Should Cigarettes be Illegal

Introduction Numerous allegations have been put forward against tobacco in bid to make United States of America’s government declare cigarette smoking illegal. Research has shown that one in every ten adults die out of tobacco related illness. In fact, there has been argument that the only preventable deaths are those caused by tobacco. In addition, it has been found that tobacco contributes to poverty intensification.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Should Cigarettes be Illegal? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For cigarette smokers, about 10% of their income goes to cigarette. This leaves them with less to spend on things such as education, food and health care. Consequently, tobacco is blamed for contributing to the level of illiteracy in United States. With most of cultivable land being used for tobacco growth, it is evident that tobacco contributes to reduction in food commodities in United S tates. Land currently being used for tobacco ought to be used for planting maize and other food crops (Lovato, Linn, Stead Best pp. 115-118). Another negative impact of tobacco is environmental pollution from cigarette smoke and butts. With tobacco being blamed for these adversaries, one wonders why the government is unwilling to declare cigarette smoking illegal. There are many economic benefits associated with tobacco and declaring cigarettes smoking illegal would render the nation incapacitated economically. Cigarette smoking ought not to be declared illegal. In its place, the government needs to come up with measures to regulate cigarette smoking so as to cater for the young generation which being affected by cigarette smoking at an alarming late. Why government can not illegalize cigarettes Illegalizing tobacco in America would lead to the country’s economy being greatly affected. Tobacco industry is a major contributor to the country’s economy with the industry offering jobs to tens of thousands of the Americans. In 1993, nearly 43,000 Americans were working in tobacco related companies. In the same year, federal, state and local governments gotten 15 billion dollars as tax collected from tobacco industry. In 1995, Price Waterhouse Coppers carried out an analysis that indicated that 51.5 billion dollars of the total Gross National Production came from tobacco industry (Bearman 31). Besides, over 681,353 of the Americans were working in tobacco industry. These huge economic benefits of the industry underline the reasons why the government is not willing to declare cigarette smoking illegal.Advertising Looking for research paper on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The fact that tobacco industry greatly influences politics of different states in United States is a sufficient reason why cigarette smoking is here to stay. In most cases, the government gets its campaign fu nds from the industry. For that reason, those in the government would not like to oppose the industry’s activities as it would appear like biting the hand that fed them. With approximately 45 million Americans smoking, illegalizing cigarettes would ruin government’s reputation (Bearman pp. 45-53). This implies that the respective government would be risking loosing its political power in the country. Consequently, the government always acts with a lot of caution when it comes to matters affecting tobacco industry. Influence of tobacco industry in America For decades, tobacco industry in America has worked hard to shoot down all programs aimed at controlling its operations. Whenever a law controlling activities of the tobacco industry is established, the industry quickly mobilizes it lawyers, advertisers, public relations personnel and lobbyists to come up with measures to counter it. In addition, the industry works hard to repeal any tobacco control measures that are i ntroduced in the country. A good example is when voters in California unanimously passed Proposition 99. Tobacco industry countered the move by heavily funding Californian legislators (Glantz Balbach 65). This led to Governor Pete blocking anti-smoking advertisements that were being funded through tax money. The government stopped funding the advertisements. By funding legislators, the industry managed to influence them to vote for suspension of ban on smoking in bars. The state legislature became friendly to tobacco. Apart from seeking support from legislators, tobacco industry used superior marketing strategies to change public opinion. Afterwards, the industry proposed its way of controlling tobacco use in the state duped Proposition 188. The industry disguised its proposal as a pro-health measure that would ensure that children do not have access to cigarettes. However, the proposal was aimed at weakening existing state’s tobacco control measures and making it hard for a ny city or town to pass anti-tobacco regulations. Luckily enough, voters realized that the proposal was supported by tobacco industry before they voted it in and it was rejected (Glantz Balbach 73).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Should Cigarettes be Illegal? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In Massachusetts, tobacco industry tried to bribe state legislature to drop a ballot initiative that led to increment of cigarette tax. The industry used more that half a million dollars in trying to ensure that legislators allowed it to continue advertising its products. In addition, the industry lowered prices of its products to attract more customers. Moreover, the industry came up with false allegations that cigarettes were being smuggled to black markets (Saloojee Dagli pp. 902-910). To clear its image in the public, the industry funded numerous projects through concealed alliances with health, education and other public interest organizations. The above cases are just few examples of how tobacco industry has been able to render laws aimed at regulating its products use ineffective. The six tobacco companies in America are influential such that they have been able to counter all health reports and laws aimed at restricting smoking. The companies continue enjoying big profits and are currently buying other non-tobacco companies as an expansion strategy. Young generation and cigarette smoking Rarely have researchers conducted a survey on children below twelve years regarding their exposure to smoking. A survey carried out in Washington State shown that 30% of children aged ten and eleven years that were interviewed agreed to have ever tried smoking. To look at it in a different perspective, every day over 3500 children under the age of 18 years try smoking for their first time. In addition, more than 1000 adolescents are becoming addicted daily. 90% of cigarette smokers have confessed th at they got addicted when they were barely 18 years old (Gostin, Arno Brandt pp. 410-115). There are instances when children smokers have tried to quit. However, research indicates that three out four who attempt to quit smoking fail. Various reasons have been cited to contribute to children getting addicted to cigarette smoking at an early age. Parents have been found to neglect their responsibilities and they smoke in presence of their children. Accordingly, kids find it awesome and they decide to try it out of curiosity. There are parents who send their children to buy cigarettes for them or even leaves cigarette on places where children can easily access them thus making them tempted to smoke. Peer influence is another factor that has led to children smoking at an early age.Advertising Looking for research paper on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More At adolescent, children tend to copy their friends without knowing the repercussions so as to be part of the group or to be accepted by their peers (Gostin, Arno Brandt p. 416). If a child happens to be in company of smokers, he or she gets influenced by others thus indulging in smoking. Media has not been left behind in contributing to this predicament. Some of the children who get involved in smoking claim to have first learnt it from media. Most of the tobacco advertisements are fascinating and are conveyed using numerous colors which make them attractive. Accordingly, children develop a perception that smoking is good and makes one feel being part of a certain social class or status. There are children who start smoking with an intension of seeking self identity (Gostin, Arno Brandt pp. 417-118). Such children think that smoking is meant for mature people and the only way they can show others that they are mature is by smoking. Regulating cigarette smoking Banning cigarette sm oking would adversely affect national economy as tobacco industry contributes to the Gross National production of United States of America. Rather than banning cigarette smoking, measures ought to be put in place to regulate cigarette use. Children need to be educated on the effects of smoking cigarettes at an early age. Highlighting negative effects of cigarette smoking to children would help in scaring them away from smoking while those who smoke would work hard to stop it before they get addicted. Between 1967 and 1970 Americans were informed about pros and cons of smoking. This led to the number of smokers decreasing by 7% as people learnt about the dangers they were exposing themselves to by smoking. It was also found that more than 7000 adolescents who had started smoking stopped (Borland pp. 374-380). The number of young smokers started increasing immediately the government became reluctant and allowed such messages to be withdrawn from televisions and radios. Parents have to be educated on dangers of smoking in presence of their children, sending children to buy cigarettes and leaving cigarettes in places that their children can access them. If parents must smoke let them do it away from their children. The government needs to put forth stern warning to retailers who sell cigarettes to children. Retailers ought to first enquire on the age of persons buying cigarette if they suspect them to be minors. This is by asking them about their age and if they doubt them demand for a document showing their age such as identity card both national and college identification card or driver’s license. This would scare away minors from purchasing cigarettes as well as discourage parents from sending their children. In most cases, young smokers are incapable of buying cigarettes in big packages. They go for smaller packages. Recently, there was introduction of â€Å"kiddie† packs in United States ((Borland pp. 381-382). These are smaller packages of ciga rettes that are inexpensive and easy to hide. The introduction has offered young smokers an opportunity to continue smoking as they are now capable of buying them. The government ought to stick to the rule that requires retailers not distribute cigarettes in small quantities. This would make it hard for children and adolescents to purchase cigarettes. Companies in tobacco industry get high returns as tobacco products are highly consumed across the globe. As a result, the companies are capable of using huge amount of money to make sure that they come up with strongly appealing advertisements. It is the government’s duty to ensure that these companies are compelled to make sure that they have reduced appeal of their advertisements to children and adolescents (Gostin pp. 234-236). Even if we try to warn youths on the dangers of cigarette smoking and continue running appealing advertisements in our televisions and press, we will not make significant steps towards helping them qui t or steer clear from smoking. This does not imply that tobacco companies should stop running their advertisements. In stead, advertisements should be presented in such a way that they retain advertisement components and labels that provide information to adults but do away with those appealing labels such as imagers and colors that draw children and adolescents to cigarette smoking. All tobacco advertisements need to be conveyed in black-and-white and the number of imagery and moving pictures reduced (JLCom Publishing Co., L.L.C para. 4-8). In addition, the rule that requires all outdoor advertisements done by tobacco companies are placed more than 1000 square feet from public playgrounds should be maintained and strictly enforced. All items aimed at promoting tobacco products should not be sold to children and adolescents. These include products such as caps, T-shirts and other items that carry logos of tobacco related products. Nevertheless, tobacco companies should not be banned from holding or sponsoring events in their names. Taxation is another measure that needs to be used in regulating cigarette smoking. Generally, when a product is highly taxed, it cost goes up. Rather than giving incentives to tobacco companies, the government ought to raise taxes for tobacco products so as to make them expensive (Gostin pp. 237-239). This will make it hard for children and adolescents to afford tobacco products thus discouraging them from smoking and using other tobacco products. Lesson from alcohol prohibition In early 19th century, ministers, employers and physicians established an ant-alcohol movement in bid to reduce the rate of alcohol consumption in America. The movement tried to convince the public that alcohol drinking had more harm than good. It claimed that as people continuously drink alcohol, their health deteriorate as well as moral character. Alcohol was associated with various social problems that were facing the society such as poverty, insanity, vi olence as well as crimes (Levine Reinarman para. 12). To solve these problems, the movement maintained that people had to completely stop taking alcohol. With time, the movement gave birth to prohibitionist organization which eventually led to establishment of laws that banned manufacture and sale of alcohol in the country. Despite the government coming up with laws that banned alcohol production and sales in American, people continued manufacturing and selling it secretly. The ban managed to curb alcohol production for commercial purpose but on the other hand people started manufacturing hard liquor. Tens of thousands of people manufactured hard liquor in forests, basements and all other places that they believed the government would not easily identify. In addition, alcohol manufactured for industrial and medical use found its way to public hands (Levine Reinarman para. 12). The percentage of wine consumption increased during prohibition period. People were found to smuggle alco holic drinks from other countries which had not banned alcohol production such as Italy. In other words, prohibition led to emergence of copious crimes with people using all available means to get access to alcohol. There are those who saw prohibition as an avenue for making money. For instance, physicians prescribed wines and spirits and made them available in their pharmacies at a higher cost. People disguised as ministers and distributed â€Å"sacramental wine† in large quantities. There are those who traveled all the way to Canada and came back with trucks full of liquor (Levine Reinarman para. 14). Instead of eliminating alcohol industry, prohibition decentralized and made alcohol production and distribution autonomous. Based on lesson learnt from alcohol prohibition, it is evident that American government can not and will never succeed in illegalizing cigarette smoking. By closing tobacco industry, the government would risk people growing and distributing tobacco produ cts in secrete. In addition, tobacco is grown and processed in the neighboring countries. Consequently, Americans would still access cigarettes by smuggling them from other countries. The government should not overlook the fact that closing tobacco industry would lead to emergence of cartels that would distribute tobacco products in the country. Current high demand for tobacco products in America implies that there is a booming business with people making a lot of profit from cigarettes and other tobacco products. As a result, people can not just sit back and assume that since tobacco industries are closed demand for cigarettes in the country no longer exists. There are those who would look for alternative means of distributing the products secretly. Whereas people think that illegalizing cigarettes would help in curbing smoking, it would only lead to more people getting involved in their production and distribution. Rather than illegalizing cigarettes, the government needs to advoc ate for public education on dangers of cigarette smoking. Moreover, tobacco advertisements need to be regulated so as to ensure that they do not decoy children and adolescents. Conclusion Tobacco industry has great influence in United States’ economy since it offers jobs to thousands of Americans and is a source of revenue to the government. The industry is influential such that it is hard for the government to implement laws aimed at regulating its activities. Since over 45 million Americans smoke, the government lacks power to abolish smoking in the country. High demand for tobacco products such as cigarettes is leading to tobacco companies buying other non-tobacco companies to increase their production and distribution. As the industry enjoys huge profits, it is possible for it to come up with appealing advertisements thus boosting its sales. These advertisements are blamed for making children and adolescents indulge in smoking. Rather than illegalizing cigarette smoking, the government needs to come up with measures to regulate smoking. Some of these measures include prohibiting use of appealing advertisements and locating cigarette advertisements away from public playgrounds. Moreover, the government ought to highly tax tobacco products so as to make them expensive for children and adolescents (Pechmann, Zhao, Goldberg Thomas pp. 1-18). Additionally children and adolescents should be educated on the dangers of smoking. This will discourage them from smoking for those who have not started. Young smokers should be helped to quit. As evidenced by alcohol prohibition, illegalizing cigarettes would only lead to a more severe problem. Americans would look for alternative ways of producing and distributing cigarettes secretly. It is the duty of American government to come up with measures to regulate cigarette smoking rather than thinking of abolishing smoking. Works Cited Bearman, Peter. After Tobacco: What Would Happen If Americans Stopped Smoking? New York: Columbia University Press, 2004. Borland Ron. â€Å"A strategy for controlling the marketing of tobacco products: a regulated market model.† Tob Control 12 (2003):374–82. Glantz, Stanton Balbach, Edith. Tobacco war: Inside the California battles. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. Gostin, Lawrence O. â€Å"Global Regulatory Strategies for Tobacco Control.† The Journal of the American Medical Association 17 (2007): 234-239. Gostin, Lawrence, Arno, Peter Brandt, Allan. â€Å"FDA regulation of tobacco advertising and youth smoking. Historical, social, and constitutional perspectives. Journal of the American Medical Association 277 (1999):410–418. JLCom Publishing Co., L.L.C. â€Å"The Regulations Restricting the Sale and Distribution of Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco to Protect Children and Adolescents.† 2001. Web. Levine, Harry G. Reinarman, Craig. â€Å"Alcohol prohibition and drugs prohibition: Lessons from alcohol policy for drug policy.† 2004. Web. Lovato, Chris, Linn, Gilat, Stead, Lindsay Best, Allan. â€Å"Impact of tobacco advertising and promotion on increasing adolescent smoking behaviours.† Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2003. Pechmann, Cornelia, Zhao, Guangzhi, Goldberg, Marvin Thomas, Ellen. â€Å"What to Convey in Antismoking Advertisements for Adolescents: The Use of Protection Motivation Theory to Identify Effective Message Themes.† Journal of Marketing 67(2003):1–18. Saloojee, Yussuf Dagli, Elif. â€Å"Tobacco industry tactics for resisting public policy on health.† Bull World Health Organization 78 (2000):902–910. This research paper on Should Cigarettes be Illegal? was written and submitted by user Amanda Mcgee to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

An Unnecessary essays

An Unnecessary essays The Persian Gulf War has turned out to be the most controversial war in recent history. It occurred in August 1990 when Iraqi forces occupied Kuwait because they claimed to have owned them after their release for independence from Britain. The United States led an international coalition of forces to demand Kuwaits freedom from Iraq and for Kuwait to claim its land and rights. As a result to the U.S. becoming involved in the dispute between Iraq and Kuwait, many nations supported the U.S., which gave a sense of unity among parts of the world and in the U.N. After the war, Kuwait was no longer being controlled by Iraq in any way. Due to the war with Iraq, United States was able to advance many of its war tactics and technologies, such as, night vision, scud missiles, and the stealth bomber. Also, oil prices in the United States were kept lower than they would have been if the U.S. hadnt gotten involved in the war. However, many things were left unsettled between Iraq and the United Na tions. (Persian Gulf War, Microsoft Encarta.) The Persian Gulf War led the United States into its current war with Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom. The United States concern in the Persian Gulf War was that Iraq was too controlling over Kuwait. Because The United States did not achieve one of its primary goals, which was to remove Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq, the Persian Gulf War was not necessary. First, Persian Gulf War was not necessary is because I think that disputes between other nations should be handled between the two. No other nation should get involved. It seems that the United States wants to spread the idea of liberty, justice, and freedom, and it wants to eliminate communism and dictatorship, yet it does the opposite. The United States is basically the pot calling the kettle black. The United States wants to spread liberty, justice, and freedom, but it is controlling other nations and practicall...

Andorra - Learn about the Geography and History of Europes Andorra

Andorra - Learn about the Geography and History of Europe's Andorra Population: 84,825 (July 2011 estimate)Capital: Andorra la VellaBordering Countries: France and SpainArea: 180 square miles (468 sq km)Highest Point: Pic de Coma Pedrosa at 9,665 feet (2,946 m)Lowest Point: Riu Runer at 2,756 feet (840 m) Andorra is an independent principality that is co-governed by Spain and France. It is located in southwestern Europe between France and Spain and it is entirely landlocked. Much of Andorras topography is dominated by the Pyrenees Mountains. Andorras capital city is Andorra la Vella and its elevation of 3,356 feet (1,023 m) makes it the highest capital city in Europe. The country is known for its history, interesting and isolated location and high life expectancy.History of AndorraAndorra has a long history that dates back to the time of Charlemagne. According to the U.S. Department of State, most historical accounts claim that Charlemagne grated a charter to the region of Andorra in return for fighting against the Muslim Moors advancing from Spain. By the 800s the Count of Urgell became the leader of Andorra. Later a descendent of the Count of Urgell gave control of Andorra to the diocese of Urgell led by the Bishop of Seu dUrgell.By the 11th century the head of the diocese of Urgell put Andorra under the protection of the Spanish, under the Lord of Caboet, because of growing conflicts from neighboring regions (U.S. Department of State). Shortly thereafter a French noble became the heir to the Lord of Caboet. This led to conflict between the French and Spanish over who would control Andorra. As a result of this conflict in 1278 a treaty was signed and Andorra was to be shared between Frances Count of Foix and Spains Bishop of Seu dUrgell. This led to a joint sovereignty.From this time until the 1600s Andorra gained some independence but control often shifted back and forth between France and Spain. In 1607 Frances King Henry IV made Frances head of government and the Bishop of Seu dUrgell co-princes of Andorra. The region has been ruled as a co-principality between the two countries ever since.During its modern history, Andorra remained isolated from much of Europe and the rest of the world outside of Spain and France due to its small size and the difficulty involved with traveling there because of its rugged topography. Recently however, Andorra has begun to grow into a tourist European center as a result of improv ed communications and transportation development. In addition, Andorra still has very close ties to France and Spain, but it is more closely tied to Spain. The official language of Andorra is Cataln.Government of AndorraToday Andorra, officially called the Principality of Andorra, is a parliamentary democracy that is governed as a co-principality. The two princes of Andorra are the president of France and the Bishop Seu dUrgell of Spain. These princes are represented in Andorra via representatives from each and make up the countrys executive branch of government. The legislative branch in Andorra consists of a unicameral General Council of the Valleys, whose members are elected via popular election. Its judicial branch is made up of the Tribunal of Judges, Tribunal of the Courts, the Supreme Court of Justice of Andorra, the Supreme Council of Justice and the Constitutional Tribunal. Andorra is divided into seven different parishes for local administration.Economics and Land Use in AndorraAndorra has a relatively small, well-develop ed economy that is based mainly on tourism, commerce and the financial industry. The main industries in Andorra are cattle, timber, banking, tobacco and furniture manufacturing. Tourism is also a major part of Andorras economy and it is estimated that around nine million people visit the tiny country each year. Agriculture is also practiced in Andorra but it is limited because of its rugged topography. The main agricultural products of the country are rye, wheat, barley, vegetables and sheep.Geography and Climate of AndorraAndorra is located in southwestern Europe on the border between France and Spain. It is one of the worlds smallest countries with an area of just 180 square miles (468 sq km). Most of Andorras topography consists of rugged mountains (the Pyrenees Mountains) and very small, narrow valleys between the peaks. The highest point in the country is Pic de Coma Pedrosa at 9,665 feet (2,946 m), while the lowest is Riu Runer at 2,756 feet (840 m).The climate of Andorra is considered temperate and it generally has cold, snowy winters and warm, dry summer s. Andorra la Vella, the capital and largest city of Andorra, has an average annual temperature range of 30.2ËšF (-1ËšC) in January to 68ËšF (20ËšC) in July.To learn more about Andorra, visit the Geography and Maps section on Andorra on this website.ReferencesCentral Intelligence Agency. (26 May 2011). CIA - The World Factbook - Andorra. Retrieved from: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/an.htmlInfoplease.com. (n.d.). Andorra: History, Geography, Government, and Culture- Infoplease.com. Retrieved from: infoplease.com/ipa/A0107276.htmlUnited States Department of State. (8 February 2011). Andorra. Retrieved from: state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3164.htmWikipedia.org. (2 June 2011). Andorra - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andorra

Homework assignment Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Homework assignment - Case Study Example One customer may complain about the store’s services online and have great repercussion to the businesses sales. The presence of social networks handled to the constant connection of more customers Customer before and after sale services have a large impact on the store’s customer base due to the relationships levels. The employee’s interpersonal and communication skills have effects on the customer choice of the store. The case study has also revealed the efforts of the management to improve these skills to ensure that the store attracts more customers. The management has come up with training procedures that have will help improve employee-customer communication and relationships. It will also help interpersonal relationships between the employees that will encourage helping amongst various departments. These strategies will improve customer satisfaction ratings of the store and in the long run increase the number of sales (Lawson, 2006). Without proper customer handling skills, a firm without customer handling skill may lose all its customers. The retail store has adopted a customer service training program that will incorporate all employees. The core objectives of the employee program are to improve customer interaction through relationships and good communication skills. It will focus on the employee behavior towards customers despite the situation they are put in at the store. Knowledge will be passed to the staff through use of videos that portray the real situation that an employee may encounter. Situation behavioral approach helps control employee emotions towards customers despite the character traits of the customers (Werner and DeSimone, 2012). The videos are presented in two sessions that expose different situations depending on the employees response towards the customer. They show both good and bad customer services and ways of handling. After the

Housing Markets in the Financial Crisis of 2008 Essay

Housing Markets in the Financial Crisis of 2008 - Essay Example The origin of the housing market boom The boom in the housing market started growing as the stock bubble grew up in the last decade of the 20th century. In simple terms, the logic governing the growth of the housing bubble was one such that the wealthy were spending the money they had accumulated from the favorable stock markets (Baker, 2008, 73). The stock prices had run up in a manner extraordinary and many people had not anticipated. The wealthy therefore started spending at a rate similar to the rate of wealth accumulation. The increased wealth resulted in an increase in the average consumption and it was noted that the savings rate sourced out of every individual’s disposable income experienced a fall from 5% in 1995 to about 2% in the year 2000. The wealth gained from the favorable stock markets led to massive investments in the housing industry as people strived to buy bigger houses and to make better homes. The supply of housing is, of course, fixed so this therefore m eant that the sudden increase in demand was likely to cause the housing bubble effect (Baker, 2008, 73). This caused a chain of events starting by an increase in demand which automatically resulted in the house prices to rise. As the prices started rising in some of the areas affected there was a unique phenomenon such that the prices started being incorporated into expectations and these made the buyers of houses and homes to start paying more than they would otherwise have done. This had a tendency of making the expectations self fulfilling and more convincing. Research together with the data from the government’s documents pointed to a very slight change in the house prices for over 100 years before the beginning of the house bubble. Even as the price of the houses rose, the rent did not increase in a similar manner but it in fact remained trailing behind in a modest manner a clear indication that the price of the houses was as a result of the housing bubble (Baker, 2008, 74). The instantaneous increase in the price of the houses both for buyers and those renting them started creating a substantial effect on the supply side as a result of the rise in price from around 1995 towards 2000. The house prices rose up to about 25% in the year 2002. This was above the average rate of the three years from 1993 to 1995. This then resulted in to an effect that appeared as an oversupply in the number of rental housing sector for it caused the vacancy rate to rise to about 9% in the year 2002 which was 1.5% increase to that of around 1990 that stood at about 7.5%.

Impact Of Self Help Groups Economics Essay

Impact Of Self Help Groups Economics Essay Self-Help Groups means a group of 10-20 members which may or may not be registered representing financial intermediation, but the financial intermediation is not the only primary objective of the groups. The motive is to combine the access to low-cost financial services with a process of self management and development. NGOs or Government agencies usually form and support these SHGs. The members of these groups save the amount which is used for loans. Inspite of considerable expansion in the branch network, a large share of Indias population continuous to remain outside the formal banking system. Due to widespread rural bank branch network, the SHG-Bank Linkage Programme is very suitable to the Indian context. Although various alternative ways are being experimented in order to meet the objectives of financial inclusion. The SHG-Bank Linkage Programme is considered a most successful, promising and widely accepted model in India. Self Help Group Bank Linkage Programme- a pilot project started by NABARD is widely accepted model as one of the largest and successful one in the world. The present study is analytical and based upon secondary data which has been collected from different published reports, journals and existing available literature. The objective of this study is to evaluate the progress and impact of self help group bank linkage programme. Key Words: Growth, Models, Self-Help Group, SHG-Bank Linkage Programme. Introduction The Self-Help Group (SHG) movement originated in Bangladesh under the Leadership of Noble Laureate Mohamed Yunus. It is a noble mission- an innovative concept that has its roots in Bangladesh and has touched every part of the globe. In order to achieve the mission of reaching those families who did not access to credit by any formal financial institution and, therefore, were dependent on informal sources and moneylenders, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) introduced the SHG Bank Linkage Programme as a pilot project in 1992. Thereafter, RBI had advised commercial banks to participate actively in this programme. Subsequently, this programme was further extended to all Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and cooperative banks. SHGs through the network of commercial banks, RRBs cooperative banks, NABARD and NGOs has been largely supply driven as well as a recent approach in the provision of financial services to the poor. This paper is an attempt to analyse the SH Gs movement in India as these are helpful in order to alleviate poverty and women empowerment. The present study is analytical and based upon secondary data which has been collected from different published reports, journals and existing available literature. The objective of this study is to evaluate the progress of self help group bank linkage programme. Self Help Group Self Help Group means a group of 15-20 members which have become a common vehicle of development covering various development programmes. Financial intermediation is not the only objective but the purpose behind this is to combine the access to low cost financial services with a process of self management and development. SHGs are usually formed and supported by NGOs or Government agencies. SHGs are small, informal and homogenous groups of not more than20 members each. Any group larger than the size of 20 members has to be registered under Indian legal system. So it is recommended to be informal to keep them away from bureaucracy, corruption, unnecessary administrative expenditure and profit motive. Groups are also expected to be homogenous so that members can participate freely without any fear as well as conflicting interest. SHGs have also emerged as a powerful device and an effective medium for delivering credit to the poor in the rural economy. It helps in poverty alleviation an d women empowerment. Self-help groups (SHGs) movement has triggered off a silent revolution in the rural credit delivery system in India. SHG Bank Linkage Programme The Self-Help Group Bank Linkage Programme (SHBL) which started as a pilot programme in 1992 has developed at a very fast rate with time. SHG-Bank Linkage Programme was started on the basis of the recommendation of S K Kalia Committee. While the SHG-bank linkage Programme has experienced exponential growth over the past decade, there remain large regional disparities in the growth of the SHG movement with limited progress in certain regions. Though the SHG-Bank Linkage Programme contributed to improve economic conditions, social change was not as apparent, and there are concerns of sustainability and further development of self reliance of the institutions. The SHG-Bank Linkage Programme has the following objectives: To develop mutual faith and confidence between the rural poor and bankers To combine sensitivity, flexibility and responses of the informal credit system with the strength of administration capabilities, technical strength and the financial resources of the formal financial institutions. To expand credit flow/ financial services to the rural poor with less transaction costs. To alleviate poverty and empower the women. Models of SHG-Bank Linkage Programme The strategy behind these models is to form small, cohesive and participative groups of the poor and encourage them to pool their savings regularly and use the pooled savings in order to make small interest bearing loans available to the members. Bank credit also becomes available to the group to augment its resources for the purpose of lending to its members. The SHG-bank linkage program has proved to be the major supplementary credit delivery system with a wide acceptance by banks, NGOs and various government departments. There are three models of SHG-bank linkages that have evolved over time, especially in India. MODEL I. SHGs formed and financed by banks In this model, banks themselves take up the work of forming and nurturing the groups, opening their bank accounts and providing them with bank loans after satisfying themselves as to their maturity to absorb credit. Upto March 2006, about 20% of the total number of SHGs financed was from this category. This shows an increase of 61.63 percent in bank loan to SHGs over the position as on March 2005 reflecting an increased role of banks in promoting and nurturing SHGs. Here, the banks act as the SHGPI. MODEL II. SHGs formed by NGOs and formal organisations but directly financed by the banks In this model, groups are formed by NGOs (in most cases) or by the government agencies. The groups are nurtured and trained by the agencies. The bank then provides credit directly to the SHGs after observing their operations and maturity to absorb credit. While the bank provides loans to the groups directly, the facilitating agencies continue their interactions with the SHGs. Most linkage experiences begin with this model, where NGOs play a major role. This model has also been popular with and more acceptable to banks, since some of the difficult functions of social dynamics are externalized. This model continuous to have a major share. About 70 percent of the total number of SHGs is financed under this model. MODEL III. SHGs financed by banks using NGOs and other agencies as financial intermediaries   For various reasons, banks in some areas are not in a position even to finance SHGs promoted and nurtured by other agencies. In such cases, the NGOs act as both facilitators and microfinance intermediaries. First, they promote the groups, nurture and train them and then they approach banks for bulk loans for further lending to SHGs. In other words, banks take the sole responsibility for promoting, developing and financing SHGs. In fact, this programme requires considerable effort by the bank staff towards the formation of SHG. This model is not so encouraging. Models of SHG Linkages Bank Loans Model Number of Linkages % of Total Amount (Rs. In million) % of Total 1. 13561 14 339.79 18 2. 65636 70 1339.95 69 3. 15448 16 250.10 13 A major share of population in India continuous to remain outside the formal banking system inspite of considerable expansion in the branch network. And various alternative models are being experimented in order to meet the objective of financial inclusion. The SHG-Bank Linkage model is considered a most successful, promising and widely accepted model in India. This model was introduced in 1991-92 with a pilot project of linking 500 SHGs with banks and this figure has gone up to more than 34 lakh by the end of March 2008.Cummulatively, these SHGs have assessed credit of Rs. 22,268 crore from banks during the period. About 4.1 crore poor have gained access to the formal system through the programme. The number of SHGs linked to banks has increased from 32995 during 1998-99 to 3477965 during 2007-08 during the period of last about ten years. It means there is an impressive 68 percent compound annual growth rate. But the compound annual growth rate is almost double each year for the cum ulative bank loan to SHGs which is 94 percent. The faster growth in bank loans to SHGs has led to almost a four-fold increase in the average loans per SHG from Rs. 16,816 in 1999-2000 to Rs. 63,926 in 2007-08. These figures reflect the outstanding success of the programme in the Chart 1 given below. Chart I: Growth of SHG-Bank Linkage Programme 4 Progress of the SHG-Bank linkage Programme NABARD introduced an effective SHG-Bank Linkage Programme in order to provide credit to very small borrowers. The introduction of the SHG-Bank linkage Programme to discard the general perception of bankers that customers with no formal education or source of income or of no use to the bank and thus are not welcome. Since the year 2000, the statistical data show the rate of growth in SHGs linked under the programme is gradually falling in the year 1999-2000 the growth rate was more than 245% whereas it fell below 38.3% in 2005-06. However, the higher growth in the late nineties may be due to initial penetration of SHGs under the programme. With the formation of new SHGs, the scope is widened which will improve the condition of the poor households and it should be worked upon. Table 1 shown below the cumulative progress of SHG-Bank Linkage Programme. Table I: Cumulative Progress of SHG-Bank Linkage Programme (INR in crores) Year SHGs Linked Bank Loan Refinance Assistance 1992-93 255 0.29 0.27 1995-96 4757 6.06 5.66 1998-99 32955 57.07 52.09 2002-03 461478 2048.67 796.50 2005-06 2238565 11397.46 4159.70 2006-07 2924973 17967.46 5452.56 2007-08 3477965 26816.72 7068.06 2008-09 4559443 39070.23 9688.09 Note: From 2006-07 onwards, data on number of SHGs financed by banks and bank loans are inclusive of Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojna(SGSY) SHGs and existing groups receiving repeat loans. Source: NABARD Annual Report 2008-09 The above table shows the cumulative progress in this area with the amount of refinance assistance during the respective periods. Disparity in the SHG-Bank linkage Programme SHG-Bank Linkage Programme was started with the objective of extending the outreach of banking the poor, who mainly comprise the marginal farmers, landless labourers, artisans and craftsmen and others engaged in the small businesses such as vending and hawking. Now the important point is that whether the programme has really made inroads into the regions where concentration of poverty is comparatively higher. And this can be found if we compare the poverty ratio at all India level with the ratio of various regions. Earlier, during 2004-05, the all-India poverty ratio stood at about 27.6 per cent while the Northern (15.7 per cent), North- Eastern (19.2 per cent), Southern (19.8 per cent) and Western region (25.8 per cent) had lower than the all-India poverty ratio, Central (35 per cent), and Eastern Region (36.2 per cent) had higher poverty ratios than at the all-India level. Now this variation is comparatively changed with the expansion of number of SHGs. Similarly, there has been skewed development of SHG-Bank linkage programme on geographical basis in India. There is wide regional disparity both in terms of the spread of SHGs linked to banks and cumulative bank loans disbursed under the programme. In March 2008, while the Southern Region accounted for 48.2 per cent of the total SHGs, the share of North- Eastern Region was just 3.4 per cent as depicted in table 2. In terms of share in the total bank loans to SHGs, the region-wise differential gets further magnified. So far, the SHG movement in the country is mostly south-centric and it is yet to take off in the real sense in other regions of India. Table II: Region-wise Progress of SHG-Bank Linkage Programme (As on March 31, 2008) Regions Share (%) in Programme No. of SHGs Loans to SHGs (Rs. crore) Average Loans per SHG (Rs.) No. of SHGs Loans to SHGs SHGs per Lakh Population Northern 2,30,740 851 36,899 6.6 3.8 156 North Eastern 1,19,520 327 27,364 3.4 1.5 283 Eastern 6,72,626 2,372 35,268 19.3 10.7 274 Central 4,05,707 1,501 36,990 11.7 6.7 142 Western 3,74,561 1,320 35,254 10.8 5.9 229 Southern 16,74,811 15,896 94,915 48.2 71.4 703 All India 34,77,965 22,268 64,027 100.0 100.0 310 Source: NABARD While the Southern Region accounted for 71.4 per cent of the total loans to SHGs, the share of North-Eastern Region was just about 1.5 per cent. For all regions excluding Southern Region, even though the share of total SHGs linked to banks was close to 51.8 per cent, their share in total loans to SHGs was only 28.6 per cent implying that adequate credit is not being routed through SHGs in these regions. As the regions vary in geographical area and population, the number of SHGs is normalized by the population of the region and SHG per lakh population has been taken as a better indicator of SHG spread in the respective regions. The number of SHGs per lakh population for the Southern Region is 703, which is more than double the average at all-India (310) and almost five times of the Central Region (142). All these data given in the table shows an impressive growth in southern region followed by eastern, central and others. The SHG Bank Linkage Model has made considerable progress since its inception in the early 1990s and agency wise outstanding number of credit linked SHGs and amount of loans with Banks is presented in Table3 given below. Table III: Bank Loans Outstanding under SHG-Bank Linkage Programme Agency 2008 09 2009-10 No. of SHGs (in000) Amount (Rs. In Crores) No. of SHGs (in000) Amount (Rs. In Crores) Commercial Banks 2831 16149 3237 20165 Regional Rural Banks 978 5224 1104 6144 Cooperative Banks 415 1306 510 1729 Total 4224 22679 4851 28038 Source: Status of Microfinance in India 2009-10 Banks have financed 15.87 lakh SHGs, including repeat loan to the existing SHGs, with bank loans of Rs. 14,453 crores during 2009-10. Out of the total loans disbursed during 2009-10, SHGs financed under SGSY accounted for 2.67 lakh (16.9%) with bank loan of Rs. 2198.00 crore (15.2%). As on March 2010, the average loan amounts outstanding per SHG and per member were Rs. 57795 and Rs. 4128 respectively. The estimated number of households covered under the Self Help Group (SHG)-Bank Linkage Programme was 9.7 crores up to 31 March 2010. Current Position of SHG-Bank Linkage Programme Though there are different models for purveying micro finance, the Self-Help Group Bank Linkage Programme has emerged as the major programme in the country. It is being implemented by commercial banks, regional rural banks (RRBs), and cooperative banks. In 2009-10, 1.59 million new SHGs were credit-linked with banks, and bank loan of 14,453 crore (including repeat loan) was disbursed to these SHGs. Further, about 6.95 million SHGs maintained savings accounts with banks at the end of March 2010. On an average, the amount of savings per SHG was 8,915 as compared to the amount of credit outstanding of 57,795 in 2009-10. While there was a continued increase in the amount of credit outstanding per SHG, there was a fluctuating trend in the amount of saving per SHG in the recent years. According to the Status of Micro Finance in India 2009-2010 released by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) there are 69,53,000 SHGs in the country savings linked with banks and 48,51,000 SHGs having loan outstanding as on 31 March 2010.   The estimated number of households covered under this model is about 970 lakhs.   The total savings amount of all the SHGs with banks as on 31 March 2010 amounts to Rs.6198.71 crore and the total amount of loans outstanding against SHGs as on 31 March 2010 is Rs.28038.28 crore. Table IV: New SHGs Financed by Banks during the Year   Year New SHGs Financed by Banks during the Year No. (lakh) Amount (Rs. crore) Growth (%) 2007-08 12.28 8,849.26 2008-09 16.09 12,256.51 38.50 2009-10 15.87 14,453.30 17.90 2010-11 11.96 14,547.73 0.65 Source: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Under the SHG-Bank Linkage Programme as on 31 March 2011, 74.62 lakh SHGs held savings bank accounts with total savings of Rs. 7,016 crores as against 69.53 lakh SHGs with savings of Rs.6, 199 crores as on 31 March 2010. By December 2011, another 2.98 lakh SHGs have come under the ambit of the programme, taking the cumulative number of saving-linked groups to 77.60 lakh SHGs. As on 31 March 2011, 47.87 lakh SHGs had outstanding bank loans of Rs. 31,221 crores, as against 48.5 lakh SHGs with bank loans of Rs. 28,038 crore as on 31 March 2010. This represents a decline of 1.3 percent in the number of SHGs and a growth of 11.4 percent in bank loans outstanding to SHGs as per table 4 given above. During 2011-12, (upto December 2011), 4.51 lakh SHGs have been financed with an amount of Rs. 6,791.46 crore. Thus, the SHG-Bank Linkage Programme is considered as the largest financial inclusion programme in the world.   Conclusion SHG-Bank Linkage Programme is developed in India to provide finance to the vast rural poor. In this programme, the informal SHGs are credit linked with the formal financial institutions. The SHG-Bank Linkage Programme has emerged as a dominant, relevant and effective prorgramme in terms of borrowers and loans outstanding in India. It is flexible, independence creating, and imparts freedom of savings and borrowing according to the heterogeneous needs and requirements of the group members. Through this program, the Reserve Bank of India and NABARD has tried to promote relationship banking, i.e., Improving the existing relationship between the poor and the bankers with the social intermediation of the NGOs. The SHG-bank linkage program in India is rapidly expanding its outreach under the pioneering initiative of NABARD, the monitoring and supervision of RBI, and the promotional policies of the government of India. At the grass root level the program is being implemented by the commercial banks, cooperatives, and regional rural banks, with government agencies. Self-help groups (SHGs) play today major role in poverty alleviation in rural India. SHGs have changed the life of a particular individual or group for the better. This is considered not only a tool for poverty alleviation but also has proven to be relevant in offering women the possibility to break gradually away from the exploitation and isolation in India. The SHG-Bank Linkage Programme has provided a more favor able environment for enhancing Indias potential for greater equitable growth with empowerment while considering the positive signs in their performance.

The Arena

The Arena â€Å"We glide through darkness but the early morning kind, darkness about to lift. † It is without discussion an adventure and an experience to have a child. Mostly a feeling of great love follows. But definitely a responsibility and fear follows. The fear of being insufficient and maybe even the fear of endangering what you love the most. This is because our identity changes. In 2008 Martin Golan wrote the short story The Arena. The story is about a father and his son. The father is driving his son to the arena, where he is going on a trip with his lacrosse team by bus.The story circles around the protagonist of the story, who is the father. It is written in his point of view. The story consists of very little dialogue, which only is between him and his son. Mostly the all-knowing reader is confronted with the father’s inner dialogue as if the reader was inside his head. This and the point of view are also shown in the language of the story. It is informal a nd spoken language that is written to look like a dialect: â€Å"I spent many an afternoon at the Arena when my boy was small† (page 2, line 4-5).It has the effect that it easier to see through the father’s eyes and identify with him. This leads to a characterization of the father. Already in the first few lines you sense a strong emotional connection to his son or children in general: â€Å"The Arena somehow manages to be too cold and too hot at the same time, and my afternoons there were equally mixed, the physical discomfort eased by seeing my child dizzy with the boundless delight children take in simple games† (page 2, line 6-8). The father seems fascinated by the childish dewy-eyed way of thinking.But the most significant is that just seeing his own child happy counterbalances his physical discomfort. Now his son is a teenager and he is driving him to the arena at six a. m. on a Saturday morning. â€Å"The early weekend hour, the stillness we alone are he re to break, is like the drive to a hospital for birth, or (I cannot dwell on this) in an ambulance with an injured child† (page 2, line 22-23). Whatever the father thinks of, he always seems to connect it somehow with children – in this case the contrasting joyful and sad stage.The protagonist seems distant and in his thoughts. He is not mentally present in the car. Then he states: â€Å"Before the life I have now I had another life, with a different woman, and we also had a child, a boy named Willie† (page 2, line 37-38). But the boy beside him, the one going to the arena, is his only child. This combined with his fear of dwelling by the thought of an ambulance with an injured child raises the suspicion that Willie is dead. This suspension is slowly confirmed but mostly indirectly.The suspension evolves as the father thinks: â€Å"We attended a group for parents of children who died in preventable accidents, and everyone tried to be helpful† (page 4, lin e 122-123). He and his former wife could have prevented the death of their son Willie. It may have been their fault or they could have felt it that way. In a way it is confirmed by the fact that the father and his first wife could not stay together after what happened. â€Å"We had to part after what happened, and it wasn’t from lack of love, I promise you that† (page 3, line 57-58).The relationship was no longer an intimate connection between to people in love, â€Å"†¦ it was as if the he borders between what one expects and what happens, between one person and another, had collapsed† (page 4, line 110-111). After Willie died it was as if the father and the first wife only did what was expected, how a normal happy couple would act. He explains it as if everything they did had quotation marks around like it was acting, just a lie. They were not happy and could not stay together. They had to move on from each other, but he did not.The father has not left th e past in the past. He always dwells at the thoughts of his former life: â€Å"I had missed a turn. I do this a lot. He’s never had a father who isn’t absent-minded, who remembers where to turn on roads he’s travelled a hundred times† (page 3, line 78-79). This also indicates that the father has lived there, a New Jersey suburb, a long time. It is possible he may not even have moved after the divorce. He sometimes wakes up and questions which life he is in – the first life or the second life. You sense a longing for his former life and Willie.His second wife looks like his first wife, so much that even he himself sometimes is in doubt. On the outside his present life seems like just as big a lie as the former. But when the father and his son reach the arena, something is different. His son jumps out of the car and starts playing with his friends. This scene seems to calm the father. â€Å"†¦ It hits me as nothing has since Willie† (page 5, line 144-145). Jumping children having fun, a symbol of life that seems to assure the father that it is okay to let go. He knows he will always worry for his child but that he will stand eside him all his life and help him. The protagonist starts at one point but ends another, which indicates a chronological composition. The structure of the story is atypical. Despite the chronological composition, the story focuses mostly on the past without being flashbacks. It illustrates on of the many contrasts of the story: the past vs. the present. The most significant contrast in the story must however be the one of life and death, closely related to the past/present contrast. The father’s past, his first life, was very emotional. It starts of very happy and crammed with love.But it ends horribly and clearly leaves marks on his mind and soul. These depressing memories are brought with him into his new life that otherwise is filled with life. It is not less filled with love than th e first, but the father’s need to remake his past with a happy ending overshadows the possibilities of real happiness. The contrasts life and death, past and present are in this case deeply connected to the contrast happy vs. depressed. These contrasts show the themes of the story that are self-acknowledgement and the escape from the past.In addition is another important theme the close bond between child and parent. The most important thing in the world for the father is his child. He will protect him no matter what and prevent what happened in the past. The story is more like memoirs than fiction. During the short drive from their home to the arena the reader understand the father’s feelings and thoughts. He describes episodes of his life as different â€Å"arenas† – the most important being Willie. It may be a curious version of Giddens’ theory on creating our identity and arenas.There are many different arenas, where you have to act after which arena it is. You have to learn and create your own identity from the experience you get in these different â€Å"spaces† so you know how to act in the many social arenas we are confronted with. The combination of the title The Arena and the memoir style can have had the intention to force us, the reader, to consider our own identity and how we act in our arenas. It may be Golan’s way of explaining the importance of knowing what to let go and when to move on so that it is possible for us to act in the best possible way in our future arenas.