Quality Assurance in Office Technology and Management Programmes in Polytechnics Education: A Panacea for Skill Acquisition and Self Reliance in South-South Nigeria.

The study investigated quality assurance in Office Technology and Management program (OTM) in Polytechnics in South- South, Nigeria.  Descriptive survey research was used for the study.  Two purposes of study, two research questions and corresponding two null hypotheses guided the study.  The population of the study consisted of one hundred and sixteen (116) lecturers; there was no sample as the entire population was investigated.  Eighty six (86) copies of questionnaires were retrieved from the one hundred and sixteen copies distributed, (38 males and 49 females).  Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions and t-test statistics was used to test the two null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance.  The results showed that respondents are in agreement with the items listed for the study as the grand mean for  research question 1 and 2 were rated 3.04 and 3.63 respectively, which is above 2.50, which was the boundary limit set for the study.  The hypotheses tested revealed  that there was no significant difference in the opinions of experienced and less experienced lecturers, on the causes of poor quality assurance mechanism and also there was no  significance difference in the opinions of male and female lecturers on how to improve quality assurance programme.  It was recommended among others that regulatory agencies such as NBTE  saddled with supervision, accreditation and reaccreditation of polytechnics should visit institutions offering OTM programmes  yearly to ascertain compliance and that qualified lecturers, instructors and technologies should be engage to ensure academic excellence

Agricultural Production, Food and Nutrition Security in Rural Benin, Nigeria

Although agriculture is the major economic activity in Nigerian rural areas, its inhabitants are among the most vulnerable to food and nutrition insecurity. Therefore, any effort aimed at minimizing food and nutrition insecurity must start from rural areas. This study examines agricultural production, food and nutrition security in rural areas of the Benin region in Nigeria, highlighting the major constraints. A measure of household food and nutrition security used in this study is based on dietary intake, real wage rates, employment, and incidence of illness and adequacy norms. This study is based on a food frequency questionnaire survey administered using systematic random sampling technique, participatory assessment technique, interviews with stakeholders and published materials. Some indices employed in measuring food and nutrition security in this paper are physical access, which is measured in relation to availability of agricultural infrastructure such as roads, while economic access is measured in terms of income, expenditure and estimated profit margins. Two pretested questionnaires were administered in 20 rural communities in the Benin region to elicit information from respondents were analysed using simple descriptive techniques like charts, tables and percentages. Subsistence agriculture is the mainstay of the studied rural economies and is dependent mainly on rain-fed, low-technologydriven cultivation with no access to modern farm inputs. Farming alone is the main source of income for 57% of the respondents, while fishing and trading account for the other 43%. The study reveals that although 60% of respondents are engaged in agriculture, their access to food and nutrition is insecure due in part to unstable incomes, seasonality of harvest and inadequate health and sanitary conditions. Also, lack of storage facilities in these rural communities has increased post-harvest losses and has reduced farmers’/household incomes, thereby worsening their food insecurity situation. The study also found that rural-urban migration results in shortage of manpower for agricultural activities. Lack of access to fertilizer and poor infrastructure are major factors for the decline in agricultural production in the last five years in the sampled communities. The study recommends the need for a considerable and sustained government investment in agriculture and the provision of basic facilities to support education, health care, sanitation and safe drinking water supply. This will help to ensure food and nutrition security and help to curtail rural-urban migration.Key words : Agriculture, Nutrition Security, Rural household

Amnesty Programme in Nigeria : the impact and challenges in post conflict Niger Delta region

The study seeks to capture the impact and challenges of the six year old amnesty programme in post-conflict Niger Delta region. As part of a larger project titled “Amnesty for peace in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria” in-depth interviews with youths, leaders, community members, elders and relatives of ex-militants were carried out. Section 175 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria granted unconditional pardon to all persons who participated in the commission of offences associated with militant activities in the region. The amnesty agreement made by the Federal Government remains unfulfilled

Preparation and evaluation of nanocomposite sodalite/-Al2O3 tubular membranes for H2/CO2 separation

Nanocomposite sodalite/ceramic membranes supported on -Al2O3 tubular support were prepared via the pore-plugging hydrothermal (PPH) synthesis protocol using one interruption and two interruption steps. In parallel, thin-film membranes were prepared via the direct hydrothermal synthesis technique. The as-synthesized membranes were evaluated for H2/CO2 separation in the context of pre-combustion CO2 capture. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to check the surface morphology while x-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to check the crystallinity of the sodalite crystals and as-synthesized membranes. Single gas permeation of H2, CO2, N2 and mixture gas H2/CO2 was used to probe the quality of the membranes. Gas permeation results revealed nanocomposite membrane prepared via the PPH synthesis protocols using two interruption steps displayed the best performance. This was attributed to the enhanced pore-plugging effect of sodalite crystals in the pores of the support after the second interruption step. The nanocomposite membrane displayed H2 permeance of 7.97 107 mols1m2Pa1 at 100 C and 0.48 MPa feed pressure with an ideal selectivity of 8.76. Regarding H2/CO2 mixture, the H2 permeance reduced from 8.03 107 mols1m2Pa1 to 1.06 107 mols1m2Pa1 at 25 C and feed pressure of 0.18 MPa. In the presence of CO2, selectivity of the nanocomposite membrane reduced to 4.24.The Department of Science and Innovation Research Foundation (DSI-NRF) South Africa’s SARChI Clean Coal Technology.http://www.mdpi.com/journal/membranesam2021Chemical Engineerin

Update on current approaches, challenges, and prospects of modeling and simulation in renewable and sustainable energy systems

Modeling and simulation (M&S) is a well-known scientific tool that could be used to analyze a system or predict its behavior before physical construction. Despite being an established methodical tool in engineering, only a few review articles discussing emerging topics in M&S are available in open literature, especially for renewable and sustainable energy systems. This review critically examines recent advances in modeling and simulation in the energy sector, with few insights on its approaches, challenges, and prospects in selected renewable and sustainable energy systems (RSES). In addition, the concept of model validation in RSES is systematically discussed based on in-sample and out-of-sample approaches, while potential data sources with crucial elements for model validation in RSES are highlighted. Furthermore, three major groups of sustainable energy system models that play important roles in supporting national and international energy policies arepresented, to bring to light how the modeling of energy systems is evolving to meet its challenges in the design, operation, and control of RSES. This review also presents a comprehensive assessment of the current approaches, challenges, and prospects in modeling the behavior and evaluating the performance of RSES. Finally, areas that need further research and development in renewable and sustainable energy system modeling are also highlighted.https://www.elsevier.com/locate/rserpm2022Chemical Engineerin

Combating Environmental Irresponsibility of TNCs in Africa: An Empirical Analysis

Environmental irresponsibility is one of the most prominent issues confronting host communities of transnational corporations (TNCs) engaged in the production of economic goods and, sometimes, services. Drawing mainly on stakeholder theory, combined with legitimacy theory, this article addresses how host communities in Africa combat the challenge of environmental irresponsibility of TNCs. To illustrate the dimensions and dynamics of the challenge, this paper examines the experience of despoliation of Ogoniland by the oil giant Shell in Nigeria. The analysis draws attention to the significance of the role of individuals and civil society groups in securing accountability of one of the most formidable fronts of economic globalisation. The analysis is particularly relevant to the experience of environmental irresponsibility in the context of weak governance structures