The Political Issues for African Immigrants in the United States

Since the 1970s the African-born population in the United States has grown steadily in numbers. This increase of African immigrants offers an historic opportunity for sustained reconstruction of ancestral relationships with Black America. At this point, however, Africans who are mostly English-speaking and highly educated, remain largely isolated and even ostracized. So, what must be done for these groups, Blacks and African immigrants, to begin working together effectively? This essay begins with one basic query necessary for understanding this potential development: What is the current status of African immigrants in the United States? After providing a brief overview in response to this query, I will highlight a few issues relevant to understanding emerging political relations between U.S. Blacks and African immigrants

Nigerians in the United States: Potentialities and Crises

This Research Report examines the various waves of Nigerian immigration, community and leadership development, as well as crises in the United States. This study is divided into three parts. Part I begins with a brief historical overview of the Nigerian background and crises, thereafter showing the patterns of Nigerian immigration to the U.S. and their varying characteristics from 1970 to 1995. Part II analyzes the many ways in which Nigerians have attempted to adjust into the American mosaic, resulting in the emergence of a Nigerian community. Part III focuses on the three types of Nigerian leadership systems that have largely shaped, and continue to influence, their organizational structures in the United States. The study concludes with a summary of the major points addressed in the paper as well as suggestions for Nigerian economic and political empowerment in this country

Girl-Child Education for National Development in Nigeria: A Critical Discourse

Education is the fundamental basis for the development of any nation. Education not only promotes development but also ensures that development attained can be sustained. Sadly, in most countries in Africa and even across the world girl-child education is still far behind, Nigeria today in international ratings ranks very low with about fourteen million children out of school and sixty percent of these children are girls as a result of many societal factors such as cultural beliefs, social norms and parental factors amongst others. Education is of vital importance to growth and development, people’s minds through informed thinking pave ways for developmental achievements in every area of human endeavour. For nations to fully access the benefits, of development there is no better way than through quality education. It is on this basis that the paper examines the relationship between girl-child education and national development and further identifies the benefits of educating the girl child and concludes that girl-child education is of utmost relevance and at the very core of national development

Control of Callosobruchus maculatus Fabricius (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Bruchinae) using Ethanolic Extracts of Peels from Five Citrus Species

Ethanolic extracts of peels from grape (Citrus paradisi), lemon (C. limon), lime (C. aurantifolia), sweet orange (C. sinensis) and tangerine (Citrus reticulata) were investigated for their insecticidal efficacy against Callosobruchus maculatus Fabricius, a cosmopolitan field-to-storage insect pest of cowpea. The insect was exposed to 3% of each extract admixed with 50 g of cowpea. The setup was a Completely Randomized Design in four replications. Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance and where F-test was significant, means were separated using Student Newman Keul’s test (α = 0.05). Pearson’s correlation analysis was also carried out to show the association between C. maculatus mortality, infestation, seed damage and germination variables. Bioassay results showed significant insecticidal activity of all the tested Citrus peel extracts against C. maculatus life stages and a significant reduction in cowpea seed damage. Adult bruchid mortality caused by the extracts exceeded 90% at 120h post-treatment; with C. limon and C. aurantifolia extracts causing 100% of adult bruchid mortality in the same period. About 62.3-76.4% reduction in the insect’s egg production was observed with the use of the extracts. The perforation index obtained from all the treated seeds was below 50%, and it showed a positive protective potential of the extracts against C. maculatus. The loss in seed weight was significantly lower (<10%) in treated seed compared with the control (>20%). Cowpea seed germination was not impaired by any of the extracts, rather germination increased significantly and seeds treated with C. limon and C. aurantifolia had higher viability (>45.5%) compared with the control. Therefore, ethanolic extracts of peels from the five Citrus species could be a potent pest control option against C. maculatus infestation

Biosand Filtration as a Green Approach to Septic Tank Effluent Management in a Tertiary Institution in Ghana

Sewage and household effluents at some institutions in Ghana have been discharged into the ocean for years. Thisdegrades environmental media and is detrimental to ecological systems. The Three Local Plastic Barrel-Biosand Filter (TLPB-BSF) is an innovation on the slow sand filter that has been used to prevent discharge of raw sewage into the environment. The study aimed to test the performance of a modified BSF on sewage tank effluent and assess suitability of the filtrate for non-drinking purposes at a tertiary institution renamed KOTU to maintain confidentiality. Method: A filtration system made of three modified interconnected BSF was constructed on-site, with last filter connected to a storage tank. The modification was the provision of an additional media (charcoal) in the second barrel. Two sample collections were made from the system one week apart. The pre-filtrate samples were raw septic tank effluent (STE) and the samples obtained after running system was Biosand filter effluent (BSFE). Samples were analysed for physical and microbiological parameters at designated laboratories. Measured values of the parameters in pre-filtrate and filtrate samples were compared with EPA (Ghana) reference values. The removal efficiency of a parameter was computed as the difference between pre-filtrate and filtrate values expressed as a percentage of the pre-filtrate value. Results: Most of the effluent parameters from the BSF were within the EPA standards, while others were unacceptable. Removal efficiencies obtained for the parameters were: Ni trogen (83.3%), Phosphorus (89.5%), Total Suspended Solids (71.3%), Total Dissolved Solids (66.2%), Total coliform (99.9%), Faecal coliform (99.7%) and E. coli (97.6%). Conclusion: BSF is effective for upgrading physical and microbial quality of sewage at household and institutional level, prior to discharge in the environment. It produced a filtrate that met most of EPA standards for irrigation of non-edible crops

Truth: The Paradox of Believable Lie and Unbelievable Truth

Man’s attempts to arrive at Truth or uncover falsehood have preoccupied man from time immemorial. Many theories of truth have been advanced by many philosophers and lovers of truth, yet man is no nearer to the Truth. The more man presses to get the Truth in or of a matter, the more he is demanding for more explanation which may put his mind to rest, whether it is true or false. This has given birth to the oversight of what is at stake in such an effort – Truth. Hence, we tend to believe a lie which offers a convincing explanation and ignore truth whose explanation is unconvincing. This predicament tasks us to emerge with the concepts of believable lie and unbelievable truth. The focus of this paper therefore, is to make a presentation of the concept of truth, the various theories of truth and the damage done by believable lie at the expense of unbelievable truth in human society. Keywords: truth, believable lie, unbelievable trut

Improving Crude Oil Contaminated Soil with Organic Amendments: Effect of Oil Palm Bunch Ash and Dried Poultry Litters on Soil Properties and Cassava Growth and Yields

In this study, onsite field experiments were carried out to evaluate the effects of amending a crude oil polluted soil with oil palm fruit bunch ash (OPFBA), dried poultry litters (DPL), soil bacterial, physico-chemical properties, as well as the growth and tuber yield of cassava (Manihot esculenta CRANTZ) grown on the amended soils using standard techniques. Results of autotrophic bacteria counts revealed that nitrogen fixing bacteria (NFB) populations in soils treated with OPBA+DPL combined, OPBA and DPL singly, recorded high bioloads in the magnitude of 105 , 103 , 105 CFU/g of soil respectively, whereas the group mean population was lower in the control soil (103 CFU/g). Similar trends were observed for SRB, PSB, and THB. Results of aggregate growth showed that while the mean plant heights and number of nodes increased, stem girth and leaf area were observed to decrease in 2017 when compared with those of 2016. Apart from number of tubers and weights that showed increase under all amendment treatments, tuber girth and length decreased under DPL amendments in 2017. The average findings of several chemical and physical characteristics of crude oil polluted soil after amendments and subsequent cultivation demonstrated that the addition of DPL and OPBA fructifies the soil by increasing reduced or lost qualities. When the amendments were used, the concentrations of organic carbon, accessible phosphorus, Ca, Mg, Na, and K were greatly enhanced, while the Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon (TPH) content was significantly reduced. In this study, the application of combination DPL + OPBA yields the greatest results in terms of ameliorating the impacts of crude oil in cultivable soils, as it increases fertility parameters for better cassava production in Niger Delta soils. The technology has been shown to be cost effective, efficient, and environmentally friendly, as well as capable of resolving waste management issues

Domestic Solid Waste Management in a Rapidly Growing Nigerian City of Uyo

This paper investigated domestic waste management procedures in the fast growing Nigerian city of Uyo. The city of Uyo was demarcated into three Zones A, B and C respectively representing high, medium and low income residential areas. The quantity and classes of waste generated in the city were measured. Using questionnaire, relevant information on waste storage, collection, disposal and re-cycling were obtained. The result showed a marked variation in domestic waste types generated across the three zones reflecting the income levels of the inhabitants. The highest total weights were generated in the middle income zone while the lowest values were reported in the low income zone where waste storage in polythene bags was also common. Daily collection of waste was confirmed in the high income zone whereas waste littering characterized by overfilled receptacles was common in the middle and the low income zones respectively. Waste dumping in drain/gutters was the major feature of zones B and C and because less reusable materials formed a greater part of the waste generated in this zone, the activities of scavengers dropped compared to Zone A where more reusable waste was generated. A number of recommendations were made to help improve domestic waste management in the city. These included, among others, the closure of all waste dump sites without liners and the establishment of sanitary landfills for the city in addition to encouraging both private agencies and informal labour waste collection activities

Do corporate attributes drive integrated reporting amongst listed companies in Nigeria?

Abstract: Research purpose: The purpose of this paper was to investigate the association between corporate attributes and the implementation of Integrated Reporting (IR) among quoted companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange which currently operates a voluntary based disclosure environment. Design and method: Using content analysis to derive the disclosure scores for integrated reporting and corporate attributes, the authors investigated the impact of corporate attributes on the implementation of the integrated reporting of a sample of 90 listed firms. The annual reports covering 2013–2017 were analysed using the disclosure methodologies developed by prior researchers in IR. The hypotheses were tested using panel least square regressions. Main findings: The authors found that corporate attributes have a statistically positive and significant impact on the implementation of integrated reporting framework, that share ownership structure and firm age have an insignificant influence over corporate implementation of the integrated reporting framework. The research findings extend integrated reporting research in Nigeria from mere primary data analysis to quantitative data analysis. Practical implications: The empirical findings provide regulators with evidence on the current level of integrated reporting disclosures and the influence of corporate attributes in driving integrated reporting. Originality and value: The study makes significant contributions to integrated reporting literature from a developing country’s perspective. It also provided empirical evidence of a high level of disclosure compliance with the IR framework among quoted companies in Nigeria

Incidence Of Ectopic Pregnancy In Calabar, Nigeria: Two Halves Of The Last Decade Compared

Reports of a rising incidence of ectopic pregnancy (EP) in the country and beyond prompted this study to determine the incidence in Calabar over two time frames. Information from ward registers and case notes of EP patients who presented to the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital from 1991 to 1995 were analyzed and compared with records of those who presented from 1996 to 2000. In the second half of the study period, the incidence was 3.30 per 100 deliveries, significantly higher than 2.19% in the first (p = 0.0008). The mean age of EP patients was 26.2 (sd = 5.38), significantly lower than 28.8 (sd = 5.99) for women who delivered in the same period (p 0.05). The incidence of EP appears to be rising in Calabar and puerperal infections may be important in the rise. Population-based prospective studies are necessary to confirm the findings. KEYWORDS: Ectopic Pregnancy, Calabar, Nigeri