ENHANCING THE CAPACITY OF WOMEN FOR INCREASED PARTICIPATION IN NIGERIA MAIN-STREAMING AGRICULTURE: A RE-DESIGNING OF STRATEGIES

Africa is a region of female farming compared with other regions of the world where women have the responsibility for food production, processing, marking, cooking, child care and other home related activities. It is argued that women account for 70-80 percent of household food production in sub-Sahara Africa. However, case studies in Nigerian and in most Africa countries tend to point to the fact that women who have been described as the hidden productive force in the countryside have not fully benefited from food production development planning strategies, despite their increased involvement in agricultural production. The food production development programme has often focused in the designing of effective packages for generating surpluses in agriculture without particular focus on women. The basic needs approach which emphasis the expansion of people’s capabilities therefore points to the importance of re-examining the strategies for promoting participation in agricultural production with specific focus on women. Food development planning and execution strategies need to be re-oriented and re-designed to ensure that development packages reach women farmers as well as stimulate them to participate more actively to increase output though technology and other incentives. This paper therefore focuses on the importance of women’s participation in Nigerian agricultural production and its implications for national development. The neglect of women’s roles in agriculture and factors that have adversely affected rural women’s agricultural production is also reviewed. Finally, the paper proposes some socio-economic, socio-cultural and institutional structures that must be re-examined and redesigned to facilitate the increase women participation in Nigeria main streaming agriculture.Labor and Human Capital,

Re-examining the Impact of Financial Deepening on Economic Growth in Nigeria: Size or Level of Activity?

This study examines the impact of financial deepening on economic growth in Nigeria between 1970 and 2015, using Vector Error Correction Model, Impulse Response Function, andForecast Error Variance Decomposition, with a distinction between size and activity variables of financial deepening. The results show that financial deepening and economic growth have a stable long-run relationship, and that activity variables of the financial deepening have more stimulating effect on economic growth than the size variables. Also, the results support existing literature that financial structure has positive and significant impact on economic growth, with bank base exert more influence than market base. In light of this, appropriate regulatory and macroeconomic policies like reducing the cost of financial intermediation, improving institutional and legal framework, and raising access and efficiency of credit at any level of financial development need to be pursued to ensure favourable competition of all the components of the financial sector, to deepen the financial sector and accelerate economic growth. Keywords: Financial deepening, economic growth, financial structure, financial institutio

The Information Literacy and the Infodemic in COVID-19 pandemic at Kampala International University

Access to reliable information in times of emergency is important. However the quantum of information during emergency may cause infodemic. The study investigated the role of information literacy in mitigating infodemic in COVID 19 pandemic. A survey was conducted among educators and students in School of Mathematics and Computing (SOMAC), Kampala International University (KIU), Uganda. The findings reveal that: majority of the respondents (50%) either agreed or strongly agreed that they evaluated information before use; on the state of their emotions, respondents were confused, overwhelmed, alarmed and anxious; 50% were able to access the information with ease, while 50% could not. In terms of training in information literacy, half (19) of the respondents were trained, while half (19) were not; however, 100% of respondents affirmed importance of information literacy training; faculties/schools, public libraries, school libraries, and special libraries have the mandate to teach information literacy. Benefits of information literacy skills as revealed by the study includes: information literacy equips us with the necessary skills to recognize credible information; helps in decision making and productivity; enable one know the authenticity, validity and reliability of information; help in developing inquiry based problem solving, critical thinking skills; develop the abilities and skills on how to learn and learning to learn; help in our day-to-day life. The study then recommended that information literacy training be included in the curriculum in all levels of education, from primary school to tertiary levels

Patient-Related Factors Influencing Satisfaction in the Patient-Doctor Encounters at the General Outpatient Clinic of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, Nigeria

Medical consultation is at the centre of clinical practice. Satisfaction of a patient with this process is a major determinant of the clinical outcome. This study sought to determine the proportion of patients who were satisfied with their doctor-patient encounter and the patient-related factors that affected patients' satisfaction with the consultation process. A clinic-based, cross-sectional study using a modified version of the General Practice Assessment Questionnaire (GPAQ), which employed a systematic sampling technique, was used. The questionnaires were administered on 430 patients within the ages of 18 years and 65 years. Among the 430 subjects within the ages of 18 years and 65 years studied, 200 (46.5%) were males and 230 (53.5%) were females. Only 59.3% were satisfied with their patient-doctor encounter. The patient's perception of time spent in the consultation, illness understanding after the visit, ability to cope with the illness after the visit, and ability to maintain health after visit were the only factors that affected patient's satisfaction with the consultation. In our environment, nonsatisfaction with the patient-doctor encounter is high. Only few factors considered to encourage a patients satisfaction at primary care consultation contributed to end-of-consultation satisfaction. This calls for refocusing so as to improve the overall patient care in our cultural context and meet the patient needs in our environment

The Information Literacy and the Infodemic in COVID-19 pandemic at Kampala International University

Access to reliable information in times of emergency is important. However the quantum of information during emergency may cause infodemic. The study investigated the role of information literacy in mitigating infodemic in COVID 19 pandemic. A survey was conducted among educators and students in School of Mathematics and Computing (SOMAC), Kampala International University (KIU), Uganda. The findings reveal that: majority of the respondents (50%) either agreed or strongly agreed that they evaluated information before use; on the state of their emotions, respondents were confused, overwhelmed, alarmed and anxious; 50% were able to access the information with ease, while 50% could not. In terms of training in information literacy, half (19) of the respondents were trained, while half (19) were not; however, 100% of respondents affirmed importance of information literacy training; faculties/schools, public libraries, school libraries, and special libraries have the mandate to teach information literacy. Benefits of information literacy skills as revealed by the study includes: information literacy equips us with the necessary skills to recognize credible information; helps in decision making and productivity; enable one know the authenticity, validity and reliability of information; help in developing inquiry based problem solving, critical thinking skills; develop the abilities and skills on how to learn and learning to learn; help in our day-to-day life. The study then recommended that information literacy training be included in the curriculum in all levels of education, from primary school to tertiary levels

Application of Wilks’ Lambda and Hotelling’s with MANOVA on Drug Addiction and Drug Abuse Data

In this study Wilks’  Lamda and Hotelling’s  were employed as Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) technique in determining the significance difference in the causative factor for drug addiction and abuse. The data were primary and were generated by a survey conducted on some patients selected from Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Enugu-Nigeria.  The patients were divided into two groups - those treated of substance  abuse before and those treated for the first time. 89 patients were selected  and nine factors  for substance abuse were considered. They were rated and scored over ten by the patients. The result showed  a significant difference in the factors specified for drug abuse. . Keywords: Wilks’  Lamda, Hotelling’s , drugs, substance abus

The ECOWAS Platform and the Persisting Challenges of Integrating the West African Region: A Discourse

This research work contends that since the establishment of the ECOWAS it has been far behind in the area of reconciling its objectives with potent achievements. The sub-region’s combined market of above 300 million inhabitants with a combined GDP of about US$565 billion, with 11 of its 15 member countries listed in the category of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), as well as worrying per capita income. There are persisting challenges in the areas of the economy of members, challenges of governance, socio-cultural challenges in the areas of inadvertent post-colonial divides and abysmal integration culture; the community has as well been unnecessarily pre-occupied with conflict situations and recent terrorist activities among others. These challenges have eclipsed the Community’s objectives. Elaborated in this research are these challenges which when overcome by ECOWAS signals the take-off of progressive development of the region. It is the opinion of this paper that the ECOWAS platform remains a credible pedestal for the region to dive into this age of neo-globalism for economic survival and should be strengthened in this direction. Key words: Community, ECOWAS, Integration, Governance, REC

TAX REVENUE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

The study was conducted to investigate the impact of tax revenue on the economic development in Nigeria with reference to time frame that spanned from 1994 to 2021. The study employed gross domestic product per capita as measures of economic development and considered petroleum profit tax, value-added tax and custom and excise duty as tax revenue sources. also using inflation as the mediating variable Secondary data was employed from the annual report and repository of the Central Bank of Nigeria, the federal inland revenue services online report. The employed data analysis techniques in the study are the Stationarity, Autoregressive Distributive Lag, the stepwise, and the Granger Causality tests. The study observed mixed stationarity at level and first difference. In the long run, it was observed that only the immediate past value of petroleum profit tax revenue per capita, had a valuable influence on the economic development. Inflation rate was observed to positively and significantly moderate the relationship between tax revenue and economic development in Nigeria. The study therefore concludes that that tax revenue had selective effect on economic development in Nigeria. Based on these findings, the study recommended, among others that tax authorities should encourage individuals to pay tax so as to improve the growth of the economy which the companies would benefit from, Tax holidays or incentives should be given to companies and institutions and individuals who have been compliant to tax payment

Integrating Online Autodidacticism in Lifelong Learning for Adults in Sub-Saharan Africa

Education is a lifelong journey that should be continuous even in adulthood. Lifelong learning has the potential to spur innovation, creativity, and problem-solving in society for an improved life. To achieve this, there is a need to integrate the concept of self-directed learning into lifelong learning and adult education curriculum at all levels. Many researchers have proved the important place of autodidacticism in the realization of the objectives of adult education and lifelong learning. This concept has been variously spoken and practiced in most parts of the developed world, but unfortunately seldom talked about and applied in the adult education system of Sub-Saharan Africa. Adult education in this region is still heavily lean to conventional education and pedagogy systems. The main objective of this paper is to present a holistic view of autodidacticism and its relevance in lifelong learning and adult education in this global and knowledge economy. The exploratory study examined the influence of online autodidacticism on lifelong learning among adults in Sub-Saharan Africa. Interviews were conducted using WhatsApp to elicit answers from adult respondents. The paper provides insight into the possibility of applying online autodidacticism delivery for originating a new instructional paradigm that makes a shift possible from the traditional practice of teaching in adult education in Sub-Saharan Africa and success stories of interviewees who acquired new skills through autodidacticism

TAX REVENUE AND NIGERIAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (1994-2021)

Motivated by the rising budget deficit in Nigeria and the need for reinforced revenue sources in Nigeria, the study examined the implication of tax revenue on economic development in Nigeria over the period of 1994-2021. The study employed the human development index as measures of economic development and considered personal income tax, company income tax and value-added taxas tax revenue sources and inflation as mediating variable. Secondary data was employed from the annual report and repository of the Central Bank of Nigeria, the federal inland revenue services online report. The employed data analysis techniques in the study are the Stationarity, Autoregressive Distributive Lag, the stepwise, and the Granger Causality tests. The study observed mixed stationarity at level and first difference. In the long run, it was observed that only the immediate past value of personal income tax revenue per capita and company income tax revenue per capita had a valuable influence on the economic development. Inflation rate was observed to positively and significantly moderate the relationship between tax revenue and economic development in Nigeria. The study therefore concludes that that tax revenue has a selective effect on economic development in Nigeria.  and recommended among others that; There should be a more effective supervision of the tax revenue by the tax regulatory authorities