SUSTAINABLE ENERGY IMPLEMENTATION IN URBAN NIGERIA

A global new deal (describing a comprehensive programme designed to respond to multiple crises in financial, economic, environmental and social sectors) recently adopted by advanced countries comprises sustainable (renewable and efficient) energy and environmentally-friendly technologies. Despite the abundance of natural renewable energy resources in Nigeria, sustainable energy remains ignored and underplayed. Aetiological method and concept of postneoliberalism were used to analyse historical data on sustainable energy production and use in Nigeria. The findings include prolonged use of neoliberalistic political framework: military dictatorship, ineptitude in terms of adoption of sustainable energy due to the culture comprising historical scramble to steal and misappropriate funds earned from export, production and use, of fossil fuels (petroleum oil and natural gas). After criminally enriching themselves by stealing public funds, Nigeria’s elite (characterized by opulent living) over-use and rely on conventional energy technologies (CETs)-especially gigantic and powerful fossil fuel-run power generating sets It is concluded that the failure of Nigeria’s elite to facilitate massive and rapid implementation of sustainable energy technologies to address multiple crises hampering the achievement of sustainable development in the country beckons for the creation of new postneoliberalistic policies are required to promote massive and rapid implementation of sustainable energy technologies at decentralized sub-national urban regions based on the proven model of distributed generation and supply of SETs.postneoliberalism, sustainable energy technologies, Nigeria, conventional energy technologies

The Use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTS) in Foreign Language Teaching in Nigeria: Prospects and Challenges

The integration of information and communication technologies into foreign language teaching/learning has become indispensable, nay imperative, in today’s teaching and learning environment. This is so as computer literacy, together with reading and writing literacy are generally considered as skills needed by students to succeed in today’s technologically developed world. Furthermore, modern technologies are generally viewed as having potentials of impacting and revolutionizing the teaching and learning of all academic subjects. In Nigeria, the use of ICTs in secondary and tertiary educational institutions is more of a myth than a reality and this has caused the traditional approach to principally be considered in language teaching in schools within the Federation. This paper explored some of the negative effects of this traditional approach, particularly to foreign language teaching. It also examined the prospects and challenges facing the use of ICTs in foreign language teaching in Nigeria. It argued that ICTs have the potentials of improving the quality of language teaching and learning and of facilitating access to such teaching and learning. It also has the potentials of enhancing language competence and learners’ interaction among others. However, this modernist approach is faced with challenges such as ineffective education policies, absence of ICT facilities in schools, overcrowded classrooms and erratic power supply among others. Key words: Information Communication Technology (ICT), Educational Technology, Foreign Language Teaching, Multimedi

Le Journal en Français Facile de Radio France Internationale: Facile Pour Les Apprenants Anglophones du FLE de Quel Niveau?

Cet article est basé sur une évaluation de la compréhension orale des apprenants Nigérians du FLE, de deux éditions du « Journal en Français Facile » présentées sur les antennes de Radio France Internationale (RFI). Les deux éditions du journal ont été enregistrées et soumises à l’écoute des apprenants de niveau intermédiaire (B) et avancé (C), suivies de questions en anglais visant à systématiquement mesurer leur compréhension des contenus des journaux parlées. L’étude tente de démontrer que le concept de Français facile est relativement élusif. Ce qui linguistiquement est théoriquement perçu comme étant facile pour un auditoire francophone ne peut automatiquement l’être pour un public anglophone (un public d’apprenants anglophones du français). Le journal en français facile de RFI pose d’énormes défis de compréhension à bon nombre d’apprenants Nigérians (anglophones) y compris ceux des niveaux considérés avancés. L’article reconnait toutefois que ces difficultés de compréhension sont en partie liées à une incompétence linguistique de la part des apprenants, incompétence qui partiellement a sa source dans la nature des programmes de formation linguistique; le degré de sérieux observé par les apprenants dans le suivi de leur programme de langue ainsi que du relatif déficit cognitif dont ils accusent très souvent.Mots Clés: Français Facile; Radio France Internationale (RFI), Français LangueEtrangère (FLE

Creating Value Through People: Best Human Resource (HR) Practices in Nigeria

This paper explores the strategic role of the human resources of an organization. The HR function focuses on building the human capital that drives the organizational activities to success. The in-depth analysis of the relevant literature shows that the workforce that is properly and continuously trained and developed through effective capacity building leverages the organization to achieve a competitive advantage and the bottom line. The human resource management function, essentially concerned with all matters related to employment relationships in the organization – that is, attracting, developing, motivating and maintaining a vibrant workforce – must be handled dutifully in strategic partnership with the HR professional. The paper recommends the HR strategies and practices that mangers can adopt to drive optimum value from employees, and these range from proper selection of the right people through employee empowerment, capacity building, employee motivation to improved organizational rewards. Key words: Human resources; Human resources management; Competitive advantage; Capacity building; Training and development; Distinctive competencie

The Naija language amnd the "Naija languej akademi" as an ideological movement

The combat against Western linguistic subjugation in Nigeria has been multifaceted and complex. This complex combat is today visible in the move in favor of the teaching, promotion and elevation of Nigerian languages, as well as in the very ardent struggle to develop the (hitherto) marginalized Nigerian Pidgin English (NPE), henceforth referred to as naija. The strong support given to the idea of (re)habilitating the Nigerian Pidgin English rests on the belief by many endogenous linguists and informed critics that the NPE or naija language could be Nigeria’s lingua franca in the absence of an acceptable indigenous language. Using critical observations and literary sources, this paper attempts to show how the naija language and the “Naija Languej Akademi” principally constitute an ideological movement. Hinging on a number of language and culture theories including ethnocentrism, de-westernization and indigenization, the paper argues that the ideological nature of the naija language could be deducted from two major facts: (i) the revision of the name given the linguistic code (from Nigerian Pidgin English to naija), a revision which is done in a way as to capture the Nigerian identity and the culturalist/conservatist philosophy overriding the conception of its orthography; and (ii) NLA’s adoption of an indigenized (Nigerianized) orthographic system for the language. The paper equally examines the implication(s) of such an ideological movement on Nigeria’s thorny language question

Global burden and strength of evidence for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background: Understanding the health consequences associated with exposure to risk factors is necessary to inform public health policy and practice. To systematically quantify the contributions of risk factor exposures to specific health outcomes, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 aims to provide comprehensive estimates of exposure levels, relative health risks, and attributable burden of disease for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, from 1990 to 2021. Methods: The GBD 2021 risk factor analysis used data from 54 561 total distinct sources to produce epidemiological estimates for 88 risk factors and their associated health outcomes for a total of 631 risk–outcome pairs. Pairs were included on the basis of data-driven determination of a risk–outcome association. Age-sex-location-year-specific estimates were generated at global, regional, and national levels. Our approach followed the comparative risk assessment framework predicated on a causal web of hierarchically organised, potentially combinative, modifiable risks. Relative risks (RRs) of a given outcome occurring as a function of risk factor exposure were estimated separately for each risk–outcome pair, and summary exposure values (SEVs), representing risk-weighted exposure prevalence, and theoretical minimum risk exposure levels (TMRELs) were estimated for each risk factor. These estimates were used to calculate the population attributable fraction (PAF; ie, the proportional change in health risk that would occur if exposure to a risk factor were reduced to the TMREL). The product of PAFs and disease burden associated with a given outcome, measured in disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), yielded measures of attributable burden (ie, the proportion of total disease burden attributable to a particular risk factor or combination of risk factors). Adjustments for mediation were applied to account for relationships involving risk factors that act indirectly on outcomes via intermediate risks. Attributable burden estimates were stratified by Socio-demographic Index (SDI) quintile and presented as counts, age-standardised rates, and rankings. To complement estimates of RR and attributable burden, newly developed burden of proof risk function (BPRF) methods were applied to yield supplementary, conservative interpretations of risk–outcome associations based on the consistency of underlying evidence, accounting for unexplained heterogeneity between input data from different studies. Estimates reported represent the mean value across 500 draws from the estimate's distribution, with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) calculated as the 2·5th and 97·5th percentile values across the draws. Findings: Among the specific risk factors analysed for this study, particulate matter air pollution was the leading contributor to the global disease burden in 2021, contributing 8·0% (95% UI 6·7–9·4) of total DALYs, followed by high systolic blood pressure (SBP; 7·8% [6·4–9·2]), smoking (5·7% [4·7–6·8]), low birthweight and short gestation (5·6% [4·8–6·3]), and high fasting plasma glucose (FPG; 5·4% [4·8–6·0]). For younger demographics (ie, those aged 0–4 years and 5–14 years), risks such as low birthweight and short gestation and unsafe water, sanitation, and handwashing (WaSH) were among the leading risk factors, while for older age groups, metabolic risks such as high SBP, high body-mass index (BMI), high FPG, and high LDL cholesterol had a greater impact. From 2000 to 2021, there was an observable shift in global health challenges, marked by a decline in the number of all-age DALYs broadly attributable to behavioural risks (decrease of 20·7% [13·9–27·7]) and environmental and occupational risks (decrease of 22·0% [15·5–28·8]), coupled with a 49·4% (42·3–56·9) increase in DALYs attributable to metabolic risks, all reflecting ageing populations and changing lifestyles on a global scale. Age-standardised global DALY rates attributable to high BMI and high FPG rose considerably (15·7% [9·9–21·7] for high BMI and 7·9% [3·3–12·9] for high FPG) over this period, with exposure to these risks increasing annually at rates of 1·8% (1·6–1·9) for high BMI and 1·3% (1·1–1·5) for high FPG. By contrast, the global risk-attributable burden and exposure to many other risk factors declined, notably for risks such as child growth failure and unsafe water source, with age-standardised attributable DALYs decreasing by 71·5% (64·4–78·8) for child growth failure and 66·3% (60·2–72·0) for unsafe water source. We separated risk factors into three groups according to trajectory over time: those with a decreasing attributable burden, due largely to declining risk exposure (eg, diet high in trans-fat and household air pollution) but also to proportionally smaller child and youth populations (eg, child and maternal malnutrition); those for which the burden increased moderately in spite of declining risk exposure, due largely to population ageing (eg, smoking); and those for which the burden increased considerably due to both increasing risk exposure and population ageing (eg, ambient particulate matter air pollution, high BMI, high FPG, and high SBP). Interpretation: Substantial progress has been made in reducing the global disease burden attributable to a range of risk factors, particularly those related to maternal and child health, WaSH, and household air pollution. Maintaining efforts to minimise the impact of these risk factors, especially in low SDI locations, is necessary to sustain progress. Successes in moderating the smoking-related burden by reducing risk exposure highlight the need to advance policies that reduce exposure to other leading risk factors such as ambient particulate matter air pollution and high SBP. Troubling increases in high FPG, high BMI, and other risk factors related to obesity and metabolic syndrome indicate an urgent need to identify and implement interventions

Important Mycosis of Wildlife: Emphasis on Etiology, Epidemiology, Diagnosis, and Pathology—A Review: PART 2

Wild animals are an important component of the ecosystem, and play a major role in it. However, in recent years, there has been an astronomical increase in the incidence of wildlife mycotic diseases leading to wildlife extermination. It is important to note that most of these mycotic diseases are zoonotic, and since there is a lot of attention given to zoonosis of a bacterial or viral origin in recent times, it is important to look into the mycotic diseases which may have zoonotic potential. Previously, the authors expatiated on some major wildlife mycotic diseases. In this review, we shed light on the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, pathogenesis, pathogenicity, macroscopic and microscopic pathology, and hematological and serum biochemical findings of dermatophytosis, coccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, and sporotrichosis, which are very important mycoses of wildlife