TRANSFORMING AGRICULTURE THROUGH CONTRACTED EXTENSION SERVICE DELIVERY SYSTEMS: THE CASE OF KENYA'S AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY AND AGRIBUSINESS PROJECT

Transformation of small holder agriculture from subsistence farming to agribusiness focused systems, is paramount towards attainment of Kenya\u2019s vision 2030 and the Millennium Development Goals. This requires extension service delivery systems that focus on addressing challenges within agricultural product value chains (APVC) continuum. The existing extension systems have not contributed much towards this transformation due to their limited capacities, including inadequate expertise and diversity. The Kenya Agricultural Productivity and Agribusiness Project (KAPAP) is implementing an innovative service delivery model, whose approaches include a Community Driven Development (CDD), demand driven and public private partnerships through contracted Service Providers (SPs). The aim of the model is to contribute towards increasing smallholder farmers\u2019 productivity and incomes. The implementation of the model brings together sector players as implementing agents; while the SPs consortia were competitively selected. The services delivered to farmers\u2019 common interest groups (CIGs) include high level value chain interventions such as organising farmers for marketing, and linking them to markets and other service providers. Payment for services is done using farmer grants and is pegged onto achievement of set income indicator benchmarks negotiated and agreed upon between farmers and their SPs. The implementation of the model is guided by operational procedures, designed to ensure that a harmonised process is followed within the targeted counties. A total of 109 SPs consortia were contracted in January 2012 to offer services to 118,865 farmers (Males = 57%; Females = 43%) organised into 4,355 Common Interest Working Groups (CWGs). The achievements made by end of 15 months show an increase in production for the 36 target enterprises and farmer incomes. The farmers earned a total of US$44,118 million at a service delivery of US$ 1,124,706, giving an econometric return to investment of 39.4. The achievements of this model qualifies it for inclusion among other feasible extension approaches or \u201cislands of success\u201d that have the potential to transform the agricultural sector in Kenya and in other developing nations with minimal modifications. innovative extension deliveryLa transformation de l\u2019agriculture des petits exploitants de la subsistance en agriculture de march\ue9 est primordiale pour atteindre les objectifs de la vision 2013 au Kenya et les Objectifs Mill\ue9naires de D\ue9veloppement (MDGs). Ceci n\ue9cessite des syst\ue8mes de vulgarisation visant \ue0 adresser les contraintes tout au long des chaines de valeurs. Les syst\ue8mes de vulgarisation existants n\u2019ont pas contribu\ue9 grand-chose \ue0 la transformation de l\u2019agriculture de subsistence en une agriculture de march\ue9 \ue0 cause de leur capacit\ue9 limit\ue9e y compris l\u2019absence d\u2019une expertise ad\ue9quate et diversifi\ue9e. Le projet \uab\ua0Productivit\ue9 Agricole et Agribusiness\ua0\ubb au Kenya (KAPAP) est entrain d\u2019ex\ue9cuter un mod\ue8le innovateur de prestation de services suivant une approache incluant un d\ue9veloppement pilot\ue9 par les communaut\ue9s, r\ue9pondant directement \ue0 la demande et bas\ue9e sur un partenariat public-priv\ue9 \ue0 travers des contrats avec les prestataires des services et fournisseurs des intrants. L\u2019objectif de ce mod\ue8le est de contribuer \ue0 accro\ueetre la productivit\ue9 agricole et augmenter les revenus des petits exploitants. L\u2019ex\ue9cution de ce mod\ue8le regroupe les diff\ue9rents acteurs dans le secteur comme agents d\u2019ex\ue9cution tandis que tous les prestataires des services et fournisseurs d\u2019intrants sone s\ue9l\ue9ctionn\ue9s sur des base comp\ue9titifs. les services fournis aux associations des producteurs sont entre autres des interventions dans la partie sup\ue9rieure au long des chaines de valeur tel l\u2019organisation des producteurs pour la commercialization de leurs produits\ua0; leur connection avec les march\ue9s et fournisseurs de services et d\u2019intrants. Le paiement des services est g\ue9n\ue9ralement \ue0 travres des subventions aux producteurs bas\ue9es sur un contrat de performance \ue9conomique \ue0 \ue9valuer sur base d\u2019indicateurs pr\ue9cis pr\ue9alablement n\ue9goci\ue9s et approuv\ue9s en m\ueame temps par les producteurs et les fourniteurs de services et d\u2019intrants. L\u2019ex\ue9cution du mod\ue8le est guid\ue9e par des proc\ue9d\ue9s op\ue9rationnels con\ue7us pour assurer qu\u2019un processus harmonis\ue9 est bien suivi dans l\u2019ensemble des zones du projet. Un total de 109 groupement de fournisseurs de services et d\u2019intrants \ue9tait contract\ue9 en Janvier 2012 pour offrir des services \ue0 118,865 producteurs (Hommes=57%\ua0; Femmes= 43%) organis\ue9s en groupes partageant les m\ueames int\ue9r\ueats. Les r\ue9sultats obtenus apr\ue8s 15 mois d\u2019ex\ue9cution du projet indiquent une augmentation de la production pour les 36 entereprises vis\ue9es et une augmentation du revenu des exploitants. Les producteurs ong gagn\ue9 un total de 44,118 million de dollars US contre un co\ufbt des services ou intrants fournis de 1.124.706 dollar US, indiquant un retour \ue9conom\ue9trique \ue0 l\u2019investissement de 39,4. Les succ\ue8s de ce mod\ue8le le qualifie pour son inclusion parmi les approaches efficaces de vulgarisation \uab\ua0ilots de succ\ue8s\ua0\ubb ayant le potential de transformer avec des modifications minimales le secteur agricole au Kenya et dans d\u2019autres pays en voie de d\ue9veloppement

A Process for Co-Designing Educational Technology Systems for Refugee Children

There is a growing interest in the potential for technology to facilitate emergency education of refugee children. However, designing in this space requires knowledge of the displaced population and the contextual dynamics surrounding it. Design should therefore be informed by both existing research across relevant disciplines, and from the practical experience of those who are on the ground facing the problem in real life. This paper describes a process for designing appropriate technology for these settings. The process draws on literature from emergency education, student engagement and motivation, educational technology, and participatory design. We emphasise a thorough understanding of the problem definition, the nature of the emergency, and of socio-cultural aspects that can inform the design process. We describe how this process was implemented leading to the design of a digital learning space for children living in a refugee camp in Greece. This drew on involving different groups of participants such as social-workers, parents, and children

INTERGROWTH-21st Gestational Dating and Fetal and Newborn Growth Standards in Peri-Urban Nairobi, Kenya: Quasi-Experimental Implementation Study Protocol.

BACKGROUND: The burden of preterm birth, fetal growth impairment, and associated neonatal deaths disproportionately falls on low- and middle-income countries where modern obstetric tools are not available to date pregnancies and monitor fetal growth accurately. The INTERGROWTH-21st gestational dating, fetal growth monitoring, and newborn size at birth standards make this possible. OBJECTIVE: To scale up the INTERGROWTH-21st standards, it is essential to assess the feasibility and acceptability of their implementation and their effect on clinical decision-making in a low-resource clinical setting. METHODS: This study protocol describes a pre-post, quasi-experimental implementation study of the standards at Jacaranda Health, a maternity hospital in peri-urban Nairobi, Kenya. All women with viable fetuses receiving antenatal and delivery services, their resulting newborns, and the clinicians caring for them from March 2016 to March 2018 are included. The study comprises a 12-month preimplementation phase, a 12-month implementation phase, and a 5-month post-implementation phase to be completed in August 2018. Quantitative clinical and qualitative data collected during the preimplementation and implementation phases will be assessed. A clinician survey was administered eight months into the implementation phase, month 20 of the study. Implementation outcomes include quantitative and qualitative analyses of feasibility, acceptability, adoption, appropriateness, fidelity, and penetration of the standards. Clinical outcomes include appropriateness of referral and effect of the standards on clinical care and decision-making. Descriptive analyses will be conducted, and comparisons will be made between pre- and postimplementation outcomes. Qualitative data will be analyzed using thematic coding and compared across time. The study was approved by the Amref Ethics and Scientific Review Committee (Kenya) and the Harvard University Institutional Review Board. Study results will be shared with stakeholders through conferences, seminars, publications, and knowledge management platforms. RESULTS: From October 2016 to February 2017, over 90% of all full-time Jacaranda clinicians (26/28) received at least one of the three aspects of the INTERGROWTH-21st training: gestational dating ultrasound, fetal growth monitoring ultrasound, and neonatal anthropometry standards. Following the training, implementation and evaluation of the standards in Jacaranda Health's clinical workflow will take place from March 2017 through March 5, 2018. Data analysis will be finalized, and results will be shared by August 2018. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study will have major implications on the national and global scale up of the INTERGROWTH-21st standards and on the process of scaling up global standards in general, particularly in limited-resource settings. REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER: RR1-10.2196/10293

Relationship between Antibody Susceptibility and Lipopolysaccharide O-Antigen Characteristics of Invasive and Gastrointestinal Nontyphoidal Salmonellae Isolates from Kenya

Background: Nontyphoidal Salmonellae (NTS) cause a large burden of invasive and gastrointestinal disease among young children in sub-Saharan Africa. No vaccine is currently available. Previous reports indicate the importance of the O-antigen of Salmonella lipopolysaccharide for virulence and resistance to antibody-mediated killing. We hypothesised that isolates with more O-antigen have increased resistance to antibody-mediated killing and are more likely to be invasive than gastrointestinal. Methodology/Principal findings: We studied 192 NTS isolates (114 Typhimurium, 78 Enteritidis) from blood and stools, mostly from paediatric admissions in Kenya 2000-2011. Isolates were tested for susceptibility to antibody-mediated killing, using whole adult serum. O-antigen structural characteristics, including O-acetylation and glucosylation, were investigated. Overall, isolates were susceptible to antibody-mediated killing, but S. Enteritidis were less susceptible and expressed more O-antigen than Typhimurium (p\u3c0.0001 for both comparisons). For S. Typhimurium, but not Enteritidis, O-antigen expression correlated with reduced sensitivity to killing (r = 0.29, 95% CI = 0.10-0.45, p = 0.002). Both serovars expressed O-antigen populations ranging 21-33 kDa average molecular weight. O-antigen from most Typhimurium were O-acetylated on rhamnose and abequose residues, while Enteritidis O-antigen had low or no O-acetylation. Both Typhimurium and Enteritidis O-antigen were approximately 20%-50% glucosylated. Amount of S. Typhimurium O-antigen and O-antigen glucosylation level were inversely related. There was no clear association between clinical presentation and antibody susceptibility, O-antigen level or other O-antigen features. Conclusion/Significance: Kenyan S. Typhimurium and Enteritidis clinical isolates are susceptible to antibody-mediated killing, with degree of susceptibility varying with level of O-antigen for S. Typhimurium. This supports the development of an antibody-inducing vaccine against NTS for Africa. No clear differences were found in the phenotype of isolates from blood and stool, suggesting that the same isolates can cause invasive disease and gastroenteritis. Genome studies are required to understand whether invasive and gastrointestinal isolates differ at the genotypic level

Genome-wide scans identify known and novel regions associated with prolificacy and reproduction traits in a sub-Saharan African indigenous sheep (Ovis aries)

Maximizing the number of offspring born per female is a key functionality trait in commercial- and/or subsistence-oriented livestock enterprises. Although the number of offspring born is closely associated with female fertility and reproductive success, the genetic control of these traits remains poorly understood in sub-Saharan Africa livestock. Using selection signature analysis performed on Ovine HD BeadChip data from the prolific Bonga sheep in Ethiopia, 41 candidate regions under selection were identified. The analysis revealed one strong selection signature on a candidate region on chromosome X spanning BMP15, suggesting this to be the primary candidate prolificacy gene in the breed. The analysis also identified several candidate regions spanning genes not reported before in prolific sheep but underlying fertility and reproduction in other species. The genes associated with female reproduction traits included SPOCK1 (age at first oestrus), GPR173 (mediator of ovarian cyclicity), HB-EGF (signalling early pregnancy success) and SMARCAL1 and HMGN3a (regulate gene expression during embryogenesis). The genes involved in male reproduction were FOXJ1 (sperm function and successful fertilization) and NME5 (spermatogenesis). We also observed genes such as PKD2L2, MAGED1 and KDM3B, which have been associated with diverse fertility traits in both sexes of other species. The results confirm the complexity of the genetic mechanisms underlying reproduction while suggesting that prolificacy in the Bonga sheep, and possibly African indigenous sheep is partly under the control of BMP15 while other genes that enhance male and female fertility are essential for reproductive fitness