Agro Dealers and Information Communication Technology A Case of Selected Districts of Central Province of Zambia.

This article explores into the analysis of Balzac s Le Chef d OEuvre inconnu with a particular focus on the portrayal of women and creativity in art It investigates Balzac s handling of the art trade financial aspects and female characters while also delving into Frenhofer s portrayals and the symbolism of la Belle Noiseuse This study underscores the significance of grasping these motifs to gain a deeper understanding of Balzac s work and its societal influence during that perio

“This may not be your grandmother’s page, but we will definitely talk about her”: Lusaka women and the Zambian Feminists Facebook page

The internet has facilitated the creation of a global community of feminists who use it both for discussion and activism. Recently, high-profile campaigns, such as #MeToo and #AmINext, have garnered massive support online, attracting tens of thousands of women in diverse social and geographical spaces who have used the internet as forums for discussion and a route for activism. However, there are still parts of the world where feminism is a contentious topic, and one such place is Zambia, where the Facebook page Zambian Feminists, seeks to challenge patriarchy and gender non-conformity in a highly heteronormative society. This study investigates how prolific women fans of the Zambian Feminists page contest, negotiate and appropriate meanings from the posts and associated comments into their lives as “everyday feminists”. As a reception study, it inquires into how Lusaka women fans of the page negotiate their roles as strong feminists online and their offline social roles as women, mothers, daughters and wives living in a patriarchal and conservative society. The study draws primarily on qualitative research methods, specifically qualitative focus group discussions and individual in-depth interviews, to investigate this audience’s reception of the page’s content. The study establishes that Zambian Feminists is consumed in a complex environment where contesting notions of Christianity, traditionalism, and modernity are at play. The study also shows how a Christian nationalism discourse acts as a stumbling block to women fans identifying as feminists and women fans who identify as members of the LGBTIQ community, as they must negotiate and construct their identity against this prevailing discourse. The study concludes that inasmuch as the Zambian Feminist page provides a platform for women to ‘call out’ and challenge patriarchy, sexism and misogyny, the offline space is more difficult to overcome; Zambian women continue to conform to patriarchal norms as they construct and negotiate their feminism in line with the broader societal gender order.Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Journalism and Media Studies, 202

Factors affecting the implementation of strategic asset management in the state-owned electricity utility company in Zambia

Electricity plays a pivotal role in various sectors of every economy such as manufacturing, mining, telecommunication and transportation. It is also a key national resource in the provision of services in hospitals, universities and banks as well as residential areas worldwide. However, power utility companies within Africa, Zambia in particular, are facing numerous challenges related to asset failure in their generation, transmission and distribution systems due to ageing. Ultimately, this has led to power outages or load shedding, lasting 6 to 12 hours a day, in all major mining and industrial cities. In light of the foregoing, the aim of this study was to identify and rank the factors that have affected the implementation of strategic assets management in the state-owned power utility company as well as establishing the root cause of these challenges through qualitative and quantitative methods: in particular, descriptive statistics and content analysis of open-ended questions via inductive and deductive methods. The approach that was taken for this present study involved interviewing senior managers at ZESCO Ltd. Lusaka Division using structured and open-ended questionnaires to probe the respondents on what their views were in relation to asset management by asking strategic questions that focused on the key elements of asset management. In conclusion, the findings of the research revealed that social and cultural (organisational behaviour), the dearth of clear maintenance strategies and asset lifecycle management, Lack of skilled/specialised manpower in asset management, knowledge Management /documenting critical information, lack of policy implementation, non-cost reflective tariffs, Financial (constrained funding for capital projects), Political interference and Regulatory and Statutory compliance are the factors that have been impeding the implementation of strategic asset management in the state-owned power utility company. Further, the root causes of these factors were due to the departmentalized and the highly reactive nature of asset and maintenance management processes and procedures that are used to perform asset management. In addition, it was further revealed that lack of awareness of leadership roles, fragmented information systems and risk management played a role in impeding the implementation of strategic asset management. Also, most of the managers indicated that their training did not prepare them for asset management

Promoting a Just Market System that creates trading and investment opportunities for all, especially the poor

This study on making markets work better for the poor is opportune for Zambia as it marks the beginning of a series of further studies on the subject. Even though the constraints were multiple, JCTR has boldly taken the step to start investigating and examining issues on making markets work better for the poor so as to stimulate debate and further studies that will produce evidence based policy options for the poor.The need to make markets work better for the poor has been a topic of concern, which is dominated by exclusion to poor people’s participation in economic growth. Studies have shown that the market reforms were meant to put the private sector at the center stage of economic activities and to be the engine of growth and poverty reduction. But to what extent can the market system be enhanced to ensure inclusive economic growth that accommodates poor people’s participation in the market system and thus reduces poverty and unemployment. Here we identify and address obstacles to poor people’s participation in economic activities thereby promoting inclusive economic growth. The study was both investigative and exploratory. We used data from Focus Group Discussions guides for Micro and Small Entrepreneurs (MSEs), structured questionnaires for other Civil Society Organisations and Government Ministries and reviewed relevant documents. The processing of data was done manually. Smallholder farmers and SMEs were found to not have easy access to the physical market infrastructures and credit. Despite the general policy framework for crop marketing not being complex, it has not helped smallholder farmers much due to government controlled pricing of the main impediments. Women face a lot of challenges such as lack of access to agriculture land and inputs. Our findings indicate that market reforms have not fully benefited the poor, Medium and Macro companies have exploited the poor by purchasing their goods and reselling them. Unless government invests heavily in feeder roads, bridges and market infrastructures, physical access to the markets will remain a pipe dream. Access to financial resources for MSEs and smallholder farmers is limited and the status quo will remain the same until government develops financing programmes and policies that will specifically target these groups

Endothelin Antagonism Normalizes VEGF Signaling And Cardiac Function In STZ-Induced Diabetic Rat Hearts

Abnormal alterations in cardiac expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as well as its receptors and impairment in the development of coronary collaterals have recently been reported in diabetic subjects. However, the presence of pharmacological intervention on these defects in diabetes remains unsettled. Here, we studied the effect of endothelin (ET) receptor blockade on cardiac VEGF signaling pathways and cardiac function in Sprague-Dawley rats 5 wk after induction of type I diabetes with streptozotocin (65 mg/kg ip) in comparison with age- matched control rats. After streptozotocin (1 wk), some diabetic rats were treated with the ET receptor antagonist SB-209670 (1 mg/day) for 4 wk. VEGF, its receptors, and its angiogenic signaling molecules [phosphorylated Akt and endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (eNOS)] were analyzed by Western blot, ELISA, real-time PCR, and immu- nohistochemistry, and cardiac function was evaluated by echocardi- ography. Coronary capillary morphology was assessed by lectin and enzymatic double staining. We found significant decreases in cardiac expression of VEGF, its receptors, phosphorylation of Akt and eNOS, and coronary capillary density in diabetic rats compared with controls. Treatment of diabetic rats with SB-209670 reversed these alterations to the control levels and ameliorated impairment of cardiac function. From a molecular point of view, the present study is the first to indicate the potential usefulness of an ET receptor antagonist in the treatment of cardiac dysfunction in type I diabetes

Decentralisation and Health Service Governance in Zambia

Abstract Decentralisation is a tool that’s advocated for to govern health services by academic literature and development agencies. Its popularity stems from the notion that decentralisation increases local capacity by delivering efficient administrative and decision-making systems. Advocates of decentralisation further postulate that decentralisation allows for government to be closer to the people and is, therefore, a more responsive tool in improving delivery of social services and addressing poverty at local levels. Despite its popularity, critics of decentralisation often suggest that its success is dependent on the type of decentralisation that is implemented in specific contexts and how the implementation strategies relate to in-country institutional arrangements and capacities. In spite of its critics, decentralisation has over the years continued to dominate the development agenda in both developing and developed countries, especially in the health sector. In Zambia, since 1992 governments have implemented health sector decentralisation with varying degrees of success. Therefore, this thesis seeks to examine why and how health sector decentralisation has been implemented in Zambia since 1992. Drawing on conceptual literature and historical understandings of decentralisation processes, the research uses the health policy triangle framework (HPTF) developed by Walt and Gilson (1994); to understand the content, context, processes and actors involved in Zambian national decentralisation processes between 1992 and 2018. The thesis uses two specific examples of decentralisation processes – the health reforms of 1992 to 2006; and the devolution agenda that started in 2002 to date. Based on textual analysis of policy documents and on qualitative field research conducted in Zambia between February 2018 and August 2018 – forty-three (43) interviews conducted in total - the thesis makes contributions through a number of original insights and conclusions related to the practice of decentralisation for health service governance in Zambia. First, it shows how policy ideas come to the forefront of policy agenda and how and why these ideas come to be widely accepted in local policy practice in Zambia. Second, it locates the ensemble of actors and how they come to interpret policy ideas. Third, it demonstrates how actors’ interactions shape policy interpretation and implementation. Lastly, it shows how international policy agenda engulfs local policy practice in Zambia and how the conglomerate of international ideas, ideologies and actors plays out within the Zambian context

Dual Blockade Of Endothelin Action Exacerbates Up-Regulated VEGF Angiogenic Signaling In The Heart Of Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Endotoxemic Rat Model

Aims: Sepsis is a cluster of heterogeneous syndromes associated with progressive endotoxemic developments, ultimately leading to damage of multiple organs, including the heart. However, the pathogenesis of sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction is still not fully understood. The present study is the first to examine alterations in expression of key angiogenic signaling system mediated by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in septic heart and the effects of endothelin dual blocker (ETDB) on it. Main methods: Normal Wistar rats were either administered with: a) vehicle only (control group), b) lipopolysaccharide only (LPS: 15 mg/kg) and then sacrificed at different time points (1 h, 3 h, 6 h and 10 h), and c) the last group was co-administered with LPS and ETDB (SB-209670, 1 mg/kg body weight) for 6 h and then sacrificed. Key findings: Administration of LPS resulted in increases in levels of: a) serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-a, serum VEGF and c) serum endothelin (ET)-1 levels accompanied by up-regulation of cardiac VEGF and its downstream angiogenic signaling molecules. While cardiac TNF-a level was unchanged among experimental groups, cardiac ET-1 level was significantly higher in LPS-administered group.Significance: We conclude that elevation in VEGF angiogenic signaling may be triggered by diminished oxygenation in the myocardium following LPS administration as a consequence of sepsis-induced microvascular dysfunction. Because of this cardiac dysfunction, oxygen supply may be inadequate at microregional level to support the normal heart metabolism and function. ETDB at 6 h further increased the elevated levels of VEGF angiogenic signaling in endotoxemic heart

Evidence For A Potential Role Of Estrogen In The Penis: Detection Of Estrogen Receptor-A And -B Messenger Ribonucleic Acid And Protein

Body tissues are traditionally classified as estrogen targets based on both the response to the hormone and the presence of estrogen receptors (ERs). We undertook the study on expression of ERff and ERb in the penis to identify compartments/cells responsive to estrogen, using immunohistochemistry, Western blotting, in situ hybridization, and RT-PCR analyses. Expressions of ERa and ERb in the rat penis were age dependent at both mRNA and protein levels, with the most intense signals being observed during the perinatal period and declining thereafter with age. Initial signals (fetal d 17) of ERff were localized to the mesenchyme and subepithelial stroma and later (postnatal d 2) to the corpus spongiosus, corpus cavernosus, and urethral epithelia. ERb was initially detected by postnatal d 2 and was localized diffusely in corpus spongiosus and cavernosus in immature rats. In the adult, both ERs were concentrated largely to the urethral epithelia and vascular and neuronal structures. The present study provides the first evidence for ER expression in the penis. Thus, our data add the penis to the list of estrogen-responsive tissues in males and provide a base and insight for future studies aimed at investigating a functional role of estrogen in the penis, especially in development

Expression Of Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase Activating Peptide In The Uterine Cervix, Lumbosacral Dorsal Root Ganglia And Spinal Cord Of Rats During Pregnancy

The uterine cervix is highly innervated by the sensory nerves containing neuropeptides which change during pregnancy and are regulated, in part, by estrogen. These neuropep- tides act as transmitters both in the spinal cord and cervix. The present study was under- taken to determine the expression pattern of the neuropeptide pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide (PACAP) in the cervix and its nerves during pregnancy and the influence of estrogen on this expression using immunohistochemistry, radioimmunoassay and RT- PCR. PACAP immunoreactivity was detected in nerves in the cervix, lumbosacral (L6-S1) dorsal root ganglia (DRG) and spinal cord. PACAP immunoreactivity was highest at day 15 of pregnancy in the cervix and dorsal spinal cord, but then decreased over the last trimester of pregnancy. However, levels of PACAP mRNA increased in the L6-S1 DRG at late pregnancy relative to early pregnancy. DRG of ovariectomized rats treated with estrogen showed increased PACAP mRNA synthesis in a dose-related manner, an effect partially blocked by the estrogen receptor (ER) antagonist ICI 182 780. We postulate that synthesis of PACAP in L6-S1 DRG and utilization in the cervix and spinal cord increase over pregnancy and this synthesis is the under influence of the estrogen-ER system. Since PACAP is expressed by sensory nerves and may have roles in nociception and vascular function, collectively, these data are consistent with the hypothesis that sensory nerve-derived neuronal factors innervate the cervix and play a role in cervical ripening