Nanda R. Shrestha

A structural perspective on labour migration in underdeveloped countries

In a stimulating historical treatment McNeill (1978) discusses the pivotal role that the geographical movement of human population has played in the process of socioeconomic formation and transformation (also see Balan, 1982; Davis, 1974; Lee, 1978). While the forms of migration have varied through time and space, labour migration has become a prominent type of migration, especially since the ’genesis of the capitalist farmer’ in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries (Marx, 1964; 1967). Today, migration has emerged as a major population and development concern for most third world governments attracting considerable research attention. Yet most studies have generally failed to provide more than proximate explanations of why migration occurs (Bilsborrow et al., 1984). The attempt here is to provide a structural perspective on the on-going process opf migration in underdeveloped societies. In this endeavour, I propose a general conceptual framework one in which migration is viewed as a structural process that is systematically produced and reproduced. While some may find the proposed framework general enough to be applicable to many underdeveloped countries, others may find it too general to explain certain regional and national variations in migration forms, patterns and impacts. My own contention is that like many other social science theories, this one also may have to be somewhat modified when applied to specific case studies in order to account for possible regional variations; this does not however lessen its theoretical value as a general structural framework.

Frontier Migration and Upward Mobility: The Case of Nepal

The objective was to investigate how frontier migration affects migrants socioeconomic improvements in the Tarai which is regarded as Nepals land frontier as well as its agricultural backbone. The investigation was based on personal observations and field survey data collected in the Tarai frontier districts of Chitwan and Nawalparasi in 1988. It was proposed that socioeconomic mobility at the frontier is predicated on: 1) the timing of migration and settlement 2) migrants previous socioeconomic positions and 3) the availability of employment opportunities. In 1988 Nepal was ranked as the fourth poorest country in the world. The average per capita holding of farm land is 0.16 hectare. Large-scale migration of people took place from the highland villages in the hills to the Tarai frontier in the plain stretching east-west along the Nepal-India border. According to the 1981 census the number of internal life-time migrants increased from 445000 in 1971 to almost 930000 in 1981. The sample comprised 407 migrant households from the hills. In terms of land-acquisitions they were grouped into government grantees purchasers self-occupiers and landless. There were 84 migrants (21%) who were landless in the hills and 166 (41%) near landless. To model migrants Tarai landholdings (TLAND) as the dependent variable was regressed against a set of predictor variables: the year of settlement (SETTLE) capital asset in the hills (ASSET) family size (FAM) education (ED) wage earning (WAGE) and Tarai settlement experience (INTERACT). Tarai landholdings were expected to be positively correlated with the first 4 variables but inversely with WAGE and INTERACT. The regression results showed that all of the predictor variables were significantly correlated with TLAND as expected. The year of settlement (SETTLE) was the dominant variable in explaining land acquisitions (TLAND) followed by capital assets in the hills (ASSET). These 2 variables explained 40% of the variance in the dependent variable TLAND.

Introduction to the Special Issue: Management in Africa in the Global Context 1

ABSTRACT The primary focus of this introductory article is to provide a synoptic peek into the challenges and opportunities facing the countries of Africa in todays global economy and in their attempts to develop their national economies to achieve what is commonly termed the Millennium Development Goals. While foreign direct investment (FDI) is seen as a way to attain these goals, FDI flows to African countries remain extremely low. If Africa is to attract diversified FDI inflows, not just those focused on extractive/natural resources, African countries need to develop a system of management that is effective and efficient, internationally oriented and nationally focused, culturally inclusive and institutionally supportive and reliable, and one that promotes business growth and economic development with a sense of social responsibility.

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Management in Kenya

ABSTRACT The management discipline is largely populated by models embedded in western cultural views and values. This paper addresses the generally misplaced confidence of management scholars in utilizing western culture-based models of management to analyze management practices and perspectives in African countries. This paper starts with the premise that management is, at its core, a cultural practice that is derived from a cultural value system. As such, exporting US/western management models and practices abroad requires adaptation to local cultural dynamics and socioeconomic conditions. Furthermore, with western management models using nation-state as a unit of analysis to analyze culture, there is an assumption that all peoples (and localities) within a national culture are isomorphic in their value systems. From a cross-cultural management perspective, this is not only misleading but problematic because, by implication, international managers ignore internal cultural differences and dynamics and how various cultural groups interact with foreign businesses. This study argues that an informed understanding of a nations sociopolitical history, economic conditions, geography, and internal cultural dynamics is crucial for international managers working in Africa. Using Kenya as an example, the study discusses the misplaced application of western culture-based management models and proposes a culturally-integrative framework of management.

Segmentation strategies for non‐profits: mining the emerging market of “black gold”

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to present a strategic conceptual framework for targeting and mining the emerging market segment of Black philanthropy (black gold).Design/methodology/approach – This strategic and normative conceptualization utilizes a socio‐historical and socio‐cultural perspective to posit the black gold construct and recommend tactics for mining it.Findings – Black communities have historically engaged in social justice and self‐help activities for racial equality and advancement and with increasing levels of wealth accumulation now comprise a significant market for philanthropic giving for domestic and global non‐profit organizations. However, in light of Black Americas tortured socio‐historical experience and racial/cultural identity, non‐profits must devise a historically‐informed and culturally‐nuanced strategy of relationship marketing to mine the emerging market of black gold.Practical implications – Domestic and international non‐profits can utilize the proposed strateg...

On “What Causes Poverty? A Postmodern View”: A Postmodern View or Denial of Historical Integrity? The Poverty of Yapa's View of Poverty

Postmodernism is, to put it bluntly, a call to inaction and a surrender to capitalist triumphalism. Those of us in academia who face it every day find its appeal to our students and colleagues deeply depressing. But there is at least some consolation in the fact that its esoteric and exclusionary posture, not to mention its divorce from reality (reality?) and its political emptiness, must ultimately limit its practical efficacy. Ellen Meiksins Wood and John Bellamy Foster (1996:44)

Population growth and development in the third world: The neocolonial context

Less developed countries (LDCs) that were colonies of other nations continued operating under the same social and political structures set up by the former ruling nations. The small minority of elites in the LDCs held on to the power acquired during colonial times. In order to preserve their political and financial status after independence, they maintained their close linkages to the capitalist nations and their multinational corporations (MNCs). The elites did not generally have popular support, however. These capitalist nations and their commercial interests continue to dictate most LDCs development process which supports the financial interests of the MNCs and the local elites and not those of the majority, the poor. The poor realize that they are trapped and unable to break away from the economic and political structures, therefore, to assure some form of security, they have many children which exacerbates their poverty. Yet population control policies based on Malthusian theory and those that rely on such undimensional, technical approaches as family planning alone cannot cure the multidimensional social problems of high population growth and poverty. Neither the Malthusian nor Marxist theories totally explain the situation in the LDCs or even provide workable solutions. Research on population and development in LDCs needs to address both the Malthusian concern for the problems posed by high growth rates and the Marxist critique of class struggle in development trends. To eliminate the trap of poverty and dependent economies, each country must design its own remedies based on its history, culture, and geography and alter the prevailing social, economic, and political power structures in favor of the poor. 6 propositions that must be modified to each nations particular problems and needs are presented to guide LDCs in formulating or reformulating policies to alleviate the problems of population and poverty.

Management and national development in Kenya: toward a normative framework

Purpose – This paper aims to propose a normative framework focusing on the need to enhance the roles of the four fundamental environmental forces of management – socio‐demographic, techno‐economic, politico‐institutional, and cultural. The objective is to create a business climate of certainty so that Kenya can achieve its goals of national and private sector development and of elevating its global competitiveness in terms of foreign direct investment and exports.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses secondary data to describe Kenyas development goals, its current level of private sector development, its position in the global economy, and the historical and cultural dimensions of its management practices. Against that backdrop, the article combines systems thinking and broad‐based reasoning to develop a normative management framework for policy makers and for domestic and international business managers. After using data to describe Kenyas status with respect to the four environmental forces, th...

Advertising in Black Magazines

Abstract The African American consumer has been studied since the 1960s. Now a major segment of the national economy, this consumer group represented more than

The Civil Rights Movement and Social Sensitivity

631 billion of buying power in 2002. Prior research has shown that this market segment has distinct product and service preferences and that the African American consumer responds more favorably to advertisements containing African American models as opposed to white models. In focus groups comprised of African Americans and conducted by Ketchum Public Relations (KPR) in 1998, several companies were identified, some as mosttrusted and others as least-respected. When queried about the advertisement outlets, Black Enterprise, Ebony and Essence were among those named as mosttrusted black print media. In light of this finding, we advance the proposition that the advertisements in these media sources should reflect the spending patterns and other consumer preferences of African Ameri Ashanti Y. Ragoonan is an MBA student, School of Business & Industry, Florida cans. To explore this issue, we analyzed a sample of 2,845 advertisements in 12 issues of each of Black Enterprise, Ebony and Essence, spanning from May 1997 to April 1998-a timeframe that corresponds to the 12-month period prior to the KPR study. The findings of this exploratory study support our propositions about the effectiveness of using African American models in advertisements and the frequency of ads related to the top five expenditure categories of African Americans. We also found modest support for our proposition about the advertising patterns of the most-trusted and the least-respected companies.