A Conceptual Study Of Privatization Of Public Enterprises And Industrial Relations Practice In A Mixed Recessional Economy

This paper examines the effect of privatization of public enterprises on industrial relations practice in a mixed recessional economy.  This is with a view to ascertaining the economic effect of privatization on labour–management relations in Nigeria.  The qualitative approach was adopted for this study.  The paper submits that privatized public enterprises in a recessional economy does not create enabling environment for harmonious labour–management relations.  Also, it is established that though privatization policy implementation enhances efficiency and improved workers’ performance, however, retrenchment and job insecurity of the workers are always the resultant effects of any privatized public enterprises.  Therefore, it is recommended that privatization policy implementation should be normally be designed to guarantee workers’ job security, while pragmatic efforts towards sustaining the level of efficiency and productivity attained by the privatized public enterprises should always be given a priority

University Educational Service Delivery Strategy In A Changing World: Implications For Ethical Values And Leadership Integrity In Nigeria

This paper examined university educational service delivery strategy in a changing world as it affects ethical values and leadership integrity in Nigeria.  This was for the purpose of determining appropriate strategies for improving the quality of service delivery system in Nigerian universities.  The paper submits that the quality and quantity of educational services has considerably been improved in relation to internal efficiency of resources.  Moreso, the problem of access to education has become a significant phenomenon with its deleterious effect on labour market supply.  The university education has also become more relevant to manpower training and development.  However, the paper established that the high level of moral decadence among the students as well as the leaders has affected the quality of education in Nigeria.  The deplorable condition of Nigerian universities need be improved upon by all the stakeholders.  Also, resource allocation and utilization towards quality assurance in Nigerian education system need be properly considered for financial and moral supports by the government and private organizations in Nigeria

Design of Rigid Pavement for Oke- Omi Road, Ibadan, Nigeria

Rigid pavements are often preferred to flexible types due to their higher durability and ease of maintenance also to reduce early road failure and increase its longevity. This study redesigned a deteriorated segment of Oke-Omi flexible road pavement as a rigid pavement. The pavement thickness was derived using the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) design method. A programme using a spreadsheet was developed to facilitate the design process. The sieve analysis result showed that the soil was poorly graded. The soil has a low plasticity index of 28.1% (liquid limit 46.2%, plastic limit 18.1%); the Maximum Dry Density and Optimum Moisture Content were 1999 g/cm3 and 10.8% respectively. The California Bearing Ratio of the soil was 48.43% which shows that the subgrade strength was adequate. The computed Estimated Single Axle Load (ESAL) for both the base year and the projected year are 6.74x106 and 100x106 single axle respectively. The design process yielded the pavement thickness of 240 mm and 380 mm for the base year (2017) and projected year (2037) respectively. A rigid pavement of adequate thickness was designed for the deteriorated segment of the Oke-Omi road.     &nbsp

Impact of Emotional Intelligence on Diversity Management in Nigeria Breweries in Oyo State, Nigeria

Cases of ethnic bias and other forms of discrimination still take places in organizations during hiring, promotion and other employer-employee relation practices. Hence, managements are faced with the big challenge of managing its diverse workforce and emotional intelligence of their employees. This study investigated the impact of emotional intelligence on diversity management in Nigeria Breweries Oyo State. A total of 100 staff in Nigeria Breweries Oyo State in which 55 (55.0%) were male while 45 (45.0%) were female. The study was a survey which employed Descriptive research design and questionnaire was used to obtain the relevant data. The collected data were analyzed using Pearson rho Correlation and Regression Analysis with the application of statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 21.0. The results showed that that there is joint significant relationship between emotional intelligence on diversity management It was recommended that emotional intelligence concept would integrate the development programs and job-related training provided to employees to improve their skills, providing a foundation for practicable knowledge

The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease in diabetic subjects in south-west Nigeria

Background: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is rarely sought for and generally underdiagnosed even in diabetics in developing countries like Nigeria. PAD is easily detected and diagnosed by the ankle-brachial index, a simple and reliable test. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of PAD in diabetic subjects aged 50–89 years and the value of ankle-brachial index measurement in the detection of PAD. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study of 219 diabetic subjects aged 50–89 years was carried out. The participants were administered a pre-tested questionnaire and measurement of ankle-brachial index (ABI) was done. The ankle-brachial index < 0.90 was considered equivalent to peripheral arterial disease. Results: The overall prevalence of PAD was 52.5%. The prevalence of symptomatic PAD was 28.7% whilst that of asymptomatic PAD was 71.3%. There were a number of associations with PAD which included, age (p < 0.05), sex (p < 0.05), and marital status (p < 0.05). The use of the ankle-brachial index in the detection of PAD was clearly more reliable than the clinical methods like history of intermittent claudication and absence or presence of pedal pulses. Conclusion: The prevalence of PAD is relatively high in diabetic subjects in the southwestern region of Nigeria. Notable is the fact that a higher proportion was asymptomatic. Also the use of ABI is of great value in the detection of PAD as evidenced by a clearly more objective assessment of PAD compared to both intermittent claudication and absent pedal pulses

ASSESSING EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT AS A FUNCTION OF ORGANISATIONAL JUSTICE IN NIGERIA’S CORPORATE AFFAIRS COMMISSION

The goal of any organisation is to make considerable progress regardless of the situations with which the business has to contend. Organisational goals can be achieved with the right commitment of employees to assigned responsibilities. Employee commitment, however depends on how employees view the relationship they share with the organisation. In this paper, attempt was made to understand how organisational justice impact the commitment and contributions of employees towards the achievement of organisational goals within Nigeria‟s Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), an organisation that administers business registration and incorporation in Nigeria. The study adopted quantitative method and used some theories among which are Equity and Expectancy theories. Using simple linear regression, each dimension of organisational justice (distributive, procedural and interactional) was linearly regressed on individual types of employees‟ commitment (affective, normative and continuance). Using age, sex and years of experience as control variables, it was found that organisational justice in its distributive form significantly impacts the level of commitment an employee exhibits as a result of being emotionally attached to an organisation. In the same way, it was observed that employees of Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) exhibited normative commitment, since they perceived fairness of processes within the organisation. On the other hand, a smooth relationship between CAC managers and associates (interactional justice) does not necessarily translate to continuance commitment. The study concluded that if organisations including CAC deliberately implement all dimensions of organisational justice they will achieve and retain employees‟ commitment, which is vital for organisational survival and sustainable growth. It was recommended that organisations should strive to get at least 85% of their employees into the affective commitment loop and retain them there through the deliberate implementation of all dimensions of organisational justice. Also, organisations are encouraged to ensure that the pre-selection process evaluates and considers prospective employees‟ vision and other socio-cultural factors to ensure that they align with the organisations‟ overall vision and strategy as they influence employees‟ commitment

Proceedings of the West African Hybrid Sorghum and Pearl Millet Seed Workshop

Sorghum and pearl millet are the most important cereal crops in West Africa where they provide 70% of total cereal production that provide the major complements in the diets of people in the region. Research progress in the improvement of sorghum and millet is, therefore, of vital importance to the well being of people in West Africa. The Hybrid Sorghum and Pearl Millet Seed Workshop in West Africa is the culmination of the research and development effort by the Institut National de Recherches Agronomiques du Niger (INRAN) , the International Sorghum and Millet Collaborative Research Support Program (INTSORMIL), and the International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-arid Tropics (lCRISAT) during the last 10 years. The workshop served as a forum for documenting experience gained in the development, release, and diffusion of NAD-l as the first commercial sorghum hybrid in Niger. It marked a significant milestone in the history of agriculture for Niger and possibly for West Africa. The workshop brought together sorghum scientists from throughout Africa, the United States, India, and Europe. Mr. B.R. Barwale, the 1998 recipient of the World Food Prize who is credited for laying the foundation of the seed industry in India also attended the meeting and shared his experience with a paper entitled Hybrid Seed Experiences in Developing Countries

The prevalence of abdominal obesity and hypertension amongst adults in Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Background:In many developing countries obesity and obesity-related morbidity are now becoming a problem of increasing importance. Obesity is associated with a number of disease conditions, including hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, gallstones, respiratory system problems and sleep apnoea. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of hypertension and obesity, as classified according to waist circumference (WC), and further to determine whether there was any association between abdominal obesity and hypertension amongst adults attending the Baptist Medical Centre, Ogbomoso, Nigeria. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study of 400 adults aged 18 years or older was conducted. Blood pressure and WC measurements were taken and participants completed a standardised questionnaire. Results: A group of 400 participants were randomly selected (221 women; 179 men), with a mean age of 48.7 ± 16.6 years. The overall prevalence of obesity as indicated by WC was 33.8%(men = 8.9%; women = 53.8%). Women were significantly more sedentary than men (50.8% for men vs 62.4% for women, p 0.05). Overall prevalence of hypertension amongst the study population was 50.5%, but without a significant difference between men and women (52.0% for men vs 49.3% for women, p > 0.05). The prevalence of hypertension amongst the obese subset, however, was 60.0%. Conclusion: Prevalence of abdominal obesity was found to be particularly significant amongst women in this setting and was associated with hypertension, physical inactivity and the consumption of high-energy diets

Sorghum head-bugs and grain molds in West and Central Africa: II. Relationships between weather, head-bug and mold damage on sorghum grains

A regional Sorghum Head-Bug and Grain Mold Trial was conducted in 1996 and 1997 by WCASRN in, respectively, 15 and 13 research stations in ten west and central African countries. Empirical relationships between weather factors and head-bug damage on the one hand, and between weather factors and grain mold damage on the other hand, were examined using the “Window” computer program. No significant correlation was found between head-bug damage and those weather factors examined. In the case of grain mold, high relative humidity (RH) during early plant growth (5–40 days after sowing, DAS) on the one hand, and between end of flowering and harvest (65–125 DAS) on the other hand, were the most strongly correlated with mold incidence. The relationships between maximum RH and grain mold scores in the scatter diagrams were clearly non-linear, showing a marked increase in grain mold scores when the RH exceeded a threshold of about 95%. These results are discussed and future research directions are propose