Rural Women in Kwara State (Nigeria) and their Contributions to the Welfare of their Households

The high incidence of poverty in the rural households calls for a concerted effort by all members of the household, including the women. Meanwhile, the discussion on the economic contribution of rural women in many developing countries has largely focused on national and regional levels with little or no concentration on their impact at their immediate household level. Therefore, this study examines the contribution of rural women to household welfare in Kwara State, Nigeria. Data were collected from 160 women in the rural area of the state using structured interview schedule. The data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, index ranking and regression model. Results showed that the mean age of the women was 41.2 years, 61.3% were married, less educated and had an average household size of six persons. Their main source of income was agro-processing (54.4%), though they were pluriactive in nature. The mean income earned by the women was N15,344.65 ($42.62) per month. The major areas of contribution of the women to household expenditure were food (47.73%), clothing (12.13%) and children’s education (9.12%). The results further revealed that the significant factors influencing women’s contribution to households’ welfare in the study area were age, level of education, savings, remittances, training on enterpreneurship and access to credit. Therefore, measures that will increase the income generated by rural women should be put in place so as to boost their contribution to the welfare of their households

Job Incentives For Rural Women In Nigeria: An Appraisal Of The Shea-Butter Extraction Option

This study examined the viability of women livelihoods that is dependent on Shea butter extraction activities in Nigeria, using Kwara State as a case study. Specifically, the study examined Shea- butter extraction practices and facilities, costs and returns structure to Shea- butter extraction, factors affecting Shea- butter extraction and determinants of investments in Shea- butter extraction activities. For the study One hundred and twenty women households involved in Shea-butter processing were surveyed across the study area, Kwara State. Data collected was analysed using the descriptive statistics, partial budget analysis and regression Analyses. Results revealed that most women involved in Shea butter extraction activities were married and agile youths. Some of the women undertook Shea butter extraction activities as a minor occupation while about half of them undertook the activities as their major occupation.most of them were also members of cooperatives in their localities. Cost and returns analysis showed that the average gross revenue recorded in the study area is N776.58 per kilogram of processed Shea-nut. Total cost is N521.50 while the net income is N255.08. Returns to labour and management (RLM) is N86.18). Labour used, years of involvement in extraction and the quantity of Shea fruits processed were revealed as contributors to Shea butter output while years of formal education was shown to be an insignificant contributors. Constraints limiting Shea butter activities were shown to include inadequate capital, poor packaging and market, low domestic consumption/patronage of Shea-butter products, insufficient supply of water as well as high cost of equipment maintenance. The study therefore calls for sourcing of better market, provision of crucial social amenities including banks and micro-finance and the need for women to mobilise and collate rural funds via cooperatives. Key Words: viability, average gross revenue, Returns to labour and management (RLM), Total cos

Taming Occupational Stress among Farmers in Developing Nations

Agriculture is a major sector in most developing nations of the world. The world food poverty is on the rise, with almost one in seven people around the world who are chronically hungry and lacking enough food to be healthy and lead active lives. The race is on to explore agriculture to produce enough food to feed the rapidly growing population. Consequently, there has been a change in the dimensions of agricultural health risks among farm workers in most developing countries. Occupational health-related studies are very important, yet research outputs in these regions of the world are yet to target this area extensively to stimulate appropriate policy formulations. Farm workers therefore have low adaptive capacity to workplace stress-related issues. These peculiar constraints have exposed farmers to work-related stressors affecting their well-being. In this context, farm stress occurs as a result of adverse reaction farmers’ faced including excessive pressure, seasonality, rural lifestyle, job demands or reactions to some uncertainty in their farming businesses. This chapter X-rayed the concept of farm stress in a developing nation context, providing empirical basis for the formulation of appropriate interventions to reduce farm stressors with particular focus on stress in the crop and poultry ventures

Biopolymer-mediated Green Synthesis of Noble Metal Nanostructures

Polymer-coated noble metal nanoparticles are currently of particular interest to investigators in the fields of nanobiomedicine and fundamental biomaterials. These materials not only exhibit imaging properties in response to stimuli but also efficiently deliver various drugs and therapeutic genes. Even though a large number of polymer-coated noble metal nanoparticles have been fabricated over the past decade, most of these materials still present some challenges emanating from their synthesis. The metal nanoparticles when encapsulated in a polymer and taken up by human cells might show a lower degree of toxicity; however, the degree of toxicity for some of the starting materials and precursors has raised serious concerns. Hence, there is a need to implement the principle of green chemistry in the synthesis of nanomaterials. The use of environmentally benign materials for the synthesis of metal nanoparticles provides numerous benefits ranging from biocompatibility, availability, cost-effectiveness, amenable scale-up to eco-friendliness. The biopolymer-based nanovehicles have been found to be more suitable in the field of nanotechnology owing to their high reproducibility, ease of manufacture, functional modification and safety (they are not carcinogenic). Unlike synthetic polymers where the raw material can be derived from petrochemicals or chemical industrial processes, biopolymers are produced from renewable resources such as plant and/or living organism. They are degradable by natural processes down to elemental entities that can be resorbed in the environment. Furthermore, they can also be modified to serve a particular purpose which explains the myriad of their potential applications. The macromolecular chain of these biopolymers possesses a large number of hydroxyl groups which can easily complex with metal ions. Additionally, these biopolymers also contain supramolecular structures that can lead to new functionalities of their composites with metal and semiconductor nanoparticles. In this chapter, a comprehensive discussion on different biopolymers, green synthesis of noble metal nanostructures, mechanisms, characterization and application in various fields is presented

Determination of Enantiomeric Compositions of Analytes Using Novel Fluorescent Chiral Molecular Micelles and Steady State Fluorescence Measurements

Novel fluorescent chiral molecular micelles (FCMMs) were synthesized, characterized, and employed as chiral selectors for enantiomeric recognition of non-fluorescent chiral molecules using steady state fluorescence spectroscopy. The sensitivity of the fluorescence technique allowed for investigation of low concentrations of chiral selector (3.0 x 10(-5) M) and analyte (5.0 x 10(-6) M) to be used in these studies. The chiral interactions of glucose, tartaric acid, and serine in the presence of FCMMs poly(sodium N-undecanoyl-L-tryptophanate) [poly-L-SUW], poly(sodium N-undecanoyl-L-tyrosinate) [poly-L-SUY], and poly(sodium N-undecanoyl-L-phenylalininate) [poly-SUF] were based on diastereomeric complex formation. Poly-L-SUW had a significant fluorescence emission spectral difference as compared to poly-L-SUY and poly-L-SUF for the enantiomeric recognition of glucose, tartaric acid, and serine. Studies with the hydrophobic molecule alpha-pinene suggested that poly-L-SUY and poly-L-SUF had better chiral discrimination ability for hydrophobic analytes as compared to hydrophilic analytes. Partial-least-squares regression modeling (PLS-1) was used to correlate changes in the fluorescence emission spectra of poly-L-SUW due to varying enantiomeric compositions of glucose, tartaric acid, and serine for a set of calibration samples. Validation of the calibration regression models was determined by use of a set of independently prepared samples of the same concentration of chiral selector and analyte with varying enantiomeric composition. Prediction ability was evaluated by use of the root-mean-square percent relative error (RMS%RE) and was found to range from 2.04 to 4.06%

Chiral Recognition of Amino Acids by Use of a Fluorescent Resorcinarene

The spectroscopic properties of a chiral boronic acid based resorcinarene macrocycle employed for chiral analysis were investigated. Specifically, the emission and excitation characteristics of tetraarylboronate resorcinarene macrocycle (TBRM) and its quantum yield were evaluated. The chiral selector TBRM was investigated as a chiral reagent for the enantiomeric discrimination of amino acids using steady-state fluorescence spectroscopy. Chiral recognition of amino acids in the presence of the macrocycle was based on diastereomeric complexes. Results demonstrated that TBRM had better chiral discrimination ability for lysine as compared to the other amino acids. Partial least squares regression modeling (PLS-1) of spectral data for macrocycle-lysine guest-host complexes was used to correlate the changes in the fluorescence emission for a set of calibration samples consisting of TBRM in the presence of varying enantiomeric compositions of lysine. In addition, validation studies were performed using an independently prepared set of samples with different enantiomeric compositions of lysine. The results of multivariate regression modeling indicated good prediction ability of lysine, which was confirmed by a root mean square percent relative error (RMS%RE) of 5.8%

Prevalence and Determinants of Sickness Absenteeism among Healthcare Workers in a Tertiary Hospital in Southwestern Nigeria

Introduction: Sickness absenteeism is a global problem that affects almost all forms of workers, especially healthcare workers. This study assessed the prevalence and determinants of sickness absenteeism among healthcare workers in a tertiary hospital in Southwest, Nigeria. Methods: An institutional-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 360 healthcare workers in a Tertiary Hospital in Southwest, Nigeria from October to December 2022. A pre-tested interviewer-administered, semi-structured questionnaire was used to elicit information from the respondents who were selected using a stratified sampling technique. Bivariate analysis and binary logistic regression analysis were performed to identify the predictors of sickness absenteeism using SPSS version 25.0. The significance of associations was determined at p-value < 0.05. Results: The mean age ± SD of the respondents was 34 ± 7.15 years. The prevalence of sickness absenteeism among the health workers was 21.0%, while the causes of sickness absenteeism were malaria (51%), body pain (18%), and diarrhea (5%). Family obligation (AOR: 2.1, 95% CI: (1.20, 3.53), P=0.009) and the job type (AOR: 2.7, 95% CI: (1.05, 6.83), P=0.038) were the only predictors of sickness absenteeism. Conclusion: About one-fifth of the respondents had one spell of sickness keeping them away from work due to illnesses such as malaria, diarrhea, and body pain. Preventive interventions should be instituted by stakeholders based on the identified factors to reduce the prevalence of sickness absenteeism among these populations

The impact of farming on river banks on water quality of the rivers

A study was carried out in a strip of a river in the dry and rainy seasons to assess the effect of farming along river banks on the quality of water in rivers. The results showed that there was an increase in the concentration of nitrate in the water downstream in both the rainy and dry seasons. In both rainy and dry seasons, the total nitrogen in the soil was highest (p<0.01) in the middle section. Significant seasonal differences (p<0.01) were observed for phosphate in water, being higher in the dry season. In the soil, the concentration of phosphate showed significant sectional differences (p<0.01) in the rainy season with the highest concentration observed in the lower section (1.74±0.01mg/l) and the least in the upper section (1.02±0.01g/l). However, in the dry season, the highest concentration was obtained in the middle section (1.69±0.01mg/l) and the least in the upper section (1.15±0.02 mg/l). The results suggest that the farms along the riverbanks have an impact on the water quality of the water in the river. It is therefore recommended that there should be close monitoring of the activities of the farms on riverbanks to minimise their impacts on the natural ecosystems that they interact with. Frequent monitoring of the water quality in the rivers relative to the farming estates should be done

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

Investment in SARS-CoV-2 sequencing in Africa over the past year has led to a major increase in the number of sequences generated, now exceeding 100,000 genomes, used to track the pandemic on the continent. Our results show an increase in the number of African countries able to sequence domestically, and highlight that local sequencing enables faster turnaround time and more regular routine surveillance. Despite limitations of low testing proportions, findings from this genomic surveillance study underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic and shed light on the distinct dispersal dynamics of Variants of Concern, particularly Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron, on the continent. Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve, while the continent faces many emerging and re-emerging infectious disease threats. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century