Vol 3 Issue 2 April 2015-June 2015

Abstract: This paper analyses the continuous efforts made by African Heads of States and Governments of the African Union (AU) in promoting the AU Agenda 2063 in seeking to harness the continent’s comparative advantages on its youthful population, emerging middle-class consumers, rich natural resources and young labor force capable of transforming Africa in the next 50 years. The undeniable benefits of inter and intra-African trade, trade facilitation, the gradual dismantling of tariff barriers across African borders and their sensitive impacts on national sovereignty and a multiple of geopolitical regional trade arrangements shall be reviewed in this paper in an effort to address current challenges hindering Africa’s regional integration and sustainable development. With key objectives of facilitating trade finance for young African youths and female entrepreneurs, the harmonization of trade policies between AU Member states and existing Regional Economic Communities (RECs) is necessary in accessing Africa’s full potential market estimated at 2.8 billion people by 2063. The paper in its final section reveals astonishing trade benefits of regional markets with attributed roles of various stakeholders involved in mobilizing efforts towards a comprehensive approach for Africa’s emergence by 2063. An augmented multi-linear gravity model regression analysis is used to portray the positive and unexploited trade potentials of African regional markets in promoting trade integration on the “acquis” of existing regional initiatives. Special attention also is given to the Association of South East Asian Nation (ASEAN) Free Trade Area (FTA) alongside existing regional FTA initiatives in Africa (such as the South-Eastern African Tripartite FTA) as benchmarks on the basis of their socio-economic and political similarities, languages, infrastructures, colonial heritages and variable geometry resemblance to the CFTA. An exclusive out-of-sample benchmark approach is used on the gravity model to empirically test for autocorrelation between the selected dependent and independent variables (Trade flow, Gross Domestic Product, Population, and geographical distance between countries). Result of the study show projectable gains that can be generated from the establishment of a Pan-African Continental FTA with practical steps of grabbing Africa’s rich populated markets.

The gravity model uses beta estimated coefficients from the ASEAN FTA to benchmark trade potential in five regions in Africa. The paper’s methodology involves applying these statistically tested unbiased estimates on a sample of 15 randomly selected African countries per region for an evaluation period of 18 years. All the explanatory variables were tested to be statistically significant in explaining trade flows and their beta estimates used in extrapolating on the CFTA’s trade potentials in five regions and consequently building towards a single integrated and economically vibrant Africa by 2063!

Keywords: Agenda 2063, Regional Integration, Free Trade Areas (FTAs), Market Population Diversity, Access to Trade Finance for Women & Youths, Harmonization of Trade Policies between African Union Member States and Regional Economic Communities (RECs).

Title: Assessing Africa’s Two Billion Populated Market By 2063

Author:  Kenneth T. Tanyi

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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Abstract: The life in post-war period has been adverse due to the sudden eruption of the World War II that inflicted human suffering. In the second half of the 20th century, human life has been awful, problematic and miserable etc. the paper is an effort to understand post-war human suffering. Harold Pinter, the absurdist playwright investigated the unfavourable circumstances in this period where every kind of predicament troubled the humans. Existential dilemma has been the foremost issue discussed in the paper; it kept post-war humans on shocking edges all the time. The other issues reflected in the paper are Identity crisis and Breakdown of communication which have been the factors for human absurdity. The issue of hegemony or domination found among individuals is revealed through the events of the play.

Keywords: Communication breakdown, Hegemony, Identity crisis, Post-war, Suffering, The Caretaker.

Title: Chaos in Post-War Life —Analysis of the Caretaker

Author: Mudasir Ahmad Mir

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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Abstract: The paper addresses the procedures to adopt in validating Mathematics Test Items (MTI). The content validity was examined based on some experts’ judgment on the development of the items. The analysis of the 100 self-developed MTI with a sample of 200 testees was based on winsteps analysis. The result showed that the 86 items not only met the Rasch model assumption of measurement construct but also demonstrated good psychometric properties.

Keywords:  item difficulty, Rasch model, unidimensionality and construct validity.

Title: Construct Validity of Mathematics Test Items Using the Rasch Model

Author: ALIYU, R. TAIWO

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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Abstract: Tourism and its impacts is a multidimensional phenomenon that encompasses economic, social, cultural, religious, ecological, environmental and political forces. Sense of community is the feeling of obligation and commitment of an individual towards other members in the community. It develops over time through understanding of collective values, beliefs and interests among community members. This study emphasizes the participation of the community and involvement of local people as volunteers in tourism development and destination management process. Golden temple, the highest Sikh shrine, is well known for its historical significance, architectural splendor and religious importance. The lesser known fact is this that an important tourism centre like Golden temple which on an average receives more than one Lakh visitors every day is managed largely through volunteer ship and community participation. The seamless organization of tourism services like food, accommodation, transportation and housekeeping through community involvement is a model lesson in management of tourism services. In the above background, we have taken Golden temple as a case study to highlight the management of community kitchen, Langar, through community involvement and participative tourism. Langar at Golden temple is considered as world’s largest kitchen and our objective is to study and highlight the organization and management of the service. Our study also involves other volunteer services in providing facilities to visitors at Golden temple. Through observation on site visit, interviews of the service providers, volunteers and tourists at the site and through secondary information sources such as internet and existing literature on the subject. The study highlights the role of community and volunteers in tourism destination management. It analyses and brings to the forefront a viable model of tourism in which all stake holders has an active level of involvement.

Keywords: Hospitality, Tourism, Culture, Community, Volunteers, Participative tourism, Sense of ownership.

Title: Community Participation in Tourism: A Case Study on Golden Temple

Author: Anshumali Pandey, Priyadarshan Singh

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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Abstract: Animal Farm is a novel that can be reacted to in distinctive ways. On one level it is a wryly occupying Animal story, a story which uncovers human inadequacies and qualities by seeing those characteristics carried on by Animals. On another level it is an examination of how and why changes failure and how power undermines. In the meantime perhaps the most direct strategy for responding to Animal Farm is to see it as a satire on the events of the Russian Revolution and the climb of Russian communism. Orwell unravels the events of Russian history some place around 1917 and 1943 into a delightfully controlled dream about the exercises of animals on an English farm. To appreciate this satire and tremendous quantities of the unpretentious components of the story, we need to perceive what happened in Russia in the midst of those years.

Title: Deconstructive Interpretations of the Novel Animal Farm by George Orwell

Author: R.Gnanasekaran

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print) ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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Abstract: Crime films have been the most enduringly popular genre since the dawn of sound era in Hollywood. Mob and gangster films are a sub-genre of crime films and deals with the mafia and their organized crime focusing on rise and fall of power. These films primarily have stacks of money, guns, flashy cars, illegal goods, cluster of goons, crime families, and a plot with a central theme coupled with violence. Hollywood gangster films in the 1930’s had liberally drawn inspiration from the newspapers and books of the era. Films of gangster genre are strongly driven by themes such as power, loyalty, betrayal, rivalry, morality, revenge, masculinity, materialism etc. Motifs and symbols add structures and contrasts to effectively convey them. Gangster films, when viewed from an American perspective are to achieve the “American dream” that is to be rich and successful with the most power, one can obtain. The Godfather, a 1972 American crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola exposes the dark side of the American dream. Betrayal, revenge, masculinity, morality, and violence are some of the predominant themes which drive the film The Godfather. This paper focuses on the study, portrayal and execution styles of three such themes, Revenge, Masculinity and Glorification of Violence and the motifs in the film The Godfather.

Keywords: Crime, Mafia, Godfather, Revenge, Masculinity, Violence.

Title: Revenge, Masculinity and Glorification of Violence in the Godfather

Author: Abhilash B S

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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Abstract: The study was conducted by a sample of randomly chosen 500 respondents during 2012–2013 for assessing the integration of AER in English language classes. The respondents were selected from several Saudi universities because in Saudi Arabia, government are supporting establishment of cutting age infrastructure for AER like language labs, digital practice materials on CD ROMs, and Saudi Digital Library (SDL) and computers  desktops and laptops are available  both for teachers and students.  However, the outcome is not much noticeable. For this reason the current study was conducted to understand the problems associated with AER and to obtain idea for their solution. Findings of the study indicated that most of the teachers were not fully aware or had difficulty in using AER. The findings provide useful recommendations for educationists to focus on training of teachers and to enhance teachers’ capability of using AER. The emphasis should not just be on purchase and availability of AER, but it should be to update the teaching staff with AER by frequent training sessions so that to facilitate the integration of AER in actual teaching.

Keywords: advanced educational resources, use, problems, integration.

Title: Adaptation and Integration of Advanced Educational Resources (AER) By English Language Teachers in Saudi Arabia

Author: Saleem Ullah Muhammad Aslam

International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research

ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)

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