This thesis analyses the work of a large group of social investigators who were active in rural areas in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. It follows on from studies of the investigations of Charles Booth, Seebohm Rowntree, Henry Mayhew and others, and shows how the investigation of rural life proceeded on different lines from the urban social inquiry of the period. It is argued that the political and social conflicts between town and country, and within the rural community itself, shaped the activities of the investigators considered. The model of a conflict between the 'informant' approach (where trustworthy authorities were asked to comment on the condition of the agricultural labourer) and the 'respondent' approach (where the labourer was consulted at first hand) is used to illustrate the complexity of the structure or rural social inquiries of the period. It is shown that the kinds of information which could be obtained from the two approaches differed, and that the same event or condition could be reported on very differently from two conflicting points of view. This argument is taken a study further by an examination of another genre of writers on the agricultural labourer. It is argued that the social commentary, usually by resident investigators, which tended to be cultural rather than economic in character, was as much a part of the project of social investigation as was the large-scale official inquiry or social survey. Drawing on the work of the few historians who have seriously analysed this genre of writers in its urban context, the thesis applies an analysis of this form of investigation in rural areas. The perceived need to communicate with the rural poor on a deeper level was another aspect of the 'respondent' approach to investigation, and is as much a forerunner of modern sociological method as is the classic social survey. The thesis also shows how the representations of rural communities and of agricultural labourers in the texts of the period affected the practice of investigators, and argues that the notion of the countryside as a scene of social peace and a repository of racial hardihood caused them to approach the task of investigation with particular preconceptions which shaped their diagnoses of the problems of rural life.

Since the middle of this century, many cities in the Developing World have experienced rapid growth and fundamental transformation in their socio-economic structure. Rapid population growth due to massive migration created an acute shortage in housing stock which resulted in squatter settlements and problems of insufficient urban services. Proposals for solving the problems of housing shortages and urban growth in the Third World Countries have always been based at first on Western ideas. However, due to financial constraints many have resorted to more innovative responses, mainly supported and sponsored by the World Bank. Judging from many studies of the failures and successes of housing schemes in Third World Countries, it appears that the main difficulties they have to contend with are a lack of finance coupled with a large influx of poor people. Yet, despite being a wealthy country with a small population size, Kuwait had to pass through the same housing problems. Kuwait's unique situation arises from a political system discriminating between citizens and non-citizens in housing choices and supply. Catering only for the citizens, yet requiring the labour of many others, resulted in great housing inequalities, because more than 71 per cent of the population are non-citizens. This thesis was set up to investigate the housing conditions and aspirations of popular housing tenants in Kuwait. Popular housing emerged as a solution for squatter settlement problems in Kuwait. However, it created a great housing disparity within the Kuwaiti housing system. The study begins with a review of the literature on low income housing in the cities of rapidly developing countries, and particularly the emergence of squatting with its implications, and the nature and degree of government intervention. Subsequent to a discussion of Kuwait's physical, economic, political and demographic trends, the study reviews housing and urban development in Kuwait with special reference to the government's efforts in housing its citizens. These chapters highlight the disparity between citizens and non-citizens in housing cost and design, location and access to public services. The field work undertaken for this study critically examined the relationship between popular housing tenants, their dwellings and the surrounding environment. This provided a basis for evaluating the living environment by measuring the tenants' degree of satisfaction, and exploring their aspirations and expectations regarding their future housing. The impact of housing disparity on the occupants' social and physical performance is then examined to throw further light on the types of problems they are facing. Finally each major component of this evaluation is separately analysed in order to determine its effect on present and future housing policy. This study, being the first documentation of the housing conditions of the popular housing tenants in Kuwait, had the main objective of presenting recommendations both for immediate action and for long term policy to solve their problems.

Rural economies in developing countries are often characterised by high levels of inequality, particularly so in their distribution of land. This can lead to the establishment of patron-client relationships between peasants and their landlords with far-reaching social, political, and economic implications for both parties. This thesis investigates whether, and how, clientelist networks change, when connecting isolated villages become connected to the outside economy. It does so from three different perspectives. Firstly, it highlights the ability of resource rich landlords to interlink different markets in the rural economy in an effort to maximise surplus extraction. Yet, when peasants are provided credible exit options, the change in relative bargaining powers alters the character of such interlinkages in favour of the peasants. Secondly, it explores how clientelism enables landlords to use peasant votes as bargaining chips with politicians to appropriate public resources for their own private benefit. Yet, when peasants are given outside options, the landlord has to provide them with public goods in order to maintain his economic and social standing in the village. Lastly, it analyses peasants’ difficulty in engaging in community driven projects when residing under a strong patron. Yet, when landlords have to compete with markets outside the village, they no longer have the incentive or ability to block peasant collective action for self provision. In all three areas, it is argued that the patrons’ ability to control peasant activities stems from the interaction of inequality with isolation, which provides them with monopoly/monopsony powers. Hence while policy solutions to exploitative forms of clientelism have typically focused on land redistribution, I argue that similar results are attainable by increasing peasants’ outside options. In order to test the validity of this hypothesis I make use of a natural experiment found in the construction of a motorway in rural Punjab, Pakistan. The research design compares connected villages dominated by large landlords to isolated ones and uses villages with relatively egalitarian distribution of land as a control group. Making use of field interviews and quantitative survey data the thesis finds that connectivity results in converging outcomes between connected villages dominated by large landlords and those with more egalitarian distribution of land. The results suggest that connecting villages previously isolated from the outside economy can go a long way to help the rural poor.

The central problem around which the research is located concerns the rivalry between - the different forms of unionism in banking, and the response of the employers to this, particularly through national negotiating machinery. The thesis is divided into three parts. In the first, the attempts to develop national machinery during and after the war are examined. This is an historical account which seeks to illustrate the special nature of the inter-union rivalry between, on one side, the staff associations, committed to a co-operative relationship primarily with their own bank, and on the other the TUC union which was committed to an industry-wide basis of organisation. It also demonstrates how the associations, initially very dependent upon the employers, became more independent and operated like trade unions through bargaining while retaining their distinctive ethos. Thirdly, it demonstrates the evolution of employer strategies on this issue. Having formed national machinery, the second section considers the conflicts between the unions which, while formally co-operating together, were still opposed to each other's principles. It looks at the two employer sponsored attempts to resolve this difficulty through the promotion of a merger, and the reasons for their failure. In the third section the operation of national machinery is examined. The thesis considers the bargaining strategies of the unions, arguing that there were in fact considerable points of agreement between them despite their ideological disputes. It also considers the strategies of the employers, and relates these to their corporate objectives in order to contextualise the inter-union rivalry as part cf a broader strategy of stability and control. In the concluding chapter the developments since the demise of joint union working are examined. It is argued that employer strategies have shifted significantly under the influence of corporate developments, and that these have impacted upon the banks' policies towards the competing unions, which are currently operating separately.

The final limitation was related to the difficulty of conducting the focus group in such a conservative country, particularly when the participants were women, as was the case in this research. Suggestions are made for further studies that could enrich the literature in this area. These are, firstly, that the differential relevance and importance of the different dimensions of the COO and branded product constructs for different products and different consumers’ require further examination. Secondly, methodologically, more comprehensive analytical models could be used and, lastly, a full re-modelling of the research model utilised in this study is suggested.

This research traces the development of public administration in Malawi from the pre-colonial period to the post-colonial period up to 2012, and finds that public administration in Malawi has spanned four epochs: the pre-colonial traditional African administration; the British Colonial Administration from 1891 to 1964; the post-colonial administration under the one party regime from 1964 to 1994; and the post-colonial administration under the multiparty democracy from 1994 to the present period, 2012. Of particular interest to the research are the major factors that have led to administrative change through this public administration spectrum, and how the changes have affected information and record keeping. The research seeks to establish the relationship that exists between administrative change and record keeping. The research finds that colonialism was a change factor which transformed the pre-colonial administrative set-up and its information keeping systems, and led to the establishment of the Western bureaucracy and record keeping systems modelled on those in Britain. The enactment of the Native Authority Ordinance in 1933 established Native Authorities, which comprised local chiefs and their councillors, as part of the local government. The establishment of the Native Authorities resulted in the establishment of record keeping systems that captured and maintained official records at local levels of government throughout the country. The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland as one of the remarkable administrative developments during the colonial period promoted records management programmes and led to the establishment of the National Archives in Malawi. As part of the administrative change in preparation for the transfer of power, the Treasury’s Organisation and Methods Unit reviewed and instituted new record keeping systems for government departments. Before the transfer of power, the research finds that the Colonial Administration exported some categories of records to London and ordered the destruction of certain categories of records held by District Commissioners throughout the country. Furthermore, the research finds that soon after the transfer of power, the new administration disregarded record keeping by repealing the Records Management regulations from the Malawi Public Service Regulations. This has been detrimental to public sector record keeping. Additionally, the one party government imposed controls on access to public archives by frequently closing the Archives, imposing lengthy and difficult access procedures, limiting areas for research, and using the Archives for intelligence surveillance. This thesis finds that, towards the end of the one party regime, some sensitive records were destroyed by the outgoing regime. After the attainment of democracy, the research finds that public archives were made widely and easily accessible, and that the public archives asumed a new meaning for ordinary people who had suffered from widespread attrocities during the one party regime. A number of governance reforms that have been undertaken have on the one hand, resulted in the promotion of records management and on the other hand, relied heavily on good record keeping for their successful implementation. Additionally, the research finds that technological developments have shaped the way in which the public sector generates and manages records today. Last, but not least, the research finds that implementation of some of the International Monetary Fund/World Bank policy reforms, such as privatisation of public enterprises, downsising, and freeze in public service employment, have impacted both positively and negatively on record keeping in Malawi. Likewise, implementation of the New Public Management policy reforms, such as commercialisation of the Staff Development Institute of Malawi, and compulsory competitive bidding in the public service, have had both positive and negative effects on record keeping. The research concludes that the developments that have taken place during all the four administrative epochs have had an immense bearing on record keeping, and therefore a direct relationship exists between administrative change and record keeping. Administrative change is responsible for shaping record keeping over a period of time and as long as administrative change occurs, record keeping will keep on developing in response. Although this is the case, good record keeping plays an important role in facilitating effective implementation of public sector reforms that result from administrative change. Citing Malawi as a case study, this thesis concludes that administrative change and public sector reforms provide a better context for understanding the history and development of record keeping in a country, than any other context because administrative change and public sector reforms are necessitated by the interaction of socio-political, economic and technological factors.

This thesis aims to understand the 1987-99 food crisis in the DPRK. We begin by establishing the fact that the country faced several previous food shortages, including the 1945-46 urban foods crisis, the 1954-55 rural food crisis and the 1970-73 food shortage, all of which triggered and motivated corresponding institutional changes in agriculture. And we find that in order to overcome repeated food shortages the country has developed several distinctive economic institutions such as administrative/quantitative production control in agriculture, state grain marketing, food rationing, central monopoly of agricultural trade and supplementary food supply institutions. On the basis of this finding, we proceed into the analysis of the food crisis. Specifically, three controversial issues are examined. First, did it escalate into famine? If it did, how severe was the famine? Second, what was the causation of the famine? How did it unfold and what features did it have? Third, did the food crisis change the DPRK agriculture? With respect to the first issue we estimate the number of excess deaths during the food crisis using official population figures. It shows that there existed a famine that claimed 688 thousand excess deaths in 1994-99. For the second issue we argue that the famine had several unique features. First it was ‘absolute food availability decline (FAD) famine’ in which no policies were feasible to prevent it. Second, it was urban famine where industrial population in the north-eastern part of the country suffered most. Third, it was ‘famine-in-slow motion’ that victims persistently weakened for a long period rather than perished in a short space of time, due to the mixed result of massive FAD and systematic national coping strategies. Concerning the final issue we show that it is not necessarily true that the food crisis genuinely changed the DPRK agriculture as generally conceived.

This thesis deals with the issue of financial development in Egypt at the sectoral, macroeconomic and household levels over the period 1960-93. The thesis is organised in ten chapters, including a summary of the main results in chapter (10). Chapter (1) provides an introduction of the topics treated in the thesis and an overview of the main developments in the Egyptian economy during the study period. Chapter (2) reviews the theoretical literature and empirical studies on the main issues concerning financial development. Chapters (3) and (4) derive stylised facts from the discussion of the evolution of the financial system in Egypt. Chapter (3) assesses the structure, regulation and performance of the banking sector. Chapter (4) focuses on the Egyptian securities market, exploring its development since its establishment in 1883. Further it analyses the performance of the market using the main published indicators and highlights the impediments to its progress. Chapter (5) is concerned with the growing role of Islamic finance in both the formal and informal sectors in Egypt. After constructing a model to illustrate the distinctive characteristics of Islamic banking, the chapter investigates the role of Islamic banks and Islamic branches of conventional banks. The chapter also provides an analysis of the Informal Islamic Investment Companies which flourished in Egypt during the 1980s. Chapter (6) analyses the causes, measures and impact of financial repression in Egypt over the period 1960-90. The findings of this chapter indicate that financing the budget deficit was the main reason for repressing the financial sector. The chapter discusses the impact of the different repressive methods used including inflation tax, interest rate ceilings, high reserve requirements, directed credit schemes, regulation on the portfolio composition of banks, and government ownership of financial intermediaries. The government revenues from particular repressive measures such as inflation tax, seigniorage and interest rate ceilings were estimated for the whole study period and were substantial by most international standards. There follows a discussion of the main consequences of financial repression including capital flight, money substitution, the excessive use of inflation hedges and the thriving of informal financial transactions. Chapter (7) presents an econometric analysis of the impact of the real interest rate on saving, investment and economic growth in Egypt. The results of this analysis indicate that the real interest rate had a positive impact on financial saving, possibly through a portfolio shift. However its impact on total saving, investment and economic growth was insignificant. Chapters (8) and (9) are concerned with the issue of the coexistence of formal and informal financial sectors in rural Egypt. The analysis is based on a survey, of 200 households undertaken by the author in four Egyptian villages in the Nile delta. The methodology adopted and the description of the surveyed region are reported in chapter (8). The findings provided in chapter (9) suggest that informal financial transactions in our sample can be classified as intermittent. There was no evidence of the existence of professional money lenders. Loans, with very few exceptions, were interest free. Most loans were undertaken without contract or collateral. However default cases were low thanks to societal governance. Moreover the chapter analyses the characteristics of RoSCA in Egypt and its role in financial intermediation. The determinants of formal and informal borrowing are estimated using Tobit analysis. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the implications of financial liberalisation on household credit decisions. This thesis highlights the importance of a liberalised financial system for economic development in Egypt. However it argues that financial liberalisation, on its own, is not a sufficient remedy for the problems encountered in the financial sector. Macroeconomic stability and prudential regulation are considered to be essential prerequisites for liberalisation. In addition the thesis strongly emphasises the need for the restructuring of the financial system and the ensuring of its compatibility with the cultural environment to enable the full realisation of the benefits of financial liberalisation.

Scotland struggled to come to terms with the collapse in the heavy industries in the early 1920s and the prolonged period of economic dislocation which followed. The pervasive sense that this was a nation in decline sapped self-confidence. This thesis examines the response of the leading West of Scotland industrialists to the extended inter-war trade depression. Focusing on their championing of a series of self-help initiatives firmly rooted in Scotland itself, the thesis reimagines Graeme Morton’s work on Unionist Nationalism for the more challenging conditions of 1930s Scotland, introducing a much stronger economic dimension to Morton’s original argument. Echoing Morton, the rationalisation of the staple industries and the creation of new institutions to aid recovery owed much to the associational culture of West of Scotland business. The Scottish National Development Council and the Scottish Economic Committee - two significant stepping-stones in the rise of corporatist planning - represented a confident assertion of a distinctly Scottish voice and provided a link between business and the increasingly autonomous Scottish Office. The explicit articulation of a Scottish national interest within the parameters of the existing union and imperial relationships sat easily with the progressive, pro-statist views of many inter-war Unionists, helping to consolidate the consensus within ‘middle opinion’. The thesis focuses on the actions of a trio of West of Scotland industrialists: Lord Weir of Eastwood, Sir James Lithgow and Sir Steven Bilsland. It will be suggested that their advocacy of Scottish solutions for Scottish problems represents a more muscular and far-reaching economic Unionist Nationalism which transcends the narrow vision of Morton’s nineteenth century urban Scotland, but also questions Colin Kidd’s dismissal of early twentieth century unionism as ‘banal’.

The development of small businesses and the increasing role they are playing as engines of economic growth, employment generation and social change is making them a subject of major strategic importance to governments, and growing interest to researchers. Small businesses are increasingly regarded as both indicators of the economic dynamism of an economy, and agents of economic growth: in the developing economies small businesses are also regarded as being capable of improving standards in areas such as training. technical expertise and management throughout an economy. Of particular concern in many economies, especially those such as Libya which are in transition to a free-market model, is the contribution small businesses can make to employment growth outside of the public sector. The broad aim of the research discussed here was to enhance understanding of the factors influencing the growth of Libyan small manufacturing firms from the perspective of owner-managers and to develop an explanatory conceptual framework that aids this understanding. As secondary aims, it also seeks to inform government policy and to contribute to the success and growth of the sector overall. Informed by a comprehensive literature review, the research approach was to investigate and interpret the opinions, experience, attitudes and ideas of a sample of owner-managers with respect to the factors that they considered to be of the greatest influence on the growth of small manufacturing firms. Because of the lack of prior research, the study was exploratory in nature and a qualitative methodology was employed, employing a grounded approach with qualitative content analysis, Following a pilot study, the researcher conducted twenty-eight semi-structured interviews with the owner-managers of small manufacturing businesses: the sample consisted of owner-managers located in two Libyan cities, Tripoli and Misurata. Tripoli is Libya's capital, economic centre and overwhelmingly the area with most manufacturing output, while Misurata is the second largest manufacturing centre and the focus of much investment in infrastructure by the Libyan state. The interviews were designed to explore four sets of factors that may influence the growth of small manufacturing firms in Libya: the characteristics of the owner manager, the characteristics of the firm, the business's strategy and factors in the external environment. The interviews generated a substantial amount of rich data and this was interpreted and analysed on a cross-case basis and the findings were organised according to these four sets of factors. The research produced a range of interesting findings, many of which confirmed those of other studies in developed countries, such as the importance of ownermanager growth aspirations, education, experience and networks, the firm's age and location and aspects of its strategy such as marketing, innovation and training. Other findings retlected relatively widespread issues in developing economies, such as shortages of skills and finance, infrastructural inadequacies, bureaucracy and corruption. However, the research also highlighted a number of issues that are specific to Libya, or whose impact is different or more extreme because of the combination of political, economic and socia-cultural circumstances. It is concluded that Libya's combination of a bloated public sector with widespread corruption, slow transition from a socialist economy, frequent changes in economic policy, large informal sector, weak legal enforcement and predominance of family and personal relationships has created a particularly challenging environment for small businesses. As the research demonstrates, some owner-managers have found ways to overcome these problems and achieve high levels of growth but many others find their growth severely constrained by these environmental issues. The research is exploratory in nature and many of the issues discussed merit further research, in particular to inform future policy and support. Key areas for future research are outlined and tentative recommendations are made for future government policy with respect to the Libyan small firm sector. Note: the fieldwork for this thesis was carried out prior to the popular uprising in Libya, which began in February 20 II and resulted in a change of government. References to government policy throughout the thesis refer to the previous government, with the exception of the policy recommendations in Chapter 6, which refer to the new government of Libya.