Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2004. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 286-304). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis (M.Sc.U.R.P.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

Zugl.: Siegen, Univ., Diss., 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 315-323)

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / Over the past decade there was an increase in the availability and usage of cashless payment methods in Africa. Cashless payments allow users to make payments without using cash, and offer multiple benefits to both customers and merchants.These benefits include reduced costs, improved sales, improved security, convenience, etc. However, despite the increased variety, availability and popularity of cashless payment solutions in Africa, the usage of cashless payments methods in Africa is still mostly limited to money remittance and retail payments. While formal traders such as retailers are slowly adopting and reaping the benefits of cashless payments, the large majority of informal traders across the continent are yet to adopt cashless payments and still limited to use cash as their main (and often only) payment method. How cash and cashless payment methods differ from the informal trader’s point of view is not known yet; this study seeks to understand why cashless payment methods are yet to gain popularity amongst informal traders and meanwhile cash is widely adopted and used. This research analyses the characteristics, needs and limitations of informal traders and evaluates the ability of both cash and cashless payment methods to satisfy their payment needs.

Orientador: Anselmo Luis dos Santos / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Economia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-25T16:08:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ThompsonJunior_CharlesOcranKofi_M.pdf: 1303825 bytes, checksum: 47abd6bf7cbf879fbdc744f26bace8d3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014 / Resumo: O setor informal em Gana é muito grande e emprega a maior parte da força de trabalho do país tanto nas atividades agrícolas quanto nas demais, mas ainda assim contribui muito pouco em termos de receita tributária. O objetivo de todo país em desenvolvimento é o crescimento de sua economia através do uso de suas receitas internas e a minimização do uso de empréstimos e subvenções que trazem dificuldades para o país. A maneira mais importante de tornar isso possível é através do uso da receita fiscal, ferramenta fundamental para a construção e sustentação das economias nacionais. Uma das áreas que exigem atenção nesse sentido é o setor informal. De uma população estimada de 1.5 milhão de ganenses que pagam impostos diretos, o setor informal representa menos de 5% desse número. O ponto central dessa tese é o potencial de contribuição do setor informal para os cofres públicos, uma vez que esse apresenta grande potencial de crescimento e geração de receita, especialmente se for levada em consideração a parcela de população que obtém altos rendimentos e tem condições de pagar impostos, mais ainda não o faz. Para que o governo possa aumentar sua receita fiscal sem recorrer ao aumento das taxas é necessário ampliar a rede fiscal para nela incluir todos aqueles que deveriam pagar impostos. Gana utiliza o sistema progressivo de impostos, o que assegura que os impostos sejam proporcionais à renda. Isso significa, portanto, que a carga tributária é uma responsabilidade compartilhada por todos os cidadãos, e o setor informal não é exceção / Abstract: The informal Sector in Ghana by its size is very huge and employs the largest number of the country¿s labour force in both Agriculture and Non-agriculture activities yet, contribute very little in terms of tax revenue. It is the aim of every developing country to grow its economy by using more of its own internally generated revenues and to minimize or do away with securing loans and grants from donors which brings a lot of hardship on the country. The most important way of carrying out this is through the use of "Taxation Revenue" which is the fundamental tool for building and sustaining national economies. One area that needs concentration in this regard is the informal sector. Out of an estimated 1.5million Ghanaian tax population paying direct taxes, the informal sector consists less than 5 percent of the number. This thesis focuses on the informal sectors potential to contribute substantially into the tax revenue coffers, since the sector is highly potential in the growth and revenue generation, especially those in the high income spectrum of the sector who has the condition to pay taxes, yet are not paying. In order for the government to increase its tax revenue potential without increasing the tax rate is to widen the tax net to capture all those who are to pay tax. Ghana is using the progressive tax system in its direct tax administration, which ensures that the more your income the more tax you pay and the lower your income the lower tax you pay. It¿s therefore means that the tax burden is a shared responsibility of all citizens of the country for which the informal sector is not an exception / Mestrado / Economia Social e do Trabalho / Mestre em Desenvolvimento Econômico

A number of issues in the thesis need to be clarified and will be discussed individually below. The term Third World, which is used in the thesis to describe developing countries in a disadvantageous economic position in relation to developed countries, is unsatisfactory. It is a collective term which combines countries with dissimilar cultures, ideologies and future prospects into one category (De Souza & Porter, 1974). Debate continues whether South Africa can be classified as a First or Third World country (Fair, 1982). Rogerson & Beavon (1980) indicate that South Africa can be described as dichotomous because it reflects characteristics of both First and Third World countries. In comparison De Souza & Porter (1974,1) include South Africa among the Third World countries, because four-fifths of the people have an income that is six times less than the income of the other fifth, and they live in a condition of underdevelopment. Conditions in Fingo Village resemble those described by De Souza & Porter (1974) and hence the results of the Fingo Village survey are compared with similar studies, elsewhere in the Third World. However, it would be naive to assume that Fingo Village is unaffected by development within the core regions of South Africa, which in many instances epitomize the First World. The term informal sector, used throughout the thesis, is also unsatisfactory, and debate continues as theorists attempt to find a more appropriate term. Santos (1979) indicates that the term informal sector is contentious, by placing it in single quotation marks. From the literature survey it emerged that the majority of authors did not follow Santos' convention (1979) and thus it seemed acceptable to use the term, informal sector, without placing it in single quotation marks. Chapter Two deals in-depth with the problem of defining the informal sector, and a working definition for the Fingo Village survey is presented in section 2.4.1. The informal sector embraces a wide diversity of economic activities. Due to the limited time and funds available, it was decided to isolate one aspect of this sector, namely, hawking. Sections 2.3 and 2.7 of Chapter Two indicate that hawking is an exemplary informal sector activity. All the different hawking types could not be given close attention and therefore, for practical purposes, it was decided to select one facet of hawking, namely, fruit and vegetable hawkers. Mobile fruit and vegetable hawkers were excluded from the study as it was impossible, during the mapping survey, to isolate a specific hawking site for each mobile hawker. Furthermore, a mobile hawker could easily be enumerated on more than one occasion, and hence a margin of error would automatically occur in the study. This was another reason for excluding mobile hawkers from the study and merely focusing upon static and semi-static fruit and vegetable hawkers. It is difficult to collect comprehensive quantitative data on informal sector activities (Preston-Whyte et al, 1984). The interviewer has to gain the confidence and trust of the subjects. The interviewer for the Fingo Village survey was a well known local personality and a man of some standing in the Black community. Daniel Sandi was the Secretary, of the Grahamstown Association (GRACA), which was reputed to have the support of the majority of the Black residents in Grahamstown until it was banned under the State of Emergency in July 1985. Daniel Sandi was also known for his contribution in literary circles as an epic poet. His previous experience conducting socio-economic surveys, as a researcher for the Border Council of Churches and as the Teba Research Assistant for the Institute of Social and Economic Research, Rhodes University, was also helpful. Sporadic unrest in the study area, from September 1984 and throughout 1985, prevented further fieldwork from being conducted in Fingo Village.

This study investigates the relationships between cash management and growth of informal businesses in Uganda. Whereas anecdotal evidence has for some time revealed that informal businesses in Uganda are faced with the challenge of cash management, no specific studies have been conducted to investigate how this relates to the growth of businesses where evidence has also indicated that most of these businesses do not exist for very long. In particular, the study assesses and explores the growth levels of informal businesses in terms of sales volume, growth in employment and length of existence. The study investigates the various ways in which informal businesses manage their cash and investigates the various internal and external factors that moderate cash management and the growth of the informal businesses. Furthermore, the study proposes a possible framework to manage cash in informal businesses and makes recommendations to informal business owners and managers on how to effectively manage cash in order to stimulate business growth. In order to investigate the relationships between the variables, an empirical investigation was undertaken. Based on the literature review, the primary objective of the study was formulated to investigate the relationships between cash management and growth of informal businesses amidst the external and internal environment in Uganda in order to suggest a framework for effective management of cash by informal businesses that would enhance their growth. A positivistic research paradigm was adopted in this study. A sample of 383 informal businesses was drawn from the five divisions of Kampala district namely; Central, Kawempe, Makindye, Nakawa and Rubaga. To ensure validity and reliability, EFA and Cronbach’s alpha coefficient were computed. Six hypotheses were developed to test the relationships between cash management and growth of informal businesses. The empirical results revealed that there is a significant relationship between cash management and the external environment in which informal businesses operate, a significant relationship between the external environment and the growth of informal businesses and a significant relationship between cash management and growth of informal businesses where the external environment will have a moderating influence on the relationship. The empirical results did not establish a significant relationship between cash management and the internal environment in which informal businesses operate, the internal environment and growth of informal businesses and cash management and growth of informal businesses where internal environment will have a moderating influence on the relationship. The results of this study show that the growth of informal businesses is largely hampered by poor cash management practices and challenges such as the lack of cash planning, lack of cash forecasting and budgeting, lack of financial controls and reporting, the tendency to invest largely in short-term assets which limits their profitability, the employment of less competent and skilled staff and lack of formal accounting information systems. The magnitude of the impact of these is accelerated by the external environment such as competition and the legal and regulatory environment which put pressure on the little cash resources owned by these businesses. Based on the study results, several strategies based on individual cash components of cash planning, cash forecasting and budgeting, financial controls and reporting, short-term investment of cash surplus, competence and skills of staff and accounting information systems were recommended for implementation. It was further recommended that these strategies should be implemented while giving due attention to the external environment if informal businesses are to effectively manage cash and enhance their growth.

No description available.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.Sc.U.R.P.)-University of Natal, 2002.

This thesis examines labour migration as an outcome of the interaction between the state and the informal economy, by considering the trends of contemporary labour migration from Ukraine to Southern Europe. It contends that in both the sending and receiving countries, migration policies either disregard or severely limit labour migration, while their informal economies facilitate the development of migration. This basic contradiction sustains migration flows over time. The main argument of the thesis is that migration develops within the system of interacting informal economies. I demonstrate the embeddedness of migration in the informal economy by using the case of Ukrainian migration to Italy. / The role of the informal economy in the development of migration is examined across several dimensions. First, I argue that the recent labour migration from Ukraine emerged as a strategy of the informal economy, continuing the previous strategies of cross-border trading and short-term migration to Central Europe. These economic practices were the innovative responses of the population to the decline of the state economy and to the absence of economic reforms. Migration developed in the space between the state and the market economy. / Second, the flows of labour migration were 'invisible' to states, and developed outside state control and regulation. This thesis demonstrates that the migration policies of the Ukrainian state disregarded the process of out-migration of Ukrainian citizens. Similarly, Italian immigration policies did not recognise the existing flows of labour migration. The informal economy of the receiving state resolved the contradiction between the economic demand for migrant workers and restrictive migration policies and enabled access to the receiving economy. / However, access to the receiving labour market through the informal economy contributed to the disadvantaged incorporation of migrants and prevented their integration into the receiving society. The analysis of economic incorporation demonstrates that the informal economy channelled Ukrainian migrants to the secondary labour market with low earnings, a lack of benefits, and no possibility of professional advancement. The mode of access to the receiving economy and the resulting illegality heavily influenced the position of Ukrainian migrants in the labour market. / Finally, the analysis of Ukrainian labour migration to Italy demonstrates that alternative migration-facilitating institutions were developed in the absence of the state recognition of labour migration. These institutions paralleled the institutions of the official labour markets and allowed migrants to implement income-generating projects. In addition, migration was facilitated by the supporting institutions of the receiving society, which counteracted the restrictive immigration laws and political controls on migration. The migration-supporting institutions were predicated on the strategies of circumventing state control which developed from participation in the informal economy of the sending country. Labour migration from the former Soviet Union would not be possible without these informal practices and the culture of avoiding state control in economic activities. / The proposed analysis answers the challenge posed by the recent Ukrainian labour migration to conventional theories on migration, whose approaches usually omit references to the meso-level of migration processes, and consider either the structural-economic or the micro- determinants of migration. This thesis presents the informal economy both as a structural factor which enables migration and as a characteristic of the migrant agency that facilitates it. / By doing that, the thesis also complements the literature on migration to Southern Europe and argues that migrations are not simply encouraged by the informal economies of the receiving countries, but they emerge from, and are facilitated by, the informal economies of the sending countries. To perpetuate migration migrants creatively use the resources of the informal economy in conjunction with strategies of circumventing the state. This argument holds for a number of ex-Soviet countries, which suffered severe economic crises during the disintegration of the state-controlled socialist economies, and consequently produced significant labour migrations to Western Europe.