Thursday, October 31, 2019

Reward and Development Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Reward and Development - Assignment Example This experience is also an outcome of learning from one’s peers, therefore we can safely state that experience passes on through generations. Building a Learning Organization One of the models identified for building a learning organization encompasses the organization, people, knowledge and technology as the four key pillars on which organizational learning is based (Serrat, 2009). This model states that people are required for the learning within an organization through the transfer of knowledge amongst them and through the implementation of innovative technology. Charles Darwin once said that the species most responsive to change is the one that is bound to thrive in a competitive world, and how right he was. Over the years the ever increasing progress in technology has pressed for the need to have skilled and knowledge workers, this has also been a key point of interest of training and development programs within and beyond organizations. There are several different theori es of organizational development that have been proposed by theorists, let us take a look at a few of them: The Humanistic Approach In response to the limitations that accompanied the psychodynamic theories, the concerns raised by some renowned philosophers such as Abraham Maslow led to the development of the humanistic perspective. This perspective aimed to incorporate the aspects of human needs within the theoretical framework. A comparison of the humanistic perspective to the Economic-Based Model of the firm revealed few differences regarding the approach of the two models towards the people aspect of a firm. The most important difference lies in the fact that the Economic-Based Model assumed that human beings are motivated only by self-interest which leads to a very profit oriented organizational focus, as opposed to the Humanistic perspective which emphasizes on an organization that comprised of empowered employees who when working in the organization feel that they are adequat ely applying themselves in the work and are not treated as money minting machines. This difference in the two models makes the Humanistic Model more pro Organizational Learning and Development as opposed to the Economic-Based Model (Rosanas, 2009). This perspective is strongly knitted to the Human Relations Approach to organizational development, which emphasizes on the need of good working relationships amongst employees and good leadership which is pivotal for the progress of the organization (Approaches to Organization And Management, 2009). Performance Management Moreover, we have the classical perspective which is similar to performance management. In this approach the emphasis lays towards achieving the goals that have been set out by the organization, formal management hierarchy is maintained and employee empowerment is reduced compared to the humanistic perspective. The â€Å"Psychological Contract† is a subjective expectation and belief of the employees regarding how they see their relationship with their organization. This psychological contract determines the employees’ level of satisfaction within the organization and his/ her level of motivation (Coyle-Shapiro, 2002). This is not a written contract however; this tacit agreement has many powerful behavioural and attitudinal outcomes. Employees feel attached to their

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Freshwater fishing is more difficult than saltwater fishing Essay

Freshwater fishing is more difficult than saltwater fishing - Essay Example This body constitutes just three percent of the earth's water while the rest ninety seven percent constitutes saltwater and includes water in the oceans. Only about one-fifth of the world's total fish catch comes from fresh-water fisheries, while the rest comes from saltwater. Going by simple arithmetic, freshwater fishing has a lower input to the fishing industry than saltwater fishing. Commercial freshwater fisheries have never been as economically important as commercial saltwater fisheries, with exception in certain local areas like the Mekong River Basin. Furthermore, the economic importance of fresh-water fisheries worldwide is diminishing because depleted fish populations and various other threats continue to make the harvesting of wild stocks uneconomical. In view of the above, along side other information, one would be able to make a line of argument on which kind of fishing is more difficult than the other. The line of argument taken for this paper is based on the assumptio n that both kind of fishing are being carried out for commercial purposes, and as such the degree of difficulty/ease would depend on the following: avenues for expansion and growth, availability of fish, regulations governing the practice of each method, as well as other. My interview and information search revealed that freshwater sources have limited species diversity compared to saltwater sources. With this limitation in species, it becomes difficult for business engaging in freshwater fishing to provide the market with a wide range of fish choices. This means that a rival company engaging in saltwater fishing would be able to thrive in the business with its diverse fish species availability, hence making business difficult for the freshwater fishing company. Secondly, over-fishing has always been seen to hamper continuous freshwater fishing compared to saltwater fishing. Overfishing rapidly depletes the resources in freshwaters than in saltwater. In this regard, expansion of freshwater fishing is limited by the availability of, and access to, wild resources. But this is not the case in saltwater fishing where the vast nature of the ocean waters means over-fishing appears to be a less worrying problem. Added to this dilemma is the reality that rudimentary netting techniques in freshwaters leads to by-catch of non-target species, including other native fish and mammals, some of which may be vulnerable to local extinction. Accurate recording of catch and equipment is not always undertaken by commercial fishers in freshwaters. This, combined with changes to data-recording systems and turnover of staff of the regulator, reduces the accuracy and value of the industry monitoring. One of the most obvious consequences of the above for freshwater fishers would be the implementation of control procedures for temporary fishing bans, catch limits, size limits. Such would be the case too when authorities want to stem over-fishing. This therefore partly explains why freshwater fishing is difficult than saltwater fishing. Apart from the above, most freshwater fishing activities use net and line methods rather than trawls and are therefore lighter in construction than their seagoing counterparts. The smaller nature of these freshwaters dictate that the nets and lines used would be generally small such

Sunday, October 27, 2019

The Incident Of Blood Transfusion Health And Social Care Essay

The Incident Of Blood Transfusion Health And Social Care Essay Introduction: Saving lives by means of safety precautions is emphasized by the health institutions. Particularly in clinical care a minute error can jeopardize lives of human beings. Though NHS has promised to serve the best interests of people, lapses in the patient safety seems evident. As a result, NPSA proposed seven steps to safe guard precious life. Over all the literature discusses the patient safety measures, human and system factors contributing to minimize the performance and precision of care administered. During 20th century sudden rise in blood transfusions are evident. Blood is regarded as an important organ. Transfusion is a multi-step process where risk or complications are common. It discusses all the important steps in assessing the human and system errors. Systematic review is done by estimating the risks and proposes a solution of bloodless surgery which is last option to escape from worries of transfusion. The key terms used for search are patient safety, safety culture, blood transfusions, ergonomics, bloodless surgeries, organizational factors and human incidents. Patient Safety: The health sector is a highly pressurized, complex system where in which the potential for error and accidents is ever present. Statistics on International Research suggests that ensuing patient safety is one of the most important challenges faced by the healthcare today, not only in the United Kingdom but also worldwide. It was observed that the root cause of various events and accidents together with a majority of mistakes taking place in medical environment is the system itself-a system whose flaws eventually lead to a human error. The Patient Safety initiative is an innovative, proactive approach that provides basis for eliminating the flaws from the system before they result in to needless tragedies. According to World Health Organization (2011), Patient safety can be defined as a fundamental principle of health care (WHO, 2011). Precisely, the improvements concerning to patient safety demand a complex-system of wide effort, environmental and safety risk management, including in fection control, safe and effective use of medicines, clinical practices and care. Nevertheless, this new patient safety perspective was been developed in United Kingdom through an initial study, commissioned by the Department of Health and Design Council, to deliver ideologies and recommendations for a design approach to minimize the risk of medical error and to promote patient safety across the National Health Service (Department of Health, 2006). On the other hand, Risk an inherent part of health care may lead to severe complications while delaying them might be even more dangerous. At moment, in NHS controlling safety and estimating the risk has become internal process of supporting patients in hospital settings. To improve standards in patient care and for reviewing, documentation of risk form the basis for future investigations. Risk assessments carefully examine the systems to identify the factors that could potentially cause or contribute to patient harm (Department of Health, 2004). These assessments highlight whether adequate precautions are being taken to ensure timely and safer provision of care. Additionally, it indicates further measures needed in future to prevent harm and risk to the patients (Department of Health, 2006). Seven steps by the National Patient Safety Agency were published in 2004. Gives evidence of the risk involved and steps to prevent potential harm by integrating the management of risk, patients involved and the solutions proposed for incidents (National Patient Safety Agency, 2004). Within NHS, Risk Assessment is highly essential as it facilitates the practitioner to minimize both consequences of an adverse effect and risk itself. Risk Assessment provides an earl y warning system and thus maximizes the probability of positive outcomes. Thus, Risk Assessment tool can be used effectively with sound clinical judgment connected with experience of assessing risks. In essence, managing risks of ward-base and evaluation of patients is vital aspect of the tool (Royal College of Nursing, 2004). The Scenario Major concern is that blood is contaminated with infectious diseases like AIDS, hepatitis etc. Though screening being implemented, there is a risk involved while donating blood. Dr Gordec identified patients willing to donate blood being infected and not yet developed antibodies could be detected through screening Blood Borne Disease: A great stride in medicine field has invented new surgical methods and procedures for transfusions. It became a multibillion-dollar industry. Soon, transfusion-related diseases came to the fore. During the Korean War, nearly 22 percent who received plasma transfusions developed hepatitis. By1970s, the U.S. Centers for Disease and Control estimated death due to the hepatitis infected blood, 3500 a year (Awake 2002: Published by Jehovahs witnesses). Case study of heart surgery related patient The rate of mortality is high in patients undergoing heart surgery and kidney transplantation. The incident is treated as adverse event which is not happened at the beginning levels of transfusion. Although the preliminary checking is done, the rate of mortality is high. Patients diagnosed with coronary syndrome were routinely given blood transfusions. Studies published by JAMA admits that folks often choose transfusions are at higher risk of dying when compared with those who refuse. Doctors participated in the study published findings saying: We caution against the routine use of blood transfusion to maintain arbitrary hematocrit levels in stable patients with ischemic heart disease. Nigerian case study: Case of a baby girl infected with HIV positive in Nigeria was reported in the Awake 2008 article titled:HIV- Screened Blood Safe. Soon after the birth, the baby found to be jaundiced. The doctors prescribed transfusion. As fathers blood is incompatible, hospital authorities ordered blood from blood bank. Post transfusion, the baby detected HIV positive, though parents were HIV negative. Investigation is done and the Nigerian Tribune reported a virologist saying: At the time of donating, the donor was at the window period of HIV infection. The window period for HIV infection, is time period taken by the immune system to recover the antibodies for antibody test. It may take 2 to 8 weeks and it varies from person to person. So the screened blood is no safe and carries risk. The San Francisco AIDS Foundation warns: During the test, HIV infected person cannot be detected during that time. In fact, often people are infected at this period of time. The pre-check for immune factors is small mistake but the implication of transfusing the blood has resulted in adverse result which may result in death. Case study of Transfusion-related lung injury (TRALI) Case study of patients administered in hospital for receiving blood products, particularly plasma-containing products for hemolytic reasons. This is quite interesting case, after transfusing blood, the patient contracted transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI). When careful investigation is done, though careful administration of right blood and patient identification is carried, the blood cells from the donor reacted with recipients white blood cells was evident. This resulted in the size of the lungs which allow the fluids to enter and may lead to death if not treated correctly. This incident is classified as adverse event, where careful observation is vital in delivering services. The nurse should take a note of reactions and report to higher staff and doctors. Based on the reaction of patients, the nurse should stop transfusing the blood as a precaution measure Human Factors: According to the Health and Safety Executive (1999, p. 2), Human factors influences the behavior of individuals or an organization based on factors like organizational, environmental and job which affects the health and safety of employees and employers. A simple way to view human factors is look into three aspects: the job, the individual and the behavior (Health and Safety Executive, 1999). Categorizing Human Failure It is very important to understand that human failures in relation to transfusion process are not random and there occur specific patterns for their implementation (Manser, 2009). Different types of failures that lead to major accidents in Healthcare sector are worth knowing: Unintentional Errors like slips/lapses, mistakes are basically unplanned actions and these must be eliminated during the training process of human factors. Errors usually occur during the accomplishment of a familiar task such as forgetting something or omissions, maintenance, calibration and testing errors. Mistakes, on the other hand are the errors of judgment and decision making and they appear in situations where nurse behavior is based on familiar procedures or unfamiliar situations where in which decisions are formed form the first principles and lead to miscalculations. By training the nursing staff and other health professionals in Transfusion department, these types of errors can be avoided (Mc Cormick, Wardrope 2003). International Errors involve violations and these differ from the above type of errors as these are well-meaning failure such as non-compliance of procedures or taking a short cut of Transfusion process. These are rarely willful (like sabotage) and usually occur from an intention of getting the job done quickly despite of consequences. These Violations cane be Routine (behavior in opposing to a rule and procedure), Exceptional (that prevail unusual and unpredicted circumstances), Situational (occur as a consequence of factors dictated by workers) and Acts of Sabotage (self explanatory and complex) (Manser 2009). Clinical blood transfusion contains multiple steps and is prone to error. Various studies showed most errors occur outside the clinical laboratory. Errors are likely to happen while collecting the blood components from storage facilities, performing transfusions and while monitoring patients before and after transfusion. The common fear is that patients get infected while receiving the blood components. It occurs very rare. SHOT acknowledges that only 1.4 % infected out of 4,334 adverse events between 1996 and 2007. The greatest risk lies in human error, administering blood to wrong patients or not intended to someone else, accounts to 62.7% of reported cases (SHOT, 2008) Patient Identification: While ensuring blood is administered to the right patient, scrupulous enquiry into patient details is mandatory. Identifying patients is vital and must be confirmed when pre-transfusion is taken, collecting the specimen from storage areas and when blood is injected. Checking the blood bag: Bacteria infected transfusions are major cause of deaths. The staff should remain vigilant and check for the contaminated blood components of red cells and platelet units (SHOT 2008). Nurses should check the blood bag for any discoloration or clumping and also expiry date of the product. Safe Collection: The person/ relative who retrieve the blood from the bank must take a written evidence of patients identity. This must be check against the patients identification band exactly. Details of patients must include such as first name, surname, date of birth and unique identification number (BCSH 1999). It minimizes the risk of being wrong blood collected and giving it to the wrong patient. Pre-administration check: Pre-administration check is vital in ensuring safety measure while donating blood. It includes checking the patient information on the blood pack against the label of the recipient. The staff can enquire with the patients about their details and cross-check with the identification band. Due to ambiguity or unconscious state of recipient, identity can be verified with second staff member and via recognition band. Based on compatibility report or patients note must not be considered as final checking procedure (NPSA, 2006). Nurse should remember the main 2 points. No identification band no transfusion, and always confirm with identity band. The blood group and donation number on the compatibility tie-on tag should match the blood component. If discrepancies are found during the process, the nurse should stop immediately and contact the transfusion laboratory. For example: DOB not matching with identity band. Continuity without distraction is important in verifying the information. In critical conditions, interruption can be allowed. Sometimes it makes them distract to perform checking from beginning to end. Monitoring: Studies show there are differing opinions of observing the patents during transfusion. It is generally agreed observations are recorded before administering. Rowe and Doughty (2000) highlights rate of response to reactions caused by blood without proper monitoring techniques. To respond quickly by the staff constant observation is mandatory. Prior administration checking blood pressure, pulse rate and temperature is recommended (BCSH 1999). During the entire process for every 15 minutes the above recommendations are repeated. Making notes of vital signs for every 15 min is suggested during the first hour and every 30 min from second hour (Castledine 2006). War strategists say that humans are likely to sleep in early hours of morning (3.00 am to 5.00 am). The sleep factor makes the observation bit difficult at night times. During delayed transfusion reactions being vigilant is challenging. System factors: System is defined as interaction with the physical, social and organization environment in which individual operate. It deals with Information technology devices, protocols, legal procedures, working environment, education and training etc. Reducing the medical adverse drug events (ADE) at St. Josephs medical centre, Illinois has led to automation of process. The medication process is quite lengthy and incidents such as unavailable patient information, miscommunication of medication, labeling and storage are often repeated. Information technology cannot replace the humans in critical care, but can reduce the repetitive tasks such as entering the pre-requisite details, including checks for problems. Humans are better than computers while taking complex decisions (Bates 2000). Reliance on individual is emphasized rather than automated systems when explaining errors and accidents (Parker and Lawton 2006). CPOE (computerized physician order system) has made great impact in prevention of medication errors, while orders are written online. The information is structured, contains details about the drug, dosage and frequency. Finally each order is verified for allergies and quantity of dose for patients suffering with kidney and liver problems. The invention of CPOE has resulted in 55% reduction in medication errors (Bates 1998). Decision to transfuse: The decision not to transfuse must outweigh the risk of transfusion. Each blood samples should be given to patient after consideration and when there are no alternatives. Further guidelines and indications can be found at www.bcshguidelines .org.uk and www.sign.ac.uk. Consent: It is better to discuss the treatment option before a decision is reached for prescribing blood components in clinical practices (McClleland 2007). To gain consent for treatment, the patient (parents/guardian) should have access to information about the risks. The patient has the right to refuse the transfusion by assessing the risk factors and alternative techniques. Some may reject the based on religious grounds or because of risks. In cases like these, the nurse should refer to local hospital policy for advice (Grey et al 2007) Religious group Jehovahs Witness, because of their bible-based faith they keep abstaining from blood components. They have a durable power of autonomy (DPA) and the Advance Medical Directive/Release card as into a single legal document, which explains their stand and treatment options. Local hospital policies: Blood is given voluntarily in UK. The hospital authorities have to ensure the blood is used effectively and for the benefit of patients. The nurses should be aware with local hospital policies related to effective use of blood, storage and transportation. Each blood unit is precious; if unused it should be sent back to laboratory to maximize the use by other patients. Safety culture: There is often blame culture. When things go wrong, people may threaten them with disciplinary measures or termination from services. Such individuals should be held accountable, but it acts as deterrent in reporting the adverse event (Department of Health, 2007, p.77). The communication and mutual respect is important, to be an effective team player. Some junior doctors have not found good reasons to transfusion, and are in dilemma about the treatment. They have fear of challenging the treatment options and often budge. In situations like these open debate or discussion should be welcomed by the higher officials, which benefits the patients. There are cases, unnecessarily blood transfusion are opted repeatedly which risks the patient recovery. Recommendations: Alternative techniques: Human errors are inevitable though much care are precision are followed. Blood is an organ and complications are expected while transfusing. There has been a debate about whether blood transfusion is really necessary. Jehovahs witnesses are known world-wide for bloodless surgeries. They have various alternative techniques. In October 2006, Reforma reported more than 30 blood transfusion alternatives. They include cauterizing blood vessels, covering organs with special gauze that releases chemicals that inhibit bleeding, and using blood-volume expanders. Time magazine says the total operative cost for the blood transfusion, the bill comes between $1 billion and $2 billion annually. Sharon Vernon, director for bloodless medicine admits that people are becoming aware of the benefits of bloodless surgeries and its cost cutting environment. The recovery of people is commendable Education and Training: The nurses and midwives needs to be updated with skills and competencies to understand the peri-operative conditions of blood transfusions. To participate in clinical transfusion, NHS Quality Improvement Scotland in 2006 has initiated education initiative and equivalent roles which is a prerequisite for nurses. Role of patients: Ethics published by NMC are available in respecting the patient rights when opting treatment. The patient can play an active role in reducing the accidents by making scrupulous search into the options available, benefits and risks associated. For further information, leaflets are available at hospitals and web resources can be helpful. Conclusion: Patient safety is vital in providing good care. The NHS has worked with NPSA to implement the guidelines for preventing of errors or hazards. Though systems are designed to make error free, complete elimination of mistakes is not possible as we have tendency to err. The literature discusses the human and system factors of blood transfusion. Though pre-administration check, identification of blood bags are done properly, immune factors of the donor has to be tested. The whole process is riskier and involves cost which is burden. Despite safety precautions, it is best to go for blood less surgery which is infection-free; recovery from surgery is almost double and the total cost of surgery is affordable. Competency based training and education enables the nurses and staff to deal successfully with adverse reactions.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Understanding Huntingtons Disease Essay examples -- Health Medicine

Understanding Huntington's Disease Diagnosis of Huntington's Disease Today, a blood test is available to diagnose a person displaying suspected Huntington's symptoms. The test analyzes DNA in the blood sample and counts the number of times the genetic code for the mutated Huntington's gene is repeated. Individuals with Huntington's Disease usually have 40 or more such "repeats;" those without it, 28 or fewer. If the number of repeats falls somewhere in between then more extensive neurological and diagnostic testing are called for. Tests of the patients hearing, eye movements, strength, feeling, reflexes, balance, movement and mental condition will follow. The patient may also be asked about any recent intellectual or emotional problems. A computed tomography scan, positron emission tomography or magnetic resonance imaging techniques can also be prescribed. This is a painless diagnostic procedure that produces computer generated images of the brain's internal structures. Huntington's patients often show shrinkage in two particular areas of the brain, the caudate nucleus and the putamen, and enlargement of ventricles. Lastly, the discovery of an Huntington's disease genetic marker, enabled scientists to locate the Huntington's Disease gene on chromosome 4. These discoveries led to the development of an accurate presymptomatic test for detecting the presence of the HD mutation. People without symptoms, but with a family history of Huntington's often elect to undergo this testing to gain greater certainity about their genetic status. This also enables them to make more informed decisions about their future. Pre-symptomatic testing can be performed on adults, children and even unborn fetuses in the womb, raising ethical ... ...n worsen the condition by causing stiffness and rigidity. If the patient suffers from depression, the physician may prescribe fluoxetine, sertraline hydrochloride or nortriptyline. Tranquilizers can be used to treat anxiety and lithium may be prescribed to those patients with pathological excitement or severe mood swings. Works Cited Glass, M.; Dragunow, M.; Faull, R.L.M. (2000). The pattern of neurodegeneration in Huntington's disease: a comparative study of cannabinoid, dopamine, adenosine and GABAA receptor alterations in the human basal ganglia in Huntington's disease. Neuroscience. 97:3; 505-519. Lawrence, A.D.; Sahakian, B.J.; & Robbins, T.W. (1998). Cognitive functions and corticostriatal circuits: insights from Huntington's disease. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2:10; 379-388. For information regarding Huntington's Disease: http://www.hda.org.uk/

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Macbeth’s Downfall Was Brought on by His Ambition

The tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare outlines how the lust for power can bring out the worst in people. This is evident through Macbeth’s vaulting ambition to be king which ultimately leads to his downfall. Through Macbeth wrestling with his conscience about the prophesies of the witches he started to gain the trait of ambition. We also see his ambition continue to grow through the persuasion by his soul mate which is also shown through the 1961 CBC TV production of Macbeth.His want to stay king brought out the tyrant within him and shows the evil side of Macbeth, letting his ambition take over. His growth of ambition through the play leads to his tragic death. Macbeth was given a glimpse of prosperity through the witches prophesies. â€Å"All hail Macbeth, thou art shalt be king hereafter† the use of the prophesises outlines foreshadowing within the play. The witches are telling Macbeth of his future and he is left to wrestle with his conscience.This is shown when Macbeth in his soliloquy says â€Å"this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good/ if ill why hath it given me earnest success† we see Macbeth wrestling with his conscience and his ambition starting to grow, he is starting to believe the witches and the seed of ambition is planted inside him, which is the first step leading to his demise. We see Macbeth’s ambition continue to grow and lead to his death through the persuasion of lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth uses guilt to talk Macbeth into committing regicide and becoming king.This is shown through the quote â€Å"wouldst thou have that which thou esteemst the ornament of life and live a coward in thine own esteem letting â€Å"I dare not† wait upn â€Å"I would† like the poor cat I th’adage† the simile â€Å"the poor cat I th’adage outlines how Lady Macbeth uses guilt to talk Macbeth into killing the king by calling him a coward. This is also shown in the 1961 CBC tv p roduction of Macbeth when Lady Macbeth is using her feminism to persuade Macbeth, causing his ambition to grow even more.When you durst do it, then you were a man and to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man† this quote shows how Lady Macbeth uses guilt and calling Macbeth a coward to persuade him to commit regicide. The persuasion of Lady Macbeth causes Macbeth’s ambition to continue to grow which another step is leading to his downfall. Macbeth’s desire to stay king brings out the tyrant within him, his vaulting ambition causes wrath on anyone who stands in his path, even his closest friend.This is shown when Macbeth is planning to kill his best friend, Banquo, â€Å"come seeling night/scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day and with thy bloody and invisible hand cancel and tear to pieces tgar great bond which keeps me pale† the use of dramatic irony in this quote shows us how much Macbeth’s ambition has taken over, and how he is not even hesitatint to murder his bestfriend, he is wishing for the night to come when Banquo’s death finally happens so all his fears will be washed away and he will be able to remain king.Macbeth’s desire to stay king causes him to kill his bestfriend, his ambition has taken over fully by this stage which is the final factor contributing to his death. We see Macbeths ambition start to grow when he is wrestling with his conscience about the witches prophesies. Furthermore , his ambition continues to grow through the persuasion of regicide from his soul mate and Macbeths desire to stay king unleashes his ambition, all these aspect contribute to Macbeth’s vaulting ambition, thus leading to his tragic death. Macbeth’s Downfall Was Brought on by His Ambition The tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare outlines how the lust for power can bring out the worst in people. This is evident through Macbeth’s vaulting ambition to be king which ultimately leads to his downfall. Through Macbeth wrestling with his conscience about the prophesies of the witches he started to gain the trait of ambition. We also see his ambition continue to grow through the persuasion by his soul mate which is also shown through the 1961 CBC TV production of Macbeth.His want to stay king brought out the tyrant within him and shows the evil side of Macbeth, letting his ambition take over. His growth of ambition through the play leads to his tragic death. Macbeth was given a glimpse of prosperity through the witches prophesies. â€Å"All hail Macbeth, thou art shalt be king hereafter† the use of the prophesises outlines foreshadowing within the play. The witches are telling Macbeth of his future and he is left to wrestle with his conscience.This is shown when Macbeth in his soliloquy says â€Å"this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good/ if ill why hath it given me earnest success† we see Macbeth wrestling with his conscience and his ambition starting to grow, he is starting to believe the witches and the seed of ambition is planted inside him, which is the first step leading to his demise. We see Macbeth’s ambition continue to grow and lead to his death through the persuasion of lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth uses guilt to talk Macbeth into committing regicide and becoming king.This is shown through the quote â€Å"wouldst thou have that which thou esteemst the ornament of life and live a coward in thine own esteem letting â€Å"I dare not† wait upn â€Å"I would† like the poor cat I th’adage† the simile â€Å"the poor cat I th’adage outlines how Lady Macbeth uses guilt to talk Macbeth into killing the king by calling him a coward. This is also shown in the 1961 CBC tv p roduction of Macbeth when Lady Macbeth is using her feminism to persuade Macbeth, causing his ambition to grow even more.When you durst do it, then you were a man and to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man† this quote shows how Lady Macbeth uses guilt and calling Macbeth a coward to persuade him to commit regicide. The persuasion of Lady Macbeth causes Macbeth’s ambition to continue to grow which another step is leading to his downfall. Macbeth’s desire to stay king brings out the tyrant within him, his vaulting ambition causes wrath on anyone who stands in his path, even his closest friend.This is shown when Macbeth is planning to kill his best friend, Banquo, â€Å"come seeling night/scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day and with thy bloody and invisible hand cancel and tear to pieces tgar great bond which keeps me pale† the use of dramatic irony in this quote shows us how much Macbeth’s ambition has taken over, and how he is not even hesitatint to murder his bestfriend, he is wishing for the night to come when Banquo’s death finally happens so all his fears will be washed away and he will be able to remain king.Macbeth’s desire to stay king causes him to kill his bestfriend, his ambition has taken over fully by this stage which is the final factor contributing to his death. We see Macbeths ambition start to grow when he is wrestling with his conscience about the witches prophesies. Furthermore , his ambition continues to grow through the persuasion of regicide from his soul mate and Macbeths desire to stay king unleashes his ambition, all these aspect contribute to Macbeth’s vaulting ambition, thus leading to his tragic death.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Segmentation

Segmentation We believe that the marketing segmentation of Lee Kum Kee’s soy sauce is a mixture of demographic, psychographic and benefit segmentation. Since customer’s buying motives comes from their own habit and their own lifestyle before they consume soy sauce as they will use the same brand or the same soy sauce when they find that soy sauce is what they want and they need.Demographic segmentation  consists of dividing the market into groups based on variables such as age, gender family size, income, occupation, education, religion, race and nationality. Lee Kum Kee takes care about the minority with different religion, Lee Kum Kee establishes different labels to show whether that kind of soy sauce is suitable for them or not. For example, Lee Kum Kee recommends the Double Deluxe Soy Sauce to the Kosher as the ingredient of this soy sauce is conformed to the rules of Jewish religion.Psychographic segmentation is a method of dividing markets on the bases of the ps ychology and lifestyle habits of customers. Lee Kum Kee cares those people with different lifestyle, such as, people who concern much about their health and the vegetarian. For example, Lee Kum Kee has produced Salt Reduced Light Soy Sauce for those who concern their health much. Also, Lee kum Kee has recommended some kinds of soy sauce for the vegetarian to use.Benefit segmentation is A  form  of  market segmentation  based on the differences in specific  benefits  that different  groups  of  consumers  look for in a  product. Lee Kum Kee has provided lots of products to satisfy different needs of the people including those who affected by the demographic and psychographic factors. Apart from the above mentioned, Lee Kum Kee endeavors to provide a larger product variety. Recently, Lee Kum Kee introduces a new soy sauce without adding any MSGs. Targeting

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

His profession made him think that the dead dont care Essays

His profession made him think that the dead dont care Essays His profession made him think that the dead dont care Essay His profession made him think that the dead dont care Essay Maryam A. Al-kaabi UNI200 Robin fetherson In his essay, â€Å"The Undertaking†, Thomas Lynch describes his profession as a funeral director in a small town. The number of years that Lynch has worked in the funeral business has given him enough knowledge on the issue of death. Many people think that funeral directors spend much time with the dead for them to care for the living. Lynch clarifies this, and he notes that much of the funeral directors work concerns the living. His favorite moments are when the person who was widowed tells him how much he or she appreciates the services offered – â€Å"Thank you, I couldn’t have done this without you (PBS 2)†. The dead are not there to thank or appreciate the person who is preparing them for funerals. They do not understand the important services that funeral directors offer. They do not understand the helplessness that their loved ones feel when they die. Therefore, Lynch concludes that the dead do not matter. The dead do not care, and because of this, they cannot help pay the bills, arrange and determine their own funerals, or even console and comfort those who they have left. He has observed several things while at work, and this has made him declare that the dead do not care. Lynch talks of how people die at any time. He says, â€Å"They die around the clock here, without apparent preference for a day of the week, month of the year; there is no clear favorite in the way of season† (Lynch 336). They do not have any choice in the moment they die. A person would probably prefer to die at a certain month, date, day, or even season. However, once a person dies, he or she has no recollection of such preferences. People can die at any time or any place. Death does not respect anyone, and it has a way of distorting a person’s plans. Someone might die earlier or later than he or she had anticipated. For instance, someone might have planned to die on a certain day, and when that day arrives, he or she looks for ways of dying, such as suicide. The suicide attempt fails, and the person is taken to the hospital, where he might remain for a long time. That person then dies at another date, which he had not planned. A person who has cancer or another illne ss considered terminal might give himself few months to live, but that person can get healed and he or she ends up dying of old age. Death does not respect a person’s preference or tastes. According to Lynch, â€Å"Being a dead saint is no more worthwhile than being a dead philodendron or a dead angelfish† (Lynch 337). In other words, once a person dies, it does not matter the contributions that that person made to the world. The dead person will not remember the funds he helped raise, the charities he supported, or the homeless people he helped when he was alive, for that is the duty of the living. The dead person will not remember the people he hurt and abandoned, the person he stole from, or even the person he killed. That is left to the memory of those who live, for the dead do not care. Some people live their lives in the service of others, while others live to fulfill their own ambitions, without any thought for other people. When these two people die, they do not care, since they are not in a position to do so. The living will remembers those who died based on how they lived. The saint will receive praise from the many people who will attend his wake. The person lived a happy and commendable life, and he helped many people in different circumstances. On the other hand, a thief might not receive as much praise. Few if any people will attend his funeral. The two contrasting situations demonstrate how those who are alive treat the dead. The situations demonstrate the level of care that those who are left behind show the dead. Despite this, those who are dead do not care. The thief does not care that no person came to eulogize him and offer him complements. The saint does not care that many people praised him and recognized his achievements. Lynch observes that, â€Å"There is nothing, once you are dead, that can be done to you or for you or with you or about you that will do you any good or any harm† (Lynch 337). However much a person was active when he was alive, he or she is of no use once dead. People cannot include dead people in their plans, since they do not have anyway of contributing. Many people attempt to praise those who are dead during funerals, and they do not do the same when the people are alive. What many people fail to understand is that the dead do not care of all the words spoken about the. The words have no way of reaching them once the people are dead. Lynch has worked with corpses for long. He has helped in preparing dead people for burial. In some circumstances, this has involved treating the bodies in different ways to make them more presentable. He has observed that however much he makes up the body, it does not do any good to the person who is dead, but it is often done for the sake of t hose who are living. They are the ones to see the body and live with the effects. The dead person does not care that his face appears distorted. He does not care whether he appears natural or made up. The dead person does not care, that he does not seem presentable. These things do not matter to him, for he is already dead. The dead do not care about revenge, since no one can harm them more at their state. They are already dead, and they cannot feel the pain. If the person died a bitter person and one who was angry at the world, these feelings do not matter. If the person died having many enemies, this does not matter to the dead person. He or she is not concerned with the friends or families that he left behind, they are the ones who are concerned about him. Lynch notes that although the dead do not care, they do matter. The people who are left have to bear with the consequences of death. As Lynch states, â€Å"I go for her- because she still can cry and care and pray and pay my bill† (Lynch 339). The dead do not care that the people they left behind cry for them. They do not care when such people are depressed or when they experience loneliness because they have been left by loved ones. The dead do not care when those who are left behind have financial difficulties or when they face other struggles in life, for that it the concern of the living. Lynch notes that, â€Å"When a death occurs, people feel so helpless, it’s good to have some of these things already invented† (PBS 3). However much dead people loved their spouses and partners, they cannot offer them enough words to comfort them. Those who are left behind mourn for the dead. In addition, they have to take care of the funeral expenses, such as paying the med ical directors. The dead might have cared previously, but this soon changes once they are dead. They cannot do anything much for their loved ones. Thomas Lynch describes his profession as a funeral director in a small town. This being a family business, he has done it for a long time, and he has come to have a clear understanding of his profession. He says that, â€Å"When you grow up in funeral service, you always have a job. But at some point it becomes more than a job† (PBS 2). Many people only think of funeral directors when they have to use their services. Therefore, they do not understand that it is a business and that someone has to do it. Lynch describes how, as a funeral director, he has to bury and cremate many people, who have died from his town. This has given him some experience in dealing with the death, the corpses, and families affected by death. People are affected significantly when someone they know and loves dies. Families who have lost loved ones want to ensure that the person receives a dignified send off, and they will often incur many expenses to achieve this. Despite all the efforts, the dead nev er know anything, and they are not in a position to approve or disprove anything. Through these experiences, he has come to learn that the dead do not care. People tend to spend a lot of money on funerals. They do everything to ensure that the dead is buried as he or she could have wanted. They go to the extent of borrowing money to cater for all the expenses. Some people are so concerned about their death when they are alive, that they start preparing early. They treat their death as one would treat a wedding. They locate the site to be buried, the music to be played during their funeral, and even the clothes they want to be buried in when they die. They take such measures to ensure that nothing goes wrong. They even arrange for transportation. People associate such actions with weddings and not funerals. People have become more accepting towards death. They no longer fear to talk about death and dying. Previously, these were taboo topics in families, and the one who spoke about them was frowned upon, since it was thought that he or she willed death on another person. Being comfortable with death has its own advantages, since in most ca ses; it prepares those who are left for the inevitable.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Explain How Brazil is Protecting its Rainforests essays

Explain How Brazil is Protecting its Rainforests essays The Amazons rainforest has an immense natural resource. It can provide timber and a large range of plants, food crops and medicines. The forest also has a significant effect on the Worlds weather. It is also home to hundreds of thousands of distinctive wildlife species. Nevertheless, the government has a responsibility to bring development to the 14 million people who live in the Brazilian Amazon and to find ways of getting better lives for all the individuals by using its recourses wisely. All the industrialising countries have accomplished their success in this way. According to figures published by the World Bank in 1988,it was known that 12% of the Amazon had been cleared. The Brazilian National Space Research Institute reached a worse approximation of 5%. A figure, which was reached by the NASA (the US space agency) mentioned that the forest is being cleared at only 0.3% each year. This is a smaller amount than the rate of forests being cleared in the United States. I think that it is easy for people like us, who live outside Brazil to imagine that the forest is being destroyed and no one is able to do anything about it. Thankfully some important steps have been taken in recent years to try to protect the rainforests. In 1987, the Polamazonia programme for setting up development areas in the Amazon was suspended. Then in 1988 the Brazilian Constitution emphasized the need to protect the environment. Then the year after that, development towards protection was being done. A programme named the Nossa Natureza which means our nature recognized a Natural Environment Fund. The Institute backs this programme for Environmental and Renewable Resources (IBAMA) in this same year tax inducement for agriculture and livestock developments in the Amazon was suspended. 6 years later, in 1995, all companies using wood as raw material or energy source had to get their ma...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

3 Cases of Misplaced Modifiers

3 Cases of Misplaced Modifiers 3 Cases of Misplaced Modifiers 3 Cases of Misplaced Modifiers By Mark Nichol Modifying phrases are welcome additions to sentences that provide additional information, but when they are inserted awkwardly, they hinder meaning rather than enhance it. In the following sentences, the modifiers appear at the wrong point in the sentence; see discussions and revisions that clarify the intent of the informative phrases. 1. Smith told the man to close the doors while holding the weapon to his head. This sentence implies that the man was instructed to hold a weapon to his head and close the doors, but the man had a gun to his head when he was told to open the doors, so that key information should precede, not trail, the description of the task he was given (and switching the noun and the pronoun identifying the other person provides further clarity): â€Å"While holding the weapon to the man’s head, Smith told him to close the doors.† 2. She was only with Jones for four months because he was abusive. Technically, this sentence indicates that the woman remained with Jones for the sole reason that he was abusive, and she did so for four months. It could also be misread to imply that because of Jones’s abusive nature, the woman was with him and no one else for four months (though that reading is most likely if only follows Jones.) However, the intended meaning is that her time with him was minimal, so only should immediately precede the reference to the time frame: â€Å"She was with Jones for only four months, because he was abusive.† (Better yet, write, â€Å"Because Jones was abusive, she was with him for only four months.†) 3. As a young man, Jones recalls the 1945 parade that honored Smith as an event he will never forget. Using â€Å"as a young man† to introduce the recollection implies that it occurred when Jones was a young man, although the tense form of recall is wrong. For an unambivalent reading, Place the parenthetical phrase â€Å"as a young man† after â€Å"Jones recalls†: â€Å"Jones recalls, as a young man, being at the 1945 parade that honored Smith as an event he will never forget.† Better yet, recast the sentence entirely: â€Å"Jones says he will never forget when he, as a young man, witnessed the 1945 parade honoring Smith.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Addressing A Letter to Two PeopleRules for Capitalization in TitlesDealing With A Character's Internal Thoughts

Saturday, October 19, 2019

EC390.1.1 Childrens Literature Lesson 6 Assignment

EC390.1.1 Childrens Literature Lesson 6 - Assignment Example Moreover, free choice contributes to the moral and cognitive development of the child as making choices is part of problem solving skills. The child feels that his wishes have been respected and learns to respect other people’s wishes too. This instills some sense of obedience into the child and he learns to conform to the set norms. Considering a class of children with different abilities, varied ways can be used to offer choices to the children. One such method is by making direct suggestions for example on the book titles to choose from. This enables children who are not used to making their own decisions to do so with ease. Another way is by limiting the options as young learners do well with fewer options .The teacher may suggest two or three genres for the children to choose from (Reynolds 2011). Even though the learners have the opportunity to make choices, this is monitored from a pool of options which is in the teacher’s custody. The teacher thus has the role of helping the young children make appropriate and responsible choices by controlling what comes out from his ‘option bank’ in the form of alternatives to the learners (Grossman 2008) The young need to learn to accept the outcome of their choices which can either be satisfaction or disappointment. Good choice of literature moulds and shapes a child’s skills in the discipline and this builds self-confidence in the child. Wrong choice made a material written in ungrammatical language for example, the child learns to be keen in making wiser choices in future and this is reinforced by constructive criticism from the teacher. Accepting responsibility for the outcomes of their choices is only but a way of strengthening their character and boosting their self confidence. Literature is a broad field of study which constitutes a wide range of materials produced by different

Friday, October 18, 2019

Occupational Health and Safety Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Occupational Health and Safety Report - Essay Example This common reoccurrence in this department are heavily expensive in terms of revenue and employees on leave due to workplace injury. I personally think there should be a distinct appropriation sequestered for those types of emergencies. Workplace hazards are an issue within my department in which I must take care of. However, I feel there is lackluster effort on your part in aiding my cause. I pray this composition does not create strife or offend you in any sort but it is my every intention this may be read as a cordial admonishment. Work place hazard regulations have been drafted and implemented in the past few decades in Australia as well as other industrialized countries. The promulgations of such mandates are the byproduct of horrors and abuses of the industrial age. Thus, to prevent and limit the abuses and mistreatment of huge businesses and corporations for its faulty safety methods and little, if not any, precaution procedures, lawmakers has taken initiatives to protect those unable to stand against employers who usurp their less- fortunate employees. Also, labor unions grew to further protect workers hazards and wrongful dischargement. Such efforts to reform safety measures has transcended through the decades to protect workers from hazards the can affect the health of an employee. (www.ohs.annu.edu.au/ohs, 2002) In this composition, an analysis will be done of the regulations and legislations on occupational health and safety. A situation will be used a variable in which the occupational health and saf ety will have to be implemented. Here are the particulars: On Wednesday, October 24, 2007, our receptionist in the Administration Department of the East Coast Secretarial Service, Mary Smith, tripped over an extension cord en route away from her desk. Her misstep caused her to fall heavily on her knee which was a critical insult to her bone and joint. This trauma to her knee prompted edema accumulation. I instructed one of her colleagues who witnessed Mary misstep to accompany her to the hospital. The X-ray results revealed that a piece of the platella has been fractured off the main bone. The prognosis to insults to the body such as these prompts the immediate leave of absence. Hence on this precept, Mary Smith has been given two fortnights of leave and she will be given an extended leave of absence upon further analysis of her knee after her preliminary respite. Events such as these prompted me to address you my concerns about the status of this enterprise. The "lack of uniformity" (www.ohs.annu.edu.au/ohs, 2002) in the regulations can be an impediment toward adjusting to these laws, but I believe this gives us the opportunity to make amends on our own. The recommendations in the British Robens Report (1972) encourages enterprises like ours to use a self-regulation methodology that includes workers and management to improvise the Occupational Health and safety standards set down be the state. (www.ohs.annu.edu.au/ohs, 2002) In chapter 4, section 2, divisions 3 on the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 in regards to work premises, the prefect of the premises are obligated to protect employees from hazardous electrical equipment and appliances. (www.austii.edu.au, 2001) All appliances that places a potential threat to employees (i.e. fires, flaring, overheating) should to be turned off. Appliances that are open in workplace premises and can be a

Principles of real estate Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Principles of real estate - Research Paper Example As a real estate agent working in Memphis for the past fourteen years, I have wisely made distinction between property and contractual rights. I have done by ensuring that there is a clear distinction between property rights that someone has over things enforceable against other people and contractual rights that are enforceable against a specific or particular person. In some instances, I will properly understand that property rights might come from contract (Thomas, 1996). In relation to real estate, for instance, I have to identify two sets of legal relationships to prevail alongside one another in that there is the property right to be exercised over the lease of the estate and contractual right to sue over evictions. In this manner, I have been able to work efficiently without complications in that I know my areas of jurisdiction as a real estate agent and in a position to handle any eventuality that might arise. Principle of property ownership  From my fourteen year experienc e, I understand that property is usually perceived as being protected by domestic or local sovereignty. This is because ownership on its part does not necessarily equate with the issue of sovereignty because if ownership offered supreme power or authority, it will not be ownership but sovereignty. I have to do this due to the fact that; property ownership rights come from social convention while others come from explanation from natural law or morality. This in turn put me in a good position since I know there is an estate of indefinite duration.  

Does Violent Video Gaming Have an Effect on Children Research Paper

Does Violent Video Gaming Have an Effect on Children - Research Paper Example Kim et al (2010) have mentioned that â€Å"excessive playing of video games may result in impaired academic performance (Kim et al, 2010). It is an accepted fact that most of the modern videogames are thought provoking and hence it can improve children’s skills such as numerical ability, problem solving, decision making, synthesis, analysis etc. At the same time, it should be noted that spending too much time for playing videogames may have detrimental effect on children as far as the academic achievements of the children are concerned. The increased influence of video games will force the children to decrease the time spent for learning academic topics. In other words, children who spent more time for playing videogames may spent little time for doing their home works, assignments or project works. Failure in doing home works may result in poor academic performances of the children in schools. Poor academic performances of the children may generate criticism from family and teachers which may generate frustration in the minds of children. Increased frustration may often come out in the form of violent behaviors. In other words, even nonviolent videogames can generate violent behavior indirectly among children. Children may discuss the themes of the violent videogames they played even at schools and they may try to implement it in their real life also. For example, Grand Theft Auto is one of the most popular videogames among children at present. The theme of this videogame is a motor vehicle theft as the name indicates. Same way Mortal Kombat is another videogame in which the major theme is fighting. Such videogames will definitely encourage children to do the same activities in their real life as they... Children of current generation are not much keen in playing physically hardworking sports and games; they are more interested in spending as much time in front of the computers, mobile phones or television sets for playing videogames. According to Gouzouasis et al (n. d), â€Å"the type of extra-curricular activities like playing an instrument versus playing video games has differential effects on the person’s skill acquisition and personality development†. The themes of majority of the videogames currently available are violence. Many people believe that violent videogames play a vital role in the personality development of children. Moreover, many of the school violence incidents are happening as a result of the increasing influence of violent videogames upon children. Children who engaged in playing violent videogames may try to practice violence in their real life also. At the same time many other people believe that violence in videogames may not affect childrenâ⠂¬â„¢s attitude or character very much. Videogames playing may have some utility as far as the mental development of the children are concerned. However, playing violent videogames may always affect the children negatively. Unknowingly children may develop violent behaviors as a result of continuous playing of violent videogames. Since children have less awareness in segregating good and evil, they may often try to practice the themes they observed in the violent videogames in their real life. Many of the school violence incidents are taking place as a result of the increasing influence of violent videogames upon children. In short, videogame playing, especially the violent videogame playing should be restricted among children. Parents and teachers should focus more on student activities and they should assist the children in the selection of videogames for playing.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

American History 2020 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

American History 2020 - Essay Example 2). This principle reconciled American democratic ideals with its colonialist tendencies for which it fought against former mother country of Great Britain. It was used to justify territorial acquisition and transfer or absorb people of other nationalities. American businessmen wanted new markets for their manufactured products so Manifest Destiny emboldened American political leaders to pursue expansionism. The expansionist strategy went on for a century and continues even today in its foreign policy (Kinzer 552) by sometimes acting unilaterally in matters of international concern. American imperialism snared for the country various overseas territories such as Cuba, Hawaii, the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico but a key distinguishing feature of this imperialism was its benevolence, unlike European imperialism that merely exploited the people and resources of the colonies they had grabbed and colonized (Conrad 72). Unlike what Great Britain did to India or Portugal to parts of Africa as the foremost proponent of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. America tempered its imperialism with the ideals of democracy, freedom, liberalism, and progressivism by spreading the benefits of democracy, capitalism, assimilation, and universal free education to all its colonies (Miller

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

The Future of Shipping Industry Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Future of Shipping Industry - Article Example The decline in the overall demand from developed countries such as US and UK is forcing many developing and emerging countries to look for local demand, and as such, there is very little demand being generated internationally as suppliers from countries like China is finding it difficult to sell their products in international market. (Wade). Until most recently, the industry was facing an uphill task of meeting the expenses because of increase in oil prices. Due to the lack of fuel efficiency, many shipping companies found it difficult to manage their costs as the consistent increase in oil prices was seen as one of the greatest threats to the short-term viability of the industry. (Vidal). Considering this fundamental challenge, environment specialists like Vidal conclude that the future of shipping industry would largely depend upon how the industry adapts to the biofuel technology as the industry does not only have to withstand increasing costs but also have to face the increasing criticism for its involvement in polluting environment. It has also been argued that the ship designing is largely based on existing regulations which need to be fulfilled before a ship can be rolled over for the commercial purpose. Due to complacent nature of such regulations, it is often felt that the chip makers, as well as shipping industry, have to face the wrath of industry dynamics which are not allowing them to be more competitive. As such the future of shipping industry is largely based on the changes to be made into the relevant regulations in order to make it more competitive and sustainable. It is also important to note that due to increased awareness of the consumers and emergence of so-called â€Å"ethical consumers† demands that the supply chain of the international organizations shall be ethical in its orientation. However, the absence of any such concepts in other parts of the world may not lead to the development of community shipping and as such due to a diversity of the suppliers and buyers; shipping industry may not make a transition to community shipping until regional economic clusters are developed.

American History 2020 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

American History 2020 - Essay Example 2). This principle reconciled American democratic ideals with its colonialist tendencies for which it fought against former mother country of Great Britain. It was used to justify territorial acquisition and transfer or absorb people of other nationalities. American businessmen wanted new markets for their manufactured products so Manifest Destiny emboldened American political leaders to pursue expansionism. The expansionist strategy went on for a century and continues even today in its foreign policy (Kinzer 552) by sometimes acting unilaterally in matters of international concern. American imperialism snared for the country various overseas territories such as Cuba, Hawaii, the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico but a key distinguishing feature of this imperialism was its benevolence, unlike European imperialism that merely exploited the people and resources of the colonies they had grabbed and colonized (Conrad 72). Unlike what Great Britain did to India or Portugal to parts of Africa as the foremost proponent of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. America tempered its imperialism with the ideals of democracy, freedom, liberalism, and progressivism by spreading the benefits of democracy, capitalism, assimilation, and universal free education to all its colonies (Miller

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Samuel Greg Essay Example for Free

Samuel Greg Essay The Greg family at Styal treated all their employees fairly. Using the sources and your own knowledge explain whether you agree with this interpretation of the Greg family as employers. The Gregs had a genuine concern for the welfare and well being at Styal Mill. Several of the visual, documentary and oral sources support this view very strongly, and show us that because of this concern for the well being of their apprentices, the Gregs went out of their way to give them the best possible life at the mill. As Source A indicates, there were a variety of different reasons to why Samuel Greg relied heavily on apprentice labour. As well as being physically suited for the work, there were many of them available during the time, which was a particular advantage to Styal when local labour became short. As Source A also states, many of the children employed at Styal, had previously been under the responsibility of the parishes. In comparison to the parishes, life at Styal Mill was of a much higher status. In fact, the Styal apprentices appear to have lived better than many of their contemporaries. In towns in particular many apprentices lived and worked in appalling conditions. Styal offered many substantial benefits over towns. According to Samuel Gregs son, the best way to recruit and keep loyal and reliable workers was fair wages; comfortable houses; gardens for their vegetables and flowers; schools and other means of improvement for children; sundry little accommodations and conveniences in the mill, and interest in their general welfare. Other members of the family appear to have shared his views. As we can gather from studying Source B, education was provided at Styal Mill. In the mid 18th century, schools were only provided for privileged children. Mill owners like Samuel Greg were under no obligation to provide education for the children in their care until the Health and Morals of Apprentices Act came into force in 1802. At Styal, Greg did provide education for the Mills apprentice children before 1802. Many teachers were employed at the mill and apprentices were taught maths, reading, writing and music. In 1823, the Gregs built Oak School, which the village children could also attend. Young children were taught during the day, the older ones at night. There were also opportunities for adults to gain an education, with the Mutual Improvement Society, which specialised in helping adults at Styal learn to read and write. Many of the children and adults at Styal were able to gain a good education, providing them with opportunities that perhaps towns and other mills were not able to give. The Greg family also made sure that their workers were physically fit and healthy, in addition, Samuel Greg employed a doctor from 1788 for a fee of i 20 a year. He was one of the earliest factory doctors and was responsible for the health of the apprentices. As George and Elizabeth Shawcross also state in Source C, there was very little sickness in the mill, and children when they first arrive at Styal, do not look as healthy as they do when they have been there for some time. Again, this proves that the Gregs made sure their employees were well looked after and were treated fairly. The fact that the Gregs were under no obligation to provide a doctor substantiates to us how the workers benefited from being at Styal. As a result of the good healthcare provided, life expectancy was better at Styal than in the towns. Samuel Greg also provided loans to establish other medical facilities including a dispensary, a Sick Club, and a Female Society to assist with the problems of childbirth. Membership of the Sick Club was compulsory: a farthing was taken off each shilling of their wages. The club paid out up to twelve weeks half pay for illnesses and fixed expenses for funerals. Source D also pictures a modern reconstruction of the Apprentice House at Styal in about 1830. The apprentices lived in the Apprentice House and were looked after by a superintendent and his wife. In addition to food and lodging, a doctor attended to their needs and some education was also provided. Houses were also provided for families and other workers situated at Styal. The houses that Samuel Greg built were similar to those build in the towns. In Styal however, villagers had the natural benefit of rural surroundings; in overcrowded towns, with inadequate sanitation, such houses quickly became slums. Styals houses were separated by courts and alleys; back to back type houses were never built here. At Styal, each house came with its own allotment and privy, which was much better in comparison to the towns, where you had to share a privy with as many as one hundred people. Houses in the towns were also undrained and stagnant waste piled up around them. As well as better quality houses and surroundings available at Styal, rents were also lower than in the towns, as they were based on agricultural rates. They were deducted from workers wages each week. Although Source E does not give a positive impression of Styal Mill, it is important to remember that many people who disagreed with child labour often-exaggerated events. Styal Mill proved to be a very good, healthy and fair society for people, although however, the working days were exceedingly long. Work in the mills was often monotonous and repetitive; a child could spend all day tying ends of cotton or cleaning fluff from the machines.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Mauritius National Pension Fund Financial Analysis

Mauritius National Pension Fund Financial Analysis The National Pension Fund and its financial implications on the economy of Mauritius Chapter 1: Introduction The philosophy of the National Pension Fund (NPF) includes the idea that one ought to earn a reasonable proportion after pension age of what one earned during ones working life. If you have contributed to the NPF and built up your pension points, you will get a pension which, when added to your old-age pension will be a reasonable. The National Pension Fund scheme is proposed as another mandatory saving for retirement. Once it is set up, the NPF will fit into Pillar 2 of the Multi-Pillar Model of the World Bank. The NPF nevertheless will not replace provident funds or retirement mutual funds, but rather improves saving channels for future retirees. Mauritius is found in the developing countries group where contractual savings, savings with insurance companies and pension funds exceed 40 percent of Gross Domestic Product and which represent a greater potential force in the domestic financial system. Pension funds account for 75 percent of contractual savings. The pension system is a balanced and well-managed multi-pillar. In Mauritius there have not many authors that have write specifically on that subject, that is, financial implication of National Pension Fund on the Mauritian economy. I have mainly used the research made by other analysts in other countries and try to apply it on the Mauritian economy. Obviously the result will not be the same, but try to make an estimate of it. Objectives of that Project: Analyse the overall financial implication of NPF Testing the financial effect of NPF on national savings Estimating the relationship between fiscal balance of Mauritius non-retirement account and the net saving that occurs within the NPF Chapter Outline Chapter one gives a brief overview of how the project is carry on. Chapter two makes an overview of the National pension fund, its evolution, structure and its financing source as well as government expenditure and the future of NPF. Chapter three is the literature review, that is, what writers around the globe have commented on the pension system. Chapter four is the research methodology. The research is carried out using regression equation to examine the financial implication NPF on our variables. Chapter five then come the analysis based on the results obtained, that is the financial effect of NPF on national savings and the relationship between fiscal balance of Mauritius non-retirement account and the net saving that occurs within the NPF. Then finally chapter seven will include suggestions and conclusions. Chapter 2: Literature Review Introduction Pension funds is be defined as forms of institutional investor, which collect, pool and invest funds contributed by sponsors and beneficiaries to provide for the future pension entitlements of beneficiaries (E PhilipDavis 1995). Pension fund offer individuals the mean to collect saving over their working life so as to finance their consumption needs in retirement, either by means of a lump sum or by provision of an annuity, while also supplying funds to corporations, households (via securitised loans) or governments for investment or consumption. Bodie(1990a) has formalized pension funds function as a form of retirement income insurance. E Philip Davis (1995) suggests that pension funds perform a number of the functions of the financial system more efficiently than banks or direct holdings. Their growth complements that of capital markets and they have acted as major catalysts of change in the financial landscape. But this is not the only reason for growth. It is also a consequence of fiscal incentives and benefits to employers, as well as growing demand arising from the ageing of the population. Pension funds are typically sponsored by employers, such as companies, public corporations, industry or trade groups; accordingly, employers as well as employees typically contribute. Funds may be internally or externally managed. The pension system is commonly divided into three pillars. The first pillar is the pay-as-you-go system based on payments by public institutions which are mainly funded by tax revenues. The second pillar constitutes fully funded pension funds with mandatory membership and the third pillar is based on fully funded pension saving schemes with voluntary membership. In a pay-as-you-go system, each generation pays for the costs of the currently retired in return for a commitment for the same treatment during its own retirement. Workers who spend their entire work and retirement life under a PAYGO system with constant tax rates will earn a real return on their contributions equal to the growth in the workforce plus the growth in the real wage (Samuelson, 1958, and Aaron, 1966). Pension funds provide millions of people in the world security and comfort in old age. Pension funds represent the savings of millions of people, and as Paul Myners says, the ability of funds to invest these assets effectively has a profound impact on their economic well being. Because so many people depend on pension funds to provide for their futures, ensuring the funds serve the needs of their members is a priority for Government. The social security system on the other hand as stated by law, guarantees people covered by its provisions either because they perform an occupational activity or meet the requirements established for non-contributory type social security, as well as dependent members of the family or similar, adequate protection in the contingencies and circumstances. Social Security has been defined as the protection which society provides for its members through a series of public measures against the economic and social distress that otherwise would be caused by the stoppage or substantial reduction of earnings resulting from sickness, maternity, employment injury, invalidity, old age and death; the provision of medical care; and the provision of subsidies for families with children. In the Social Security system, the money you pay into the system gets immediately paid back out to the people who are currently getting Social Security checks. The Social Security tax has been raising more money than is needed to pay for current benefits, in order to build up a surplus to help finance the retirement of the Baby Boom generation. The money is used in a sense to finance the government deficit, just like any other money the government borrows, Dean Baker (1998). The Social Security system is primarily a pay-as-you-go system, meaning that payments to current retirees come from current payments into the system. So Social Security will be the foundation of your retirement income. Thats because: You wont outlive your Social Security retirement benefit. It will be there for you for the rest of your life. Your Social Security benefit wont lose its value. From time to time, Social Security benefits are adjusted so they always keep pace with inflation. Why National Pension Fund? Worker myopia, or lack of foresight poor planning occurs because people give too little considerations to their future economic needs when making decisions about saving for retirement. Most people seem to have a natural inclination to live for today and avoid thinking about old age and death. Hence, they give very little systematic thought to the financial issues of old age until they come face to face with them. By the time they recognize they may have a problem when they retire, it is usually too late to fix. Government intervention through NPF has help people set aside a portion of their earnings when they are working so that they have an adequate income when they retire. Without compulsory contributions for retirement, myopic workers would not save enough to ensure an adequate retirement income and poverty would result. Another rationale for the existence of the compulsory contribution to the NPF is to protect the prudent that saves for retirement against those who do not save. Under a purely voluntary system some will contribute, others will not. As Boulding (1958) puts it in his argument, those who do not insure will have to be supported anyway-perhaps at lower levels and in humiliating and respect-destroying ways when they are in their non-productive phase of their life, but that they will escape the burden of paying premiums when they are in their productive phase. In fairness to those who insure voluntarily and in order to maintain the self-respect of those who would not otherwise insure, contributions for retirement should be made compulsory. Hence, mandatory contributions are necessary to achieve the retirement savings results that people need to have so as to have an adequate standard of living in their retirement years. Pension funds are also an important source of capital accumulation that can be used for different purposes as the build up the basic of national infrastructure, power stations and electric networks, Olli E. Kangas (2006). The Finnish case demonstrates that it was possible to unify social policy goals with the economic goals of building up modern industrial market economies. The Finnish experience has serves as a good example of how social policy has been successfully used as a developmental strategy, Mkandawire (2001). Pension funds are not only vital to the pension holders they provide for. They are also key players in the economy as a whole. Government Budget Pension funding issues have an important, but often hidden, impact on the finances of state governments, J. Fred Giertz (2003). In most countries, contributions to retirement funds are made by employers and employees each year. Yet, there is no requirement in the short run that these contributions be sufficient to fully fund the systems. Governments always ensure that pension payments are actually made to retirees, regardless of the level of contributions, as they are generally the funders of last resort. If pension systems are under funded, governments must deal with this problem sooner or later through additional contributions to the systems. If systems are over funded, government resources can be redirected from pensions to other government programs,J. Fred Giertz (2003). It is seen that private pensions reduce public pension spending in the longer term, once private schemes are mature. Private pensions is likely to increase budgetary pressures in the short term: if workers contributions go into their individual pension accounts, they cannot be used to pay for the pensions of the older generation; thus, governments have to finance pensions for the transition generation through taxation or borrowing, Nicholas Barr (2001). This will in a way affect the government budget. Unsustainable pension systems can be a problem to fiscal stability, economic growth, and poverty reduction. The need for pension reform has become pressing as demographic aging has strained pension systems around the world, leading to large expenditures, large deficits, and high contribution rates. In many cases the pension system has become a source of fiscal and macroeconomic instability, a constraint to economic growth, and an ineffective and or inequitable source of retirement income. J. Fred Giertz (2003)suggests thatnot only are pension asset changes large in comparison with state budgets, they are also growing and becoming more volatile. This trend is likely to continue and the relative size of state pension obligations is increasing. This suggests that pension funding is becoming an increasingly important aspect of state government. He also states that ‘state pension funding today is no sounder than in the early 1990s. This is not necessarily a cause for alarm, but it is a source of concern. Pension funding will be an increasingly important demand on state finances in the up coming years. In the G-10 (1998) report, it states that the ageing of populations could have dramatic effects on government finances. Under current policies, government spending in the G-10 countries is projected to rise sharply over the next several decades for several reasons. Per capita expenditure for the elderly is high in the areas of public retirement benefits and, in some countries, welfare support. Public expenditure on medical and health support for the elderly is also high and has been rising. If advances in medical technology come at ever increasing cost and if the incidence of health expenditure on the elderly continues to rise, the fiscal burden could become substantial in some countries. At the same time, government revenues will be adversely affected as the baby boom generation moves from its high income generating years to retirement. Countries whose revenues are tied more to consumption or value added taxes will tend to experience less of a deterioration in revenues than those that depend more heavily on income or payroll taxes. This would create a severe drag on national saving at a time when saving will be crucial to fostering the growth of labour productivity. Impacts of ageing population Norman Vincent Peale quotes that: â€Å"Age-based retirement arbitrarily severs productive persons from their livelihood, squanders their talents, scars their health, strains an already overburdened Social Security system, and drives many elderly people into poverty and despair. Ageism is as odious as racism and sexism.† Barry Bosworth (2003) argued that slowing economic growth and population aging in the major industrial countries have placed increased financial strain on pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) public pension systems. Retirement pensions have become a serious fiscal concern in most industrialized countries. Pensions are largely paid for from tax revenues and it is foreseen that contributions will need to be raised substantially during the coming decades. The World Bank (1994) states that high taxes are harmful to economic growth, since they reallocate resources to the informal sector, thereby reducing output in the more efficient formal market sector of the economy. The reasons are that many people are now nearing retirement age and that the populations nowadays live longer and have fewer children than in the past. Nicholas Barr (2001) argued that the effect on funded schemes is more restrained but equally unavoidable. When a large generation of workers retires, it liquidates its financial assets to pay for its pensions. If those assets are equities, sales of financial assets by the large pensioner generation will exceed purchases of assets by the smaller younger generation, leading to falling equity prices and, hence, to lower pensions. Alternatively, if those assets are bank accounts, high spending by the large pensioner generation will generate inflationary pressures and again reduce the value of pensions. Domestic savings The main views of the life-cycle theory stipulate that individuals try to smooth consumption over their lifetime, Brumberg and Modigliani (1954). Normally savings follow a hump shaped pattern, that is, income is relatively low when individuals are either very young or retired as during their working life savings rate is higher .Ageing Population increases the proportion of households with a relatively lower savings rate in the economy which leads to a decrease in private savings. Estimates of the impact of a change in the age structure of the population on private savings, shows that population ageing will be likely to reduce savings. As regard to public savings, population ageing is likely to exercise considerable pressure on public finances, Weil (2006). In the situation of the pension schemes of the current pay-as-you-go pension schemes that exist in many states, an ageing population implies that the number of beneficiaries increases while the number of contributors to the system decreases. The ageing population will also adversely affect public finances through higher healthcare and long-term care costs, given that older populations are more likely to make use of healthcare facilities, which, to a large extent, are provided by the public sector. Both microeconomic and macroeconomic studies find that the observed age profile of saving generally conforms with the life-cycle model, which implies that saving rates rise over a workers active career and then decline in retirement. Compared with macroeconomic analyses, microeconomic studies tend to show smaller variation in saving rates over the life cycle, this may be of the highly skewed distribution of wealth and saving across households, Ralph C. Bryant (2004). At a micro level, company or other obligatory pension funds can implement enforced saving by deferring wages and salaries, thereby reducing risk of a low replacement ratio. At a macro level, the increase in saving is not usually one-to-one, as increased contractual saving via pension funds is typically partly or wholly offset by declining flexible saving, E Philip Davis (1995). The remaining effect most likely results from liquidity constraints on some individuals (especially the young), who are unable to borrow in order to offset obligatory saving via pension funds early in the life cycle. It can also be anticipated that, even in a liberalized financial system, credit constraints will affect lower income individuals particularly severely, as they have no assets to guarantee and also have less secure employment. Therefore forced pensions saving will tend to increase their overall saving particularly markedly, Bernheim and Scholz (1992). On the other hand Samwick (2000) found a lower rate of saving in countries with extensive PAYG systems. Agosin (2002) extended their analysis and shows that the rise of saving was concentrated in the business sector, and that the net change in household saving was small. Implications for equilibrium real interest rates The forecasted declines in savings make the expected consequence of ageing on the equilibrium real interest rate ambiguous. If investment falls faster than domestic savings at each level of aggregate income, the real interest rate that clears the market for loanable funds is expected to fall, since it is difficult for savers to find profitable investment opportunities, J.C. Trichet (2007). On the other hand, if domestic savings were to fall faster than investment then the real interest rate would rise to reflect the relative scarcity of financial funds. This likely decline in interest rate that equalizes savings and investment could be identified developed financial markets. Even though the actual impact of the evolving demographic structure on the equilibrium real interest rate in the capital markets is something that is going to occur with a considerable lag, some economists have suggested that expectations of such developments may have already started to exert some influence on the pricing of bonds. Among other things, these analyses suggest that ageing could have contributed to the â€Å"flattening† of the yield curve that has been observed over the recent past, J.C. Trichet (2007). However as it is based on the assumption that capital market participants are perfectly forward looking, an assumption which is questionable, it should be treated with a great deal of caution: if it is true that financial markets tend to overreact to short term phenomena, the effects of ageing on the yield curve could be limited, DellaVigna and Pollet (2005). It has to be taken into consideration that these quantitative simulations require a number of qualifications. On one hand, some real world factors may make the true decline in the equilibrium real interest rate larger than estimated in macroeconomic models. For instance, older people may save more than predicted by the life cycle theory as they may want to leave a bequest to their children, putting further downward pressure on the equilibrium rate. The degree of risk aversion may also change with age as if the older people were systematically more risk averse than the young one, the accumulation of precautionary savings would lead to a higher than predicted savings rate and a lower than predicted real rate, Bakshi and Chen (1994).Moreover private savings rates may be significantly affected by pension reforms, Miles (2002). Pressures on Prices Hans J Blommestein (1998) states that concerns have been expressed that the growing demand for high quality private securities like equity and corporate bonds, associated with the growth of advance funded pension systems in search of investment opportunities (thereby increasing the demand for financial assets) and falling public sector borrowing requirements (thereby reducing the supply of government securities), would put strong upward pressure on the prices of financial assets. Here, the combination of the widespread privatisation of state owned enterprises and reform of pension systems brings the opportunity of killing two birds with one stone. Pension reform, which would increase the demand for equity, and privatisation, which expands the supply, at the same time permits a more balanced growth in private securities markets, at least over the medium term. In a somewhat longer term perspective, population ageing may have an impact on the risk premium, that is, the difference betwee n the returns on stocks and the yield on bonds. As asset preferences vary across age groups, the ageing of the baby boom generation could affect both absolute and relative positions of stock and bond prices. On average, middle age is the portion of the life cycle when saving rates are highest. Moreover, middle aged workers generally are more able and willing to hold a riskier portfolio; that is, one weighted more heavily towards stocks than bonds. This is a consequence of two factors: first, while still working, a stockholder is better able to make up for any bad equity returns; second, middle aged workers have a longer time horizon and thus are willing to accept more risk in exchange for the expectation of higher returns. Moreover, higher demand for stocks relative to bonds should increase the price of stocks relative to bonds, thus decreasing the equity premium. Thus, some have hypothesized that an ageing population would cause the equity premium to increase. But if the age of the population is increasing at least in part because life span is increasing, and thus time horizons are lengthening, then the ageing of the population does not necessarily imply that average risk aversion should be increasing and risk premium on stocks should be rising. After the baby boomers begin to retire, saving rates would tend to fall, stock and bond prices to decline, and the equity premium to rise as baby boom retirees shift their portfolios away from stocks toward bonds, Hans J Blommestein (1998). Population age structure can influence the demand for different classes of financial market assets both because of its effect on saving and because young, middle aged, and elderly savers may seek to hold their assets in different forms. Empirical studies have uncovered evidence that population age structure affects stock market prices and the real returns of different classes of financial assets, but the consistency of this evidence is not overwhelming. It is unclear whether the effects of demographic influences on asset prices and returns are large relative to the effects of other and less predictable determinants of prices and returns, Ralph C. Bryant (2004). Implications of population ageing for the conduct of monetary policy The life-cycle theory stipulates that , individuals during their working lives accumulate financial wealth in order to finance their consumption during retirement. As a consequence, populations who are near to retirement age will tend to have higher wealth to income ratios. Simultaneously, expected imbalances in publicly financed pension schemes make it possible to consider that the increasing number of retirees would depend more on their own accumulated wealth, as opposed to public pension provisions, to maintain their consumption levels. Consequently, the fraction of the population exposed to asset price fluctuations could increase with ageing, Young (2002). Bean (2004) argues that longer life expectancy would presumably strengthen this effect. Therefore, the transmission channel of monetary policy may be affected by ageing. In particular, the so called wealth channel, which links asset prices to consumption, may gain relative importance and play a vital role than in the past, G10 (2005). Miles (2002) points out that the monetary policy multiplier would probably rise with population ageing, mainly as a result of the increased wealth channel and greater price impact of monetary policy decisions. In spite of this, he also mentions that an older population is less likely to be credit constrained, especially when the pension system is reformed towards more funded systems. This might reduce the effectiveness of the credit channel. Depending on the relative importance of these channels, monetary policy could, in principle, become more or less effective with ageing. Miles suggests that the first effect is expected to dominate. A move towards demographic structure in which the population accounts for an increasing elderly population is expected to generate a gradual but persistent change in savings habits. This may results in an impact on the demand for all classes of assets even though certain sector of the capital market are likely to be affected more substantially than others. If, for example, older people are more risk averse and prefer to hold financial assets paying fixed income returns such as government securities, then the demand for government bonds would tend to increase relative to riskier investment options, such as equity, Bakshi and Chen (1994) and De Santis and Là ¼hrmann (2006). In this situation, where a larger part of households wealth is invested in nominal assets, price stability would be even more important for households, G10 (2005) and Bean (2004). Stable prices ensure that the real value of both pension entitlements and savings is maintained and prevent arbitrary redistributions of income and wealth to the detriment of the most vulnerable groups in society, in particular, pensioners. It is likely that, as a significant fraction of wealth is accumulated in real estate and financial assets, households exposure to asset price movements will tend to increase. This might coincide with a situation in which a large fraction of the population in their old age dis-saving phase are disposing assets in order to finance consumption during retirement. In this respect, some authors have warned that, when the baby-boom generation retires and starts to dissave, excess supply in financial markets could lead to a significant decline in asset prices, the consequences of which might be felt by the entire population, Siegel (1998), Abel (2001) and (2003). This view is known as the â€Å"asset meltdown† hypothesis. Yoo (1994) estimated that asset prices may drop by as much as 15% as a result of demographic change alone. This is why a credible commitment to maintaining price stability and, as a reflection, an orderly financial environment is and will remain so important for maintaining the standard of living of people, particularly for the poorest and the most vulnerable. Investment of Pension Fund The rapid growth of pension funds in many countries, and the stimulus they are providing to the growth of capital markets, both suggest that their activities as financial intermediaries merit considerable attention, E Philip Davis (2000). Pension funds have an impact on the stability of financial markets in several ways, most significantly through their investment behavior. Since early withdrawal of funds is usually restricted or forbidden, pension funds have long term liabilities, allowing holding of high risk and high return instruments. Accordingly, monies are intermediated by pension funds into a variety of financial assets, which include corporate equities, government bonds, real estate, corporate debt (in the form of loans or bonds), securitised loans, foreign holdings of the instruments mentioned above and money market instruments and deposits as forms of liquidity. Hellwig (1990) suggest that financial institutions can form long term relationships with borrowers, which reduce information asymmetry and hence moral hazard. Apart from economies of scale these considerations have arisen in the literature mainly for debt finance and for banks. Whereas the importance of information asymmetries and incomplete contracts is equally recognised for equity finance, the role of financial institutions as counterparts is less well developed. Equally, institutional investors such as pension funds may not rely on the same information and control mechanisms as banks. The role of pension funds is clearly not to facilitate exchange of goods, services and assets directly. This is because, unlike banks, money market funds, and to a lesser extent long term mutual funds, they do not offer liquid liabilities. Nevertheless, pension funds have had an important indirect role in boosting the efficiency of the financial systems, by influencing the structure of securities markets. This effect on micro structure links to their demand for liquidity, i.e. to transact in large size without moving the price against them, anonymously, and at low transactions costs. Pension funds provide risk control directly to households via the forms of retirement income insurance they provide, an advantage which largely reflects the unusual (among financial intermediaries) link of pension funds to employers. To assist in undertaking this risk control function they diversify assets as noted above and also act in securities and derivatives markets to hedge and control risk. As institutional investors, pension funds are well placed to use derivatives and other means of risk control; many innovations have been introduced or developed specifically to cater for their demand (Bodie 1990b, 1999). E Philip Davis (1995a) suggests that as pension funds focus mainly on government bonds and high grade corporate bonds, while banks tend to monopolise small business financing. And Lorenzo Bini Smaghi (2006) states that investing wisely matters for long term economic wellbeing, and that the portfolio allocation decision is of paramount importance in order to maintain living standards in the old age. Pension funds are the fastest growing of all financial institutions. They now cover half the labor force and represent one-eighth the financial assets of the entire household sector, Vincent P. Apilado (1972). The size of pension funds has also had an impact on the structure of financial markets: countries with large funded pension schemes tend to have highly developed securities markets; in countries with small pension-fund sectors, capital markets are relatively underdeveloped (the equity market in particular, Hans. J. Blommestein (1998). Living Standard M.  PONDS  (2003) states that the raison dà ªtre of wage indexed defined benefit pension funds is to provide insurance against standard of living risk after retirement, based on intergenerational risk sharing. Pension funds necessarily have to accept mismatch risk in providing this kind of insurance. Mismatch risk taken by the pension fund is risk for the funds stakeholders. The material living standards of tomorrows working and retired people will depend on the goods and services produced by those who will be working at the time. Changes in retirement income financing might alter the relative living standards of workers compared with retirees, but only later retirement could have a large effect in increasing living standards for both, Peter Hicks (2004). O Mauritius National Pension Fund Financial Analysis Mauritius National Pension Fund Financial Analysis The National Pension Fund and its financial implications on the economy of Mauritius Chapter 1: Introduction The philosophy of the National Pension Fund (NPF) includes the idea that one ought to earn a reasonable proportion after pension age of what one earned during ones working life. If you have contributed to the NPF and built up your pension points, you will get a pension which, when added to your old-age pension will be a reasonable. The National Pension Fund scheme is proposed as another mandatory saving for retirement. Once it is set up, the NPF will fit into Pillar 2 of the Multi-Pillar Model of the World Bank. The NPF nevertheless will not replace provident funds or retirement mutual funds, but rather improves saving channels for future retirees. Mauritius is found in the developing countries group where contractual savings, savings with insurance companies and pension funds exceed 40 percent of Gross Domestic Product and which represent a greater potential force in the domestic financial system. Pension funds account for 75 percent of contractual savings. The pension system is a balanced and well-managed multi-pillar. In Mauritius there have not many authors that have write specifically on that subject, that is, financial implication of National Pension Fund on the Mauritian economy. I have mainly used the research made by other analysts in other countries and try to apply it on the Mauritian economy. Obviously the result will not be the same, but try to make an estimate of it. Objectives of that Project: Analyse the overall financial implication of NPF Testing the financial effect of NPF on national savings Estimating the relationship between fiscal balance of Mauritius non-retirement account and the net saving that occurs within the NPF Chapter Outline Chapter one gives a brief overview of how the project is carry on. Chapter two makes an overview of the National pension fund, its evolution, structure and its financing source as well as government expenditure and the future of NPF. Chapter three is the literature review, that is, what writers around the globe have commented on the pension system. Chapter four is the research methodology. The research is carried out using regression equation to examine the financial implication NPF on our variables. Chapter five then come the analysis based on the results obtained, that is the financial effect of NPF on national savings and the relationship between fiscal balance of Mauritius non-retirement account and the net saving that occurs within the NPF. Then finally chapter seven will include suggestions and conclusions. Chapter 2: Literature Review Introduction Pension funds is be defined as forms of institutional investor, which collect, pool and invest funds contributed by sponsors and beneficiaries to provide for the future pension entitlements of beneficiaries (E PhilipDavis 1995). Pension fund offer individuals the mean to collect saving over their working life so as to finance their consumption needs in retirement, either by means of a lump sum or by provision of an annuity, while also supplying funds to corporations, households (via securitised loans) or governments for investment or consumption. Bodie(1990a) has formalized pension funds function as a form of retirement income insurance. E Philip Davis (1995) suggests that pension funds perform a number of the functions of the financial system more efficiently than banks or direct holdings. Their growth complements that of capital markets and they have acted as major catalysts of change in the financial landscape. But this is not the only reason for growth. It is also a consequence of fiscal incentives and benefits to employers, as well as growing demand arising from the ageing of the population. Pension funds are typically sponsored by employers, such as companies, public corporations, industry or trade groups; accordingly, employers as well as employees typically contribute. Funds may be internally or externally managed. The pension system is commonly divided into three pillars. The first pillar is the pay-as-you-go system based on payments by public institutions which are mainly funded by tax revenues. The second pillar constitutes fully funded pension funds with mandatory membership and the third pillar is based on fully funded pension saving schemes with voluntary membership. In a pay-as-you-go system, each generation pays for the costs of the currently retired in return for a commitment for the same treatment during its own retirement. Workers who spend their entire work and retirement life under a PAYGO system with constant tax rates will earn a real return on their contributions equal to the growth in the workforce plus the growth in the real wage (Samuelson, 1958, and Aaron, 1966). Pension funds provide millions of people in the world security and comfort in old age. Pension funds represent the savings of millions of people, and as Paul Myners says, the ability of funds to invest these assets effectively has a profound impact on their economic well being. Because so many people depend on pension funds to provide for their futures, ensuring the funds serve the needs of their members is a priority for Government. The social security system on the other hand as stated by law, guarantees people covered by its provisions either because they perform an occupational activity or meet the requirements established for non-contributory type social security, as well as dependent members of the family or similar, adequate protection in the contingencies and circumstances. Social Security has been defined as the protection which society provides for its members through a series of public measures against the economic and social distress that otherwise would be caused by the stoppage or substantial reduction of earnings resulting from sickness, maternity, employment injury, invalidity, old age and death; the provision of medical care; and the provision of subsidies for families with children. In the Social Security system, the money you pay into the system gets immediately paid back out to the people who are currently getting Social Security checks. The Social Security tax has been raising more money than is needed to pay for current benefits, in order to build up a surplus to help finance the retirement of the Baby Boom generation. The money is used in a sense to finance the government deficit, just like any other money the government borrows, Dean Baker (1998). The Social Security system is primarily a pay-as-you-go system, meaning that payments to current retirees come from current payments into the system. So Social Security will be the foundation of your retirement income. Thats because: You wont outlive your Social Security retirement benefit. It will be there for you for the rest of your life. Your Social Security benefit wont lose its value. From time to time, Social Security benefits are adjusted so they always keep pace with inflation. Why National Pension Fund? Worker myopia, or lack of foresight poor planning occurs because people give too little considerations to their future economic needs when making decisions about saving for retirement. Most people seem to have a natural inclination to live for today and avoid thinking about old age and death. Hence, they give very little systematic thought to the financial issues of old age until they come face to face with them. By the time they recognize they may have a problem when they retire, it is usually too late to fix. Government intervention through NPF has help people set aside a portion of their earnings when they are working so that they have an adequate income when they retire. Without compulsory contributions for retirement, myopic workers would not save enough to ensure an adequate retirement income and poverty would result. Another rationale for the existence of the compulsory contribution to the NPF is to protect the prudent that saves for retirement against those who do not save. Under a purely voluntary system some will contribute, others will not. As Boulding (1958) puts it in his argument, those who do not insure will have to be supported anyway-perhaps at lower levels and in humiliating and respect-destroying ways when they are in their non-productive phase of their life, but that they will escape the burden of paying premiums when they are in their productive phase. In fairness to those who insure voluntarily and in order to maintain the self-respect of those who would not otherwise insure, contributions for retirement should be made compulsory. Hence, mandatory contributions are necessary to achieve the retirement savings results that people need to have so as to have an adequate standard of living in their retirement years. Pension funds are also an important source of capital accumulation that can be used for different purposes as the build up the basic of national infrastructure, power stations and electric networks, Olli E. Kangas (2006). The Finnish case demonstrates that it was possible to unify social policy goals with the economic goals of building up modern industrial market economies. The Finnish experience has serves as a good example of how social policy has been successfully used as a developmental strategy, Mkandawire (2001). Pension funds are not only vital to the pension holders they provide for. They are also key players in the economy as a whole. Government Budget Pension funding issues have an important, but often hidden, impact on the finances of state governments, J. Fred Giertz (2003). In most countries, contributions to retirement funds are made by employers and employees each year. Yet, there is no requirement in the short run that these contributions be sufficient to fully fund the systems. Governments always ensure that pension payments are actually made to retirees, regardless of the level of contributions, as they are generally the funders of last resort. If pension systems are under funded, governments must deal with this problem sooner or later through additional contributions to the systems. If systems are over funded, government resources can be redirected from pensions to other government programs,J. Fred Giertz (2003). It is seen that private pensions reduce public pension spending in the longer term, once private schemes are mature. Private pensions is likely to increase budgetary pressures in the short term: if workers contributions go into their individual pension accounts, they cannot be used to pay for the pensions of the older generation; thus, governments have to finance pensions for the transition generation through taxation or borrowing, Nicholas Barr (2001). This will in a way affect the government budget. Unsustainable pension systems can be a problem to fiscal stability, economic growth, and poverty reduction. The need for pension reform has become pressing as demographic aging has strained pension systems around the world, leading to large expenditures, large deficits, and high contribution rates. In many cases the pension system has become a source of fiscal and macroeconomic instability, a constraint to economic growth, and an ineffective and or inequitable source of retirement income. J. Fred Giertz (2003)suggests thatnot only are pension asset changes large in comparison with state budgets, they are also growing and becoming more volatile. This trend is likely to continue and the relative size of state pension obligations is increasing. This suggests that pension funding is becoming an increasingly important aspect of state government. He also states that ‘state pension funding today is no sounder than in the early 1990s. This is not necessarily a cause for alarm, but it is a source of concern. Pension funding will be an increasingly important demand on state finances in the up coming years. In the G-10 (1998) report, it states that the ageing of populations could have dramatic effects on government finances. Under current policies, government spending in the G-10 countries is projected to rise sharply over the next several decades for several reasons. Per capita expenditure for the elderly is high in the areas of public retirement benefits and, in some countries, welfare support. Public expenditure on medical and health support for the elderly is also high and has been rising. If advances in medical technology come at ever increasing cost and if the incidence of health expenditure on the elderly continues to rise, the fiscal burden could become substantial in some countries. At the same time, government revenues will be adversely affected as the baby boom generation moves from its high income generating years to retirement. Countries whose revenues are tied more to consumption or value added taxes will tend to experience less of a deterioration in revenues than those that depend more heavily on income or payroll taxes. This would create a severe drag on national saving at a time when saving will be crucial to fostering the growth of labour productivity. Impacts of ageing population Norman Vincent Peale quotes that: â€Å"Age-based retirement arbitrarily severs productive persons from their livelihood, squanders their talents, scars their health, strains an already overburdened Social Security system, and drives many elderly people into poverty and despair. Ageism is as odious as racism and sexism.† Barry Bosworth (2003) argued that slowing economic growth and population aging in the major industrial countries have placed increased financial strain on pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) public pension systems. Retirement pensions have become a serious fiscal concern in most industrialized countries. Pensions are largely paid for from tax revenues and it is foreseen that contributions will need to be raised substantially during the coming decades. The World Bank (1994) states that high taxes are harmful to economic growth, since they reallocate resources to the informal sector, thereby reducing output in the more efficient formal market sector of the economy. The reasons are that many people are now nearing retirement age and that the populations nowadays live longer and have fewer children than in the past. Nicholas Barr (2001) argued that the effect on funded schemes is more restrained but equally unavoidable. When a large generation of workers retires, it liquidates its financial assets to pay for its pensions. If those assets are equities, sales of financial assets by the large pensioner generation will exceed purchases of assets by the smaller younger generation, leading to falling equity prices and, hence, to lower pensions. Alternatively, if those assets are bank accounts, high spending by the large pensioner generation will generate inflationary pressures and again reduce the value of pensions. Domestic savings The main views of the life-cycle theory stipulate that individuals try to smooth consumption over their lifetime, Brumberg and Modigliani (1954). Normally savings follow a hump shaped pattern, that is, income is relatively low when individuals are either very young or retired as during their working life savings rate is higher .Ageing Population increases the proportion of households with a relatively lower savings rate in the economy which leads to a decrease in private savings. Estimates of the impact of a change in the age structure of the population on private savings, shows that population ageing will be likely to reduce savings. As regard to public savings, population ageing is likely to exercise considerable pressure on public finances, Weil (2006). In the situation of the pension schemes of the current pay-as-you-go pension schemes that exist in many states, an ageing population implies that the number of beneficiaries increases while the number of contributors to the system decreases. The ageing population will also adversely affect public finances through higher healthcare and long-term care costs, given that older populations are more likely to make use of healthcare facilities, which, to a large extent, are provided by the public sector. Both microeconomic and macroeconomic studies find that the observed age profile of saving generally conforms with the life-cycle model, which implies that saving rates rise over a workers active career and then decline in retirement. Compared with macroeconomic analyses, microeconomic studies tend to show smaller variation in saving rates over the life cycle, this may be of the highly skewed distribution of wealth and saving across households, Ralph C. Bryant (2004). At a micro level, company or other obligatory pension funds can implement enforced saving by deferring wages and salaries, thereby reducing risk of a low replacement ratio. At a macro level, the increase in saving is not usually one-to-one, as increased contractual saving via pension funds is typically partly or wholly offset by declining flexible saving, E Philip Davis (1995). The remaining effect most likely results from liquidity constraints on some individuals (especially the young), who are unable to borrow in order to offset obligatory saving via pension funds early in the life cycle. It can also be anticipated that, even in a liberalized financial system, credit constraints will affect lower income individuals particularly severely, as they have no assets to guarantee and also have less secure employment. Therefore forced pensions saving will tend to increase their overall saving particularly markedly, Bernheim and Scholz (1992). On the other hand Samwick (2000) found a lower rate of saving in countries with extensive PAYG systems. Agosin (2002) extended their analysis and shows that the rise of saving was concentrated in the business sector, and that the net change in household saving was small. Implications for equilibrium real interest rates The forecasted declines in savings make the expected consequence of ageing on the equilibrium real interest rate ambiguous. If investment falls faster than domestic savings at each level of aggregate income, the real interest rate that clears the market for loanable funds is expected to fall, since it is difficult for savers to find profitable investment opportunities, J.C. Trichet (2007). On the other hand, if domestic savings were to fall faster than investment then the real interest rate would rise to reflect the relative scarcity of financial funds. This likely decline in interest rate that equalizes savings and investment could be identified developed financial markets. Even though the actual impact of the evolving demographic structure on the equilibrium real interest rate in the capital markets is something that is going to occur with a considerable lag, some economists have suggested that expectations of such developments may have already started to exert some influence on the pricing of bonds. Among other things, these analyses suggest that ageing could have contributed to the â€Å"flattening† of the yield curve that has been observed over the recent past, J.C. Trichet (2007). However as it is based on the assumption that capital market participants are perfectly forward looking, an assumption which is questionable, it should be treated with a great deal of caution: if it is true that financial markets tend to overreact to short term phenomena, the effects of ageing on the yield curve could be limited, DellaVigna and Pollet (2005). It has to be taken into consideration that these quantitative simulations require a number of qualifications. On one hand, some real world factors may make the true decline in the equilibrium real interest rate larger than estimated in macroeconomic models. For instance, older people may save more than predicted by the life cycle theory as they may want to leave a bequest to their children, putting further downward pressure on the equilibrium rate. The degree of risk aversion may also change with age as if the older people were systematically more risk averse than the young one, the accumulation of precautionary savings would lead to a higher than predicted savings rate and a lower than predicted real rate, Bakshi and Chen (1994).Moreover private savings rates may be significantly affected by pension reforms, Miles (2002). Pressures on Prices Hans J Blommestein (1998) states that concerns have been expressed that the growing demand for high quality private securities like equity and corporate bonds, associated with the growth of advance funded pension systems in search of investment opportunities (thereby increasing the demand for financial assets) and falling public sector borrowing requirements (thereby reducing the supply of government securities), would put strong upward pressure on the prices of financial assets. Here, the combination of the widespread privatisation of state owned enterprises and reform of pension systems brings the opportunity of killing two birds with one stone. Pension reform, which would increase the demand for equity, and privatisation, which expands the supply, at the same time permits a more balanced growth in private securities markets, at least over the medium term. In a somewhat longer term perspective, population ageing may have an impact on the risk premium, that is, the difference betwee n the returns on stocks and the yield on bonds. As asset preferences vary across age groups, the ageing of the baby boom generation could affect both absolute and relative positions of stock and bond prices. On average, middle age is the portion of the life cycle when saving rates are highest. Moreover, middle aged workers generally are more able and willing to hold a riskier portfolio; that is, one weighted more heavily towards stocks than bonds. This is a consequence of two factors: first, while still working, a stockholder is better able to make up for any bad equity returns; second, middle aged workers have a longer time horizon and thus are willing to accept more risk in exchange for the expectation of higher returns. Moreover, higher demand for stocks relative to bonds should increase the price of stocks relative to bonds, thus decreasing the equity premium. Thus, some have hypothesized that an ageing population would cause the equity premium to increase. But if the age of the population is increasing at least in part because life span is increasing, and thus time horizons are lengthening, then the ageing of the population does not necessarily imply that average risk aversion should be increasing and risk premium on stocks should be rising. After the baby boomers begin to retire, saving rates would tend to fall, stock and bond prices to decline, and the equity premium to rise as baby boom retirees shift their portfolios away from stocks toward bonds, Hans J Blommestein (1998). Population age structure can influence the demand for different classes of financial market assets both because of its effect on saving and because young, middle aged, and elderly savers may seek to hold their assets in different forms. Empirical studies have uncovered evidence that population age structure affects stock market prices and the real returns of different classes of financial assets, but the consistency of this evidence is not overwhelming. It is unclear whether the effects of demographic influences on asset prices and returns are large relative to the effects of other and less predictable determinants of prices and returns, Ralph C. Bryant (2004). Implications of population ageing for the conduct of monetary policy The life-cycle theory stipulates that , individuals during their working lives accumulate financial wealth in order to finance their consumption during retirement. As a consequence, populations who are near to retirement age will tend to have higher wealth to income ratios. Simultaneously, expected imbalances in publicly financed pension schemes make it possible to consider that the increasing number of retirees would depend more on their own accumulated wealth, as opposed to public pension provisions, to maintain their consumption levels. Consequently, the fraction of the population exposed to asset price fluctuations could increase with ageing, Young (2002). Bean (2004) argues that longer life expectancy would presumably strengthen this effect. Therefore, the transmission channel of monetary policy may be affected by ageing. In particular, the so called wealth channel, which links asset prices to consumption, may gain relative importance and play a vital role than in the past, G10 (2005). Miles (2002) points out that the monetary policy multiplier would probably rise with population ageing, mainly as a result of the increased wealth channel and greater price impact of monetary policy decisions. In spite of this, he also mentions that an older population is less likely to be credit constrained, especially when the pension system is reformed towards more funded systems. This might reduce the effectiveness of the credit channel. Depending on the relative importance of these channels, monetary policy could, in principle, become more or less effective with ageing. Miles suggests that the first effect is expected to dominate. A move towards demographic structure in which the population accounts for an increasing elderly population is expected to generate a gradual but persistent change in savings habits. This may results in an impact on the demand for all classes of assets even though certain sector of the capital market are likely to be affected more substantially than others. If, for example, older people are more risk averse and prefer to hold financial assets paying fixed income returns such as government securities, then the demand for government bonds would tend to increase relative to riskier investment options, such as equity, Bakshi and Chen (1994) and De Santis and Là ¼hrmann (2006). In this situation, where a larger part of households wealth is invested in nominal assets, price stability would be even more important for households, G10 (2005) and Bean (2004). Stable prices ensure that the real value of both pension entitlements and savings is maintained and prevent arbitrary redistributions of income and wealth to the detriment of the most vulnerable groups in society, in particular, pensioners. It is likely that, as a significant fraction of wealth is accumulated in real estate and financial assets, households exposure to asset price movements will tend to increase. This might coincide with a situation in which a large fraction of the population in their old age dis-saving phase are disposing assets in order to finance consumption during retirement. In this respect, some authors have warned that, when the baby-boom generation retires and starts to dissave, excess supply in financial markets could lead to a significant decline in asset prices, the consequences of which might be felt by the entire population, Siegel (1998), Abel (2001) and (2003). This view is known as the â€Å"asset meltdown† hypothesis. Yoo (1994) estimated that asset prices may drop by as much as 15% as a result of demographic change alone. This is why a credible commitment to maintaining price stability and, as a reflection, an orderly financial environment is and will remain so important for maintaining the standard of living of people, particularly for the poorest and the most vulnerable. Investment of Pension Fund The rapid growth of pension funds in many countries, and the stimulus they are providing to the growth of capital markets, both suggest that their activities as financial intermediaries merit considerable attention, E Philip Davis (2000). Pension funds have an impact on the stability of financial markets in several ways, most significantly through their investment behavior. Since early withdrawal of funds is usually restricted or forbidden, pension funds have long term liabilities, allowing holding of high risk and high return instruments. Accordingly, monies are intermediated by pension funds into a variety of financial assets, which include corporate equities, government bonds, real estate, corporate debt (in the form of loans or bonds), securitised loans, foreign holdings of the instruments mentioned above and money market instruments and deposits as forms of liquidity. Hellwig (1990) suggest that financial institutions can form long term relationships with borrowers, which reduce information asymmetry and hence moral hazard. Apart from economies of scale these considerations have arisen in the literature mainly for debt finance and for banks. Whereas the importance of information asymmetries and incomplete contracts is equally recognised for equity finance, the role of financial institutions as counterparts is less well developed. Equally, institutional investors such as pension funds may not rely on the same information and control mechanisms as banks. The role of pension funds is clearly not to facilitate exchange of goods, services and assets directly. This is because, unlike banks, money market funds, and to a lesser extent long term mutual funds, they do not offer liquid liabilities. Nevertheless, pension funds have had an important indirect role in boosting the efficiency of the financial systems, by influencing the structure of securities markets. This effect on micro structure links to their demand for liquidity, i.e. to transact in large size without moving the price against them, anonymously, and at low transactions costs. Pension funds provide risk control directly to households via the forms of retirement income insurance they provide, an advantage which largely reflects the unusual (among financial intermediaries) link of pension funds to employers. To assist in undertaking this risk control function they diversify assets as noted above and also act in securities and derivatives markets to hedge and control risk. As institutional investors, pension funds are well placed to use derivatives and other means of risk control; many innovations have been introduced or developed specifically to cater for their demand (Bodie 1990b, 1999). E Philip Davis (1995a) suggests that as pension funds focus mainly on government bonds and high grade corporate bonds, while banks tend to monopolise small business financing. And Lorenzo Bini Smaghi (2006) states that investing wisely matters for long term economic wellbeing, and that the portfolio allocation decision is of paramount importance in order to maintain living standards in the old age. Pension funds are the fastest growing of all financial institutions. They now cover half the labor force and represent one-eighth the financial assets of the entire household sector, Vincent P. Apilado (1972). The size of pension funds has also had an impact on the structure of financial markets: countries with large funded pension schemes tend to have highly developed securities markets; in countries with small pension-fund sectors, capital markets are relatively underdeveloped (the equity market in particular, Hans. J. Blommestein (1998). Living Standard M.  PONDS  (2003) states that the raison dà ªtre of wage indexed defined benefit pension funds is to provide insurance against standard of living risk after retirement, based on intergenerational risk sharing. Pension funds necessarily have to accept mismatch risk in providing this kind of insurance. Mismatch risk taken by the pension fund is risk for the funds stakeholders. The material living standards of tomorrows working and retired people will depend on the goods and services produced by those who will be working at the time. Changes in retirement income financing might alter the relative living standards of workers compared with retirees, but only later retirement could have a large effect in increasing living standards for both, Peter Hicks (2004). O