Preliminary economic assessment of water resources of the Pangani River Basin, Tanzania

River basin managementWater useWater allocationEconomic evaluationDomestic waterIrrigation waterLivestockWater power

Preliminary economic assessment of water resources of the Pangani River Basin, Tanzania: economic values and incentives

River basinsEconomic analysisDomestic waterIrrigated farmingLivestockPolicyWater supplyFinancing

Evaluating Learner-Centeredness Course Pedagogy in Project Management Syllabi Using a Content Analysis Approach

Project Management (PM) capability continues to be a highly desired skill set in many for-profit and not-for-profit organizations across a range of industries. However, the PM field faces a talent gap, and one approach that may increase the interest in PM education is having a learner-centered pedagogy. A learner-centered pedagogy seeks to create a community of learners through the implementation of several initiatives namely, sharing power between the teachers and the students, providing multiple assessments and evaluation avenues, specifying clear feedback mechanisms, and articulating a rationale for the course by tying the course content to the learning outcomes. The goal of this research is to conduct a descriptive content analysis to examine the nature and content of the PM syllabi to gain a better understanding of how they reflect and communicate the attributes of a learner-centered pedagogy and thus help in improving the learning, teaching, and delivery of the PM curriculum. This study makes use of a sample of 76 PM syllabi gathered in 2018 from instructors affiliated with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) schools in the United States. The results have implications for the academy and the PM practice and call for improvements in the design and content of PM syllabi by including language and activities that foster the creation of a community of learners, mechanisms for offering periodic feedback, and consistent teacher-student interactions. Furthermore, it is suggested that the assessments and evaluations should be tied to the learning outcomes and incorporate “real world” experiential projects aligned with the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) areas and process groups

Response of cowpea genotypes to Alectra vogelii parasitism in Kenya

Cowpea is popular in Eastern Kenya where it is attractive to farmers because of its high economic value and the belief that it does not require many external inputs. Farmers are however discouraged to grow the crop in this region due to massive attack by a parasitic weed Alectra vogelii (Benth). Yield losses due to A. vogelii have being estimated to range from 50 to 100% in Mbeere, Kitui and Makueni districts. No single method however is available to farmers in these regions in control of the parasitic weed. Combining several control methods, as in the management of Striga spp in Western Kenya should be a sustainable option. Field studies were conducted in 2010 and 2011 at Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), Kiboko farm to determine the response of 143 cowpea genotypes to Alectra infestation. The aim for the study was to identify resistant genotypes that could be used in breeding programme. Significant differences were observed amongst cowpea genotypes in days to first Alectra emergence, number of Alectra shoots emerged at 6, 8, 10 and 12 week after planting and grain yield. Cowpea genotypes Kir/Nya-005 and Mbe/Mach-022 showed complete resistance to  Alectra while Ken-Kunde, M66 and K80 (all commercial varieties) supported the highest number of Alectra shoots. Grain yield loss in the three susceptible varieties was 80, 79 and 50% respectively. On the other hand, Sia/Cia-004, Mbe/Mach-014 and Kib-006 had high grain yields despite the high number of Alectra shoots present. There was a strong correlation (r = -0.57) between grain yield and number of Alectra shoots emerged at 12 weeks after planting. A significant negative (r = -0.37) correlation was also obtained between pod number per plant and number of emerged Alectra shoots at 12 weeks after planting. This negative correlation proves the high accumulation dry matter in the cowpea roots at the expense of the pods thus decreasing grain yield. This information showed that there is sufficient genetic variability in the cowpea genotypes studied, which can be exploited in breeding improved cowpea varieties for resistance to A. vogelii in Kenya. A great progress towards developing improved cowpea variety that meets farmer’s preferences with durable resistance to A. vogelii can be achieved if the genes from the resistant and tolerant local cowpea cultivars identified in this study could be introgressed into the adapted susceptible improved varieties. This will increase the potential impact of adoption of resistant cowpea varieties in the zones.Key words: Cowpea, Alectra vogelii, Resistance/tolerance and grain yield

Changes in fungal population and aflatoxin levels and assessment of major aflatoxin types in stored peanuts (Arachis hypogaea Linnaeus)

Peanut kernels of Homabay Local, Valencia Red, ICGV-SM 12991 and ICGV-SM 99568 cultivars were storedfor six months in jute, polypropylene and polyethylene bags to assess the effect of storage bags, temperature andR.H. on fungal population and aflatoxin contamination. Moisture content (M.C.), fungal population and aflatoxinlevels were determined before storage and after every 30 days during storage. Isolates of Aspergillus flavus andA. parasiticus were assayed for production of aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2. The correlation between MC,population of A. flavus and A. parasiticus and aflatoxin levels in peanuts was also determined. Six fungalpathogens were commonly isolated from the peanut samples and occurred as follows in decreasing order:Penicillium spp. (106.6 CFU/g), A. flavus L-strain (4.8 CFU/g), A. flavus S-strain (2.9 CFU/g), A. niger (2.6CFU/g), A. parasiticus (1.7 CFU/g) and A. tamarii (0.2 CFU/g). The overall population of A. flavus L-strain was66% higher than that of A. flavus S-strain. Ninety one percent of A. flavus and A. parasiticus isolates produced atleast one of the four aflatoxin types assayed, with 36% producing aflatoxin B1. Total aflatoxin levels rangedfrom 0 - 47.8 μg/kg with samples stored in polyethylene and jute bags being the most and least contaminated,respectively. Eighty nine percent and 97% of the peanut samples met the EU (≤ 4 μg/kg) and Kenyan (≤ 10μg/kg) regulatory standards for total aflatoxin, respectively. Peanuts should be adequately dried to safe moisturelevel and immediately packaged in a container - preferably jute bags - which will not promote critical increasesin fungal population and aflatoxin contamination

Soil Nitrous Oxide (N\u3csub\u3e2\u3c/sub\u3eO) Emission from Integrated Soil Fertility Management in Maize (\u3ci\u3eZea mays\u3c/i\u3e L.) Cropping Systems

Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) has been recommended to address challenges of low soil fertility by incorporating locally available organic resources (ORs) together with inorganic nitrogen (N) fertilizers. Despite ISFM success in field trials, there is limited information on ORs contribution to atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations through N2O emission. A short-term field study was conducted at two sites with different soil types; silt loam (Aludeka) and silty-clay soil (Sidada) to assess the influence of selected ORs on soil N2O emissions. The ORs treatments included; Calliandra carothyrsus (CL), farmyard manure (FYM) and maize stover (MS) with (+N) and without (-N) inorganic N fertilizer. The study also evaluated the relationship between N2O emissions and soil organic carbon, mineral N, total nitrogen, soil temperature, moisture content, soil nitrate (NO3-) and ammonium (NH4+). Relative to the control (0.19±0.1 Kg N2O-N ha-1), cumulative N2O emissions were significantly (P= 0.01) higher by 6, 9 and 13 fold under MS +N (1.05±0.8 Kg N2O-N ha-1), FYM +N (1.74±0.8 Kg N2O-N ha-1) and CL +N (2.54±1.2 Kg N2O-N ha-1), respectively at the Aludeka site. At Sidada, cumulative N2O emissions were similar across all the treatments (P = 0.149). Approximately 240% and 411% of increase in cumulative N2O emissions across treatments at Sidada and Aludeka, respectively, was related to inorganic N fertilizer application. At Aludeka, cumulative N2O emissions exhibited significant positive relationship with soil NO3-(r = 0.894, P = 0.03) and NH4+ (r = 0.817, P = 0.013), and negatively correlated with soil C: N ratio (r = -0.710, P = 0.049). While at Sidada soil properties did not exhibit significant relationship with cumulative N2O emissions. The study suggests that influence of OR on N2O emissions in maize based-cropping system vary depending on the type of soil and increases when OR are applied in combination with inorganic N fertilizers

Herbal Medicines in Kenya: A Review of the Toxicity and Quality Control Issues

In sub-Saharan Africa, it is estimated that 80% of the population depends on indigenous medicines for primary health-care. These herbs often contain highly active pharmacological compounds whose pharmacotherapeutic and toxicity profiles have not been well characterized. Toxicity may be related to several intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Most of the available reports related to the toxic effects of herbal medicines cite hepatoxicity as the most frequently experienced toxicity. However, noxious effects involving kidneys, the nervous system, skin, blood, the cardiovascular system, mutagenicity and carcinogenicity have also been published. This article presents a systematic review on safety and toxicity of herbal medicines used in Kenya. Keywords: Herbal medicine, herbal preparations, toxicity, Kenya, regulations, complementary and alternative medicin

The influence of host and pathogen genotypes on symptom severity in banana streak disease

Banana is the fourth most important food crop worldwide. However, its production has been threatened by banana streak disease, caused by banana streak virus (BSV). Despite this situation, little is known about the inter-relationships between symptom severity and cultivar/virus genotypes. Symptom severity assessment for sixty five symptomatic samples was carefully done. The rolling circle amplification technique was used to identify the virus species (isolate) infecting each sample. The Mysore virus isolates (BSMysV) and the banana cultivars containing the balbisiana (B) component were associated with the most severe banana streak disease symptoms.Key words: Banana streak disease, symptom severity, banana streak virus (BSV) isolate, rolling circle amplification

Prevalence and Types of Coinfections in Sleeping Sickness Patients in Kenya (2000/2009)

The occurrence of coinfections in human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) patients was investigated using a retrospective data of hospital records at the National Sleeping Sickness Referral Hospital in Alupe, Kenya. A total of 31 patients, 19 males and 12 females, were diagnosed with HAT between the years 2000 and 2009. The observed co-infections included malaria (100%), helminthosis (64.5%), typhoid (22.5%), urinary tract infections (16.1%), HIV (12.9%), and tuberculosis (3.2%). The species of helminthes observed included Ancylostoma duodenale (38.7%), Ascaris lumbricoides (45.7%), Strongyloides stercoralis (9.7%), and Taenia spp. (3.2%). The patients were also infected with Entamoeba spp. (32.3%) and Trichomonas hominis (22.6%) protozoan parasites. The main clinical signs observed at the point of admission included headache (74.2%), fever (48.4%), sleep disorders (45.2%), and general body pain (41.9%). The HAT patients were treated with suramin (early stage, 9/31) and melarsoprol (late stage, 22/31). In conclusion, the study has shown that HAT patients have multiple co-infections which may influence the disease pathogenesis and complicate management of HAT