Assessment of Vehicle Maintenance Culture and Its CostEffectiveness: The Case of the University for Development Studies

The University for Development Studies is a public university in Ghana that owns and manages a fleet of vehicles. The university, however, faces numerous challenges in terms of maintaining its fleet of vehicles. Reports from the various campuses of the university indicate that most of the vehicles that broke down were at various mechanic shops and needed urgent attention. In order to propose solutions to the university's problems, the study sought to discover the causes of the university's vehicles' frequent breakdowns, why most of the vehicles were left unattended at the various mechanic shops, and why the cost of vehicle maintenance was so high. The study population comprised 55 vehicles and 30 drivers who use the vehicles in the various offices, directorates, and the pool (general usage) at the Central Administration. However, data on 34 vehicles were available for the study, which was far more than the needed representation. Ten drivers were sampled to participate in the study using a simple random sampling approach. Face-to-face interviews and one-on-one correspondence were conducted with the selected sample (drivers). The researchers used open-ended questions to gather relevant data from the respondents. The secondary data was obtained from mechanics and technicians who presented their bills for payment at the Transport Office of the University. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used in analyzing the data collected. The data were analyzed using grounded theory and Excel sheets. The study revealed issues such as frequent vehicle breakdowns that went unattended at mechanic shops and high maintenance costs as a result of a poor maintenance culture, insufficient funding, delays in the release of funds for maintenance, inflation of the cost of spare parts, the use of substandard materials, the age of the vehicle, and the insufficient knowledge and skills of mechanics and technicians. It is therefore recommended that a formalized maintenance department be established within the university and sufficiently equipped with tools and spare parts. The department should be staffed with well-qualified and experienced mechanics with the requisite practical knowledge and skills in vehicle maintenance. This will allow fast and quick responses to vehicle maintenance issues

Nutrition knowledge, cooking practices, and consumption of indigenous leafy vegetables among households in Sagnarigu Municipality, Ghana

This study assessed nutrition knowledge, cooking practices, and consumption of indigenous leafy vegetables (IGLVs) among households in the Sagnarigu Municipality, Ghana. A structured questionnaire was employed to collect data on socio-demographics, nutrition knowledge scores, cooking practices, and consumption of IGLVs in the Sagnarigu Municipality. The study was cross-sectional, with a multi-stage sampling to select 399 respondents responsible for preparing family meals. More than half of the respondents had a low nutrition knowledge of IGLVs. Respondents with basic education were 67% (OR = 0.410, 95% CI: 0.170–0.986, p = 0.047) less likely to have high nutrition knowledge of IGLVs than those with tertiary education. Most respondents (65.7%) chopped their IGLVs before washing, and almost all (90.2%) discarded stock after cooking. Concerning the consumption of IGLVs, almost all respondents’ households consumed kenaf and jute leaves representing 90.2% and 99.5% respectively. A few of the respondents indicated that availability, low cost and high nutrient content were significant drivers in the consumption of IGLVs (27.1%, 13.3% and 8.8%, respectively). Therefore, interventions by both the government and non-governmental organisations to increase nutrition knowledge and consumption of IGLVs should include strategies to promote the production, utilisation, and commercialisation of IGLVs, especially in the Northern Region

Occurrence of Eimeria species parasites on small-scale commercial chicken farms in Africa and indication of economic profitability.

Small-scale commercial poultry production is emerging as an important form of livestock production in Africa, providing sources of income and animal protein to many poor households, yet the occurrence and impact of coccidiosis on this relatively new production system remains unknown. The primary objective of this study was to examine Eimeria parasite occurrence on small-scale commercial poultry farms in Ghana, Tanzania and Zambia. Additionally, farm economic viability was measured by calculating the farm gross margin and enterprise budget. Using these economic measures as global assessments of farm productivity, encompassing the diversity present in regional husbandry systems with a measure of fundamental local relevance, we investigated the detection of specific Eimeria species as indicators of farm profitability. Faecal samples and data on production parameters were collected from small-scale (less than 2,000 birds per batch) intensive broiler and layer farms in peri-urban Ghana, Tanzania and Zambia. All seven Eimeria species recognised to infect the chicken were detected in each country. Furthermore, two of the three genetic variants (operational taxonomic units) identified previously in Australia have been described outside of Australia for the first time. Detection of the most pathogenic Eimeria species associated with decreased farm profitability and may be considered as an indicator of likely farm performance. While a causal link remains to be demonstrated, the presence of highly pathogenic enteric parasites may pose a threat to profitable, sustainable small-scale poultry enterprises in Africa

Cryptic Eimeria genotypes are common across the southern but not northern hemisphere

The phylum Apicomplexa includes parasites of medical, zoonotic and veterinary significance. Understanding the global distribution and genetic diversity of these protozoa is of fundamental importance for efficient, robust and long-lasting methods of control. Eimeria spp. cause intestinal coccidiosis in all major livestock animals and are the most important parasites of domestic chickens in terms of both economic impact and animal welfare. Despite having significant negative impacts on the efficiency of food production, many fundamental questions relating to the global distribution and genetic variation of Eimeria spp. remain largely unanswered. Here, we provide the broadest map yet of Eimeria occurrence for domestic chickens, confirming that all the known species (Eimeria acervulina, Eimeria brunetti, Eimeria maxima, Eimeria mitis, Eimeria necatrix, Eimeria praecox, Eimeria tenella) are present in all six continents where chickens are found (including 21 countries). Analysis of 248 internal transcribed spacer sequences derived from 17 countries provided evidence of possible allopatric diversity for species such as E. tenella (FST values ⩽0.34) but not E. acervulina and E. mitis, and highlighted a trend towards widespread genetic variance. We found that three genetic variants described previously only in Australia and southern Africa (operational taxonomic units x, y and z) have a wide distribution across the southern, but not the northern hemisphere. While the drivers for such a polarised distribution of these operational taxonomic unit genotypes remains unclear, the occurrence of genetically variant Eimeria may pose a risk to food security and animal welfare in Europe and North America should these parasites spread to the northern hemisphere

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus Subtype H5N1 in Africa: A Comprehensive Phylogenetic Analysis and Molecular Characterization of Isolates

Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus A/H5N1 was first officially reported in Africa in early 2006. Since the first outbreak in Nigeria, this virus spread rapidly to other African countries. From its emergence to early 2008, 11 African countries experienced A/H5N1 outbreaks in poultry and human cases were also reported in three of these countries. At present, little is known of the epidemiology and molecular evolution of A/H5N1 viruses in Africa. We have generated 494 full gene sequences from 67 African isolates and applied molecular analysis tools to a total of 1,152 A/H5N1 sequences obtained from viruses isolated in Africa, Europe and the Middle East between 2006 and early 2008. Detailed phylogenetic analyses of the 8 gene viral segments confirmed that 3 distinct sublineages were introduced, which have persisted and spread across the continent over this 2-year period. Additionally, our molecular epidemiological studies highlighted the association between genetic clustering and area of origin in a majority of cases. Molecular signatures unique to strains isolated in selected areas also gave us a clearer picture of the spread of A/H5N1 viruses across the continent. Mutations described as typical of human influenza viruses in the genes coding for internal proteins or associated with host adaptation and increased resistance to antiviral drugs have also been detected in the genes coding for transmembrane proteins. These findings raise concern for the possible human health risk presented by viruses with these genetic properties and highlight the need for increased efforts to monitor the evolution of A/H5N1 viruses across the African continent. They further stress how imperative it is to implement sustainable control strategies to improve animal and public health at a global level

Socializing One Health: an innovative strategy to investigate social and behavioral risks of emerging viral threats

In an effort to strengthen global capacity to prevent, detect, and control infectious diseases in animals and people, the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Emerging Pandemic Threats (EPT) PREDICT project funded development of regional, national, and local One Health capacities for early disease detection, rapid response, disease control, and risk reduction. From the outset, the EPT approach was inclusive of social science research methods designed to understand the contexts and behaviors of communities living and working at human-animal-environment interfaces considered high-risk for virus emergence. Using qualitative and quantitative approaches, PREDICT behavioral research aimed to identify and assess a range of socio-cultural behaviors that could be influential in zoonotic disease emergence, amplification, and transmission. This broad approach to behavioral risk characterization enabled us to identify and characterize human activities that could be linked to the transmission dynamics of new and emerging viruses. This paper provides a discussion of implementation of a social science approach within a zoonotic surveillance framework. We conducted in-depth ethnographic interviews and focus groups to better understand the individual- and community-level knowledge, attitudes, and practices that potentially put participants at risk for zoonotic disease transmission from the animals they live and work with, across 6 interface domains. When we asked highly-exposed individuals (ie. bushmeat hunters, wildlife or guano farmers) about the risk they perceived in their occupational activities, most did not perceive it to be risky, whether because it was normalized by years (or generations) of doing such an activity, or due to lack of information about potential risks. Integrating the social sciences allows investigations of the specific human activities that are hypothesized to drive disease emergence, amplification, and transmission, in order to better substantiate behavioral disease drivers, along with the social dimensions of infection and transmission dynamics. Understanding these dynamics is critical to achieving health security--the protection from threats to health-- which requires investments in both collective and individual health security. Involving behavioral sciences into zoonotic disease surveillance allowed us to push toward fuller community integration and engagement and toward dialogue and implementation of recommendations for disease prevention and improved health security

Effect of gratification, utilitarian, and trust elements on the use of retail mobile banking app in Africa:a comparative study

Abstract Information and communication technology has ushered in an era where business organisations are striving to create value for their customers to ensure retention. Thus, mobile banking flexibility is one of the reasons for developing mobile apps for customers. Ubiquitous nature of mobile devices provides an opportunity to run retail banking apps where many people can use at anytime and anywhere to engage in banking transactions. Using these apps, we investigate comparatively, the effect of gratification, utilitarian, and trust elements towards the use of retail mobile banking apps in Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa. The study conveniently collected data from mobile banking app users in three African countries. By analysing the data with SmartPLS, the results show a minor, major and no variations in the effect of Gratification, Utilitarian, and Trust elements towards the use of retail mobile banking app in the selected countries. These findings suggest that technology innovation inclusive should be encouraged in the development of retail mobile banking app in order to improve customer experience