Livelihood Strategies in African Cities: The Case of Residents in Bamenda, Cameroon
This paper analyses the livelihood strategies of residents in the city of Bamenda, Cameroon. It argues that the informal economy is not the preserve of the poor. Middle income households also play a crucial role. Informal economic activities permit the middle class to diversify their sources of income as well as accumulate capital. It examines the role of class in the informal economy and analyses the impact of policy on those involved in informal economic activities. The paper reveals that formality, informality and policy are intertwined, thus making livelihood strategies in cities complex.
Farming in the urban environment of a developing nation — a case study from Ibadan metropolis in Nigeria
SummaryThe major characteristics, problems and prospects of farming in an urban environment of a developing nation are investigated using the Ibadan metropolitan area of Nigeria as a case study. Eight hundred farmers, made up of both part-time and full-time farmers were interviewed in five urban fringe settlements in the study area. Findings revealed that farming in the urban environment is guided by the logic of survival since most of the farmers engaged in urban cultivation are mainly low-income earners and they farm mainly to reduce their expenses on food and to supplement the family's income. The major problem confronting farming in the area is competition from non-agricultural land uses. Nevertheless, more than half (50.5 percent) of the farmers, who had been approached to sell their farmlands for non-agricultural uses in the area, rejected the offer, indicating that the prospects of continued farming are thought to be good. Measures like the sale of urban land at its agricultural value, provided the land remains in cultivation, as well as the further provision of land in and around the farmers' working places, could improve their access to land for extended farming.
A LITERATURE REIEW OF TARGET COSTING IN SSCI AND SCI&SCI-EXPANDED INDEXES
Target costing as a cost management and profit planning system is used by many competitive firms since 1970s. Although the concept is simple, the implementation needs an extensive collaboration inside and outside of the organization. In contrast, many organization managers think that target costing is just related with accounting and finance staff. Our study aims to review the literature of this important concept; target costing by examining 41 English articles published in SSCI and SCI&SCI-Expanded between 1985-2008. The study aims to briefly explain the content of each article to show the reader what has accomplished so far.