External Debt, Servicing and Debt Relief Transmissions In Nigeria

The study examined the trend of external debt, debt servicing and debt relief transmissions in the Nigerian economy. The huge for external debt to argument domestic saving to boost investment in developing countries is obvious but more crucial to these variables is tracing out their effects on economic development. Indebted countries as observed even in some case find it difficult to service such debt leading to international concerns to writing off such debts to ameliorate the plight of the citizens. The study used structural VAR to trace out the structural effect of these variables in the Nigerian economy. Also examined was the 2005 external debt relief to Nigeria by the London Paris club through descriptive techniques to illustrate how the relief was channeled down to other macroeconomic variables in the economy. The descriptive analysis showed that soon after the debt relief, government expenditure on health and education improved. Also the position of the nation foreign exchange appreciated which cumulated to higher economic growth rate in Nigeria. Queuing from the descriptive analysis, the structural VAR result showed a decomposed shock to exchange rate were absorbed by external debt and external debt service after itself. This shows that external debt and debt servicing affects the country’s exchange rate. Decomposed shock from health and education outputs were strongly influenced by external debt servicing. Economic output in Nigeria, apart from itself were largely influenced by EXR (24 percent) followed by HLTH and EXD respectively. The study concludes that external debt is a crucial variable to developing countries and the trickle-down effect of its components are felt in the Nigerian economy. The study therefore recommends good policies to effectively transmit the gains from external borrowing to boost critical infrastructural deficit in the country. Keywords: external debt, debt servicing, education, health, exchange rate, debt relief and economic growth

Qualitative Assessment of Effects of Encroachment on Water Resources of Agba Dam, Ilorin Nigeria

The city of Ilorin in Nigeria has experienced high population growth and rapid urbanization. Agba Dam is one of the major sources of potable water in Ilorin, and currently been threatened by anthropogenic induced encroachment activities, with potential for significant derogatory effects on its quality. Therefore, this paper assesses the qualitative impact of encroachment on the water resources regime of Agba Dam, Ilorin, Nigeria. Field survey was carried out to scope proximal anthropogenic activities and to delineate historical and current extent of the encroachment area of the dam. Representative water samples were collected from locations within the dam catchment, and subsequently analyzed for alkalinity, dissolved carbondioxide, chloride, total iron, copper, sulphate, colour, calcium, dissolved oxygen and turbidity. In addition, historical physical and chemical data of water samples obtained from the dam were also acquired, and analyzed to determine temporal variation in the quality. The results show a reduction of 0.89 km2 or 63% in the historical buffer boundary of the dam. The values of the measured physico-chemical parameters were generally similar to that obtained for the historical values and therefore suggest limited impact of the anthropogenic activities on the water quality. However, slight increases were observed in the measured concentrations of the alkalinity, dissolved carbondioxide, chloride, iron, copper and sulphate, and this indicates possibilities of water quality alteration, with potential consequences for ecosystem and aquatic life if the trend is unabated. Keywords: Anthropogenic, Water quality, Agba dam, Ilorin Nigeri

Compositional study of vacuum annealed Al doped ZnO thin films obtained by RF magnetron sputtering

Aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin films were obtained by RF magnetron sputtering. The effects of deposition parameters such as power, gas flow conditions, and substrate heating have been studied. Deposited and annealed films were characterized for composition as well as microstructure using x ray photoelectron spectroscopy and x ray diffraction. Films produced were polycrystalline in nature. Surface imaging and roughness studies were carried out using SEM and AFM, respectively. Columnar grain growth was predominantly observed. Optical and electrical properties were evaluated for transparent conducting oxide applications. Processing conditions were optimized to obtain highly transparent AZO films with a low resistivity value of 6.67 x 10(-4) Omega cm

Review of Researches on Techno-Economic Analysis and Environmental Impact of Hybrid Energy Systems

Hybrid energy systems, which are combinations of two or more renewable and non-renewable energy sources, have been identified as a viable mechanism to address the limitations of a single renewable energy source, utilized for electricity generation. In view of this, several research works have been carried out to determine the optimal mix of different renewable and non-renewable energy resources used for electricity generation. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the optimization approaches proposed and adopted by various authors in the literature for optimal sizing of hybrid energy systems. It is observed that the objective functions - considered by a large percentage of researchers to optimize the sizing of hybrid energy systems - are cost minimization of the generated electricity, system reliability enhancement and environmental pollution reduction. Other factors covered in the literature are equally discussed in this article. Similarly, simulation and optimization software used for the same purpose are covered in the paper. In essence, the main aim of this paper is to provide a scope into the works that have been carried out in the field of hybrid energy systems, used for electricity generation with the view to informing researchers and members of the public alike, on trends in methods applied in optimal sizing of hybrid energy systems. It is believed that the information provided in this paper is very crucial in advancing research in the field

Potency of Arati-Obd+ Organic Fertilizer on Plant-Parasitic and Free-Living Nematodes in Peppermint (Mentha Piperita L.) Field

Peppermint (Mentha piperita L.) is one of the most economical aromatic and medicinal crops useful in pharmaceutical and agro-allied industries globally. It is among the neglected crops currently receiving attention by organic agriculture experts in Nigeria. In view of the potential threat Plant-Parasitic Nematodes (PPN) pose to the crop, a study was conducted to appraise the effects of Arati-OBD+ organic fertilizer in the control of associated phytonematodes in a field in Abeokuta. Responses of Free-Living Nematodes (FLN) to the organic fertilizer were also recorded. The fertilizer was applied at 0 tha-1, 5 tha-1 or 10 tha-1, laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications. Five core soil samples were collected randomly from the rhizosphere at depth of 0-30 cm, once every month for the period of three months per plot. Soil samples per plot were bulked to form a composite sample from which 250 g sub-samples were obtained and assayed for nematode presence, type and numbers of each found. Results indicated that 11 genera of PPN were found in the organic peppermint tested. They included Helicotylenchus, Rotylenchus, Rotylenchulus, Meloidogyne, Longidorus, Aphelenchus, Radopholus, Tylenchulus, Ditylenchus, Hoplolaimus, Pratylenchus and some free-living nematodes. These nematodes varied significantly (P 0.05) across treatments. Application of Arati-OBD+ at 5 tha-1 and 10 tha-1 significantly (P 0.05) suppressed PPN compared with untreated (control) plots. Ditylenchus, Tylenchulus, Meloidogyne, Radopholus and Aphelenchus decreased by up to 100% (total control), Helicotylenchus by 73 - 50% and Rotylenchus by 60 - 33% in the treated plots while the FLN increased by as much as 18 - 47% in the soil following application 5 – 10 tha-1

EQUITY RETURN AND CONSUMPTION IN NIGERIA (1999-2014)

This study examined the trend and pattern of equity return and private consumption in Nigeria between 1999 and 2014. The trend analysis of equity return and consumption showed that there was considerable fluctuation in equity return throughout the study period and which was as a result of trading activities in the stock market. The behaviour of asset prices affected equity and that the fluctuation in the market was attributed to a lot of factors like waning confidence of investors and impact of the global financial crises and economic meltdown, liberalisation of the market. The fluctuation of the growth rate of private consumption was also affected by the economic situation and global economic and financial crises in 2008, oil shock and various government policies put in place to encourage savings. Also, an increase in equity return will increase consumption while a decrease in equity return had little effect on consumption and the effects were not significant

Efficiency of Histidine Rich Protein II-Based Rapid Diagnostic Tests for Monitoring Malaria Transmission Intensities in an Endemic Area

In recent years there has been a global decrease in the prevalence of malaria due to scaling up of control measures, hence global control efforts now target elimination and eradication of the disease. However, a major problem associated with elimination is asymptomatic reservoir of infection especially in endemic areas. This study aims to determine the efficiency of histidine rich protein II (HRP-2) based rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) for monitoring transmission intensities in an endemic community in Nigeria during the pre-elimination stage. Plasmodium falciparum asymptomatic malaria infection in healthy individuals and symptomatic cases were detected using HRP-2. RDT negative tests were re-checked by microscopy and by primer specific PCR amplification of merozoite surface protein 2 (msp-2) for asexual parasites and Pfs25 gene for gametocytes in selected samples to detect low level parasitemia undetectable by microscopy. The mean age of the study population (n=280) was 6.12 years [95% CI 5.16 – 7.08, range 0.5 – 55], parasite prevalence was 44.6% and 36.3% by microscopy and RDT respectively (p =0.056). The parasite prevalence of 61.5% in children aged >2 – 10 years was significantly higher than 3.7% rate in adults >18years (p < 0.0001, χ2 = 60.45). RDT detected additional 29.6% asymptomatic cases but a lower specificity of 68.8% in symptomatic carriers. In 15 selected RDT positive samples, only 6 were positive by PCR and no gametocyte was detected. The results indicate that HRP-2 RDTs are a vital tool for understanding transmission dynamics and detecting immune-suppressed, recent and asymptomatic infections, thus crucial to tackle low level transmission and eliminating malaria in endemic areas

Assessing the low-cost buildings in Nigeria using Hydraform blocks as walling materials: the journey so far

Man’s growing desire for affordable and comfortable buildings have necessitated the diversification of materials and methods in the built sector. Thus, this paper assessed the hydraform blocks as walling materials to examine its current level of usage in the Nigerian built sector. Information was generated via literature reviews, newspapers, and professional perceptions. The findings revealed that despite the concerted feats of private developers in the use of hydraform blocks as walling materials for the low-cost building construction in Nigeria, efforts by the Federal Government has yielded limited success in this regard. Also, State Governments have not fared better. Therefore, this paper recommended and proffered solutions to bridge this gap

Impact of Gateway Organic Fertilizer on Herbivorous and Non-Parasitic Nematodes Associated with Telfairia Occidentalis Hook F. Field

Although fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis Hook F.) is cherished because of its nutritional, medicinal and industrial values, its profitable production and sustainability in agro-ecosystems is threatened by plant-parasitic nematodes. This study, therefore, tested the hypothesis that Gateway organic fertilizer can effectively suppress herbivorous nematodes while increasing the non-parasitic types. Gateway organic fertilizer (GOF) is one of the series of novel commercial fertilizers being utilized by organic farmers in South-western Nigeria. In this assessment, GOF was applied at the recommended rate of 5 tha-1. Application of 0 tha-1 served as the control. Treatments were laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design and replicated four times. Nematode identification, census and population analysis were conducted following extraction from soil collected from the field. Six cores were randomly taken per plot at 0-30 cm, bulked to obtain homogenous composite sample out of which 250 g sub sample was obtained for nematode extraction. The procedure was repeated once every month for three successive months. It was evident from the results that six (6) genera of herbivorous (plant-parasitic) nematodes were found associated with the fluted pumpkin, namely Rotylenchulus, Helicotylenchus, Hoplolaimus, Pratylenchus, Caloosia and Meloidogyne. Total riddance (100%) was observed in GOF-treated plots (P ≤ 0.05) compared to the control on herbivorous nematodes except for Helicotylenchus (100-36%). On the contrary the non-parasitic nematodes increased significantly (P ≤ 0.05) in the treated plots (from 0 to 10 and to 81). This work demonstrated that GOF caused fewer parasitic and greater populations of beneficial nematodes in fluted pumpkin