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Efficient allocation of resources is a challenge for entrepreneurs. Income generated by entrepreneurs are used to finance both business and personal needs. At times, these needs exceed income generated and entrepreneurs seek financial assistance from microfinancing institutions. This paper looks at the significant influence of microfinance services extended to retail entrepreneurs of San Pablo City, Laguna and the extent retail entrepreneurs improve income generation from business operations. From the responses of the 100 selected entrepreneurs, answers for the following were drawn: (1) microfinance services offered to and availed by retail entrepreneurs; and (2) how income or operations have been improved. Correlation analysis revealed that microfinance services have significant influence on income generation. Furthermore, it is imperative that an active educational campaign on proper income management should be implemented in the locality.

The aim of our research is to investigate the relationship between risk management, corporate governance and performance in lending institutions. Mainly, this research seeks to examine the effect of risk management and some board’s features on financial performance. Empirical analyses are conducted from a sample of 17 Tunisian lending institutions over the period 2002-2011 using an OLS regression. The study shows that board size affect performance significantly. Most importantly, the existence of a risk committee within the institution has a negative and significant effect on performance.

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Business Administration (MBA) Degree, Strathmore Business School, Strathmore University Access to adequate and affordable credit for businesses remains one of the key challenges to economic development in Kenya despite efforts by various stakeholders. This study sought to analyze the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs in accessing finance in Kenya and focuses on Nairobi central business district. the study was guided by the following specific objectives: to determine the extent to which literacy levels of women entrepreneurs affect their access to finance in Nairobi central business district; to determine the extent to which the number of lending institutions available affect access to finance by women entrepreneurs in Nairobi central business district; to determine the extent to which collateral requirements by financial institutions affect access to finance by women entrepreneurs in Nairobi central business district; and to determine the extent to which interest rates charged by financial institutions affect access to finance by women entrepreneurs in Nairobi central business district. In order to undertake the study a descriptive survey was used. The target population was drawn from the female owned enterprises in Nairobi central business district. A sample size of 400 women entrepreneurs was used in the study. Primary data was collected from the proprietors/managers of the enterprises aided by a semi-structured questionnaire. Data pertaining to the objectives of the study was analyzed using descriptive statistics. In order to evaluate the relationship between the independent and dependent variables, multiple regression was undertaken. The study findings indicate that majority of the women entrepreneurs had attained at least a tertiary level of education. It validated that lack of collateral is the most significant constraint to women entrepreneurs in Nairobi in accessing loans despite different social economic characteristics. The study also found that number of lending financial institutions as not being a significant constraint in accessing finance for women entrepreneurs in the CBD. The study recommends risk free line of credit to banks by governments and non-governmental organizations. The study also recommends that financial institutions partner with non-governmental organizations and the government in obtaining low interest rates funds for onward lending to women entrepreneurs. Further studies may be carried out examining a wider area, including other urban areas and rural areas. The study also focused only women entrepreneurs but further studies may be done with a focus on financial institutions.

This study investigates the existence of political rents in bank lending, using a comprehensive loan-level data set of the universe of commercial loans in Mexico from 2003 to 2012. Identification relies on changes in the state of origin of a senate committee chairman as a source of exogenous variation in firms' political relationship. The study finds that banks offer favorable loan terms to politically connected firms with larger loan quantities, lower loan spreads, longer maturities, and lower collateral requirements. Furthermore, political loans exhibit higher default rates. To isolate the bank supply channel, a rich set of fixed-effects is included with various specifications. The favorable lending increases with the strength of a firm's political connection, varies gradually along the political cycle, and is mainly offered by large and domestic banks. Consistent with the quid pro quo hypothesis, the study finds that banks that extend political loans receive significantly more government borrowings with better credit quality. The study also shows that the greater credit supply due to political connection leads to a large and significant increase in firm-level employment and assets. The study provides estimates of the total social cost of political lending and net revenue for banks that are engaged in rent provision activity. Finally, a series of robustness tests are performed to rule out alternative mechanisms and explanations.

The emerging concern on the reliability of property valuations coupled with the attendant consequences of growing number of distressed banks in Nigeria necessitate this study. Therefore, the study examined the mortgage valuation process including sources of valuation instructions, bases and methods being adopted and their implications on lending decisions and valuation profession in the study area. To accomplish the study, questionnaires were randomly administered on samples of estate surveying and valuation firms and lending institutions respectively in Lagos Metropolis. The data emanating there from were analysed using frequency distributions, ranking mean and relative important index ranking. The study, prima facie, established that mortgage valuation has been an important input in lending decisions. It further showed the implications of the blind adoption of the cost approach, inconsistency amongst valuers and non ‐ inclusion of insurance valuation in the mortgage valuation process. Būsto paskolų vertinimas Nigerijoje: esamų tendencijų prasmė Santrauka Šityrimąpaskatinodidėjantisrūpestisdėlnekilnojamojo turto vertinimu variantiškumo bei tikslumo ir nuskurdusiu Nigerijos banku sukelti padariniai. Kadangi, priimantsprendimąsuteikti paskola, vertinti ja būtina, tyrimo išvados galbūtpadėtuieškoti politiniu sprendimudėlnesuvaldomo banku žlugimo šalyje.Todėldarbe nustatyta ir ištirta būstopaskolųvertinimo svarba,įskaitantvertinimoinstrukcijųšaltiniu, pagrindu ir taikomu metodu reikšme,nagrinėtasbūstopaskolųvertinimas, priimat sprendimus suteikti paskola, ir vertintojo profesija šioje srityje. Anketomis ir pokalbiu metu apklaustos 59 atsitiktine tvarka atrinktos turto tikrinimo bei vertinimo firmos (iš 146 aktyviai veikiančiu; iš viso yra 239 tokio pobūdžio firmos) ir 42 skolinančios institucijos iš 89, veikiančiu Lagose. Gauti duomenys išanalizuoti skaičiuojantpasiskirstymą,garantavimasir santykines svarbosindeksą. Tyrimu nustatyta, kad teikiamas paskolas vertinti yra svarbu. Tolesne analizeparodę, kad į būstopaskolųvertinimąneįeinadraudimo vertinimas, aklai pasirenkamassąnaudųaspektas ir vertintoju nuomonesdėlbūstopaskolųskiriasi. Tai, kasišdėstyta, skirta vertintojams, skolintojams arba kitiems vertinimo paslaugu vartotojams ir turto rinkai apskritai. First published online: 18 Oct 2010

Affordable housing will be instrumental to helping Vietnam achieve its goals for increasing productivity and inclusive urban growth. Since Doi Moi, the country has experienced impressive economic growth, averaged at 7.4 percent per annum from 1990 to 2008, lowering to an average of 6 percent per annum from 2007 to 2013. Strong economic growth has supported a substantial reduction in poverty, from 58 percent in 1993 to 17 percent in 20121. Yet, the country has remained largely rural, with more than half of its population working in the agricultural sector, which only contributed 17 percent of GDP in 20142. In some countries, urbanization has been used as a tool to accelerate economic growth and poverty reduction. As Vietnam aims to maintain a high growth rate, supporting urbanization, where cities contribute a growing share of jobs and GDP, will be an important measure. This structural shift will drive population growth and new demand for housing in cities, for which quality and affordable housing options in well-serviced and connected settlements will be needed. Areas of particular importance in the Law is support toward self-built housing, the active participation of the private sector, addressing the shortage of affordable rental housing as well as high demand for housing from low income groups, especially workers in industrial zones of large cities. This report, which includes a comprehensive assessment and roadmap for affordable housing in Vietnam, recommends the following key messages moving forward: increase investment, Prepare Three Flagship Initiatives under an umbrella National Affordable Housing Program, Institutional Strengthening, Land Tax Reform, and Create an Enabling Environment for Affordable Housing. Moving forward, design of the market-oriented measures described above will require intensive and careful consultation and engagement with all housing sector actors, particularly the private sector. Private sector will need to play an active role in the early preparation to ensure their participation and commitment that carries through to implementation of policy measures on the financing and supply side.

Over the past twenty years, Uganda’s population density has been increasing rapidly, placing significant pressure on the use of land. Uganda now has a population density of 194 persons per square kilometer of arable land, compared to 80 in Kenya and 116 in Ghana. At present, the majority of Uganda’s population still lives in rural areas, where the main source of livelihood is agriculture. However, the proportion of the population living in urban areas has increased significantly and will continue to increase into the future, with urban centers being the main driver of economic growth and transformation into higher value added activities. The highest rates of growth in population density are recorded in Uganda’s central region. It is essential that Uganda changes the manner in which it manages its land if the majority of its population is to achieve a higher level of prosperity through the healthy transformation of the agricultural sector and a shift towards higher value, more productive economic activities more generally. Through the formulation and implementation of smart policies, Uganda can ensure that its land serves as a more productive asset that facilitates positive transformation and a diversification of the economic base. The achievement of these goals will require a comprehensive set of actions that will promote security of land tenure and reduce the rate of occurrence of conflicts and disputes caused by overlapping rights; promote the healthy development of rental markets for land; and strengthen the capacities of institutions responsible for the management of land administration. Failure to unlock the potential of land may result in a deceleration of growth and lack of progress towards prosperity. In addition, rather than driving equitable economic growth, the process of urbanization will result in dysfunctionality in the form of the proliferation of slums; increased congestion; and a deterioration in the quality of, or a failure to develop, infrastructure due to an escalation in the costs of construction and payment of compensation. Implementation of relevant up to date laws and policies has to be accelerated to make land in Uganda genuinely secure, transferable, marketable and supportive of economic development.

Africa is rapidly urbanizing and will lead the world’s urban growth in the coming decades. Currently, Africa is the least‐urbanized continent, accommodating 11.3 percent of the world’s urban population, and the Sub‐Saharan region is the continent’s least‐urbanized area. However, the region’s cities are expanding rapidly, by 2050; Africa’s urban population is projected to reach 1.2 billion, with an urbanization rate of 58 percent (UN‐HABITAT 2014). With this rate of growth, Africa will overtake Asia as the world’s most rapidly urbanizing region by 2025 (UN 2014). Although the nature and pace of urbanization varies among countries, with over a quarter of the world’s fastest growing cities, Africa is undergoing a massive urban transition. Globally, cities are major drivers of economic growth, and the quality and location of housing has long-term consequences for inclusive growth. However, in Sub-Saharan Africa, urbanization is not accompanied by the level of per-capita economic growth or housing investment that is observed elsewhere in global trends. Incomes in Sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) have not kept pace with urbanization, which, in many African countries, has not necessarily been accompanied by industrial growth and the structural transformation as has occurred in other regions. Housing stocks, along with investment and employment in related construction and finance industries, constitute a major component of national economic wealth. The key challenge for African cities, however, has been the comparatively low growth in per‐capita income, which limits the resources that households have to consume or invest in housing. At the same time across the region, the formal channels through which quality housing is produced and financed face major constraints that limit access to a large share of urban households. Hence, the formal housing sector is only a small part of the economy because the construction and finance services have very little effective demand, evidenced by the lack of formal investment in housing across the region. Recent studies have found that in Africa, formal housing investment (in national current accounts data) lags behind urbanization by nine years (Dasgupta et al. 2014). Furthermore, the capital investment in infrastructure needed to handle rapid urbanization typically happens (if at all) after housing has already been built, often in informal settlements.

A portfolio based model (Credit Risk of Credit Suisse First Boston) and recent Central Bank of Argentina credit bureau data are used to estimate whether current capital and provisioning regulations match actual risks. Arguing that provisions should cover expected losses and that capital requirements should cover potential losses beyond expected losses subject to some statistical level of tolerance, the article assesses how well actual capital and provisioning requirements match the estimated requirements given by the model. Actual provisioning requirements were found to be close to implied levels of expected losses. The estimate of potential losses was found to be highly sensitive to the assumptions of the model, especially the parameter relating the volatility of a loan's rate of default to its mean value. This volatility parameter cannot be estimated accurately with the credit bureau data because of the short time span covered, so proxy data were used to estimate it, and two values around that estimate were tried. The difficulty of estimating this critical parameter implies that the results should only be regarded as suggestive. Moreover, the methodology only does not seek to estimate credit risk and not interest rate risk or exchange rate risk, nor does it fully take into account the indirect effects of interest rates and exchange rates on credit risk. As recent events in Argentina have demonstrated, estimating credit risk along these lines should be thought of as just one tool in attempting to assess the appropriate level of bank provisions and capital.

The auditing profession in Chad is characterized by the existence of numerous practitioners who provide accounting and auditing services illegally, in violation of community regulations, and whose qualifications often do not meet the international standards. To date, Chad has not yet set up a national association of chartered accountants. One of the most pressing areas in transposing community texts relates to the establishment of a national association of chartered accountants, whose existence is essential for the development and practice of the accountancy profession in Chad. It is also important for consolidating accounting and auditing processes, improving the quality of financial reporting, facilitating access to credit and supporting foreign direct investors, as well as improving the competitiveness of national businesses. With regard to the accounting standards, the Uniform Act (UA) organizing and harmonizing accounting systems for businesses, as well as the accounting chart of accounts and the provisions put in place by the Commission Bancaire d'Afrique Centrale (COBAC) and the Conference Interafricaine des Marches d'Assurances (CIMA) code, there has been very little change since their entry into force towards the end of the 1990s. This is due to shortcomings in the functioning of the regional bodies in charge of ensuring that these texts were updated in line with changes in the accounting, economic, and legal fields. Looking ahead, the major areas of focus in seeking to strengthen the legal and regulatory framework governing accountancy and auditing professions in Chad are the following: (i) the reclassification of CEMAC licensed accounting technicians in Chad in the category of public accountants, in accordance with community regulations, (ii) the establishment of a national association of chartered accountants, (iii) the proper functioning of the national accounting standards commission, (iv) the adoption of auditing professional standards and a code of ethics in line with those established by International Federation of Accountants, or IFAC independent standard-setting board, (v) the strengthening of initial training through the improvement of the quality of the national curriculum and by drafting a continuous professional training plan, and (iv) the capacity building of the Court of Accounts to enable it implement INTOSAI auditing standards in order to ensure proper supervision of public enterprises.