IMPLICATIONS OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES EDUCATION AMONG RURAL STAKEHOLDERS OF FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE ADMINISTRATION: A REVIEW

Environment, its degradation and restoration are the outcries of scientists, foresters, wildlife managers, geographers, National Park personnel and other conservationists around the Sub-saharan Africa. Apart from providing livelihoods for plants, it offers food, habitat and breeding grounds for fauna group (wild and domestic), birds (flying and gregarious), mammals and reptiles (terrestrial and aquatic). This paper reviews different publications from different authors at different times on current issues about various perspectives of environment, relevant terminologies, causes of environmental degradation, their scientific evidences, different forms by which they manifest and sensitisation of various stakeholders and the public in general about the need to safeguard the environment and the treasured resources from the pathway of collapse using different strategies by individuals, corporate bodies and governments. The study therefore calls for sensitisation about natural resources conservation using various mass media techniques such as print and electronic media, in order to save key wildlife from extinction. It also calls for incorporation of Natural Resources conservation in Secondary schools Agricultural Science, Biology and Geography curricular. Enactment and enforcement of biodiversity over exploitation laws by Governments at all tiers are essential for fauna and flora sustainability

CULTURAL AND ETHNO-MEDICINAL UTILIZATION OF SELECTED WILDLIFE SPECIES IN UMUAHIA, ABIA STATE, NIGERIA

Wild animals have been integral parts of people's psyche, art and culture from the past. Wildlife use invarious medicinal preparations as element of people's cultural practices is also dated to untraceablepast. Wildlife irrespective of their evolutionary category has therefore undergone varying degrees ofutilization in disease and ailment treatment among local populace in Africa. The need to documentthese animals as indices of ethno-medicine is hence imperative as a guide to determine the impact oftheir use on biodiversity abundance and distribution. This article reviews the involvement of commonwild animals with their parts and products in traditional medicine within Umuahia and the suburbs inAbia State, Nigeria. Results revealed more males than females, majorly within 51 to 60 years of age,prevalence of elementary education and married men and women were among the stakeholdersinterviewed. Documentation of wild animals and their parts with products in native medicine withinthe study area showed that mammals were the most serviceable in trado-medicinal practices, followedby reptiles, birds and invertebrates/products in decreasing order. Appropriate recommendations ofintensified government awareness campaigns to educate the members of the public, especially wildlifestakeholders on conservation status of key wildlife species, establishment of more forest reserves andothers were made

Comparative assessment of heavy metal contents in organs and flesh of marketed cane rat (Thryonomys swinderianus Temminck, 1827) along five highways in south-western Nigeria

Comparative heavy metal pollution in organs and flesh of marketed cane rat along five highways in southwestern Nigeria was studied. Twenty-three wildlife markets were visited and there, samples were taken randomly on quarterly basis. Visceral organs of raw kidney, liver, lung, flesh and roasted flesh of Thryonomys swinderianus (cane rat) as the most sourced wild animal were taken and screened using Wet Digestion Method for heavy metals including lead, cadmium, chromium, astatine, copper, manganese and cobalt. Results showed that lung had the least contamination, followed by kidney, then liver; raw flesh and lastly roasted meat as the highest. Chromium and Astatine were significantly different in distribution (0.017 and 0.049 respectively) at P˃ 0.05.Follow-up procedures showed that at P˃0.05, for Astatine, the descending order was concentration was Roads,5 4, 2, 3 and1 . For chromium the distribution order was Roads 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 also in descending order. Average values in all the samples pooled together showed lead falling within the permissible range of 0.5mg/kg for offals and 0.1 mg/kg for meat, Copper exceeded the values of 0.01 mg/kg flat along all market Roads for both categories, chromium was within the safe limit of 1.00mg/kg for both meat and offals; cadmium was within the safe range of 0.5 mg/kg for both offals and meat throughout the study areas. Cobalt exceeded the value of 0.08mg/kg for offals and 0.03 mg/kg for meat along Road 3 only. Manganese and astatine fell within safe range of 0.5 mg/kg for both samples classes limit. Expansion of environmental conservation strategies was recommended. It was concluded that the marketed wildlife in the study area are partially safe for consumption.Keywords: analysis, contamination, Heavy Metal, highways, markets, Wildlif

Assessment of demographic characteristics of stakeholders of marketed wildlife species along five highways in south-west Nigeria

Wildlife is an important aspect of biodiversity but human civilization continues to impact negatively on it because hundreds of millions of animals are harvested from the wild and sold for man’s use each year. Therefore, there is need to update the existing knowledge of wildlife stakeholders in marketed wildlife species especially in the Southwest Nigeria, has become imperative. A total of twenty-three (23) games markets along five Roads in South-west Nigeria (Road 1:Ibadan-Ife-Ado-Ekiti, Road 2:Ibadan-Ife-Akure, Road 3: Ibadan- Oyo-Ogbomosho, Road 4: Lagos-Ibadan-Shagamu Interchange and Road 5: Sagamu-Ore or IIA, IID, IIO, LSO and ISI respectively) were visited monthly for two seasons to document the wildlife stakeholders’ details. Two hundred and fifty (250) copies of a structured questionnaire were administered using systematic random sampling (odd) method to obtain demographic information of the respondents including traders, hunters, herbalists, food vendors and artisans. Data generated were subjected to continuous statistics of bar charts for analysis and interpretation. Results revealed that all classes of people were represented in the trade but Road 5 (LSI) had the highest number of females with the people whose ages ranged between 16 and 25 years (6). Road 2 (Ibadan-Ife-Akure, IIA) had the highest number of people with age between 56 years and above. Generally, age-group in this study was ranked in years as 46-55 >36-45 > 26-35 > 56 plus> 16-25. It was recommended that formulation of laws and Regulations to protect wildlife poaching be enacted. Government should also establish more reserves for wildlife conservation and protection of endangered species to stop them from going into extinction through different governmental programmes and policies.Keywords: Game markets, biodiversity, wildlife, conservation, endangere

Comparative Assessment of Growth Structure and Litter Size of Grasscutter (Thryonomys Swinderianus Temminck, 1872) Bred In Captivity

Cane rats under domestication and multiplication in Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria, Ibadan were assessed for their population growth, structure and analysis over a period of five years (2009-2013). On the basis of weight gain, fecundity and docility, thirty-two (32) female grass cutter were selected for reproduction. A buck (male) was provided with one to three does (females) for mating and the mating group continued to live together until pregnancy was observed. These animals were housed in floor hutches constructed with 6-inch hollow blocks. The off springs were monitored for sex ratios and population growth and data generated were subjected to analysis using both continuous statistics of percentages and inferential statistics of X2.  Continuous statistics results revealed that more cases of parturition occurred during rainy season than dry season probably due to high quality forage that is always available during the season but inferential statistics did not establish it  Analysis also showed that more female grass cutter were produced than males on yearly basis but mortality affected more females than males probably because the stress of continuous parturition coupled with age may weaken their   resistance against diseases and environmental fluctuations. Also, mortality figure was higher during wet than dry season, implying that the animals need more care and medical care during rainy season. These observations are subjects of further research. Keywords. Cane rat, domestication, parturition, litter, sex ratio, mortality

Mammalian and reptilian species expected and observed in roadside wildlife markets of southwest Nigeria and the implications for conservation

Wildlife provides both consumptive and non-consumptive utilities to human beings around the world. Under wild animal utilization as food and medicine, some wildlife species have been overharvested. Coupled with environmental degradation affecting wildlife species in their habitats, the need to evaluate wildlife populations in Southwest Nigeria is therefore essential. Twenty-three wildlife markets along five highways in Southwest Nigeria were surveyed for two years to determine the pattern of mammalian and reptilian species occurrence; wild animal species assessed were freshly dead and roasted ones. The species named by literatures were tagged Expected while those found in the sales points were referred to as Observed. The names of species found were matched with literatures that established them. Indirect method of species of identification was questionnaire use among stakeholders of wildlife marketing (hunters, traders and farmers) selected through Systematic Random Sampling (Odd Method). This approach firstly identified the wildlife species being sold in the markets and their vernacular (Yoruba) names. These names were linked with literatures that confirmed their scientific names. Results revealed that twelve mammalian and three reptilian species were absent in all road markets. Implication of results is that mammals and reptiles which were absent in all market Roads are those whose populations have reduced in the wild. Recommendations for Government sensitisation on animals absent in the Sales Points about hunting pressure reduction through print and electronic media were first made. Conservation education among forest exploitation professionals, campaign against forest degradation and establishment of more forest reserves and National parks by Nigerian Government were made too

Future and potential spending on health 2015-40: Development assistance for health, and government, prepaid private, and out-of-pocket health spending in 184 countries

Background: The amount of resources, particularly prepaid resources, available for health can affect access to health care and health outcomes. Although health spending tends to increase with economic development, tremendous variation exists among health financing systems. Estimates of future spending can be beneficial for policy makers and planners, and can identify financing gaps. In this study, we estimate future gross domestic product (GDP), all-sector government spending, and health spending disaggregated by source, and we compare expected future spending to potential future spending. Methods: We extracted GDP, government spending in 184 countries from 1980-2015, and health spend data from 1995-2014. We used a series of ensemble models to estimate future GDP, all-sector government spending, development assistance for health, and government, out-of-pocket, and prepaid private health spending through 2040. We used frontier analyses to identify patterns exhibited by the countries that dedicate the most funding to health, and used these frontiers to estimate potential health spending for each low-income or middle-income country. All estimates are inflation and purchasing power adjusted. Findings: We estimated that global spending on health will increase from US$9.21 trillion in 2014 to$24.24 trillion (uncertainty interval [UI] 20.47-29.72) in 2040. We expect per capita health spending to increase fastest in upper-middle-income countries, at 5.3% (UI 4.1-6.8) per year. This growth is driven by continued growth in GDP, government spending, and government health spending. Lower-middle income countries are expected to grow at 4.2% (3.8-4.9). High-income countries are expected to grow at 2.1% (UI 1.8-2.4) and low-income countries are expected to grow at 1.8% (1.0-2.8). Despite this growth, health spending per capita in low-income countries is expected to remain low, at $154 (UI 133-181) per capita in 2030 and$195 (157-258) per capita in 2040. Increases in national health spending to reach the level of the countries who spend the most on health, relative to their level of economic development, would mean $321 (157-258) per capita was available for health in 2040 in low-income countries. Interpretation: Health spending is associated with economic development but past trends and relationships suggest that spending will remain variable, and low in some low-resource settings. Policy change could lead to increased health spending, although for the poorest countries external support might remain essential

Mapping child growth failure across low- and middle-income countries

Childhood malnutrition is associated with high morbidity and mortality globally1. Undernourished children are more likely to experience cognitive, physical, and metabolic developmental impairments that can lead to later cardiovascular disease, reduced intellectual ability and school attainment, and reduced economic productivity in adulthood2. Child growth failure (CGF), expressed as stunting, wasting, and underweight in children under five years of age (0�59 months), is a specific subset of undernutrition characterized by insufficient height or weight against age-specific growth reference standards3�5. The prevalence of stunting, wasting, or underweight in children under five is the proportion of children with a height-for-age, weight-for-height, or weight-for-age z-score, respectively, that is more than two standard deviations below the World Health Organization�s median growth reference standards for a healthy population6. Subnational estimates of CGF report substantial heterogeneity within countries, but are available primarily at the first administrative level (for example, states or provinces)7; the uneven geographical distribution of CGF has motivated further calls for assessments that can match the local scale of many public health programmes8. Building from our previous work mapping CGF in Africa9, here we provide the first, to our knowledge, mapped high-spatial-resolution estimates of CGF indicators from 2000 to 2017 across 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where 99 of affected children live1, aggregated to policy-relevant first and second (for example, districts or counties) administrative-level units and national levels. Despite remarkable declines over the study period, many LMICs remain far from the ambitious World Health Organization Global Nutrition Targets to reduce stunting by 40 and wasting to less than 5 by 2025. Large disparities in prevalence and progress exist across and within countries; our maps identify high-prevalence areas even within nations otherwise succeeding in reducing overall CGF prevalence. By highlighting where the highest-need populations reside, these geospatial estimates can support policy-makers in planning interventions that are adapted locally and in efficiently directing resources towards reducing CGF and its health implications. © 2020, The Author(s)

Anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2018

Anemia is a globally widespread condition in women and is associated with reduced economic productivity and increased mortality worldwide. Here we map annual 2000–2018 geospatial estimates of anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age (15–49 years) across 82 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), stratify anemia by severity and aggregate results to policy-relevant administrative and national levels. Additionally, we provide subnational disparity analyses to provide a comprehensive overview of anemia prevalence inequalities within these countries and predict progress toward the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target (WHO GNT) to reduce anemia by half by 2030. Our results demonstrate widespread moderate improvements in overall anemia prevalence but identify only three LMICs with a high probability of achieving the WHO GNT by 2030 at a national scale, and no LMIC is expected to achieve the target in all their subnational administrative units. Our maps show where large within-country disparities occur, as well as areas likely to fall short of the WHO GNT, offering precision public health tools so that adequate resource allocation and subsequent interventions can be targeted to the most vulnerable populations.Peer reviewe

EPIdemiology of Surgery-Associated Acute Kidney Injury (EPIS-AKI) : Study protocol for a multicentre, observational trial

More than 300 million surgical procedures are performed each year. Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication after major surgery and is associated with adverse short-term and long-term outcomes. However, there is a large variation in the incidence of reported AKI rates. The establishment of an accurate epidemiology of surgery-associated AKI is important for healthcare policy, quality initiatives, clinical trials, as well as for improving guidelines. The objective of the Epidemiology of Surgery-associated Acute Kidney Injury (EPIS-AKI) trial is to prospectively evaluate the epidemiology of AKI after major surgery using the latest Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) consensus definition of AKI. EPIS-AKI is an international prospective, observational, multicentre cohort study including 10 000 patients undergoing major surgery who are subsequently admitted to the ICU or a similar high dependency unit. The primary endpoint is the incidence of AKI within 72 hours after surgery according to the KDIGO criteria. Secondary endpoints include use of renal replacement therapy (RRT), mortality during ICU and hospital stay, length of ICU and hospital stay and major adverse kidney events (combined endpoint consisting of persistent renal dysfunction, RRT and mortality) at day 90. Further, we will evaluate preoperative and intraoperative risk factors affecting the incidence of postoperative AKI. In an add-on analysis, we will assess urinary biomarkers for early detection of AKI. EPIS-AKI has been approved by the leading Ethics Committee of the Medical Council North Rhine-Westphalia, of the Westphalian Wilhelms-University Münster and the corresponding Ethics Committee at each participating site. Results will be disseminated widely and published in peer-reviewed journals, presented at conferences and used to design further AKI-related trials. Trial registration number NCT04165369