Effect on weight gain of routinely giving albendazole to preschool children during child health days in Uganda: cluster randomised controlled trial

Objective: To estimate the effectiveness of delivering an anthelmintic through a community child health programme on the weight gain of preschool children in Uganda. Design: Cluster randomised controlled trial. Setting: Eastern Uganda. Participants: 48 parishes participating in a new programme for child health: 24 offered children an additional service of anthelmintic treatment. The outcome is based on measurements from 27 995 children. Intervention: Treatment of children aged between 1 and 7 years with 400 mg albendazole added to standard services offered during child health days over a three year period. Main outcome measure Weight gain. Results: The provision of periodic anthelmintic treatment as a part of child health services in Uganda resulted in an increase in weight gain of about 10% (166 g per child per year, 95% confidence interval 16 to 316) above expected weight gain when treatments were given twice a year, and an increase of 5% when the treatment was given annually. Conclusion: Deworming of preschool children in Uganda as part of regularly scheduled health services seems practical and associated with increased weight gain

Training Report: Training of trainers and farmers’ training on validated sweetpotato silage making and use in Masaka and Kamuli districts.

European UnionInternational Fund for Agricultural Developmen

Crop residue allocation to livestock feed, soil improvement and other uses along a productivity gradient in Eastern Africa

Crop residues are a key livelihood resource in smallholder mixed crop-livestock systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. With expansion of arable land and resultant decline in grazing resources, crop residues are becoming an increasingly important component of livestock feeds. This demand for livestock feeds has implications for the long-term sustainability of such systems since failure to return biomass to soils has implications for soil quality and the capacity of soils to support long-term productivity. Biomass allocation patterns are likely to vary with overall level of productivity and hence availability. In this study we used a household survey to quantify crop residue allocation patterns across a gradient of productivity in Eastern Africa focusing on two sites in Ethiopia and one in Kenya. We assessed the underlying determinants of crop residue allocation patterns with a view to understanding how productivity increases through intensification will influence biomass allocation in Eastern Africa and how livelihood and natural resource management objectives could be optimized. Results showed that farmers strongly favour allocation of residues to livestock feeding but that allocation to soil increases along the productivity gradient. This reduced feeding to livestock and increased allocation to soil fertility is associated with smaller farm sizes leading to reduced animal traction needs for tillage, increased overall livestock productivity, increased use of inputs and a reduced reliance on farm-based activities in overall livelihood strategies. The implications of these trends are that productivity increases in smallholder systems are likely to reduce pressure on biomass in the long term and that measures that enhance the prospects for farmers to intensify their production systems are likely to increase soil health and sustainability objectives in general. A key conclusion of the work is that intensification of livestock production could reduce crop residue allocation to soils with long term implications for soil productivity

Entebbe Mother and Baby Study - Data at one year

Dataset and supporting documentation collected as part of the Entebbe Mother and Baby Study (EMaBS), a clinical trial that investigated potential benefits of treating worm infections during pregnancy and early childhood. The dataset contains variables collected from mothers (at registration) and infants (when the child was one-year of age), including maternal age, education, parity and infection status (malaria, S. mansoni, hookworm, filariasis), and infant sex and immune responses (to HiB, diphtheria, Hepatitis B, pertussis, FHA, pertactin)

Mothers of Soldiers in Wartime: A National News Narrative

National news media represent mothers of US combat soldiers in the Iraq War as archetypal good mothers, that is, mothers who continue their maternal work even after their children are deployed. However, not all mothers are depicted as the archetypal patriotic mother, i.e., a good mother who is also stoic and silent about the war and her child\u27s role in it. Mothers of soldiers are portrayed as good mothers who sometimes also voice their attitudes about the war effort. The maternal attitudes ranged from complete support for the war to opposition to the war but support for the soldiers. The findings suggest a picture of wartime motherhood that is more nuanced than the historical image of the patriotic mother suggests

Impact of participatory training on biosecurity protocols on the knowledge, attitudes and practices of smallholder pig farmers in Uganda

Irish Ai