globalization

Economics of Small Scale Soybean Processing Firms in Anambra State, Nigeria   ABSTRACT The study investigated the economics of small scale soybean processing firms in Anambra State, Nigeria using primary data. It examined the technologies used for small scale soybean processing; the socioeconomic and institutional factors that influenced the choice of technologies used; the technical efficiency of small scale soybean processing firms; the value added by processing soybean; the profitability, factors that affected profitability; the constraints to small scale soybean processing firms; and the level of gender participation in small scale soybean processing. Using well-structured questionnaire, multistage random sampling technique was adopted to select 150 soymilk processing firms and 100 soyflour processing firms from three(3)...

Rural-urban Interdependence on Fuel Wood in Anambra State, Nigeria   Abstract This study examined the rural-urban interdependence on fuel wood in Anambra State, Nigeria using cross-sectional data. The study used purposive and random sampling techniques for the selection of 120 gatherers that constituted respondents for the study. The study employed descriptive and relevant inferential statistics for data analysis. The findings of the study revealed that out of the 14 indicators of the importance of forest examined in the study, the respondents were aware of 11 as importance of forest to people in the study area. The linear regression analysis with an R2 of 0.702 showed that about 70% of the total variations in the income from fuel wood were caused by the specified independent variables in the model. On rural-urban interdependence on...

Skill-based Competence and Competitiveness in the Garment-manufacturing Firms of Ghana. ABSTRACT   This study examines the skills competence of workers in the garment firms and skills- based competitiveness of the garment industries of Ghana. A total of 34 garment firms made up of 27 firms registered with the Association of Ghana Industries and seven firms registered with the Ghana Free Zones Board, as well as 205 workers of the garment industries were selected for the study. The Explanatory Sequential Mixed Method Approach was used for the study in which the quantitative process was first used, followed by the quantitative process. Data were gathered using questionnaires and followed by interviews of some selected workers and management of garment firms. The quantitative data was analysed using Pearson Product-Moment Correlation and Simple...

Consumers’ Evaluation of the Quality of Custom-made Garments Manufactured by Micro and Small Scale Enterprises in Sekondi/takoradi Metropolis, Ghana ABSTRACT   This study evaluated the quality of custom-made garments produced by Micro Small Enterprises (MSEs) in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolis of Ghana. Using the mixed method approach with multi-stage and convenience sampling techniques, 410 consumers and 36 manufacturers were sampled for the study. The data were collected using focus group discussions, a questionnaire and in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data from the focus group discussions and in-depth interviews while the Pearson‟s correlation coefficient was used to test the relationships between variables in the quantitative data obtained from the questionnaire. The results from the focus...

Hectarage and Output Responses of Major Crops to Market Liberalisation and Price Risk in Nigeria   ABSTRACT Liberalization is part of the ongoing domestic market reforms and globalization policies that redefined government responsibility and actions, which affect agricultural development, and the welfare of farmers. This study examined hectarage and output responses of major crops to market liberalization, price risk and financial support. The objectives were to describe trends of output, hectarage and prices of these crops, as well as describe trends of non-price factors and estimate the effects of these factors on hectrage and output of selected crops. The study covered a period of 38 years from 1970 to 2007. Secondary data were obtained from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Statistics Data Base, Publications of Central...

Analysis of Intra-industry Trade in Agricultural Products Between Nigeria and Partner Nations Within the Economic Community of West African States (1979-2008)     ABSTRACT The basic tenet of the study was that intra-industry trade occurred when commodities of the same industry are simultaneously exported and imported by partner nations within the sub-region. The objectives of the study were to review Nigeria’s merchandise trade, assess the simultaneous exports and imports of agricultural products by partner nations, evaluate the share of intra-industry trade in agricultural products between Nigeria and the ECOWAS partner nations, and determine the effects of national and partners’ characteristics on the intra-industry trade within the sub-region. The study was carried out on the 15 countries within the Economic Community...

Effects of Customer Relationship Management on Customer Retention by Agribusiness Firms in Aba Metropolis of Abia State, Nigeria   ABSTRACT The purpose of this research is to examine the effects of customer relationship management (CRM) on customer retention by agribusinesses in Aba Metropolis of Abia State. To achieve the aim of this study, fourteen agribusiness firms were randomly selected and from each firm, two staff and five customers were randomly selected. A total of 98 respondents were therefore used for the study. Data were collected from both primary and secondary sources. Primary data were collected using a well structured sets of questionnaire designed for the respondents. The data were analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) and binary logit regression analyses. The results of...

Effects of Economic Partnership Agreements on Agricultural Trade Between Small and Large Ecowas Economies and the Eu   Abstract Smart Simulation Partial Equilibrium Methodology was employed in this study to determine Effects of Economic Partnership Agreements on Agricultural trade between small and large ECOWAS economies and the EU. Specifically, the study looked at the patterns of imports of sample of two ECOWAS countries the Gambia and Nigeria; the potential trade effects on the selected countries embarking on free trade under economic partnership agreement scenario; the potential revenue effects on the selected countries under the same platform; the potential welfare effects on the selected countries under the same platform; the sensitive products based on source and volume of import criteria. WITS provided access to international...