Exploring Measures for Improving Small and Medium Construction Enterprises’ (SMCEs) Participation in the Nigerian Public Procurement

Despite the roles which small and medium construction enterprises (SMCEs) play in the Nigeria construction industry and the economy at large, extant research revealed that their participation in public procurement is poor as large firms have dominated the public procurement market. Previous studies have identified barriers responsible for their low participation and also suggested improvement measures. However, improvement measures best suited to dismantle/mitigate each barrier is not known. This study thus, assessed measures for improving SMCEs’ participation in Nigeria public procurement. The study collected data from 100 SMCEs in Nigeria, via a questionnaire survey. Mean/relative importance index was used for ranking the measures and ANOVA for checking difference between the studied measures. The result of the study revealed that E-procurement is the best measure for improving SMCEs’ participation in public procurement as it is best in dismantling barriers related to “problematic procurement procedure”, “lack of awareness of public procurement” and “legal issues/corruption”. Training which is suitable for eliminating barriers related to “lack of skilled employees and partners”, emerged as the second best followed by Division of Contract into lots that is best suitable for tackling barriers related to “lack of resources” which is contrary to previous researchers’ belief that it is the best measure. The study concludes that E-procurement, training and division of contract into lots are all suitable measures for improving SMCEs’ participation in Nigeria public procurement in their other of priority. The study’s findings show that it is desirous that the measures are applied together as none of these measures is singularly sufficient in dismantling all barriers to SMCEs’ participation in public procurement

Exploring Measures for Improving Small and Medium Construction Enterprises’ (SMCEs) Participation in the Nigerian Public Procurement

Despite the roles which small and medium construction enterprises (SMCEs) play in the Nigeria construction industry and the economy at large, extant research revealed that their participation in public procurement is poor as large firms have dominated the public procurement market. Previous studies have identified barriers responsible for their low participation and also suggested improvement measures. However, improvement measures best suited to dismantle/mitigate each barrier is not known. This study thus, assessed measures for improving SMCEs’ participation in Nigeria public procurement. The study collected data from 100 SMCEs in Nigeria, via a questionnaire survey. Mean/relative importance index was used for ranking the measures and ANOVA for checking difference between the studied measures. The result of the study revealed that E-procurement is the best measure for improving SMCEs’ participation in public procurement as it is best in dismantling barriers related to “problematic procurement procedure”, “lack of awareness of public procurement” and “legal issues/corruption”. Training which is suitable for eliminating barriers related to “lack of skilled employees and partners”, emerged as the second best followed by Division of Contract into lots that is best suitable for tackling barriers related to “lack of resources” which is contrary to previous researchers’ belief that it is the best measure. The study concludes that E-procurement, training and division of contract into lots are all suitable measures for improving SMCEs’ participation in Nigeria public procurement in their other of priority. The study’s findings show that it is desirous that the measures are applied together as none of these measures is singularly sufficient in dismantling all barriers to SMCEs’ participation in public procurement

Multiple Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria on Fluted Pumpkin Leaves, a Herb of Therapeutic Value

Fluted pumpkin ( Telfairia occidentalis ) is a minimally-processed green leafy vegetable traditionally used for its antianaemic properties in the form of leaf juice without a heating or inactivation step before consumption. The aim of the study was to assess the presence of surface microbiota on T. occidentalis leaves and also to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility of isolated organisms. Bacterial contaminants on 50 samples of T. occidentalis leaves were isolated and characterized using standard biochemical methods and the antimicrobial susceptibility of isolated organisms was determined using the antibiotic disc diffusion assay. The results obtained show that the leaves of T. occidentalis is contaminated with organisms which included Enterobacter agglomerans (25.9%), Proteus vulgaris (24.9%), Klebsiella spp. (2.6%), and Serratia liquefaciens (2.1%). Other bacterial isolates recovered in order of frequency included: Staphylococcus spp. (33.7%), Bacillus spp. (8.3%), and Pseudomonas fluorescens (2.6%). Of the 193 bacterial isolates from the leaves of T. occidentalis samples tested for antimicrobial resistance, all (100%) were found to be resistant to ampicillin, cloxacillin, augmentin, erythromycin, and tetracycline while 96% of the isolates were resistant to cephalothin. Resistance to trimethoprim (93%) and gentamicin (83%) was also observed. Approximately, 22% of the isolates were resistant to ciprofloxacin; however, only 11 (5.8%) were resistant to ofloxacin. Thus, uncooked T. occidentalis is a potential source of highly-resistant epiphytic bacteria which could be opportunistic pathogens in consumers

Effect of ZSM-5 acidity in enhancement of methanol-to-olefins process

The skyrocketing demand for olefins especially propylene, have necessitated continuous efforts in finding alternate route for olefins production. Hence, methanol to olefins (MTO) was recognized as a feasible process since methanol could simply be mass produced from any gasifiable carbon-based feedstock, such as natural gas, coal, and biomass. Essentially, obtaining a more stable catalyst would improve economy of the MTO process. Acidity of catalyst has major influence in MTO, thus it is an indispensable parameter for conversion of methanol into value-added products. The present paper discusses the reactions involved in MTO process and the effect of acidity in enhancement of light olefin selectivity and catalytic stability. The paper also captured perspectives of crucial research and future direction for catalysts development and technologies that can potentiallly boost olefin production and make it competitive with the conventional olefin production processes

Normal electrocardiographic parameters of Auraki donkeys in Sokoto, Nigeria: baseline for adaptation

Donkey is becoming an endangered species regionally in northwestern Nigeria and nationally. Indigenous species have suffered a sharp decline in population from hunting, diseases and slaughter as food animals by different tribes in Nigeria. Very little information on their cardiac excitability is available, owing to negligence and lack of comprehensive and coherent national program on donkeys’ conservation and preservation, hence the need to carry out the study. The study was carried out using 22 apparently healthy Jacks (male donkeys) with a mean age of 8 ± 0.7 years and an average weight of 135kg ± 0.5. The donkeys were manually restrained on standing position on an insulated ground surface using a rubber mat; Electrocardiogram was conducted using single lead channel ECG recorder (EDAN VE-100). The durations of P, R, T, QRS, P-R interval and Q-T interval were recorded as well as the amplitudes of P, R and T. The highest amplitude of P- wave was obtained in lead II while the highest R-wave amplitude was obtained in lead aVR. P and T wave’s durations were highest in lead aVR while higher R-wave and QRS complex durations were obtained in leads aVL and aVF, respectively. The P-R and Q-T intervals (duration) were highest in lead I. Positive P-wave, Negative T-wave and Negative deflection of QRS complex were predominant. Variable QRS-complexes were recorded with predominant QS deflection. The mean heart rate was 52.8±1.8 and ranged between 30-142beats/minute. ECG parameters of donkeys in Sokoto differ from that of other breeds. Data generated will serve as baseline references for quick detection of deviations and early diagnosis and management of potential cardiovascular conditions in studied breed. Key Words: Arrhythmias, Electrocardiogram, Tropics, Auraki Donkeys, Extinction, Sokot

Comparison of electrocardiographic parameters of racing and non-racing horses in Sokoto Nigeria

The study was conducted due to the economic importance of horses and shortage of information on electrocardiographic parameters of horses in Sokoto, Nigeria. This study established the normal electrocardiographic parameters of racing and non-racing horses in Sokoto and statistically compared the values. The study used forty horses comprising of 20 racing and 20 non-racing horses with mean age of 8 ± 0.5 years and average weight of 200 ± 2.0 kg. ECG was recorded using the base apex system with the animals in standing position using single lead channel ECG recorder (EDAN VE-100 manufactured by Edan instruments China). The paper speed was set at 25mm/s while the sensitivity of the machine was adjusted to 10 mm/mV. The durations and amplitudes of P, R and T, the durations of Q and S and the durations of PR, QRS and QT intervals were all determined. These parameters were determined for the three standard limb leads (I, II and III) as well as the augmented limb leads (aVR, aVL and aVF). Descriptive statistics using SPSS version 16 was used to calculate the means and standard error of mean at 95 % confidence interval. One-way ANOVA was used to compare between the values of the racing and non-racing horses. The highest values of P amplitude, R amplitude, Q amplitude, QRS complex and P-R interval were recorded in racing horses, while highest T wave amplitude was recorded in non-racing horses. Highest duration of P wave, T wave and QRS was recorded in racing horses while highest duration of Q wave was recorded in non-racing horses. Significant difference was found in the T amplitude in racing horses in lead aVF. The mean heart rate for the racing and non-racing horses was 80.3 ± 8.4 and 63.1 ± 9.2 beats/minute respectively. Higher values recorded in racing horses indicates that exercise has influence on electrical activities in horses. Keywords: Electrocardiograph, Non-racing horses, Parameters, Racing horses, Sokot

Correction to: Comparison of electrocardiographic parameters of racing and non-racing horses in Sokoto Nigeria

The initial version of the article published in Volume 18 number 1 (March, 2020) contained errors in the names of AJ Ishaq and N Abduazeez. Their correct names are: AI Ja’afaru and N Abdulazeez, respectively

Spatio Temporal Land Use Land Cover Change Mapping of Malete Elemere: Implication on Development Planning of Emerging Communities

The use of Ecosystem and Biodiversity mapping, land use land cover change detection has been advocated in preparation of developmental master plan in towns and cities. Noticeable changes have been observed within Malete Elemere community since the establishment of Kwara State University Malete, yet its spatial pattern and socio ecological implication have not been investigated. This work seek to determine and produce land cover land use change map of Malete Elemere over the last 10 years and post 15 year periods through change detection techniques so as to evaluate the impact of the establishment of Kwara State university on the settlement spatial development. Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) satellite images of 2005, 2010 and 2015 of the study area were acquired from USGS at spatial resolution of 30 m. Radiometric correction were applied to all the images using radiance modules in Idrisi32 with radiance spectral value set at DN 0 (Lmin) and 255 (Lmax). An unsupervised classification was carried out on the composite images of bands 4,3,2,1 for all the selected years to identify possible maximum spectral reflectance classes, this was followed by supervised classification using training sample from the field survey from which image to image spatio-temporal changes statistics were extracted. To generate a prediction of LULC changes for 2025, Cellular Automata-Markovian transition estimator (CA-Markov) in Idrisi32 was used. Various Kappa statistics was used to evaluate the performance of prediction with an average K statistics of above 0.83 recorded. The result shows that built up area gained an astronomical increase (180%) between 2005 and 2015 while forest lost significantly (34%) within the same periods, with most of the gains occurring in 2010 and 2015 after the establishment of KWASU. By 2025, two Major growth pole centres will emerge along Malete Elemere Axis and one minor in Jenkunu Omoni Axis which will exert a great stress on infrastructural facilities and may create a chaotic condition if left unattended to