37 research outputs found
Building Sustainable Rangeland Management Systems through a One System Innovative Approach
Working through a collaborative working partnership between the USAID Feed the Future Resilience in Pastoralist Areas (RiPA)1 program and Land Governance Activity (LGA)2 and selected technical partners, these new rangeland programs aim to build on significant breakthrough successes in rangeland management from their previous lowland programs3. These new lowlands pastoralist development programs have been purposely positioned by USAID to coordinate, collaborate and combine working activities focused on the continued improvement and strengthening of rangeland management systems in the lowlands of Ethiopia. In light of this positioning, it is proposed that the programs work together to build a comprehensive sustainable rangeland management system. This can be achieved by adopting a One System innovative approach, through the combining of existing institutional knowledge, skills, tools and approaches, to create a hybrid Sustainable Rangeland Management system. This will be done by the programs combining and merging the different rangeland management tools and approaches that have been developing to date. It is also recommended that the work draws on other rangeland management approaches that will compliment, further strengthen and make complete, a comprehensive sustainable rangeland management system
Effectiveness of Supportive Supervision Visits on the Consistency of Community-Based Neonatal Sepsis Management Skills of the Health Extension Workers in 167 districts of Ethiopia
Countdown to 2015: Ethiopia's progress towards reduction in under-five mortality: 2014 country case study
On September 13, 2013 the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) of Ethiopia and UNICEF
announced that Ethiopia has successfully reduced the under-five mortality rate by two
thirds between 1990 and 2012, which is the target for achieving Millennium Development
Goal-4. In 1990, the under-five mortality rate in Ethiopia was one of the highest in the
world at 205/1,000 live births. However, by 2012, this rate had declined to 68/1,000 live
births with an average annual rate of decline of 5.0%. This exceeded the 4.3% annual rate
of decline needed to reach MDG4 and was significantly higher than the decline rates
observed in many sub-Saharan African countries and even other low and middle-income
countries. In an effort to understand the story behind Ethiopia’s remarkable achievement
of MDG-4, EPHI has conducted this in-depth Case Study which is supported by Countdown
to 2015. The findings are believed to generate valuable lessons and guidance for other
low-income countries in their quest for accelerating health improvements and reducing
child deaths
Awareness and practice of emergency contraception at a private university in Nigeria.
BACKGROUND: The pursuit of formal education now causes many people in developing countries to marry later in life, thereby leading to increased premarital sex and unintended pregnancies. Efforts have been made to characterize awareness and use of emergency contraception (EC) among undergraduate students in public universities in Nigeria; however, it is not known if students in private tertiary institutions adopt different practices or if having an affluent family background plays a role. This pilot study therefore aimed to assess the awareness and use of EC among students at a private Nigerian university toward assisting education planners in developing strategies in improving students' reproductive well-being. RESULTS: Out of 94 female students, 42 (44.7%) had sexual experience, but only 32 (34.0%) were currently sexually active. Six students (6.4%) had had unwanted pregnancies, of which all but one were terminated. Fifty-seven respondents (60.6%) were aware of EC, though only 10 (10.6%) ever practiced it. The greatest source of EC information was from health workers and peers; the lowest source was family or relatives. Most respondents desired orientation and availability of EC on campus. EC awareness among the students was predicted by upper social class background (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 2.73; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06-7.45) and upbringing in the Federal Capital Territory (adjusted OR, 4.45; 95% CI, 1.56-14.22). CONCLUSIONS: Though awareness of EC was higher among the private university students in this study than at most public universities, there was no difference in EC usage. A high pregnancy termination rate was observed; dilatation and curettage were mainly adopted. In Nigeria, youth-friendly reproductive health information and access should not be limited to government-owned tertiary institutions but also extended to private ones
Preclinical and clinical evaluation of German-sourced ONC201 for the treatment of H3K27M-mutant diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma
Background
Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is a fatal childhood brainstem tumor for which radiation is the only treatment. Case studies report a clinical response to ONC201 for patients with H3K27M-mutant gliomas. Oncoceutics (ONC201) is only available in the United States and Japan; however, in Germany, DIPG patients can be prescribed and dispensed a locally produced compound-ONC201 German-sourced ONC201 (GsONC201). Pediatric oncologists face the dilemma of supporting the administration of GsONC201 as conjecture surrounds its authenticity. Therefore, we compared GsONC201 to original ONC201 manufactured by Oncoceutics Inc.
Methods
Authenticity of GsONC201 was determined by high-resolution mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Biological activity was shown via assessment of on-target effects, in vitro growth, proliferation, and apoptosis analysis. Patient-derived xenograft mouse models were used to assess plasma and brain tissue pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and overall survival (OS). The clinical experience of 28 H3K27M+ mutant DIPG patients who received GsONC201 (2017-2020) was analyzed.
Results
GsONC201 harbored the authentic structure, however, was formulated as a free base rather than the dihydrochloride salt used in clinical trials. GsONC201 in vitro and in vivo efficacy and drug bioavailability studies showed no difference compared to Oncoceutics ONC201. Patients treated with GsONC201 (n = 28) showed a median OS of 18 months (P = .0007). GsONC201 patients who underwent reirradiation showed a median OS of 22 months compared to 12 months for GsONC201 patients who did not (P = .012).
Conclusions
This study confirms the biological activity of GsONC201 and documents the OS of patients who received the drug; however, GsONC201 was never used as a monotherapy
Growth and carcass characteristics of three Ethiopian indigenous goats fed concentrate at different supplementation levels
Performance of various PFM modalities in Ethiopia: a possibility for harmonization at national scales
Over the past few decades, Participatory Forest Management (PFM) has emerged as a key
strategy internationally. Following the recognition that centralized and expert-dependent forest
management practices have been unsuccessful in halting deforestation, the government of
Ethiopia, with assistance from international donors, has been implementing PFM pioneer
projects since the early 1990’s. The experiment is based on the assumption that participation of
local communities, which are the major stakeholders using the forest resources, is essential for
reversing the de facto open access to forests. The PFM pilot projects have used a diversity of
implementation strategies, however, that need to be evaluated before a national PFM strategy
can be formulated. The present paper conducts an evaluation of the institutional set up and the
outcomes of seven pioneer old PFM sites distributed in Oromia and Southern Nations
Nationalities and People Regional states. Outcomes are assessed as forest users’ perceived
changes (before and after pioneer projects) in (1) ownership feeling over the resource (2) change
in forest condition (3) change in livelihood of members, and (4) stability of the PFM
institutions. Qualitative data was collected in focus group discussions, semi-structured and key
informants interviews. Our findings indicate that in most sites the forest cover and ownership
feelings of the community have improved after introduction of PFM. Post project assessment,
however, shows that weak law enforcement, revocation of PFM agreements by the government,
high project staff turnover and inequitable forest benefit distribution endangers the sustainability
of PFM in Ethiopian pioneer projects. The paper argues that scaling up PFM without
consideration for these issues risks multiplying mistakes
Abundance, length-weight relationship and breeding season of Clarias gariepinus (Teleostei: Clariidae) in Lake Tana, Ethiopia
No Abstract. SINET: Ethiopian Journal of Science Vol. 29 (2) 2006: pp. 171-17
Left-lateral transtension along the Ethiopian Rift and constrains on the mantle-reference plate motions
We present the kinematics of the Ethiopian Rift, in the northern part of East African Rift System, derived from compilation of geodetic velocities, focal mechanism inversions, structural data analysis and geological profiles. In the central Ethiopian Rift, the GPS velocity field shows a systematic magnitude increase in ENE direction, and the incremental extensional strain axes recorded by earthquake focal mechanisms and fault slip inversion show ≈. N100°E orientation. This deviation between direction of GPS velocity vectors and orientation of incremental extensional strain is developed due to left lateral transtensional deformation along the NE-SW trending segment of the rift. This interpretation is consistent with the en-e´chelon pattern of tensional and transtensional faults, plus the distribution of the volcanic centers, and the asymmetry of the rift itself. We analyzed the kinematics of the Ethiopian Rift also relative to the mantle comparing the results in the deep and shallow hotspot reference frames. While the oblique orientation of the rift was controlled by the pre-existing lithospheric fabric, the two reference frames predict different kinematics of Africa and Somalia plates along the rift itself, both in magnitude and direction, and with respect to the mantle. However, the observed kinematics and tectonics along the rift are more consistent with a faster WSW-ward motion of Africa than Somalia observed in the shallow hotspot framework. The faster WSW motion of Africa with respect to Somalia plate is inferred to be due to the lower viscosity in the top asthenosphere (LVZ-low-velocity zone) beneath Africa. These findings have significant implication for the evolution of continental rifting in transtensional settings and provide evidence for the kinematics of the Ethiopian Rift in the context of the Africa-Somalia plate interaction in the mantle reference frame