UNICAL: UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR PROJECT TOPICS

One of the simple business that anyone in Nigeria can launch right now is a point-of-sale (POS) business. Despite the fact that it is simple to launch, it remains one of the most lucrative small enterprises that anyone with a limited amount of capital may own.

The term “point of sale” is abbreviated as “POS.” A point-of-sale (POS) outlet is a location where anyone can withdraw or deposit money, as well as perform other financial transactions. One could consider it a local bank or credit union. The key distinction is that POS cashiers will add a commission fee to each and every transaction that their customers conduct with them.

You will need to gather money for your business, purchase a point-of-sale equipment, and find a suitable site before you can launch a profitable point-of-sale firm. The success of your business will be heavily dependent on the location that you choose for the establishment of your business. It’s possible that certain places aren’t as progressive as others. If you position your point-of-sale (POS) business in an area with a high population density, you will conduct more business than if your establishment were situated in an area with a low population density.

If you locate your point of sale (POS) outlet in an area that is predominantly occupied by wealthy people, such as a government reserved area (GRA), it is possible that your company will not perform as well as one that is located in an area where people with lower incomes live. While those with more financial security are more likely to pay using credit or debit cards, those with less money typically stick to cash transactions. Because of this, they are forced to conduct all transactions using actual currency.

How to Obtain a Point of Sale Machine

In contrast to the past, when the major banks would require you to begin conducting business with your phone before they would consider providing you with a POS machine, acquiring one of these machines is today a fairly simple process. These days, all you need is enough funds and a location to make an application for a machine, and you’ll have it the very next day. Things move much more quickly now than they did in the past.

Obtaining a point-of-sale system from a firm such as moniepoint is not only very simple and quick, but also ranks among the very best in terms of customer care. You can submit an application on their website in order to receive a moniepoint pos machine.

Please visit Moniepoint.com or get in touch with an aggregator. However, as a newcomer, I find it hard to imagine that you are familiar with the term “aggregator.” An aggregator is only a business relationship manager who acts as a representative of moniepoint microfinance bank. The aggregator’s primary responsibility is to provide prospective agents with Moniepoint POS terminals.

Since I work as an agent for MoniePoint, I have access to first-hand information regarding how to get a MoniePoint computer in the shortest amount of time possible. I think that other businesses are doing well, but if I’m being completely honest with you, the market share for agency banking in Nigeria has been completely monopolized by moniepoint.

If you are interested in becoming a member of moniepoint, fill out the application that can be found on their website. Once they receive your information, they will pair you up with an aggregator in your area who will provide you with a POS machine. The cost of purchasing a POS machine is twenty-five thousand baht. You will not become the sole owner of the device just because you have made the payment. If you are given a machine and you decide to get rid of it, it is quite likely that the machine will be brought back to where it was allocated to you. Once you have the gadget in your possession, you are expected to immediately begin conducting business with it.

Another thing you need to know about MoniePoint is that if you want to be an agent for them, you will have a daily goal that you need to strive to reach. You are required to make a withdrawal of 100,000 NAIRA per day.

Wait! You should not let the aim discourage you since when I first looked at it, I thought it would be very difficult to achieve. But on the first day that I started formally, which is the day that I pulled out my umbrella, I made N86,000 just from withdrawals, and on the second day, I achieved N250,000 just from withdrawals.

 

On the third day, I wasn’t thinking about my goal again; rather, my focus was on conducting additional transactions in order to increase my earnings. Customers will welcome you with open arms once you have made up your mind to start a POS firm, provided that you begin work promptly, arrive on time, and are honest.

Funding for the Point of Sale Business

Any sum of money is sufficient to launch a point-of-sale firm, but further capital is required to facilitate more transactions. To keep the business going after you have purchased an umbrella or kiosks and a point-of-sale system, you will require between 100,000 and 500,000 Naira.

Because a single client can walk in and complete all of the necessary transactions in a single visit, I do not recommend that people start POS businesses with a capital investment of fifty thousand dollars.

But in any case, you should begin with whatever sum you currently possess, and as soon as it runs out, you should hurry to the bank to get your money out. Your financial resources improve together with your time invested.

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Structure and Functioning of the PCA

The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is a widely used statistical technique for reducing the dimensionality of high-dimensional data sets while retaining most of the relevant information. PCA has numerous applications in fields such as image processing, speech recognition, finance, and genomics. The technique works by transforming the original data set into a set of linearly uncorrelated variables called principal components (PCs), which capture the maximum variance in the data. This essay discusses the structure and functioning of PCA, including its mathematical underpinnings and practical applications.

PCA can be seen as a linear transformation that maps the original data set into a new coordinate system. The first PC is obtained by finding the direction that captures the maximum variance in the data. This direction corresponds to the eigenvector of the covariance matrix of the data with the largest eigenvalue. The second PC is then found by repeating the same process, but with the constraint that it must be orthogonal to the first PC. This process is repeated until all PCs have been obtained.

PCA can be seen as a special case of Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) of a data matrix. SVD is a powerful technique that decomposes a data matrix into three matrices: U, Σ, and V, such that X = UΣVT, where U and V are orthogonal matrices and Σ is a diagonal matrix of singular values. The first k columns of U correspond to the first k PCs of X. The singular values in Σ represent the variance captured by each PC.

PCA has numerous practical applications. In finance, PCA can be used to reduce the dimensionality of a portfolio of stocks while retaining most of the relevant information. In genomics, PCA can be used to analyze large-scale gene expression data sets and identify patterns of gene expression that are associated with specific biological processes or disease states. In image processing, PCA can be used to compress images by representing them as linear combinations of a small number of basis images.

In conclusion, PCA is a powerful technique for reducing the dimensionality of high-dimensional data sets while retaining most of the relevant information. PCA works by transforming the original data set into a set of linearly uncorrelated variables called principal components, which capture the maximum variance in the data. PCA can be seen as a special case of Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) of a data matrix. PCA has numerous practical applications in fields such as finance, genomics, and image processing. As stated by Jolliffe (2011), “PCA is one of the most widely used multivariate data analysis techniques and has been applied to a wide range of data types and applications.”

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HOW TO WRITE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN CHAPTER THREE OF A RESEARCH PROJECT

INTRODUCTION

This chapter presents research methodology and design. The research methodology helps in giving explanation on how research study has been done and how the research problem has been defined. Not only that but also it helps in explaining what data have been collected and which methods have been used and why the technique of analyzing the data has been selected. Kothari (2004) suggested the contents of research methodology to contain: the research design, area of study (coverage), sample and sampling techniques, methods for data collection and techniques for data analysis. In view of this, this study adopted the above outline as a framework for the presentation of this chapter.

Writing a good and acceptable methodological details in chapter three of a research project requires more technicality and carefulness.

Template of chapter three (research methodology) of a research project

Research Design.

This case study employs both qualitative and quantitative forms with 73 respondents. The choice of the two-research design is based on the fact that these two approaches vary in strength and weakness. Therefore, the study uses both of them for complementary purposes. The explanatory research design, for instance uses open ended and probing questions which gives participants the opportunity to respond in their own words rather than forcing them to choose from fixed responses. Creswell (2009) defines, mixed method research as “an approach to inquiry that combines or associates both qualitative and quantitative forms”. This study adopts qualitative design to a large extent and quantitative design to a lesser extent. This is especially because the study is exploratory by nature. This method is used to capture frequencies of respondents and the average level of responses.

Study Area

The study was conducted at the Opportunity Microfinance L.t.d. in Mbagala, Chanika, Manzese and Kiluvya. The rationale for selecting these areas is due to the availability of collecting the required data that allow intensive observation, easy to access information and to minimize cost. In addition to that, based on the 2012 Nigeria Population and Housing Census shows that three areas (Mbagala, Chanika, and Manzese) had a total population of 167,001 whereby Manzese ward had the highest population with 70,507 followed by Mbaga Ward with 52, 582 and finally Chanika Ward with 43,912 inhabitants (Nigeria census, 2012)

Study Population.

Population refers to all members, groups, or elements that the researcher wants to gain information from, represent and draw conclusion for the study (Vans 1990).  Due to the nature of this study, the study population includes IT officers, Head of Department, client and teller in the financial institutions because they are the key informants.

Study Sample.

According to Webster (1985), a sample is defined as a finite part of a statistical population whose properties are studied for the purpose of gaining information about the whole. It can also be defined as a set of respondents or people selected from a larger population for the purpose of a survey. When it is possible, the researcher would prefer to study the whole population in which he/she is interested. However, it is difficult to do so in this study because the population of interest is large, diverse, and scattered over a large geographic area as well as time consuming and expensive. A sample size is the unit of inquiry selected from the target population. The researcher used the proportionate stratification approach in which the sample size of stratum is proportionate to the population size of the stratum.

Sampling Procedure

The researcher used purposive sampling to select 73 respondents who were obtained from the studied the Opportunity Microfinance Nigeria Ltd in Mbagala, Chanika, Manzese and Kiluvya. Purposive sampling technique is selected due to the fact that it is less expensive and quick for selecting a sample. Through this sampling technique, the researcher got the respondents who were able to deliver the required data. However, the major weakness of this method is bias, because the researcher selected only the sample, he believed enriched with the needed information.

Methods and Procedures in Data Collection

This study involved the collection of both primary and secondary data. Primary data collection methods included the use of structured questionnaire, in-depth interviews and observation. Collection of qualitative data (in-depth interview) was guided by a pre-defined set of steps and instruments of defining events and observation, for instance, check-lists for key questions and observations to be recorded. The qualitative data collection aimed at complementing and validating the data collected using questionnaire survey.
Collections of primary data were complemented by collecting secondary data from various sources such as reports as well as papers published in peer referred journals. Important data to be collected in this category was the ICT utilization on microfinance institutions performance.

Primary Data

Kothari (2004) defined primary data as those collected afresh and for the first time and therefore happen to be original in character. A research can be  conducted without secondary data; however a research based on only secondary data is not much reliable and may have biases because it has already been manipulated by human beings. In this proposed study the primary data was expected to be derived from the answers of respondents given in in-depth interview and researcher’s administered questionnaires.

In-Depth Interview

In-depth interview is a qualitative research method which involves conducting intensive individual interviews with a small number of informants to explore their perspectives on a particular idea, program, or situation (Boyce and Neale, 2006). The main reason for the researcher to adopt an in-depth interview method is that it provides a much more detailed information than other data collection methods, such as surveys. Also, the choice of interview method in this study is based on its usefulness for getting the story behind informant’s experiences, its relevance to illiterate informants and the loophole for the researcher to probe deeper into the given situation.In addition to that, in-depth interview provides more comfortable atmosphere for collecting information because people may feel more relaxed having a conversation with the researcher about the program as opposed to filling out a survey. The purpose of utilizing interviews as data collection instrument is basically because of its naturalness, spontaneity, flexibility and the control over the environment. This method will be employed in order to allow informants to freely express themselves and able explore in detail the topic under investigation.

Researcher-administered Questionnaire.

There are different types of questionnaires in research but under this study the researcher-administered questionnaire was adopted. All questions were closed ended and were administered by the researcher. Researcher-administered questionnaire was used because of its advantages, as it is covers large number of respondents in a short time, ensures the completion of questionnaires and is simple to analyze as compared with qualitative methods like in-depth interview. This argument concurs with Kothari (2008) who states that “structured questionnaires are simple to administer and relatively inexpensive to analyze”. Under this study the original questionnaire was designed in English and administered in Kiswahili before the answers being translated back to English for recording.

Review of Secondary Data

According to Kothari (2008), secondary data means data which is already available. It involves data which have already been collected and analyzed by someone else. The reason for using secondary data in this study are that they are cost-effective way of acquiring a broad understanding of research questions and useful in designing primary research as well as in providing a baseline with which to compare primary data results. Additionally, the reviewing of secondary data helps to set the background of the problem, formulation of problem statement, research questions and gap of knowledge. In this study secondary data was derived from the findings in published documents and literatures related to the research problem with ICT.
Furthermore, in this proposed study, review of secondary data was applied as a supplementary data collection method and it includes previous researches related to the study topic. Therefore, these documents are intended to supplement the information obtained from the primary sources. Neuman, (2000) and Mouton (2001) noted that the importance of undertaking desk review in any research study is that it is based on the assumption that researchers learn from existing knowledge and build on what other researchers have already done on a similar or related problem.

Data Analysis

Statistics package for social science (SPSS) computer program was used to analyze data that collected through questionnaires preliminary analysis of information was soughed through in-depth interviews that were done during the fieldwork. Such preliminary analysis has been suggested to be useful for improving questions during the fieldwork (Gibbs, 2002). However, the large part, of analysis was done after the field work. Interpretation of qualitative data involved organizing information into units, synthesizing, and searched for meaningful patterns and finally gained an understanding. Frequencies and percentages were used to summarize the collected data. In the process of analysis, relationships or differences supporting or conflicting with original or new hypotheses is to be subjected to the statistical tests of significance to determine validity that data can be said to indicate in any conclusion (Kothari, 2004). Summary statistics including tables was used to present findings.

Method of Data Analysis

The model for data analysis is helping to acquire knowledge from the collected data. The Model makes it possible to identify relationships between variables and understands how variables, working on their own and influences an overall system and examine each component of data provided.frequencies

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