Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / This thesis is both a qualitative and quantitative study, investigating the sustainability of Credit Management Services Limited (CMS) within the broader context of the Zambian micro finance industry. Micro finance is regarded as one of the tools for poverty reduction. As such, making microfinance available to many poor people is the purpose of microJinance. Over the years it has become clear that microfinance institutions have to operate efficiently and be self-sustai nable in order to continue assisting the poor. However. in spite of the support and encouragement given for sustainability, evidence shows that there are few sustainable microfinanee institutions in the world. The various factors impacting upon sustainability therefore, need to be examined and means of enhancing sustainabi Ii ty mapped out. The study brought to the fo re the main viewpoints regarding sustainability and how they have been inl1uenced by experiences of MFls around the world. The framework for discussion and analysis of operational sustainability, financial sustainability and operational e ffi ciency is also set out. The study discusses the Zambian microfinance industry and shows how and why the industry has emerged and grown in the past decade. Some constraints are identified that need to be dealt with in order to enhance sustainability of the industry. The study of CMS reveals that the institution is not yet fi nancially sustainable, but that its effi ciency levels are steadily increasing as it has put in place mechanisms to recover costs, charge economic rates of interest and increase and maintain its client outreach. Indicators are that it is moving in the right direction with its cost recovery. increasing client outreach and utilization of loans for on-lending as opposed to subsidies. This study therefore draws on the general experiences of the Credit management Services in order to draw lessons for the Zambian industry. The study will argue the case that though sustainability is difiicult to achieve, there arc positive indicators in the Zambian industry that this is possible and that CMS could be considered as an example. This claim is verified against the experi ence on the ground of Credit Management Services. The study concludes that building a sustainable microfinance industry anywhere is not the easiest task. Sustainabi lity is possible but requires a lot of investment in capacity bui lding and del iberate steps for cost effi ciency, appropriate pricing poli cies and an increased client outreach. The Zambian situation characterised by even a younger industry. will require not only a concerted effort in capacity building, but much more, the need to counter constra ints in the external environment of Mrls. Recommendations lo stake holders inc lude the need to utilise cheaper local human resources and invest in strengthening local institutions owned by local communities, to enhance the sustainability or micro finance initiatives.

Este estudo teve como principal objetivo verificar se as instituições de microcrédito brasileiras são operacionalmente sustentáveis no longo prazo. A sustentabilidade operacional de uma Instituição Financeira de Microcrédito (IFM) é importante para que os beneficiários tenham acesso a serviços financeiros ao longo do tempo, pois IFM que não são sustentáveis acabam diminuindo seu impacto social. O microcrédito ganhou notoriedade desde as iniciativas de Yunus com a criação do Graamen Bank, sendo que sua missão é facilitar o acesso aos serviços financeiros para os pobres e todos os excluídos do sistema financeiro clássico, melhorando suas condições de geração de renda e atuando na redução da pobreza. Para avaliar o desempenho financeiro das instituições de microcrédito brasileiras utilizou-se como metodologia o cálculo de indicadores financeiros, de risco e produtividade. Estes indicadores permitem a verificação da sustentabilidade operacional e fatores que corroborem para explicar seu desempenho. Os dados foram coletados do MIX Market, que é a maior plataforma de dados e pesquisas sobre instituições de microcrédito no mundo. Como resultado, verificou-se que a maioria das instituições de microcrédito brasileiras analisadas são operacionalmente sustentáveis. Os indicadores de sustentabilidade do Brasil apresentaram desempenho melhor do que a média das instituições do mundo desde o ano de 2009. As instituições maiores em patrimônio líquido, mais maduras e com baixos indicadores de portfolio at risk apresentaram notoriamente melhores resultados de sustentabilidade operacional. Além disso, a carteira de microcrédito cresceu a taxas maiores do que a carteira total de crédito, principalmente devido às políticas públicas dos últimos anos. Salienta-se ainda que quase todas as IFMs têm alguma parceria com instituições governamentais principalmente para captação de funding a custos mais baixos que o mercado. Dessa forma, pode-se evidenciar o impacto do PNMPO nas instituições brasileiras nos últimos anos. / This study verifies the operational sustainability of Brazilian microfinance institutions over the long term. The Microcredit Financial Institutions have a crucial role in microcredit structure, as they provide access to credit for entrepreneurs in poor populations. Microcredit gained notoriety since Yanus initiatives as Graamen Bank creation and its mission to provide access to financial services for poor and excluded from classical financial system, improving their conditions, creating income and reducing poverty. In order to evaluate the financial performance of Brazilian microfinance institutions indicators were used to measure risk and productivity. Data source is mainly from MIX Market, which is the largest platform for data and research on microfinance institutions in the world. Results indicate that most of Brazilian microcredit institutions are operationally sustainable. Sustainability indicators in Brazil showed better performance than the average of the institutions of the world since the year 2009. Largest institutions, more mature and with low portfolio at risk indicators showed noticeably better operational sustainability. Moreover, the microcredit portfolio grew at a higher rate than the total credit portfolio, mainly due to public policies of recent years. It\'s worth mentioning that almost all MFIs have some partnership with governmental institutions primarily for raising funding at lower costs. Therefore, we can show the impact of the National Program of Oriented Productive Microcredit in Brazilian institutions in recent years.

Este estudo teve como principal objetivo verificar se as instituições de microcrédito brasileiras são operacionalmente sustentáveis no longo prazo. A sustentabilidade operacional de uma Instituição Financeira de Microcrédito (IFM) é importante para que os beneficiários tenham acesso a serviços financeiros ao longo do tempo, pois IFM que não são sustentáveis acabam diminuindo seu impacto social. O microcrédito ganhou notoriedade desde as iniciativas de Yunus com a criação do Graamen Bank, sendo que sua missão é facilitar o acesso aos serviços financeiros para os pobres e todos os excluídos do sistema financeiro clássico, melhorando suas condições de geração de renda e atuando na redução da pobreza. Para avaliar o desempenho financeiro das instituições de microcrédito brasileiras utilizou-se como metodologia o cálculo de indicadores financeiros, de risco e produtividade. Estes indicadores permitem a verificação da sustentabilidade operacional e fatores que corroborem para explicar seu desempenho. Os dados foram coletados do MIX Market, que é a maior plataforma de dados e pesquisas sobre instituições de microcrédito no mundo. Como resultado, verificou-se que a maioria das instituições de microcrédito brasileiras analisadas são operacionalmente sustentáveis. Os indicadores de sustentabilidade do Brasil apresentaram desempenho melhor do que a média das instituições do mundo desde o ano de 2009. As instituições maiores em patrimônio líquido, mais maduras e com baixos indicadores de portfolio at risk apresentaram notoriamente melhores resultados de sustentabilidade operacional. Além disso, a carteira de microcrédito cresceu a taxas maiores do que a carteira total de crédito, principalmente devido às políticas públicas dos últimos anos. Salienta-se ainda que quase todas as IFMs têm alguma parceria com instituições governamentais principalmente para captação de funding a custos mais baixos que o mercado. Dessa forma, pode-se evidenciar o impacto do PNMPO nas instituições brasileiras nos últimos anos. / This study verifies the operational sustainability of Brazilian microfinance institutions over the long term. The Microcredit Financial Institutions have a crucial role in microcredit structure, as they provide access to credit for entrepreneurs in poor populations. Microcredit gained notoriety since Yanus initiatives as Graamen Bank creation and its mission to provide access to financial services for poor and excluded from classical financial system, improving their conditions, creating income and reducing poverty. In order to evaluate the financial performance of Brazilian microfinance institutions indicators were used to measure risk and productivity. Data source is mainly from MIX Market, which is the largest platform for data and research on microfinance institutions in the world. Results indicate that most of Brazilian microcredit institutions are operationally sustainable. Sustainability indicators in Brazil showed better performance than the average of the institutions of the world since the year 2009. Largest institutions, more mature and with low portfolio at risk indicators showed noticeably better operational sustainability. Moreover, the microcredit portfolio grew at a higher rate than the total credit portfolio, mainly due to public policies of recent years. It\'s worth mentioning that almost all MFIs have some partnership with governmental institutions primarily for raising funding at lower costs. Therefore, we can show the impact of the National Program of Oriented Productive Microcredit in Brazilian institutions in recent years.

Microfinance research concerns addressed in this thesis relate to: (1) targeting of clients vis-à-vis financial sustainability; (2) loan size effect of interest rate and clients’ well-being status; (3) economic governance and the dual objectives of microfinance institutions; and (4) patterns, trends and drivers of microfinance institution’s efficiency. The thesis emphasises operational issues that affect institutional performance and outreach of microfinance institutions rather than impact of microfinance intervention on poverty reduction. The thesis revolves around four empirical chapters that seek to address the above research concerns. Both micro and macro-level analyses have been explored with the aim of identifying institutional and public policies that drive the success of microfinance interventions. Micro level data from households in Ghana and cross country data mainly from the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) market are used. Varied microeconometric techniques (ordinary least squares, instrumental variable estimation, quantile regression, pooled regression, fixed and random effects estimations, Hausman-Taylor, Fixed Effects Vector Decomposition, stochastic frontier analysis and non-parametric efficiency estimations) are used depending on the hypotheses being considered in each of the empirical chapters. The main findings are: observed trade-off between financial sustainability and reaching poorer clients; formal institutions dispensing their own funds target poorer clients; pronounced variations in responsiveness of loan size to interest rate changes; semi-elasticity of loan amount responsiveness to a unit change in interest rate is more than proportionate and very significant for the poorest group; lesser time in securing property and availability of credit information show positive effects in targeting poorer clients; both type (pure technical and scale) and scope (narrow and broad) of financial efficiency show varying trends; and lastly, negative effects of bureaucracies in property registration and lack of credit information on social efficiency are also observed. This thesis suggests the following recommendations both for management of microfinance institutions and other stakeholders including international microfinance investors and government: harmonizing microfinance programmes irrespective of the source of funds; segmenting microfinance outreach markets based on socio-economic well-being; curtailing bureaucracies in property registration; and providing credit related information. These are paramount to the success of the microfinance paradigm, especially in achieving its social objective.

<p>While the general public may be familiar with commercial airports, there are thousands of small General Aviation (GA) airports serving communities across the United States. Many of these airports are under pressure to survive and to bring in more revenue without impinging on the community and environment. Many organizations and governmental agencies such as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), now recognize the value of sustainable development and importance of operation to airport sustainability. Achieving operational sustainability is a means that may help airports on sustainable development and has positive impacts on airports’ economic viability, natural resource conservation, and social responsibility. However, airport operational sustainability is rarely defined in a consistent, measurable manner (Johnson & Gu, 2017).</p><p><br></p><p>This study explored the understanding of airport operational sustainability among five GA Regional and Local airports. Based on the findings, a new definition of airport operational sustainability for U.S Regional and Local GA airports was proposed. A set of performance metrics for airport operational sustainability was developed. The outcomes of the study may help airport shareholders contribute to airport sustainability planning through a better understanding of sustainability principles<a>. A set of performance metrics for airport operational sustainability </a>may be used to quantify the sustainability achievements of airports and help airports measure their performance.</p><p></p>

Yes / Cutting-edge technologies like big data analytics (BDA), artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, blockchain, and digital twins have a profound impact on the sustainability of the production system. In addition, it is argued that turbulence in technology could negatively impact the adoption of these technologies and adversely impact the sustainability of the production system of the firm. The present study has demonstrated that the role of technological turbulence as a moderator could impact the relationships between the sustainability the of production system with its predictors. The study further analyses the mediating role of operational sustainability which could impact the firm performance. A theoretical model has been developed that is underpinned by dynamic capability view (DCV) theory and firm absorptive capacity theory. This model was verified by PLS-SEM with 412 responses from various manufacturing firms in India. There exists a positive and significant influence of AI and other cutting-edge technologies for keeping the production system sustainable.