Pre-Extension Demonstration of Improved Bread Wheat Varieties with Their Production Packages in High land Area of Eastern Amhara Region, Ethiopia

The study was basically focused on demonstration of bread wheat technologies for wider demand-driven technology diffusion in major wheat growing area in high land of eastern Amhara. The objectives were in order to evaluate and demonstrate improved bread wheat variety with their production package to the farming community and assess farmers and extension workers reaction towards improved bread wheat technology. The activity was conducted in main season 2019/2020 at Jama and Meket districts. The fact that wheat production and productivity in the region as well as in the particular study area low because farmers are using low yielding, disease and pest resistant local varieties. The improved bread wheat variety was demonstrated along with the local variety at 12 farmers' fields. Yield data, economic data, farmers’ perception and preferences were collected throughout the demonstration stages and data were analyzed by using ANOVA, partial budget analysis and preference ranking. The results of ANOVA showed that yield and yield related parameters statistically significant at the probability level of  0.01% and 0.05% among treatments. The highest mean yield was recorded from "Hibist" with improved management 2.49 ton/ha and 1.42 ton/ha at Jama and Meket districts respectively followed by local with improved management and the lowest was from local with farmers practices. Furthermore, the result of partial budget analysis show that the use of improved and local variety with recommended package more profitable with the MRR of 1.96 and 0.81 than farmer practices at Jama district and 74.26 and 9.26 at Meket district respectively. Farmer preference analysis improved & local variety with improved management ranks 1st and 2nd at Jama respectively while reverse at Meket and lastly ranks farmer practices at both districts. Generally, improved bread wheat with recommended package has higher yield advantage, financial feasibility and social acceptance than control and farmer practices, it is recommended to be scale out for further dissemination

Vector identification, prevalence and anemia of bovine trypanosomosis in Yayo District, Illubabor Zone of Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia

Trypanosomosis is one of the major impediments to livestock development andagricultural production in Ethiopia. It is cyclically transmitted by tsetse flies butalso mechanically tsetse flies and by other biting flies. A cross-sectional study wasconducted to identify the density and diversity of vectors and also the prevalence ofbovine trypanosomosis from October, 2014 to May, 2015. The study was conductedin four selected settlement areas of the Yayo district in the Illubabor zone of OromiaRegional State, Ethiopia. Standard methods of sampling and identification were employed for both entomological and parasitological examination. Four species of the genus Glossina (Glossina morsitans submorsitans, Glossina pallidipes, Glossina tachinoides and Glossina fuscipes) and two genera of biting flies (Stomoxys and Tabanus) were caught and identified. The overall apparent density of flies caught was 1095 (9.78 flies per trap per day), of which 410 (3.7 flies per trap per day) was Glossina species. Out of a total 488 cattle examined, 19 (3.9%; 95% CI: 2.36%-6.1%) were found infected with trypanosomes. Three species were detectedin the study area namely T. congolense 16(84.21%), T. vivax 2(10.53%) and T. brucei 1(5.26%). The prevalence of trypanosomosis was not significantly affected by all risk factors considered (p>0.05). Trypanosomosis significantly affected the status of anemia or packed cell volume (p<0.05). The mean PCV of parasitemic animals were significantly lower than that of aparasitemic ones (P<0.05). The prevalence of anemia was 19.67% (95%CI: 16.24-23.48) and not significantly affected by the different risk factors considered (P>0.05) with the exception of Geri (Peasant association) which have shown the lowest anemia prevalence  (P<0.05).The relative abundance of Glossina species caught and trypanosome detected confirmed the continuous challenge of the disease in the settlement areas. Therefore, the ongoing community based tsetse and trypanosomosis  prevention/control strategy should be strengthened in the area.Keywords: Traps, Glossina, Packed cell volume, Trypanosoma, Buffy coat, Yayo distric

A practical approach for minimising inbreeding and maximising genetic gain in dairy cattle

A method that predicts the genetic composition and inbreeding (F) of the future dairy cow population using information on the current cow population, semen use and progeny test bulls is described. This is combined with information on genetic merit of bulls to compare bull selection methods that minimise F and maximise breeding value for profit (called APR in Australia). The genetic composition of the future cow population of Australian Holstein-Friesian (HF) and Jersey up to 6 years into the future was predicted. F in Australian HF and Jersey breeds is likely to increase by about 0.002 and 0.003 per year between 2002 and 2008, respectively. A comparison of bull selection methods showed that a method that selects the best bull from all available bulls for each current or future cow, based on its calf's APR minus F depression, is better than bull selection methods based on APR alone, APR adjusted for mean F of prospective progeny after random mating and mean APR adjusted for the relationship between the selected bulls. This method reduced F of prospective progeny by about a third to a half compared to the other methods when bulls are mated to current and future cows that will be available 5 to 6 years from now. The method also reduced the relationship between the bulls selected to nearly the same extent as the method that is aimed at maximising genetic gain adjusted for the relationship between bulls. The method achieves this because cows with different pedigree exist in the population and the method selects relatively unrelated bulls to mate to these different cows. Selecting the best bull for each current or future cow so that the calf's genetic merit minus F depression is maximised can slow the rate of increase in F in the population

Evaluation of five commercial assays for detecting HIV 1 & 2 antibodies, Addis Ababa

Abstract: The major operational characteristics of five commercially available assays for the detection of antibodies to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV1 & 2) were evaluated. Four Enzyme Linked Immuno-sorbent assays (ELISAs) and one simple immuno-dot assay with visual reading, were assessed using a panel of 265 sera (18.8% hospital suspected patients, 18.8% commercial sex-workers (CSW), 31.5% blood donor sample (BDS), and 30.9% of them were scholarship winners (SSW)). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, test efficiency, delta (δ) values (for the four ELISAs) were determined. All the assays had higher sensitivities (98.7100%), specificities (97.2-99.1%), and test efficiencies (98.1-99.6%). Higher positive and negative delta (δ+,δ -) values, +1.17 and –0.99, were observed for ICE*HIV 1-0-2 and Vironostika Uniform II PLUS O, respectively. HIV-SPOT HIV 1 & 2 showed highest value of ease of performance and suitability for small blood bank collection centers. Results of this study showed that the test efficiency, sensitivity, and specificity of the test kits were excellent as compared to the reference test. Further studies on cost-effectiveness and evaluation of newly arrived test kits before use at different levels are recommended. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 1999;13(3):175-180

Analysis of Factors that Affect Road Traffic Accidents in Bahir Dar City

Abstract: Traffic accident is increased from time to time in alarming rate and it is a serious problem throughout the globe, particularly, in developing countries like Ethiopia. In this study our aim was to identify the major factors that affect the occurrence of traffic accidents at Bahir Dar city, North Western Ethiopia. The drivers were selected using simple random sampling methods and descriptive statistics, Chi-square and Binary logistic regression methods have been used for data analysis.The Hosmer and Lemeshow test showed that the model fits the data very well. And from the result we have seen that drivers giving priority stated by the law, pedestrian's manner while crossing the road, drivers usage of seat belt have statistically significant impact for the occurrence of traffic accidents in the city. Pedestrian's manner while crossing the road is one of the significant variable for the occurrence of road traffic accidents in Bahir Dar city. Therefore, the traffic polices or concerned body should give trainings for pedestrians about traffic accidents. To minimize the road traffic accidents, the government should set the rules to use the seat belt so that the drivers should apply it

Work-related Stress and Associated Factors among Academic Staffs at the University of Gondar, Northwest Ethiopia: An Institutionbased Cross-sectional Study

BACKGROUND: Work-related stress is described as a physiological and psychological reaction to the harmful aspects of workplace content. Current evidence indicates that the world of education is a highly stressful occupation. However, in academicians in sub-Saharan African countries, such as Ethiopia,the prevalence and contributing factors are not well studied. This study was, therefore, aimed at filling this gap.METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to April 2018. Stratified sampling technique was used to select 535 study participants. To measure work-related stress, we used the pre-tested and structured self-administered University and College Union stress questionnaire. Finally, a significant association was established at p< 0.05 and adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) in the multivariable model.RESULTS: The overall prevalence of work-related stress in 12 months was 60.4% [95% CI (57.4, 63.5%)].The multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that smoking cigarette (AOR:2.84, 95% CI (1.25, 6.50), high job demand (AOR: 3.27, 95% CI(2.05, 5.21), low job control (AOR:2.25, 95% CI (1.21, 4.20) and age < 28 (AOR:0.25, 95% CI (0.10, 0.63) were the factors associated with work-related stress.CONCLUSION: The prevalence of work-related stress was high. Furthermore, higher emphasis required on job demand, job control, and cigarette smoking to ease the burden of work-related stress factors. This research, therefore, recommended that other causes of WRS, such as working conditions and further large-scale study, be considered for future research

A binary logistic regression model with complex sampling design of unmet need for family planning among all women aged (15-49) in Ethiopia.

Background: Unintended pregnancy related to unmet need is a worldwide problem that affects societies. The main objective of this study was to identify the prevalence and determinants of unmet need for family planning among women aged (15-49) in Ethiopia. Methods: The Performance Monitoring and Accountability2020/Ethiopia was conducted in April 2016 at round-4 from 7494 women with two-stage-stratified sampling. Bi-variable and multi-variable binary logistic regression model with complex sampling design was fitted. Results: The prevalence of unmet-need for family planning was 16.2% in Ethiopia. Women between the age range of 15-24 years were 2.266 times more likely to have unmet need family planning compared to above 35 years. Women who were currently married were about 8 times more likely to have unmet need family planning compared to never married women. Women who had no under-five child were 0.125 times less likely to have unmet need family planning compared to those who had more than two-under-5. Conclusion: The key determinants of unmet need family planning in Ethiopia were residence, age, marital-status, education, household members, birth-events and number of under-5 children. Thus the Government of Ethiopia would take immediate steps to address the causes of high unmet need for family planning among women

Explaining changes in educational disparities in competent maternal health care services in urban and rural areas in Ethiopia

IntroductionAggregate statistics of maternal health care services have improved in Ethiopia. Nevertheless, the country has one of the lowest Universal Health Coverage (UHC) service coverage indices, with slight improvement between 2000 and 2019. There are disparity studies that focus on a single dimension of inequality. However, studies that combine multiple dimensions of inequality simultaneously may have important policy implications for closing inequalities. In this study, we investigated education inequalities in the receipt of maternal health care services in rural and urban areas separately, and we examined whether these inequalities decreased, increased, or remained unchanged.MethodsThe data for the study came from the 2011 and 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Surveys. Using women's education as a dimension of inequality, we separately analyzed inequalities in maternal health care services in urban and rural settings. Inequalities were measured through the Erreygers concentration index, second differences, and Relative Index of Inequality (RII). Whether inequalities changed over time was analyzed by relative and absolute measures. An Oaxaca-type decomposition approach was applied to explain changes in absolute disparities over time.ResultsThere were glaring educational disparities in maternal health care services in urban and rural areas, where the services were more concentrated among women with better schooling. The disparities were more severe in urban than in rural areas. In urban areas, skilled birth service was the most unequal in both periods. Disparities in rural places were roughly similar for all services except that in 2011, postnatal care was the least unequal, and in 2016, skilled birth was the most unequal services. Trend analyses revealed that disparities significantly dropped in urban by absolute and relative measures. Conversely, in rural regions, the disparities grew by the concentration index measure for most services. The RII and second differences presented conflicting results regarding whether the gaps were increasing, shrinking, or remaining the same.ConclusionSubstantial disparities in maternal health care services remained and even increased, as in rural areas. Different and targeted strategies are needed for urban and rural places to close the observed educational inequalities in these areas

Bibliography on HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia and Ethiopians in the Diaspora: The 2015 Update

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