Climate Change and Variability: Implications for Household Food Security in Agro-pastoral Areas of Jigjiga District, Eastern Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the most vulnerable countries of the world to the impacts of climate change and variability. The impact is even stronger in pastoral areas of the country. However, studies on the actual climate change dynamics and its effect on food security at local and household levels are limited. The present study took Jigjiga district as a case and analyzed changes in local climate; status of household food security; the relative significance of climate related causes of food insecurity; and household level determinants of food security. The study used rainfall and temperature data from the period 1952 to 2010 and primary data gathered from 140 sample households and focus group discussions. Using Mann-Kendall trend test, the study revealed the existence of statistically significant declining trend in rainfall in the rainy season and increasing trend in temperature at annual and seasonal time scale. Moreover, respondents confirmed the presence of climate change, with increasing temperature, decreasing rainfall amount and increasing seasonality of rainfall in the past two decades. The Rash model estimation result based on the Food Security Core Module showed high prevalence of food insecurity in the district with 81 per cent of food insecure households consisting of 27 per cent food insecure without hunger, 29 per cent food insecure with moderate hunger, and 25 per cent food insecure with severe hunger. Respondents ranked climate factors as their top most important causes of food insecurity. These are drought, low annual rainfall, high temperature, and water shortage. The econometric model estimation result revealed the important factors determining household food security. These are household perception of climate change, use of soil and water conservation practices, use of livestock feed management techniques, loss of livestock due to drought and/or disease, literacy level of household head, and dependency ratio. Among other things, the study suggested improving climate change awareness and strengthening the existing adaptation measures that have positive impacts on food security.Keywords: climate change, climate variability, adaptation measures, food security, agro-pastoralism

Patients-to-healthcare workers HIV transmission risk from sharp injuries, Southern Ethiopia

Background: Accidental needlestick injury rate among healthcare workers in Hawassa is extremely high. Epidemiological findings proved the infectious potential of this injury contaminated with a Human  Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-infected patient’s blood.Objective: This study aimed at estimating the risk of HIV transmission from patients to healthcare workers in Hawassa City, Ethiopia.Method: A probabilistic risk model was employed. Scenario-based assumptions were made for the values of parameters following areview of published reports between 2007 and 2010.Parameters: HIV prevalence, needlestick injury rate, exposure rate, sero-conversion rate, risk of HIV transmission and cumulative risk of HIV transmission.Finding: Generally, healthcare workers in Hawassa are considered to be at a relatively low (0.0035%) occupational risk of contracting HIV – less than 4 in 100,000 of healthcare workers in the town (1 in 28,751 workers a year). The 30 years’ maximum cumulative risk estimate is approximately five healthcare workers per 1000 workers in the study area. Still, this small number should be considered a serious matter requiring post-exposure prophylaxis following exposure to unsafe medical practice leading to HIV infection

Women in conflict and indigenous conflict resolution among the Issa and Gurgura clans of Somali in Eastern Ethiopia

This article tries to show the impacts of conflict on women, the role of women in conflict and indigenous conflict resolution, and the participation of women in social institutions and ceremonies among the Issa and Gurgura clans of the Somali ethnic group. It explores the system of conflict resolution in these clans, and women’s representation in the system. The primary role of women in the formation of social capital through marriage and blood relations between different clans or ethnic groups is assessed. The paper focuses on some of the important elements of the socio-cultural settings of the study community that are in one way or another related to conflict and indigenous conflict resolution mechanisms. It also examines the positive aspects of marriage practices in the formation of social capital which strengthens friendship and unity instead of enmity.

THE ROLE OF RISK ASSESSMENT IN MANAGING RISK

Risk and Uncertainty,

Cattle milk and meat production and marketing systems and opportunities for market-orientation in Fogera woreda, Amhara region, Ethiopia

This study was conducted in Fogera woreda, South Gondar Zone of the Amhara National Regional State in northwestern Ethiopia in 2005/06. The aim was to characterize cattle milk and meat production and marketing systems, identify the major constraints and provide development interventions for more market-orientation. Twelve kebeles were randomly selected (five from the Fogera plains and seven outside the plains) based on their potential for cattle milk and meat production. A total of 480 households were sampled from these kebeles and focus group discussion, personal observations and administration of semi-structured questionnaires on milk and meat production practices were employed. Only 12 (2.52%) of the respondents were female-headed households. About 98.8% of cattle milk and meat production was based on traditional husbandry using indigenous cattle breeds. The Fogera cattle is the major breed used and is mainly found in the Damote, Sendeye and Tigre mender villages. The main feed resources in the woreda are communal grazing land and crop residues of teff, rice, finger millet, barley, wheat, chickpea, field pea and maize. The communal grazing land currently accounts for about 9602.4 ha; out of which 3418.5 ha (35.6%) is infested by a noxious weed known as Asracantha longifolia (amykila). Over a period of two years, large area of communal grazing land has been transformed into crop farms, mainly to rice production, and this has apparently created severe feed shortage in the woreda. Flooding of the plains during the wet season from Gumara and Rib rivers further reduced the availability of grazing land. In addition, large number of animals are trekked from the highlands of Fogera and adjacent woredas of Dera and Estie to the plains during the dry season and this has resulted in inter-breeding of the Fogera cattle breed with highland zebus and has exacerbated the feed shortage. Rice husk, a by-product from rice polishers, is becoming an important feed resource. On average, about 35 kg of rice husk is produced from a quintal of rice. The major water resources are wells (48.8%), rivers (47.2%), lake (3%), ponds (2.3%) and tap water (0.2%). Cattle are watered once a day. Trypanosomiasis, facioliasis and schistosomiasis are the most prevalent diseases

Design and Manufacturing Issues in the Development of Lightweight Solution for a Vehicle Frontal Bumper

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MWCNTs/Ag-ZnO nanocomposite for efficient photocatalytic degradation of congo red

Three nanomaterials namely, zinc oxide (ZC), silver-doped zinc oxide (AZ) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes coupled with silver doped zinc oxide nanocomposite (MWAZ) were synthesized, characterized and employed for photo degradation of an organic pollutant, congo red (CR). The photocatalytic activity study showed efficient degradation of CR upon irradiation with UV and visible light in the order of MWAZ > AZ > ZC > Commercial ZnO (ZCO). Percentage photodegradation of 99% and a pseudo 1st order rate constant of 2.3 x 10-2 min-1 were achieved by MWAZ as a catalyst under visible light irradiation, implying photo- sensitizing ability of MWCNTs and the capability of MWCNTs to hinder recombination of photogenerated holes and electrons. The control experiment in the dark condition gave only 7.9% of degradation efficiency and 5.56 x 10-4 min-1 rate constant, implying the significant role of light source for catalytic degradation of CR.   Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2020, 34(1), 55-66. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v34i1.

An empirical study of the impacts of redevelopment project on property prices of residential buildings in Hong Kong

Thesis (B.Sc)--University of Hong Kong, 2009.Includes bibliographical references (p. 93-102).published_or_final_versio