Comparative study of hatching rates of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell 1822) eggs on different substrates

The hatching rates of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) eggs on four natural substrates: the roots of Nile cabbage (Pistia stratiotes), water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), pond weed (Ceratophyllum dermasum) and green grass leaves (Commelina sp.), and four artificial substrates: sisal mats, nylon mats, papyrus mats and kakaban mats, was assessed. Concrete slabs were used as control. The natural substrates performed better than the artificial ones. Pistia roots gave the best mean hatching rate of 66.2 ± 3.62%. Green grass leaves were second with a mean rate of 54.0 ± 3.46%, water hyacinth was third with 49.7 ± 3.16% and Ceratophyllum fourth with a mean of 13.0 ± 2.37%. Concrete slabs gave a mean rate of 18.6 ± 2.8%, sisal mats 18.6 ± 2.0%, papyrus 12.2 ± 1.2% and kakaban 11.8 ± 1.9%. Nylon mats were the last, with a mean rate of 4.0 ± 0.7%. The best performing natural substrates were those with the ability to float and thin fibrous roots that seemed to allow higher aeration of the eggs during incubation. The cost of using natural substrates was minimal

Comparative study of hatching rates of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell 1822) eggs on different substrates

The hatching rates of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) eggs on four natural substrates: the roots of Nile cabbage (Pistia stratiotes), water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), pond weed (Ceratophyllum dermasum) and green grass leaves (Commelina sp.), and four artificial substrates: sisal mats, nylon mats, papyrus mats and kakaban mats, was assessed. Concrete slabs were used as control. The natural substrates performed better than the artificial ones. Pistia roots gave the best mean hatching rate of 66.2 ± 3.62%. Green grass leaves were second with a mean rate of 54.0 ± 3.46%, water hyacinth was third with 49.7 ± 3.16% and Ceratophyllum fourth with a mean of 13.0 ± 2.37%. Concrete slabs gave a mean rate of 18.6 ± 2.8%, sisal mats 18.6 ± 2.0%, papyrus 12.2 ± 1.2% and kakaban 11.8 ± 1.9%. Nylon mats were the last, with a mean rate of 4.0 ± 0.7%. The best performing natural substrates were those with the ability to float and thin fibrous roots that seemed to allow higher aeration of the eggs during incubation. The cost of using natural substrates was minimal.Hatching, Seed production, Fish eggs, Africa, Kenya, Clarias gariepinus

Determinants of Household Participation in Rural Development Projects

This paper provides evidence for determinants of households participation in rural development projects. Study findings are based on qualitative analysis and logistic estimation of a random utility model. Households with higher incomes appear less likely to participate; those with more labor are more likely. Availability of activities of interest to community members could enhance participation.Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles and prevalence of ESBLS among E.coli isolates recovered from people working in hospitality industry within Nairobi, Kenya

Objective: To determine the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles with key focus on ESBL-producing E.coli strains isolated from participants working in the hospitality industry in Nairobi, KenyaStudy design: A cross sectional descriptive study.Setting: Centre for Microbiology Research at Kenya Medical Research Institute, Nairobi.Subjects: A total of 323 food-handlers working within Nairobi County were recruited.Results: High resistances were recorded for Sulfamethoxazole/Trimethoprim (70%), Ampicillin (44.6%), Streptomycin (42%) and Tetracyclines (41%) while Imipenem and Cefepime were effective against 99% of the isolates. A third of all isolates were multidrug resistant. The prevalence of ESBLs was 3.4% while CMT, IRT and pAmpC-phenotypes accounted for <2%. About 1% of the ESBL-producers were also resistant to ciprofloxacin and gentamicin. The blaTEM accounted for 37%, blaSHV (25%), blaCTX-M (12%) and blaOXA-1 gene (7%). Majority of MDR strains were obtained from young individuals working in middle class hotels. Genetic relatedness of the MDR isolates was apparently influenced by the resistance profiles, hotel type and clinical characteristics.Conclusion: This study revealed that apparently healthy people working in the hospitality industry carry MDR E. coli that could potentially be transmitted to the general public. Infections by such strains could result in limited treatment options increasing the chances of patient mortality. Therefore, there is need to contain the spread of such strains through promotion of rational use of antimicrobials, properhygiene and certification of food handlers based on proper laboratory investigations

Carriage, antimicrobial susceptibility profiles and genetic diversity of Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA isolates recovered from students in a Kenyan university

Objective: To determine the carriage, antimicrobial susceptibility profiles and genetic diversity of Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA isolates recovered from students in a Kenyan University.Study design: A cross sectional descriptive study.Setting: Centre for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, Nairobi, Kenya.Subjects: A total of 237 healthy students residing within the University residence halls were recruited.Results: A total of 231 S. aureus isolates were recovered. All isolates were susceptible to nitrofurantoin and linezolid and resistant in high numbers (194, 81.9%) to ampicillin. Resistances to amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, erythromycin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin and trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole were below 20%. The overall prevalence of MRSA among the study population was 11.3% (26/231). Based on carriage of the mec cassettes, the SCCmecV (61.5%) was more prevalent among the MRSA followed by SCCmecII (53.9%). Carriage of the lukFS-PV gene was 26.9% and 35.7% among the MRSA and MSSA strains respectively, and there was no statistical association between the two strains with regard to carriage of the gene (p=0.487). Analysis of genetic relations showed evidence of strain sharing among students.Conclusion: The study revealed the presence of MRSA strains, which are also multi-drug resistant, circulating among a healthy student population in a university setting within Central Kenya. Therefore, these results indicate the existence of potential risk factors, thus necessitating a comprehensive surveillance on MRSA and studies on control measures to help in curbing the spread of MRSA strains

Application of porter’s framework to assess aquaculture value chain in Kenya

Aquaculture (fish farming) is an agricultural as well as fisheries activity, competing with other agricultural enterprises and artisanal fisheries for the same basic inputs. Therefore, aquaculture is subject to the same basic resource constraints that traditional agricultural activities face. The literature suggests that competition within a value chain is between chains and not individual actors. This study examined the aquaculture value chain in Kenya, assessing the entire value chain, and determining the appropriate points to participate in economically sustainable ways. The competition analysis assessed attractiveness at each stage of the chain by reviewing the rivalry in terms of five competitive forces within the Kenyan aquaculture industry; competitive rivalry, the threat of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of substitutes and bargaining power of buyers. The aquaculture industry in Kenya is assessed using Porter’s model with marketing mix (Ps) and factor evaluation matrix (FEM). Input supply is found to be the most difficult value chain function in which to participate because it requires relatively large initial capital outlays and additional operating funds. Although fish farming is the driving function of the entire value chain, the significant capital investments required could be a barrier to entry. Fish farming has largely benefited from the support of government, NGOs and other regional development initiatives. The study established that the easiest sector to enter (in terms of low barriers to entry and exit and low labour requirements) is the fish marketing sector. This chain function provides the most flexibility and liquidity to participants, whether as full-time or part-time occupation. Overall, participation in the Kenya aquaculture value chain will depend on the prospective entrant’s level of experience, time, capital commitment and financial goal (long term stability versus liquidity). Aquaculture requires a long term commitment and high capital outlays, as well as persistence, and should therefore be considered by those looking for long term stability and not short term benefits. Established fish farmers may consider diversifying into input supply and value addition as well.Key words: Kenya, aquaculture, tilapia, value chai

TRANSFORMING AGRICULTURE THROUGH CONTRACTED EXTENSION SERVICE DELIVERY SYSTEMS: THE CASE OF KENYA'S AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY AND AGRIBUSINESS PROJECT

Transformation of small holder agriculture from subsistence farming to agribusiness focused systems, is paramount towards attainment of Kenya\u2019s vision 2030 and the Millennium Development Goals. This requires extension service delivery systems that focus on addressing challenges within agricultural product value chains (APVC) continuum. The existing extension systems have not contributed much towards this transformation due to their limited capacities, including inadequate expertise and diversity. The Kenya Agricultural Productivity and Agribusiness Project (KAPAP) is implementing an innovative service delivery model, whose approaches include a Community Driven Development (CDD), demand driven and public private partnerships through contracted Service Providers (SPs). The aim of the model is to contribute towards increasing smallholder farmers\u2019 productivity and incomes. The implementation of the model brings together sector players as implementing agents; while the SPs consortia were competitively selected. The services delivered to farmers\u2019 common interest groups (CIGs) include high level value chain interventions such as organising farmers for marketing, and linking them to markets and other service providers. Payment for services is done using farmer grants and is pegged onto achievement of set income indicator benchmarks negotiated and agreed upon between farmers and their SPs. The implementation of the model is guided by operational procedures, designed to ensure that a harmonised process is followed within the targeted counties. A total of 109 SPs consortia were contracted in January 2012 to offer services to 118,865 farmers (Males = 57%; Females = 43%) organised into 4,355 Common Interest Working Groups (CWGs). The achievements made by end of 15 months show an increase in production for the 36 target enterprises and farmer incomes. The farmers earned a total of US$44,118 million at a service delivery of US$ 1,124,706, giving an econometric return to investment of 39.4. The achievements of this model qualifies it for inclusion among other feasible extension approaches or \u201cislands of success\u201d that have the potential to transform the agricultural sector in Kenya and in other developing nations with minimal modifications. innovative extension deliveryLa transformation de l\u2019agriculture des petits exploitants de la subsistance en agriculture de march\ue9 est primordiale pour atteindre les objectifs de la vision 2013 au Kenya et les Objectifs Mill\ue9naires de D\ue9veloppement (MDGs). Ceci n\ue9cessite des syst\ue8mes de vulgarisation visant \ue0 adresser les contraintes tout au long des chaines de valeurs. Les syst\ue8mes de vulgarisation existants n\u2019ont pas contribu\ue9 grand-chose \ue0 la transformation de l\u2019agriculture de subsistence en une agriculture de march\ue9 \ue0 cause de leur capacit\ue9 limit\ue9e y compris l\u2019absence d\u2019une expertise ad\ue9quate et diversifi\ue9e. Le projet \uab\ua0Productivit\ue9 Agricole et Agribusiness\ua0\ubb au Kenya (KAPAP) est entrain d\u2019ex\ue9cuter un mod\ue8le innovateur de prestation de services suivant une approache incluant un d\ue9veloppement pilot\ue9 par les communaut\ue9s, r\ue9pondant directement \ue0 la demande et bas\ue9e sur un partenariat public-priv\ue9 \ue0 travers des contrats avec les prestataires des services et fournisseurs des intrants. L\u2019objectif de ce mod\ue8le est de contribuer \ue0 accro\ueetre la productivit\ue9 agricole et augmenter les revenus des petits exploitants. L\u2019ex\ue9cution de ce mod\ue8le regroupe les diff\ue9rents acteurs dans le secteur comme agents d\u2019ex\ue9cution tandis que tous les prestataires des services et fournisseurs d\u2019intrants sone s\ue9l\ue9ctionn\ue9s sur des base comp\ue9titifs. les services fournis aux associations des producteurs sont entre autres des interventions dans la partie sup\ue9rieure au long des chaines de valeur tel l\u2019organisation des producteurs pour la commercialization de leurs produits\ua0; leur connection avec les march\ue9s et fournisseurs de services et d\u2019intrants. Le paiement des services est g\ue9n\ue9ralement \ue0 travres des subventions aux producteurs bas\ue9es sur un contrat de performance \ue9conomique \ue0 \ue9valuer sur base d\u2019indicateurs pr\ue9cis pr\ue9alablement n\ue9goci\ue9s et approuv\ue9s en m\ueame temps par les producteurs et les fourniteurs de services et d\u2019intrants. L\u2019ex\ue9cution du mod\ue8le est guid\ue9e par des proc\ue9d\ue9s op\ue9rationnels con\ue7us pour assurer qu\u2019un processus harmonis\ue9 est bien suivi dans l\u2019ensemble des zones du projet. Un total de 109 groupement de fournisseurs de services et d\u2019intrants \ue9tait contract\ue9 en Janvier 2012 pour offrir des services \ue0 118,865 producteurs (Hommes=57%\ua0; Femmes= 43%) organis\ue9s en groupes partageant les m\ueames int\ue9r\ueats. Les r\ue9sultats obtenus apr\ue8s 15 mois d\u2019ex\ue9cution du projet indiquent une augmentation de la production pour les 36 entereprises vis\ue9es et une augmentation du revenu des exploitants. Les producteurs ong gagn\ue9 un total de 44,118 million de dollars US contre un co\ufbt des services ou intrants fournis de 1.124.706 dollar US, indiquant un retour \ue9conom\ue9trique \ue0 l\u2019investissement de 39,4. Les succ\ue8s de ce mod\ue8le le qualifie pour son inclusion parmi les approaches efficaces de vulgarisation \uab\ua0ilots de succ\ue8s\ua0\ubb ayant le potential de transformer avec des modifications minimales le secteur agricole au Kenya et dans d\u2019autres pays en voie de d\ue9veloppement

Activity Budget and Foraging Patterns of Nubian Giraffes (\u3cem\u3eGiraffa camelopardalis camelopardalis\u3c/em\u3e) in Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya

How animals decide to spend their time has a key impact on their survival and reproduction. These behavioral decisions are shaped by ecological and environmental factors, such as seasonal changes. Foraging patterns show how an animal chooses to forage in its environment as influenced by resource availability, competition, and predation risk. Giraffe activity budget has been investigated in populations across Africa and found to be influenced by body size, diet composition, and sex. The activity budget and foraging patterns of Nubian giraffes vary considerably between ecosystems. The Nubian giraffe, a subspecies of the Northern giraffe species (Giraffa Camelopardalis) is a critically endangered population and occurs only within Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Southern Sudan. We performed 3 months of behavioral observation on a population of Nubian giraffes in Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya, to assess seasonal activity budgets and foraging patterns. We found that in the wet and dry seasons giraffe spent approximately the same amount of time (53% and 57%, respectively) foraging. Movement and resting duration decreased slightly from dry to wet seasons 22% to 20% and 25% to 22% respectively. Across both seasons, Vachellia xanthophloea (67%), Maytenus senegalensis (19%), and Solanum incanum (9%) made up the bulk of giraffe\u27s diet. In the dry season, giraffes additionally foraged on Maerua triphylla (2%), Vachellia gerrardi (2%), and Grewia similis (1%); in the wet season, they added Vachellia abyssinica (2%) and Rhus natalensis (2%) to their diet. The most utilized browsing height was 3.5 meters (level 5), below their average height. Giraffes browse at lower heights after they consume the young shoots from the top of the bushes. Overall, seasonality did not appear to influence the Nubian giraffe\u27s activity budget or foraging patterns in LNNP. Planting perennial plants encourage uniform park resource use, boosts forage diversity, and minimizes Vachellia browsing pressure

Interaction design for rural agricultural sensor networks

We describe the ongoing design of a sensor network for small family farms in rural Kenya. The sensor network is just one part of an ‘ecology of resources’ in which handheld devices are used to bridge the sensor network and a computer-based access point. We describe the two villages where the system is deployed and the user requirements collected. We then describe the architecture of the sensor network and detail how it fits in with the larger integrated system. We then detail our approach to interface and interaction design, and conclude by describing the next steps in the project

Burden, causes, and outcomes of people with epilepsy admitted to a rural hospital in Kenya

Objective: People with epilepsy (PWE) develop complications and comorbidities often requiring admission to hospital, which adds to the burden on the health system, particularly in low-income countries. We determined the incidence, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), risk factors, and causes of admissions in PWE. We also examined the predictors of prolonged hospital stay and death using data from linked clinical and demographic surveillance system. Methods: We studied children and adults admitted to a Kenyan rural hospital, between January 2003 and December 2011, with a diagnosis of epilepsy. Poisson regression was used to compute incidence and rate ratios, logistic regression to determine associated factors, and the DALY package of the R-statistical software to calculate years lived with disability (YLD) and years of life lost (YLL). Results: The overall incidence of admissions was 45.6/100,000 person-years of observation (PYO) (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 43.0–48.7) and decreased with age (p \u3c 0.001). The overall DALYs were 3.1/1,000 (95% CI, 1.8–4.7) PYO and comprised 55% of YLD. Factors associated with hospitalization were use of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) (odds ratio [OR] 5.36, 95% CI 2.64–10.90), previous admission (OR 11.65, 95% CI 2.65–51.17), acute encephalopathy (OR 2.12, 95% CI 1.07–4.22), and adverse perinatal events (OR 2.87, 95% CI 1.06–7.74). Important causes of admission were epilepsy-related complications: convulsive status epilepticus (CSE) (38%), and postictal coma (12%). Age was independently associated with prolonged hospital stay (OR 1.02, 95% CI 1.00–1.04) and mortality (OR, 1.07, 95% CI 1.04–1.10). Significance: Epilepsy is associated with significant number of admissions to hospital, considerable duration of admission, and mortality. Improved supply of AEDs in the community, early initiation of treatment, and adherence would reduce hospitalization of PWE and thus the burden of epilepsy on the health system