Fun with Education Essay

From a general perspective, ‘education’ implies a type of learning process wherein information, aptitudes, and propensities for a gathering of individuals are moved starting with one age then onto the next through educating, preparing and explore. In like manner, training focuses on the physical, scholarly, otherworldly and moral advancement of man. Training simply doesn't offer information to a person and empowering him to gain his occupation. In any case, it does considerably more than this. These days, what we can consider the to be as a future educator is the understudies don't have an enthusiasm for learning by the method of ‘chalk and talk’ any longer. They lean toward something new from the instructors which are additionally intriguing and fun. One of the best ways is remembering games for educating and learning process. Training can be fun through games. As a games educator, we can construct our student’s potential. Games are a mean of keeping the body sound and fit. To be sure, acceptable wellbeing is the primary state of joy throughout everyday life so the individuals who mess around by and large keep up great wellbeing. For instance, sports instructor can make fascinating games that can help understudies in working up their basic reasoning aptitudes other than physical quality. They can learn various sorts of abilities, for example, tossing, passing, and kicking in sports like ball, football and others. In addition, training can likewise incorporate tunes which are types of amusement. Along these lines, we can make our class all the more intriguing and understudies will be engaged. From the melody verses, we can clean our student’s language and jargon other than making learning progressively fun. They can likewise figure out how to communicate their feelings through melodies as tunes can be a decent remedy for pressure. Besides, instruction can be fun through pretending. We can include our understudies showcase a dramatization which may assist with improving their acting abilities and fearlessness. In a roundabout way, they will have the option to communicate their musings through pretend in a type of voice projection, outward appearance and furthermore non-verbal communication. Aside from that, they can reinforce their retaining abilities as well. This is on the grounds that they have to retain their contents. As we probably am aware, the world we are living today is innovation overwhelmed and everything should be possible quick and incensed. For models, phones, moment espresso machine, 60 minutes photograph shops and web can assist us with completing our undertaking in a brief timeframe. To put it plainly, innovation makes the world moves quicker than the past. Be that as it may, training doesn't have any alternate route for us to arrive at the goal. We should learn bit by bit. Careful discipline brings about promising results. Along these lines, we set aside some effort to accomplish our objectives in the field of instruction. More or less, we can make instruction fun from multiple points of view, for example, games and melodies. Hence, we can make our study hall loaded with delight and understudies won't feel exhausted while gaining from the educators. In addition, understudies will have the option to thoroughly consider of the crate. With this, the objectives of ‘fun in education’ could be accomplished.

About KFC Essay

Colonel Harland Sanders, conceived September 9, 1890, effectively started diversifying his chicken business at 65 years old. Presently, the KFC ® business he began has become one of the biggest fast help food administration frameworks on the planet. What's more, Colonel Sanders, a snappy help eatery pioneer, has become an image of innovative soul. In excess of a billion of the Colonel’s â€Å"finger lickin’ good† chicken meals are served yearly. What's more, not simply in North America. The Colonel’s cooking is accessible in excess of 80 nations and regions around the globe. At the point when the Colonel was six, his dad kicked the bucket. His mom had to go to work, and youthful Harland needed to deal with his three-year-old sibling and infant sister. This implied doing a significant part of the family cooking. By the age of seven, he was an ace of a few provincial dishes. At age 10, he landed his first position chipping away at a close by ranch for $2 per month. At the point when he was 12, his mom remarried and he left his home close Henryville, Ind., for work on a ranch in Greenwood, Ind. He held a progression of occupations throughout the following barely any years, first as a 15-year-old trolley conductor in New Albany, Ind., and afterward as a 16-year-old private, soldiering for a half year in Cuba. After that he was a railroad fire fighter, contemplated law by correspondence, rehearsed in equity of the harmony courts, sold protection, worked an Ohio River steamer ship, sold tires, and worked administration stations. At the point when he was 40, the Colonel started cooking for hungry voyagers who halted at his administration station in Corbin, Ky. He didn’t have an eatery at that point, however served people on his own eating table in the living quarters of his administration station. As more individuals began coming only for food, he moved over the road to an inn and eatery that situated 142 individuals. Throughout the following nine years, he culminated his mystery mix of 11 herbs and flavors and the essential cooking strategy that is as yet utilized today. Sander’s distinction developed. Senator Ruby Laffoon made him a Kentucky Colonel in 1935 in acknowledgment of his commitments to the state’s cooking. Furthermore, in 1939, his foundation was first recorded in Duncan Hines’ â€Å"Adventures in Good Eating.† In the mid 1950s another interstate roadway was wanted to sidestep the town of Corbin. Seeing a conclusion to his business, the Colonel sold his tasks. In the wake of taking care of his tabs, he was diminished to living on his $105 Social Security checks. Certain of the nature of his singed chicken, the Colonel dedicated himself to the chicken diversifying business that he began in 1952. He traversed the nation via vehicle from café to eatery, cooking clumps of chicken for café proprietors and their representatives. In the event that the response was positive, he went into a handshake concurrence on an arrangement that specified an installment to him of a nickel for every chicken the café sold. By 1964, Colonel Sanders had more than 600 diversified outlets for his chicken in the United States and Canada. That year, he sold his enthusiasm for the U.S. organization for $2 million to a gathering of speculators including John Y. Earthy colored Jr., who later was legislative leader of Kentucky from 1980 to 1984. The Colonel stayed an open representative for the organization. In 1976, an autonomous overview positioned the Colonel as the world’s second most conspicuous superstar. Under the new proprietors, Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation developed quickly. It opened up to the world on March 17, 1966, and was recorded on the New York Stock Exchange on January 16, 1969. More than 3,500 diversified and friends claimed cafés were in overall activity when Heublein Inc. gained KFC Corporation on July 8, 1971, for $285 million. Kentucky Fried Chicken turned into an auxiliary of R.J. Reynolds Industries, Inc. (presently RJR Nabisco, Inc.), when Heublein Inc. was obtained by Reynolds in 1982. KFC was procured in October 1986 from RJR Nabisco, Inc. by PepsiCo, Inc., for around $840 million. In January 1997, PepsiCo, Inc. reported the side project of its brisk help eateries †KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut †into an independentâ restaurant organization, Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc. In May 2002, the organization reported it got shareholders’ endorsement to change it’s enterprise name to Yum! Brands, Inc. The organization, which claims A&W All-American Food Restaurants, KFC, Long John Silvers, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell eateries, is the world’s biggest eatery organization as far as framework units with about 32,500 in excess of 100 nations and domains. Until he was lethally blasted with leukemia in 1980 at 90 years old, the Colonel voyaged 250,000 miles a year visiting the KFC eateries around the globe. What's more, everything started with a 65-year-old refined man who utilized his $105 Social Security check to begin a business. KFC KFC works in 74 nations and domains all through the world under the name â€Å"Kentucky Fried Chicken† or potentially â€Å"KFC.† It was established in Corbin, Kentucky by Colonel Harland D. Sanders, an early designer of the brisk help food business and a pioneer of the eatery establishment idea. The Colonel culminated his mystery mix of 11 herbs and flavors for Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1939 and joined his first franchisee in 1952. When KFC was gained by PepsiCo in 1986, it had developed to roughly 6,600 units in 55 nations and domains. KFC cafés offer seared chicken items and some likewise offer non-singed chicken-on-the-bone items, with the foremost course things sold in pieces under the names Original Recipe, Extra Tasty Crispy and Tender Roast. Other head course things incorporate Chunky Chicken Pot Pies, Colonel’s Crispy Strips, and different chicken sandwiches. KFC cafés additionally offer an assortment of side things, for example, scones, pureed potatoes and sauce, cole slaw and corn, just as sweets and non-mixed drinks. Their stylistic layout is described by the picture of the Colonel and particular bundling incorporates the â€Å"Bucket† of chicken. In 1996, KFC’s overall framework deals of over $8 billion became quicker than the business normal despite the fact that the quantity of cafés in its worldwide framework didn't tangibly increment. This development was to a great extent because of the effect of new items as appeared by the way that equivalent store deals in Company-worked stores in the U.S. expanded 6%. In 1995, same store deals for Company-worked stores in the U.S. were additionally solid, expanding 7%. For the primary portion of 1997, KFC same store deals development for Company-worked units in the U.S. was reliably positive bringing about a 4% development rate for the multi week time span. Normal U.S. framework wide deals per conventional unit in 1996 were $775,000. YUM BRANDS The Yum! Brands, Inc. association is right now made up of six auxiliaries sorted out around its five center ideas, KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, A&W All-American Food Restaurants and Long John Silvers. Yum! Brands and KFC is situated in Louisville, Kentucky; Pizza Hut and Yum! Eateries International are headquartered in Dallas, Texas; Taco Bell is situated in Irvine, California; and An and W All-American Food Restaurants and Long John Silvers are situated in Lexington, Kentucky. Each of Yum! Brands’ ideas are occupied with the activity, improvement, diversifying and authorizing of an arrangement of both conventional and non-customary QSR units. Non-customary units incorporate express units and booths which have a progressively restricted menu and work in non-conventional areas like air terminals, gas and accommodation stores, arenas, event congregations and universities, where a full-scale conventional outlet would not be handy or productive. What's more, there are roughly 367 units lodging more than one idea (â€Å"2n1s†). Of these, roughly 354 units offer both the full KFC menu and a constrained menu of Taco Bell items, and around 13 units offer both the full KFC menu and a restricted menu of Pizza Hut items. In every idea, purchasers can either feast in or do food. What's more, Taco Bell and KFC offer a drive-through alternative in numerous stores. Pizza Hut what's more, on a significantly more restricted premise, KFC offer conveyance administration. Every idea has exclusive menu things and underlines the readiness of food with excellent fixings just as one of a kind plans and exceptional seasonings to give engaging, delectable and alluring food at serious costs. VISION Our energy, as an eatery organization, is to put a YUM on people’s faces the world over, fulfilling clients each time they eat our food and showing improvement over some other café organization. A&W, KFC, Long John Silver’s, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell offer clients food they want, rebound worth, and client centered groups. The extraordinary eating involvement with every one of our eateries make our clients grin and motivate their steadfastness forever. Toward that end, our 750,000 partners the world over are prepared to be client insane people. With deals now in abundance of $1 billion in Australia, we have confirmation positive of the intensity of Customer Mania. In any case, what’s at its center? Three things, truly:  · Operational greatness  · Great promoting and publicizing  · Real â€Å"sit up and take notice† client assistance At the point when we took the idea of Mania to our Restaurant Team Members †the gifted individuals who manage our clients day in, day out, each day †they grasped it with energy. They took the program and went for it, turning out to be amazing impetuses for change all through our whole association! Why? Straightforward †Customer Mania opened their eagerness and inventiveness, enabling them to take the necessary steps to fulfill visitors. Tuning in to the Voice of the Customer Client Mania is an incredible idea, however how might we give it meat? By tuning in to the Voice of the Customer! One activity we attempted in Australia was to welcome RGMs to client investigate meetings, where they could clo

Fiscal Policy of Pakistan 2000-2007 - Free Essay Example

Abstract Pakistan’s socio-political front has always been a cause of limelight, be it due to changing political scenarios or implementation, enactment or revival of new economic policies. This report is an overview of the fiscal policy of Pakistan from the years 2000 to 20007. It focuses fiscal policy trends in the past few years from policy changes such as introduction of new taxes, abolition of a few, change in the ratio of direct and indirect tax, the number of people falling under tax brackets, data documentation and the shift from a volatile budget deficit to an improvement in revenue collection, tax receipts, curtail expenditures and in short a movement towards a steady and more progressive economy. Introduction Fiscal policy primarily deals with the levels and composition of taxation, spending and borrowing by the Government. A sound fiscal policy is essential for preventing macroeconomic imbalances and realizing the full growth potential. In order to address the structural problems in the tax system and tax administration, the government has been introducing wide-ranging tax and tariff reforms, as well as reforms in tax administration. These reforms have already started yielding handsome dividends. During the last seven years, tax collection by the CBR has increased by 130. 0 percent – that is, more than doubled. Fiscal Policy For Year 2000 to 2001 FY01 witnessed the implementation of strong fiscal management along with structural reforms in almost all key sectors of the economy. The reforms were focused on documentation aimed at improving tax compliance. Other measures included a tax amnesty scheme, the extension of GST to services, fiscal transparency, measures to arrest the overrun of expenditures, and several other steps intended to promote fiscal discipline and correct macroeconomic imbalances. Despite weaker than expected economic growth on account of the drought, these measures helped the government realize a significant in crease in tax revenue and contain expenditure growth. This jointly resulted in an impressive reduction of 1. 1 percent in the budget deficit to 5. 3 percent of GDP in FY01. Consolidated Fiscal Developments in FY01 The primary balance has remained in surplus for the last three years in a row, showing that the fiscal deficit is primarily driven by interest payments. Another measure of the fiscal position is the revenue deficit, which also shows signs of improvement in FY01; this was the outcome of exerted efforts to control government spending, which was sharply curtailed by 1. 7 percent of GDP over the last year. This was mainly on account of lower interest payments, reduction in other expenditures and a cut in the public sector development program of provincial governments. Moreover, higher tax collection also contributed to a reduction in the budget deficit. Despite lower than anticipated economic growth, consolidated tax revenues recorded healthy growth of 13. 8 percent over FY00, mainly on account of higher tax collection by CBR. However, this increase was eclipsed by lower non-tax revenues (consolidated), which slowed the overall growth in revenues to 4. percent in FY01, from 15. 6 percent last year. On the expenditure side, a deteriorating balance between productive and current spending over the past decade has continued to exacerbate the composition of the fiscal balance. Government borrowing to finance current expenditures has not increased the productive capacity of the economy. the revenue balance remained in deficit, indicating that the government is not only borrowing to finance development but also current expenditure. This has enhanced indebtedness of the country and stilted productive capacity. An interesting feature this year, was the reduction in interest payments, realized primarily on account of lower T-bills rates, lower returns on NSS, and smaller amounts of prize money carried by Prize Bonds. Spending on social and economic servic es also declined, which may be the upshot of better accountability and improved governance. Despite a significant decline in overall expenditures, development spending (consolidated) recorded a healthy increase of 16. 4 percent over FY00, indicating government efforts to reprioritize such spending. The compositio n of deficit financing during FY01, marked a significant shift from domestic to external sources, as external financing stood at Rs 128. 8 billion against Rs 66. 5 billion in FY00. This change is the result of higher inflows from international financial institutions (IFIs) as a result of the SBA, which in turn allowed the government to reduce its dependence on bank borrowings. Fiscal Operations of Federal Government in FY01 Recap of Major Fiscal Policy Measures The existing fiscal reforms date back to mid-December 1999, when the government announced its Economic Revival Program (ERP), which envisaged a self-reliant economy. Besides suggesting structural reforms in key sectors, the ERP announced a series of interrelated fiscal and legal reforms to correct macroeconomic imbalances in the economy. Initially, measures like accountability drive and tax survey were a source of public anxiety. However, these were precursors to the government’s commitment to institutionalize accountability and lay down the foundation of a fully documented economy. To appease public concerns related to these issues, the government announced a Tax Amnesty Scheme (TAS) in December 1999, to facilitate those who want to break away from past practices and pay their tax liabilities. Tax Survey and Registration Scheme The Tax Survey and Registration Scheme was launched on May 27, 2000, in an effort to document the economy, widen the tax base and add to tax revenue. The process of information collection and analysis was to be completed in three visits to businesses and households: Despite these encouraging developments, the direct contribution from the tax survey in te rms of revenue collections has been far lower than anticipated, primarily because of its medium-term nature and strong resistance by traders in the first quarter of the year. However, an enormous amount of data has been collected, which should help CBR realize higher tax collections in future. CBR Tax Collections One of the major challenges faced by Pakistan’s fiscal authorities is the matching of revenues with expenditures. Historically, CBR tax collections to GDP ratio, which is an indicator of tax effort, remained within a tight range of 10. 5 to 12. 5 over the last decade. Although, this ratio has witnessed a marginal improvement in FY01 on account of buoyant tax collections, it is still lagging behind the peak achieved in FY96. This low ax to GDP ratio can be traced to the existence of a large undocumented economy, extensive exemptions, a narrow tax base, reduction in import related taxes and the absence of a tax culture in the country. To enhance the mobilization of tax revenues, successive governments have undertaken wideranging tax and tariff reforms in the 1990s that marked a shift in the composition of tax revenue. The share of direct taxes has approximately doubled from FY90 to FY01, which is largely due to an increase in withholding taxes that account for almost two-thirds of total income tax revenue. However, after peaking in FY99, the share of direct taxes has marginally declined in subsequent years. The composition of indirect taxes witnessed a sharp swing in the late 1990s. The share of central excise duty (CED) in total indirect taxes has remained stable (except for the last two years) compared to sales tax and custom duties. As shown, the share of custom duties continued to decline over the last decade, largely due to tariff reforms and trade liberalization measures adopted Pakistan. The share of sales tax posted a steep increase in late 1990s, mainly on account of its extension to various sectors and government. efforts to repla ce central excise duty with sales tax.. Actual Tax Collections in FY01 As opposed to single digit growth of federal tax collections in the pervious decade, CBR revenues recorded double-digit growth for the second year in a row in FY01. In the preceding three years FY96-FY99, the actual tax collection increased by Rs 40. 5 billion or cumulative growth of 15. 1 percent. In the next two years FY99-FY01, tax collection rose by Rs 85. 4 billion or almost 27. percent. A healthy growth of 13. 5 percent in FY01 over actual collections in FY00, was the result of tax reforms during the year. The break up of revenues collected reveals that direct taxes increased by 12. 8 percent over actual collection in FY00. The direct tax base has also been expanded through reforms of agricultural income and wealth tax; in addition, exemptions have also been curtailed. A massive increase in workers welfare tax due to the realization of arrears also contributed to this increase in direct taxes. The growth of indirect taxes also remained buoyant on account of sales tax. During the year, monthly sales tax growth ranged from 30. 7 to 77. 0 percent, with an average increase of 48. 7 percent over actual collections in FY00. These increases were primarily due to the full year impact of GST extension to the energy sector and several other discretionary measures, which include extension of GST to pesticides and fertilizers, and to services that was previously subject to CED. In addition, higher GST collection also benefited from improving tax compliance, a wider tax base and increasing documentation due to the on-going tax survey. While sales tax revenue grew significantly, revenue from customs and CED recorded negative growth during most of this year. As mentioned earlier, the government has been substituting CED with GST, therefore the negative growth in CED is not surprising. Cus tom duties were not able to meet the budget target primarily due to lower than anticipated increase in dut iable imports. Surcharges Revised receipts from surcharges not only fell short of budget target, but also registered negative growth over actual receipts in FY00. Revenues from development surcharge on natural gas were in line with the budget target and recorded a healthy growth of 11. 0 percent (over actual collections in FY00). This was largely on account of the full year impact of increase in gas prices with effect from August 16, 1999. The entire shortfall in FY01 is therefore attributed to lower revenue from petroleum surcharges due to the payment of accumulated arrears to oil refineries. Moreover,higher international oil prices that were not fully passed on to consumers, also dampened oil surchargerevenue. Surcharges are considered a volatile revenue source because of the fluctuations in international prices. As retail prices were administered by the government and the effect of changes in international prices was not fully passed on to consumers, the result was an unant icipated fall in surcharges. Higher surcharge revenues in FY98 and FY99 were the windfall effect of lower international prices, which has reversed itself in the last two years. Federal Government Expenditure Revised expenditures on debt servicing, the largest component of current expenditures, registered a sharp decline of Rs 22. billion during FY01 over the previous year, but was still marginally higher than anticipated in the FY01 budget. The main impetus for this decrease came from lower interest payments on permanent, floating and unfunded debt. In addition to this, less than budgeted repayment of principal, despite higher interest payments on foreign debt (by 5. 6 billion over FY00), also helped reduce this expense. The fall in interest payments on permanent debt was brought about by lower interest payments on SLIC bonds and prize money on National Prize Bonds. Defense expenditures in the revised FY01 budget, recorded an impressive decline over actual spending last year and remained lower than budgeted. This was the result of tight monitoring and efficient use of defense spending. Interestingly, the massive decline in defense spending over FY00 and the steep increase in expenditure on general administration, were attributed to military pensions, which have been reclassified and transferred to the general administration head. During FY01, revised development expenditures were not only lower than anticipated, but also fell short of actual development spending in FY00. Lower development expenditures on the capital account were due to lower disbursements to the provincial governments, AJK, financial and nonfinancial institutions, local bodies and various other agencies/institutions for carrying out their development efforts. The Consolidated Budget FY0217 A strong increase of 27. 3 percent in development expenditures is projected over the revised estimates for FY01. Since the government has already identified four sectors to boost economic growth, the b ulk of development spending is likely to target areas. 9 In addition, the allocation for Special Programs and the Social Action Programs are also likely to be higher compared to last year. 20 Furthermore, a strong revival in the public sector development program of provincial governments is envisaged in the consolidated budget for FY02. As mentioned earlier, the government’s financing of the budget deficit has tilted toward external sources. Following the same pattern as this year, around two-third of the deficit is expected to be financed through external receipts, while the remaining component will be financed locally. Federal Government Budget FY02 Debt servicing are expected to increase by Rs 24. 2 billion, while Rs 11. 4 billion are reserved for banking sector reforms and for NADRA. In addition, Rs 6. 4 billion increase in expenditure on social services is projected. Four sectors include agriculture, small and medium industry, information technology, and oil, gas and mineral sector. Special programs include Khushal Pakistan, the Drought Relief Program and Devolution Plan. While, expenditures on the social action program aims at improving social services in select areas, which include primary education, nutrition, health, population welfare, water supply and sanitation. Fiscal Policy For Year 2001 to 2002 The emphasis on fiscal reforms encompassing documentation, transparency, and improving tax compliance, initiated by the present government, continued during FY02. However, unlike FY01, which saw a notable fiscal consolidation, the efforts to reduce the budget deficit during FY02 to the targeted 4. 9 percent of GDP were not successful as the overall deficit rose to 6. 6 percent of GDP. The specific factors driving this outcome include the negative impact of international political developments, unanticipated defense expenditures, and some one-off adjustments. A compositional breakdown of the overall FY02 deficit is instructive; while revenu e collections were admittedly lower than the target, the primary contribution to the above-target deficit was from a sharp rise in expenditures. The decline in revenues was, to a degree, explainable by a slowdown in domestic economic activity, a consequent decline in imports, as well as the negative impact of two unexpected trends that altered key tax bases, i. e. a continuing decline in domestic inflation and the appreciation of the Rupee against US Dollar, both of which contributed to a decline in ad-valorem tax receipts. Fiscal Performance Indicators As no single indicator can properly assess the overall fiscal performance of a country, a set of indicators has been presented to gauge the consolidated fiscal operations of the federal and provincial governments during FY02. Deficit Indicators The unadjusted overall budgetary deficit has clearly deteriorated during FY02; not only is it higher than the actual budgetary deficit in FY01, the rise clearly disturbs the overall downwar d trend visible since FY99 Revenue Indicators FY02 has seen a surprisingly strong jump in the revenue-to-GDP ratio, which rose by 1. percentage points even as the tax revenue to GDP ratio remained almost unchanged. In other words, the buoyant 15. 4 percent growth in revenues is primarily driven by rising non-tax collections, which is based on three main sources: (1) interest income on government loans, (2) dividends frocorporations, and (3) profits from other organizations. Expenditure Indicators The total expenditure to GDP ratio approximates the government’s share in the overall economy and provides information on the fiscal stance of the government. As evident from, after falling sharply in the first half of the 1990s, it depicts a gradual downtrend in succeeding years. Unfortunately, this gradual slide was almost exclusively at the cost of development expenditures. During FY02, the total expenditures to GDP ratio has jumped sharply from 21. 3 to 23. 7 percent, largely on account of current expenditure. Fiscal Developments at Federal Level The revised FY02 federal government revenue receipts stand at Rs 632. 8 billion. While below budget target, this figure is still 18. 3 percent higher than the collections during FY01. The improvement is almost entirely based on higher non-tax revenues. CBR Performance Tax Efforts The overall performance of the taxation system depends on its revenue generation, which is generally gauged by the tax to GDP ratio. Historically, the Federal tax to GDP ratio fluctuated in a band of about 2 percentage points around a mean of 11. 4 percent. Within total taxes, there is a structural shift from indirect taxes to direct taxes as reflected in the rising direct tax to GDP ratio. recent tax reforms reduced the role of these taxes, and therefore the continuing marginal up trend in direct tax collections over the past three years is quite encouraging. he variation in the indirect taxes to GDP ratio explains most of the varia tion in total tax collections. This co-movement also highlights the government’s heavy dependence on indirect tax revenues despite the regressive nature of such taxes. The present government has initiated wideranging taxation reforms to correct structural weaknesses, which include a Tax Survey and Registration Scheme supplemented with Tax Amnesty Schemes to ease public concerns, introduction of new Income Tax Law, a new Self-Assessment Scheme, etc. Broadening the tax base and improving efficiency in tax administration remained the main planks of taxation policy. These were implemented by reducing the number of taxes, rationalizing tax rates and penalties, and simplifying collection procedures. All these measures helped the government realize double digit growth in tax collections during FY00 and FY01, as also reflected in the rising tax to GDP ratio. However, lower growth in FY02 primarily due to slowdown in economic activity, lower imports and higher tax refunds undermine d the government efforts to record buoyant growth for a third year in a row. Trends in Monthly Tax Collections Although overall growth in net tax collections was disappointing during FY02, trends in monthly tax collections are insightful. Despite exceptional developments during the year under review, the seasonality remained unchanged, with peaks in revenue collections coinciding with quarter. Another important point is the clear improvement in revenue collections during the last quarter of the year. Specifically, revenue collection during Q4- FY02 witnessed impressive growth of 16 percent over the same period a year ago, with both direct and indirect taxes contributing to the improvement. Expectations Fell Short of Targets As in the previous year, the CBR tax targets saw three revisions during FY02, but the actual collections of Rs 403. 9 billion were still quite low compared to the final revised target of Rs 414. 2 billion, as well as the budget target of Rs 457. 7 billion. The initial budget target of Rs 457. 7 billion was revised downward to Rs 444. 7 billion in August 2001 to account for the shortfall realized in actual tax collections during FY01. 12 However, the impact of the September 11 shocks, and realized shortfall during Q1-FY02 forced CBR to resort to another downward revision of the FY02 target to Rs 429. billion by October 2001, based on preliminary projections of further revenue losses. However, the mid-year collections again fell short of the revised target, as the economic assumptions proved too optimistic. Refund/Rebate and Gross Collections During FY02, gross tax collections rose by 6. 3 percent year-on-year, but net collections rose by only 3. 0 percent due to a sharp increase in the payment of tax refunds/rebate. Specifically, refunds rose to Rs 79. 3 billion during FY02 compared to Rs 62. 1 billion a year before. Consequently, refunds/rebate as a percentage of gross collections jumped from 13. percent in FY01 to 16. 4 percent durin g FY02. The massive growth in refunds/rebates was the upshot of government efforts to substantially reduce the accumulated arrears of refunds/rebates. The government also streamlined the refund/rebate claims process, in a bid to help exporters remain competitive. Surcharges Revised estimates of surcharges stood at Rs 53. 9 billion for FY02 compared to the budget target of Rs 47. 0 billion. The entire increase is attributed to higher development surcharges on petroleum products. The rise is the result of a Rs 0. 75 per litre increase in petroleum development surcharge on diesel and Rs 0. 5 per litre on other oil products. 16 This revenue generation measure was specifically designed to improve overall revenue receipts in the presence of a binding fiscal deficit target under the PRGF. Unlike tax revenues, surcharges remained a volatile source of government revenue receipts in the past. However, the volatility in surcharges is attributable entirely to the fluctuations in petroleum surch arges given the smaller share of gas surcharges. With the deregulation of petroleum prices from the FY02, it is envisaged that surcharges will emerge as a more consistent source for the exchequer. Non-Tax Revenues In sharp contrast to the tax revenue picture, revised non-tax receipts stood at Rs 164. 7 billion, which are Rs 25. 6 billion higher than the budget target and over Rs 50. 0 billion higher than the actual receipts during FY01. The breakup of non-tax revenue showed that all three heads posted a healthy growth over a year ago, but the major driving force was higher receipts from civil administration. Receipts from property and enterprise were almost in line with the budget target, but Rs 13. 4 billion higher as compared to the previous year. This improvement was shared by interest income from provinces and institutions. Transfers to Provinces The transfers to provincial governments are revised downwards to Rs 175. 1 billion compared to Rs 190. 0 billion in budget estim ates. This downward revision is entirely on account of lower receipts in the divisible pool. Federal Expenditures Revised FY02 federal government expenditures on the revenue account stand at Rs 697. 7 billion, which is Rs 35. 1 billion higher than the FY02 budget estimates and Rs 85. 0 billion higher than the actual expenditures during FY01. Both, current and development expenditures, shared in this increase, as the former surged by Rs 55. 0 billion and the rest was absorbed by the latter. Within the current expenditures, changes in debt servicing, defense, grants and subsidies are notable. Debt servicing, which accounts for approximately half of current expenditures of the federal government, was Rs 9. 1 billion lower than the budget target for the year. This unexpected saving was largely driven by lower interest payments (on domestic debt and foreign debt) as well as a fall in the repayment of foreign debt. The savings on domestic debt were facilitated by lower-than-expected T-bill rates prevailing during the year and the retirement of Market Related Treasury Bills of worth Rs 193. 0 billion in July 2001. Defense expenditures, the second major component of federal current expenditures, was revised up by Rs 20. 1 billion during FY02. This exceptional increase reflected the tension on borders with India. However, the government showed remarkable discipline in terms of expenditure on the running of civil government during FY02, as the spending was in line with the budget target. Revised expenditures on the grants to provinces and other organizations witnessed a stunning increase of Rs 17. 0 billion over the budget target and Rs 29. 3 billion over the actual spending during FY01. Expenditures on subsidies also played a role in pushing up the current expenditures of federal government. Specifically, subsidies were around Rs 5. 0 billion higher than the budget target as well as the FY01 figure. This significant increase was primarily driven by higher paym ents to WAPDA. The increase in development expenditures of the federal government on the revenue account is a welcome measure. The bulk of this increase came from higher expenditures on education, health and irrigation projects. The revised current expenditures on the capital account saw a large increase of Rs 96. 7 billion over the target to reach Rs 196. 5 billion, representing a massive Rs 165. 7 billion rise over the FY01 figure. Financing of Federal Budget The revised data of federal government financing recorded considerable changes on account of factors affecting the inflow of receipts from internal and external sources, and changing borrowing requirements of the government due to shortfall in revenue receipts and overrun in expenditures. On the external front, the improved track recorded with IFIs, bilateral grants from friendly countries and relief from debt rescheduling helped the government realize higher receipts from external sources. On the domestic side, higher receipts from the public account are mainly from the national savings schemes. Revenue Receipts Gross revenue collections are budgeted at Rs 674. 9 billion, 6. 7 percent higher than the revised estimates of FY02. The bulk of this increase is anticipated from tax revenues, which are Rs 46. 4 billion higher than the revised FY02 estimates and indirect taxes are expected to contribute the greater share. Surcharges Petroleum surcharge receipts are also expected to grow strongly due to the full year impact of a FY02 revision in surcharge rates, and normal growth in the base. The gas surcharge receipts are expected to be unchanged at FY01 levels. Non-Tax Revenues All three components of non-tax revenues are projected to fall below FY02 revised estimates. The high FY02 dividend income from OGCL and other corporations is expected to fall, even as the revenue from income and property declines following the elimination of the guaranteed profit for refineries. Also, civil administration receipts are expected to be lower in FY03. Financing of the Federal Expenditures Revenue receipts remained the prime source of financing; an increase of Rs 23. 7 billion is anticipated in the budget for FY03, largely on account of higher tax revenues. In contrast, in both internal and external receipts are expected to decline in line with the lower overall budgetary requirements. Gross financing from external receipts is estimated at Rs 198. 1 billion for FY03 budget as compared to FY02 revised estimates of Rs 304. 0 billion. This is largely attributed to two factors: (1) overall lower financing needs of the federal government in the wake of anticipated decline in budget outlay; and (2) absence of extraordinary gains of rescheduling and re-profiling of external debt and expected lower grants. Fiscal Policy For Year 2002 to 2003 FY03 saw a decisive fall in the fiscal deficit to 4. 4 percent of GDP. This is the first time in decades that the annual fiscal deficit target has been me t (or exceeded); and also (2) the first time in over 25 years that the fiscal deficit has moved below 5 percent of GDP. Greater part of the improvement stems from a sharp jump in revenues consolidated tax receipts in particular depicted a 16. 2 percent YoY increase during FY03. While the fiscal adjustment efforts deserve credit, there are a couple of issues that merit further consideration: Firstly, the years the decline in the fiscal deficit was at least partially due to a reduction in developmental expenditures relative to the economy. Secondly, a significant contribution to the reduction in the fiscal deficit during FY03 is through a strong growth in defense receipts. t is important to recall that Pakistan still remains heavily burdened by the debt incurred in the past, and needs to generate sustained primary fiscal surpluses for years to come. therefore, the government should hasten to send a strong signal to investors and businessmen through the passage of the draft Fiscal Responsibility Law. At the same time it must ensure that the resulting fiscal space, in coming years, is used to increase investments in human development and infrastructure. Fiscal Performance Indicators The broad improvement in the Pakistan fiscal profile during FY03 is mirrored in the changes in most of the key fiscal indicators during FY03. Fiscal Balance Indicators In aggregate, fiscal balance indicators show that the broad recovery in Pakistans fiscal position since FY98 continued into FY03 as well. While the overall balance remains negative in FY03 . This not only reflects the FY03 reduction in the budget deficit, in absolute terms, but also the increased capacity of the growing economy to service the debt. The revenue balance, which measures the share of revenues captured by non-development expenditures, also improved in FY03. Here too, the deficit fell from 2. 1 percent of GDP in FY02 to 1. 6 percent of GDP in FY03 (its lowest level during last five years). The reduct ion in the revenue deficit was primarily achieved on the back of a strong increase in revenues coupled with a decline in debt servicing costs. The primary balance saw a marginal deterioration during FY03 due to a more pronounced decline in interest payment compared to the decline in the budget deficit. Thus, the primary balance fell from 2. 0 percent of GDP in FY02 to 1. 6 percent of GDP in FY03. Revenue Indicators Pakistans revenue indicators for FY03 depict some modest improvement over the corresponding FY02 figures. The total-revenue-to-GDP ratio rose to a ten-year high of 17. 7 percent in FY03 compared with 17. 2 percent in FY02. This improvement, and the related rise in the tax-to-GDP ratio primarily reflects the success of the governments efforts to widen the tax base and improve tax administration, due to which tax growth has outstripped the growth in the economy. However, improvement witnessed in non-tax-revenue to-GDP ratio in FY03, despite a sharp fall in SBP profits wa s mainly due to a rise in defense receipts. Expenditure Indicators there has been an across the board improvement in the current expenditure profile by FY01, with a sharp reduction in interest payments, a decline in defense spending and in general administration. In fact, the only segment that saw an increase in spending was general subsidies. Fiscal Developments at Federal Level The revised federal budget revenue receipts stood at Rs 701. 6 billion, up by 13. 3 percent during FY03 over FY02. This figure is also 4. 0 percent higher than the budget target for the year. The improvement is contributed by, both tax and non-tax revenues. The revised federal expenditures on the revenue account were Rs 709. 2 billion in FY03,2. 1 percent higher than in the previous year. Thus on revenue account, the Federal Governments own budget was almost in balance in FY03. CBR Tax Performance Helped by a realistic tax target, a broad improvement in the economy and rising imports, as well as vario us administrative measures, the CBR turned in an exceptional performance during FY03, comfortably exceeding the annual 13. 6 percent target growth for the period. The growth represents a significant improvement over the insipid 3 percent increase witnessed in FY02 . This the first time in the past 10 years that the annual tax target has been achieved. Indirect taxes accounted for approximately 67 percent of the aggregate net tax receipts, with approximately half being accounted for by sales tax alone. However, in terms of the annual target, indirect taxes fell short of the mark due to under performance by both sales tax and excise duty, but this was almost offset by the above-target performance of direct taxes and customs receipts. Despite the strong FY03 performance, the overall CBR tax to GDP ratio has seen only a small up tick from 11. in FY02 to 11. 3 percent in FY03. While the tax reforms have helped raise (and stabilize) direct tax receipts by about 2. 0 percent of GDP, the limited revenue yield from indirect taxes continues to be a drag on the aggregate tax performance. Refunds and Gross Collections The disbursed refunds declined from Rs 79. 3 billion in FY02 to Rs 75. 6 billion in FY03, even though exports were higher in the latter year. In fact, the FY03 refunds are only Rs 3. 7 billion lower than that paid in FY02. As a result, refunds as a share of tax collected reached 14. 1 percent. Direct Taxes After under-performing on targets during much of FY03, direct taxes surged strongly during Q4-FY03 to reach Rs 151. 3 billion by end-June FY03; 2. 2 percent over the target and 6. 2 percent over the FY02 collections. The above-target growth of the direct taxes appears to be a result of increasing economic activity as well as growth in the taxpayer base and withdrawal of exemptions in the FY02 budget. Withholding taxes (WHT) remained the biggest source of direct tax collections, accounting for approximately 76. 4 percent of the aggregate direct taxes in FY03. three of the five major ub-categories: salaries, contracts and imports (all indicating a rise in economic activity) strongly contributed to the FY03 growth in withholding tax receipts. The fall in the withholding tax receipts from the other two categories, interest income and income from securities probably reflects the steep drop in interest rates in the economy. Voluntary payments and collection on demand are the other two main components of income tax. The collection on demand posted a small growth, which depicts improvement in the audit, detection and penalty imposition system. Within voluntary payments, private, public companies, banks and foreign companies, contributed the largest share of around 77 percent, and the individuals contribute the remaining 23 percent. 4 Voluntary payments registered a decline during FY03, largely on account of a sharp reduction in the payments by PTCL (from Rs 6. 4 billion in FY02 to Rs 0. 1 billion in FY03), and the expiry of the tax amnesty scheme. The real test of increased tax effort by administration and compliance would he in higher share of voluntary payments and collection on demand, as the withholding taxes are captive payments made at the source of income. Sales Tax A robust 17 percent growth in GST receipts pushed the FY03 receipts to Rs 194. 8 billion, accounting for 42. 3 percent of the aggregate CBR tax collections during the period. More importantly, the incremental GST receipts during FY03 accounted for a stunning 50 percent of the CBR tax increase witnessed during the year. However, despite this performance, the FY03 still fell 4. 5 percent short (Rs 9. 2 billion) in meeting the target. the share of GST on imports in total GST receipts declined to 54. 1 percent in FY03, from the 55. 7 percent recorded in FY02. This phenomenon is explained by: (1) tariff rationalization and (2) the exceptionally strong domestic sales tax collections; while 13. 6 percent growth was registered in GST on import s, a far more robust 21. 1 percent growth was achieved for domestic GST. The strong growth in net domestic GST collections was despite the fact that 99. 5 percent of the total Rs 43. 9 billion FY03 GST refunds were on gross domestic receipts. Interestingly, while export growth has remained strong throughout FY03, the high GST refunds (relative to FY02) is visible mostly in the latter half of FY03. Customs Duties The exceptionally strong 44. 5 percent increase in customs duty receipts during FY03, resulted in incremental receipts of Rs 10. 1 billion over the FY03 target, to Rs 69. 1 billion. This outcome eased the significant shortfall in sales tax receipts and contributed to the achievement of the overall FY03 tax revenue target. The higher customs duty collections were driven primarily by a 12. 4 percent rise in dutiable imports during FY03, which coincided with a jump in the effective rate from an average of 18. 5 percent in FY02 to an average of almost 19 percent during FY03. The rise in the effective duty rate, in turn, was driven by a fall in refunds paid on customs duty receipts, which dropped more than 35 percent, from Rs 26. 8 billion in FY02 to Rs 17. 2 billion in FY03. This fall in the refunds clearly indicates that a significant portion of the increased imports during the year pertained to goods for domestic consumptions (automobiles), or for investment (machinery imports), as much as intermediate inputs for exports. Central Excise Duty The FY03 CED receipts totaled Rs 45. 0 billion, 4. 6 percent lower than in FY02, and 5. 3 percent lower than the FY03 target. Surcharges The revenue from surcharges rose 21. 9 percent to Rs 66. 9 billion during FY03. most of this increase was due to a considerable growth in petroleum development surcharge collections, which rose 28. 1 percent during the period, despite small reductions in the fixed per litre levy. The FY03 gas development surcharge receipts grew at a more moderate 11. 6 percent, on the back of a small rise in the gas prices (as newer, more expensive, gas fields were brought on-line) and higher gas sales volumes. Non-Tax Revenues The non-tax revenue receipts in the consolidated government accounts stood at Rs 164. 9 billion or 4. percent of GDP, these have posted a 13. 0 percent growth in FY03 over FY02. Although, there were some setbacks on account of some heads like SBP profits (which were Rs 20 billion below budgetary target), WAPDA and NHA receipts, but this was largely compensated by income receipts from civil administration, and dividend income (Rs 9. 9 billion from OGDC and Rs 12. 3 billion from PTCL). The higher share of civil administration reflects higher receipts under the sub-head of defense, due to logistic supports provided to the international forces. Federal Expenditures The federal expenditures recorded an increase of Rs 11. billion over the previous year. While, current expenditures recorded a 10. 7 percent rise as compared to FY03 budget estimates, de velopmental expenditures fell by 8. 9 percent. The shortfall in revenue developmental expenditures is a matter of concern; it is an indicator of less spending on maintenance and provision of various social services. In contrast, capital developmental expenditures recorded a marginal increase of 1. 7 percent in FY03 over budget estimates of FY03, and 9. 5 percent over actual of FY02, even this increase is apparently due to abase effect as FY02 itself had shown a decline of 1. percent. Fiscal Policy For Year 2003 to 2004 Overview The robust growth in revenue and moderate rise in expenditures contributed significantly towards the fiscal consolidation of the government during FY04. The budgetary deficit declined for a successive second year in absolute terms from Rs. 184. 6 b in FY03 to Rs. 173. 9 b in FY04. Due to strong growth in economy, the budgetary deficit dropped as a percentage of the Gross domestic Product (GDP). It fell from 4. 5 % in 2003 to 3. 9% in 2004. It was even lower t han the target. There was a strong increase in revenue receipts of 11. 4%. This was mainly a result of a surge in both Tax Collection and Non Tax Receipts. The bulk of it was from CBR taxes, led by a strong growth in trade related taxes. There was also a rise in Net Tax Receipts which was due to higher logistic support receipts and larger dividend from PTCL and OGDCL. The rise in expenditure moderated to 7. 9% in FY04 from 9. 2% in F 03. This was due to a decrease in current expenditure (2. 6%) on the back of sharp drops in unallocable expenditures, grants, social services and subsidies. This offset the increase in expenditure on defense, law and order and debt servicing. There was a 3. 8% decline in federal expenditure whereas provincial expenditure rose. Developmental Expenditure in FY04 was Rs. 154 b which was against the budgeted of Rs. 160 b. There was under-utilization of Rs. 5. 6 b but it was still higher from those of FY03. There was a notable decline in net external f inancing due to the end of Saudi Oil facility and repayments of costly external debts. Borrowing from non-bank sources also fell because there was a drop in financing from domestic non-bank sources which represents the negative net receipts from National Saving Schemes. Fiscal Performance Indicators The underlying improvement in the fiscal discipline during FY04 can be seen by the movements in the key fiscal indicators. Balance Indicators: the overall performance of the balance indicator showed a very satisfactory result. It followed a declining trend, falling to a historical low at 3. 9% of GDP. The revenue balance showed great improvement. It moved into surplus for the first time in 20 years. The primary balance rose to 0. 8% of GDP due to better revenue receipts. Revenue Indicators: there was 11. 4% increase in revenue growth in FY04. It pushed up the Revenue to GDP ratio. It was an outcome of the tax reforms of the last decade. Expenditure Indicators: it also shows a disti nct improvement. Total Expenditure to GDP ratio fell to the lowest since the 1990’s. It was caused by a decrease in current expenditure than development expenditure. The YoY decrease in current spending was caused by the absence of the FY03 equity injections into KESC. Development expenditure stood at 3. 5% of the GDP. The revised Federal Receipts for FY04 were Rs. 761 b and were targeted to be at Rs. 728. 4 b. There was a rise of 4. 5%. Receipts from CBR surpassed the target by 8. 8 b and reached Rs. 518 b in Fy04. Growth in Direct Taxes accelerated to 8. % in FY04 from 6. 6% in Fy03. Revenue Collection from GST constituted 42. 6% of the total CBR revenues. There was a growth of 12. 3% mainly from imports collections. Custom duties also rose by 3o. 6%. This was a result of a reduction in tariff rates and an increase in imports. Surcharges also rose in FY04. They were above target. The Central Excise Duty, however, was short of target. The Federal Expenditure on Revenue Accou nt stood at Rs. 773. 2 b. Debt servicing was increased by Rs. 61. 8 b. Other increase took place in defense expenditure this was basically a result of troops operation in the Western Borders. These were offset by the decline in subsidies of 11. 3%. Financing of Federal Budget Although the reduction in the budgetary deficit significantly reduced the government’s funding requirement during FY04, government borrowing from the banking system increased due to lower availability of external financing as well as reduced availability of non-bank financing. Fiscal Policy For Year 2004 to 2005 The CBR achieved its revenue target for the third successive year in FY05, helping raise the aggregate revenues well above the Rs 851. billion revised target. However, expenditure exceeded the target substantially, pushing the overall budgetary deficit to 3. 3 percent of GDP, slightly above the target of 3. 2 percent of GDP, and higher than the 3. 0 percent of GDP in FY04. To put this in persp ective, the rise in the budgetary deficit in FY05 ended a 6 year downtrend. While the overall budgetary deficit is still low, the increase in the deficit is disquieting, given the weak buoyancy in tax receipts, and the seeming inability to widen the tax base substantially. The cause of concern is the complacent tax effort and overall revenue mobilization despite the collection of Rs 900 billion. Admittedly, the weak FY05 growth in tax receipts is, in part, understandable, as it stems from the loss of the PDL revenues, following the government’s decision to buffer the economy from at least a part of the rise in international oil prices. However, it is instructive to note that the FY05 tax-to-GDP figure declines even when adding back the full budgeted PDL revenue for the year. Had the revenue-to-GDP ratio attained in FY04 been repeated in FY05 the revenue collection would have been higher by Rs 75 billion and all the fiscal indicators would have looked quite solid. Anothe r point of weakness is the structure of government revenues. More than half of the increase in government revenues during FY05 over the preceding year is from a sharp jump in non-tax revenues, as a result of which the share of tax receipts in total revenues declined from approximately 77 percent in FY04 to 73. 3 percent in FY05. Also, within non-tax revenues, a significant contribution is from non-recurring items, such as unexpectedly large contributions from defense receipts, payments from the UN, SBP profits, PTA receipts, etc. Given that these flows cannot be relied upon and are unlikely to repeat themselves in the future to the same extent, the concerns over the trend of the overall budgetary deficit in the years ahead are quite legitimate. A related weakness in the revenue structure is an almost total dependence of all tiers of government on Federal taxes. Although the National Finance Commission would examine the nature of inter-governmental fiscal relationships, the rev enue mobilization efforts by the Provincial and local governments, particularly in the relatively well-off provinces such as Punjab and Sindh, have to be stepped up. In short, the FY05 fiscal developments have exposed weaknesses in the tax systems that need to be addressed if the improvement in fiscal indicators in the current decade is to be sustained. In particular, the importance of raising revenues from sectors that have traditionally remained undertaxed cannot be overstressed. Moreover, the responsibility for this cannot lie solely with the CBR or, indeed the Federal government. Provinces enjoy constitutional authority in respect of agriculture income tax and sales tax on services – these two sectors contribute over 75 percent of GDP, but their share in total revenues remains negligible. The taxation of agricultural income has already received considerable attention at the policy level, but the tax yields remain low. More surprisingly however, there has been little de bate on the poor growth in the services sector taxes. As highlighted in the subsequent sections, sustainable growth will depend heavily on tapping resources from all economic activities equitably, and the efficient usage of these resources. The provinces will have to significantly enhance their tax collecting capacity to meet their financing requirements. Such efforts will greatly improve the tax-to-GDP ratios, and will also meet the objective of fiscal decentralization. Finally, while it is encouraging to note that a strong contribution to the FY05 expenditure growth is through a large rise in development spending, the apparent sharp (21. percent YoY) increase in FY05 current expenditure is clearly less desirable. However, it must be acknowledged that this rise may be over stated. The provisional consolidated expenditure for FY05 includes a massive negative Rs 78. 5 billion (i. e. 1. 2 percent of GDP) statistical discrepancy. If the total expenditure is adjusted for this, i. e. this expenditure did not take place, the expenditure growth drops to only 1. 4 percent – which would suggest an exceptionally good performance. On the other hand, if the statistical discrepancy only represents the lack of expenditure allocation to the appropriate categories nd thus lack of reconciliation without affecting the level of aggregate spending then this rise in current expenditure is indeed highly worrisome . Fiscal Performance Indicators Fiscal performance can be gauged through the following quantitative indicators. Balance Indicators All three major balance indicators (fiscal balance, revenue balance and primary balance) that had depicted an improvement in recent years, witnessed a visible deterioration in FY05, highlighting the weaknesses in revenue mobilization efforts. †¢ Fiscal balance is the key balance indictor for monitoring fiscal strength. An improvement in the fiscal discipline and expansion in the tax net have both been instrumental in reducing the fiscal deficits in the current decade from the high levels during the 1990s. In FY05, above-target expenditure, and the decline in the tax-to-GDP ratio, both contributed to a reversal in the trend decline in the fiscal balance ratio. This is troubling, even though not yet a source of serious concern (as the ratio is still quite low). †¢ Revenue balance, an indicator to judge the saving capacity of the economy, once again turned negative in FY05, after a positive drift of 0. percent of GDP in FY04. While the reversion of the FY04 revenue surplus was not expected to be sustained in FY05 (as per budgetary estimates), the actual negative balance is larger than anticipated, and again points to a weakness in fiscal discipline. †¢ Primary balance, the third balance indicator, measures the effects of current discretionary budgetary policy by excluding interest payments. It shows how recent fiscal policy affects the government’s net debt and helps in assessing sustainabi lity of the fiscal deficit. During the 1990s, the primary balance was around -0. 5 percent of GDP, but with a gradual improvement in other fiscal performance, it remained in surplus each year during the FY01- FY04 period. Unfortunately, this too turned negative in FY05. According to â€Å"The Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation Act, 2005† (FRDLL), the government has targeted to reduce the revenue deficit to zero by FY08 and to maintain public debt-to-GDP ratio at 60 percent by FY13. The fiscal picture suggests that while the government is still on the right rack to meet these targets,1 this owes more to the sustained growth of the economy rather than an improvement in the fiscal performance. Any drop in GDP growth due to unexpected exogenous shocks can adversely affect these targets. Revenue Indicators Overall revenue grew by 13. 8 percent YoY during FY05 to Rs 900 billion. Although this growth was a little higher than the 9. 8 percent YoY rise seen in FY04 as well a s the average for recent year, it was nonetheless substantially lower than the growth in nominal GDP, and therefore the revenue to GDP ratio fell to 13. 2 percent in FY05 from the 14. 3 percent recorded in FY04. The low buoyancy in revenues stemmed entirely from tax revenues, which rose only 8. 4 percent YoY during FY05, slower than the 9. 5 percent YoY growth in FY04. Specifically, not only did the growth of CBR taxes fail to keep pace with the growth in the economy, the collection of surcharges witnessed a decline (reflecting the government’s decision not to raise the domestic prices of many oil products in proportion to the rise in their international prices). As a result, the tax to GDP ratio dropped to 10. 1 percent. One silver lining in the FY05 revenue profile was the strong rise in non-tax receipts. These rose by 31. 7 percent YoY during the period, in contrast to the 10. 7 percent YoY increase in the preceding year. As a result, the share of non-tax revenues in to tal revenues increased to 27 percent in FY05. The major contributions to this increase were from: (1) defence service receipts that contributed Rs 52. 5 billion, (2) above-budget profits of the SBP, which contributed Rs 10 billion; and, (3) 17. 7 billion of revenue from PTA. 3 However, dividend income declined from Rs 74. billion in FY04 to Rs 56. 8 billion in FY05. In summary, revenue indicators demonstrate a very stagnant condition. Tax buoyancy estimates show a persistent decline over the last three years, falling to 0. 5 in FY05, from 1. 7 percent in FY03. All these factors suggest stagnancy in the tax base and weaknesses in resource mobilization efforts. Expenditure Indicators Total expenditure rose by 25. 1 percent YoY to reach Rs 1,195. 5 billion in FY05 compared to a growth of 6. 4 percent in FY04. As result, the expenditure to GDP ratio rose to 18. 3 percent in FY05, as compared to 17. percent in FY04, but remained below the historical levels. Encouragingly, this strong ris e in expenditure growth is primarily on account of development spending rather than current expenditure. Current expenditure, which rose to 21. 7 percent YoY to Rs 943. 1 billion, exceeded the budgeted target of Rs 856. 5 billion. However, when seen as a percentage of GDP, the rise is small – from 14 percent in FY04 to 14. 4 percent in FY05. A substantial contribution to this relatively positive expenditure profile is the subdued growth in both defence spending and interest payment. Interest payments as a percentage of GDP actually continued to decline in FY05, while defence spending remained static as a percentage of GDP. In fact, defence expenditure has remained stagnant throughout the last six years, i. e. FY00-FY05. Net lending to PSEs increased by 21. 4 percent; this rise in lending was mainly due to huge losses in the energy sector. Fiscal Developments at the Federal Level The federal government surpassed the revenue collection target of Rs 796. 3 billion for FY05, w ith the actual receipts of Rs 867. billion, representing a YoY increase of 14 percent. Out of the FY05 collection, Rs 624. 8 billion were from taxes, while Rs 242. 8 billion comprised of non-tax revenues. Thus, the main causative factors behind the weaknesses in revenue collection are the lower Federal revenue collection, and that too in the tax and non-tax components. In the Federal tax component, the surcharges/GDP dropped by 0. 6 percentage points due to a deliberate policy of reducing the Petroleum Development Levy to offset the cushion of higher international oil prices. The reduced CBR revenue-to-GDP ratio has arisen due to lower collection on account of direct taxes (3. 0 to 2. 8 percent of GDP) and sales tax (4. 0 to 3. 7 percent of GDP). The sales tax has been a major contributor in revenue mobilization in recent years, but unexpectedly weak growth receipts meant that its share in total collections dropped in FY05; while the GST receipts of Rs 240 billion were slightly h igher than the revised target of Rs 239. 5 billion, these were significantly below the original FY05 target of Rs 249. 2 billion. Of the FY05 receipts, Rs 94. billion were collected from domestic resources and the remaining were collected on imports. The net collection from domestic sales tax grew by only 1. 5 percent at the time when large scale manufacturing growth was 15. 6 percent. Had it not been for 15. 3 percent increase in sales tax on imports the overall outcome would have been even more dismal. Various policy measures, like deregistration of retailers/manufacturers having annual turnover of less than Rs 5 million, zero-rating exemption of duty on various products, contributed to the weak GST collections in FY05. However, the amendment in taxpayers slab drastically reduced the number of taxpayers on one hand, and decreased the sales tax to GDP ratio from 4 percent during FY04 to 3. 7 percent in FY05 on the other, lowering the buoyancy of tax collection. FY05, duty relie f over various commodities5 has led to a drastic increase in the import value of certain commodities like vehicles (up 70. 5 percent), machinery and mechanical appliances (up 70 percent), electric machinery and equipment (up 117. 5 percent), iron Steel (up 102 percent), contributing not only to an acceleration in economic activity, but also higher customs duty collections. Central Excise Duty Although this tax is being replaced with sales tax, and very few heads are left within the network of Central Excise Duty, the revenue collection showed an upward trend and surpassed its target of Rs 52. 8 billion slightly with a collection of Rs 52. 9 billion . A commodity wise breakup shows that the biggest contribution to this FY05 increase was from cigarettes tobacco (that comprised 41 percent of the gross annual receipts), followed by that from cement (21percent of the gross annual receipts). While the increase in receipts from the first was driven by growth in output (along with p rice and duty adjustments), the 17. 7 percent rise in CED collections on cement reflect the corresponding rise in production following a strong recovery by the construction sector in FY05 and rising exports . Surcharges Surcharges are one of the most important sources of revenue for the government. In FY05, as against the target of Rs 65. 3 billion, the collection could hardly reach Rs 26. 8 billion, out of which Rs 16. 2 billion were collected from gas, whereas Rs 10. billion were from the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL). The shortfall in surcharge from PDL is because of a hike in international oil prices that put the government with the difficult choice of passing on in full the higher prices to domestic consumers (and risking a sharp rise in inflation and slower growth) or reducing its fuel taxes (and worsening its fiscal position). The government chose the latter, and consequently, its PDL receipts of Rs 10. 6 billion were well short of the Rs 47. 4 billion budget target. Non- Tax Revenues Non-tax revenues surpassed the target of Rs 141. billion in FY05 with an outstanding collection of Rs 240. 7 billion, representing a 70 percent rise over the budget estimates. Therefore, the non-tax to GDP ratio rose to 3. 7 during FY05 from the 3. 3 percent in FY04. This helped out in offsetting the high expenditure during the year. Federal Expenditure The Federal government spending rose to Rs 1001 billion in FY05, representing an increase of Rs 11. 4 percent YoY. Revenue expenditure for FY05 amounted to Rs 866. 8 billion with an increase ofRs 12. 1 billion; while capital disbursements declined to Rs 119. 7 billion. The increase in revenue expenditure from 12. 8 percent of GDP to 13. 2 percent in revised estimates was mainly because of current expenditure that rose to Rs 784. 7 billion against the BE of Rs 700. 8 billion during FY05. This rise is principally because of public order and safety affairs (up 16. 4 percent YoY) defence affairs (up 11. 5 percent YoY) and general public services (up 10. 6 percent YoY) that grew due to higher debt servicing. 7 Developmental expenditure on Revenue Account (RE) was though 39 percent higher than FY04 but it remained below the budgetary estimate for FY05. This decline is attributable to (a) expenditure on public health services, which fell from Rs 5. 2 billion to Rs 4. 7 billion, (b) a fall in education affairs and services expenditure, from Rs 3. 8 billion to Rs 2. 4 billion (c) a decline in expenditure on economic affairs, especially agro food, irrigation, forestry fishing, from Rs 23. 7 billion to Rs 21. 5 billion. Financing of Federal Budget Despite a larger deficit, the financing from domestic sources declined sharply in FY05, principally due to a 36. percent YoY jump in external finance during the year The external resources included (1) commodity aid (Rs 78. 6 billion); (2) project aid (Rs 40. 8 billion); (3) Issue of sukuk (Rs 35. 8 billion); and (4) IDB loans (Rs 17. 9 billion). Grants provi ded an additional Rs 18. 6 billion, of which commodity aid comprised Rs 12. 9 billion. These were supplemented by Privatization proceeds of Rs 10 billion in FY05. The domestic borrowings of Rs 80. 8 billion were entirely from the banking system, borrowings from the public account declined (reflecting the net outflow from the NSS instruments). Analysis of Tax Reform in Pakistan At present, the government is implementing reforms in the tax administration that were approved in November 2001 in consultation with (and with the financial assistance of) the World Bank. The reform strategy aims at increasing effectiveness of CBR, reducing corruption opportunities and raising the buoyancy of the tax system through organizational re-structuring, self-assessment, reduction of personal contact between taxpayers and tax collectors, simplified processes, revised terms and conditions for employment of CBR officials and improved IT management. There are certain missing links in the reform pro cess. Tax avoidance and evasion still appears to be widespread. 13 To quote an example, out of 12,526 returns filed by corporate sector14 in FY04, only 3,888 or 31 percent have paid some income tax and the rest 69 percent taxpayers have either declared business losses or there is nil income to declare, yet there seems to be little effort to increase the tax compliance and reduce the tax gap in the country. Indeed, quite to the contrary, it appears that the suspension of sales tax and income tax audit in FY05 and 100 percent reliance on taxpayers’ version of their income, may have weakened the capacity of the tax administration to collect due taxes, as reflected in the declining tax buoyancy in recent years. Penal provisions in the income tax ordinance, 2001 have also become ineffective. Therefore, in order to meet the declared objectives of the reforms, it is necessary to highlight the tax performance of CBR in an objective manner using key economic indicators, and to moni tor progress over time. The following analysis aims to make an objective assessment of the tax reform process, and to make evidence-based policy recommendations to accelerate resource mobilization and tax compliance in the country. Resource Mobilization (a) Tax-to-GDP ratio The tax-to-GDP ratio, which reflects the efficiency of a tax system, had remained stagnant over the years reflecting the inelasticity of the tax system. Ironically, in the wake of the tax reforms, this ratio has deteriorated, falling from 9. 6 percent in FY03 to 9. 0 percent in FY05. To put this in perspective, it is worth pointing out that according to the Government Finance Statistics of the IMF, this tax ratio is around 40 percent for high income countries, 25 percent for middle income countries and about 18 percent in low income countries. The low tax-to-GDP ratio for Pakistan not only reflects inefficiency, but also indicates the inequities of our tax system, as many sectors of the economy do not bear the proportionate burden in revenue generation. Prominent examples of these are agriculture and the service sectors. (b) Tax buoyancy The efficiency of a tax system depends on its built-in flexibility, that is, it should be elastic with respect to tax base, so that increase in the GDP can automatically lead to proportionate increase in tax revenues. But in case of Pakistan, the volatility in tax buoyancy estimates suggests that revenue growth over the years has been the result of ad hoc taxation measures, and inconsistent policies. While the volatility in the tax buoyancies appears to have decreased in recent years, the reforms appear to have reduced the buoyancies, which appear to be trending downwards. In other words, the trends suggest that while tax policies may be more consistent, the growth in receipts is less and less proportionate to the growth in income. Enforcement and Compliance (a) Number of tax payers in Pakistan. In the income tax regime, the gap between the NTN holders and those actually filing returns has substantially widened in the last four years. It must be remembered that the number of registered taxpayers is already low in Pakistan, amounting to approximately 1. 5 percent of the population. This problem is exacerbated by the rising trend of non-filing of returns, throughout the period of tax administration reforms. 5 Clearly, the increasing reliance on voluntary compliance, in the absence of effective enforcement, appears to be having perverse consequences for the stability of the tax receipts and documentation of the economy. Appropriate enforcement of compliance is required to check this negative trend in the wake of USAS. The sales tax has relatively performed better on this count as the percentage of non-filers has considerably decreased. However, as the data shows, the number of sales tax net-registrants has also declined, and the total registered sales tax payers have dropped to a five-year low. This is principally due to t he increase in the threshold limit for registration of retailers turnover manufacturers, from Rs 1 million and 0. 5 million respectively, to Rs 5 million in FY04. Tax culture that promotes voluntary compliance and inculcates taxpayer friendly environment is always assumed as a key to success; however, it also needs to be complemented by effective audit, and a system of penalties and prosecution for tax evaders and dodgers, otherwise, it is likely that the tax delinquents

Hopes and fears for the college Free Essay Example, 1250 words

Full Hopes and Fears for College I. Introduction (include in all outlines) a. Attention-Getter: College education is very important nowadays, it has become the dream of almost every hopeful individual. b. Thesis: Pursuing college education brings about hopes of young people that their dreams will come true however this is coupled by the fears of what is beyond their imaginations and expectation. c. Content: This writing will explore the common hopes and fears of college students and where these could possibly lead them in their endeavor. d. Transition: As one enjoys reading, it is the hope of the writer that there would come an illumination on the part of the reader about how college students feel. II. The main purpose of students of going to school is for them to succeed in life and they enter the walls of colleges with the hope that they will be able to step up the ladder of success. a. The first point to be discussed is the hope of building a good foundation, especially regarding school grades. Transition sentence: Gaining good grades is essential because it establishes how professors might perceive students and eventually treat them accordingly. b.We will write a custom essay sample on Hopes and fears for the college or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now Secondly, we will explore the hope of having good experiences with professors. Transition sentence: Ultimately, class performances and relationship with professors will determine how well one socializes not only with classmates but also with schoolmates and other people outside the campus. c. Thirdly, the hope of making good friends will be discussed. Transition sentence: it would be interesting to note what could be the opposite of these positive and encouraging characteristics in students. III. Contrary to the positive outlook about college life mentioned earlier, there are also fears that one must face. a. Students fear failures. Transition sentence: Students fears can go beyond their performances and see people around them as threats, too. b. Students fear they will have strict professors who will make their lives miserable. Transition sentence: It is important to consider how professors relate with students because somehow, this will affect how they will be on their way out of the classroom. c. Students fear that they will not get along well with other people in a whole new world that they are entering. Transition sentence: These develop the many faces of students which eventually define them and their responses to the challenges of college life. IV. Conclusion: Hopes are wonderful and necessary but equally important is the presence of fear which, initially may be seen as negative, when balanced with the hopes a person has, there comes a union which propels college students to reach their dreams.

Nurture over Nature the Benefits of Having Same Sex Parents

Nurture Over Nature: The Benefits Of Having Same Sex Parents Stephanie Cuellar COM170 March 21, 2013 Nick Courtright Nurture Over Nature: The Benefits Of Having Same Sex Parents Many people from older generations argue that same sex parenting is an abomination resisting any other insight into what is truly best for children. But it is true that hundreds of thousands of children are placed in foster care awaiting their forever families, and these children should not be denied a permanent family because of narrow mindedness. It does not take a scientist to figure that two people of the same sexual orientation cannot biologically conceive a child on their own; therefore adoption is the only option homosexuals have. While adoption†¦show more content†¦Because these children are less likely to undergo physical and/or emotional abuse it is probable they will respond appropriately to stress later in life. It seems to be a given that the children who are fortunate enough to have a healthy upbringing are liable to be successful in life without the emotional baggage abuse can create. Because homosexuals are more apt to accept their children’s personal ities and nurture a child’s differences it may prevent the child from rebelling or making disastrous decisions that could lead them to be incarcerated and other things of that sort. The United States of America is largely populated by the Christian religion, in which their views are believed that it is against Gods will for two people of the same sex to engage in relations. Yet, some lesbians and gays practice religion and some even consider themselves to be Christians. These homosexuals that practice religion believe that God does not judge them by their sexual preference but by their actions. As for any person that has studied the Bible, they are aware that it states Jesus died on the cross for our sins and we are made brand new. Which means God does not hold a grudge against anyone for any reason. Most of the Christians that are close minded on same sex couples existing are from older generations where people did not advertise their differences as theyShow MoreRelatedThe Importance Of Nature Vs. Nurture, Culture And Gender, And Finally Family Involvement1378 Words   |  6 Pagesthis task I will be addressing the importance of Nature Vs. Nurture, Culture an d Gender, and finally family involvement throughout the developing years of an infant. The developmental years in a child s life is classified under NAEYC 1b. The first standard has helped me understand the importance of making the student feel safe. It has made me understand that making bonds with the students is as equally as important as making the bonds between parent and child stronger. Reading and analysing articlesRead MoreAnalyzing Same-Sex Marriage1533 Words   |  6 Pageschild love someone who has same sex and wanted you to accept their love for each other by being at their wedding. Would you attend the wedding? Some would say yes; however, others would say no. Why would they say â€Å"No†? Because marriage has been traditionally defined as a religious and legal commitment between a man and a woman. As we know, same-sex marriage has been a prominent issue that has so many arguments not just in the United States, but around the world over many years now. There is absolutelyRead MoreThe Struggle Of Nature And Nurture2506 Words   |  11 PagesThe struggle of Nature and Nurture is a struggle that is partly within Silence’s own mind and partly in the world around her. Her biological sex does not allow her to achieve in her society and her mind does not feel she can maintain the lie her father has invented. The personified figures of Nature and Nurture represent her inner struggle and the outer struggle in the world around her. Nature represents Silence’s inner desires and Nurture represents her father and the world she lives in. In SilenceRead MoreThe Nature Nurture Controversy : 20th Century Present3499 Words   |  14 Pages History of the Nature-Nurture Controversy: 20th Century-Present Mary Truong University of Regina The nature-nurture controversy is an age-old dispute that has been debated since at least the time of Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.E). According to the nature stance, who we are as individuals, that is, our physical characteristics, personality, intelligence, and how we behave, is biologically inherited, now known through our genetics. Hippocrates for instance, posited that humanRead MoreMarx s The Communist Manifesto1184 Words   |  5 Pagesthe working class would not exist. This then leads to thoughts of the bourgeoisie being exploited at the cost of maximum profits for the capitalists and in turn becoming estranged from many of his own attributes. Marx believes we are estranged from nature itself in the sense that we ourselves do not chose what to create. We create what is in demand rather than for our own enjoyment. We are also alienated from ourselves. Marx says â€Å"if the product of labor is alienation, production itself must be anRead MoreEssay on Reproductive and Therapeuti c Cloning1472 Words   |  6 Pagescloned and therapeutic cloning is the cloning of cells, organs or tissues. Cloning is when two cells decide or are forced to duplicate into two cells to replicate each other. Cloning can be done deliberately or naturally; and it results in two copies having identical cells, DNA, genes, organs and organisms. Cloning is a common, ongoing, debatable topic among society today. Many people argue about how future scientific advances in cloning will affect society. Most often people dislike the idea of cloningRead MoreHomosexuality as Deviant3280 Words   |  14 Pagesunprotected sexual intercourse, the end result tends to be life, as a child is born nine months later. Only once a man’s sperm reaches the eggs of a woman is this possible. Clearly, life and the existence of the human species as a whole is the product of sex between a man and a woman. The norm of reproduction then, is the aforementioned union between man and woman in heterosexual in tercourse. Heterosexuality is viewed as the norm of most societies. This norm creates controversy regarding homosexuality,Read MoreEssay on Alcoholism Nature vs Nurture Argument2784 Words   |  12 PagesAlcoholism and the Nature vs. Nurture Argument Does the environment that one grows up in contribute to alcoholism or is alcoholism determined by genetics? It wasn’t until 1991 that alcoholism was considered both a medical and psychiatric disease by the American Medical Association. Alcoholism is defined in the dictionary as a chronic disorder characterized by dependence on alcohol, repeated excessive use of alcoholic beverages, the development of withdrawal symptoms on reducingRead MoreRole of Marriage in Society2476 Words   |  10 Pagesrather than destroy it. The goal of this paper will be to share both views of marriage and will include the history of marriage and same-sex marriage. It will cover the tribulations both the gay and straight community has gone through. I am talking about the role of marriage in society, but I’m not talking about whether marriage is a good or bad thing. Background: Over a period of many years, members of the gay and lesbian community have gone from living lives of secrecy to being proud and tellingRead MoreMental Health And Its Effects On Health5556 Words   |  23 Pagessome of the reasons for better understanding the reproductive system? As a child in the foster care system, the children may not have a parent or a support system who can explain the reproductive system to them. As a social worker working directly with these children it important that we can explain the reproductive system to these children as well as any parents who may not be aware of their options or the diseases associated with the reproductive system. For that reason, we need to have a better

Businesses need to invest in creative thinking if they want to be successful free essay sample

Businesses need to invest in creative thinking if they want to be successful With the rapid development of global economy, creative thinking is playing more important role in the global economic competition due to the fact that traditional ways can hardly keep up with the pace of increasing complexities and differentiated needs. As a result ,This essay will discuss the necessity and importance of creative thinking for success in business. Serrat (2009) argues that human resource is the most important factor to produce creativity and the world will remain the original level without innovation. This is especially true when we look back the history of social developments that illustrates new ideas and innovative products are produced by some employers with creative thinking skills. Therefore, companies should invest substantial money in training programs in order to encourage employees to develop the awareness and ability of innovative thinking. It is also important for executives to recruit experienced professionals by offering more attractive payment, and to make some specific plans like some themed activities to foster creativity of the employees. We will write a custom essay sample on Businesses need to invest in creative thinking if they want to be successful or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page What is more, upgrading and reorganizing the working environment is also one the most effective and common ways adopted by many international giants to stimulate employees’ passion and creativity. For instance, Google has been voted as the best workplace in many countries like Canada and India. However, micro-kitchens, tech stops and lavalamps in the lobby are only a small part of the most innovation-oriented environment that Google provides. The success of Google in terms of working conditions mainly lies in different decoration according to different working floors. Consequently, the working context is comfortable and inspirations are likely to be stimulated in such an amazing workplace. It is pointed out that advertisements should be able to come up with relevant creative ideas. (Benady,2008). It implies that companies have to shed traditional thinking ways and create new things. For example, traditional corporations always broadcast advertisements on TV to publicity the products. Nevertheless, an increasing number of companies prefer to market advertising board in metro stations and make some advertising movies in public areas. Furthermore, sales volume of products will be increased by using some creative sales modes properly. It has been successfully illustrated that APPLE company always launches limited edition products when they release new items and it engages many users to queue to purchase the  newest products. On the other hand, creative thinking enables leaders to make correct decisions. This concept is generally accepted by the public and a large amount of evidence has been proved that creative employers can accelerate companies to be successful. As is well known, Steven Paul Jobs, the CEO and one of the founders of Apple company, has led a revolution in digital world by smart phones of strong functions with his distinctive thinking and extraordinary vision. Nowadays, smart phones are not only cell phones but more like mini computers with the functions of digital cameras, GPS and all functions of laptops. People use it to read, to chat and to have some causal activities. When we begin to reflect the successful history of APPLE company, the mobile phones impressed users by its fancy appearance and strong functions in 2007 when Jobs pushed out the first generation of mobile phones to the market and achieved giant success, which also pushes the world into the digital age rapidly and the traditional cell phones were replaced quickly during less than 1 year. Actually, the enormous success of APPLE company is believed to benefit from Job’s innovative ideas and fearless decisions. Therefore, leaders with creative ability is crucial to the success of enterprises. In conclusion, creative employees, innovative sales modes and innovative leaders are three main factors for the success in business. Enterprises should not ignore these aspects, being aware of the three factors and implement them when companies choose new leaders and make new advertising plans. Companies are likely to be active and successful effortlessly if they manage them exactly.

The Natural free essay sample

An analysis of Bernard Malamuds novel, `The Natural`. An analysis of Bernard Malamuds novel The Natural. The author examines the themes and characters in the book with focus on the authors use of symbolism and language. The author describes the main character as a baseball player and his bat represents a sword. The relationship the boy has with his bat is compared to the relationship that a knight has with his sword. `Bernard Malamuds novel The Natural is both a relatively simple story about a semi-pro baseball player who begs a scout to help him make it in the all-American game of baseball and a complex literary exercise in the use of simple, concise symbols to convey in as efficient a way as possible entire universes of meaning. This paper examines one of the most important and pervasive symbols in this 1952 work the bat that Roy uses and that serves as a symbolic lance. We will write a custom essay sample on The Natural or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page `

Home Depot Service

Home Depot Service Introduction and service Background of Home Depot Home Depot Inc has grown immensely since its commencement back in the 1970’s when it was a small organization founded by three business executives who had left Handy Dan Stores to start their own home appliance service delivery company. Back then the company had only one store and annual earnings of $ 23M.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Home Depot Service specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More But through good management and efficiency, the company has grown into one of the largest vendor and installer of home improvement appliances serving individuals and professional customers. The company’s founders retired back in the year 2000 after opening the 1000th store and Bob Nardelli was appointed C.E.O. This move has contributed a lot to the success of the company because since then the company has even performed better. The new C.E.O has overseen the openin g of over 900 stores and currently the organization has over 2200 stores across the United States of America. The home improvement retailer is now among the top 3 retailers in the world following Wal-Mart, but it is the America’s largest Home Improvement appliance and service selling company in the United States of America, the company is now a home appliance service company helping build beautiful homes across America, Canada and Mexico. The company has experienced profit growth every year since 2000-2005; the profits have grown from $45.7B in 2000 to over $81B. Despite the value of its shares doing poorly in the NYSE, the company has improved its earnings per share from $1.10 to $2.75 therefore pleasing shareholders and currently the company has paid out close to $ 13B in cumulative earnings back to its shareholders. Besides this, the company’s operating margin has also grown from 9.2 % to 11.5% thereby indicating that the company is quite healthy and is performing w ell. The company has over 300,000 employees on its payroll to ensure that the company is able to cater for its customers especially when it comes to superior service delivery.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The efforts of former C.E.O, Bob Nardelli, have to be appreciated since he has used all his experience and skills in his position to ensure that the company continues to operate on a path which allows it to grow in both size and revenue by catering for the needs of their customer base and offering a lot of competition to rivals such as Wal-Mart by building stores and Home depot centers that are spacious and well designed. The decision to open the Home depot online business has also played a big role in ensuring dominance of the retailer. Strategic Posture Mission Home Depot Inc is a well established company that aims to provide its customers with the highe st quality home improvement products and high quality service (Home Depot Inc). The slogan, â€Å"improve everything we touch,† is a clear indication of the customer experience that is part of the service delivery strategy that Home Depot wants its entire customers to experience as soon as they enter in the premises of the organization to purchase products from their retail centers all over America (Kotler, 167). The company takes its customers seriously and hopes to offer solutions to their daily needs by providing services that will improve the homes and lives of their customers. This mission has been relevant to the current performance and the vision of the company is to become the best retail company of this millennium with superior service delivery. Objectives Home Depot has most of its services rooted in the service industry; the organization desires to be one of the biggest participants in the retail industry in this millennium and also aims to realize a rise in its ma rket share by acquiring other companies using an aggressive business strategy. The company has ambitions to maintain an annual growth in sales of between 9-12% by the year 2012. Additionally, the company aims to increase its earnings per share for its equity owners to between 10-14% by the year 2012 by growing its service delivery to its target audience.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Home Depot Service specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The company believes that its survival is not the only objective but it is important for the company to grow and acquire other new companies such as Hughes Supplies to increase its dominance in the retail industry. Furthermore, the company intends to pen close to 400-500 stores in various regions of the world by the end of 2012 despite the indication that the market is saturating. Other objectives of the company include increasing cumulative operating cash flow to $50b, cumulati ve capital expenditure to $17-20b and grow their supply sales to $23-27b (Home Depot Inc).The stores believe that their targets can be met if employees spend approximately 70% of their working hours on the selling floor and expanding their markets. Strategy Home Depot uses an aggressive strategy which aims at sustaining the company’s growth. The strategy is known as the 3E’s strategy which involves extending business, expanding the market and enhancing the core. This strategy is effective as besides guaranteeing its growth it also ensures that the quality of service and value delivered to customers increase as the company expands (Home Depot Inc). Policies The company’s policy revolves around its clientele and the need to enhance the customer experience is fundamental to success and for that reason the company has a policy that instructs its staff to spend close to 70% of total work time on the selling floor and performing customer service activities because thi s way the needs of the current consumers and targeted consumers can be catered for and the customers are most likely to have the complete customer experience (Kotler, 239; Home Depot Inc). Figure 1 A diagrammatic representation of the full elements included in a product Services delivered by Home Depot are valuable to their clientele and this is why the organization has been able to get a lot of positive reviews from numerous quarters and their customers have grown in number (Home Depot Inc).Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The wide variety of the services is offered by the organization and these include mostly services which complement their product offering. Customers usually desire not only to purchase the core product but services accompanying the product is very important especially because home appliances require some level of expertise especially when it comes to installation. When customers purchase home appliances such as tools, hardware, lumber, building materials, paint, plumbing, flooring and garden supplies, they may require expertise services from the staff before they gain the skills to use the appliances. This is why home depot offers â€Å" installation services, advice, clinics, contractor services, credit center, delivery services, design services, home services, import/export services, moving services, tool rental, and truck rental this way a holistic customer satisfaction dimension is achieved† (Kotler, 110). Service process structure, structural alternatives, technology, st andardization, co-production, High vs. Low contact The corporate structure and the customer service process structure cannot be separated unlike long ago where the customer service delivery process structure of the Home Depot was reportedly chaotic before the arrival of Bob Nardelli, the former C.E.O who retired in 2007. The current structure is managed according to regions such as south, south east, west, east, north and Midwest, whereby each store has its own overall manager and functional level managers. The regional managers serve as head of strategy and are responsible for customer service despite that fact that they have other customer service department managers and departments within their branches. This structure has ensured efficiency unlike beforehand where management was fragmented and decentralized hence the current management system allows its managers to communicate directly with the top management team thus enabling the organization respond appropriately to the needs of the customers (Kotler, 229). The former C.E.O, Bob Nardelli, did set expectations that up to date play a major role in encouraging every manager to achieve the optimal output and deliver results furthermore all employees are required to spend some time on the selling floor in order to ensure that the needs of customers are catered for in order to ensure that customer satisfaction ratings go up. This policy put into in place by the C.E.O has fostered the culture of collective responsibility as far as issues of customer service are concerned it is not only the duty of regional managers, general managers and functional area managers within the stores but also a responsibility of the lowest level of staff within the organization. Table1.The Service Process Structure of Home Depot This referral system of customer service can take a long time and at times can consume a lot of time especially when low staff employees lack the capacity to solve problems and hence send customers to the next level of the hierarchy. This can thereby be replaced by specialized customer care departments or booths that have fully trained customer care experts to respond to specific product needs of the customers (Kotler, 179; Porter, 17). Illustration: Home depots superior customer service techniques are part of the key competencies that have contributed to the organization’s success Home depot’s customer service policy aims to ensure that the needs and queries of customers are resolved in the shortest time frame possible. Service process structure of Home Depot aims to provide the maximum customer experience by providing services that are considered of high quality and at the same time affordable. The entire sales service engineering process of Home Depot aims to respond to the needs of their customers by enabling them get high quality assistance as far as pre-purchase and post-purchase queries such as planning, installation, training, trouble shooting, repairs, product upgrading and discarding of products are concerned. The management of Home Depot centre believes that their customer care policy offers them an opportunity to form relationships with their clients and therefore even improve thus empowering them. Empowered customers are more likely to engage themselves in the process of co-production of services and this reduces the workload that the staffs of Home Depot are most likely to face if they were dealing with underpowered clients (Worthington Britton 45). The top management regularly organizes seminars, workshops and training opportunities which are very crucial to empowering employees and standardizing the delivery of service (Kourdi, 43). The failure of offering standardized service delivery can at times be very costly and this is why employees of Home Depot care are given strict guidelines under which they can use to deal with both easy and hard clients. The entire sales engineering process of Home Depot has enabled different employee s to operate with a standardized approach which enables them to treat the needs and demands of all their clients within a reasonable time frame using high degrees of etiquette and friendliness (Kotler, 334). This fact has contributed to the high rate of customer retention and repeated purchases due to the fact that some sort of intimacy has arisen between the customers of the organization and the organization itself (Worthington Britton 57). Illustration: A model representing careful planning that has been used to develop the Customer service policies at the Home Depot Marketing Guru, Kotler, (44) insists that high quality customer care is never accidental but rather a product of vigorous and continuous planning programs that are initiated by top management and customer care staff within the organization. The Home Depot has put in place the necessary Information Communication Technology (ICT) structure that has assisted the organization towards ensuring that they can gather all th e necessary information which can be used to cater for their information needs. Model customer care departments and procedures are a result of goods planning and good planning cannot occur if an organization does not have the necessary information. The use of Information technology in this case has played a big role in the process by assisting customers become better co producers (Kotler, 269; Worthington Britton 164). This is because the use of Email, websites and customer care call centers has made it possible for the organization to interact with its clients at arm’s length. The technological environment in North America is becoming more advanced daily and Home Depot Inc has not been left behind. The organization has installed various technologies to cater for their business needs. The corporation has installed the most modern bar-coding technologies and UNIX servers and in this way, the organization is able to take care of inventory, financial accounting and also record customer needs accurately. Previously, when technology was an obstacle to corporations poor inventory management increased companies costs by interfering especially with customer care processes within the organization. The Home Depot management has put in place an additional I.T department in Texas to guarantee that the corporation runs efficiently and avoid extra costs due to poor business practices. This center has played a big role towards ensuring that their client’s needs are recorded and appropriate strategic responses are formulated hence improving customer care within the organization. Moreover, the corporation has installed back end scanning technology and upgraded call centre technology in order to support various processes within the organization (Worthington Britton 143). These actions have made sure that all transactions are recorded and that customer queries are recorded and queued so that customer care personnel can respond to them in the shortest time frame p ossible (Campbell et al 142). Unlike long ago where all service delivery programs were characterized by high levels of contact this has drastically changed and now when customers have queries it is not a must for them to be physically present at the premises of the Home Depot to raise their queries or even conduct business but they can do this at the comfort of their homes by ordering online and asking for more specified customized services. This way if there are more low contact services transactions then queuing and overcrowding at the stores are consequentially reduced saving costs in the long run for the organization (Porter, 88). Service blueprint, lines of visibility, interaction, on-stage and back-stage interaction failure points and poka-yokes Home Depot understands that it deals with heterogeneous clientele and every client has his/her own needs, wants and desires but the overall aim of their customer service charter is to offer lasting solutions to their clientele in the s hortest time frame possible (Kotler, 156). The customer service strategy of the Home Depot aims to foster loyalty and repeated purchase through ensuring high levels of satisfaction within customers. The staff are rigorously trained and given operational policies to deal with both simple and difficult clientele with the aim of enhancing customer satisfaction. The customer service department has adopted a flat structure and incorporated the use of information communication technology in order to ensure that the organization is able to communicate efficiently and effectively at high speeds to resolve customer needs as soon as they arise (Worthington Britton 77). The organization has made it mandatory for every individual within the organization to spend some time on the retail floor and interact with customers and hence this has contributed a lot towards developing an organization that is holistic when it comes to customer service matters. The main pillars of the strategy that is used by the Home depot include staying in touch with the needs and demands of customers and this is achieved by strategic gathering of data which is stored in data warehouses. This data is used by strategy formulation experts who are specialists in customer service to understand and predict customer behavior. Consumer behavior is a discipline anchored in understanding the needs, perceptions, tastes, preferences, attitudes and other forms of consumer behavior (Wheelen Hunger, 411). The output of this process is used to develop the most appropriate training programs of the employees which in turn empower employees once they interact with customers during the moment of truth. Home depots customer service policy is hence developed from predictions that emanate from their information communication technology department and therefore the staff have undergone various simulations that enable them enter into most probable question and answer scenario sessions that may involve potential customer s (Home Depot Inc). The customer service strategy blue print demands that all organizational employees aim to create great service delivery priorities. Therefore, the staff is required to be smart, smiling and polite when dealing with clients. Dealing with clients with the highest level of etiquette enables staff to avoid confrontational instances that may pose a bad image on the organization. Moreover, when customer service and clientele argue or conflict negatively then a lot of time is more likely to be lost. Illustration: The customer relationship management process that is part of the customer service blue print Home Depot Inc values all of its customers and it uses a sales engineering process to develop the most appropriate customer relationship management program that allows the organization to get closer and more personal with some of its most important clients. Customer relationship management is the backbone of The Home Depot center’s customer service strategy beca use it aims to reduce order processing/transaction time, this way the problem of long queue that arises in the process of service delivery can be reduced easily hence improving the customer experience. In order to shorten the time frame of the customer and organization interaction the Home depot center has automated some processes by encouraging customers to carry out their orders online and hence reduce instances of long queues thereby hastening the process of service delivery. The customer care call centre belonging to the Home depot center allows the organization to be able to interact with its clients in real time (on stage) or take down their details search for their solutions and contact them at later times in order to offer them solutions. The web angle and internet of customer care also offers a venue under which the organization can offer long lasting solutions to complex customer problems. The current problem with the customer service department is the problem of queuing. The Home Depot has a large number of customers who have problems ranging from simple to very complex problems and this therefore increases the processing time of the customer service department (Wheelen Hunger, 304). The high level of queuing especially during peak season ends up annoying some customers who assume that the organization is ignoring their needs/queries and complaints. Therefore the Home Dept should aim to open a more efficient and effective customer care centre that can dedicate all its efforts exclusively towards responding to the needs of clients. The customer care complex can be seasonal but it will serve as a failsafe method for which the organization can be able to ensure that incase of overloading customer service tasks run smoothly. The strategy taken by Home Depot to manage their, delivery systems, facility design, location selection, capacity planning, service encounter, quality management, information management The Home Depot centre occupies over 105,000 f t ² (9,755 m ²) in warehouse floor space with its megastores operating in larger facilities with its largest store in New Jersey occupying over 200,000 square feet (Home Depot Inc). Every store/warehouse chosen by the company is not accidentally chosen but careful planning is usually common in all location decisions. Key location decisions are made by marketers and population statistics experts who chose areas which are most likely to choose locations that are considered highly attractive in terms of security, consumer traffic and economic parameters. This technique of choosing locations has enabled the organization open stores at very strategic locations within the United States, Mexico and Canada and this has assisted the organization maximize revenues and grow their business portfolio and expand their business (Home Depot Inc). Basically, the location decision has enable Home Depot move closer to their prospective clients and address their needs adequately. Using particular t raffic forecasts that are linked to their location decisions has enabled the organization to perform adequate capacity planning. This has enabled the organization match consumer needs with their provisions through this has not been easy due to higher levels of customers which has increased their demand and led to long queues often. But in order to deliver services the organization in conjunction with their information technology department has been able to adequately develop delivery systems that enable service delivery be queued appropriately in order to deliver services in good time and condition. The organization has over time increased the number of suppliers that it has and this has enabled the organization to be able to be able to maintain high levels of quality supplies at relatively lower pricing. The high variety of brands in the shelves of Home Depot enables customers to choose products from wide variety of product and suppliers are hence forced to produce products that ar e considered of high quality this way the suppliers are forced to produce highly attractive products that are of high quality. Moreover the Home Depot use a last in first out inventory system which ensures that products that are on the shelves follow a queue that is directly related to the time which they arrived at their stores. When dealing with obsolescence and redundancy of stock the organization has a quality control department that is charged with the responsibility inspecting and verifying the quality of goods right before they reach the shelves for customers to purchase (Wheelen Hunger, 338). Every piece of inventory is bar-coded and stored at the organization n data base this way the organization is able to account for all items which are defective or considered as unsuitable following customer complaints. By keeping accurate records and supplying information to all employees within the organization a total quality management system is used to ensure that employees communi cate the message of quality management especially when interacting with customers on the floor of the retail centers (Wheelen Hunger 122). Suggestions for improving and redesigning the services/ interface Home Depot is a home appliance retail and interacts with customers to ensure that they are able to understand their products and if necessary install or even know how to use them. Home Depot Inc serves millions of customers across the Americas. The organization serves the do-it-yourself market, do-it-for-me market and the professional customers (Kotler 244). All this clients have different needs and are considered important to the organization and thus the organization has customized service delivery in order to fit the needs and desires of each customer segment. The organization should therefore aim to expand their existing customer services department by dedicating more resources to this business department this way the organization will be able to deliver services efficiently a nd effectively without delay or compromise in quality (Wheelen Hunger 78). The service delivery process should be upgraded to encourage customers to carry out business transactions over the net and having their goods delivered to their door steps upon agreement. Additionally the organization should improve their capacity planning in order to ensure that the retail center can be able to respond to the needs of their customers as soon as they arise. Conclusion The customer service practices of Home Depot Inc are good but a lot can be done in order to ensure that the organization is able get closer and to respond to the needs of their clients as soon as they occur. Delivery of high quality services is very important and Home Depot has ensured that it makes good lasting impressions on their customers by enhancing good customer experiences. The company should initiate programs that will incorporate the opinions of the lowest level of employees, customers and aim to improve service deliv ery within the organization. Good customer service is an ingredient of creating intimacy with customers and thereby cultivating customer loyalty which is very important to organizations. Campbell, David, Stonehouse, George Houston, Bill. Business Strategy an Introduction, 2nd edition. Banbury Rd: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2002. Print. Home Depot Inc. â€Å"Home.† Home Depot Inc. 2011. Web. Kotler, Phillip. 2008. Principles of marketing, 13th edn. New York: Prentice Hall, 2008. Print. Kourdi, Jeremy. Business Strategy: A Guide to Effective Decision Making, 2nd edition. New York: Economist books, 2009. Print. Porter, Michael. Competitive advantage, illustrated edition. Northampton MA: Free press, 2004. Print. Wheelen, Thomas Hunger, David. Strategic management and business policy. New Jersey: Prentice hall, 2002. Print. Worthington, Ian Britton, Chris. Business environment, 6th edition. Canada: Pearson Education, 2009. Print.