Sunday, September 03, 2006

Books read between Apr 20th, 06 and Sept 1st, 06

World is flat by Thomas Friedman
Secret history of Mongolia by UNKNOWN authors
Гамшигийн менежмент
Adventure of English by Melvin Bragg
Revolt of the masses by Jose Ortega y Gasset
Тэнцвэрийн зарчим by Altangerel.T
Гадаад худалдаа
Free to choose by Milton Friedman.
Acing through admission
Брэнд бүтээх 22 зарчим
Эсээ хэрхэн бичих вэ?
БНХАУ-н шинэ бодлого
Өөрийгөө хөгжүүлэхүй by EMOS
Төрийн шагналт зохиолууд {collection}
Cases and materials on International law, by DH Harris
Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima
Runaway Horses by Yukio Mishima
The Temple of Dawn by Yukio Mishima
The decay of the angel by Yukio Mishima

World is flat and Adventure of English excerpts

Minirals in African underdevelopment by SAMUAL. A. OCHOLA
p.130 Mining itself cannot seriously tackle the problem of unemployment in Africa. The solution for unemployment lies in the establishment of industry initially based on the available mineral resources and in linking industry with agriculture.
p.132 Revenye earned from the oil industry has not found its way into the generation of development of the economy because it has not increased the productive capacity of the economy; and it encourages the increased importation of luxury goods. It is evident that Libya has only been ea recipient of a windfall income.

p.134 In Africa today, the repatriation of capital by the foreign mining companies and their extriate employees, i.e. the outfard flow of capital hardly equals the inward flow of fresh capital. Africa, in other words, exports capital.
The development of transport and other infrastructure.
The location of mines remote areas opens up the region by providing transport facilities, electricity and water development, or so it is argued. However, the fact is that the social, overheads capital so developed is geared exclusively to the mines. The roads constructed lead to the coast and are outward orientated, connecting the mines with the ports, for exporting raw material.
[…] In Africa in general, the transportation system related directly to mine production represents 40 to 60 % of total minig cost using the present day installations. His cost is normally substracted as operating expenses though it does not contribute substantially to the general development of the countryside When the mining activities cease, there is usually no alternative use for the network constructed. The development of the mining industry in Africa has not been part of the process of development of the whole economy.
p.137: The lack of know-how and the entrepreneurial skills are not long-term problems. This is a problem which can be solved if the governments in the various African countries put their minds to solving it. As to the lack of capital, it is the wish of the western world to control the flow of capital to Africa. The west will invest its capital only when it is assured of profits, profits which are transferable back to the Metropolis. The other implicit confusion which arises is the misunderstanding between the term of development and growth. The western theoreticians have advanced a concept htat so long as there is an increase in per cpaita income, there is supposedly some development. This notion has been embraced by the underdeveloped countries to the extent that they have increasingly devoted their attention to per capita income growth than to development.
[…] if a country is dependent on oil only, hten it should initially build up industries based on crude petroleum, nad then using the oil revenues, it should expand the indusrial base so as to establish a viable industrial unit before the long-off day arrives when oil reserves are seriously depleted and eventually exhausted.

p.139: Africa exports to import. The countries have nether the sovereignty over their natural resources nor the right to dispose of them freely. And instead of struggling for their rights, the African countries have said ‘amen’.

OPTIONS FOR DEVELPING COUNRTIES IN MINING DEVELOPMENT by Raj Kumar

P.4: This brief survey in not intended to discuss the fortunes of the mining sector of the respective countries, but purely to summarise its relative importance to the economy. The larger the contribution of the mining sector to the national economy, the larger impact it would have on economic growth, employment, foreign exchange earnings and the general stability fo the country.
p.5: Botswana, which became independent in 1966, two years after Zambia, when it had a per capita income of US $69, had it raised to above US $1000 in 1981, largely due to mining activity. It has a relative large and dominant mineral sector which contributed about 32% of the GDP in 1980, and 69, 5 pr cent of the total value of exports, compromised mainly of diamonds, copper nichel form the Selibi-Pikwe mine and coal form Morupula.
p.19: The type of mineral and the methods used for its extraction have profound effects on the licensing system of all the countires considered. All the acts contain definitions of minerals which establish the basis for the licensing system. For example, Quebec recognises ‘mineral’ or ‘mineral substance’ as ‘all natural solid, liquid or gaseous mineral substances, and all fossilised organiz matter’. By so defining mineral the act establishes the framework for the adminsistaraion of the search for , development, and disoposal of , all hard minerals and hydrocarbons.
p.24: Note, however, that in the case of QUebes, the Act(art.76 to 88) defines in very great detail the nature and amoung of the required work, thus reducing the area for arbitrary discretion on the part of the Minister.
p.25: The provisions with respect to renewal in Art. 104 of Quebec, 45 of Papua New Guinea, 38 of Botswana and 52 of Tanzania are typical of the way in which renewals are handled.