Trade Liberalization and the Collapse of the Nigerian Textile Industry

This study examines the circumstances leading to the imminent collapse of the Nigerian textile industry. With a decline from124 to 45 firms between 1994 and 2005, a decrease in employment by 87% from 150,000 to about 20,000 in that period, and the few survivingfirms operating at less than 40% installed capacity; total collapse of the industry is imminent. This state of affairs is attributed to the pressure to liberalize international trade by bilateral and multi-lateral interests and the uneconomic infrastructure status of the domesticeconomy. To explore the effect of this condition, a checklist was completed by the workers’ and employers’ unions in the industry. Also executives, former employees and employees of shut and surviving firms were interviewed. The results were triangulated with facts derivedfrom content analysis of relevant secondary documents. From this Nigerian experience, it is deduced that contrary to the belief widely held by some scholars in advanced capitalist economies that neo-liberal globalization has brought prosperity to rich and poor countriesalike; neo-liberal globalization does not bring prosperity to all of mankind. Instead, some of its concomitants portend misery and despair from de-industrialization to marginal players in global capitalism. Drawing empirical justification from the late 2008 global financial crisis and the advanced countries’ bail-out plans, cautious domestic economic protectionism, continued government regulation and monitoring of private capitalist operators as well as revamping domestic industrial infrastructure are advocated to save the textile industry in Nigeria from eventually going under

Culture, Product Advertising, and Advertising Agency Operations

Advertising is a means through which products, services and ideas of organizations are brought to the public knowledge. As a means of telling the market about a new product, advertising persuades and reminds the audience of their continuous support of the advertised item. In the face of globalization, varying cultures are shown to have impacted enormously on product advertising. The more companies undertake to market their products and services, the more linguistic and cultural challenges they come across. These cultures create some hurdles which an advertising agency must encounter before a successful advertising is recorded. This study adopts qualitative approach to examine the fusion between culture and production marketing, especially with regards to operations of advertising agencies. It concludes that advertising is very essential and for a product, service or idea to survive and sustain itself in these rough tidings, the advertiser should always embark on meaningful research to understand the market and marketing environment with a view to achieving advert objectives.&#160

Ecosystem Service Potentials and Underlying Influences in a Tropical Rainforest Ecosystem

Tropical ecosystems have vast array of ecosystem services but are largely un-quantified. This study explored the capacity of rainforest ecosystems to deliver ecosystem services and inherent influences that determine such. Forest plots measuring 50m × 50m were set up in 14 locations and used for tree enumeration. Soil samples were collected at four edges and middle of each plot at 0-30cm depth, bulked and analyzed. Aboveground, belowground and soil carbon, and biodiversity variables were equally conducted according to standard procedures. Pearson correlation and regression were used to verify aboveground and belowground carbon relationships and relationships between elevation and carbon capacities, respectively. 85 species within 32 families were enumerated across the ecosystem. Biodiversity patterns showed a diversity index of 3.376, relative dominance of Dialium guineense Willd., (54.34%) and seven other species with ? 1% dominance. Species within the ecosystem possessed provisioning and regulating ecosystem values. Carbon estimates showed aboveground biomass range of 1.73 – 6.50 t/ha-1, percentage soil carbon and soil organic carbon ranges of 4.76 – 8.80% and 17.78 – 91.3 t/ha-1, respectively. Elevation did not generally influence the carbon stock of the ecosystem, but had some influence on percentage soil carbon. Effective strategies that would address the reductions in the services were advocated

Molecular Characterization of Anopheles gambiae s.l. from the Three Vegetation Zones in Rivers State, Nigeria

Understanding the genetic structure of mosquito populations is important for addressing important biological and public health issues such as evolution, spread of insecticide resistance alleles and epidemiology of vector-borne diseases. Anopheles gambiae s.l. is comprised of genetically distinct species that are morphologically indistinguishable. This study therefore aims to establish the sibling species and molecular characterization of Anopheles gambiae s.l. responsible for transmitting malaria parasites in the three ecological zones. Sample collection was carried out during the rainy season from May to December which coincides with the peak period of vector abundance. Adults of laboratory-reared, field-collected larvae of this test-mosquitoes were used for this study. To characterize the vectors, DNA was extracted from tissues of An. gambiae s.l. samples, amplified and sibling species identified by multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Restricted fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) aided to identify the M (An. coluzzi) and S (An. gambiae s.s.) forms. Neighbor-Joining method was used to infer the evolutionary history. An. gambiae s.s. (sibling species) is present in the entire Rivers state while An. gambiae s.s. (S-form) predominates the lowland forest vegetation and An. coluzzi predominates the mangrove and fresh water swamp vegetations. The sequenced samples from the three vegetations were closely related to An. gambiae with accession number KP165373.1. The study makes available baseline information on characterization and monitoring of species of malaria vectors in Rivers State, Nigeria. Keywords: Molecular characterization, Anopheles gambiae, vegetation, Rivers State. DOI: 10.7176/ALST/98-03 Publication date:June 30th 202

Leaching of Trace Elements in Enugu Coal: Effect of Acid Concentration

The effect of acid concentration on the trace elements composition of Enugu sub-bituminous coal from Onyeama Mine was investigated by leaching the coal using nitric acid (HNO3) of 0.5M, 1.0M, 1.5M and 2.0M concentrations. The amount of trace elements (in ppm) present in the filtrate from the leaching process were determined using Varian AA240 Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer with cathode lamps of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), and lead (Pb). Optimum leaching condition of the trace metals were obtained using 2.0M HNO3 solution for 1 hour and 75µm particle size which resulted in the detection of As(1.363ppm), Cu (1.413ppm), Cr (0.764ppm), Cd (0.146), and Pb (1.942ppm). 2.0M concentration of nitric acid has proven to be very effective in the leaching of trace metals in Enugu coal. Result of the SEM analysis shows that the porosity of the coal residue was increased and this provides strong evidence that significant amounts of inorganic elements were removed. Onyeama coal, therefore, contains large proportions of silica, calcium carbonate, and dolomite, as well as some elements such as aluminum, iron, and potassium, and other trace metals such as lead, chromium, cadmium, arsenic, mercury, copper

Ophthalmological Findings in Paediatric Non-Traumatic Coma in Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Parklane, Enugu, Nigeria

The ophthalmological examination is a vital aspect of the central nervous system examination in comatose children. Several authors have documented different findings with disparities in their recommendations about making ophthalmological examination a routine in the management of the unconscious child. This study sought to evaluate the relevance of routine ophthalmological examination in the management of unconscious children admitted into the paediatric emergency room of Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Parklane, Enugu, Nigeria. This was a prospective longitudinal study conducted from April 2018 to March 2019. Unconscious patients whose caregivers gave consent were recruited into the study. Traumatic causes of coma were excluded. Demographic features of the patients were obtained. The ophthalmologic examination and diagnoses were made by an ophthalmologist, while the emergency room pediatrician made clinical assessment and diagnoses. Sixteen unconscious children had ophthalmologic examinations done. The Glasgow coma scale scores ranged from 3 to 11, with a mean of 6.6±2.2. Thirteen (81.3%) of the children were classified as severe unconsciousness while the rest were moderate. The degree of unconsciousness was significantly associated with the outcome (?2 =16.0, P = 0.03). A total of six (37.5%) ophthalmologic diagnoses were made, which included cerebral malaria, degenerative myopia, orbital cellulitis, and exposure keratopathy. The presence of an abnormal ophthalmologic finding was not significantly associated with outcome (?2 =0.36, P = 0.55). Routine ophthalmologic examination may not be justified as a management protocol in unconscious children but may be considered in selected cases

Pattern and correlates of psychoactive substance use among new prison inmates in Nigeria

Psychoactive substance disorders among prison inmates are challenges to the prison authority, and this may interfere with the processes of reformation and rehabilitation therein. The study assessed the prevalence, pattern, and correlates of psychoactive substance use in a cross-sectional study involving 552 new inmates in a custodial center in Enugu, Nigeria. Diagnoses were made using the MINI-Plus (version 6) in line with the ICD 10. Lifetime and 12-month prevalence of psychoactive substance disorder were 57.4% and 50.7%, respectively. The commonest substance disorders were tobacco (48.2% lifetime and 41.1% 12-month), cannabis (36.8% lifetime, and 32.4% 12-month), and alcohol (7.2% lifetime, and 6.9% 12-month). Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U test, Chi-squared test, and regression analyses were performed to assess the extent to which socio-demographic characteristics, type of offence, and family dysfunction predicted psychoactive substance use or disorder. Four hundred and seventy eight (86.6%) of participants had used psychoactive substance in their lifetime, while it was 405 (73.4%) in the last 12 months prior to imprisonment. Lifetime and 12-month rates of psychoactive substance disorder were 57.4% (n=317) and 50.7% (n=280), respectively. Male gender, unemployment, parental divorce, and parental drug use respectively, significantly predicted 12-month psychoactive substance disorder [β = 0.12, 95% (CI: 0.04, 0.39)], [β = 1.79, 95% (CI: 1.24, 2.60)], [β = 0.29, 95% (CI: 0.14, 0.59)], and [β = 0.56, 95% (CI: 0.39, 0.81)]. Lifetime disorder was significantly predicted by male gender [β = 0.12, 95% (CI: 0.04, 0.35)], unemployment [β = 1.60, 95% (CI: 1.10, 2.32)], parental divorce [β = 0.23, 95% (CI: 0.10, 0.52)], and parental drug use [β = 0.49, 95% (CI: 0.34, 0.72)]. Similarly, lifetime psychoactive substance disorder was associated with older age (U = 33355, Z = -2.104, p = 0.035), while the prevalence of 12-month use of psychoactive substance was significantly associated with charges of violent offences (χ2=13.55, p˂0.01). Conclusively, there is a high prevalence of psychoactive substance use and disorders among new prison inmates with  tobacco, cannabis and alcohol as the commonest. Given that male gender, unemployment, parental divorce and parental drug use  increase the likelihood of these disorders, it will be worthwhile for any drug intervention program to address these factors. Keywords: Psychoactive substances; drug; inmates; crime; Nigeria

Liver function tests values in albino wistar rats administered with isolated Nigeria Achatina achatina snail lectin

Achatina achatina snail specie are considered by many people in Nigeria, Ghana and other parts of West Africa to be the most prized snail for eating. In general, lectins bind to sugar moieties in cell walls or membrane, thereby change the physiology of the membrane to cause agglutination, mitosis or other biochemical changes in the cell. It has been deduced that lectins could be toxic and can as well be used as potent administrations that could be used or serve as substitutes for routine treatment or management of many disorders. Based on these, the toxicity of the Achatina achatina snail lectin in animals was investigated with a view to determining the nutritional value of the snail as food stuffs by carrying out tests to determine the blood values of Liver Function Tests (LFT) parameters in Albino Wistar Rats administered with the lectin. A total of 120 samples of the Nigeria Achatina achatina snail specie were collected, authenticated at the Zoology Department of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and 80mls of pooled crude Lectin extract was obtained. Purifications were performed on 20mls of the crude extract in three steps viz, Ammonium sulphate precipitation and Dialysis (Partial purifications), Con A Sepharose 4B affinity Chromatography column (Complete purification). The affinity purified lectin was used for all the tests conducted in this research. The crude, partially and complete/affinity purified Lectin extracts were subjected to Haemagglutination tests. The Lectin was further assessed to determine its effects on Liver Function Tests (LFT) parameters viz, Total bilirubin (TB), Conjugate bilirubin (CB), Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), Aspartate transaminase (AST) and Alanine transaminase (ALT) as follows: A total of Thirty-five (35) male Albino Wistar Rats weighing 101-180g and aged 2-3 months obtained from the Animal house of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, were used in this research. The animals were Grouped into 5 (A-E) and allowed for 2 weeks acclimatization. Graded doses of 0.04ml, 0.05ml and 0.06ml of the Affinity purified Lectin were administered intra-peritoneally to each of the rats in Groups A-D (test groups) according to their body weights at intervals of 2 days for 1 week. Group E served as the control. Two (2) mls of blood was collected from each of the rats before and 24 hours after the last day of lectin administration for the following tests: TB, CB, ALP, AST and ALT (performed by means of Roche Cobas C111 automated chemistry analyser). The results of the research showed as follows: On complete/affinity purification, 15mls of pure sample containing only the high molecular weight lectin was obtained. The respective haemagglutination tests on the crude, partially and affinity purified Lectin showed on standardization preferential agglutinations with Blood group A type. Bar charts statistics show that there was Post lectin administration mean increase in TB, CB and AST when the Post administrations values were compared with the Pre values. The Bar charts statistics show that there was Post lectin administration mean decrease in ALP and ALT. However, the differences in the Pre and Post administration mean values of these parameters were further subjected to one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test statistics aimed at determining whether the mean increases or decreases in these assessed parameters were statistically significant. The ANOVA statistics show that the effects of the lectin on all the assessed LFT parameters viz, TB, CB, ALP, AST and ALT were statistically insignificant (P > 0.05). The results obtained in this research has succeeded in demonstrating that the A. achatina snail lectin is non-toxic, non-carcinogenic and therefore point to its nutritive value as food stuff, hence supports the snail eating education

Socio-economic Determinants of Agripreneurship Choice among Youths in Ebonyi State, Nigeria

ABSTRACT The current down turn in the global oil sector has necessitated the quest for alternative means of wealth creation through effective engagement of youths in agripreneurship. However, the socio-economic determinants of agripreneurship choice among youths in Ebonyi State, Nigeria seem not to have been empirically established. The study adopted a multistage sampling technique in eliciting data from one hundred and eighty youth agripreneurs using structured questionnaires. The study also employed both descriptive and inferential statistics to realize the objectives. The result showed that about 60% of the youth agripreneurs in Ebonyi State, Nigeria were males who are within the mean active age of 27 years and earn a mean annual income of N77, 333 on average household size of five 5 persons. The most revealed agripreneurial choices of the youths were farm production (crop and livestock production), farm input supply, agro-processing, and marketing/distribution. The probit regression analysis result revealed that with the Pearson Goodness-of-fit of 1148.799 which was statistically significant at 1% (P<0.01), and the Pseudo R2 value of 0.058, the socio-economic characteristics of youth has strong significant effect on the agripreneurial choice among the youth. Based on the findings, the study recommended for agripreneurship education and training at all levels to ensure capacity building among the youth for diverse agro-enterprises