Is Value Addition in Honey a Panacea for Poverty Reduction in the ASAL in Africa? Empirical Evidence from Baringo District, Kenya

Using survey data from 110 randomly selected honey producers from two divisions in Baringo this paper analyzes the constraints and drivers of value addition in honey, an economic activity with a potential to improve household livelihoods but whose development has remained rudimentary. Baringo District undergoes frequent and prolonged drought that impacts on household livelihood assets. The livelihoods have traditionally been agro-based but due to variations in climatic conditions, crop production has been very low. Livestock production has also been adversely affected by these trends, leaving honey production as a viable alternative for smallholder farmers since it is less dependent on, or affected by climatic variations and is not resource intensive. This study uses Heckman two stage and the logistic regression models to determine the extent of value addition contingent on the decision of a honey producer to participate in value addition activity, and to assess the link between honey value addition and household poverty status, respectively. The results show that the decision to add value is positively and significantly influenced by the amount of honey harvested, group membership and amount of hours spent on off-farm activities, while it is negatively influenced the age of the farmers and the education level of the household head. Value addition contributes to the reduction of poverty through the improvement of household incomes. This paper concludes measures need to be put in place that would encourage and facilitate the practice of value addition if the welfare of the poor rural population is to be improved.value addition, poverty reduction, drought, ASAL, Africa, Livestock Production/Industries,

Economics of Insecticide use and Potential for Bt Maize Varieties in the Control of Stalkborer in Kenya.

Maize is the staple food crop and source of income for majority of the Kenyan population and many sub-Saharan African countries. The increasing Kenyan population demands an increase in maize production if intermittent food deficits have to be averted. Since the introduction of improved maize varieties in mid-1960, the start of Green Revolution period, maize yields increased drastically up to 1970s and started declining from 1980s to-date. The key contributory factors are nutrient mining, sub-optimal input use and insect pest damage. Of the insect pests, stalk borer is of economic importance. Currently, KARI and CIMMYT are developing maize varieties that are tolerant to stalk borer damage. In order to evaluate the potential impact of these interventions economics of stalk borer control at farm level was evaluated. Surveys complemented with on-farm trials were executed in six major maize growing zones of Kenya. Farmers were randomly selected and a sample-frame established after which a total of 1854 households were randomly selected using random sampling technique. Each household was interviewed using structured questionnaire. Data on method of stalk borer control and the type insecticides used was collected. Partial budget and economic surplus models were used. The results indicated that very few farmers control stalk borer in maize despite significant stalk borer losses of about 15%. Therefore if Bt maize is introduced in Kenya it is likely to reduce these losses. This will benefit many hungry and poor Kenyans with improved household food supply and on farm incomes, in line with Government policy of food security and poverty eradication.Crop Production/Industries,

Genetic characterization of influenza A(H3N2) viruses circulating in coastal Kenya, 2009-2017

Background Influenza viruses evolve rapidly and undergo immune driven selection, especially in the hemagglutinin (HA) protein. We report amino acid changes affecting antigenic epitopes and receptor‐binding sites of A(H3N2) viruses circulating in Kilifi, Kenya, from 2009 to 2017. Methods Next‐generation sequencing (NGS) was used to generate A(H3N2) virus genomic data from influenza‐positive specimens collected from hospital admissions and health facility outpatients presenting with acute respiratory illness to health facilities within the Kilifi Health and Demographic Surveillance System. Full‐length HA sequences were utilized to characterize A(H3N2) virus genetic and antigenic changes. Results From 186 (90 inpatient and 96 outpatient) influenza A virus‐positive specimens processed, 101 A(H3N2) virus whole genomes were obtained. Among viruses identified in inpatient specimens from 2009 to 2015, divergence of circulating A(H3N2) viruses from the vaccine strains A/Perth/16/2009, A/Texas/50/2012, and A/Switzerland/9715293/2013 formed 6 genetic clades (A/Victoria/208/2009‐like, 3B, 3C, 3C.2a, 4, and 7). Among viruses identified in outpatient specimens from 2015 to 2017, divergence of circulating A(H3N2) viruses from vaccine strain A/Hong Kong/4801/2014 formed clade 3C.2a, subclades 3C.2a2 and 3C.2a3, and subgroup 3C.2a1b. Several amino acid substitutions were associated with the continued genetic evolution of A(H3N2) strains in circulation. Conclusions Our results suggest continuing evolution of currently circulating A(H3N2) viruses in Kilifi, coastal Kenya and suggest the need for continuous genetic and antigenic viral surveillance of circulating seasonal influenza viruses with broad geographic representation to facilitate prompt and efficient selection of influenza strains for inclusion in future influenza vaccines

Perceived economic and behavioural effects of the mentally ill on their relatives in Kenya: a case study of the Mathari Hospital

Objective: There is no documented evidence in Kenya on relatives’ perceptions of economic and behavioural effects of the mentallyill patients and their coping mechanisms. To document what relatives of mentally ill patients perceive to be the economic effects of the patients on the family and how they are affected by and cope with the disturbed behaviours of the patients. Method: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted at the Mathari Psychiatric Hospital. Informed consent was obtained from both the relatives and the patients admitted at the hospital. Data on socio-demographic and economic profiles were obtained from thepatients and their relatives. The relatives were interviewed using a structured questionnaire to determine what they perceived to be the economic effects of the mental illness, how the various disturbed behaviours of the mentally ill affected them, and how they coped. The data were analysed using SPSS version 11.5 and results are presented in narratives and tables. Results: One hundred and seventy-five relatives and 107 patients were recruited and interviewed. The patients were younger and better educated but economically less well off than their relatives. The relatives perceived that the mentally ill patients caused financial constraints and that various disturbed behaviours, particularly, verbal and physical aggression and refusal of the patient to take medicine or go to hospital, affected the family in different ways. Different coping mechanisms were used, depending on whether or not the behaviours were intrusive. Conclusion: Mentally ill patients adversely affect their families in diverse ways. There is need for appropriate policy to address the needs of families with mentally ill patients at the family and community levels. However, these must be evidence-based and this calls for further research.Key words: Mental illness; Caregivers; Keny

Factors determining the use of botanical insect pest control methods by small-holder farmers in the Lake Victoria basin, Kenya

A farm survey was conducted in three representative administrative districts of the Lake Victoria Basin (LVB), Kenya to document farmers’ indigenous knowledge and the factors that influence the use of botanicals instead of synthetic insecticides in insect pest management. A total of 65 farm households were randomly sampled using stratified sampling procedure. The maximum likelihood log model was used to determine factors that influence use of botanical and synthetic insect pest control methods (PCM). Results revealed that female gender as household head (HH) and age significantly (P < .001) increased the likelihood of a household using botanical PCM in the field by 0.15 and 0.021, respectively. In storage, female gender and severity of pest infestation significantly (P < .001) increased the probability of a household using botanical insecticide by 0.814 and 0.738, respectively. On the contrary, education of HH (0.342) and ownership of title to land (0.512) significantly (P < .001) reduced the likelihood of using botanical PCM in the field, while traditional rank (0.910) and cash rank (0.744) of the crops reduced the likelihood of using botanical insecticides in the store. With respect to synthetic pesticides, gender (3.407), area cultivated (0.295) and expected yield (5.315) significantly (P < .001) reduced likelihood of their use in the field, while food rank (3.967) reduced the probability of use in storage. In storage, female gender, crop type, food and traditional rank of crops were also the most important factors determining the use of botanical control methods. In conclusion, the study established that female gender, literacy levels, wealth endowments in form of land and old age are key determinants of botanical insecticides use in small-holder farming systems in the LVB, Kenya. It is recommended that the Government of Kenya enacts policies that empower youth and female gender economically in subsistence farming with the aim of improving their educational levels and farming skills to modernize agriculture among the rural communities.Key words: Botanical, Synthetic pesticide, Insects, Pest control method, Determinants, Small-holder farmers

Schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminth infections in schoolchildren in north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo

BACKGROUND: There is a paucity of epidemiological data pertaining to schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was carried out in the north-eastern part of DRC enrolling 400 schoolchildren aged 9-14 years. Stool and urine samples were subjected to standard diagnostic methods and examined under a microscope for helminth eggs. RESULTS: Four out of five children were infected with at least one helminth species. Schistosoma mansoni was the predominant species (57.8%). Urine examinations were all negative for S. haematobium. CONCLUSIONS: S. mansoni and STH infections are highly endemic in the surveyed part of the DRC, calling for interventions in school-aged children

Predictors of post-partum family planning uptake in Webuye Hospital, western Kenya

Background: A short inter-pregnancy interval increases the risk for maternal and neonatal deaths in addition to other pregnancy complications including: preterm delivery, low birth weight, anaemia and premature rupture of membranes. However, only one half of Kenyan women, who have no desire to conceive immediately after birth, are using contraception one year after delivery.   Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the predictors of uptake of post-partum family planning (PPFP).   Setting: The study was conducted among post-partum women accompanying their children for their first measles vaccination at Webuye County Hospital (WCH), in western Kenya.   Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving 259 randomly sampled post-partum women, accompanying their children for their first measles vaccination. A structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Logistic regression was used to identify correlates of PPFP uptake.   Results: The uptake of PPFP among women at 9 months post-partum at WCH was found to be 78.4% ± 5.0%. The odds of PPFP uptake among women living with their sexual partners was 88.2% less than among those not living with their partners with the true population effect between 97% and 51% (OR = 0.118; 95% CI: 0.028–0.494; p = 0.003).   Conclusions: Not living with her sexual partner in the same house is the key predictor of a woman’s PPFP uptake in WCH. This study recommends that any programme aimed at improving post-partum contraceptive use in WCH should target women who live with their partners in the same house

School farming for school feeding: experiences from Nakuru, Kenya

School feeding is an important development tool and is related to at least three Millennium Development Goals. School farming has been largely overlooked in the urban agriculture literature but with many parents nowadays unable to afford school lunches for their children, it can play a vital role in reducing the costs involved in providing nutritional meals for pupils. This paper examines school farming in an urban setting, namely Nakuru town, Kenya and looks at the current practice, the extent to which school farming contributes to school feeding programs, and the challenges it faces and how these can be overcome. Based on a survey done in almost all primary and secondary schools in Nakuru, it shows that school farming and school feeding are now common practice in the town and that in many cases school farming does indeed contribute to school feeding programs. However, much more is possible and the paper indicates how various constraints in terms of land, water, support and leadership might be overcome