About seventy-seven percent of Zambia’s citizens who are engaged in primary activity in the agriculture sector are poor (Economies, 2017). One of the ways in which the poverty levels can be reduced is by lessening constraints of access to finance in agriculture sector. The implications of the low access to credit in the agriculture sector is reduced productivity, high food insecurity and perpetual poverty particularly in Zambia’s rural areas. Most of the studies conducted focused on identifying factors which limit participation in agriculture finance from the bank’s perspective and not farmers. Therefore, this study sought to fill the gap and assess variables directly related to smallholder farmers access to finance. It further examines the dynamism of access to finance depending on location, gender and transport infrastructure. The data employed in the study was obtained from a survey conducted in 2013 by IAPRI and UNZA with a sample size of 1,231 households in six districts of Zambia. Agricultural credit for small holder farmers (SHFs) in rural areas is mostly provided in the form of cash or in kind through supply of inputs to these SHFs. This data was modeled based on the logistic regression. The results showed that 14.1% of the SHFs had access to finance. Among these farmers only 13% were female. In addition, secondary education, access to finance information, farm size, access to collateral and distance between the location of the farmer and the financial services, were significant factors in determining access to credit. A recommendation proposed to policy makers based on results presented include sensitization on various finance facilities available to rural farmers so that they are aware and can make necessary efforts to access the finance. Rural education is directly related to access to finance, therefore government should promote education for its citizens. Lack of collateral has been identified as a factor that gravely hinders access levels by most. Government should implement standardized policies that ensure availability of credit to farmers with little or no collateral. In conclusion, improved credit permeation in agriculture sector promotes sustainable and inclusive growth in Zambia and will eventually eradicate absolute poverty.

The knee is the most complex joint in the human body. It consists of a system of muscle, bone, and ligaments that endures repetitive loading during daily and athletic activities. When this loading is excessive, damage  to the knee occurs leading to a decreased quality of life.The medial collateral ligament (MCL) is one of the 4 major ligaments known to be commonly injured in the knee. The risk of injury to the knee joint increases with the elderly and individuals who experience chronic dehydration. For this reason, the focus of this study is to compare different mechanical quantities that can be used to analyze damage to the MCL. In this study, a novel mechanical testing protocol is used to progressively induce damage in dehydrated rat MCLs by performing tensile tests. This involves stretching the ligaments along their longitudinal axes to consecutive and increasing displacements starting at a 0.4 mm displacement and in increments of 0.2 mm until complete failure occurs. The load and change in length that the ligament experiences are measured at each displacement. Three different methods were evaluated to determine subfailure and damage propagation in rat MCLs: changes in tangent stiffness and chord stiffness, and changes in the load value at the 0.4 mm displacement for each load-displacement curve. The findings of this study indicate that the tangent stiffness and load at the 0.4 mm displacement provide information of the early onset of damage propagation. The decrease in chord stiffness of the ligament does not indicate damage progression in the ligament, but rather is the sign of the imminent failure of the MCL.This study provides insightful data into understanding the subfailure damage in the MCL. / Master of Science

A mixed integer linear programming formulation is used to solve the problem of allocating assets from a bank to its counterparties as collateral within securities lending. The aim of the optimisation is to reduce the cost of allocated collateral, which is broken down into the components opportunity cost, counterparty risk cost and triparty cost. A solution consists of transactions to carry out to improve the allocation cost, each transaction consisting of sending a quantity of some asset from a portfolio to the bank or from the bank to some portfolio. The optimisation process is split into subproblems to separate obvious transactions from more complex optimisations. The reduction of each cost component is examined for all the subproblems. Two subproblems transform an initial collateral allocation into a feasible one which is then improved by the optimisation. Decreasing opportunity cost is shown to be an easier task than decreasing counterparty risk and triparty costs since the latter costs require a comparatively large number of transactions. The optimisation is run several times in a row, performing the suggested transactions after each solved iteration. The cost reduction of k optimisation iterations with 10 transactions per iteration is shown to be similar to the cost reduction of 1 optimisation iteration with 10k transactions. The solution time increases heavily with the number of iterations. The suggested transactions may need to be performed in a certain order. A precedence constrained problem takes this into account. The problem is large and the execution time is slow if a limit is imposed on the number of allowed transactions. A strategic selection of portfolios can limit the number of suggested transactions and still reach a solution which comes close to the optimal one. This can also be done by requiring that all suggested transactions must reduce the cost by a minimum amount. The final model is ready to be used in a semi-automatic fashion, where transactions are verified by a human who checks if they are sound. A fully automated process requires further testing on historical and recent data. / Ett blandat-heltal linjärt optimeringsproblem används för att lösa uppgiften att tilldela värdepapper från en bank till dess kunder som pant för värdepapperslån. Målet med optimeringen är att minska kostnaden av den tilldelade panten. Kostnaden bryts ned i komponenterna alternativkostnad, motpartsrisk och tripartykostnad. En lösning består av föreslagna transaktioner som ska genomföras för att förbättra den nuvarande säkerhetstilldelningens kostnad. En transaktion består av att ta hem eller skicka ut en kvantitet av ett visst värdepapper från eller till en av bankens kunders portföljer. Optimeringsproblemet bryts ned i flera delproblem med syfte att särskilja uppenbara föreslagna säkerheter till en godkänd tildelning som sedan blir en startpunkt för optimeringen. Att minska alternativkostnad visar sig vara enklare än att minska motpartsrisk och tripartykostnader på så sätt att de sistnämnda kostnaderna kräver fler transaktioner för att minskas. Optimeringen körs flera gånger i rad, där alla föreslagna transaktioner från en iteration genomförs innan nästa iteration körs. Kostnadsminskningen av k körningar med 10 transaktioner visar sig vara väldigt nära, om än något mindre, än en körning med 10k transaktioner. Exekveringstiden ökar drastiskt med antalet iterationer. De föreslagna transaktionerna kan behöva genomföras i en viss ordning. En problemformulering konstrueras som tar höjd för detta, men exekveringstiden är extremt lång när antalet transaktioner begränsas. Ett strategiskt urval av portföljer kan begränsa antalet föreslagna transaktioner utan att försämra lösningen särskilt mycket. På ett liknande sätt kan antalet föreslagna transaktioner minskas genom att lägga till ett villkor som säger att lönsamheten av en transaktion måste överskrida en given minsta tröskel. Den slutgiltiga modellen är redo att användas om de föreslagna transaktionerna granskas manuellt innan de genomförs. En helt automatisk process ligger längre fram i tiden efter ytterligare tester på historisk och nuvarande data.

This study analyses empirically what patent characteristics matter for collateralization. In accordance with the finance literature, loan collateral is determined by the liquidation value of the asset which in turn depends on the three factors "physical attributes of the asset", "number of alternative users" and "financial strength of alternative users". Hence, the study is focusing on patent characteristics influencing the three factors of the liquidation value. To control for firm effects of the patent pledging firms, a treatment group of pledged patents and a comparison group of unpledged patents have been matched based on firm characteristics of the patent owner. The subsequent empirical analysis revealed that patent characteristics related to the physical attributes of patents enhancing their redeployability matter for collateralization. Patent characteristics related to the market liquidity measuring the financial strength of alternative users, are insignificant. Furthermore, the study confirms the additional function of patents as source of finance by offering them for loan collateral. Especially small and young firms, scare of tangible assets pledge patents for receiving debt finance.

Peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD) is an ischemic disease characterized by narrowing of the peripheral arteries due to the accumulation of atherosclerotic plaque in the inner lining of the vessels, which disrupts blood flow to downstream tissues. Blood can be redirected into collateral vessels, natural bypasses around arterial occlusions, causing shear-induced outward remodeling of the vessels. The enlarged vessels facilitate transfer of increased blood flow to downstream tissues. The remodeling process, however, may impair vasodilation, which in turn may cause or contribute to intermittent claudication- transient pain brought on by locomotion. To stimulate the growth of collateral arteries, the femoral arteries of young, otherwise healthy mice were ligated distally to the profunda femoris, the stem to the gracilis collateral circuit. The diameter of the profunda femoris artery was measured at rest and following gracilis muscle contraction 7 and 28 days post-surgery using intravital microscopy. Enlarged resting diameter, consistent with collateral enlargement, and impaired vasodilation was observed at day 7, but not at day 28. To determine if impaired functional vasodilation is due to impaired endothelial- or smooth muscle-dependent responses during outward remodeling, cell-dependent vasodilators were applied to the hindlimb. Endothelial- and smooth muscle-dependent vasodilation was significantly impaired 7 days post-ligation, but not 28 days after. This data supports the hypothesis that smooth muscle dysfunction causes impaired functional vasodilation in the early stages of collateral enlargement.

No description available.

Previous studies seem to agree that increased competition would cause riskier banking behavior. This dissertation shows that when competition intensifies, banks have greater incentives for screening loan applicants, and thus loan quality may improve. In addition, competition fosters banks to rely less on collateral requirements. Hence, banks may be less vulnerable to asset price shocks. The empirical chapter finds evidence of loan quality improvement after removing cross-border entry restrictions in the EU. There is also evidence that banks' behavior across EU countries has converged. / Ph. D.

Desmopathy of the collateral ligament of the distal interphalangeal joint is a common cause of lameness in the horse and carries a poor prognosis for soundness. Intralesional treatment has been suggested as a way to improve outcome; however, limited reports describe methods for injecting this ligament. This study compares the accuracy of injecting the collateral ligament of the distal interphalangeal joint using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) versus radiographic guidance. Equine cadaver digit pairs (n=10) were divided by random assignment to injection of the ligament by either technique and assessed using post-injection MRI or gross sections. Images from the proximal, middle, and distal portions of the ligament were blindly evaluated for successful injection. McNemar\'s test was performed to determine statistical difference between injection techniques. Fisher\'s exact test was used to evaluate number of injection attempts and injection of the medial or lateral collateral ligament. MRI-guided injection was successful more frequently than radiographic-guided injection on post-injection MRI (24 of 30 versus 9 of 30; p=0.0006) and gross sections (26 of 30 versus 13 of 30; p=0.0008). At each level of the ligament (proximal, middle, and distal), MRI-guided injection resulted in more successful injections than radiographic guidance. Statistical significance occurred at the proximal aspect of the collateral ligament based on post-injection MRI (p=0.0143) and the middle portion of the ligament based on gross sections (p=0.0253). Based on these results, injection guided by standing, low-field MRI should be considered an option for delivering intralesional regenerative therapy to horses with desmopathy of these collateral ligaments. / Master of Science

The aim of this thesis is to define "the collateral value", and also to define the principles that must be observed when is the collateral value determined. All the principles for establishing the collateral value are applied to the valuation of concrete real estate in the Czech Republic. This thesis also seeks to highlight the potential risks that may affect the correct determination of collateral value.

La construction des garanties réelles dans le Code monétaire et financier s’est faite sans approche coordonnée. Le législateur s’est limité à produire des réponses pragmatiques aux besoins des praticiens, dotant ces garanties d'une souplesse et d'une sécurité renforcées. Or, seul le caractère dérogatoire des mesures qui visent à renforcer la sécurité, face aux procédures collectives notamment, caractérise ce que nous identifions comme des garanties réelles dérogatoires tant des garanties réelles de droit commun que des autres garanties sur actifs financiers. Il convient alors d’en tirer les conséquences pour proposer une construction rationnelle d’une garantie réelle financière unique mais protéiforme. C’est l’entrée en vigueur de la directive 2002/47/CE et sa transposition en droit français qui invitent à envisager un remodelage des garanties sur actifs financiers. Une approche commune et unitaire inspirée par cette directive paraît inévitable pour la cohérence de la matière. / France has introduced in the Financial and Monetary Code various types of financial collateral arrangements without organising nor recognising such category. Acting on a case by case basis, the legislator has provided pragmatic tools which offer to the security taker a better flexibility together with an improved security through timely and bankruptcy-remote enforcement. The derogatory regimes appear to be the focal point that characterizes all financial collateral arrangements. The intention of this work is to put forward a unified approach which trades the various types of arrangements in the current heterogeneous set up, often overlapping in their scope of application, for a unique multi-fold financial collateral agreement. In doing so, we assess how such a unified approach, close to the method of the EU Collateral directive can, not only be compatible with our legal concepts, but even offer better clarity to the collateral arrangements, and a strengthened legal certainty.