Short communications: The first confirmed breeding record and new distribution data for Böhm’s Flycatcher Myopornis boehmi in Tanzania

No abstrac

Use of a hydrological model for environmental management of the Usangu Wetlands, Tanzania

Wetlands / Rivers / Ecology / Environmental effects / Remote sensing / Hydrology / Simulation models / Water budget / Irrigated sites / Land cover / Time series analysis / Tanzania / Usangu Wetlands / Great Ruaha River

Spatial Clustering of Porcine Cysticercosis in Mbulu District, Northern Tanzania

Taenia solium is a tapeworm that causes two different disease conditions. In its adult stage, it inhabits the small intestine of human, a condition known as taeniosis, which is characterised by mild symptoms including abdominal disconfort. In the larval stage, T. solium can infect humans and various animal species, mainly pigs, causing cysticercosis. Taeniosis is acquired through consumption of inadequately cooked infected meat, while cysticercosis is acquired through ingestion of tapeworm eggs in foodstuffs contaminated with faeces from a human tapeworm carrier. Cysticercosis of human central nervous tissues (neurocysticercosis) causes serious syndromes such as epilepsy. Transmission of T. solium is facilitated by several factors such as presence of tapeworm carriers, poor sanitation and poor pig husbandry, which allow pigs to access human faeces. Nevertheless, the role of these factors in parasite transmission may vary with different cultural settings. Following an incidence and a prevalence studies in a rural area of northern Tanzania, there was a significant spatial clustering of porcine cysticerocis, suggesting focal distribution of transmission risk factors, which could be targeted for interventions. The study also revealed that despite the low sensitivity of the lingual examination method to detect porcine cysticercosis, it could highlight the potential ‘hotspots’ of the infection

Inequitable Gains and Losses from Conservation in a Global Biodiversity Hotspot

A billion rural people live near tropical forests. Urban populations need them for water, energy and timber. Global society benefits from climate regulation and knowledge embodied in tropical biodiversity. Ecosystem service valuations can incentivise conservation, but determining costs and benefits across multiple stakeholders and interacting services is complex and rarely attempted. We report on a 10-year study, unprecedented in detail and scope, to determine the monetary value implications of conserving forests and woodlands in Tanzania’s Eastern Arc Mountains. Across plausible ranges of carbon price, agricultural yield and discount rate, conservation delivers net global benefits (+US$8.2B present value, 20-year central estimate). Crucially, however, net outcomes diverge widely across stakeholder groups. International stakeholders gain most from conservation (+US$10.1B), while local-rural communities bear substantial net costs (-US$1.9B), with greater inequities for more biologically important forests. Other Tanzanian stakeholders experience conflicting incentives: tourism, drinking water and climate regulation encourage conservation (+US$72M); logging, fuelwood and management costs encourage depletion (-US$148M). Substantial global investment in disaggregating and mitigating local costs (e.g., through boosting smallholder yields) is essential to equitably balance conservation and development objectives

Motivation and incentives of rural maternal and neonatal health care providers: a comparison of qualitative findings from Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania.

In Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania strong efforts are being made to improve the quality of maternal and neonatal health (MNH) care. However, progress is impeded by challenges, especially in the area of human resources. All three countries are striving not only to scale up the number of available health staff, but also to improve performance by raising skill levels and enhancing provider motivation. In-depth interviews were used to explore MNH provider views about motivation and incentives at primary care level in rural Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania. Interviews were held with 25 MNH providers, 8 facility and district managers, and 2 policy-makers in each country. Across the three countries some differences were found in the reasons why people became health workers. Commitment to remaining a health worker was generally high. The readiness to remain at a rural facility was far less, although in all settings there were some providers that were willing to stay. In Burkina Faso it appeared to be particularly difficult to recruit female MNH providers to rural areas. There were indications that MNH providers in all the settings sometimes failed to treat their patients well. This was shown to be interlinked with differences in how the term 'motivation' was understood, and in the views held about remuneration and the status of rural health work. Job satisfaction was shown to be quite high, and was particularly linked to community appreciation. With some important exceptions, there was a strong level of agreement regarding the financial and non-financial incentives that were suggested by these providers, but there were clear country preferences as to whether incentives should be for individuals or teams. Understandings of the terms and concepts pertaining to motivation differed between the three countries. The findings from Burkina Faso underline the importance of gender-sensitive health workforce planning. The training that all levels of MNH providers receive in professional ethics, and the way this is reinforced in practice require closer attention. The differences in the findings across the three settings underscore the importance of in-depth country-level research to tailor the development of incentives schemes

Inequitable gains and losses from conservation in a global biodiversity hotspot

A billion rural people live near tropical forests. Urban populations need them for water, energy and timber. Global society benefits from climate regulation and knowledge embodied in tropical biodiversity. Ecosystem service valuations can incentivise conservation, but determining costs and benefits across multiple stakeholders and interacting services is complex and rarely attempted. We report on a 10-year study, unprecedented in detail and scope, to determine the monetary value implications of conserving forests and woodlands in Tanzania’s Eastern Arc Mountains. Across plausible ranges of carbon price, agricultural yield and discount rate, conservation delivers net global benefits (+US$8.2B present value, 20-year central estimate). Crucially, however, net outcomes diverge widely across stakeholder groups. International stakeholders gain most from conservation (+US$10.1B), while local-rural communities bear substantial net costs (-US$1.9B), with greater inequities for more biologically important forests. Other Tanzanian stakeholders experience conflicting incentives: tourism, drinking water and climate regulation encourage conservation (+US$72M); logging, fuelwood and management costs encourage depletion (-US$148M). Substantial global investment in disaggregating and mitigating local costs (e.g., through boosting smallholder yields) is essential to equitably balance conservation and development objectives

Health worker motivation in the context of HIV care and treatment challenges in Mbeya Region, Tanzania: A qualitative study

Health worker motivation can potentially affect the provision of health services. The HIV pandemic has placed additional strain on health service provision through the extra burden of increased testing and counselling, treating opportunistic infections and providing antiretroviral treatment. The aim of this paper is to explore the challenges generated by HIV care and treatment and their impact on health worker motivation in Mbeya Region, Tanzania. Thirty in-depth interviews were conducted with health workers across the range of health care professions in health facilities in two high HIV-prevalence districts of Mbeya Region, Tanzania. A qualitative framework analysis was adopted for data analysis. The negative impact of HIV-related challenges on health worker motivation was confirmed by this study. Training seminars and workshops related to HIV contributed to the shortage of health workers in the facilities. Lower status workers were frequently excluded from training and were more severely affected by the consequent increase in workload as seminars were usually attended by higher status professionals who controlled access. Constant and consistent complaints by clients have undermined health workers' expectations of trust and recognition. Health workers were forced to take responsibility for dealing with problems arising from organisational inefficiencies within the health system. HIV-related challenges undermine motivation among health workers in Mbeya, Tanzania with the burden falling most heavily on lower status workers. Strained relations between health workers and the community they serve, further undermine motivation of health workers

The global financial crisis and developing countries

When the global financial crisis broke out in earnest in September 2008, it quickly became clear that developing countries would also be affected, but that the impacts would vary markedly. The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) coordinated a multi-country study over January-March 2009 involving developing country teams in 10 countries. This showed that, while the transmission mechanisms were similar in each (trade, private capital flows, remittances, aid), the effects varied by country, and much was not yet visible. As such, further country-specific monitoring was required. Most findings suggested that, as a result of time lags, the worst effects were yet to come. This synthesis of the effects of the global financial crisis on developing countries updates the description of the economic and social situation during the course of the crisis in 11 countries

The Global Financial Crisis and Developing Countries: Phase 2 Synthesis

When the global financial crisis broke out in earnest in September 2008, it quickly became clear that developing countries would also be affected, but that the impacts would vary markedly. The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) coordinated a multi-country study over January-March 2009 involving developing country teams in 10 countries. This showed that, while the transmission mechanisms were similar in each (trade, private capital flows, remittances, aid), the effects varied by country, and much was not yet visible. As such, further country-specific monitoring was required. Most findings suggested that, as a result of time lags, the worst effects were yet to come. This synthesis of the effects of the global financial crisis on developing countries updates the description of the economic and social situation during the course of the crisis in 11 countries