networking Essay After investigating social networking sites (SNS) and their consequences on todays society, I have come up with different views and I was not able to decide whether they influence in a positive way or in the negative way. In my view if each SNS user considered some boundaries for themselves regarding their occupation or other matters, relating their age the use of SNS does not cause any threat or harm. The huge disadvantage of these sites is that we are not aware of the other persons true identity but as I said before by considering some boundaries, mean not providing confidential information we can secure us from different types of safety issues. Social Networking is a way which is used to socialize via the internet and portable devices. During my research I have read a Time online article Is social networking a waste of time? and found that in organisations the loss of productivity is because of employees multi-tasking between actual work and social network which I will discuss further on in this essay. As I moved forward on this research I gain more information about SNS and found another useful article Is my space is good for society in which experts has discussed the SNS effects on our society. This research along with class discussions and handouts will construct this research project. As I mentioned before SNS users has to consider boundaries regarding their occupation, if they are going to ignore this point they will not produce beneficial results, such as employees at work place use the SNS to communicate to their families or friends they cannot put as much effort as they spouse to towards their job which will be result for company in loss of productivity. An estimate shows that British industry loss i 6. 5 billion per annum productivity and uncertain bandwidth usage. Lets look at the student progress in High school for a while; a Global Secure System performed a survey on 500 English school children between the age of 13 and 17. The result of this survey shows that 51% of student confirmed to being on SNS to check their profiles during lessons and over a quarter declare that they spend more than 30 minutes on SNS each day at school. All these result shows that teens are very serious about social networking. For them failing to attend to these duties could end friendships and go down their reputations. On the University level the use of SNS are same as in other educational areas. But I have noticed that after being encouraged and directed by their professors student have made good use of these resources. A lecturer at John Cabot University in Rome reveal that he encourage the students to be creative, to promote their online student newspaper which just over a year from launch is pulling in progressively rising traffic. No doubt all the blog, Facebook and MySpace mentions are helping. He had students who use social networking sites to build and promote projects on fighting poverty and eradicating hunger, organising music gigs art and photo exhibitions plus arrange meet ups for political rallies. An assistant professor of Telecommunication Information Studies and Media at Michigan State University believe that SNS have made us better off as a society and individuals. By the passage of time we will see increase in SNS utility as more population will adopt it. Political activities organized via Facebook, Job found through LinkedIn and growing amount of academic research on SNS are the evidence of positive outcomes of this technology. During the last three years a research has been carried out by a team at the Michigan State university to find out why individuals would voluntarily use a site that based on media reports, offer only a way to disclose information they should not reveal, collect hundreds of friends they did not know and waste time which can be spent on studies. In this research they done a survey to understand the benefit individuals receive from their relationships with other on SNS. They found that individuals are able to receive information and ideas from the people they dont know very well. They are using Facebook to increase the size of their social network and therefore their access to more information and various perspectives. To observe SNS from psychological point I want to state the views of a psychology professor William Reader at Sheffield Hallam University. He thinks it is difficult to say with any degree of assurance that SNS influence in a good way or bad way. He believe that SNS may help to make friends without engaging in face to face contact with people but face to face contact are very important. Shared attitudes are important for friendship. We know that people like to join together with people who are like them. The more similar we are to our friends the less room there is for argument on interest. In his opinions SNS will never replace face to face communication in the development of close friendships. Anyone can post you are cool on the Facebook but genuine smiles and laughs are a much more dependable signs of someones suitability as a trustworthy friend. We can realize that many people on SNS are meeting with other people before they meet each other face to face. As a result of this when many students begin university; they find themselves with a group of readymade associates. Given peoples liking for people who are like them growing the development of homogeneous friendship networks. In a way this cannot be considered as a good situation, choosing potential friends via Facebook profiles, it mean that people cut themselves off from unexpected encounters with those who are apparently different from them, ethnically, socio-economically and even in term of musical taste. A former Apple marketing director and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution Steve Chazin believe that this technology has changed our lives for the better, but at a cost. It provides great benefits but also the way we use to live are changing and everybody cannot happily adopt these changes. In their opinions tools provided by SNS have improved the quality of peoples lives and made it nearly effortless for us to keep in touch with friends, family, colleagues and also have increased the chances to make new friends and create a community. The negatives are that all the sharing of information can lead to some harmful situations like recruiters can assess young professionals profiles which are applying for jobs by hacking into their SNS accounts and make decision on based of the accessed information. As well as becoming computer addicted and committing suicide can also become a matter due to the SNS. Now having researched into social networking my views are still the same as I originally thought but now I have more knowledge, a better understanding of social networking and why people do it. Also I realize that negative impact of SNS can be reduced by encouraging and directing the users in positive way e. g. education, advertising etc Also I was immensely delighted to discover individuals views regarding the future which they believe we can interact with others on the Web, by having truly immersive face to face video conversations and experience a fusion of our real and cyber worlds where second life becomes second nature.

Effect of Business and Management on SACCOs

Effect of Business and Management on SACCOs The background gives a brief history of the savings and credit cooperative societies, highlights its importance to the society and touches on the problems that have influenced its performance of its roles and finally on the possible solutions or causes of actions. This preambles the statement of the problem, the purpose, significance, scope and limitations of the study together with the research questions. 1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY One of the basic principles of Cooperative Savings and Credit Movement is the belief in co-operation and mutual self help for the uplifting of members standards of living. Kussco(2006). Members with a common bond join hands to form those quasi-banks institutions. With finances mobilized through such joint efforts the savings and credit society members build up the capital which they can use through local arrangements to finance their own social as well as economic development. The traditional form of cooperation involved working together on farms, hunting and gathering. All people have basic needs of food, shelter, security and belonging. People would invite neighbors to come and give a hand. Also people did not have money and resources, which enables individuals to employ people or machinery to do the work for them. In any community cooperation usually exists in the form of associations of people who come together as a group driven by their social and economic needs in order to cope with their problems and improve their conditions of living MOCD (2006) According to Odepo and Nyawinda (2004) , savings and credit cooperatives societies (commonly referred to as SACCOs), accept monthly payments for shares from which, members may borrow an amount equivalent to two or three times their own savings if they can get other members to guarantee them. They say that growth in SACCOs in the last twenty years has been spectacular. According to statistics from Kenya Union Of Savings and Credit Cooperative societies   (KUSCCO), the number of SACCOs rose from 630 in 1978 to 3,870 by the end of October 2002 while savings and share capital rose from Kshs. 375 million   in 1978 to Kshs. 80billion by 2003. Credit outreach similarly recorded significantly, having risen from 357 million in 1978 to kshs. 70 billion by 2003. Saccos active members numbered over 1.5 million by 2002 having risen from 378,500 members in 1978. Their rapid growth indicate that they have filled a need which had not been made by the financial institutions. Of the Kshs. 110 bill ion in the current share capital and deposits held by cooperatives, the statistics show that Kshs. 90 billion has been lent out to customers. However, the recent statistics from the ministry of cooperative development and marketing shows the position as below The internal management principles need to be enforced strongly to improve efficiency of collections, and even perhaps consider insuring the loans in case of demise of member loaned. The Sacco movement has the capacity to propel the economic lives of the citizens if indeed it is well managed. Its principles of democratic management, voluntary membership and common bond give it the base to take its members to new heights. The movement has been a boon for this country and many people would not be where they are now were it not for the harvests of the opportunities sowed in the garden of the movement. It mobilizes savings and finance and penetrates to areas not valued by other financial institutions, while serving special needs of members. The prospects for the industry are so huge. By identifying the fact that the easiest source of funding is the locally mobilized savings, the saccos should come up with innovative ideas to encourage the members of the common bond to save, as a first step. Other sources of funds like the cooperative bank, which all the saccos have a stake in, should be considered exhaustively. Besides they should think outside the box and get organi zations willing to empower members economically by allowing loans at a rate less than what saccos offer to its members. The saccos umbrella body- Kussco- has a fund to assist the member saccos when they are in need of the funds   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ( www.kusco.com) Saccos face numerous challenges that hinder the exploitation of their full potential. Mudibo(2005) raised concerns on the calibre of leaders who run saccos noting that since these are voluntary organizations, members can elect anybody they like, who may not necessarily have the skills to run a sacco. He suggested that before a member is elected, he should have certain number of shares so that he has something to loose if he mismanages the sacco. Non remittance and delayed remittance of cooperative dues by employers has led to inconveniences and loss of income by the societies. New rules have however provided stiff penalties for errant employers. Members are also at risk due to HIV/AIDS and ways to attract new members are required. Ngumo (2005), in his article the cooperative movement in Kenya; the eagle that wont fly Nairobi, Kenya institute of management raises several unsettled issues affecting the saccos. First the government should decide on whether to control or facilitate the cooperatives. Cooperative roles should be re-emphasized. One member one vote should be questioned. Instead he suggests the policy of one share one vote. Still, ownership and control should be de-linked for good corporate governance. Then business strategies need further scrutiny before implementation. He concludes that it will be sad for Kenyans to compose a eulogy for the movement after all this time. He said; We cannot milk a cow, refuse to feed it, cry that it was wonderful cow and blame God for its demise. According to National Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) Baseline Survey (1999/2000), Kenya has a relatively well developed banking and formal financial sector. This consists of the Central Bank, 43 commercial banks, 16 non-bank financial institutions, 2 mortgage finance companies, 4 building societies , 8 developed financial institutions about 3870 cooperative savings and credit societies, 38 insurance companies, the Nairobi stock exchange and venture capital companies. The survey further indicates that nearly 89.6% of MSEs had never received credit and other financial services. Table 1.2 Sources of credit   to MSEs in Kenya 2000 Source: National MSE Baseline survey 1999/2000 (CBS, K-rep and ICEG) The unserved credit needs portrayed by the statistics in the table 1.2 in the background section above signifies a wealth of opportunities untapped by all the financial institutions. The proof of the existence of market implies that a lot needs to be done to raise what it takes to serve a market. The most basic need is the finance to lend in a discipline way. Voluntary savings from members is therefore imperative. Saccos abilities to improve their members wealth is determined by a number of factors, among them is the funding levels due to members marginal propensity to save, contributions; remittance by the employers, legal and regulatory framework, internal management principles and practices (e.g customer service, marketing, dividend / interest payment etc) amongst other factors. These factors level of influence on saccos ability to perform captured the attention of the researcher. It was the intention of the researcher to examine them and possibly recommend on the best way to miti gate the underlying challenges and take advantage of the available opportunities by exploiting existing strengths. Voluntary deposits / savings as a source of commercial finance for micro credit institution have generated a lot of interest and debate in recent years. Locally mobilized voluntary savings is potentially the largest and the most immediately available source of finance for some micro credit institutions, most of all the saccos. Bearing this in mind, one is left to wonder what is hindering the saccos from prosperity, given the access to its resources and the wealth of its opportunities. The purpose of this research is to broaden the discussion of what, when, why and how a sacco should use its resources, get the right framework, apply effective policies for improvement of the wealth of its members. Getting these elements right is a crucial part of meeting the demand for the unmet credit needs. The researcher will also seek to bridge the gap that exist between Saccos that have exemplary performance in their services to members and excellent returns and some others which barely afford to offer loans, leave alone dividends. According to Armstrong, performance is often defined in output terms the achievement of quantified objectives. But performance is a matter not only of what people achieve but how they achieve it. High performance result from appropriate behaviour, especially discretionary behaviour, and the effective use of the required knowledge, skills and competencies. 1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Quite a number of Saccos e.g TENA sacco, have a long string of pending loan applications from members SACCO star ( 2006) . Some saccos pay out little or no dividends/ interests on members savings. Some others still have a low loan multiplier and / or limited concurrent loans compared to some well performing counterparts e.g Stima Sacco, Sacco star,(2006)- which has even started ATM services for FOSA customers and manages to advance more that three times the members deposits, can give up to four concurrent loans without closing any applications for the year and gives loans almost immediately it is applied for by the member , (mwaura (2004). Among the major problems hindering this is the unavailability of much needed cash to lend, when it is required. This therefore causes a mismatch in the availability of funds and the demand for loans. Other reasons could be poor investment decisions or lack of investment opportunities or delayed cash flow from employers/ members among others. Rutherford (1999) wrote that funding these large sums of money is the main management problem. The only reliable and sustainable way is to build them from savings. Saving- making a choice not to consume- is thus the fundamental and unavoidable first step in money management, without which financial services cannot operate. The poor themselves recognize the need to build savings into lump sums and contrary to the popular belief, the poor want to save and try to save, and all poor people except those who are entirely outside the cash economy can save something, no matter how small, When poor people do not save, it is for luck of opportunity rather for lack of understanding or of will. Most of the saccos have succeeded in mobilization of savings from members. Inspite of this, still they have a huge backlog in terms of loans advanced to members (Sacco star, 2005). Furthermore, most of the saccos pay little dividends/interests on deposits or none at all, in-spite of trading with the deposits/savings. It was therefore the intention of the researcher to seek to establish the determinants of saccos capabilities to improve its members well being. 1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY Main Objective The main purpose of this study was to investigate and refine our understanding of the major factors that determine the performance of saccos to enable them maximize their members wealth. Specific objective Specifically, the study sought: To find out the extend to which the nature of business/ check off system affects performance of SACCOs To establish the relationship between management practices and performance of SACCOs To examine the level of education and training of general members, committee members staff and their effects on performance of SACCOs To determine if long term investment affects performance of SACCOs 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS To what extent does the nature of business/ check off system affect performance of SACCOs? Do management practices affect performance of SACCOs? Is education and training of general members, committee members staff a factor that affects the performance of SACCOs? Does long term investment affect the performance of SACCOs? 1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This study is aimed at developing an understanding on major factors determining the accessibility to funds to process and dispense all loan requisitions in time by saccos in Kenya. It is seeking to examine and underscore the salient principles that have a bearing in the success in similar or related areas of focus, and hence suggest ways and means of overcoming failure. The study is aimed at benefiting, among others, the management teams. These are the people entrusted by the members to take care of their interests in saccos. They will study to understand and improve on policy setting and implementation for overall sustainability of the sector. The entire sacco membership will also get enlightened. The members of the common bond will appreciate their role in sustaining their welfare through sacco as a vehicle. They will be more willing to take a center role instead of quiting when they feel their interests are not being taken care of by the people they entrusted them with. It will also benefit the sacco staff/secretariate; these are the people who get their daily bread from the sacco. They will understand their role in the growth of the organization, hence acting to secure their source of livelihood. It will also be of good use to the government department in charge of cooperatives. The report will bring to light issues requiring framework and only them can attend to for the overall sustainability of the sacco industry. Finally other researchers in this area will find this useful. They will get recommendations for further research from this study. The beneficiaries will have access to the information on the findings from the compiled report. The final report will be available in selected major libraries, organized groups, especially the respondents will get a copy of the report on the findings. 1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY This studys scope was the saccos based in Eldoret. The researcher selected a suitable sample from the population by purposive convenience sampling. According to the statistics from MOCD/M, there are about 10 such saccos within Eldoret town. About 40 % of the population (4 saccos) were covered by the study. The study targeted the members of the central management committee (CMC) in the selected SACCOs. CHAPTER TWO 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction to literature review This section contains literature that has been reviewed and continues to be reviewed relating to the problem. Literature review involves locating, reading and evaluating reports of previous studies, observations and opinions relating to the planned study. It therefore enables the researcher to know what has been done in the particular field of study, makes one aware of what has been made and what challenges remain, and gives suggestions on the variables and procedures that could be used. Literature review logically leads to objectives on the study. 2.2 Past studies in the area 2.2.1 Background information According to Mwaura (2005) sessional paper No. 4 of 1987 on renewed growth through the cooperative movement highlighted the significance of the movement in national development. By this time there were 3500 registered cooperatives with more than 2million members and an annual turnover greater than 6billion. The paper noted that one in every two Kenyans derived its livelihood from the cooperative either directly or indirectly. The cooperative movement in Kenya is reputed to be the most advanced in the African continent. The Kenya Nordic agreement of 1967led to the establishment of the Cooperative college of Kenya at Langata, which is the main training ground for both ministry staff and the movement employees. According to MOCD (2002) the first Savings and credit Cooperatives in Kenya were started in the sixties. The Government annual economic survey shows that as at December 2002 there were more than 2,400 active SACCOS with membership in excess of 1.5 million people. Share capital stood at Kshs. 65 billion while outstanding loans were Kshs. 59 billion.. The structure of the cooperative movement in Kenya comprises of four tiers. These include the primary societies, secondary cooperatives, tertiary cooperatives and nationwide cooperatives. The Kenya Federal of Cooperatives (KNFC) is the only apex society in the movement. It was formed with an objective of promoting, developing, guiding, assisting and upholding ideas of the cooperative principles. KNFC is the link between cooperatives in Kenya and the international cooperative alliance. Of special mention here is the African Confederation of Cooperative Savings and Credit Associations (ACCOSCA), which is registered under the Societies Act, Chapter 108 of the laws of Kenya. Its area of operation is Africa and the adjacent islands. Its head-quarters is in Nairobi. It has twenty five affiliated organizations. It is affiliated to the International Cooperative Alliance through its members in the world council of Credit Unions (WOCCU). According to the cooperative Societies Act (Cap 490), persons desirous of forming a cooperative society must fill the prescribed form from the commissioner for cooperatives. It requires that at least ten members will sign the form, though for savings and credit the commissioner has been asked for more people. The form requires that the society makes its by-laws. For ease of convenience the commissioner has prepared model by-laws for the cooperative societies. The societies are nevertheless free to change these or come up with their own by-laws. The by-laws must detail the following; the name of the society, objects of the society, purposes to which its funds may be applied, disposal of surplus funds, qualifications for membership and terms and conditions of admission of members. For savings and credit cooperatives, the following are also includes, the rate of interest, the maximum amount loan-able, extension, renewal and recovery of loans and the consequences of default in the repayment of any sums due. On receipt of the application form the office of the commissioner will register the cooperative society on the advice of the cooperative officer in charge of the area of operation. Chapter 490 provides that no companies registered under the companys Act or any un-incorporated body of persons shall become a member of a registered society except with the written permission of the commissioner. It also provides that no person can join more than one cooperative society with unlimited liability. A member may nevertheless be allowed to join two or more cooperatives with limited liability if the two are in different areas of operation. A cooperative society just like a company, may be registered with or without limited liability. The commissioner has power to refuse to register a cooperative society. Nevertheless, the refusal must be given to the applicants in writing. Applicants can appeal to the minister for cooperative developments and finally to the high court. The commissioner may register the cooperative either provisionally or fully. A provision registration is given where some requirements for registration have not been met. The applicants are given a period o f one year to satisfy all conditions. A provisionally registered cooperative society may act as a fully registered in all ways. Upon registration such a cooperative society is deemed to have been registered on the date of the provisional registration. Upon registration a society becomes a body of corporate. According to Ouma(1980), the term cooperative in its widest sense simply means working together. In this context cooperation is as old as mankind and exists wherever the human family is found. Indeed such cooperation exists among animals, insects, bees and ants. Thus cooperation generally means working together for a common purpose. Thus group effort through traditional form of cooperation may be traced in all communities of the world. However its narrow sense as a movement, it means an association of people whose purpose for group work yields good results not only for the members but to the community in general and even to the humanity at large. Cooperative is a business organization by profit, but rather the result of mutual association whose objective is equitable economic betterment of man and the society in which he lives. According to the MOCD, cooperatives are regulated by a set of principals. These principles were formulated by a group of people who lived in a village in England known as Rochdale, and they are therefore referred to as Rochdale pioneers. They formed the first successful cooperative society   in 1884. This society which was a consumer cooperative society was formed in 1844 when Britain was undergoing industrial revolution. As a result of the revolution, a lot of people lost their jobs in the factories as machines were introduced to replace them. In addition to this there was general lack of credit and supply of essential commodities like salt, sugar, flour and cooking fat. Businessmen also took advantage of this situation and started offering impure products at high prices. It is against this background that Rochdale Pioneers decided to draw up some sort of principles which would guide their operation as cooperative society.   These principles were intended for the regulation of cooperative society as indicated by the great stress on the sale of pure products and the sale of goods for cash only. It was therefore found necessary to formulate the principles for adoption by other types of cooperatives. The International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) Commission of 1966 adopted the following principles which are genuine for the running of a genuine cooperative society:- Open and voluntary membership, democratic administration (one man, one vote), limited interest on share capital, payments of dividends and bonuses to members, promotion of education and cooperation with other cooperatives at local national and international levels. According to Ouma (1980), the traditional cooperatives have been in existence in Kenya, as it has been elsewhere, from time immemorial. Examples of such cooperative practices are to be found in Kenya. The group association is normally based on lineage according to the natural geographic environment in which the members of the group are born. This is usually based on clan or people who live within the same village. It can be stated with fair amount of certainty that the   traditional forms of cooperation do generally speaking, form the basis for the establishment of modern cooperative organizations. There is for instance in Luo, Saga whereby a group of people do ploughing, weeding or harvest for each member of the group in turn. In Kwath, members of the group look after their cattle together for three or more days consecutively, in turn. In Kikuyu there is what is called ngwatio (Mwethya in Kamba) whereby members of the group get together to build houses for themselves, each member of the group breinging what is required for the construction e.g. grass and poles. When the first house is completed then the members start on the next one. In Kisii, there is what is called obituary wherby men go on a job hunting exercise, and when they kill an animal, they will either divide it or take it home (village) where it mis cooked and eaten communally by all the villagers. Among the Kalenjin there is the practice of Kokwet wherby a group of people   would go out to harvest or weed the garden of their members in turn. The Kalenjin also have Loget whereby the men   go in a joint   effort to kill animals for food. According to Ouma(1980), practically all the ethnic groups in this country, whether small or big, has since time immemorial practiced mutual association in order to satisfy their needs socially, economically or otherwise. It is also necessary to point out that in the traditional forms of cooperatives, in contrast to the modern cooperatives, members had a great sense of commitment and belonging.. They had mutual trust and   were voluntarily involved in their activities and affairs.. It is of course not possible and it may not be expected that with the development of cosmopolitan populations consisting of different ethnic groups and tribes that members can still hold   together without some form of regulations. Hence the necessity to resort to legal reinforcement and education in order to develop efficient cooperative organizations. Although these associations of group effort could be deemed self help which is infect a for of cooperative , it is nevertheless true to say that the modern cooperative movement, born in Kenya during the beginning of twentieth century owed much of the cooperative idea to these earlier practices. It is also true that the modern cooperative associations in this country took a different approach and   mainly because of expediency. Its founders the British settlers- merely wanted to use it as a cheap means of business for easy profit making. They never spontaneously involved the indigenous people who already were familiar with cooperative effort. The early settlers were beset by very many problems as regards their agricultural activities. For instance prices for Agricultural products were very low, transport of the agricultural inputs and outputs to the markets by each individual settler were classical nightmares. Therefore this new system of farming with its large scale production caused the needs for associations by the few European farmers who undoubtedly had conceived the cooperative idea from the British cooperative movement back home. It will of course be recalled that the formal and successful cooperative organisations started in Britain in 1844. In 1908, they resolved to join together at a place called Lumbwa and formed Lumbwa cooperative Society Ltd. Although not registered as such under any cooperative Societies Act, it is deemed to be one of the modern cooperatives in Kenya. The main objective was to purchase merchandise; i.e. fertilizers, chemical seeds, and other agricultural inputs through collective effort, and to market their produce collectively thus taking advantage of the economy of scale. It would appear quite clear at this point that cooperatives in Kenya did not start as a poor mans defensive weapon against the exploitation by the middlemen, as it had started in Europe and elsewhere. It was on the contrary an easier means to enable the white settlers to receive high returns from their agricultural produce. Thus it was rather an economic necessity for the well to do and not the ordinary man with little or no means at all. It will be remembered that during this time, there was no cooperative societies ordinance to regulate and to assist the management of these cooperative efforts in Kenya. It is also not clear whether or   not Lumbwa Cooperative society ltd was registered even under the companies Act, otherwise calling it a co-operative society was misleading. However one thing remains certain, and that is that the settlers wanted to maximize their profits by trading under the pretext of a co-operative organisation, thereby enjoying its privileges. According to Ouma (1980) many self help groups, most of which were very small and un-economic, were started all over the country. But these were not economically viable and consequently had to be amalgamated into larger economic units. These were for instance Kenya farmers association (co-operatives), Kenya planters co-operative union, Kenya cooperative creameries and Horticultural cooperative union. It is a fact that these institutions formed the backbone and the base for formal cooperative movement in this country. These initial cooperative ventures in Kenya were unfortunately not quite in the spirit of the Rochdale Pioneer Cooperative Society. They never for example, observed the principle of membership, for no African could participate in it until later. The need to form formal cooperative organisations arose when some African peasant farmers realized that they were being exploited, especially by the Asian traders who were paying very low prices for their agricultural produce. As early as in the 1930s there were attempts to form cooperatives by the indigenous people of Kenya, in spite of lack of proper guidance. Of these early attempts two examples can be mentioned here, The Taita vegetable company and the Kisii coffee Growers cooperative. The farmers had 239 members and bought 3 lorries at the cost of $1170 out of the profits made from the operations. The group was producing, grading, transporting and selling on the mombasa market over 900,000Lbs of vegetables a year and the growers received over $4,500 out of a gross selling price of $ 6300. This was indeed too substantial an enterprise to be left without a legal basis. It was later registered as cooperative society. The Kisii coffee growers Association which was able to raise from the sale of its coffee a sum of $2470 of which   $1240 was paid out to the 251 members who had cultivated only 159 acres, but had already accumulated a surplus of $1065. In 1994, the British Colonial Office in London appointed Mr. W.K.H Campbell to come to investigate the possibilities of African participation in the cooperative organisations. He carried out his investigations by touring and visiting many towns and districts in the republic of Kenya and talking to the people. After all his investigations Mr. Campbell submitted his recommendations that subject to availability of capable staff attempts to organise cooperatives were worth while. It was also during this time that the first African Mr. Eliud Mathu was nominated to the legislative assembly, as the Kenya parliament was called then. He demanded in parliament and such people as Ex chief Koinange from outside, that the Government should come out openly to encourage African participation in the cooperative movement. It was as a result of Campbells recommendation that the cooperative societies (Registration) Amendment, Ordinance of 1932 was repealed and the cooperative societies Ordinance of 1945 was enacted under Cap. 287. It was as a result of this new ordinance that the department of cooperatives was created, although it was placed under different ministries at various times. Consequent to the establishment of the department, a registrar ( now called commissioner for cooperative Development) was appointed and together with his staff was responsible for registration and promotion of cooperative societies in the country. The 1945 cooperative societies ordinance further gave the registrar certain powers over cooperative societies, for example refusal to register a cooperative society, cancellation of certificate of registration, to audit societys books of accounts, authority to inspect books of society, authority to settle disputes in cooperat Effect of Business and Management on SACCOs Effect of Business and Management on SACCOs The background gives a brief history of the savings and credit cooperative societies, highlights its importance to the society and touches on the problems that have influenced its performance of its roles and finally on the possible solutions or causes of actions. This preambles the statement of the problem, the purpose, significance, scope and limitations of the study together with the research questions. 1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY One of the basic principles of Cooperative Savings and Credit Movement is the belief in co-operation and mutual self help for the uplifting of members standards of living. Kussco(2006). Members with a common bond join hands to form those quasi-banks institutions. With finances mobilized through such joint efforts the savings and credit society members build up the capital which they can use through local arrangements to finance their own social as well as economic development. The traditional form of cooperation involved working together on farms, hunting and gathering. All people have basic needs of food, shelter, security and belonging. People would invite neighbors to come and give a hand. Also people did not have money and resources, which enables individuals to employ people or machinery to do the work for them. In any community cooperation usually exists in the form of associations of people who come together as a group driven by their social and economic needs in order to cope with their problems and improve their conditions of living MOCD (2006) According to Odepo and Nyawinda (2004) , savings and credit cooperatives societies (commonly referred to as SACCOs), accept monthly payments for shares from which, members may borrow an amount equivalent to two or three times their own savings if they can get other members to guarantee them. They say that growth in SACCOs in the last twenty years has been spectacular. According to statistics from Kenya Union Of Savings and Credit Cooperative societies   (KUSCCO), the number of SACCOs rose from 630 in 1978 to 3,870 by the end of October 2002 while savings and share capital rose from Kshs. 375 million   in 1978 to Kshs. 80billion by 2003. Credit outreach similarly recorded significantly, having risen from 357 million in 1978 to kshs. 70 billion by 2003. Saccos active members numbered over 1.5 million by 2002 having risen from 378,500 members in 1978. Their rapid growth indicate that they have filled a need which had not been made by the financial institutions. Of the Kshs. 110 bill ion in the current share capital and deposits held by cooperatives, the statistics show that Kshs. 90 billion has been lent out to customers. However, the recent statistics from the ministry of cooperative development and marketing shows the position as below The internal management principles need to be enforced strongly to improve efficiency of collections, and even perhaps consider insuring the loans in case of demise of member loaned. The Sacco movement has the capacity to propel the economic lives of the citizens if indeed it is well managed. Its principles of democratic management, voluntary membership and common bond give it the base to take its members to new heights. The movement has been a boon for this country and many people would not be where they are now were it not for the harvests of the opportunities sowed in the garden of the movement. It mobilizes savings and finance and penetrates to areas not valued by other financial institutions, while serving special needs of members. The prospects for the industry are so huge. By identifying the fact that the easiest source of funding is the locally mobilized savings, the saccos should come up with innovative ideas to encourage the members of the common bond to save, as a first step. Other sources of funds like the cooperative bank, which all the saccos have a stake in, should be considered exhaustively. Besides they should think outside the box and get organi zations willing to empower members economically by allowing loans at a rate less than what saccos offer to its members. The saccos umbrella body- Kussco- has a fund to assist the member saccos when they are in need of the funds   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ( www.kusco.com) Saccos face numerous challenges that hinder the exploitation of their full potential. Mudibo(2005) raised concerns on the calibre of leaders who run saccos noting that since these are voluntary organizations, members can elect anybody they like, who may not necessarily have the skills to run a sacco. He suggested that before a member is elected, he should have certain number of shares so that he has something to loose if he mismanages the sacco. Non remittance and delayed remittance of cooperative dues by employers has led to inconveniences and loss of income by the societies. New rules have however provided stiff penalties for errant employers. Members are also at risk due to HIV/AIDS and ways to attract new members are required. Ngumo (2005), in his article the cooperative movement in Kenya; the eagle that wont fly Nairobi, Kenya institute of management raises several unsettled issues affecting the saccos. First the government should decide on whether to control or facilitate the cooperatives. Cooperative roles should be re-emphasized. One member one vote should be questioned. Instead he suggests the policy of one share one vote. Still, ownership and control should be de-linked for good corporate governance. Then business strategies need further scrutiny before implementation. He concludes that it will be sad for Kenyans to compose a eulogy for the movement after all this time. He said; We cannot milk a cow, refuse to feed it, cry that it was wonderful cow and blame God for its demise. According to National Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) Baseline Survey (1999/2000), Kenya has a relatively well developed banking and formal financial sector. This consists of the Central Bank, 43 commercial banks, 16 non-bank financial institutions, 2 mortgage finance companies, 4 building societies , 8 developed financial institutions about 3870 cooperative savings and credit societies, 38 insurance companies, the Nairobi stock exchange and venture capital companies. The survey further indicates that nearly 89.6% of MSEs had never received credit and other financial services. Table 1.2 Sources of credit   to MSEs in Kenya 2000 Source: National MSE Baseline survey 1999/2000 (CBS, K-rep and ICEG) The unserved credit needs portrayed by the statistics in the table 1.2 in the background section above signifies a wealth of opportunities untapped by all the financial institutions. The proof of the existence of market implies that a lot needs to be done to raise what it takes to serve a market. The most basic need is the finance to lend in a discipline way. Voluntary savings from members is therefore imperative. Saccos abilities to improve their members wealth is determined by a number of factors, among them is the funding levels due to members marginal propensity to save, contributions; remittance by the employers, legal and regulatory framework, internal management principles and practices (e.g customer service, marketing, dividend / interest payment etc) amongst other factors. These factors level of influence on saccos ability to perform captured the attention of the researcher. It was the intention of the researcher to examine them and possibly recommend on the best way to miti gate the underlying challenges and take advantage of the available opportunities by exploiting existing strengths. Voluntary deposits / savings as a source of commercial finance for micro credit institution have generated a lot of interest and debate in recent years. Locally mobilized voluntary savings is potentially the largest and the most immediately available source of finance for some micro credit institutions, most of all the saccos. Bearing this in mind, one is left to wonder what is hindering the saccos from prosperity, given the access to its resources and the wealth of its opportunities. The purpose of this research is to broaden the discussion of what, when, why and how a sacco should use its resources, get the right framework, apply effective policies for improvement of the wealth of its members. Getting these elements right is a crucial part of meeting the demand for the unmet credit needs. The researcher will also seek to bridge the gap that exist between Saccos that have exemplary performance in their services to members and excellent returns and some others which barely afford to offer loans, leave alone dividends. According to Armstrong, performance is often defined in output terms the achievement of quantified objectives. But performance is a matter not only of what people achieve but how they achieve it. High performance result from appropriate behaviour, especially discretionary behaviour, and the effective use of the required knowledge, skills and competencies. 1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Quite a number of Saccos e.g TENA sacco, have a long string of pending loan applications from members SACCO star ( 2006) . Some saccos pay out little or no dividends/ interests on members savings. Some others still have a low loan multiplier and / or limited concurrent loans compared to some well performing counterparts e.g Stima Sacco, Sacco star,(2006)- which has even started ATM services for FOSA customers and manages to advance more that three times the members deposits, can give up to four concurrent loans without closing any applications for the year and gives loans almost immediately it is applied for by the member , (mwaura (2004). Among the major problems hindering this is the unavailability of much needed cash to lend, when it is required. This therefore causes a mismatch in the availability of funds and the demand for loans. Other reasons could be poor investment decisions or lack of investment opportunities or delayed cash flow from employers/ members among others. Rutherford (1999) wrote that funding these large sums of money is the main management problem. The only reliable and sustainable way is to build them from savings. Saving- making a choice not to consume- is thus the fundamental and unavoidable first step in money management, without which financial services cannot operate. The poor themselves recognize the need to build savings into lump sums and contrary to the popular belief, the poor want to save and try to save, and all poor people except those who are entirely outside the cash economy can save something, no matter how small, When poor people do not save, it is for luck of opportunity rather for lack of understanding or of will. Most of the saccos have succeeded in mobilization of savings from members. Inspite of this, still they have a huge backlog in terms of loans advanced to members (Sacco star, 2005). Furthermore, most of the saccos pay little dividends/interests on deposits or none at all, in-spite of trading with the deposits/savings. It was therefore the intention of the researcher to seek to establish the determinants of saccos capabilities to improve its members well being. 1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY Main Objective The main purpose of this study was to investigate and refine our understanding of the major factors that determine the performance of saccos to enable them maximize their members wealth. Specific objective Specifically, the study sought: To find out the extend to which the nature of business/ check off system affects performance of SACCOs To establish the relationship between management practices and performance of SACCOs To examine the level of education and training of general members, committee members staff and their effects on performance of SACCOs To determine if long term investment affects performance of SACCOs 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS To what extent does the nature of business/ check off system affect performance of SACCOs? Do management practices affect performance of SACCOs? Is education and training of general members, committee members staff a factor that affects the performance of SACCOs? Does long term investment affect the performance of SACCOs? 1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This study is aimed at developing an understanding on major factors determining the accessibility to funds to process and dispense all loan requisitions in time by saccos in Kenya. It is seeking to examine and underscore the salient principles that have a bearing in the success in similar or related areas of focus, and hence suggest ways and means of overcoming failure. The study is aimed at benefiting, among others, the management teams. These are the people entrusted by the members to take care of their interests in saccos. They will study to understand and improve on policy setting and implementation for overall sustainability of the sector. The entire sacco membership will also get enlightened. The members of the common bond will appreciate their role in sustaining their welfare through sacco as a vehicle. They will be more willing to take a center role instead of quiting when they feel their interests are not being taken care of by the people they entrusted them with. It will also benefit the sacco staff/secretariate; these are the people who get their daily bread from the sacco. They will understand their role in the growth of the organization, hence acting to secure their source of livelihood. It will also be of good use to the government department in charge of cooperatives. The report will bring to light issues requiring framework and only them can attend to for the overall sustainability of the sacco industry. Finally other researchers in this area will find this useful. They will get recommendations for further research from this study. The beneficiaries will have access to the information on the findings from the compiled report. The final report will be available in selected major libraries, organized groups, especially the respondents will get a copy of the report on the findings. 1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY This studys scope was the saccos based in Eldoret. The researcher selected a suitable sample from the population by purposive convenience sampling. According to the statistics from MOCD/M, there are about 10 such saccos within Eldoret town. About 40 % of the population (4 saccos) were covered by the study. The study targeted the members of the central management committee (CMC) in the selected SACCOs. CHAPTER TWO 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction to literature review This section contains literature that has been reviewed and continues to be reviewed relating to the problem. Literature review involves locating, reading and evaluating reports of previous studies, observations and opinions relating to the planned study. It therefore enables the researcher to know what has been done in the particular field of study, makes one aware of what has been made and what challenges remain, and gives suggestions on the variables and procedures that could be used. Literature review logically leads to objectives on the study. 2.2 Past studies in the area 2.2.1 Background information According to Mwaura (2005) sessional paper No. 4 of 1987 on renewed growth through the cooperative movement highlighted the significance of the movement in national development. By this time there were 3500 registered cooperatives with more than 2million members and an annual turnover greater than 6billion. The paper noted that one in every two Kenyans derived its livelihood from the cooperative either directly or indirectly. The cooperative movement in Kenya is reputed to be the most advanced in the African continent. The Kenya Nordic agreement of 1967led to the establishment of the Cooperative college of Kenya at Langata, which is the main training ground for both ministry staff and the movement employees. According to MOCD (2002) the first Savings and credit Cooperatives in Kenya were started in the sixties. The Government annual economic survey shows that as at December 2002 there were more than 2,400 active SACCOS with membership in excess of 1.5 million people. Share capital stood at Kshs. 65 billion while outstanding loans were Kshs. 59 billion.. The structure of the cooperative movement in Kenya comprises of four tiers. These include the primary societies, secondary cooperatives, tertiary cooperatives and nationwide cooperatives. The Kenya Federal of Cooperatives (KNFC) is the only apex society in the movement. It was formed with an objective of promoting, developing, guiding, assisting and upholding ideas of the cooperative principles. KNFC is the link between cooperatives in Kenya and the international cooperative alliance. Of special mention here is the African Confederation of Cooperative Savings and Credit Associations (ACCOSCA), which is registered under the Societies Act, Chapter 108 of the laws of Kenya. Its area of operation is Africa and the adjacent islands. Its head-quarters is in Nairobi. It has twenty five affiliated organizations. It is affiliated to the International Cooperative Alliance through its members in the world council of Credit Unions (WOCCU). According to the cooperative Societies Act (Cap 490), persons desirous of forming a cooperative society must fill the prescribed form from the commissioner for cooperatives. It requires that at least ten members will sign the form, though for savings and credit the commissioner has been asked for more people. The form requires that the society makes its by-laws. For ease of convenience the commissioner has prepared model by-laws for the cooperative societies. The societies are nevertheless free to change these or come up with their own by-laws. The by-laws must detail the following; the name of the society, objects of the society, purposes to which its funds may be applied, disposal of surplus funds, qualifications for membership and terms and conditions of admission of members. For savings and credit cooperatives, the following are also includes, the rate of interest, the maximum amount loan-able, extension, renewal and recovery of loans and the consequences of default in the repayment of any sums due. On receipt of the application form the office of the commissioner will register the cooperative society on the advice of the cooperative officer in charge of the area of operation. Chapter 490 provides that no companies registered under the companys Act or any un-incorporated body of persons shall become a member of a registered society except with the written permission of the commissioner. It also provides that no person can join more than one cooperative society with unlimited liability. A member may nevertheless be allowed to join two or more cooperatives with limited liability if the two are in different areas of operation. A cooperative society just like a company, may be registered with or without limited liability. The commissioner has power to refuse to register a cooperative society. Nevertheless, the refusal must be given to the applicants in writing. Applicants can appeal to the minister for cooperative developments and finally to the high court. The commissioner may register the cooperative either provisionally or fully. A provision registration is given where some requirements for registration have not been met. The applicants are given a period o f one year to satisfy all conditions. A provisionally registered cooperative society may act as a fully registered in all ways. Upon registration such a cooperative society is deemed to have been registered on the date of the provisional registration. Upon registration a society becomes a body of corporate. According to Ouma(1980), the term cooperative in its widest sense simply means working together. In this context cooperation is as old as mankind and exists wherever the human family is found. Indeed such cooperation exists among animals, insects, bees and ants. Thus cooperation generally means working together for a common purpose. Thus group effort through traditional form of cooperation may be traced in all communities of the world. However its narrow sense as a movement, it means an association of people whose purpose for group work yields good results not only for the members but to the community in general and even to the humanity at large. Cooperative is a business organization by profit, but rather the result of mutual association whose objective is equitable economic betterment of man and the society in which he lives. According to the MOCD, cooperatives are regulated by a set of principals. These principles were formulated by a group of people who lived in a village in England known as Rochdale, and they are therefore referred to as Rochdale pioneers. They formed the first successful cooperative society   in 1884. This society which was a consumer cooperative society was formed in 1844 when Britain was undergoing industrial revolution. As a result of the revolution, a lot of people lost their jobs in the factories as machines were introduced to replace them. In addition to this there was general lack of credit and supply of essential commodities like salt, sugar, flour and cooking fat. Businessmen also took advantage of this situation and started offering impure products at high prices. It is against this background that Rochdale Pioneers decided to draw up some sort of principles which would guide their operation as cooperative society.   These principles were intended for the regulation of cooperative society as indicated by the great stress on the sale of pure products and the sale of goods for cash only. It was therefore found necessary to formulate the principles for adoption by other types of cooperatives. The International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) Commission of 1966 adopted the following principles which are genuine for the running of a genuine cooperative society:- Open and voluntary membership, democratic administration (one man, one vote), limited interest on share capital, payments of dividends and bonuses to members, promotion of education and cooperation with other cooperatives at local national and international levels. According to Ouma (1980), the traditional cooperatives have been in existence in Kenya, as it has been elsewhere, from time immemorial. Examples of such cooperative practices are to be found in Kenya. The group association is normally based on lineage according to the natural geographic environment in which the members of the group are born. This is usually based on clan or people who live within the same village. It can be stated with fair amount of certainty that the   traditional forms of cooperation do generally speaking, form the basis for the establishment of modern cooperative organizations. There is for instance in Luo, Saga whereby a group of people do ploughing, weeding or harvest for each member of the group in turn. In Kwath, members of the group look after their cattle together for three or more days consecutively, in turn. In Kikuyu there is what is called ngwatio (Mwethya in Kamba) whereby members of the group get together to build houses for themselves, each member of the group breinging what is required for the construction e.g. grass and poles. When the first house is completed then the members start on the next one. In Kisii, there is what is called obituary wherby men go on a job hunting exercise, and when they kill an animal, they will either divide it or take it home (village) where it mis cooked and eaten communally by all the villagers. Among the Kalenjin there is the practice of Kokwet wherby a group of people   would go out to harvest or weed the garden of their members in turn. The Kalenjin also have Loget whereby the men   go in a joint   effort to kill animals for food. According to Ouma(1980), practically all the ethnic groups in this country, whether small or big, has since time immemorial practiced mutual association in order to satisfy their needs socially, economically or otherwise. It is also necessary to point out that in the traditional forms of cooperatives, in contrast to the modern cooperatives, members had a great sense of commitment and belonging.. They had mutual trust and   were voluntarily involved in their activities and affairs.. It is of course not possible and it may not be expected that with the development of cosmopolitan populations consisting of different ethnic groups and tribes that members can still hold   together without some form of regulations. Hence the necessity to resort to legal reinforcement and education in order to develop efficient cooperative organizations. Although these associations of group effort could be deemed self help which is infect a for of cooperative , it is nevertheless true to say that the modern cooperative movement, born in Kenya during the beginning of twentieth century owed much of the cooperative idea to these earlier practices. It is also true that the modern cooperative associations in this country took a different approach and   mainly because of expediency. Its founders the British settlers- merely wanted to use it as a cheap means of business for easy profit making. They never spontaneously involved the indigenous people who already were familiar with cooperative effort. The early settlers were beset by very many problems as regards their agricultural activities. For instance prices for Agricultural products were very low, transport of the agricultural inputs and outputs to the markets by each individual settler were classical nightmares. Therefore this new system of farming with its large scale production caused the needs for associations by the few European farmers who undoubtedly had conceived the cooperative idea from the British cooperative movement back home. It will of course be recalled that the formal and successful cooperative organisations started in Britain in 1844. In 1908, they resolved to join together at a place called Lumbwa and formed Lumbwa cooperative Society Ltd. Although not registered as such under any cooperative Societies Act, it is deemed to be one of the modern cooperatives in Kenya. The main objective was to purchase merchandise; i.e. fertilizers, chemical seeds, and other agricultural inputs through collective effort, and to market their produce collectively thus taking advantage of the economy of scale. It would appear quite clear at this point that cooperatives in Kenya did not start as a poor mans defensive weapon against the exploitation by the middlemen, as it had started in Europe and elsewhere. It was on the contrary an easier means to enable the white settlers to receive high returns from their agricultural produce. Thus it was rather an economic necessity for the well to do and not the ordinary man with little or no means at all. It will be remembered that during this time, there was no cooperative societies ordinance to regulate and to assist the management of these cooperative efforts in Kenya. It is also not clear whether or   not Lumbwa Cooperative society ltd was registered even under the companies Act, otherwise calling it a co-operative society was misleading. However one thing remains certain, and that is that the settlers wanted to maximize their profits by trading under the pretext of a co-operative organisation, thereby enjoying its privileges. According to Ouma (1980) many self help groups, most of which were very small and un-economic, were started all over the country. But these were not economically viable and consequently had to be amalgamated into larger economic units. These were for instance Kenya farmers association (co-operatives), Kenya planters co-operative union, Kenya cooperative creameries and Horticultural cooperative union. It is a fact that these institutions formed the backbone and the base for formal cooperative movement in this country. These initial cooperative ventures in Kenya were unfortunately not quite in the spirit of the Rochdale Pioneer Cooperative Society. They never for example, observed the principle of membership, for no African could participate in it until later. The need to form formal cooperative organisations arose when some African peasant farmers realized that they were being exploited, especially by the Asian traders who were paying very low prices for their agricultural produce. As early as in the 1930s there were attempts to form cooperatives by the indigenous people of Kenya, in spite of lack of proper guidance. Of these early attempts two examples can be mentioned here, The Taita vegetable company and the Kisii coffee Growers cooperative. The farmers had 239 members and bought 3 lorries at the cost of $1170 out of the profits made from the operations. The group was producing, grading, transporting and selling on the mombasa market over 900,000Lbs of vegetables a year and the growers received over $4,500 out of a gross selling price of $ 6300. This was indeed too substantial an enterprise to be left without a legal basis. It was later registered as cooperative society. The Kisii coffee growers Association which was able to raise from the sale of its coffee a sum of $2470 of which   $1240 was paid out to the 251 members who had cultivated only 159 acres, but had already accumulated a surplus of $1065. In 1994, the British Colonial Office in London appointed Mr. W.K.H Campbell to come to investigate the possibilities of African participation in the cooperative organisations. He carried out his investigations by touring and visiting many towns and districts in the republic of Kenya and talking to the people. After all his investigations Mr. Campbell submitted his recommendations that subject to availability of capable staff attempts to organise cooperatives were worth while. It was also during this time that the first African Mr. Eliud Mathu was nominated to the legislative assembly, as the Kenya parliament was called then. He demanded in parliament and such people as Ex chief Koinange from outside, that the Government should come out openly to encourage African participation in the cooperative movement. It was as a result of Campbells recommendation that the cooperative societies (Registration) Amendment, Ordinance of 1932 was repealed and the cooperative societies Ordinance of 1945 was enacted under Cap. 287. It was as a result of this new ordinance that the department of cooperatives was created, although it was placed under different ministries at various times. Consequent to the establishment of the department, a registrar ( now called commissioner for cooperative Development) was appointed and together with his staff was responsible for registration and promotion of cooperative societies in the country. The 1945 cooperative societies ordinance further gave the registrar certain powers over cooperative societies, for example refusal to register a cooperative society, cancellation of certificate of registration, to audit societys books of accounts, authority to inspect books of society, authority to settle disputes in cooperat