Foundation of the Indian Ocean Tourism Organisation

An International Forum on the Indian Ocean Region was held in Perth, Western Australia in June 1995. One of the major related outcomes of the forum was the foundation of a new regional tourism body, the Indian Ocean Tourism Organisation (IOTO).     

Book Reviews

Andrew Macintyre, Business and Politics in Indonesia, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, in Association with the Asian Studies Association of Australia, 1991, pp. xv + 282. A$24.95.

Scott Pearson, Walter Falcon, Paul Heytens, Eric Monke and Rosamond Naylor, Rice Policy in Indonesia, Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1991, pp. xii + 180. US$32.95.

Raymond J. Struyk, Michael L. Hoffman and Harold M. Katsura, The Market for Shelter in Indonesian Cities, Jakarta and Washington DC: Hasfarm Dian Konsultan and the Urban Institute Press, 1990, pp. xxiv + 475.

P. Boomgaard and A. J. Gooszen, Changing Economy in Indonesia, Volume 11: Population Trends 1795–1942, Amsterdam: Royal Tropical Institute, 1991, pp. 253. Dfl. 48.00.

Peter Boomgaard, Children of the Colonial State: Population Growth and Economic Development in Java, 1795–1880, Centre for Asian Studies Amsterdam, Monograph 1, Amsterdam: Free University Press, 1989, pp. x + 247. Paper: Dfl. 49.50.

Mohamed Ariff (ed.), The Pacific Economy: Growth and External Stability, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, 1991, pp. xvi + 322. Cloth: A$45.00; Paper: A$29.95.

L. Th. Schmit, Rural Credit Between Subsidy and Market: Adjustment of the Village Units of Bank Rakyat Indonesia in Sociological Perspective, Leiden: Leiden Development Studies No. 11, Leiden University, 1991, pp. 343. US$18.00.

Richard H. Patten and Jay K. Rosengard, Progress with Profits: The Development of Rural Banking in Indonesia, San Francisco: International Centre for Economic Growth and Harvard Institute for International Development, 1991, pp. xix + 114. US$9.95.

Hal Hill (Ed.), Indonesia Assessment 1991, Political and Social Change Monograph 13, Canberra: Department of Political and Social Change, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University, 1991, pp. xx + 196. A$16.00.

Penjabaran Demokrasi Ekonomi [The Understanding of Economic Democracy], Jakarta: Ikatan Sarjana Ekonomi Indonesia [The Indonesian Economists Association], 1990, pp. v + 27 (Indonesian Version), v + 21 (English Version). Available from the ISEI Jakarta Office.

BRIEFLY NOTED: General Agreement On Tariffs and Trade (Gatt), Trade Policy Review — Indonesia 1991, 2 Volumes, Geneva, 1991.     

Book Reviews

Francois Ruf and P.S. Siswoputantro (eds), Cocoa Cycles: The Economics of Cocoa Supply, Woodhead Publishing, Ltd, Cambridge UK, 1995, pp. xi + 384.

Rainer Rohdewohld, Public Administration in Indonesia, MONTECH (Monash University), Melbourne, 1995, pp. 179 + x, npg.

Colin Brown (ed.), Indonesia: Dealing with a Neighbour, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1996, pp. xiii + 202.

Thomas P. Tomich, Peter Kilby and Bruce F. Johnston, Transforming Agrarian Economies: Opportunities Seized, Opportunities Missed, Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London, 1995, pp. xx + 474, Paper.

T, van Rheenen, Quantifying Farming Systems: A Multiple Optimization Approach: A Case Study in the Limestone Area of East Java, Mansholt Studies 6, Wageningen Agricultural University, Wageningen, 1996, pp ix + 145, Paper.     

Sismondi's forgotten ethical critique of early capitalism

The purpose of this paper is to bring attention to Sismondi's forgotten ethical critique of laissez-faire capitalism. It is a forgotten critique because Sismondi has to a large extent been neglected in the literature. He has been too quickly labelled an economic romanticist. It is ethical because Sismondi questioned what he called chrematistics, which to him was becoming the chief end of economics. Chrematistics is the science of the increase of wealth conceived of abstractly and not in relation to man or society. This was opposed to the provisioning principle which Sismondi saw as the key principle of economics. To Sismondi the object of economics is man not wealth. His critique of laissez-faire capitalism was from this perspective. This led Sismondi to propose state containment of capitalism so that the well-being of the whole community was attained. This proposal is an alternative to Marx's complete liquidiation of capitalism. Sismondi's ethical critique is important not only from the point of view of the history of political economy but also for an insight into what values and principles should be given priority in our economic systems today. Ross E. Stewart is a Ph.D. Student at the Department of Accountancy, University of Glasgow. He was previously Lecturer at the Department of Management Studies, University of Waikato, New Zealand and is holder of the Thomson McLintock Post-Graduate Fellowship in Accounting at the University of Glasgow. The present paper was presented at an Ethics Seminar on property at Regent College, Vancouver, B.C. Other publications have been in the Financial Accounting and Auditing areas, e.g. Accounting for Goodwill, R-112, New Zealand and Society of Accountants, September, 1980, and Independence the Auditor's Cornerstone, The Accountant's Journal (October, 1977).     

Is there a diversification discount in financial conglomerates?

This paper investigates whether the diversity of activities conducted by financial institutions influences their market valuations. We find that there is a diversification discount: The market values of financial conglomerates that engage in multiple activities, e.g., lending and non-lending financial services, are lower than if those financial conglomerates were broken into financial intermediaries that specialize in the individual activities. While difficult to identify a single causal factor, the results are consistent with theories that stress intensified agency problems in financial conglomerates engaged in multiple activities and indicate that economies of scope are not sufficiently large to produce a diversification premium.     

Grain demand and consumer preference in Senegal

Nearly 30% of Senegal's grain consumption is met by commercial imports, mainly for the urban Dakar population. Official Senegalese policy is to promote food self-sufficiency by increased domestic rice, millet and maize production. The author addresses two central issues: first, will the domestically produced rice be acceptable to the urban population?; and seond, will the urban population consume more millet and maize as a result? Using survey data collected in Dakar in 1977–1978, the author describes the grain purchasing and consumption patterns of the sample, and focuses on the implications for national food self-sufficiency.