Chemical constituents and anti-inflammatory activity of leaf essential oil of Nigerian grown Chenopodium album L.

Hydrodistilled leaves of Chenopodium album yielded 0.64 % v/w of essential oil. GC and GC/MS analyses of the oil revealed that the bulk of the oil was constituted by aromatic compounds (60.1 %). The abundant constituents of the oil were: p- cymene (40.9 %), ascaridole (15.5 %), pinane-2-ol (9.9 %), α-pinene (7.0 %), β-pinene (6.2 %) and α-terpineol (6.2 %). The oil displayed strong anti-inflammatory activity against 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) – induced ear edema in mice

A CHRONOLOGICAL OVERVIEW OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT INITIATIVES IN NIGERIA

Literature is replete with studies on women empowerment in different parts of the world. However, little is often mentioned about the history of women empowerment struggles Nigeria. This paper sets out to fill that gap by providing a precise literature review on the history of women empowerment initiatives from the global platform to the African context, specifically Nigeria. The lingering debates on how to appropriately measure empowerment are discussed. In addition, the views of some scholars such as Mary Wollstonecraft, John S. Mill, and Boserup are mentioned. Furthermore, the action-oriented contributions of many African women including Adelaide Casely-Hayford, Funmilayo Ransome-kuti, Margaret Ekpo, and Ruth Kharma are highlighted. The implication of empowerment initiatives is focused on women farmers. In conclusion, the paper upholds that women empowerment struggles have recorded great success across many contexts in the world, including Nigeria, although much remains to be done

Contribution of Foreign Direct Investment and Other Selected Variables to Agricultural Productivity in Nigeria: 1990-2016

Over the past few years, Nigeria has been faced with a series of policy changes and political instability that has led to the incidence of capital flight from Nigeria. This study sought to examine the contribution of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and other selected variables to the Agricultural productivity. The study made use of annual time series of some macroeconomic variables and agricultural productivity spanning the period1990 to 2016. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Multiple Regression Model. The data were further tested for stationarity using the Augmented Dicky-Fuller unit root test where it was ascertained that the entire hypothesized variable were stationary and significant (p<0.01) at first difference. The study revealed that the amount allocated to the agricultural sector declined steadily over the years with the highest value in 2014. Similarly, the determinants of agricultural productivity included exchange rate, inflation rates, GDP, Government regime and per capita arable land (ha). The study therefore recommends that balanced exchange rate should be controlled for to encourage FDI inflow into the country and funds disbursed should be properly monitored and a system put in place to ensure proper implementation of the purpose for which the funds was disbursed by the Ministry of Agriculture

Contribution of Foreign Direct Investment to Agricultural Productivity in Nigeria

Over the past few years, Nigeria has been faced with a series of policy changes and political instability that has somewhat led to the incidence of capital flight from Nigeria. This study sought to examine the contribution of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the Agricultural Sector. The study made use of annual time series of some macroeconomic variables and agricultural productivity spanning the period 1990 to 2016. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics and Multiple Regression Model. The data was further tested for stationarity using the Augmented Dicky-Fuller unit root test where it was ascertained that the entire hypothesized variable were stationary were significant(p<0.01) at first difference. The study revealed that the amount allocated to agricultural sector declined steadily over the years with all-time highest in the 90's. Similarly, the determinants of agricultural productivity include exchange rate, interest rates, GDP and FDI inflow into the agricultural sector. The study therefore recommends that an enabling environment be created through stable macroeconomic policies (monitoring of interest and exchange rates) and political stability be promoted so as to attract both domestic and foreign investors to the country