The Status Of Rural Women’s Health And Cassava Output In Nigeria

This study was carried out to analyze the influence of the health status of women farmers on their level of cassava production. The specific objectives are to; identify the socio-economic characteristics of the rural women in the area, ascertain common health problems they encounter and their health management techniques and the influence of the rural women’s health status on level of cassava production in the area. A multi-stage random sampling technique was employed to select 200 women farmers in Ikom Local Government Area in Nigeria. Data was collected and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study revealed that, majority of the women were in the age range of 40-50 years, 71% were married, 78% traded alongside farming, 66.5% had some form of formal education, their family sizes range between 6-10 people and with a mean family size of 6. Annual income of the farmers range between #10,000 - #14,000. The predominant practice was mixed cropping. Body pains, fever, malaria, headache, were the common ailment. While painful menstruation (20.5%) was the most common reproductive disease. Results from the regression analysis shows that the household size, educational level and income are significantly related to the health status of the rural women while age and marital status are not significantly related. Health centers, patent medicine stores, family planning, leprosy centers were readily available in the villages surveyed clinic. As health status of the women improved, productivity was therefore expected to increase. On this basis, the policy of free health facilities for women was advocated if women cassava productivity is to increase. A policy of free medical facilities including good food to the rural women will boost their health status and productivity.

Determinants of Poverty Status of Fish Vendor Households in Lower Cross River Basin, Nigeria

This study was carried out to analyse the poverty status of dry fish vendor households in Lower Cross River Basin, Nigeria. The specific objectives were to; estimate the mean expenditure on basic consumption items of fish vendor households, determine the influence of socio-economic characteristics of the respondents on their poverty status and estimate the determinants of poverty amongst fish vendor households. Primary data collected were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics (Logistic regression). The monthly mean per adult equivalent household expenditure of the households was $29.78 (N 4,764.48) out of which poverty line of$ 9.93 (N1, 588.16) was estimated. Results of FGT decomposition revealed that poverty incidence for the study area is 0.569.  The head count index was calculated at 56.9% while poverty gap was 48.0%. Logistic regression result showed that except for age, and marital status, all other explanatory variables were found to be significant predictors of poverty among dry fish vendors in lower Cross River Basin. The variables include; ownership of assets (p<0.002), years of fish vending experience (p<0.020), educational status (p<0.037), household size (p<0.064) and major occupation (p<0.053). Educational status and ownership of assets reduces the probability of being poor, while larger households, longer periods in fish vending (experience) and fish vending as a major occupation were associated with a higher chance of being poor.  Policy interventions that target these predictor variables are necessary to reduce poverty among dry fish vendors in lower Cross River Basin. Keywords: Poverty status, Fish vendor, Lower Cross River Basin

Aerobic Exercise Responses and Blood Pressure Measurement of Individuals with Intellectual Disability in Ibadan

The benefits of physical activities are universal for all including those with intellectual disability. Individuals with intellectual disability are mostly neglected and hardly exercised. Hence, the opportunities for improved health and wellness are limited. Paucity of data that could guide ameliorative measures also presents another challenge. Participants were 65 individuals with intellectual disability drawn from four schools for the handicap in Ibadan and were assigned into three experimental groups (Down syndrome, Autism and Cerebral palsy) and control group. Data were analysed using Analysis of Covariance, Analysis of Variance and Scheffe post-hoc test. There were significant differences in the physiological variables of systolic blood pressure (F (2, 62) = 15.3; p < 0.05), between the experimental and control groups. Therefore continuous exercise for the intellectually disabled individuals should be an integral part of the physical education curriculum. Key words: Intellectual disability, Quality of life, Physiological parameter

Some Selected Physical Fitness Parameters of Intellectual Disability Individuals: A Review

The benefits of physical activities are universal for all including those with intellectual disability. Individuals with intellectual disability are mostly neglected and hardly exercised. Hence, the opportunities for improved health and wellness are limited. Paucity of data that could guide ameliorative measures also presents another challenge. Therefore, this paper reviews some selected physical fitness parameters of intellectually disables individuals. Key words: Intellectual disability, Physical Fitness

Determinants of Rural Households’ Choice of Non-Farm Livelihood Patterns in Southeast Nigeria

The study ascertained the determinants of the choice of non-farm livelihood patterns of rural households in Southeast Nigeria. The specific objectives were to: describe the socio-economic characteristics of rural households in the study area, identify the predominant non-farm livelihood patterns adopted by rural households and ascertain available livelihood resources and estimate the determinants of the choice of non-farm livelihood patterns among households in the study area. A five (5)–stage random sampling procedure was used in the selection of 360 samples for the study. A structured and validated interview schedule was used for data collection. Data were analyzed using mean, frequencies, percentages and ordered logit regression model. Results indicated that trading (mean = 3.98), commercial cars/motorcycle services (mean = 3.91), Bicycle repairing (mean = 3.71), tailoring and weaving (mean = 3.53), were the predominant non-farm livelihood patterns of the respondents. Furthermore, human capital (mean = 2.86) and social capital resources (mean = 3.13) were their available livelihood resources. Human capital resources (p = 0.001) and physical capital resources (p = 0.076) were the determinants of respondents’ choice of non-farm livelihood patterns. The study recommends that all stakeholders should intensify rural infrastructural development

Awareness and Adoption of Good Agricultural Practices among Smallholder Farmers in relation to the Adopted Villages programme: The Case Study of Northern Nigeria

This study assesses smallholder level of awareness and uptake of good agricultural practices (GAPs) that were initiated by the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS) in Nigeria; a programme to enhance the agricultural productivity and income of participants. This study engaged with 120 smallholder farmers and their extension officer and data were collected via structured face-to-face and livelihood questionnaires and then analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings show that 82% of participants were aware of the specific GAPs covered by the NAERLS programme. Despite this, the majority of respondents were not practicing these. Participants identified numerous challenges to GAPs implementation, including; unreliable and inadequate rainfall; lack of farm inputs; high cost of farm inputs; lack of technical know-how; lack of irrigation facilities and high illiteracy.  The study also shows that the level of awareness of GAPs among farmers in the study areas has a statistically significant impact on the productivity and livelihoods of smallholders.  These initial results strongly suggest that the Nigerian government should provide funds to support NAERLS in order to intensify its intervention efforts.  In the same vein, NGOs, rural developers, policy makers and government at all levels should be encouraged to provide farm inputs and credit facilities to farming communities to offset the high costs of inputs. Keywords: Good Agricultural Practices, Awareness. DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/10-6-06 Publication date:March 31st 202

Socio-Economic Factors Influencing Farmers’ Participation in Community Development Organizations in Obubra Local Government Area of Cross River State, Nigeria

This study was carried out to determine the factors that influence farmers’ participation in social organizations in Obubra LGA in Cross River State. To achieve this, a multistage random sampling technique was used to select five out of 27 clans. Two local organizations were randomly selected from each of the five clans and finally 6 members were also randomly selected from each of the organization, resulting in a total of 60 respondents. The results indicate that half of the respondents (50%) were young people (below 30 years) and they were majority (93.3%) Christians who mostly cultivate small farm holdings of less than 2ha. Majority (68.3) belonged to just one organization, while 20 percent belonged to two organizations. Majority (56.7%) also earned less than N4,000 per month. The members joined local organizations basically for economic benefits and farm supports. Their participation was affected by mutual distrust among members and lack of confidence in their leadership. They were also not sure of having expected organizational benefits. Chi-square (χ2) test result indicated a significant relationship between farm size, educational level, income and participation (P>0.05; 56.0, 9.623 and 7.607). Organizational environment that will encourage effective participation should be encouraged by ensuring due enforcement of organisation’s code of conduct, rules and regulations. Local organizations should also be used as a channel to assist farmers in micro-credit and input delivery. This will be made possible by ensuring good organizational leadership.Key words: Community; Development; organization and ParticipationRésumé Cette étude a été réalisée afin de déterminer les facteurs qui influencent la participation des agriculteurs dans les organisations sociales dans l’Obubra à l’État de Cross River. Pour ce faire, une technique d'échantillonnage à plusieurs degrés au hasard a été utilisée pour sélectionner cinq des 27 clans. Deux organisations locales ont été choisis au hasard dans chacune des cinq clans et enfin 6 membres ont également été choisis au hasard dans chacune des organisation, résultant en un total de 60 répondants. Les résultats indiquent que la moitié des répondants (50%) étaient des jeunes (moins de 30 ans) et ils étaient la majorité (93,3%) qui pour la plupart chrétiens cultivent de petites exploitations agricoles de moins de 2 ha. La majorité (68,3) appartenait à une seule organisation, tandis que 20 pour cent appartiennent à deux organisations. La majorité (56,7%) ont également gagné moins de N4, 000 par mois. Les membres qui ont rejoint les organisations locales essentiellement pour des avantages économiques et des soutiens agricoles. Leur participation a été affectée par la méfiance mutuelle entre les membres et le manque de confiance en leurs chefs. Ils n'étaient pas non plus sûr d'avoir les avantages escomptés de l'organisation. Chi-carré résultat du test (χ2) a montré une relation significative entre la taille des exploitations, le niveau d’instruction, le revenu et la participation (P> 0,05; 56,0, 9,623 et 7,607). Environnement organisationnel qui encouragera la participation effective devrait être encouragée en veillant au respect du code en raison organisation de conduite, règles et règlements. Les organisations locales devraient aussi être utilisé comme un canal pour aider les agriculteurs dans la livraison de micro-crédit et d’intrants. Ce sera rendue possible en veillant à une bonne leadership organisationnel.Mots clés: Communauté; Le développement; l’organisation et la participatio

Testing American public opinion on the work of the United Nations

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)What do Americans think about the United Nations? Social scientists have put forward an array of viewpoints on the subject, focusing on such things as partisan differences in the attitudes of Americans towards the work of the UN to public skepticism of the organization’s objectives and effectiveness. I argue, in this thesis, that public opinion is a causal factor because of its potential to influence political outcomes. For example, public opinion can influence the effectiveness of the UN’s work in three main ways: 1) It can serve as an instrument for establishing the credibility of the international body’s work and/ or in discrediting the system as a whole; 2) it can serve as a link between the US and the UN in encouraging support for the United Nations in one of its most important members; and 3) Public opinion can stress the importance of a particular issue and pressure influential actors to take action. I choose to focus solely on the United States in this thesis despite the UN’s 192 other member states for the reason that overwhelmingly negative assessments have been offered of the organization since the Iraq War. The research depicting this idea points to a decline in American popular support for the UN in the past decade. By investigating six different hypotheses which seek to explain this possible decline, I conclude that American public support for the international body after the Iraq war has declined and can best be explained by hypothesis 3 on inadequate coverage of UN matters in the media and hypothesis 5 on the thought that the UN is “ineffective;” although this presumed decline is not steady due to opinion level variations in the recent decade

Logit and tobit estimates of the effects of ICTs on international remittances to the Nigerian farmer

This paper analyzed the relationship between ICTs and international remittances received by farmers in Nigeria using two approaches. With the aid of the logit model, it determined the probability that a Nigerian farmer with access to ICTs received remittance from abroad. Secondly, the tobit model was employed to analyze the effects of access to ICTs on the monetary values of international remittances received. Preceding these analyses were descriptive statistics of the farmers access to ICTs and volumes of international remittances received. Empirical data for the analyses were drawn from the Nigerian General Household Surveys conducted in 2010/2011. This survey was particularly relevant because it elicited information from Nigerian farming households including data regarding their access to ICTs and remittances. Among several findings, the analyses showed that 73.06% and 3.92% of the Nigerian Farming population had access to mobile phones and the internet respectively. Also, a Nigerian farmer who owned a mobile phone is approximately 1.5 times more likely to receive remittances from abroad than a farmer who had access to mobile phones but did not own one. It was recommended that public investments in remittance and ICTs linked rural infrastructures are apropos. Telecommunication companies and financial institutions need to create a platform to enable easy access to ICTs which in turn enables access to remittances in the rural areas

Determination of relationship between thyroid gland volume and parity, smoking habits and alcohol consumption

Objective: This study is aimed at investigating possible relationship between thyroid gland volume, parity, smoking and alcohol consumption. Background: The thyroid gland is one of the largest endocrine glands in the body that produces thyroid hormones, principally  thyroxine (T ) and triiodothyronine (T ). These hormones regulate the rate of 4 3 metabolism and control the growth and rate of function of many other systems in the body. Any factor that affects thyroid gland volume, would affect production and function of thyroid hormones in the body. Materials And Methods: Ultrasound of the neck in patients that fulfill recruitment criteriaand presenting to radiology departmentbetween 2011 and 2012, were evaluated for the study. Demographic data, indications and findings were evaluated. Results: A total of 400subjects were involved in the study, with more female non-smokers(250) and nonalcoholics(231) than males. There was variation in size of thyroid gland in non-alcoholics (Mean thyroid volume = 5.58±2.60)compared to alcoholics(Mean thyroid volume = 6.14±2.74), indicating the goitrogenic effect of alcohol.There is an increase in thyroid volume with increase in smoking, though not significant. Parity does not have significant effect on thyroid volume in this study, with P-value of 0.128. Conclusion: Cigarette smoking, alcohol and pregnancy are associated with increase in thyroid volume. This has been attributed to the goitrogenic effect of nicotine, alcohol and pregnancy hormones. The effects of nicotine and alcohol on thyroid gland, is seen in both males and females. Although pregnancy is noted to cause increase thyroid volume, there was increase in volume with increase inparity in this study. Key Word: Determination, Thyroid volume, Parity, Smoking and Alcohol consumption