Clinical: Managing depression in children and young people

Key learning points - How to identify the signs and symptoms of depression in children and adolescents - Treatment options for young people experiencing depression - The Nurse (primary care/Health Visitors/School Nurse) role in supporting young people experiencing depressio

Food Insecurity and the Rising Urbanisation in Africa: Can ICT Revolution Bridge the GAP?

The task of reducing food insecurity in Africa is very challenging. This is because of the changing conditions such as adverse climate change impacts. This study examined food insecurity, urbanisation and ICT in Africa.  The paper employed a combination of both secondary and historical information obtained from different sources (UNHCR, FAO, Mo Ibrahim Foundation etc). Analytical method used include descriptive statistics such as charts. Food security indices in Africa is alarming and disturbing. One in four people in Africa do not have access to food in adequate quantities and one in five African children are underweight. African agriculture is rendered unattractive by low productivity hence the exodus of labour from rural to urban areas. Africa is the most rapidly urbanising continent in the world with enabling factors comprising of infrastructure deficits in rural areas, dearth of employment opportunities and glamour of city life. However, Africa’s urban centres are not immune to the challenges inducing rural-urban migration in the first place. In fact, youth unemployment in Africa is 6 times higher in urban areas than in rural areas. About 72percent of urban dwellers live in slums with the most of them having no access to basic amenities. These culminated in what is regarded in literature as ‘urbanisation of poverty’. Migrants are generally scapegoated as the causes of crimes, violence and even unemployment in urban areas. Therefore, they are subjected to sub-human living conditions. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is particularly critical to the achievement of food security in Africa. This is because of the huge gap between markets and farmers which it is capable of filling. The paper therefore recommends increased but monitored investments in infrastructure in Africa in order to make rural areas more attractive and discourage rural-urban migration. There is also the need to provide favourable micro and macro-environment for businesses to grow especially in rural Africa.&nbsp

Determinants of Access to Education and ICT in Nigeria

The world where development is driven by advancement in education and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is fast emerging. This study therefore examined the determinants of access to education and ICT in Nigeria. The study used information from 4,508 households from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) General Household Survey (GHS) Data. Probit regression model and descriptive statistical tools were used to analyze relevant data. Analysis of the data showed that average household size was fairly large consisting of 7 members with majority (85.1percent) of the households headed by men. Average age of the household heads was 52 years while average years of education was 4 years. Also, 82.0percent and 61.2percent of the households in urban and rural Nigeria respectively had access to education. Therefore, inequality in access to education exists based on location. The factors influencing access to education in Nigeria were found to include age, gender, marital status and household size. The results also revealed age, years of education, marital status, gender and household size as determinants of access to ICT. Analysis of different ICT devices used in Nigeria showed that Radio (88.1percent), Mobile Phones (86.4percent) and Television (55.1percent) were the most widely used. Meanwhile, a significant difference exist in the factors influencing access to education and ICT in rural and urban Nigeria. The study therefore recommended increased investment in education and infrastructure. Government and private organizations should encourage gender equality in access to ICT through gender sensitive interventions

Satirising the Nigeria Police Force: a Multimodal Discourse Analytical Study of Selected Cartoons of TELL Newsmagazines

This paper analysed some selected cartoons from TELL newsmagazines. The purpose was to describe the visual components and communicative devices employed by the cartoonist to send his message to the viewer/readers. The cartoons essentially were used to satire represented phenomenon.  Data for the study were drawn from both primary and secondary sources. The main data for the study comprised 4 cartoons purposively selected from 2012 editions of TELL newsmagazines. The selection of the cartoons was predicated upon the subject under consideration. Analysis of the data is based on multimodal discourse analysis as explicated by Gunter Kress and Theo Van Leeuwen (2001). The result showed that semiotic resources such as colour, image, symbols and icons, gaze and posture enhance the semantic quality of the cartoons. This study revealed very strongly and established the potentials of visual images to convey meaning beyond the verbal language in any human society. Keywords; satire, multimodal discourse analysis, semantic quality, semiotic resources

Land Acquisition and Use in Nigeria: Implications for Sustainable Food and Livelihood Security

Land acquisition and use remain a critical issue of great policy relevance in developing countries such as Nigeria. This study therefore examined land acquisition and use in Nigeria within the context of food and livelihood security. The chapter used secondary data obtained from the World Bank website, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and other sources. It was found that there are gender, location and income-group considerations in the allocation of land in Nigeria. While the urban land market is relatively more formal, the rural land market is informal and the transactions were not documented in most cases. The study found that bureaucratic bottlenecks, high cost of registering land and long registration procedures, and inconsistent policy regimes impede the development of land market in Nigeria. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that the government should reduce and make the processes to be completed in registering lands in Nigeria easier. The Land Use Act 1978 should be amended to capture the prevailing realities around customary laws and informal markets. The government should reduce the cost of land registration in Nigeria. Multilateral organisations and government should co-create and co-finance innovative interventions to improve activities in the land market

The Nigeria Teachers Social Studies Training Curriculum and Sustainable Development Goals: A Content Analysis

The concept of sustainable development has become a widely used construct that is incorporated into virtually all disciplines and discourses. The implementation and achievement of sustainable development goals in the management of our environmental resources cannot be realised without education especially at a formal levels. Teacher training institutions - (college of education and faculty of education in universities) are expected through their courses to engage and create awareness of sustainability issues using their training programmes. This paper therefore presents a content analysis of sustainability themes and concepts in the College of Education Social Studies curriculum in Nigeria.  This is with the ultimate goal of exploring how any noticed gaps that could inhibit the promotion of education for sustainable development through teacher training can be filled, so that the post 2015 sustainable development goals could be better achieved

The Influence of Career Commitment on Organizational Commitment among Selected Bankers in Lagos Metropolis, Nigeria

The rate of staff turnover is high in the banking sector in Nigeria, and employers in this industry are often concerned with the commitment of their employees to their respective organizations. Should employers in the banking sector be more focused on improving the commitment of their employees to their career as a way of boosting their overall commitment to the organization? This study aims at assessing the influence of career commitment on organizational commitment among selected bankers in Lagos metropolis, Nigeria. Survey research design was adopted for the study, while simple random sampling technique was used for the selection of participants. A total of 275 bankers were drawn from Unity Bank plc. The data were collected with a battery of psychological tests, namely: Organizational Commitment Scale (OCS) and Career Commitment Scale (CCS). Pearson product moment correlation and t-test analysis were used to analyze the collected data and to test the three hypotheses proposed in this study at 0.05 level of significant. The results of the findings revealed that career commitment has significant influence on organizational commitment as it accounted for 19% variance in organizational commitment. The correlation coefficient between career commitment and organizational commitment is r = 0.44; P < 0.05, meaning that the higher the employees’ commitment to their career, the higher their commitment to the organization. Furthermore the independent t-test confirms that there is a significant difference in organizational commitment of employees who are less committed to their career and those who are highly committed to their career.  Finally, the study concluded by recommending that efforts should be put in place by management to improve employees commitment to their career in order to boost their commitment to the organization, increase productivity, and organizational effectiveness. Keywords: Organizational commitment, Employees, Career  commitment, Ban

Socioeconomic impacts of Households’ Vulnerability during COVID-19 Pandemic in South Africa: Application of Tobit and Probit Models

Coronavirus is a public health issue with socioeconomic and livelihood dimensions. The World Health Organization declared the current novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic a public health emergency of international concern on January 30, 2020, and a global pandemic on March 11, 2020. The South African government has implemented different strategies, ranging from total lockdown in certain locations and provision of palliatives in some provinces across the country. This study, therefore, investigated the correlates of vulnerability and responsiveness to the adverse impacts of COVID-19 in South Africa. The study utilized primary data collected among 477 respondents. Descriptive statistical tools, Tobit and Probit regression models, were used to analyze the data. The study found different levels of vulnerability (low, medium, and high) and responsiveness among households, including stocking up of food items, remote working, reliance on palliatives, and social grant provision, among others. Some of the correlates of responsiveness to the COVID-19 pandemic include being employed, the type of community, and the income of respondents. The study, therefore, recommends increased investments in welfare programmes (safety nets, palliative measures and economic stimulus packages) as well as capacity building of households through education to reduce vulnerability. Doi: 10.28991/HIJ-2022-03-04-02 Full Text: PD

Consumption, Housing Market and Demand for Mortgage Finance: Some Crucial Theoretical Discussions towards an Appropriate Model for an Emerging Economy

This paper focus on the consumption function theoretical perspective and how this can used to derive suitable models for the demand for mortgage finance. This study will critically examine the various consumption functions in economic science which have been developed over the last century. The review of the various models will focus on the structure, characteristics, variables, data sets and sources that were used and the critical findings of the models. This paper examined existing literature on the consumption functions discussions, identified the critical characteristics from the model and identified the differences among the various consumption model. Furthermore, the consumption functions were linked to the various demand for mortgage financing models in this work. This study spanned the years 1923 through 2023 where these important tools can be vital to the understanding of the various economic cycle and significant instruments for effective decisions regarding investment, monetary and fiscal policy. The periods experienced critical economic shocks such as credit boom, a financial recession, a rebound, and strong economic expansion. In this study piece, a systematic literature review (SLR) was performed, and the research revealed crucial consumption functions analysis to enable this paper identify suitable demand for Mortgage finance model for an emerging economy. A SLR was performed using a sample of 100 research articles chosen from a pool of 400 papers obtained from Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, ABS journal and, among other sources. As a result of the review, the paper recommended a hybrid model that blended the theoretical perspective of consumption functions and relevant characteristics that is suitable for an emerging economy. This model will be useful for mortgage analysts, Credit Managers, Governments and Bankers to implement and enhance the movements in the mortgage market. This will also enhance and assist in facilitating the effective implementation of the Nigerian mortgage finance policy