IS GLOBALIZATION BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT? INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND LAND DEGRADATION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES:THE CASE OF SMALL OPEN ECONOMY

This paper uses a two-good specific factors model to derive a relationship between international trade, land degradation, and welfare. Because developing countries enjoy comparative advantage in agriculture, they will export agricultural goods. We found that trade could lower steady state land quality and welfare. We conclude that poor resource management undermines the conventional gains from globalization.Environmental Economics and Policy, International Relations/Trade, Land Economics/Use,

Urban Fuel Demand in Ethiopia: An Almost-Ideal Demand System Approach

This paper investigates the opportunities for reducing the pressure of urban centers on rural forest areas, using a dataset of 350 urban households in Tigrai in northern Ethiopia. We applied an almost-ideal demand system to fuels. Because the same fuels were not always used by households, the analysis started with a probit model of fuel use. The inverse Mills ratios derived from it were inserted into the estimation of the fuel demand system to obtain a full set of price and income elasticities. The results suggest that reducing the pressure of urban centers on local forests cannot be seen in isolation from broader development policies aimed at raising the level of education and income of the population. Higher income also stimulates the demand for fuel.price elasticities, income elasticities, almost-ideal fuel demand system, reducing deforestation, Ethiopia

FACTORS AFFECTING PHYSICIAN’S ADHERENCE TO GENERIC DRUG PRESCRIBING PRACTICE IN PRIVATE HEALTH FACILITIES, MEKELLE CITY, NORTHEASTERN ETHIOPIA

Introduction: Generic medicines are produced by multiple manufacturers hence, are usually cheaper than innovator brands and therefore save costs on medicines. Many physicians oppose brand substitution, believing generic medicines to be inferior to their originator counterparts. Physicians’ belief about generic medicines and factors affecting generic prescribing in Ethiopia are poorly investigated. Objective: To assess the physicians’ belief about generic medicines and to identify factors affecting generic medicines prescribing in private health facilities, Mekelle, Northern Ethiopia. Materials and Methods: An institution based cross-sectional study was conducted enrolling all physicians working in private health facilities. The data were collected from January 2016 to March 2016. Data were collected using self-administered structured questionnaires measuring generic medicines belief of physicians using a Likert scale of 1–5. Data were then entered into SPSS version 20 for analysis. Results: Of the fifty-six physicians approached in this study, 50 (89.2% response rate) questionnaires were included in the analysis. Nearly three-fourth (72%) of the physicians claimed that they always prescribe generic medicines. More than half (55.3) of the respondents beliefs generic medicines have different active ingredients than a brand innovator. Almost equal percentage (52% and 54%) of the Physicians disagreed with brand medicines were safer than generic medicines and prescribing generic due to the complicated health problem of the patient respectively. Around two third (67.5%) of physicians reported that quality profile of medicine was a major reason for prescribing generic medicines. Moreover, availability of medicines in pharmacies and low cost of medicines were the main reasons for prescribing generic medicines with 58.1% and 52.4% respectively. Conclusion: The majority of physicians do not have a positive perception of generic medicines and a significant portion of the physician’s belief brand medicines safer and effective than generic counterparts. The availability of medicines in pharmacies, low cost of medicines and purchasing power of the patients are major factors affecting generic medicines prescribing. Keywords: Generic medicines, belief, private health facilities, physiciansÂ

IS GLOBALIZATION BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT? INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND LAND DEGRADATION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES:THE CASE OF SMALL OPEN ECONOMY

This paper uses a two-good specific factors model to derive a relationship between international trade, land degradation, and welfare. Because developing countries enjoy comparative advantage in agriculture, they will export agricultural goods. We found that trade could lower steady state land quality and welfare. We conclude that poor resource management undermines the conventional gains from globalization

Modeling Spatially Differentiated Environmental Policy in a Philippine Watershed: Tradeoffs between Environmental Protection and Poverty Reduction

Erosion and sediments are among the most important externalities in the developing world. These sediments negatively affect the quantity and quality of water in the downstream regions of watersheds. In light with the growing interest in many developing countries to use market-based instruments, this paper develops a model for designing efficient environmental policy at a watershed scale. Because farm households are heterogeneous in a given watershed, we develop a spatially explicit, heterogeneous watershed scale environmental policy to lesson watershed degradation. We use GIS data and geo-referenced household plots to populate the watershed with the heterogeneous households. Heterogeneity also implies that the impact of environmental tax policy on poverty varies among households. The model results confirm the benefits of differentiating policy based on the spatial attributes of the watershed. Our study proposes the possibility of funding poverty reduction using the revenues from environmental taxes. The results show that, for a moderate reduction in soil erosion, revenues from environmental taxes could be used for poverty reduction. However, for larger improvement in environmental quality, the efficient environmental tax would not be sufficient to compensate the poor. Our findings reveal the extent of tradeoffs between poverty reduction and environmental protection. In other words, tighter environmental policies could exacerbate poverty unless assistance is provided to the poor.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Modeling Spatially Differentiated Environmental Policy in a Philippine Watershed: Tradeoffs between Environmental Protection and Poverty Reduction

Erosion and sediments are among the most important externalities in the developing world. These sediments negatively affect the quantity and quality of water in the downstream regions of watersheds. In light with the growing interest in many developing countries to use market-based instruments, this paper develops a model for designing efficient environmental policy at a watershed scale. Because farm households are heterogeneous in a given watershed, we develop a spatially explicit, heterogeneous watershed scale environmental policy to lesson watershed degradation. We use GIS data and geo-referenced household plots to populate the watershed with the heterogeneous households. Heterogeneity also implies that the impact of environmental tax policy on poverty varies among households. The model results confirm the benefits of differentiating policy based on the spatial attributes of the watershed. Our study proposes the possibility of funding poverty reduction using the revenues from environmental taxes. The results show that, for a moderate reduction in soil erosion, revenues from environmental taxes could be used for poverty reduction. However, for larger improvement in environmental quality, the efficient environmental tax would not be sufficient to compensate the poor. Our findings reveal the extent of tradeoffs between poverty reduction and environmental protection. In other words, tighter environmental policies could exacerbate poverty unless assistance is provided to the poor

Rate of Polypharmacy and Its Determinants Among Older Adult Cardiovascular Patients at Hiwot Fana Comprehensive Specialized Hospital in Eastern Ethiopia

ABSTRACT: Background: Understanding the rate of polypharmacy in cardiovascular patients is crucial because of its increasing occurrence and its association with potentially inappropriate prescribing practices and negative health outcomes, particularly among elderly individuals with cardiovascular conditions. According to the best of the literature search knowledge, the magnitude of polypharmacy and associated factors were not known among older cardiovascular patients in eastern Ethiopia. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the rate of polypharmacy and its determinants among older adult cardiovascular patients at Hiwot Fana Comprehensive Specialized Hospital in eastern Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was undertaken, involving a cohort of 364 individuals aged 65 years and older who were receiving follow-up care for cardiovascular disease. A data abstraction sheet was used to gather the data. The convenience sampling technique was employed. To identify factors related to the rate of polypharmacy, multivariable logistic regression analysis was employed. Results: The analysis included the medical records of 325 patients, revealing a polypharmacy prevalence rate of 20.7%. Individuals who were 77 years of age or older had a 1.12 times higher likelihood of having polypharmacy than individuals who were 65 to 70 years old. The presence of comorbidities along with cardiovascular diseases was a significant factor related to polypharmacy. Polypharmacy was prevalent among individuals with a larger number of comorbidities. Conclusions: This study reported that 1 in 5 cardiovascular patients at a chronic care clinic experienced polypharmacy. Age (≥77 years), having comorbidities, number of comorbid diseases (≥3), duration of cardiovascular disease (≥5 years), and number of years taking cardiovascular drugs (≥5) were associated with higher odds of polypharmacy. Health care providers should be cautious about prescribing multiple medications to this population. Training in the prevention of inappropriate polypharmacy is crucial to reducing the trend of polypharmacy and its associated burden

Urban Fuel Demand in Ethiopia: an Almost-Ideal Demand System Approach

This paper investigates the opportunities for reducing the pressure of urban centers on rural forest areas, using a dataset of 350 urban households in Tigrai in northern Ethiopia. We applied an almost-ideal demand system to fuels. The results suggest that reducing the pressure of urban centers on local forests cannot be seen in isolation from broader development policies aimed at raising the level of education and income of the population. Higher income also stimulates the demand for fuel

Uptake of cervical cancer screening and associated factors among HIV positive women attending adult art clinic at public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2022

Abstract Background Cervical cancer is the second most common malignancy in Ethiopia and first in some African countries. It is six times more likely to occur in positive cases of the human immunodeficiency virus than in the general population. If diagnosed and treated early enough, cervical cancer is both treatable and preventable. However, among Ethiopian women who test positive for HIV, the uptake of cervical cancer screening is low. Its determinant factors were not well studied in the study area. Hence, this study was aimed at filling this information gap. Objective To assess uptake of cervical cancer screening services and associated factors among HIV-positive women attending an adult antiretroviral treatment clinic at public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, June 1–30, 2022. Methods A cross-sectional investigation was carried out in a hospital. 407 participants in all were chosen using the systematic sampling technique. A pretested interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data from respondents. The data were entered into Epi data version 4.6 and exported to SPSS version 25 for analysis. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis was employed. Adjusted odds ratio with its 95% confidence interval and p value  45 years old (AOR = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.053–0.644), number of children (3 children) (AOR = 0.19, 95% CI:0.036-0.979), perception of being susceptible to cervical cancer (AOR = 6.39, 95% CI: 1.79–22.74), knowledge of cervical cancer and its screening (AOR = 19.34, 95% CI: 7.87–47.75), and positive attitude towards cervical cancer screening (AOR = 8.06, 95% CI:3.62–17.91) were significantly associated factors with the uptake of cervical cancer screening. Conclusion and recommendation in this study, Age > 45 years, having less than three children, feeling susceptible, knowing about cervical cancer and screening, and having a positive attitude toward cervical cancer screening were significant factor of uptake of cervical cancer screening service. There is a need to strengthen the policy and health education on safe sexual practices and healthy lifestyles through information dissemination and communication to scale up screening service utilization

Prevalence and associated factors of early initiation of sexual intercourse among youth in Ethiopia: systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background Early sexual initiation refers to engaging in sexual activity at a young age, typically before the age of 18. Even though many studies have been conducted in Ethiopia, the result is inconsistent between studies. In the study area, the pooled prevalence and associated factors of early initiation of sexual intercourse among youth were not done before. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the pooled prevalence and associated factors of early initiation of sexual intercourse among Youth in Ethiopia. Methods This study used a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies conducted from 2008 to 2022, in Ethiopia. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. PubMed, Cochrane Library, Hinari, and Google Scholar electronic databases were searched. The analysis was performed using STATA 17 software. Heterogeneity and publication bias were assessed using forest plots, I2 , Cochran’s Q statistics and Funnel plots, Egger test, and Begg rank tests respectively. Duval and Tweedie’s ‘trim and fill’ method was also performed to adjust the pooled estimate. Pooled analysis was conducted using the inverse-variance fixed-effects model. Results A total of 10 articles were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of early initiation of sexual intercourse among youth in Ethiopia was 24.7% (95%CI: 10.4, 38.9). Being female (AOR = 3.57; 95% CI: 1.387, 5.743), having poor knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention (AOR = 3.65; 95% CI: 1.981,5.309), alcohol use (AOR = 2.05; 95% CI: 1.415, 2.679), khat chewing (AOR = 3.03; 95% CI: 1.800, 4.254), Viewed pornographic film(AOR = 4.21, 95% CI: 2.135, 6.283), Cigarette smoking (AOR = 2.74; 95% CI: 2.102, 3.370) and Poor family controls (AOR = 4.39; 95% CI: 2.572, 6.199)were associated factors of early initiation of sexual intercourse. Conclusions The pooled prevalence of early initiation of sexual intercourse among Youth in Ethiopia was high. Being female, poor knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention, alcohol use, khat chewing, Viewing pornographic films, Cigarette smoking, and poor family controls were associated factors of early initiation of sexual intercourse. It is recommended that targeted interventions be put in place to address the high prevalence of early initiation of sexual intercourse among youth in Ethiopia. These interventions should focus on addressing the associated factors such as poor knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention, alcohol use, khat chewing, viewing pornographic films, cigarette smoking, and poor family controls. It is important that these interventions are gender-sensitive and take into consideration the unique challenges faced by females in accessing sexual and reproductive health services