Gays in the Army free essay sample

A comparison of the restrictions of gays in the American army to the previous restriction of women in the army. This paper examines the present restrictions that forbids gays from enlisting in the U.S. army. It compares this stance with the prohibition of women in combat units, which has subsequently been lifted. The writer shows how many now consider women to be an asset in the military. The author explains how the homosexual community hopes that this trend of acceptance will be extended to them as well. The question of whether gays should be allowed in the military involves complex arguments not just on the issue of fairness to gays and others in a democratic society but also on the role of the military and any special concerns that have to be considered when creating policy for the military. The issue has been much discussed in recent years and is similar in tone to the argument formerly raised for admitting women into the military, though there are significant differences as well. We will write a custom essay sample on Gays in the Army or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Some of the primary reasons given for keeping women out of the service have also been advanced in a modified form for keeping gays out of the military, so the experience the military has had with women is instructive.

Turnitin Report Business to Consumer

Question: Write about theTurnitin Reportfor Business to Consumer. Answer: a) Are any of the bold, coloured text matches in my self-check report missing in-text references?Answer: No, all the matched text is referenced b) Do any of the bold, coloured text matches in my self-check report include more than three words in a row copied from the original source without quotation marks? Answer: Yes, the technical terms like Business to Business, Business to Consumer, and E-commerce and E-businesses are present without quotation mark.c) Do direct quotations take up more than 10% of the essay? Answer: No, the direct quotation does not take more than 10%. d) Are any of the bold, coloured text matches in my originality report purely coincidental? Answer: Yes, the header and terms like models and strategies, Business to Business, Business to Consumer, and E-commerce and E-businesses have been matched coincidentally. e) Do any of the short strings of matching text indicate that my attempts at paraphrasing were not completely successful? Answer: No such element is present in the report. f) Have I synthesised all of the sources ideas into my essay by introducing each piece of source information with a signal phrase and by adding my own comments or interpretation to it in the following sentence? Answer: Yes, I have completely synthesized the ideas and represented them in my own language.

Agricultural regionalisation in assam and kerela Essay Example

Agricultural regionalisation in assam and kerela Essay This report deals with the three aspects ,namely , the agricultural rationalization ,credit allocation mechanism and the rural-urban disparities within the two states of Assam and kernel. Both the states are predominantly agrarian with almost similar rainfall patterns and topography . Being agrarian in nature agricultural rationalization as well as the credit allocation mechanism play a pivotal role in it. If agriculture stagnates, it will act as a break on industrial expansion and halt real Roth.. But it is obvious that there is hardly any possibility of substantial increase in the area of cultivation Therefore, intensive cultivation and strong credit allocation system that will intern help the farmers to get good seeds ,farm equipments appears to be the only way to boost agriculture Both the states have the same staple crop rice but the variety do vary due to temperature and the rainfall patter in the respective states. We will write a custom essay sample on Agricultural regionalisation in assam and kerela specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Agricultural regionalisation in assam and kerela specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Agricultural regionalisation in assam and kerela specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Kraal being termed as the ideal state has been growing at the rate of 6. 98% whereas Assam which is considered as an underdeveloped state its economy grew only by 3. % as compared to the 6% growth rate by India . There are various factors responsible for it. In this report we aim to look at the various agricultural issues and disparity . However we would suggest some key measures/ policy prescriptions that need to be taken by the state to more equitable distribution of resources within the regions and sectors of the state. Overview of agriculture in Assam Agriculture in Assam exhibits most of the characteristics of underdeveloped/ backward agriculture, namely, a high dependence on agriculture for livelihood, widespread practice of traditional farming techniques and correspondingly low sage of modern farm inputs, low levels and low growth in productivity and incomes in the sector, widespread prevalence of subsistence cultivation, poor / inadequate agricultural infrastructure, and so on. About 89 per cent of the population in Assam lives in rural areas as per the 1991 Census. About 75 per cent of the states population is directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture, while about 69 per cent of the workforce in the state is actually engaged in agricultural activities. On the other hand, the sectors contribution to the states income has been falling sharply ever time, from nearly 50 per cent in early sass to only about 35 per cent by the end of sass. Though this is natural when economic development occurs, in Assam this has come about despite the slow overall economic growth in the state. Even though the state is richly endowed in natural resources, such as abundant rainfall, alluvial Assam has been slow over the decades. Consequently, the state is not Just lagging behind most others in the country but is unable to meet its own requirements in many agricultural commodities. Now let us examine the progress of agriculture in Assam, the constraints it faces and possible policy actions that can be taken to remove / reduce those constraints to agricultural growth in the state. DATA: Before proceeding to assess the status of agriculture in Assam, a few remarks on the database are warranted. The analysis relies on secondary data on various variables of interest. The data have been collated from various official statistical documents published by the Government of India, the Government of Assam, the North-Eastern Council, the Fertilizers Association of India, and the Assam Agricultural University, Gorham. The analysis is confined to the post-1980 period up to the latest year for which data are available. The gross cropped acreage total and under different crops is shown in Table 1 as an illustration. The data on total cropped acreage under the state does not tally with the sum total of the acreage under individual crops. This obviously raises doubts about estimates of cropping intensity, cropping patterns, yield levels, et cetera. The data on irrigation also present a somewhat confusing and uncertain picture. On one hand, the data on net area irrigated in the state has not been updated ever since 1953-54. Whereas at other places in the above-mentioned data sources, various figures are reported as the irrigation potential developed and potential utilized. In such a situation, the true picture with regard to the status of irrigation cannot be properly gauged. Further, the status with regard to the availability / use of irrigation for different crops is more or less unknown, as the crop-wise irrigation data have not been updated since 1953-54. With the available data being in such a situation, one can obtain only a rough idea of the state of affairs with regard to agriculture in Assam. They have been used only to obtain a rough comparative picture of the status of agriculture in Assam visit-Â ¤-visit the country as a whole and in some cases with Punjab, probably agriculturally the most advanced state in India. Such comparisons, though lacking in precision, could still provide valuable insights into the problems confronting agriculture in Assam. Agricultural rationalization Agricultural rationalization is basically is an area which depicts homogeneity in respect of agricultural land use and cropping pattern. It generally shows broad similar ties in the nature of crops grown, their combination pattern, method of litigation, average quantum of inputs and orientation of farming activities. Such similarities mainly arise out of the uniformity of physical and agro-climatic conditions and socio- cultural characteristics. With the passage of time agricultural regions undergo changes in their salient features and characteristics. The introduction of rice cultivation in Punjab and popularity of wheat in the lower Gangs plain may be cited as examples. Agricultural regions are affected both by the elements of the physical and cultural environment. While former includes climate, topography, soils etc. ICC have their bearing on the agricultural characteristics, the latter consists of such elements like population density, agricultural practices, agro cultural technology, crop land use, land tenure, land ownership, arbitration, transport and into account in agricultural rationalization. Topography Assam Topography shows the positional features of the state. Sharing its borders with various states like Megalith, England, Bhutan, Mozart, West Bengal, Raunchy Pradesh and Maniple, As sam is located on the north-east part of India. The prime geographical characters that form the topographical features of Assam are he Bark Valley and the River of Paramount. From north-eastern corners to west and further towards south, the Paramount River spread its rich alluvial plains across the length and breadth of Assam. The topography of Assam is also featured through many quaint hills that existed in the land from ancient periods. In fact some of the hills of Mozart, which is an adjoining state, act as the boundary indicators. The state is divided into three broad geographic units: The lower and central Assam hills, known as the Shilling Plateau The Brail ranges and the low hilly terrains of Mezzo hills The Alluvial valley of Paramount, Deanship and the Bark river The lower and central Assam range which includes, from west to east, the Agro, Khaki, Saint and the outlying Mike hills are in reality a plateau or table-land. The general height of the plateau ranges between 3,oft and 6,oft. The Khaki and Juanita hill portion of the plateau are comparatively higher and flatter than the Agro and Mike hills on the west and northeast. The highest peak of the plateau is the Shilling peak (6450 Ft) The lofty Brail ranges, also known as the North Charm hills, are separated from the Shilling plateau on the Northwest by a system of narrow valleys. Technically, the Barrels form a south westerly extension of the mountain chain of England and western Burma. It is this chain of mountain that separates the valley of Irradiated and Chining of Burma from the valley of Paramount and the Meghan. The Patti, Nag and Maniple hills and the Mezzo hills, form part of this great mountain system. The Mezzo hills consist of a belt of North- South trending ridges with intricate valleys, with an average height of 3,oft. The alluvial plains of Assam consist of two distinct parts I. E. The valley of the Paramount and its tributaries and the Bark valley. These are separated from each there by the water shed of the Shilling plateau and the Brail ranges. Climate Assam at present consists of two hill districts and twenty one plain districts. The climate of the hills is generally salubrious while that of the plains is comparatively warm in summer but cool in winter. Accordingly,the climate of Assam is characterized by alternate cool and warm periods with a highly humidity,Especially from May to November. Between March and May at the time when precipitation in Northern India is at the minimum, Assam gets some amount of rainfall from the Northwesters which keep the temperature low in the season of spring. In the plains of Assam, the maximum temperature does not go beyond OFF. Or ICC and in winter the plains of Assam have a minimum temperature of about ICC or about OFF. The climate of the plains and the sub-Montana region becomes unpleasant,especially in the summer season. It happens to be so because of the extreme humidity which comes with the monsoon. In the plains of Assam,including the district of Charm the temperatures in summer may be only about ICC. But the humidity may be so high bouts of rainfall. From the climatic point of view the year in Assam can broadly be divided in two, the cold season and the rainy season. However,there are two other short seasons namely spring and autumn representing the transition between cold and rainy seasons and that between rainy and cold seasons respectively Soil Red Loam Soil, Alluvial Soil and Laterality Soil these three types of soil mainly found in Assam State. Red Loam Soil is found the places like Agro, Mezzo Hills, Charm (part of), Khaki-Saint Hills and Siberia of Assam. Part of Shagbark, Saint Hills, Khaki Hills, Charm (part of) and Owning is the region where Laterality Soil found. Alluvial Soil covers entire Daring, Kumara, Lashings, Goalpost, Siberia and part of Agro Hills. Crops being cultivated in Assam Out of the total geographical area of 78. 43 lake hectares, almost one-third (30. 42 percent) is under net cultivation covering an area of 23. 86 lake hectares (excluding tea area). The gross cropped area occupies about 36. 37 lake hectares.

Basic in Management Essay example

Basic in Management Essay example Basic in Management Essay example resume basic in management as per Robbins, S., Coulter, M., Langton N. (2009) Management. 9th ed. pearson canada inc. toronto, on Week 1 Managerial concerns Efficiency (mean): doing the right thing Low resource waste (high efficiency) Effectiveness (ends): doing thing right High goal attainment (high effectiveness) Managerial function (to achieve organisation’s stated purpose) affected by culture Performing duties to efficiently and effectively coordinate the work of others Planning: degree of risk, plan developed by individual or team, degree of environmental scanning that management will engage Organizing: who much autonomy into employees jobs, task perform by individual or in team, degree that different managers interact with each other Leading: degree of concerns with employees job satisfaction, what leadership style is appropriate, if disagreement even constructive ones should be eliminated Controlling: impose external control or allow employees to control their own actions, criteria in employee’s performance evaluation, repercussion from exceeding budget Management role Interpersonal roles Informational roles Decisional roles Management skills Technical Human Conceptual Challenge to managing Ethics Workforce diversity Globalisation (international organisation) Costumers (create a customer-responsive culture: hire right employee, few rigid rules, empower employee, encourage listening skills, clarity of roles, have conscientious employee Innovations: nothing is more risky than not innovating Knowledge management :cultivation of a learning culture, encourage knowledge charing Type of e-business E-business-enhanced organisation (units within traditional organization) E-business-enabled organisation (tools and app. Used within traditional organization) Total e-business organisation (organisation’s entire work processes revolve around e-business model) Week 2 Manager how much control? Probably between omnipotent and symbolic views The omnipotent view: directly responsible for success or failure The symbolic view: limited effect on outcomes because of a large number of factors outside their control The organisational culture: The way we do things around here. Attention to details: employees are expected to exhibit precision, analysis and attention to details Outcome orientation: manager focus on result or outcomes rather than how these outcome are acheived People orientation: take into account the effect on people Team orientation: work is organise around team rather than individual Aggressiveness: employees are aggressive and competitive rather than cooperative Stability: maintaining the status quo Innovation and rick taking: employees are encourage to be innovative and take risk Factor affecting strength of culture Size of organisation Age of the organisation Rate of employer turnover Strength of original culture Clarity of cultural values and beliefs Strong culture (make it easier for managers to achieve organisation goals) Create stronger employee commitment to the organisation Aids in recruitment High organisation performance by promoting employee initiative Employees learn culture by Stories Rituals Material symbols Language Managers can create ethical, innovative and customer-responsive culture Ethical culture High risk tolerance Low to moderate aggressiveness Focus on mean as well as outcomes Tips: be a visible role model, communicate ethical expectation, provide ethic training, visibly reward ethical and punish unethical acts, provide confidentiality Creating Innovative culture Challenge and involvement Freedom Trust and openness Idea time Playfulness/humor Conflict resolution Debates Risk taking Environment External: forces or institutions that can affect organisation’s performance Public pressure, suppliers, competitor, customers Specific: external forces that have a direct and immediate impact General: economics, socio-cultural,

Employment Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Employment Relations - Essay Example This paper is an assessment of a case study which involves several issues with regard to potential health and safety problems of employers. It also involves issues of wrongful information and retirement of an employee due to injury. The assessment will be done with regard to the following two areas namely, the relevant statutes and acts which can be used here and the options available to the injured or affected parties. This will be in the form of an advice which can be accepted or rejected by those concerned. This writer had been appointed as an office assistant in a firm engaged in the business of life insurers in the UK called Ricky Gervais & Co Ltd. Many factors that have potential negative effects for employees within the office premises are noticed after reporting for work. The secretaries are not provided with proper chairs that have correct supports. They are made to work for long hours sitting in such chairs and are provided with outdated computer screens. A isolated incident of employee injury due to the prank of another employee also occurred as a result of which the injured party had to leave his current job and work for a lower pay. The company had done nothing with regard to this injured employee. The writer has also found that employee assessment by previous employees had been vindictive and untrue. It contained many false allegations with regard to performance, competence, and dependability. Relevant statutes: There are many recourses of law in the UK which could possibly used by the affected employees. They include the Employment Act of 2008, Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, Employment Rights Act 1996, Employment Relations Act 1999, Employer's Liability (Defective Equipment) Act 1969 and Disability Discrimination Act 1995. They can also take recourse of the employment tribunals in the UK if they so choose as per the provisions of the Employment Tribunals Act 1996. The Employment Act is more of a corrective act is primarily for "repealing and amending existing legislation in the field of employment and trade union law." (Explanatory notes to employment act 2008 2008). Hence it can be used only if it amends or repeals any of the provisions in the other Acts mentioned above. The Employment Relations Act is with regard to trade union relations and hence not very valid here. There is no mention of trade union involvement within the company and hence it can be assumed that Ricky Gervais & Co Ltd is not unionized or even it is so, the strength and bargaining power is low. Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 is directly related with the health and safety of the employees in the workplace and deals with whatever safety measures taken or not taken by the employer. The Act specifically states that employers are duty bound to see that the workplace is a safe one and should take steps that are as far as practical to ensure that the health and safety of the employers are protected. The Employment Rights Act 1996 related to the rights of employees in several areas of work and this includes safety issues as well. The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 also is useful for the injured employee, Geoff. The act states that alternated duties and jobs are to be provided in case employees are unable to perform their

Lessons from the Cold War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Lessons from the Cold War - Essay Example The United States is widely considered to be the â€Å"winner† of the Cold War for several reasons. Firstly, there is simple geography: if you look at a map, the United States exists now exactly as it did during the years of the Cold War (in fact, it actually grew somewhat during the conflict, adding Hawaii and Alaska as states as opposed to protectorates or territories), whereas the Soviet Union dissolved as a political entity, becoming Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, the Baltic States, Belarus, Ukraine, and several other smaller states between the Black and Caspian Seas (Brooks 450). More importantly, however, was the fact that the political ideology of Russia shifted – the one-party, the communist government ended, the economy was capitalized, state-run corporations became privately owned and so on. So, the state of the Soviet Union and the form of government and economy that it represented both ended, while the United States remained the lone Superpowe r. There are various explanations of how the Cold War was â€Å"won† or â€Å"lost† without recourse to a nuclear war. One of the major theories is that the United State’s more efficient and productive economy simply outpace the Soviet one, leading the Soviet government to either fall behind militarily or socially – both of which would have led to the downfall (Brooks 449). The classic explanation can be summarized as ‘the United States could make tanks and cars, the Soviet Union, one or the other.’ Any explanation that fails to take into account Soviet leadership, however, is somewhat naà ¯ve. The fact is that Gorbachev, the leader of the Soviet Union, genuinely sought openness and freedom for his people, and allowed them the freedom to choose what type of economy they wanted, which allowed the Soviet Union to fall without violent backlashes towards either the United States or its own populace (Brooks 454).

The African Union And Its Potential Politics Essay

The African Union And Its Potential Politics Essay On the 23rd of April 2007, an article was published in the New York Times entitled Africas Crisis of Democracy, which discussed the troubled presidential elections in Nigeria. According to analysts and observers, Nigeria was moving down a worrying path. Politicians and voters alike were becoming more and more disillusioned and started to lose confidence in the Nigerian political system and in democracy as a whole. Peter Lewis, director of African Studies Program at the John Hopkins University, was one of the researchers that conducted a survey on African public opinion and he ascertained that the political scenes in different African countries differed strongly from one another, especially during elections and in their aftermath. He stated that some countries have vibrant political scenes, while others go through the routine of elections but governance doesnt seem to improve (New York Times 2007).Lewis used the information generated through the survey to confirm the claim that people s confidence in democracy has drastically decreased. The results of survey showed that there was a 13 percent decrease, from 58 percent to 45 percent, in trust in a democratic political system since 2001 (New York Times 2007). Nigerias 2007 presidential elections were plagued by chaos, violence and fraud. These phenomena are not only present in Nigerian politics, but form a reoccurring theme in African politics in general. Many African democracies, according to Western standards, can be characterized as failed. In an article written by Ali Mazrui, states are claimed to be failed when they are unable to meet the following six criteria: exercise sovereign control over their territory; supervise their resources; effectively and rationally extract revenue from people, goods and services; build and maintain an adequate national infrastructure; provide for basic services like sanitation, education and healthcare; and lastly, states are bookmarked as failed if they are unable to bring up the capacity for governance and maintenance of law and order (Mazrui 1995: 28-29). Keeping these criteria in mind, it may be cautiously concluded that many African states are in trouble. The Angolan government can be drawn upon a s a relevant example; the government lost sovereign control over many regions of the country and as a result of this, the government also lost control over many of its resources, infrastructure and revenue (Mazrui 1995: 29). Apart from Angola, many other African states are unable to effectively control many of their countrys resources and set up an effective tax system. The consequences of these failings are that states become paralyzed by the lack of income and therefore cannot exercise their duty to provide basic services for their people, or even worse, a crisis of governance ensues. In the search for an overarching solution to these national problems, many scholars and heads of state have looked in the direction of the African Union (AU) to offer some relief and support. But what kind of organization is the AU and how can it be expected to help in solving structural political, economic and social problems that African states have? In this paper, an attempt will be made to answer these questions. Understanding Africas History It is important to understand the historical background of the African continent before even attempting to formulate a possible solution for the structural political and economic problems that the African states face today. Before colonialism and the formation of African nation states, the different regions of the continent were ruled by tribes with different ethnic backgrounds and cultures. Due to these differences, the tribes were often in conflict with each other over, amongst others, their territorial boundaries. Therefore, it could be said that there were already significant political centers and territorial division based on the heritage of common identity. During the scramble for Africa, the African continent was divided along the straight edge of a ruler, completely disregarding the already existing political formations and territorial divisions. Logically, the political elites of pre-colonial Africa had different political practices which strongly differed from those of the West, specifically on their concept of sovereignty. First of all, in the different regions of pre-colonial Africa control was exercised over people rather than land and secondly, political practices tended to be shared amongst the different political elites. That being said, it was not uncommon for different communities to have allegiances to a number of political centers (Herbst 1996-1997: 127-128). The political landscape of pre-colonial Africa was a web of territorial boundaries, defined by ethnic differences, and political allegiances to more than one political center. With the coming of Western imperialism these already existing divisions were abruptly disturbed. The initial transition from colonial status to independence in many African states proceeded quite swiftly and without major problems. This relatively peaceful transition can be attributed to the fact that in the last years of colonization, many of the leading African political figures were, for most parts, already in charge of their countries affairs (Emerson 1962: 277). After the abolition of colonialism, it was widely assumed that Africans would undo the boundaries that were set by the imperialists, but this did not happen. Also, the political structures introduced by the colonial intruders stayed intact. There were a few important reasons for why the expected territorial and political change did not occur in African countries. The first was that the leading political figures needed the state structure left behind by the West, because if the structure of the Western state was removed, there were no fitting alternatives that could compensate for it (Emerson 1962: 276). The only eff ective political structures present in Africa were the tribes, but these were of too small a scale to be of any significance (Emerson 1962: 276). Second, the inherited state system was in itself very fragile because of the absence of old-established political entities and robust communities which could lend stability the states (Emerson 1962: 279). Nevertheless, allowing the tribes to take over power as dominant elements, would have spiraled African countries into a state partial, if not total anarchy (Emerson 1962: 279). After colonialism, African states were left with a fractured internal situation. Many different tribes had been lumped together in attempt to achieve an easy governable unit, but in doing so, colonialism left behind great internal divisions that needed to be overcome in order for the states to function effectively. Apart from internal unity, the political elites of many new African states tried to achieve African unity through the ideology of Pan-Africanism. The most simplest and satisfactory definition of the phenomenon Pan-Africanism is that all Africans have a spiritual affinity with each other and that, having suffered together in the past, they must march together into a new and brighter future (Emerson 1962: 280). This idea of a united Africa and a shared African destiny sparked the initiative of the organization of Africas political elites into an intergovernmental organization. They joined forces in what was first known as the Organization of African Unity (OAU). However, the establishment of the OAU did not come to pass without a struggle, for there were definite differences in the objectives of the political elites that participated. There was a distinct schism between the post-colonial African states who envisioned an African partnership; the states were divided into two groups, the Casablanca and the Monrovia group. These two groups had slightly different ideological backgrounds, with the Casablanca group being more radical and the Monrovia group taking in moderate position. The Casablanca group envisioned a new Political Kingdom in which the participating states gave up most of their sovereignty, whilst the Monrovia group held firmly to the concepts of state sovereignty and self-determi nation in a partnership with other African countries. After long and numerous deliberations, these groups were dissolved by the establishment of the OAU in 1963 in Addis Ababa (BBC News 2001). However, in 2002 the OAU was replaced by a new organization, the AU, because the OAU was judged to be no longer adequate for the region (Packer and Rukare 2002: 365). The Constitutive Act of the African Union entered into force on May 26, 2001. The OAU as well as the AU were in part set up to help overcome the ethnic and social cleavages within the different African states, but before continuing with a further analysis of the AU and in which way it differs from the OAU and other intergovernmental organizations, it is important to broaden our understanding of these ethnic and social differences, and in which way they undermine a strong and legitimate state structure. In the case of Africa, overcoming these cleavages has proven to be quite difficult. The colonial era has left a deep mark on the African continent; because the imperialists divided the continent without taking the already existing divisions into account, many of the post-colonial African states are plagued by civil wars and unrest. The lack of an overarching national identity and the weak nature of the state system do not help in resolving the problem. What is needed is the reactivation of communalism; a common denominator which many, if not all Africans can rel ate to. According to Julius Nyerere, this may be found by introducing the ideas and beliefs of African socialism to all African communities. In a speech he made on the 13th of July 1966, Nyerere spoke of the difficulties that the formation of African unity faces. The development of the individual nation states will always be more important than the development of an African unity, because of the obligations that national governments have towards their people. This does not only pertain to political development, but also to the development of the national economy. So, when national governments take steps to develop themselves, it is inevitable that they will be taking a step way from African unity (Nyerere 1965 1967: 210). Nevertheless, Nyerere still believed that unity within and between states was possible; internal conflict and disunity can be overcome by the promotion of nationhood (Nyerere 1965 1967: 209) and an African unity can be achieved by deliberately moving to unity in every int er-state action (Nyerere 1965 1967: 210). In the Arusha Declaration of 1967, the precise ideology that formed the bases for African socialism were laid down. A few of the most important elements of the Declaration were: the absence of exploitation, the major means of production and exchange were in the hands of the peasants and the workers, the existence of a democracy and the conviction that socialism was a belief and not just an ideology (Nyerere 1965 1967: 233-234). There are many more important statements in the Arusha Declaration, the one just as important as the other, but they all amount to the following: respect thy neighbor as you would want to be respected, because all men are equal irrespective of race, religion or status and all share the responsibility of building up a strong nation state, through hard work and intelligence, that is free from poverty and inequality. Research Question The main purpose of this paper is to first of all understand what type of organization the AU is and if it can be compared to any existing inter-governmental or supra-national organizations. As the saying goes, with which one of these geese does the AU flock? After determining its nature, a further analysis of the Unions potential will be set out. The concrete research question is formulated as follows: What type of organization is the African Union and in which way can it contribute in solving any of the structural political, economic, and social problems Africa has? Employing a predominantly qualitative methodology, which will take the form of a literary analysis, this paper will try to answer the research question by first answering a few sub categories or questions. First, the AU and its goals will be compared to that of its predecessor: the OAU. After that, a short comparison with the UN and the EU will be made in order to determine what kind of structure the AU has. Then, the potential of the AU will be discussed by focusing on its Charter and the areas in which it succeeds and those where it fails. By using academic papers, commission reports of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty, the official website of different organizations, books and other sources, the objectives of this paper will hopefully be achieved. Comparing structures From the Organization of African Unity to the African Union The OAU On 25th of May, the OAU was established in Addis Ababa on the stool of Pan-Africanist ideals (Department of International Relations and Cooperation 2002). The basic ideas that underpinned the establishment of the organization was that African states needed to be strongly united against colonial oppression and racism, and also needed to improve the lives of the African peoples. Starting off with 32 member states, the OAU grew over the years to eventually gain a total of 53 member states. Unfortunately, by its fifteenth anniversary, the organization was seen to have failed in achieving its set goals: responding to serious intra-African conflicts and to act against foreign intervention (Packer and Rukare 2002: 365). Also, the OAU was plagued by an internal schism between radical (the Casablanca group) and moderate member states (the Monrovia group). Adding to this list of setbacks was the fact that many member states were troubled by a worsening economic situation. There was a drastic a nd immediate need for reform mainly because the contemporary challenges of the continent had changed. By 1988, the goal of eradicating colonialism and bringing forth independence in Africa was almost completely achieved. Still, the economic crisis was a very significant problem which was not being dealt with adequately, mainly due to two important principles in the OAU charter. The first was the sovereign equality of all member states and the second was the non-interference in the international affairs of states (The OAU Charter 1963: 4). According to experts, these two principles needed to be revised (Packer and Rukare 2002: 367). To say the least, the OAU was thwarted by the boundaries set by its own charter. The insistence of the OAU to maintain the territorial boundaries that were set by the colonizers prevented it from taking action in territorial claims, but also the insistence of upholding the two principles stated above restricted the OAU in intervening in many of its member states to stop economic degradation. The organization was also structurally and functionally weak, particularly with regard to the secretariat and the secretary-general (Packer and Rukare 2002: 369). The insignificant authority of the secretary-general made it impossible for him to supervise peacekeeping operations and act as negotiator in resolving conflicts. Furthermore, it was extremely difficult to achieve consensus in the OAU Assembly, because the member states were often unable to transcend their national interests (Packer and Rukare 2002: 369). The final problem that the OAU faced was chronic underfunding. In spite of all these problems and the proposal for the reform of the OAU, the African political elites chose to establish a new organization (the AU) instead of reforming the OAUs structure and revising its Charter. The important question that comes to mind is whether the AU can overcome the weaknesses of that the OAU and its Charter faced. The AU In 2002, the AU was established and replaced the OAU. The principle goal of the AU was to protect the security of the continent, rather than the sovereignty of individual states (Hanson 2009: 1). This is the first and foremost difference between the AU and the OAU, but the AU also plays an increasingly high-profile role in peacekeeping (Hanson 2009); another area where the OAU failed. The main objectives of the AU are the increase of development; combat poverty and corruption; and ending as many of Africas problem as possible (Hanson 2009). As one of the only international organizations in the world, the AU recognizes the right to intervene in the affairs of its member states on humanitarian and human rights grounds (Hanson 2009). These guidelines were based on the recommendations of a report entitled: The Responsibility to Protect. The report stated that sovereign state have the responsibility to protect their own citizen from avoidable catastrophe from mass murder and rape, from starvation- but when they are unwilling or unable to do so, that responsibility must be borne by the broader community of states (ICISS 2001: VIII). This key principle sets the AU apart from all other international organizations, including its predecessor the OAU. The European Union and the United Nations The European Union (EU) is an economic and political international organization founded under its current name in 1993. The objectives of the EU are the promotion of economic and social progress and the representation and assertion of the European identity on the international scene (NATO publications 2001). The EU hopes to achieve and maintain economic progress through the creation of a boarder-free Europe with an economic and monetary union, strongly represented by a single currency. On the issue of social progress, the EU promotes economic and social cohesion between its member states (NATO publications 2001). The EU asserts its identity on the international scene through a Common Foreign and Security policy as well as a common defense policy (NATO publications 2001). A commonality share with the AU is the basic principles of respect for national identities, democracy and fundamental human rights (NATO publications 2001). The United Nations (UN), founded in 1945 after the Second World War, is an international organization that tries to maintain international peace and security; develop friendly relations between nations; and promote social progress and better living standards (UN: website). The UN also tries to safeguard the human rights of all the world citizens (UN: website). The UN has a unique international character that assists in the Union in reaching every corner of the world. Apart from peacekeeping and international security, the UN also works on a broad range of fundamental issues from sustainable development to the promotion of democracy (UN: website). While both the EU and the UN are both inter-governmental organizations, the EU takes on the form of a more supra-national organization. Both of these organizations were also created through the decision of different states to cooperate in order to serve over-arching purposes in different issue areas. Nevertheless, the UN is able to tackle more problems than the EU, because it is not bound to one specific area of the globe. Also, the EU has the power to sanction its European member states to comply with the made agreements, by for instance threatening with economic sanctions. While the UN strives to achieve equality and respect for human rights, the EU is mainly concerned with regional economic integration. The African Union tends to resemble the UN more that the EU. Even though the AU can only have member states within a certain geographical area like the EU, the AU still lacks the power to force its member states into compliance due to the lack of legitimacy. This legitimacy can only be attained if and when member states agree to give up a part of their sovereignty to the AU. Also, the issue areas with which that AU is concerned include other issue beside economic integration. In concurrence with the UNs objectives, the AU also takes on the responsibility of peacekeeping role and promotes social progress and unity within and between the different African states. Even though the AU was intended to be somewhat of a supra-national organization, it still has a long way to going before it is able to reach its fully functional and reaches its true potential. The African Unions Potential and Shortcomings As stated above, the main objective of the AU is to protect the security of the African continent and promote African unity. The AU has embarked on a number of peacekeeping missions under the inquisitive eyes of Western observers, who were not too convinced of the ability of the AU peacekeepers. Amongst the achievements of the AU are a number of successful interventions in a few of the member states (Hanson 2009). The 2008 intervention in Anjouan resulted in the successful expulsion of the Islands separatist leader (Hanson 2009), and the 2003 intervention in Burundi by the AU was acknowledged as a success by the international community. Still, the AU has more shortcomings than it has successes. The short life span and experience of the AU in peacekeeping lead to an unsuccessful intervention in Somalia and Sudan. This failure can be attributed to the lack of sufficient political and material support. Like the OAU, the AU faced a number of organizational and financial barriers as well as the same tremendous challenges with respect to poverty and civil war. The inability to effectively organize regional economic communities, on which the AU was also dependent for funds, was another one of the numerous shortcomings of this relatively young organization (Hanson 2009). As things stand, the AU is still somewhat fragile but has all the makings of an effective organization. In order to achieve its full potential a number of obstacles need to be overcome: the first and most important being the financial boundaries that it faces. In order to overcome this boundary, that AU needs to invest in strengthening the economic community on which it is reliant for funds. Furthermore, it needs to find new ways of generating fund from the international community. The second obstacle that stands in the way of an effective AU is the successful cooperation between the political elites of the different member states. Only when consensus is reached between the political elites of the member states, can the AU act in uniformity. Conclusion: Answering the Research Question The research question that this paper intends to answer is: What type of organization is the African Union and in which way can it contribute in solving any of the structural political, economic, and social problems Africa has? Before initiating the analysis on the similarities and differences between the AU and other international organizations, the relevance of ethnic and social differences within the different African states was discussed. This was an important starting point, because the problems that ensued from these ethnic and social cleavages were partially the reason for the establishment of the AU. The fragile state systems, left behind by the imperialists, were unable to fortify their legitimacy strengthen their institutional structure, partially due to the absence of internal unity. One solution to this problem was put forth by Julius Nyerere in the form of African socialism, which advocated national communalism which would unite Africans at the national levels and unit Africa as a whole. After ascertaining the relevance of the social and ethnic cleavages, the AU, OAU, EU and the UN were compare with each other in order to uncover what kind of organization the AU was. The AU was discovered to share the most resemblance with the UN and therefore, like the UN, tends to be more of an inter-governmental organization than a supra-national one. In answering the next part of the research question in which way the AU can contribute in solving any of the structural, economic and social problems of Africa the potential and shortcomings of the AU were discussed. The AU has a very promising structure, but the organization still has a long way to go before it is fully functional. Therefore, it can be cautiously concluded that if the with the coming of years and through the overcoming of the many obstacles it faced, the AU will be able to make a relevant contribution to solving some of Africas many problem.