central business district

The purpose of this study is to explore the present status of informal business activities of Central Business District (CBD) area of Dhaka, capital city of Bangladesh and issues regarding socio-economic development of it. Data for the study is collected from a sample of 153 informal business workers within Motijeel area, the CBD of Dhaka city. A semi-structured questionnaire is used to generate survey data and then analyzed through simple statistical methods. Demographics of the respondents show that most of them are young and middle aged with limited educational qualification. They face shortage of capital as majority relies on their own savings. Moreover, maximum workers have monthly income below than BDT 15,000. However, almost all of them are willing to expand current business, though many find it competitive enough. The study will be useful to the policy makers for improving present status of the informal workers. From the government level, policy can be initiated for better environmental planning as well as improving socio-economic conditions of the informal business workers. However, the study opens the scope for further comprehensive study in related development areas.

The findings revealed that the level of fire safety awareness is very low among the respondents in the Central Business District of Nairobi. This explains why they do not know how to prevent outbreak of fire or even deal with it if it occurs. This is greatly contributed by the fact that most of them have not been trained on fire safety preparedness. These findings are in line with those of Wood (1990) who sought to explore the levels of awareness and preparedness for fire disaster in community members in Queensland. He found that the level of fire safety awareness has direct influence on the level of preparedness.

The Central Business District (CBD) developed as the market square in ancient cities. On market days, farmers, merchants and consumers would gather in the center of the city to exchange, buy, and sell goods. This ancient market is the forerunner to the Central Business District (CBD). As cities grew and developed, Central Business District (CBD) became fixed location where retail and commerce took place. The Central Business District (CBD) is typically at or near the oldest part of the city. A variety of goods are sold in the different markets of Jammu city. However, some goods are sold in some markets. This leads to functional specialization of the different market centers. The number of establishments present and the types of goods sold, help in determining the intra- city hierarchy of markets. In this paper an attempt has been made to identify the types of functions which are further ranked by applying Kendall’s method.

This study will therefore investigate the relationship between access to credit and the growth of boutiques in the Nairobi Central Business District in terms of expansion of human, physi[r]

The urbanized area was originally developed around Shwe Dagon Pagoda and along the Yangon River areas which still perform as the city center of Yangon today, namely CBD (Central Business District) with high density of houses and shops. Urban central functions including administration, banking, business and commerce are located in the CBD. It is likely that this current status does and will cause serious urban issues such as traffic jams, despite some urban functions, especially shopping centers, tend to be transferred from CBD to outwards.

III. CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT The CBD area is defined by the boundaries of main streets proposed in municipal plan. AsadAbadi Street in the north, Kashefi in the east, Atamalek Street in the west and Modares Boulevard in the south forming the CBD borders. The CBD has residential share of 11.48 percent of the total city population and many of its plots have been converted to commercial or administrative offices. Sabzevar city center is a complex agglomeration of multiple activities such as economic, social, cultural, etc. that are all joined by a web of streets as medium of connection under influence of traffic and transportation with different roles. Besides being the commercial core, the CBD serves as retail district flanked by stores, shops, office buildings, banks, hospitals, mosques and religious places, schools, hotels and organizational headquarters.Sabzevar city center consists of six major street classified by Sabzevar urban authority. Among all the CBD streets, Beyhagh and Kashefi streets are acting as focal point for shopping and retailers and are most often used in reference to retailing and socializing.

A successful light rail network can invoke more excitement and be an attractor to an area such as a central business district (Brown et al. 2007). Gold Coast City Council (2012) hopes that the introduction of the new light rail system, which is linked to the greater public transport network, will entice travellers to further utilise the public transport network, and the flow-on effect of the increase in public transport use is expected to encourage walking between the transport stops and their destinations. It is, however, important to ensure that the areas in which people are walking are encouraging of that activity, thus further enticing people to use these sustainable modes of travel. Research has found that residents desire ‘attractive and diverse destinations’ and suggests that governments should aim to provide more green spaces, and associated amenities such as bike and walking paths (Brown & Werner 2011).

In Kenya ,in Nairobi in Particular, Serious focus on the street hawking begun with the Bellagio declaration of street hawkers which called for the national policies for the street hawkers ,and follow up action by individual hawkers ,hawkers associations, city government and international organization (Desmond, 2009). Bellagio declaration identified six problems of street traders around the world, cost of regulation, harassment, bribes, confiscation and evictions, lack of services, and infrastructure and lack of representation (Mcgranahan, 2009). Women in employment globalizing and organizing (WIGO) has spearheaded research and policy dialogue in six Africa counties, namely, South Africa, Ghana, Cote d ivoire, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Kenya .The case of Kenya revealed that street hawking is lowering aesthetic appeal of urban space in central business district (CBD) of Nairobi, Kisumu, Machakos and Migori (Mutullah 2003).

the objectives, benefits and values of their cooperatives (Hussi et al., 2013). Matatu owners and managers are members of Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies (SACCOs) where they save and borrow money and access transport routes commonly controlled by the SACCOs (Gicheru, 2011). The performance of the industry has been shaped by development in Kenya since the pre-colonial period. It started as informal sector and most entrepreneurs had only one Matatu which they used to carry passengers. Later, other multinational companies joined in operating the time such as the Kenya bus service. The industry has been through hard times where the government including the periods when the government has imposed severe legislations such as the famous Michuki Rules, the amended traffic rules of 2012 and the Kenya transport policy. The Kenya transport policy proposes the banning of 14 seater Nissan Matatus. The Kenya government is on the other hand urging the operators to upgrade with 25 seats and above minibuses. This is an attempt to reduce the traffic jams witnessed in Nairobi in the last few years (Graeff, 2012). The performance of the Matatu industry may be looked at through the growth indicators. These indicators could be the number of new Matatus that enter the designated routes, the profitability of the sector, the lifespan of the Matatus, the number of jobs the sector creates every year, the growth of the Matatu SACCOs and the lawlessness in the sector (Chitere, 2012). This study seeks to assess the factors that affect the performance of the Matatu SACCOS in Kenya while focusing on the Matatus SACCOs that operate within Nairobi City’s central business district.

This paper describes a proof of concept framework for an assessment of the potential to reduce pluvial flood hazard through retrofit of green roofs combining an evaluation of the retrofit potential of office buildings in the Central Business District (CBD) with state of the art urban rainfall inundation modelling. Using retrofit scenarios for Melbourne CBD commercial buildings built between 1998 and 2011 and the rainfall profile of the February 2011 event the modelled depth of flooding were compared. The results show that the potential to mitigate extreme events via retrofit would be enhanced by consideration of buildings within the wider catchment.

Stratified random sampling was implored based on the proximity of the food joints as well as sampling convenience, the study area was stratified into four zones/strata (zone1- zone 4). Zone one (1) included areas such as the Timber market, Transport Yard and Nyohini, while Zone two (2) included; Zobgeli, Aboabo and Sabonjida. Localities that made up zone three (3) were; Changli, Taxi Rank, Bus Stop and Tishigu. Zone four (4) constituted; Moshie Zongo, Gumbihini and Parks and Gardens and its surroundings all in the Central Business District (CBD) in the Tamale Metroplis. The salads considered in this study composed of cabbage, lettuce, onions and tomatoes mixtures. A total of thirty (30) samples of ready-to-eat (pre-cut salads for ready consumption) mixture of salad vegetables (cabbage, lettuce, onions and tomatoes) vended at food joints in the CBD were collected from December, 2016 to February, 2017 using the stratified random sampling procedure. Specifically, based on the number of vendors of pre-cut salads in each zone demarcated, seven (7) samples were taken from zone 1, nine (9) samples were taken from zone 2, eight (8) sam- ples were taken from zone 3 and six (6) samples were taken

Buildings as infrastructure along with people’s lives need protection against fire outbreaks. Knowledge on the use of installed facilities is essential in tackling fire emergencies, otherwise their installation becomes meaningless. Lack of such knowledge could hamper escape from fire hazards and thwart attempts to con- tain fire outbreaks at their preliminary stage. This study, carried out in the Central Business District of Dar es Salaam City, assessed urban fire risk with respect to public awareness on the use of fire fighting facilities and preparedness in the event of fire outbreaks. Public buildings with at least four storeys or 2000m 2 floor space were surveyed. According to the Fire and Rescue Act of 2007, such buildings have to be provided with adequate means of escape and fire fighting facilities. Data was collected through observation and interviews with building managers, users and key informants. The study revealed high fire disaster risk in most buildings of the study area, as 60% of the buildings’ users do not know how to operate the facilities, and 41% are not aware of the available escape means in case of fire outbreak. Worse still, only 29% had received training within the past five years, and 68% had never been trained.

The literature reviewed included the balanced score card, technology acceptance model, the pecking order theory and the Schumpeter theory. These theories adequately explain the strategic factors influencing SME growth in the developed world since the supporting data collected and analyzed was from different areas in the United States of America and the United Kingdom. It is therefore clear that all these studies were conducted in countries outside the African continent and as such do not sufficiently capture the unique social, political and economic concerns that growing entrepreneurs have to encounter each day to ensure growth and sustainability of their ventures. Therefore, in this study we shall focus on strategic factors affecting growth of SMEs in the Central Business District of Bomet County, Kenya so that we are able to understand what needs to be done differently in order to ensure success of this sector. Finance aspect is important in any business and most of the reviewed studies do talk about it. But it is notable that finance alone cannot make entrepreneurs successful. It must be in uniformity with the person’s will to succeed in business and the training in the field in which the enterprise is set. The literature on factors influencing growth of SMEs has majorly focused on specific SMEs sectors like manufacturing which may not portray the image in general for all the sectors of SMEs across. Walobwa (2013) looked at the effect of innovation on the growth of SMEs in Kenya focusing on garment enterprises only in Jericho market. He found out that innovation is very critical for SMEs to become and remain competitive in the global market. Since it only focused on garment industries this leaves room for more research across SME sectors in order to bring out more findings.

The link between credit management practices and financial performance remains unclear especially in the Microfinance Sector in Kenya. Though there are studies on performance of MFIs in Kenya, few have sought to explain the same in view of credit management practices. Much of the available local empirical literature is in the banking context. Hence, this remains an area of empirical interest: this formed the motivation of the study. The study sought to determine the effect of credit management practices (client appraisal, credit risk, collection policy, and credit terms) on financial performance of MFIs in Nairobi Central Business District, Kenya. A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study; the target population comprised of 165 members of staff of the MFIs studied. Primary data was collected using questionnaires. Purposive sampling was used to pick 165 respondents. Of the 165 questionnaires dispatched, 158 were filled and returned. Descriptive analysis and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze data. The study found that credit risk control, client appraisal, collection policy and terms of credit were all statistically significant in explaining financial performance of the MFIs studied. The study further established that credit risk control, client appraisal, collection policy and terms of credit had a positive relationship with financial performance. The study concludes that unit increase in credit risk control, client appraisal, and collection policy and terms of credit results to better financial performance of MFIs. Hence, the MFIs should endeavour to invest more on the credit management practices as a way of improving their financial performance. The study’s contribution to knowledge was equally highlighted.

SMEs play an important role in the economic development of Mozambique. Access to finance is important for the growth of SMEs. Thus, the purpose of the study was to establish the factors that influence access to finance by SMEs. The factors that were addressed included structure of financial sector, awareness of funding opportunities, collateral requirements, and small business support services. The target population was 2725 which comprised of 2075 staff of three Banks, namely BIM Bank, BCI Bank, and Standard Bank and 650 SMEs in Maputo Central Business District. The research focused on a sample size of 242 SMEs and 324 staff of the named Banks. Descriptive and inferential research design was used. Structured questionnaires were used to collect the primary data. The findings from the study were that there is a relationship between the structure of the financial sector and access to finance by SMEs; there is a relationship between awareness of funding and access to finance by SMEs; there is a relationship between collateral requirements and access to finance by SMEs; and there is a relationship between small business support and access to finance by SMEs. The study findings are significant since they would enable the government to come up with appropriate regulation, funding programs, and schemes toward improvement of access to finance by SMEs. This study concludes that small business support services should be provided to SMEs to improve access to finance and that there is a need for more funding programs and financial schemes to assist SMEs. It is further concluded that since information is concerned with funding opportunities by SMEs, then relevant information should be available and known to all players in the financial market.

The vehicular traffic in Central Business District comprises of vehicles viz. private cars, motorcycles and public vehicles such as bus, minibus and taxis creating congestions due to the lack of a separate lane for public vehicles. According to2009 report on traffic congestion,one-way lanes improve vehicles speed at the four busiest streets of CBD. There is a special lane in the opposite direction of one-way lane for emergency services. All the streetscontain sidewalks with standard width, although the part of its width occupied by vendors.Thus giving rise to high pedestrian volume. The comparison between pedestrian and vehicular volumes on important roads of CBD is depicted in the fig.7.

It was not surprising when respondents ranked this factor, first, as the most significant factor that causes fire outbreaks in the Central Business District (CBD) of Kumasi. This factor obtained the highest mean score of 3.92. This finding is in support of the studies by Boateng (2013), Addai et al. (2016) and Simpson (2010) where it was posited that power fluctuations resulting in power outages is a major cause of fire outbreaks in Ghana. Similarly, Twum-Barima (2014) also found power fluctuations as the major cause of fire outbreaks in the Kumasi central Market. This is a serious problem when electric power goes off during the day and occupants leave their electrical appliances and go out without putting them off. When the power comes on with a high voltage, this can easily ignite fire in the appliances that were not put off when the power went off. Anaglatey (2013) stated that improper electrical wiring systems is one of the major causes of frequent fire outbreaks in Ghana. The findings of this study also revealed this factor as a significant cause of fire outbreaks in the Central Business District (CBD) of Kumasi. This factor was ranked second by the respondents, with a mean score of 3.54. The finding from this study corroborates literature (Twum-Barima, 2014; Boateng, 2013; Simpson, 2010). Electrical faults originate from poorly designed and constructed electrical circuits, and the electrical wiring found in many domestic buildings in Ghana is designed not by an electrical engineer, but by an artisan with scanty knowledge in the design of electrical circuit. Electrical cables are commonly found strewn haphazardly on the ceiling of most domestic buildings, and when the cables’ insulation deteriorates with time, short circuitry occurs, resulting in fire outbreaks (Simpson, 2010). Overloading of electrical appliances was ranked as the third significant cause of fire outbreaks in the CBD with a mean score of 3.46. This finding is also in consistence with literature (Twum-Barima, 2014; Boateng, 2013; Simpson, 2010). Extension sockets have maximum capacities they can hold. As a result, when their limits are exceeded they explode and cause fire outbreaks.

One of the most puzzling aspects relating to crime and linked to the question of why crime is prevalent in inner-city areas is not the over- all level of crime, nor the relationships between the factors that lead to crime, but rather the fact that crime is a deterrent to social capi- tal and economic opportunity in inner-cities. Oc & Tiesdell (1997) suggest that changes in the central city are compounded by many factors, such as disurbanisation and the creation of non-centralised shopping malls. Thus, the deterrence of economic opportunity in CBDs is often created by the effects of decentralised commercial developments. For example, Thomas & Bromley (2000) argue that, in the past 30 years, the pre-eminent status of city centres in the retail system of British cities has been challenged by the competitive impact of retail decentralisation. Arguably, businesses participating in decentralisation adopt an attitude of ‘reroute to remain’. Accord- ing to Burnham et al. (2004), high crime rates near the CBD, whether real or perceived, could increase concerns for personal safety and thereby induce the migration of affluent residents to the suburbs, with a concomitant relocation of employment opportunities and businesses. The consequence is that the CBDs from which such relo- cation takes place is increasingly subjected to economic and social decay with the consequent influx of criminal elements.

Within business districts, this approach could involve the wide spread retrofit of green roofs, permeable paving and other surface or near-surface drainage options (Charlesworth and Warwick, 2011). Infiltration and storage devices, such as permeable paving, can be employed around commercial premises to reduce runoff, whilst green roofs and rainwater gardens can absorb rainwater, thereby attenuating peak flows. Urban renewal or refurbishment provides an opportunity for such retrofitting initiatives: in the US this approach has been adopted in both New York (NYC Environmental Protection, 2011; NYC Environmental Protection, 2012) and Portland, Oregon. In the latter case, in order to increase the uptake of green roofs and disconnection of downspouts, financial incentives were offered (Environmental Services - City of Portland, 2006; Environmental Services - City of Portland, 2011). Doubts have, however, been raised as to whether widespread retrofit is a viable option structurally or functionally (Wilkinson and Reed, 2009); furthermore, the contribution to cost effective reduction of flood risk from property level adaptation is yet to be fully explored (Lamond and Proverbs, 2009; Joseph et al., 2012).

To achieve the main objective, the study was guided by the following specific objectives: determine the effects of top management competence in strategy implementation in SACCOs; establi[r]