Sustainable agriculture and agricultural land use intensification in Egbado area of Ogun State

Post studies had indicated that population pressure, soil fertility, spatial location and land tenure are among the dominant factors that influence agricultural land use intensification in a number of regions. The present study carried out in Egbado Division of Ogun State in Nigeria showed that these factors (or their proxies) are inversely related to Land Use Intensity (LUI). However, only population pressure and average yield of maize were found to be significant explanatory variables of LUI in the area of study. The paper concludes that policy makers should integrate the socio-cultural and economic goals of farmers into small scale farmers’ planning for sustainabi1ity. This will alleviate the adverse impact of resource pressures (especially land) on sustainability and the development process

Determinants of Use of Indigenous Fish Processing Practices in Maritime and Inland States of Nigeria

The study examined the various factors affecting the level of utilization of Indigenous Fish Processing Practices {IFPP} in Maritime and Inland States of Nigeria. The study was carried out in four fish processing states viz; Akwa -Ibom and Lagos (Maritime states) while Borno and Niger (Inland states). From snowball generated lists, 74, 34, 34 and 47 respondents were randomly selected from the states, respectively. Primary data were collected through the use of interview schedule. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the socio- economic features of the fish processors while the logit model was used to capture the socio-economic factors determining the utilization of indigenous fish processing practices. The result of the logit model shows that in maritime states, age (β=0.01), sex (β=3.46), education (β=1.90), household size (β=2.48), FAI (β=2.80), consumers preference (β=3.37), processing tradition (β=3.74), VFP (β=0.02) and cosmopoliteness (β=4.11) were prominent factors likely to determine IFPPs use significantly. In Inland states, age (β=0.05), sex (β=3.45), consumer preference (β=2.90), income generating activities at peak season (β=2.26), VFP (β=2.39) and cosmopoliteness (β=0.41) were significant factors likely determining IFPP use. Factors influencing use of indigenous fish processing practices were similar in maritime and inland states. However, income generating activity was a peculiar factor influencing indigenous fish processing practices in inland states, while processing tradition, education and household size were peculiar factors in maritime states. Therefore, development program should consider the aforementioned factors while adequate consideration should be on IFPPs as a spring board to development of affordable, accessible and sustainable intervention.Key words: Indigenous Fish Processing Practices, Maritime, Inlan

Translation, cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation of yoruba version of the short-form 36 health survey

Background and objective: The Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) is a valid quality of life tool often employed to determine the impact of medical intervention and the outcome of health care services. However, the SF-36 is culturally sensitive which necessitates its adaptation and translation into different languages. This study was conducted to cross-culturally adapt the SF-36 into Yoruba language and determine its reliability and validity. Methods: Based on the International Quality of Life Assessment project guidelines, a sequence of translation, test of item-scale correlation, and validation was implemented for the translation of the Yoruba version of the SF-36. Following pilot testing, the English and the Yoruba versions of the SF-36 were administered to a random sample of 1087 apparently healthy individuals to test validity and 249 respondents completed the Yoruba SF-36 again after two weeks to test reliability. Data was analyzed using Pearson's product moment correlation analysis, independent t-test, one-way analysis of variance, multi trait scaling analysis and Intra-Class Correlation (ICC) at p < 0.05. Results: The concurrent validity scores for scales and domains ranges between 0.749 and 0.902 with the highest and lowest scores in the General Health (0.902) and Bodily Pain (0.749) scale. Scale-level descriptive result showed that all scale and domain scores had negative skewness ranging from -2.08 to -0.98. The mean scores for each scales ranges between 83.2 and 88.8. The domain scores for Physical Health Component and Mental Health Component were 85.6 ± 13.7 and 85.9 ± 15.4 respectively. The convergent validity was satisfactory, ranging from 0.421 to 0.907. Discriminant validity was also satisfactory except for item '1'. The ICC for the test-retest reliability of the Yoruba SF-36 ranges between 0.636 and 0.843 for scales; and 0.783 and 0.851 for domains. Conclusion: The data quality, concurrent and discriminant validity, reliability and internal consistency of the Yoruba version of the SF-36 are adequate and it is recommended for measuring health-related quality of life among Yoruba population