Influence of Career Information on Choice of Degree Programme among Regular and Self-Sponsored Students in Public Universities, Kenya

Choosing a degree programme to study in the university is a critical career task that is a major turning point in a student's life which not only is a start to workplace readiness, but also establishes the student in a career path that opens as well as closes life opportunities. Failure to achieve this task may cause dissatisfaction within the individual and difficulty in handling later career tasks. This career task is influenced by various factors. This study aimed at determining the influence of career information on choice of degree programme among students in public universities in Kenya. The study used the ex post facto design that adopted the causal comparative research technique and data was collected from 500 randomly selected students using questionnaires. Percentages, means and standard deviations were used to describe the quantitative data and independent samples t-test was used to analyze the data and to test hypotheses. The findings of the study revealed that career information had a high influence on the choice of degree programme of students in public universities. Further analysis of the results indicated that no statistically significant differences existed between the mean scores of influences of career information between regular and self-sponsored students. The study concluded that provision of career information was a significant factor in influencing the choice of degree programme of all the students in public universities. The study recommended that the Ministry of Education (MoE) ensures that in all secondary schools in Kenya, the career guidance department is functional with adequate career information resources and activities, to facilitate career development among students. The study also recommended the training and equipping of career guidance counsellors in schools to enhance their competence in assisting the students in making career decisions. Keywords: Degree programme, career information, career task, public university, regular and self-sponsored students

Hepatitis A Antibody Seroprevalence in a Selected Kenyan Pediatric Population

The incidence of infection by Hepatitis A virus shows regional variation being highest in developing countries. Determination of age specific Hepatitis A virus (HAV) seroprevalence and the associated risk factors would help better plan for national preventive strategies including vaccination. We carried out a cross-sectional study on 300 children from Nairobi city, Kenya during the years 2003-2004. The age range of the children was 2 - 14 years and were from low and high socioeconomic status (SES) families. The indicators of SES included employment status, residence, number of children per patient’s household, parents’ level of education and source of drinking water. SES was encoded and analysed using Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SSPS) version 16.0. Seroprevalence increased significantly with advancing age. Seropositivity of HAV antibodies was significantly higher among children of low SES, 77.6% by the age of 14 years compared to children of high SES, 38.9% by the same age. Crowded household and parental education were significantly associated with high seropositivity and seronegativity respectively. There is significant rate of seronegativity amongst the studied population especially those from richer backgrounds making them more susceptible to severe infection in future with concomitant complications. We propose that revision of national vaccination program should be considered to include Hepatitis A vaccination

Securing legal domestic lumber supply through multi-stakeholder dialogue in Ghana

Nearing the end of the first phase of the EU-funded “chainsaw milling project” and preparing for the second phase the project staff working in ten different forest districts all over Ghana met in Kumasi in July 2011 to take stock of the achievements so far. In addition to the usual plans and reports they were asked to write down and share with colleagues the highlights of their work in their respective districts. This exercise resulted in an impressive collection of stories and news from the forest which are presented in this booklet

Cytoadherence in paediatric malaria: ABO blood group, CD36, and ICAM1 expression and severe Plasmodium falciparum infection

As a leading cause of childhood mortality worldwide, selection pressure by Plasmodium falciparum continues to shape the human genome. Severe disturbances within the microcirculation result from the adhesion of infected erythrocytes to host receptors on monocytes, platelets, and endothelium. In this prospective study, we compared expression of all major host cytoadhesion receptors among Ugandan children presenting with uncomplicated malaria (n = 1078) versus children with severe malaria (n = 855), including cerebral malaria (n = 174), severe anaemia (n = 522), and lactic acidosis (n = 154). We report a significant survival advantage attributed to blood group O and increased monocyte expression of CD36 and ICAM1 (CD54). The high case fatality rate syndromes of cerebral malaria and lactic acidosis were associated with high platelet CD36 expression and thrombocytopenia, and severe malaria anaemia was characterized by low ICAM1 expression. In a logistic regression model of disease severity, odds ratios for the mitigating effects of blood group O, CD36, and ICAM1 phenotypes were greater than that of sickle haemoglobin. Host genetic adaptations to Plasmodium falciparum suggest new potential malaria treatment strategies