Millennium Development Goals (Mdgs) The Achievement and Failure: A Comparative Presentation Between Yemen and India in the Light of The Development Sectors’ Indicators

 To contribute the achievement of sustainable development (SD) goals the Government’s real commitment on SD thoughts in both central and local levels is one of the most important factors. MDGs express widespread public concern about development’s related issues. The Republic of Yemen and the Republic of India, both are eastern countries in the continent of Asia, sharing its cultural and historical heritage. Regarding the development indicators, in 2011 Yemen was among the least developed countries whereas India among the medium developed countries. This paper mainly depended on the secondary data.  It depends on the national reports in Yemen and India additional to the international organizations’ reports. It exposes first the main indicators (i.e. Economic, Social, and Environmental) which are the constituents of SD dimensions. The purpose is to get representative access towards comprehending the existing situations while conducting the study. Then, the study outlines detailed schedules and tables about the indicators of the development sectors in the two countries such as the sectors of education, higher education, health, agriculture, water, sanitation, roads, energy and communications with some analyzes and discussions about the extent of achieving MDGs in each sector

Benefits or risks: what influences novice drivers regarding adopting smart cars?

Level 4 autonomous vehicles (AVs) are smart vehicles that can move between two different points without any human interference. In 2018, the Saudi Arabian ban on female drivers was finally lifted, resulting in a large number of novice women drivers of different ages. The Kingdom might therefore be considered a risky place to drive, but AVs would help novices to reduce their fear of driving and reduce accidents. Previous studies focused narrowly on those who already had sufficient driving experience and held a valid driving license, but there were no studies on the adoption of smart cars by novice drivers. Based on a literature search, no studies had used a net valence model (NVM) for the adoption of AVs to understand their benefits/risks. Therefore, this study proposed an adoption model for AVs using an NVM to identify the benefit and risk factors that have an impact on beginner drivers’ adoption of autonomous vehicles. A survey method was applied using the purposive sampling technique. Data were collected from 1400 female Saudi novice drivers who had experience with driving AVs. Data analysis was performed using Smart PLS Version 3. The results showed that individuals tended to ignore potential risks and focus instead on the potential benefits of using AVs. Performance expectancy, enjoyment, and effort expectancy were found to be positively related to the perceived advantages. On the other hand, the perceived risk as a construct did not have an impact on beginner drivers’ adoption of autonomous vehicles. Therefore, the major theoretical contribution of this study was the formation of a new NVM model by incorporating three more constructs, which were social influence, personal innovativeness, and alternatives. Finally, the enhanced NVM model could assist AV developers in identifying the expected benefits and drawbacks of AV adoption

Applying software-defined networking to support telemedicine health consultation during and post Covid-19 era

The novel coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) infection has altered the society, economy, and entire healthcare system. Whilst this pandemic has presented the healthcare system with unprecedented challenges, it has rapidly promoted the adoption of telemedicine to deliver healthcare at a distance. Telemedicine is the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for collecting, organizing, storing, retrieving, and exchanging medical information. But it is faced with the limitations of conventional IP-based protocols which makes it challenging to provide Quality of Service (QoS) for telemedicine due to issues arising from network congestion. Likewise, medical professionals adopting telemedicine are affected with low QoS during health consultations with outpatients due to increased internet usage. Therefore, this study proposes a Software-Defined Networking (SDN) based telemedicine architecture to provide QoS during telemedicine health consultations. This study utilizes secondary data from existing research works in the literature to provide a roadmap for the application of SDN to improve QoS in telemedicine during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings from this study present a practical approach for applying SDN in telemedicine to provide appropriate bandwidth and facilitate real time transmission of medical data

Cloud computing services and its Effect on tertiary education : Using google classroom

This paper examines the effectiveness of the Google Classroom App in learning for higher education institutions in Oman. The massive advancement in technology has contributed to changes in learning and delivery of learning resources in the classroom. Thus, it has saved the resources and reduced the cost of learning associated with the traditional learning model. The main goal of this paper is to investigate the students' perception about the cloud computing services accessibility, ease of use and usefulness by measuring the implementation effectiveness of Google Classroom as a mode of teaching. This study used quantitative approach mode to determine the effectiveness and the effect of using Google Classroom e-learning model, 225 completed questionnaires were analyzed using SPSS tool. Its evident that using Google Classroom for the learning is more effective and gained highest level of satisfaction among the learners. As a general result of this work students can use Google classroom in very comfortable and easy way really on the ability of online, remote, and time unconstrained conditions. The students also like to learn through the lecturer with the support of google classroom

Cloud Computing Delivery and Delivery Models: Opportunity and Challenges

The rapid growth of Internet and computing field results in several technological advantages. In the meanwhile, security challenges that emerge along with the growth complicate the aspects of cloud based computing. Security is by now one of the most pressing concerns in Internet business where cloud computing lies in. Cloud-based services are evolving each day introducing new business trends. Since cloud computing entails storage of information in remote servers, unauthorized access to such sensitive information becomes a looming concern. The advantages offered by cloud computing, without robust security measures and flexibility, could lead to lose its credibility. This paper reviews various aspects of cloud computing and issues inherent within its contexts. This paper has identified the gap within the topic of study through the creation of the conceptual framework, which is designed as the way of attempting to connect the different concepts. The intention of the theoretical framework is to determine the potential gaps in the research and link the gaps by the present study and its results. The delivery of both, the cloud computing as well as its models is a relatively new phenomenon within the academic libraries where the study is at the stages of nascent. The conceptual framework could not be comprehensive. Instead, it was a progressive work. Thus, this new topic could be added to form the branch within the theoretical framework. This article tries to look at different concepts of cloud computing as well as the issues, which are inherent within its contexts. It analyzes this part due to the advent and growth in the sector of cloud computing, which is developing the platform for the computing in the future

The Current Risk Management Practices and Knowledge in the Construction Industry

Construction is a critical sector of any economy in terms of value production, labor, and contributing to the gross national product. Managing risk is a relatively young area in Yemen’s construction sector, but it is gaining traction as building activity and competition rise. Construction firms mitigate risk by using a variety of risk management methods. Therefore, there is a need to assess these procedures in order to detect shortcomings. This research aims to establish the existing risk management strategies used in Yemeni building projects. Survey questionnaires were used to collect data. Respondents were drawn from Yemeni construction businesses. Risk management is not executed systematically, intentionally, or continuously, and most firms’ risk management procedures are reactive, semipermanent, informal, and unstructured, with no or few dedicated resources to address risks. This strategy is inconsistent with generally accepted risk management principles. Nonetheless, the findings suggest a general understanding of risk management and a willingness to learn from previous errors. The study of the findings suggests that risk identification approaches such as judgment and historical data are employed for risk analysis, and that the industry typically attempts to avoid or transfer risks in Yemeni building projects. The results shed light on the shortcomings of Yemen’s project management practices. To guarantee that construction projects obtain maximum value for money, project managers of big construction businesses in Yemen need a strong understanding of and training in globally accepted systematic risk management procedures. Finally, this study can help future stakeholders determine how to work together to manage risk

The effect of value innovation in the superior performance and sustainable growth of telecommunications sector : Mediation effect of customer satisfaction and loyalty

The telecommunications industry has recognized innovation as the key to growth and survival. Globalization, liberalization, and privatization, the terms most commonly associated with this sector, have resulted in fierce competition, making it more difficult for telecommunications firms to increase their market share and, as a result, their customer base, sales volume, and, ultimately, profits. The new success strategy is differentiation through innovation, with the aim of breaking out of the competition and creating an uncontested market. This can be accomplished by providing high-value, innovative services that result in customer satisfaction and promote customer loyalty. The primary goal of this study was to create and validate a conceptual model of value innovation and its impact on firm performance and long-term growth by examining the mediation effect of customer satisfaction and loyalty. The empirical analysis results were based on 304 respondents who completed a paper-based survey provided to employees of Yemeni mobile service providers using a convenience non-probability sampling technique. SmartPLS 3 was used to test the hypothesized relationships using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-PM). As a result, the findings empirically validated the theoretical research model, confirming the importance of the value innovation approach to achieving company performance and long-term growth by promoting customer satisfaction and loyalty. Finally, we have provided a discussion of the study’s theoretical contributions, managerial implications, and future research directions

Global, regional, and national burden of chronic kidney disease, 1990–2017 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017

Background Health system planning requires careful assessment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) epidemiology, but data for morbidity and mortality of this disease are scarce or non-existent in many countries. We estimated the global, regional, and national burden of CKD, as well as the burden of cardiovascular disease and gout attributable to impaired kidney function, for the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2017. We use the term CKD to refer to the morbidity and mortality that can be directly attributed to all stages of CKD, and we use the term impaired kidney function to refer to the additional risk of CKD from cardiovascular disease and gout. Methods The main data sources we used were published literature, vital registration systems, end-stage kidney disease registries, and household surveys. Estimates of CKD burden were produced using a Cause of Death Ensemble model and a Bayesian meta-regression analytical tool, and included incidence, prevalence, years lived with disability, mortality, years of life lost, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs). A comparative risk assessment approach was used to estimate the proportion of cardiovascular diseases and gout burden attributable to impaired kidney function. Findings Globally, in 2017, 1·2 million (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 1·2 to 1·3) people died from CKD. The global all-age mortality rate from CKD increased 41·5% (95% UI 35·2 to 46·5) between 1990 and 2017, although there was no significant change in the age-standardised mortality rate (2·8%, −1·5 to 6·3). In 2017, 697·5 million (95% UI 649·2 to 752·0) cases of all-stage CKD were recorded, for a global prevalence of 9·1% (8·5 to 9·8). The global all-age prevalence of CKD increased 29·3% (95% UI 26·4 to 32·6) since 1990, whereas the age-standardised prevalence remained stable (1·2%, −1·1 to 3·5). CKD resulted in 35·8 million (95% UI 33·7 to 38·0) DALYs in 2017, with diabetic nephropathy accounting for almost a third of DALYs. Most of the burden of CKD was concentrated in the three lowest quintiles of Socio-demographic Index (SDI). In several regions, particularly Oceania, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America, the burden of CKD was much higher than expected for the level of development, whereas the disease burden in western, eastern, and central sub-Saharan Africa, east Asia, south Asia, central and eastern Europe, Australasia, and western Europe was lower than expected. 1·4 million (95% UI 1·2 to 1·6) cardiovascular disease-related deaths and 25·3 million (22·2 to 28·9) cardiovascular disease DALYs were attributable to impaired kidney function. Interpretation Kidney disease has a major effect on global health, both as a direct cause of global morbidity and mortality and as an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease. CKD is largely preventable and treatable and deserves greater attention in global health policy decision making, particularly in locations with low and middle SDI

Predicting the environmental suitability for onchocerciasis in Africa as an aid to elimination planning

Recent evidence suggests that, in some foci, elimination of onchocerciasis from Africa may be feasible with mass drug administration (MDA) of ivermectin. To achieve continental elimination of transmission, mapping surveys will need to be conducted across all implementation units (IUs) for which endemicity status is currently unknown. Using boosted regression tree models with optimised hyperparameter selection, we estimated environmental suitability for onchocerciasis at the 5 × 5-km resolution across Africa. In order to classify IUs that include locations that are environmentally suitable, we used receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis to identify an optimal threshold for suitability concordant with locations where onchocerciasis has been previously detected. This threshold value was then used to classify IUs (more suitable or less suitable) based on the location within the IU with the largest mean prediction. Mean estimates of environmental suitability suggest large areas across West and Central Africa, as well as focal areas of East Africa, are suitable for onchocerciasis transmission, consistent with the presence of current control and elimination of transmission efforts. The ROC analysis identified a mean environmental suitability index of 0.71 as a threshold to classify based on the location with the largest mean prediction within the IU. Of the IUs considered for mapping surveys, 50.2% exceed this threshold for suitability in at least one 5×5-km location. The formidable scale of data collection required to map onchocerciasis endemicity across the African continent presents an opportunity to use spatial data to identify areas likely to be suitable for onchocerciasis transmission. National onchocerciasis elimination programmes may wish to consider prioritising these IUs for mapping surveys as human resources, laboratory capacity, and programmatic schedules may constrain survey implementation, and possibly delaying MDA initiation in areas that would ultimately qualify