Exploring the growth challenges of social enterprises: Identifying staffing, earnings-generation and communications as critical success factors

How best to support the sustainability and growth of social enterprises is important to multiple stakeholders (Cavusgil & Knight, 2015; Thompson, Mawson & Martin, 2017). Evidence highlights that social enterprises struggle to scale-up, as reflected by a majority of UK-based social enterprises failing to breakeven. This research studies over one hundred social enterprises to explore the reasons for ineffective scaling and to identify where the priorities and challenges lie in achieving success. Recent literature and the Bloom & Smith (2010) SCALERS model (Staffing; Communicating; Alliance-building; Lobbying; Earnings-generation; Replicating; and Stimulating market forces) are used to determine key issues. The findings indicate that the effective scaling and impact (Kim, 2015) of social enterprises is reliant on three critical success factors: Staffing; Earnings generation; and Communications. Social enterprises need to optimise the recruitment and deployment of employees and volunteers, bearing in mind that they are essential for the replication of successes and in building alliances with networks of stakeholders (Stam, Arzalanian & Elfring, 2014). A robust earnings generation model is essential and may require the development of innovative income streams. Effective staff and robust finances helping establish strong coalitions, joint-ventures and partnerships across the stakeholder spectrum

Invasive bacterial infections in Gambians with sickle cell anaemia in an era of widespread Pneumococcal and Haemophilus influenzae type B vaccination

Background: There is relatively little data on the aetiology of bacterial infections in patients with sickle cell anaemia (SCA) in West Africa, and no data from countries that have implemented conjugate vaccines against both Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib). Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of SCA patients admitted to the Medical Research Council Unit, The Gambia during a five-year period when there was high coverage of Hib and Pneumococcal conjugate vaccination. We evaluated 161 admissions of 126 patients between April 2010 and April 2015. Results: Pathogenic bacteria were identified in blood cultures from 11 of the 131 admissions that had cultures taken (8.4%, 95% CI 4.5-14.1%). The most frequent isolate was Salmonella Typhimurium (6/11; 54.5%), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (2/11; 18.2%) and other enteric Gram-negative pathogens (2/11; 18.2%) and there was one case of H. influenzae non-type b bacteraemia (1/11; 9.1%). There were no episodes of bacteraemia caused by S. pneumoniae or Hib. Conclusions: The low prevalence of S. pneumoniae and Hib, and the predominance of non-typhoidal Salmonella as a cause of bacteraemia suggest the need to reconsider optimal antimicrobial prophylaxis and the empirical treatment regimens for patients with SCA

Evaluation of selected parameters of rat liver and kidney function following repeated administration of yohimbine.

The effects of administration of yohimbine, an aphrodisiac on some functional parameters of rat liver and kidney were investigated. White male albino rats weighing between 200-250g were grouped into two such that one group was orally administered with 14mg/kg body weight on daily basis for 15days while the control received an appropriate volume of sterile distilled water on daily basis for the same period. Bilirubin concentration in the test showed a significant decrease (P<0.01) when compared with the control, with an interruption of a significant increase only on day 5 of administration (P<0.01). Sodium ion concentration showed significant increase only on the first and the last days when compared with the control (P<0.01). The serum albumin content and K+ displayed significant increase throughout the experimental period (P<0.01) while serum content of urea and creatinine decreased significantly throughout the period of administration (P<0.01). The results suggest that yohimbine administration has adverse affect on the functional capacities of the liver and the kidney.Key words: Functional parameters, Kidney, Liver, Yohimbin

Physicochemical Characteristics and Fish Abundance and Diversity of Mairua Reservoir Water, Funtua, Katsina State, North-Western Nigeria

This research explores physico-chemical characteristics and fish abundance and diversity of Mairua Reservoir Water, Funtua, Katsina State, North-Western Nigeria. The duration of the study was 12 months starting from September to August, 2017, using standard methods and procedures.The result revealed that; Water temperature (25.02 ± 0.170C) pH (7.54 ± 0.03), Alkalinity (3.69±0.09), Conductivity (129.43 ± 5.15μЅ/cm), Total Dissolved Solids (50.54 ± 0.57mg/L) Nitrate-nitrogen (0.21 ± 0.04mg/L), Water Hardness (134.44 ± 3.06mg/LCaCO3), Dissolved Oxygen (3.98 ± 0.10mg/L),Biochemical Oxygen Demand (2.53 ± 0.08mg/L), Phosphate-phosphorus (0.19 ± 0.02mg/L),Chloride (5.09 ± 0.15mg/L),Sulphur-sulphate (0.21± 0.01) and Calcium (2.97±0.06mg/L) respectively were  all varied with months and seasons. Analysis of variance indicated significant difference between seasons (P < 0.05).Out of the total number of fish species (8273) identified; the result indicated Fish fauna percentage composition were Coptodon zillii: 1980 (23.9%), Clarias gariepinus: 1560 (18.9%), Oreochromis niloticus: 1020 (12.3%), Lates niloticus: 860 (10.4%), Bagrus. Bayad: 632 (7.6 %), Mormyrus senegalensis: 973 (11.8%), Labeo senegalensis: 595 (7.2%) and Synodontis clarias: 650 (7.9%). Results also indicates most of fish species were positively correlated with the water quality parameters in all the sites studied. Hence, there were fish abundance and a sustainable livelihood amongst the fishermen. However, a careful management strategy and routine monitoring from both government and non-governmental organizations are critical for the improvement and sustenance of the fisheries resources of the reservoir

Analysis of Rural Farming Households’ Access to Credit in Kwara State Nigeria

Agricultural credit has been identified as an important component in the development of the agricultural sector in Nigeria. Though, agricultural credit has the potentials of improved capital formation, increased resource productivity and diversified agriculture among the rural farming households, inadequate access to agricultural credit is among major  factors responsible for the decline in the contribution of agriculture to Nigerian economy. This study therefore examined various sources of credit available to the famers in Kwara state, Nigeria. It also analyzed the determinants of access to agricultural credit among the farming households. A two-stage random sampling technique was used to select a sample of 90 farming households as respondents. The respondents were interviewed with the aid of well structured questionnaire. The data obtained were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Ordinary Least Square regression analysis. The study showed that co-operative societies, personal savings and rotary loan scheme ‘esusu’ were the regularly accessible sources of credit. The study also showed that interest rate, type of agricultural enterprise and size of farm had significant relationship with the farmers’ access to credit. Lack of collateral security was also identified as a major problem faced by farmers in accessing loans. It is therefore recommended that the formation of co-operative societies should be encouraged among farmers. Also, government should adopt policies that would encourage the formal credit institutions to grant soft loan for agricultural production.KEYWORDS: Rural Households, Cooperative, Constraints, Credit, Kwara Stat

Comparative Analysis of Monetary Policy Shocks and Exchange Rate Fluctuations in Nigeria and South Africa

The study examined a comparative analysis of monetary policy shocks and exchange rate fluctuations based on evidence from the two largest economies in Africa (Nigeria and South Africa) – from 1985 to 2015. Data were derived from various sources which include the National Bureau of Statistics, the Central Banks reports and the World Bank database. Vector Autoregressive (VAR) Analysis was used as the estimation technique. The results indicated that the foreign interest rate in South Africa had higher variations in the short-run. While in the long-run, foreign interest rate has higher percentage variations to exchange rate. In Nigeria the world oil price has the higher influence on exchange rate both in the short-run and longrun periods. Based on these results, the study then recommended that the monetary authorities and policymakers in both countries encourage external currency inflows into the economy. &nbsp

Cotton Seed Bio-Based Metal Working Fluid for Sustainable Machining Operation

This work investigated the viability of cottonseed oil as bio-based oil as a contribution to meeting the challenges of developing green industrial materials that are environmentally friendly and sustainable alternatives for use as metal cutting fluid, as many of the conventional metal working fluids were established to be harmful and hazardous both to the environment and health of the operator. The tests revealed that the metal working fluid properties of cottonseed oil were: pH-value, 4.37; viscosity, 33.85 mm2/s at 40 ºC, and 7.89 mm2/s at 100 ºC; density, 0.911 g/cm3; and a flash point of 263 ºC. This result shows that some of these properties compare favourably with those of the conventional mineral oil. It was concluded that at the lower temperature of 40°C the oil is still viscous enough and therefore is suitable for lower temperature operation such as low speed cutting, smaller depth of cut etc., while at a higher temperature of 100°C, the oil becomes less viscous and is thus not viable for higher temperature machining operations such as high-speed cutting operation and larger depths of cut; the density shows that cottonseed oil has high lubricity; the oil is acidic in nature and therefore would require addition of anticorrosive agents to function as a metal working fluid; and that the flash point of the oil is higher than that of the conventional mineral metal working fluid and so can be adjudged to be a very good candidate for the production of bio-based metal working fluid. The analysis indicated that the cottonseed oil, if significantly improved with the use of additives and chemically modified seeds, can be one of the potential candidates to substitute the conventional mineral oil in machining industry

Synthesis, Characterization and Antimicrobial Activity of Cu (II), Co (II) and Ni (II) Histidine Complexes

Ternary complexes of histidine amino acid (Schiff base) were synthesized, characterized and tested against multi-drug resistant pathogens. The metal ion centers included Cu (II), Ni (II) and Co (II). These complexes were characterized using physico-chemical and spectroscopic analytical methods. All the complexes are found to be considerably soluble in both polar and non-polar solvents including methanol, ethanol, butanol, acetone, ethyl acetate, and benzene and di ethyl-ether. Electronic Absorption Studies using FT-IR spectrophotometer revealed ν (O-H), ν (C=O), ν (C=N), ν (M -N) and ν (M-O) occurred between 3410 - 3417, 1751 - 1753, 1519 – 1521, 671 – 678, 439 – 470 cm-1 respectively in complexes and ligand. UV-Visible was further used to elucidate the complexes resulting in transitions characteristics of the ligand and complexes. The Schiff base showed no antimicrobial activity at various therapeutic concentrations. However, the metal complexes exhibited broad spectrum antibiotic activities against the multi-drug resistant pathogens at minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC ≤ 200 µg/ml). The metal complexes showed strong activity against the isolates at medium and high concentrations, the bacteria strains included E.coli, P. aeruginosa, S. typhi and S. aureus and the fungi strains of Candida albicans, Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger. The bioactivity recorded against these multi drug resistant pathogens indicates the potentials of these complexes for further therapeutic studies. Keywords: Histidine complex, synthesis, characterisation, antimicrobial activity, pathogens

TREATMENTS OF BIODIESEL WASHING WATER

The main objective of this study was to produce biodiesel from palm kernel oil and to purify the biodiesel washing water generated through adsorption, acidification, coagulation and filtration treatment processes. Removal efficiencies of these treatment processes were investigated by analysing biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS) and elements present in the biodiesel washing water (before and after treatments). The results of the trans-esterification process showed that the highest biodiesel yield of 87.6% was obtained at a reaction time of 65 minutes and methanol to oil mole ratio of 6:1.The overall removal efficiencies obtained using the stated water treatment processes were 65% (BOD), 38% (COD), 75% (TDS) and 94%(conductivity).The treated washing water met the waste water discharge standards of FEPA. Hence, adsorption, acidification, coagulation and filtration, were effective in treating biodiesel washing water

Obesity and Insulin Resistance Components of Metabolic Syndrome Induced by High-fructose Diet in Wistar Rats could be attenuated by Spices-Supplemented Diets

Constant consumption of fructose-sweetened diets and beverages has led to increasing incidences of metabolic disorders such as metabolic syndrome (MS). This research was designed to evaluate the potentials of supplementing diets with some locally available spices in ameliorating obesity and insulin resistance in induced metabolic syndrome. Thirty out of thirty-five rats weighing 128.08±5.29g were induced with MS, divided into six groups and treated with diets supplemented with powders of garlic, ginger, turmeric, black pepper and equal mixture of the spices while the other 5 rats were maintained on normal diet throughout the experiment. The weight and blood glucose were recorded weekly, while serum insulin level was determined on the 56th day of the treatment after which HOMA-IR was computed. The group of MS-induced rats fed normal diet had significantly (p<0.05) higher weekly average weight gain of 11.43g±0.63g compared with other groups. Our data show that blood glucose level (mmol/L) ranged from 4.61±0.22 - 5.99±0.17; Insulin (μU/mL) 8.00±0.41 - 22.00±0.58 and HOMA-IR 1.65±0.14 - 5.47±0.07. The treated groups had significantly (p<0.05) higher percentage decrease in blood glucose and HOMA-IR when compared with the control but all the MS-induced rats maintained on supplemented diets had significantly (p<0.05) lower blood glucose and HOMA-IR when compared with MS-induced rats maintained on normal diet. From our finding, obesity and insulin resistance due to consumption of MS-causing diets could be ameliorated by consumption of diets fortified with any of the four spices, but fortification with a blend of the spices could give a better result