Institutional Profile Research Articles

Fiscal Administration Variables and Productivity of State Universities and Colleges in Western Visayas, Philippines

Funds, whether from government or generated by institutions from other sources are the lifeblood of institutional development. Since there is never an end to development and improvement, fund sourcing and allocation are continuing concerns of every educational institution. The study determined the financial variables and productivity of SUCs in Region VI for CY 2002-2003. The study aimed to determine the a) institutional profile of the 11 SUCs in Region VI, b) profile of financial managers of SUCs in Region VI, c) budgetary allocation based on the General Appropriations Act (GAA) and income from the Special Trust Fund (STF), and d) how these financial resources are utilized for the operation. Descriptive method of research was employed and data were analyzed through frequency count and percentage mean. Study revealed that 11 SUCs in Region VI shared a common vision of becoming the center excellence, research, extension, and production with a mission of producing globally competitive graduates. The West Visayas State University (WVSU) had the biggest budgetary allocation from GAA, and got the highest earnings in school fees. A similar pattern of expenditures had been adopted by the 11 SUCs in Region VI. The SUCs in the region foresee their respective institutions as Center of Excellence. Fiscal managers had upgraded their educational qualifications. Faculty members have conducted extension, income generating projects and published researches.

ANALISIS KELEMBAGAAN GAPOKTAN DALAM KEGIATAN LEMBAGA DISTRIBUSI PANGAN MASYARAKAT (LDPM) DI KABUPATEN GROBOGAN

<p><em>This research aims to explain in detail about the condition of Gapoktan institutional through activities of</em><em> </em><em>Reinforcement of Society Food’s Distributive Institution</em><em> (</em><em>Reinforcement</em><em>-LDPM) </em><em>at</em><em> </em><em>the Regency of </em><em>Grobogan </em><em>considered from </em><em>superstru</em><em>c</em><em>tur</em><em> aspect</em><em>, </em><em>community </em><em>profil</em><em>es</em><em> </em><em>of farmers the member of Gapoktan</em><em>, </em><em>and</em><em> organizational profile</em><em> aspect of the</em><em> Gapoktan. </em><em>Qualitative method and descriptive approach were used in this research</em><em>. </em><em>The sampling was </em><em>snowball sampling</em><em> technique</em><em>. </em><em>The technique of data collection used visceral interview, observation, and record-keeping. The tryout of data validity used </em><em>triangula</em><em>tion</em><em> </em><em>source</em><em> </em><em>and </em><em>triangula</em><em>tion</em><em> met</em><em>hod</em><em>, </em><em>whereas</em><em> </em><em>the data analysis used three</em><em> </em><em>main components, i.e.</em><em> (1) </em><em>data reduction,</em><em> (2) data</em><em> display,</em><em> </em><em>and</em><em> (3) </em><em>drawing conclusion and verification.</em><em> B</em><em>ased on the research result, it can be concluded that analysis of Gapoktan institutional considered from </em><em>superstru</em><em>c</em><em>tur</em><em>e aspects</em><em> </em><em>including government policy which influenced </em><em>Gapoktan</em><em> institutional</em><em>. </em><em>Both the federal government and local government of </em><em>Grobogan</em><em> Regency have issued some policies that support the reinforcement activities of Society Food’s Distributive Institution</em><em> (LDPM)</em><em>, but</em><em> </em><em>the government policy about Bulog standardization was considered that it was too difficult for </em><em>Gapoktan </em><em>institutional</em><em>. </em><em>Considered from community profile, the development of </em><em>Gapoktan</em><em> institutional</em><em> </em><em>has transpired well enough because of having sufficient </em><em>asset, </em><em>collective action in both of routine meeting and directive counseling</em><em>, </em><em>drawing conclusion by the chief of </em><em>Gapoktan </em><em>through discussion and coordination focus</em><em>, </em><em>whereas the relationship between </em><em>Gapoktan </em><em>institutional with the other Gapoktan has transpired well</em><em>. </em><em>Considered from its institutional profile</em><em>, </em><em>the Gapoktan still had constraints or problem. Looking to its organization system, the structure of labor units</em><em> </em><em>of the reinforcement activities of Society Food’s Distributive Institution </em><em>(LDPM) </em><em>had not been organized well</em><em>. </em><em>The members prefer to profitable jobs than the voluntary Gapoktan. Outsides, the institutional management and resource allocation had not well complied.</em></p>

The Role of the Speaker in Britain House of Commons

The role of the Speaker of the Parliament represents a topic that constantly interests constitution and political experts, regarding both static and dinamyc profile. In this perspective, this analysis will focus on the neutral model of British parliamentary governance (speakership). As a constant reference will be used the examination of the institution of the Presidency of the Parliament in its dual role, as an internal organ of the Parliamentary Assembly, but also as a structure of high “external” institutional profile, which in collaboration with other constitutional bodies is essential for institutional qualification in which its role is located. A special attention will be paid to the form of the British government and how it has affected the powers and role of the Chairman of the Assembly in the political-constitutional order. The methodology used in this paper will be analytical. The main objective of this study will be to explain the factors that led to the installation of such model in this Country as well as causal relevance of each one . These variables such as the form of government, political system and the party system will be tested in this case for understanding the model of British parliamentary. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n5s2p679

Taboo no more: a qualitative country institutional profile of life insurance in China and India

Purpose– This paper aims to compare the emergence and evolution of organizational fields through an analysis of the life insurance industries in two large emerging markets. Using institutional theory as a conceptual framework, we compare the regulatory, cognitive and normative dimensions of the life insurance industry in China and India.Design/methodology/approach– The authors introduce a qualitative variation of the country institutional profile (CIP) that has been traditionally implemented as a quantitative analytical tool used to describe differences in national environments. This newly proposed methodology captures the socially embedded aspects of the phenomenon more completely than commonly employed survey-based methodology.Findings– This analysis leads to a three-dimensional typology of constructs and themes within each national environment. These themes include the importance of regulation and protectionism, the domestic savings culture, family support structures and human capital development within the industry. The authors conclude by comparing these typologies to consider the implications for studying change in organizational fields across contexts.Originality/value– As the authors reflect on the evolution of organizational fields, they demonstrate how the interplay of historical factors and new global norms results in a negotiated stance between compliance with new norms and allegiance to local interests. In terms of methodological contribution, we show how the socially embedded aspects of the examined phenomenon are explored more completely by the proposed qualitative CIP than through its quantitative variation. This approach and the analysis illustrate a complex interplay of local and global norms within a selected industry that may be missed by other research methods.

Participação social, estado democrático e constituição: uma análise do perfil dos conselhos municipais de Riberão Preto - SP

Nosso trabalho tem como principal objetivo deter- minar o perfil institucional dos Conselhos Munici- pais de Políticas Públicas de Ribeirão Preto/SP, por meio da análise dos atos normativos que os criam e regulamentam e com base na aplicação de variá- veis identificadas na literatura recente sobre o tema. O estudo identificou que, na história do município, foram criados 47 Conselhos, sendo escolhidos para compor a amostra 23 deles, a partir de critérios que identificam quais deles estavam em atividade em 2014. Na literatura científica foram identificadas vari- áveis que representam as características que mais in- fluenciam a efetividade dos Conselhos, divididas em três categorias: características gerais, processo de- cisório e composição/representação. Os resultados indicaram grande falta de transparência quanto ao funcionamento dos Conselhos e que eles, em geral, integraram em seus formatos algumas características consideradas a princípio como essenciais para sua efetividade, mas que outras características recentes, identificadas em função das limitações das anterio- res, são implementadas em poucos deles. Esperamos que os resultados deste trabalho contribuam para o aprofundamento democrático dos Conselhos de Po- líticas Públicas de Ribeirão Preto.

Influence of institutional profiles on time to recall

Purpose– This paper aims to understand why firms expedite or delay product recall decisions involving international sourcing.Design/methodology/approach– This paper combines US toy recall data from the Consumer Products Safety Commission database for the period from 1988to 2011 with World Economic Forum data on institutional environments to predict the effect the host country conditions have on recall timing decisions.Findings– Firms tend to expedite decisions to recall defective products sourced from countries where the informal institutional profile is perceived to be unfavorable for quality manufacture.Research limitations/implications– The reported research is empirical in nature and uses pooled cross-country, single-industry data.Practical implications– Managers should be careful not to allow their biases to affect their product recall timing decisions.Originality/value– Whereas previous research has examined recall timing decisions, this study is the first to consider the institutional environment where products are sourced from as an explanatory variable.

The adoption of renewable energy (RE) enterprises in the UK

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine how national institutional structures affect farmers’ intentions to invest in renewable energy enterprises in the UK agricultural sector.Design/methodology/approach– The authors draw on the construct of national institutional profile to identify the regulatory, cognitive and normative institutions affecting entrepreneurial intentions. A postal questionnaire survey of 2,000 farmers was carried out in the West Midlands Region of the UK and 393 usable responses were obtained. Principal component analysis and multivariate data analysis techniques are employed.Findings– Cognitive institutions were positively related to intentions. Contrary to expectations, the regulatory institutions were not associated with entrepreneurial intentions. Normative institutions were significantly related to intentions and interestingly, moderated the efficacy of regulatory institutions on entrepreneurial intentions.Practical implications– Cognitive and normative institutions may play a far more important role in determining farm entrepreneurship in the renewable energy sector than has been previously considered. Given that much of policy research is often biased towards regulatory institutions, this research shows that the construct of institutional profile offers a useful framework to investigate the effect of national level institutions on entrepreneurship.Originality/value– This study contributes to the literature on entrepreneurship in the UK farm sector. It is the first study that demonstrates the role of the country’s institutional profile on farmers’ intentions to invest in RE. The existence of moderation effects between national institutions suggests that research focusing on single dimensions is likely to provide biased results.

CORPORATIVE IDENTITY AS AN INSTRUMENT OF POSITIONING THE CULTURAL CENTERS OF MOSCOW

The desire to raise the profile of cultural institutions in the eyes of society and increase its popularity dictates the need to enhance communication. In this context, it is becoming increasingly important to work on the formation of public opinion and a positive image of each individual cultural institution. The article considers the possibilities of the development and implementation of corporate identity and visual identity as an effective instrument to promote the activities of modern cultural centers in the media space of Moscow under the conditions of information asymmetry. The author of the article comes to the conclusion that creation of positive reputation of cultural institutions by building a strong corporate style may become a notable informational occasion in the media of the mega city and enhance self-identification and sustainable development of cultural institutions. In addition, the article describes the basic components and elements of corporate identity for contemporary cultural centers of Moscow. The author reveals the concept of «corporate identity», notes the main stages of its development, the key visual identifiers that must be taken into consideration in the development of the brand book - the final product of the corporate identity development in the context of repositioning the image and re-profiling traditional cultural institutions into modern cultural centers.

Graduates’ Perceptions about Labour Market Competencies: Does the Type of Institution and Programme Make a Difference?

Over the past decades a continuous trend of expansion has led to the emergence of massified higher education systems that have tried to accommodate a growing diversity of students and demands through diverse institutional profiles and program supply. Recent studies have also pointed out to a growing diversity in the transitions and integration of those expanded cohorts of graduates in the labour market. Hence, it is relevant to assess to what extent the growing institutional and programme diversification may be associated with different profiles of graduates and the multidimensional set of acquired competencies throughout higher education. In this paper are analysed graduates’ perceptions about the competencies acquired through HE vis-a-vis those required by the labour market and search for differences in those perceptions according to type of institution (public and private, university and vocational) and type of degree. The analysis is based on the Portuguese experience that combines high labour market benefits for graduates with a rapid process of massification.

Institute Profile: The University of Michigan Water Center

Institute Profile: The University of Michigan Water Center

Results of a Survey to Benchmark Canadian Health Facility Libraries

<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> A benchmarking survey of Canadian health facility libraries was conducted to provide statistical data to support health librarians in the anagement of their libraries. The objectives were to determine the status of<br />hospital libraries in Canada and to evaluate whether libraries meet the 2006 CHLA/ABSC Standards for Library and Information Services in Canadian Healthcare Facilities.</p><p><strong>Methods:</strong> An online survey of 63 questions, with headings of institutional profile, administration, staffing, environment, resources, and services, was created and distributed to 250 heads of hospital libraries and to Canadian library email listservs.</p><p><strong>Results:</strong> Many libraries are meeting some aspects of the Standards for administration and organization, management, traditional promotion, and accessibility. Areas of improvement include services, nontraditional promotion, library environment, and staffing.</p><p><strong>Discussion:</strong> There are no current benchmarking data available for Canadian hospital libraries and there have been many political, economic, and technological changes in past years that have had a substantial impact on libraries. Anecdotal data suggest that librarians have responded to these changes through library closures, mergers, consortial affiliations, and modifications to services. Librarians will be able to use the collected data to compare services, establish best practices, make management decisions, and prepare self-studies for accreditation purposes.</p>

The effects of demographic, cognitive and institutional factors on development of entrepreneurial intention: Toward a socio-cognitive model of entrepreneurial career

Upon a well-established theoretical foundation Social Cognitive Career Theory; Lent, Brown, and Hackett (J Vocat Behav 45:79–122, 1994; J Couns Psychol 47:36–49, 2000), this study examines the effects of cognitive, affective, social, demographic, and contextual factors on the development of entrepreneurial intention. To test the hypotheses, binary logistic regression analysis was conducted using data from Global Entrepreneurship Monitor survey in which 183,049 individuals nested within 54 countries that participated. Entrepreneurial self-efficacy beliefs and entrepreneurial career outcome expectations are significantly correlated with entrepreneurial intention. Mastery experience including previous business ownership, entrepreneurial activity as part of a regular job or investing in a venture, exposure to a role model, social persuasion through media, and fear of failure are significant sources of entrepreneurial self-efficacy. A moderate relationship exists between country-level institutional profile and the sources of self-efficacy.

The impact of social and relational contexts on innovation transfer in foreign subsidiaries

It is widely acknowledged that innovation is one of the pillars of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and that technological knowledge from different host locations is a key factor to the MNEs’ competitive advantages development. Concerning these assumptions, in this paper we aim to understand how the social and the relational contexts affect the conventional and reverse transfer of innovation from MNEs’ subsidiaries hosted in emerging markets. We analysed the social context through the institutional profile (CIP) level and the relational context through trust and integration levels utilising a survey sent to 172 foreign subsidiaries located in Brazil, as well as secondary data. Through an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis we found that the relational context affects the conventional and reverse innovation transfer in subsidiaries hosted in emerging markets. We however did not find support for the social context effect.

Calculation of Credit Valuation Adjustment Based on Least Square Monte Carlo Methods

Counterparty credit risk has become one of the highest-profile risks facing participants in the financial markets. Despite this, relatively little is known about how counterparty credit risk is actually priced mathematically. We examine this issue using interest rate swaps. This largely traded financial product allows us to well identify the risk profiles of both institutions and their counterparties. Concretely, Hull-White model for rate and mean-reverting model for default intensity have proven to be in correspondence with the reality and to be well suited for financial institutions. Besides, we find that least square Monte Carlo method is quite efficient in the calculation of credit valuation adjustment (CVA, for short) as it avoids the redundant step to generate inner scenarios. As a result, it accelerates the convergence speed of the CVA estimators. In the second part, we propose a new method to calculate bilateral CVA to avoid double counting in the existing bibliographies, where several copula functions are adopted to describe the dependence of two first to default times.

A Study of Total Quality Management Practices in Teacher Education Institutions

There is a close link between the prosperity of a nation and the quality of education it provides for its people. Quality education improves standard of living of people by enhancing the performance of engines of economic development. This study focuses on application and analysis of total quality management in colleges of education/teacher education Institutions of Lucknow city. Standardised questionnaires were administered on the respondents. All the colleges of education/teacher education Institutions of Lucknow city were the population of the study. The sample constituted 11 colleges of education which were selected through random sampling and teacher educators and Head of the Department through cluster sampling thus totalling to 81 respondents. In this study total quality management has been explored by covering 11 aspects through Mukhopadhayas's Institutional Profile questionnaire, administered on teacher educators and also by 12 quality indicators through the quality indicator tool developed by the NAAC–COL team, which was administered on Head of the Department of B.Ed program. The qualitative method of research will be adopted in specific components of teacher education management. Data were collected using assessment tools and then analysed with regard to total quality management practices. Better employment opportunities may be created for academics. Their pay scales be revised and they should be given quite an attractive pay package in order to overcome the problem of brain drain of teachers along with improvement in management techniques, infrastructure, examination and objectives of B.Ed. Program. It has been recommended that the concerned authorities should take serious notice of the character of colleges of education/teacher education institutions in the development of teacher education and implement concrete measures for its improvement.

Book Review: What excellent community colleges do: Preparing all students for success by Wyner, J. S.

Wyner, J. S. (2014). What excellent community colleges do: Preparing all students for success. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press. 200 pp. US$60.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-1-61250-650-0. US$26.95 (paper), ISBN 978-1-61250-649-4.What Excellent Community Colleges Do: Preparing All Students for Success is simultaneously an explication of actions that community colleges which have been recognized by the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence have undertaken to improve student success, and a call to arms for other stakeholders interested in increasing the success of community college students. The two premises of this book are that there are practices and policies that cut across institutional contexts-rural and urban, small and large, career and transfer orientation-which are associated with increased student success, and, if all institutional stakeholders examine their actions with the goal of student success at the forefront, student success will improve.The author, Joshua Wyner, has a history working with community colleges and community college students. Prior to becoming Executive Director of the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program, he worked to improve educational outcomes while serving in leadership roles with the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation and DC Appleseed. His advocacy for community colleges and their students comes through in his writing. In an era of increased attention on community colleges, both positive and negative, it is good to know that the tough love message he is delivering comes from someone who has been involved and expresses a genuine desire to help.Individuals familiar with the Aspen Prize will not find any surprises in the book as it is arranged within the Aspen Prize framework. The Aspen Prize is awarded every 2 years to institutions that demonstrate exceptional student outcomes in four areas: completion, equity, learning, and labor market outcomes. Wyner's book devotes one chapter to each of these aspects of the Prize's definition with the inclusion of a fifth chapter, which examines the role of leaders. To provide context, Appendix A presents brief institutional profiles of the seven regularly highlighted institutions. Furthermore, Appendix B includes a description of the data utilized in the Aspen Prize process. Wyner is quick to note that the data used to justify both the book and the Aspen Prize are far from ideal and that the reader should not expect to find a silver bullet practice or policy hidden in the pages. However, he argues, the lack of perfect data should not paralyze the change process. Throughout the book, he highlights institutions that have forged ahead with a student success agenda based on the best available data.Building upon Wyner's caution that there is no single answer to the age-old and complex issue of student success, the message he conveys is that of involvement and data use: the greater the number of stakeholders, both within and outside the institution who have access to the data, the better. Although sharing data can sometimes be an intimidating suggestion when graduation rates are poor, a public airing of less than stellar outcomes can be both cathartic and helpful to jump start necessary conversations. In his conclusion, Wyner argues that drives successful practice, not the other way around (p. 144). If one subscribes to this view, then shifting to a culture of inquiry and openness is an important first step in the process. And process is a theme that runs throughout the book. In addition to the seven highlighted institutions, Wyner also employs examples from other institutions. The use of multiple institutions underscores his point that no one institution, program, or policy has all of the answers; rather, improving student success is a process that is continually examined and refined in response to external influences upon which leaders have little to no control (e. …

Religion in a Liberal State, by Gavin D’Costa, Malcolm Evans, Tariq Modood, and Julian Rivers (eds)

Gavin D'Costa, Malcolm Evans, Tariq Modood, and Julian Rivers (eds) Religion in a Liberal State Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 258 pp., $85.00 (cloth) $29.99 (paper), ISBN: 978-1-10704-203-2 (cloth), 978-1-107-65007-7 (paper)The proper relationship between religion and politics has long been a matter of controversy. Western societies since the Reformation have had to deal with issues of relations between Catholicism, Protestantism, and Judaism. In modern societies, these tensions are complicated further both by increasing religious diversity and by challenges from agnosticism and atheism. The multidisciplinary collection of essays Religion in a Liberal State, edited by Gavin D'Costa, Malcolm Evans, Tariq Modood, and Julian Rivers, is concerned precisely with these issues. The collection encompasses the Zutshi-Smith Lecture delivered in 2010 by political philosopher Raymond Plant at the University of Bristol, and a number of responses it inspired from across the disciplines of law, sociology, politics, and theology. The essays engage with the prevailing view among scholars that there has been a long-term trend toward and challenge it by stressing the apparent resurgence of religious practice to highlight how notions like religion, secularization, and the public-private distinction are less straightforward or unambiguous than they once appeared.As Religion in a Liberal State makes clear, social scientists have conventionally adopted two approaches to the study of religion. The Weberian approach assumed that the diffusion of science and knowledge would eventually and inevitably lead to secularization. The Durkheimian approach focused on roles played by institutions. This latter approach is open to the interpretation that, as roles like those of providing schools, hospitals, and social services, which were once filled by churches, have increasingly been taken over by other institutions, the profile of religious institutions would wane. Empty pews in Western European churches helped reinforce the notion that secularization represented the future. The United States appeared to be an exception. However, developments in both domestic and international politics have made scholars reconsider the apparent inevitability of secularization. Scholars have also noted that reference to secularization conceals the potential for different trends depending on whether one is simply looking at adherence to practices and church attendance, at societal influence of religious institutions, or at the relevance of religious values to political culture. Scholars increasingly refer to multiple secularises rather than to secularization. At issue is not only an empirical question of whether or not secularization is taking place, but also such normative questions as: whether a state's policies can ever reflect religious values; from a secularist perspective, whether resort to religious language in public dialogue should be discouraged; and, from a religious perspective, whether a believer can accommodate liberal practices without compromising her/ his religious beliefs.European institutions and the European Court of Human Rights are exercising increasing influence over these questions. In his lecture, Plant expresses concern that citizens and policymakers are being forced to confront certain issues about the influence of religion in public life due to the increasing salience of liberalism, as well as to the practice of courts exercising powers of judicial review in the interest of constitutionally entrenched understandings of human rights even in states like the United Kingdom, where the political culture and constitution were once defined by unwritten tradition, the common law, and parliamentary sovereignty. In the past, he argues, ambiguities, anomalies, and inconsistencies could be overlooked, especially when they did not create serious injustice or hardship. The formal establishment of the Church of England, which was once associated with the persecution of other religious groups, became a historical relic to which most citizens of the United Kingdom devoted little thought. …

European Studies

The study of Western countries and teaching courses on the related subjects have longstanding and established tradition at MGIMO-University. The basis of this brilliant research and teaching tradition was laid down by such academicians as E.V. Tarle and V.G. Trukhanovsky, Professor L.I. Clove, Y. Borisov, F.I. Notovitch, G.L. Rozanov. Their work in 1940-1960's at the Department of World History at MGIMO-University progressed in following directions: France studies, German studies, American studies. The work resulted in a number of monographs and textbooks on modern history and foreign policy of the studied countries and regions. The aim of the publications was dictated by the goal of the Institute - to prepare the specialists in international affairs primarily for practical work. A close relationship with the Foreign Ministry was "binding advantage" sometimes limiting researchers in choosing periods and subjects for the study. At the same time the undisputed advantage and quality of regional studies at MGIMO were strengthened by the practical relevance of research, making it a vital and interesting not only for specialists but also for students and researchers from other research centers. Another characteristic of the tradition is the analysis of foreign policy and diplomacy in a close relationship with the socio-economic and political processes. Such an integrated approach to regional geography also formed largely under the influence of institutional profile designed to train highly skilled and versatile specialists in specific countries and regions with a good knowledge of their languages, history, economics, politics, law and culture. Therefore, scientific and educational-methodical work at MGIMO-University has always relied on a wealth of empirical data and has been focused on the analysis of real-world phenomena and processes, acute problems of foreign countries. Scientific research at MGIMO-University traditionally intertwined with pedagogical objectives.

Nutrition and health profile of elderly females residing in old age homes in four major cities of Gujarat

India is witnessing demographic transition leading to rapid increase in number of elderly and old age homes. There is dearth of information about problems related to health, nutritional status and quality of life of the institutionalized elderly in many parts of the country. Objectives: Analysis of the old age homes (institutions) and nutrition and health profile of the elderly females residing in old age homes of major cities of Gujarat. Methods: Baseline data on basic infrastructures and facilities available in 12 old age homes of four major cities (Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat and Vadodara) of Gujarat state were collected. Baseline data on nutritional status, life style, general and metal health (GDI, CIT and MMSE) profile of 149 institutionalized elderly females aged ≥ 60 years were also collected. Results: Institutional profile revealed that old age homes of Ahmedabad and Baroda offered better facilities. Poor dietary and other facilities were offered by the old age homes in Rajkot. 75 per cent institutes provided first aid and emergency hospital facilities. Only 7 homes provided less than 3 meals per day. Mean age of the female elderly was 74 years. 33.6 per cent and 14.8 per cent subjects were overweight and obese, respectively. Anemia was prevalent in more than 45 per cent subjects. Dietary intake of protein, fibres, iron and β-carotene was less than the RDA. Problems of oral cavity, pain in joints, mobility, vision, neurological problem, sleep disturbance, constipation etc. were prevalent among the subjects. GDI scores showed no significant difference between the age groups and inmates of different cities but showed a significant (P<0.01) difference in MMSE and CIT scores. Conclusion: Location, environment, activities and meal pattern might have influence on health of the elderly. Better dietary health care with good recreation activities and long term observational as well as interventional studies are recommended for old age home.

Solar cooking in Mozambique—an investigation of end-user׳s needs for the design of solar cookers

Sub-Saharan Africa is characterized by insufficient access to modern energy. One solution to this problem could be the use of solar energy to satisfy the current energy demand. However, solar energy technologies have shown limited success up to now. In the literature it is argued that solar cookers are often implemented as a “solution looking for a problem”, without consideration of the end-user needs. This study contributes to this debate by investigating the energy patterns and cooking profiles of public institutions for the design and implementation of solar cookers in the case of Mozambique. Interviews were conducted with 12 health institutions in Maputo and Sofala province in Mozambique.The paper concludes that solar cooking presents one solution to overcome the energy crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa but not the only solution. Solar cookers could improve the current cooking situation if combined with heat storage, back up, or a hybrid system that ensures reliability also during evening hours and rainy days. In general we could see that solar cookers should fulfill a variety of requirements related to cooking habits, schedule of daily routine and performance that are considered to enhance levels of use.