EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF COASTLINE ON PROPERTY VALUES IN VICTORIA ISLAND

The impacts of coastal region cannot be over emphasized, as this tends to benefit and impact residents, property owners, tourists, businesses, local authority and state governments. Developers, private investors, and individuals may be affected as controls impact growth in the area. Therefore this study examined the effects of coastline on property values in Victoria Island. Data was collected using questionnaire administered on Estate Surveyors and Valuers managing properties in Victoria Island. A total of 55 questionnaire was retrieved from the 90 administered giving a return of 61.11%. The study revealed that rental values of residential properties are on the increase from N1.5million in 2011 to N4.5million in 2015, duplexes increased form N2.5million in 2011 to N5.5million in 2015. Also, the rental value of detached buildings jumped from N2.5miion in 2011 to N6.2million in 2015 while that of bungalows moved from N1.5million in 2011 to N5.8million in 2015. Equally, the rental values of office (commercial) properties are on annual increase. The study indentified sea level rise (96.4%), ocean currents (87.3%) and population density (61.8%) as the main factors affecting property values in the coastline region of Victoria Island. The main challenges faced along the coastline in the study area are water logging (96.4%), land erosion (90.9%), spatial expansion (87.3%) and flooding (65.5%). Finally, the study further revealed that, in spite of the challenges, there are still some benefits derivable along the coastline of Victoria Island and these benefits include economic benefits (92.7%), socio-cultural (96.4%) and health benefits (60.0%). The study concluded that despite all the challenges, property values in coastline region of Victoria Island are always on the increas

Assessing the Methods of Valuing Contaminated Land in Rivers State, Nigeria

The practice of environmental valuation for compensation has raised serious concerns among estate surveyors and valuers (ESVs) practicing in Nigeria due to the challenges posed by the enabling laws and other factors. This study examined the methods adopted by ESVs in carrying out the valuation of land contaminated by oil spill in Rivers State. The study focused on ESVs practicing with registered firms in Rivers State. Primary data was obtained by administration of questionnaires on 120 ESVs out of which 80 questionnaires were retrieved and used for the analysis. Also, semi-structured interviews were conducted with estate surveyors and valuers identified to be experienced in the subject of study in order to obtain data on their practice and experience. The primary data was analysed using, percentages, relative importance index (RII) and principal component analysis as well as coding and narrating for the interviews. The findings indicated that the methods adopted for valuation are the income capitalization, predetermined compensation rate, sales comparison, market prices and depreciated replacement cost approach. The study therefore recommends that professional bodies should continuously train and develop ESVs in this aspect of valuation

Green Economy: The Role of Estate Surveyors and Valuer

The continuous existence of man is dependent on the free goods and services (e.g. water, air purification, fisheries, timber production and nutrient cycling) provided by his natural environment. Due to the public nature of these goods and services, they are not traded in the open markets hence, they are regarded as not having market prices. As a result, the current economic system fails to capture their losses and this may continue for long if care is not taken. Unless economic decisions (and the associated implications of development options) are made based on valuing the invisible aspects of ecosystems, unfriendly environmental decisions may continue to be taken that will culminate into economic, social and environmental cost which may be unmanageable. It is therefore expedient that a Green Economy with consideration for the immense value of biodiversity and ecosystems be incorporated by both corporate and governmental agencies so as to ensure a sustainable development progression in an economy. In achieving sustainable green economy, the appropriate stakeholders should pay particular attention to the value of natural capital in any policy decision. Hence, this study examined the roles of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (ESVs) in a green economy. Exploratory approach was employed in carrying out the study. Literature review technique was adopted to examine the various aspects of the economy and the roles of ESVs that help in greening the economy. The study identify the roles of ESVs in greening an economy to include: ensuring the use of renewable energy instead of fossil fuel in their management properties, adoption of efficient technology that consumes less energy, advising on waste minimization and appropriate waste management approaches, giving consideration to ecosystem services while carrying out development valuation and finally promoting decent jobs that takes cognisance of employee‟s welfare, job security and career prospects. The study therefore recommends that the time has come for Estate Surveyors and Valuers to be actively involved in greening Nigerian economy

The Contribution of Dysphagia to Acute Stroke Morbidity and Mortality in Nigeria: A Prospective Study

Background: The assessment of time-trend morbidity and mortality in acute stroke is critical to clinical policy decisions and resource allocation. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of dysphagia in acute stroke and the impact of dysphagia on short term stroke outcome (30 days post-stroke). Methods: This was a prospective longitudinal study. Bedside screening for dysphagia modified Rankin score (MRS) and Barthel Index (BI) were performed on acute stroke patients on day 1, day 7, day 14 and day 30 after stroke to determine the frequency of dysphagia. Patients with dysphagia were then compared with age- and gender-matched controls (stroke patients without dysphagia) in terms of stroke characteristics and 30-day outcome. Results:Of the recruited 200 patients, 99 (49.5%) had dysphagia. Patients with intracerebral haemorrhagic stroke had a significantly higher prevalence of dysphagia (64% vs 36%; p Conclusion: Severe stroke, subcortical stroke and haemorrhagic stroke types were significantly associated with dysphagia at baseline. Dysphagia adversely influenced 30-days morbidity and case fatality in this cohort of acute stroke patients

Causes And Effect Of Delay On Project Construction Delivery Time

Delay is one of the biggest problems often experienced on construction project sites. Delays can instigates negative effects such as increased costs, loss of productivity and revenue many lawsuits between owners and contractors and contract termination. The aim of this project is to investigate the causes and effects of delay on building construction project delivery time. Random sampling technique was used in this study. Population sample of 150 was used in this work. A total sample of ninety three (93) was deployed. A structured questionnaire in Likert scale was used in data collection. There are many factors that induce delay on construction projects, however in some of identified factors includes: lack of funds to finance the project to completion, changes in drawings, lack of effective communication among the parties involved , lack of adequate information from consultants, slow decision making and contractor’s insolvency, variations among others. Also, project management problem, mistake and discrepancies in contract document, equipment availability and failure, mistakes during construction, bad weather, fluctuation in prices of building materials, inappropriate overall organizational structure linking to the project and labour. The factors above could be observed and could be a clue to preventing delay on construction sites

Multivariate Approach to Benchmarking Quality Prediction Parameters in Building Maintenance Works

Observing quality etiquette on maintenance work is of essence when satisfying clients’ requirement is a priority. However, the quality etiquette comes in the form of framework and benchmarks. This study has therefore presented succinctly, multivariate approach to benchmarking quality prediction parameters in building maintenance works. The study used sixty-three (63) questionnaires retrieved which contains information on benchmarked parameters. The study used factor analysis to reduce the parameters to a sizeable number based on their coefficient and Eigen value. Resultant factors were used to dissect quality into quality dichotomies; the zero defect, medium quality and high quality work status. The model would assist building maintenance practitioners in quality monitoring on building maintenance work

Screening for Atrial Fibrillation in Sub-Saharan Africa:A Health Economic Evaluation to Assess the Feasibility in Nigeria

Background: Cardiovascular disease reflects a major burden of non-communicable disease in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Early detection and treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF), as a preventive measure against stroke, is currently not in the scope of the World Health Organization recommendation to reduce cardiovascular disease. Objective: We hypothesized that screening for AF would be an important approach to determine the true AF prevalence in the general population in African countries and to identify asymptomatic AF patients at risk for stroke to optimize prevention. Methods: A decision analytic model was developed to study the health-economic impact of AF screening in Nigeria over a life-time horizon. The patient population explored in the model was a population of newly detected AF cases that would be diagnosed with a one-time systematic screening for AF with a single lead ECG device in community health centres across Nigeria. Conclusions: The health gain per newly detected AF patient (N = 31,687) was 0.41 QALY at a cost of $5,205 per patient with 100$12,587 per QALY gained. The intervention was cost-effective with a 99.9% warfarin use with an ICER of $1,363 per QALY gained. The total cost of a single screening session was$7.3 million for the total screened population in Nigeria or $1.60 per patient screened. Screening for AF to detect AF patients in need for stroke prevention can be a cost-effective intervention in the Sub-Saharan region, depending on type of anticoagulant used and drug costs

Essential Oil of Phyllanthus reticulatus Poiret from Nigeria

The chemical composition of the essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from the leaves of Phyllanthus reticulatus Poiret (Euphorbiaceae) growing in Nigeria has been studied. The constituents of the oil were analyzed by means of gas chromatography (GC-FID) and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Monoterpenes (64.9%) were the dominant class of compounds, followed by sesquiterpenes (23.0%). The major constituents were α-pinene (6.0%), sabinene (7.6%), β-pinene (18.1%), linalool (6.9%) and camphor (7.7%), among the monoterpenes, and β-caryophyllene (11.9%) and germacrene D (8.6%) among the sesquiterpenes. This is the first report on the volatile constituents of Phyllanthus reticulatu

GC-MS Analysis, Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities of Extracts of the Aerial Parts of Conyza sumatrensis

Phytochemical analyses as well as antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the extracts of C. sumatrensis aerial parts were investigated in this study. METHODS: The aerial parts of C. sumatrensis were air dried, weighed and exhaustively extracted with hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol successively. The crude extracts were screened for metabolites.  These extracts of the plant were evaluated for antimicrobial and antioxidant activities using agar  diffusion and DPPH method respectively. The extracts were also analysed using Gas chromatography – Mass spectrometry, and the chromatogram coupled with mass spectra of the compounds were matched with a standard library. RESULTS: Preliminary phytochemical investigation of  rude n-hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of the aerial parts of Conyza sumatrensis revealed the presence of anthraquinones, flavonoids, terpenoids, phenolics, tannin, glycosides and carbohydrate. All the crude  extracts gave a clear zone of inhibition against the growth of the test bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomona aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Klebsiellae pneumonae) at moderate to high  concentrations, as well as test fungi (Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, penicillium notatum and  Rhizopus stolonifer) at high concentration. Methanolic extract exhibited significant radical scavenging  property with IC50 of 17.08 μg/mL while n-hexane and ethyl acetate extracts showed no significant antioxidant activity. GC-MS of N-hexane extract showed a total number of eleven chemical constituents with α-Farnesene and spathulenol being the most abundance compounds constituting 20.27 and 22.28% of the extract respectively. Ethyl acetate extract revealed thirteen  compounds with two most abundant compounds, cis-β-farnesene (16.64 %) and cis-pinane (21.09 %). While  methanolic extract affords seventeen compounds with Ephytol being the most abundant compound  (19.36 %). © JASEMKeywords: Antimicrobial activity, Antioxidant, GC-MS analysis, Phytochemicals, Conyza sumatrensi

Effect of Computerized Maintenance Management System on a Cement Production Plant

This study evaluated effect of Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) on a cement production plant. The materials used included a Computer and Networking system and maintenance software. Preliminary study of plant assets was carried out to identify critical plant assets and key performance indicators such as Plant Reliability Factor (RF), Number of Stoppage for Incidents (NSI) and Production Losses (PL) in 2013. The CMMS software implementation in 2015 used the data obtained. The result obtained from this implementation showed that the RF (%) for Limestone Crusher (LC), Cement Mill (CM) and Kiln were 46, 76, 86; 51, 79, 88; 59, 88, 92 in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. The corresponding NSI for the three plants were 824, 472, 82; 788, 462, 56; 431, 420, 46 in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. The Production Losses for the whole plant were $22.54m,$21.587m and $19.365m in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively