Macroeconomic effects of exchange rate volatility in Zambia

Similar to global currencies, the Zambian currency (kwacha) has varied considerably against major currencies since the early 1990s. Existing empirical evidence reveals that fluctuations in exchange rates can potentially generate distortions in the economy. However, insufficient empirical evidence on Zambia exists. Thus, this thesis contributes empirically to the literature on exchange rate volatility and its impact on the economy with Zambia as a case study. Consequently, volatility in the kwacha bilateral exchange rates is modelled using three alternative GARCH models in order to characterise the underlying currency volatility. The influence of fundamental factors on conditional volatility of exchange rates is also examined. In addition, principal components analysis (PCA) is used to capture the common underlying pattern in the estimated conditional volatility series through which a new GARCH series (GARCH-PCA) is constructed and used in trade and monetary and foreign exchange intervention rule analysis as an alternative measure of exchange rate risk. PCA has not been previously employed in such analyses. Cointegration analysis is used for trade-exchange rate volatility analysis while SVAR and GMM are employed with variations to the conventional specification of monetary and foreign exchange intervention rules in the literature in determining the relevance of exchange rate volatility in monetary and foreign exchange policies. The results reveal that the kwacha bilateral exchange rates examined are characterised by different conditional dynamics in terms of volatility persistence and response to price shocks. The positive influences of exchange rate regime, money supply and openness on conditional volatility predominate. Exchange rate volatility affects international trade flows and underpins monetary policy and foreign exchange decision-making process. Thus, the results are amenable for trade policy formulation and monetary policy improvements and they justify foreign exchange interventions. GARCH-PCA, an index of exchange rate volatility, reflecting influences from Zambia proves to be a useful alternative measure of exchange rate volatility. Its performance is comparable to the trade-weighted measure in terms of sign, size and statistical significance of the estimated coefficients.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Women empowerment and the nutrition status of children aged between 6-59 months

Journal of Nutrition and Health Sciences 2020Malnutrition remains a concern in the central province, despite being the most productive province in terms of Agriculture. Most studies in the province have not paid attention to the importance of women empowerment and the nutrition outcomes of the population. In light of this knowledge gap, this study focused on the Women’s empowerment and the nutrition status of children aged 6-59 months. The study assessed the extent to which women are empowered in agricultural activities. This study sought to determine the association of women empowerment and nutritional status of children aged 6-59 months in Kapiri-Mposhi district in the Central Province of Zambia. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted using a structured questionnaire. A total of 99 households were randomly sampled and the nutritional status of one child from each household assessed using anthropometric measurements. A total of 99 children were included in the study. Up to 21% of the children were stunted; 2% were wasted; and 9% underweight. There was a significant relationship between access to credit or income opportunities and Z-scores for wasting (WHZ) (p<0.05). This study suggests that further investment into women’s access to income may help improve the nutrition status of children

Magnaporthe oryzae populations adapted to finger millet and rice exhibit distinctive patterns of genetic diversity, sexuality and host interaction

In this study, host-specific forms of the blast pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) were characterised from distinct cropping locations using a combination of molecular and biological assays. Finger millet blast populations in East Africa revealed a continuous genetic variation pattern and lack of clonal lineages, with a wide range of haplotypes. M. oryzae populations lacked the grasshopper (grh) element (96%) and appeared distinct to those in Asia. An overall near equal distribution (47–53%) of the mating types MAT1-1 and MAT1-2, high fertility status (84–89%) and the dominance of hermaphrodites (64%) suggest a strong sexual reproductive potential. Differences in pathogen aggressiveness and lack of cultivar incompatibility suggest the importance of quantitative resistance. Rice blast populations in West Africa showed a typical lineage-based structure. Among the nine lineages identified, three comprised ~90% of the isolates. Skewed distribution of the mating types MAT1-1 (29%) and MAT1-2 (71%) was accompanied by low fertility. Clear differences in cultivar compatibility within and between lineages suggest R gene-mediated interactions. Distinctive patterns of genetic diversity, sexual reproductive potential and pathogenicity suggest adaptive divergence of host-specific forms of M. oryzae populations linked to crop domestication and agricultural intensificatio