The audit committee characteristics and earnings management in post IFRS Nigeria

This study is designed to examine the impact of audit committee characteristics on earnings management in Nigerian listed companies after the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The study consider a total of 71 listed companies in Nigerian Stock Exchange, the period cover is 2012 to 2014. The data mainly obtained from secondary source, through the financial reports of the sample companies and DataStream. The multiple regression results indicated that audit committee independence, audit committee financial expertise and audit committee stock ownership were found to be negatively and significantly associated with earnings management. In contrast, audit committee size and audit committee activity are not associated with earnings management. The result also shows that firm performance is negatively and significantly correlated with earnings management, while leverage is found to be not significantly related with earnings management. However, firm size is positive and significantly related with earnings management. Finally, the results suggest that the policy makers in Nigeria shall make policies that will further strengthen the audit committee independence, and financial expertise since are found to be significant in preventing earnings management. The results also suggest that the companies should be encouraged to have outside directors with significant stock ownership, as this is also found to be important in preventing earnings

LECTURERS’ ATTITUDE TOWARDS, COMPETENCE AND UTILIZATION OF RESULT COMPILER SOFTWARE (RCS) IN NIGER STATE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, MINNA, NIGERIA

This study was carried out to investigate lecturers’ attitudes towards, competence, and utilization of result compiler software in Niger State College of Education Minna, Nigeria. A descriptive survey research design was adopted. One hundred and twenty lecturers form the sample for the study. A combination of proportionate stratified and simple random sampling techniques was used to select respondents for this study. The instrument used for the study was a Researchers-designed questionnaire that was divided into three sections; attitude, competence, and utilization. The questionnaire was validated by experts and Cronbach Alpha’s formula was computed to ascertain the internal consistency. The reliability coefficients of the questionnaire were obtained as 0.84, 0.76, and 0.82 for the three variables (attitude, competence, and utilization). The collected data were analyzed using Mean and Standard deviation with a criterion mean of 2.5 as the basis for judgment. Findings revealed that lecturers have a positive attitude toward result compiler software (RCS), lecturers are competent in the use of result compiler software (RCS) to some extent and have a high level of utilization of result compiler software (RCS). Hence, it was recommended among others that college management should continue to motivate lecturers to sustain their attitude toward result compiler software and organize routine training in the area of result compilatio

Relevance of Sustainable Community Education for Entrepreneurship Development in Nigerian Rural Communities

Community education is an education process that enables members of a community to identify their needs/problems and proffer solutions using locally available resources. Rural communities in Nigeria remain the central base of natural resources and producers of raw materials. Most of the necessary prerequisite needed to set up a vibrant entrepreneurial skill acquisition centre for a small scale business is available in the rural communities – land, labour, manpower, resources etc. but the problem lies in lack of awareness and inadequate knowledge or information on how to harness and mobilise these potentials to boost entrepreneurial skills. This paper is a theoretical highlight on the relevance of community education for entrepreneurship development in rural communities. The paper adopts the descriptive research method. Data used were mostly generated from secondary sources such as journals, conference papers, articles, books, websites and other texts etc. The paper highlights the nature of Nigerian rural communities, relevance of community education in entrepreneurship development and the strategies through which entrepreneurship can be enhanced in rural communities. The paper finally recommends among others that entrepreneurship development should be a component of any community education programme especially in rural areas

Experiential Analysis of Awareness and Adoption of E-Extension Among Poultry Farmers in Gombe State, Nigeria

The study assessed the e-extension awareness and adoption among poultry farmers in Gombe state, Nigeria. The study had two objectives, two research questions and two null hypotheses. Survey design was adopted for the study. The population of the study was 798 registered poultry farmers under Poultry Farmers Association of Nigeria Gombe state. Proportional sampling technique was used to select 240 poultry farmers for the study. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire. The instrument was administered by researcher assisted by 3 research assisted using direct contact. The data collected were analyzed using mean scores to answer the research questions. ANOVA was used to test the null hypotheses at the significance level of 0.05. The study revealed that poultry farmers are aware and also adopt poultry farming technologies through e-extension programme in Gombe State. It was concluded that e-extension facilities significantly contributed on awareness, adoption and effectiveness among poultry farmers in Gombe state. It was recommended among others that facilities for e-extension programme should be use effectively in disseminating new techniques, skills and innovations in poultry farming. Keywords: Awareness, Adoption, E-Extension, Poultry, Farmers DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/10-2-01 Publication date: January 31st 202

Cytotoxic activities of fractionated ethanol extract of the root bark of terminalia catappa and isolation of eriodictyol-7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside from the ethyl acetate soluble fraction

The crushed root bark of terminalia catappa Linn was extracted using aqueous ethanol. The crude extract was suspended in water and successively partition into n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and n-butanol soluble fractions. The fractions i.e.; n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and water were subjected to cytotoxic activity using brine shrimp lethality bioassay and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) analyses. The cytotoxicity of the isolates were evaluated in terms of lethality concentration (LC50). Comparing the result obtained to vincristine sulphate with LC50 of 0.61 μg/ml, ethyl acetate and n-hexane fractions demonstrated a significant cytotoxic activity having LC50 value of 0.82 μg/ml and 1.21 μg/ml. The LC50 values of the water, dichloromethane and n-butanol fractions were 11.90 μg/ml, 13.25 μg/ml and 17.10 μg/ml respectively. The ethyl acetate fraction with significant activity in in-vitro cytotoxic activity and a good proton NMR profiles, was further fractionated and purified using column chromatography, preparative thin layer chromatography (PTLC) and the isolate obtained were characterized using spectroscopic techniques (MS, IR, 1H and 13C NMR, 1H-1H COSY and 1H-13C HSQC). We concluded that the compound isolated was eriodictyol-7- O-β-D-glucopyranoside

Urbanization and climate change: the role of road transport in carbon dioxide emission in Kano Metropolis, Nigeria

No AbstractKeywords: CO2 abatement, automobile density, climate change, global warming, greenhouse gase

Effect of Science-Technology-Society Approach on Creativity in Environmental Conservation Concept among Secondary School Biology Students in Zaria, Kaduna State

Creativity in STEM Education is now widely recognized as an essential 21st century skill, which can be fostered through innovative pedagogy. This study therefore examines the effect of Science-Technology-Society (STS) Approach on creativity in Environmental Conservation Concept among secondary school biology students in Zaria, Kaduna State. The design is quasi-experimental, specifically the non-equivalent pretest, posttest, control group design. A sample of 105 SS2 students from two schools was used for the study. Schools were purposively sampled from 28 public Schools in Zaria Education Zone. Students’ Creativity Assessment Test (SCAT) was adapted and used for data collection. Three null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study and were tested using ANCOVA at P < 0.05 level of significance. Results obtained revealed that students exposed to STS Instructional Approach, exhibited significantly higher level of creativity than those taught concept environmental conservation using Lecture Method. There is no significant difference in the creativity level of male and female students in the experimental group. Gender and treatment were found not to have any significant interaction effects on students’ level of creativity. On the basis of these findings, the study advocated for the teaching of Biology for creativity through innovative strategies like STS Approach

Groundwater quality in awe and environs, middle benue trough, nigeria

Groundwater quality is an important thing to be determined; because it is commonly used as a source of clean water for domestic, agricultural and industry purposes. Fifty three groundwater samples (seventeen from wells, five from springs and thirty one from boreholes) were sampled for this research work. Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrophotometer (ICP-MS) was used to analyze for the major cations while titration was used for SO4 and HCO3. Cl was analyzed using the Ion Chromatographic Method (IC). From the results obtained, Total dissolved solids (TDS), Electrical conductivity (EC), and Strontium (Sr) classified the groundwater in the study area into three as fresh, brackish and saline water. The concentrations of major ions in all the fresh water and some of the brackish water in the study area met the World Health Organization (WHO) Standard for drinking water while the concentrations of the major ions in the saline water are above the WHO permissible values for drinking water. This indicates that the saline water from the study area are not good for domestic, agriculture and industrial uses. Four types of water are obtained from the groundwater based on Total Hardness (TH) as: 75 mg/l as soft; 75–150 mg/l as moderately hard; 150–300 mg/l as hard; and &gt;300 mg/l as very hard. Both extreme degrees of very soft (&lt;75 mg/l) and very hard (&gt;300 mg/l) are considered as undesirable features in water. About 90% of the groundwater in the study area are suitable for domestic, livestock and irrigation purposes but only about 51% of the groundwater samples can be used by industries without being treated. &nbsp

Increasing rice production through adoption of improved variety in Niger State, Nigeria

The study examined the performance of Faro 44 improved rice variety in increasing rice production in Niger State, Nigeria. To achieve the objectives of the study, 203 farmers were randomly selected from three Local Government Areas in the State. Validated interview schedule with reliability co-efficient of 0.89 was used for collecting data and collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation analysis. The result indicated that the mean age of the respondents was 43 years, with mean farm size of 2.1ha. Finding also revealed that a total 97.54% of the respondents adopted Faro 44 improved rice variety in their farms. The mean yield of the respondents was 6 Tons/ha., which increased the rice output of more than half (52.22%) of the respondents twice. The mean income was N675, 000.00 ($ 1,824.32); this led to empowerment of the respondents in the areas of attending to family welfare needs (89.66%), re-investment in farming businesses (70.94%) and acquisition of landed properties (50.73%). Challenges of adoption were complexity of some components of improved variety (39.90%) and late delivery of improved seeds (35.47%). The result further showed that respondent’s educational level (r = 0.285), farm size (r = 0.309) and extension contacts (r = 0.236) had significant relationship with adoption of improved rice variety. Thus, it was recommended that extension service providers should provide follow-up information to the farmers to educate them more on the agronomic practices of the improved rice variety. It was also suggested that back-up inputs such as improved seeds should be made available to farmers adequately and on time by relevant stakeholders

Prevalence of Anaemia in Pregnancy and Related Factors among Women Attending Antenatal Care (ANC) in General Hospital Bunza, Kebbi State, Nigeria

Background: Anaemia in pregnancy remains a major cause of maternal death in Sub-Saharan Africa, and it mostly results from a deficiency of iron and folate.Objectives: To determine the prevalence of anemia and the factors associated with it among pregnant women in Bunza, Nigeria. Materials and Method: A cross-sectional study conducted among 327 pregnant women attending ANC in General Hospital Bunza, Kebbi State, Nigeria. Data were collected using a pretested questionnaire. Estimation of packed cell volume and RDT were alsodone for the participants; datawereanalysedusing IBMSPSS version 20. Results: The mean packed cell volume of the respondents was 30.7, with a SD 3.7 and majority of the respondents were having anemia 240(75.7%). Level of education of the respondents and their spouses, age at first pregnancy, spouses’ occupation, and the trimester at which the respondents booked were found to be significant p ?0.05for anemic status. Conclusion: The prevalence of anemia in pregnancy is high among pregnant women in Bunza, Nigeria, with the factors associated with it being the levels of education of the woman and that of her spouse, spouse’s occupation, having the first pregnancy before the age of 19 years, and late booking. Recommendations: Anemia in Pregnancy should be considered a public health problem in the LGA and state in general and girl child education should be given priority as a long term measure