Ethno-religious voting in Nigeria: interrogating voting patterns in the 2019 presidential election

This article analyses voting patterns in Nigeria’s 2019 presidential election. Its main objective is to gauge continuity or change in ethnic, regional and religious voting in Nigeria’s elections. The paper takes a historical approach in examining voting patterns in the past elections as a background to the examination of the 2019 presidential election. It was discovered that ethnic, regional and religious sentiments were still major factors that shaped voting choice in the election

The influence of culture on entrepreneurial intentions: a Nigerian university graduates’ perspective

Culture influences entrepreneurship and it is becoming essential to determine its role in entrepreneurship development in different countries especially in those with cultural diversities like Nigeria where there are less studies. Nigeria included a compulsory variant of entrepreneurship education in the curriculum of universities to nurture entrepreneurial mind-sets. Despite the general recognition of the instrumentality and significance of entrepreneurship, there are no studies evaluating the programme or the role of culture in entrepreneurial intention development. This study applied an extended version of the theory of planned behaviour to examine the interaction between culture and entrepreneurship how this impact on the entrepreneurial intentions of graduates. This article analysed and reported results of the survey of 409 graduates from six universities using structural equation modelling-AMOS, analysis of moment structures. Findings indicate that culture has both direct and indirect effect on graduates’ entrepreneurial intentions. The study has implications for policy and practice

The Role of Ethnic Directors in Corporate Social Responsibility: Does Culture matter? The Cultural Trait Theory Perspectives

This paper investigates the effect of cultural differences between ethnic directors on corporate social responsibility (CSR) of Public Liability Companies (PLCs) in Nigeria. Using the cultural trait theory, the study focuses on how the ethnic directors are influenced when making decisions concerning CSR. Adopting multiple regression analysis of data, the study investigates the three major ethnic groups (Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa) and finds cultural differences between the ethnic directors affect the adoption of CSR. Empirical results indicate that ethnic directors (Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa) were positively and significantly related to CSR. The paper contributes to the corporate governance and CSR debate concerning how ethnic directors’ decisions impact on CSR activities, particularly on the directors who are individualistic and collectivists towards CSR

Low Birth Weight Is Associated with Impaired Murine Kidney Development And Function

BackgroundLow birth weight (LBW) neonates have impaired kidney development that leaves them susceptible to kidney disease and hypertension during adulthood. The study here identifies events that blunt nephrogenesis and kidney development in the murine LBW neonate.MethodsWe examined survival, kidney development, GFR, gene expression, and cyto-/chemokines in the LBW offspring of malnourished (caloric and protein-restricted) pregnant mice.ResultsMalnourished pregnant mothers gave birth to LBW neonates that had 40% reduced body weight and 54% decreased survival. Renal blood perfusion was reduced by 37%, whereas kidney volume and GFR were diminished in the LBW neonate. During gestation, the LBW neonatal kidney had 2.2-fold increased apoptosis, 76% decreased SIX2+. progenitor cells, downregulation of mesenchymal-to-epithelial signaling factors Wnt9b and Fgf8, 64% less renal vesicle formation, and 32% fewer nephrons than controls. At birth, increased plasma levels of IL-1beta, IL-6, IL-12(p70), and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor in the LBW neonate reduced SIX2+. progenitor cells.ConclusionIncreased pro-inflammatory cytokines in the LBW neonate decrease SIX2+. stem cells in the developing kidney. Reduced renal stem cells (along with the decreased mesenchymal-to-epithelial signaling) blunt renal vesicle generation, nephron formation, and kidney development. Subsequently, the mouse LBW neonate has reduced glomeruli volume, renal perfusion, and GFR.Pediatric Research advance online publication, 31 May 2017; doi:10.1038/pr.2017.53

Design of Edge-controlled Multisensor Autonomous Robotic Pathfinder with Active Quadrupedal-wheel Drive Suspension System

This paper introduces an edge-controlled autonomous robot with a gyro-stabilized active suspension system in form of a hybrid quadrupedal wheel drive mechanism, capable of detecting free pathways with an angular resolution of 1 degree and steering the robot in that direction. This features computer-aided prototyping of the robot as a complete multi-sensory mechatronic system. Also, several algorithmic models were used in developing the robot’s software, which includes suspension control and pathfinding algorithms. The pathfinding algorithm computes the direction of the farthest exit point by recursive sorting and caching of values and addresses of array elements. Special performance indicators such as mechanical endurance, sensor accuracy, and sensitivity highlight important aspects of this work. Hence, the concept in this paper serves as a model for robotizing off-road vehicles for various applications

Listening to the rumours: what the northern Nigeria polio vaccine boycott can tell us ten years on.

In 2003 five northern Nigerian states boycotted the oral polio vaccine due to fears that it was unsafe. Though the international responses have been scrutinised in the literature, this paper argues that lessons still need to be learnt from the boycott: that the origins and continuation of the boycott were due to specific local factors. We focus mainly on Kano state, which initiated the boycotts and continued to reject immunisations for the longest period, to provide a focused analysis of the internal dynamics and complex multifaceted causes of the boycott. We argue that the delay in resolving the year-long boycott was largely due to the spread of rumours at local levels, which were intensified by the outspoken involvement of high-profile individuals whose views were misunderstood or underestimated. We use sociological concepts to analyse why these men gained influence amongst northern Nigerian communities. This study has implications on contemporary policy: refusals still challenge the Global Polio Eradication Initiative; and polio remains endemic to Nigeria (Nigeria accounted for over half of global cases in 2012). This paper sheds light on how this problem may be tackled with the ultimate aim of vaccinating more children and eradicating polio