DOES WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT AFFECT THE PROFITABILITY OF CONSUMER GOODS MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN NIGERIA?

The study examined the effect of working capital management on profitability of consumer goods manufacturing firms in Nigeria between the periods 2009 to 2018. The study adopted ex-post-facto design to generate data from the audited financial statements of the selected companies. The population of the study comprised 24 listed consumer goods manufacturing companies, out of which 10 were purposively selected based on the availability of data. The surrogates for independent variables were Account Payable Period (APP), Account Receivable Period (ARP), Inventory Turnover Period (INVTP), Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) and Sales Growth (SG) as a control variable while the proxy for profitability was Return on Asset (ROA). Descriptive and inferential statistics coupled with multiple regressions were adopted to analyze the data.  The Random Effects Generalized Least Square showed that ARP, INVTP, CCC had a negative and significant relationship with ROA while APP, SG had a positive and insignificant relationship with ROA. The study concluded that timely collection of debts and shorter inventory turnover period with cash conversion cycle enhance profitability of consumer goods manufacturing companies. Hence, the study suggested that the management of the companies should implement efficient working capital management for improved profitability.   &nbsp

COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF GENOTYPING AND CULTURE-BASED TECHNIQUES FOR FUNGAL KERATITIS DETECTION

The study aims to compare the direct polymerase chain reaction with microbial culture for the detection and fungal pathogens in infectious keratitis.  A total of 81 corneal ulcers were culture and analyzed prospectively. PCR was performed with all corneal scrapping with fungal and bacteria specific primers. PCR products were analysed and compared with the culture results using standard methods. Of the 81 samples, 80 were positive by PCR, 51 for fungi and 29 for bacteria. Out of 51 PCR positive samples, 22 samples were culture positive and 29 were culture negative. The majority of PCR genotyped samples matched the positive culture results. The positive detection rate of 80/81 (98.8%) with high suspicion of fungal keratitis and positive detection rate of direct PCR 50/51(98.0%) were observed. The sensitivities for the diagnosis of fungal keratitis with direct PCR and culture were 98.0% (50/51) and 43.1% (22/51) (p< 0.001) whereas the specificities were 100.0% (2/2) and 100.0% (1/1) respectively. The time required to complete the direct PCR was only 3 hours. The direct PCR assay is a rapid diagnostic technique with high sensitivity and specificity for infectious keratitis and it is expected to have impact on the diagnosis and treatment of infectious keratitis. &nbsp

Geoelectric Delineation of Aquifer Pattern in Crystalline Bedrock

Groundwater is ubiquitous and immensely important for human uses but there is inadequate supply especially in the basement complex terrain as most boreholes are either abortive or can’t yield sustainable water to wells. This research tends to delineate into the subsurface in order to understand the aquifer pattern in Ogbagba area. A geophysical survey involving twelve vertical electrical sounding (VES) was carried out at some selected locations in Ogbagba. Resistivity meter was used to acquire the geophysical field data. Conventional partial curve matching and WinResist software was used for the data processing. 75% of the aquifers in the study area are confined aquifers while the remaining 25% are unconfined aquifers. Also, three probable aquifer units were delineated where clayey sand has 75%, sandy clay constitutes 16.7% and fractured bedrock shares the remaining 8.3%. The study revealed that insufficiency of groundwater exploitation in the study area is due to the geologic formation of the aquifers and the depth to which groundwater is been abstracted. If these mistakes are corrected, Ogbagba will henceforth start to enjoy groundwater exploitation adequatel

Incidence and reasons for leave against medical advice among orthopedic and trauma patients at the university college hospital Ibadan

Background: Leave against medical advice (LAMA) of hospitalized patients is an adverse clinical event in which a patient chooses to leave the hospital before it is medically advisable to do so and it negatively affects the treatment outcome. Because of this, the study was designed to determine the incidence of and indications for LAMA among orthopedic patients who presented at the accident and emergency department of the university college hospital, Ibadan.Methods: This was a prospective hospital-based study determining the incidence of LAMA among orthopedic patients who presented at the accident and emergency department of the university college hospital, Ibadan between September 2019 and March 2020.Results: A total of 289 patients with orthopedic conditions presented within the study period and about 12.46% of these LAMA. The male to female ratio observed in this study is 2:1. The age range was between 8 and 93 years. Trauma from motorbike and motor vehicle accidents accounted for over 80% of the etiology. The most important factor influencing LAMA is financial constraints (63.9%) and LAMA was signed mostly by the patients (25%).Conclusions: LAMA among orthopedic patients in Ibadan is mostly due to financial reasons, therefore, factors that will reduce the cost of management such as the accessibility to health insurance schemes will significantly reduce the incidence of LAMA among orthopedic patients in Nigeria.

Variations in the effects caused by magnetic field on chlorophyll, nitrogen, calcium, and iron contents in species of vegetable plants

The rates of reduction in chlorophyll and nutrients such as nitrogen, calcium and iron with the distance or range of source of Magnetic Field (MF) had not been considered. In this work, patterns of damage or reduction caused by a magnetic field on two different species of vegetables were studied. The first group was planted in an environment without the influence of MF, while the second group was subjected to high MF under the 330 kV electric lines. The magnetometer was used to measure the MF intensities. The chlorophyll content of each vegetable sample was determined on the field with a portable chlorophyll meter. The dried harvested samples of two different vegetable species were analyzed using an Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) to assess the concentrations of nitrogen (N), calcium (Ca), and iron (Fe) in the samples. Results of elemental concentrations were subjected to statistical analysis to appraise the relationships between the measured variables as responses to high MF. It was observed that the effects of high MF are stronger on spinach vegetable than Lagos spinach. This suggested that the effects of MF on plants are not only MF intensity dependent, but also species-dependent. Keywords: Magnetic field; Exposure; Regression analysis; Power transmission; Chlorophyll; Iro

Performance Evaluation of Sand-based Surface flow Constructed wetland in Domestic Wastewater Treatment using Typha Orientalis as Macrophyte

A laboratory-scale free water surface-flow constructed wetland was set up at the Department of Civil Engineering; Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) Ogbomoso, Nigeria in May 2013 to demonstrate the performance of sand- based constructed wetland, using Typha Orientalis as a viable low-cost efficient treatment option for domestic wastewater from kitchen. The nutrient removal and performance evaluation of the constructed wetland in treatment of kitchen wastewater against retention period of ten days was investigated. During the 10-day retention period, the sand- based constructed wetland set up with Typha Orientalis had improved the wastewater quality significantly as it had reduced 94.9% of Turbidity, BOD5 by 79.0%, NO-3 by 66.7%, 87.9% of SO-4 , 70.24% of Cl-, Conductivity by 70.8% and Magnesium by 80.62%. The pH value and Dissolve Oxygen increased by 28.3% and 64.01% respectively and the initial offensive odour of the raw water was no more noticeable. The final effluent was found to be suitable for non-drinking purposes like crop irrigation and keeping aquatic animals. However, it was noted that a 7- day detention time was optimal for the treatment of domestic wastewater from kitchen. The treatment system was found to be economical, as the cost of construction only was involved and maintenance cost very minimal. It was environmentally friendly as it was free from offensive odour and insect invasion. The prototype scale is recommended for in-situ use, especially for wastewater from kitchen. Keywords: Constructed wetland, Domestic wastewater, Nutrient removal, Retention period, Typha Orientalis

MEAT QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF IMPROVED INDIGENOUS CHICKENS (FUNAAB-ALPHA) FED TURMERIC (Curcuma longa) OR CLOVE (Syzygium aromaticum) AS FEED ADDITIVES

The experiment was conducted to investigate meat quality of improved indigenous chickens (FUNAAB alpha) fed diet containing turmeric (Curcuma longa) and clove (Syzigium aromaticum) powders. One hundred and thirty-five (135) mixed sexed day-old improved indigenous FUNAAB alpha chicks were brooded collectively for two weeks, and assigned into three (3) treatment groups. Each treatment was replicated three times, consisting of fifteen (15) birds. Feed and water were provided ad-libitum through the duration of experiment. The control group was fed the basal diet at starter and  finisher phases (T1), while the other groups were fed clove (Syzygium aromaticum) powder at 3 g/kg (T2) and turmeric (Curcuma longa) (T3) powder at 4 g/kg respectively as additives.   Data obtained were subjected to a One – Way Analysis of Variance in a Completely Randomised Design. Muscle obtained after evisceration was subjected to quality analysis. Proximate composition of meat obtained from chickens fed the basal diet had the highest (p<0.05) moisture content value of 75.45% compared to other treatments. Water absorptive capacity and cook loss of meat obtained from chickens fed 4 g/kg dietary turmeric showed (p<0.05) values of 3% and 16.4% respectively. Meat sensory properties analysed revealed (p<0.05) score in groups fed 3g/kg and 4 g/kg clove and turmeric powders respectively, for tenderness (6.14) and overall acceptability (7.19). Meanwhile (p<0.05) lipoprotein profile was observed in group fed 4 g/kg turmeric powder. Inclusion, turmeric and clove had beneficial effects on FUNAAB Alpha. &nbsp

Households Demand Analysis For Processed Fruits In Abeokuta Metropolis of Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract This study hypothesized that demand for for processed fruits is price inelastic i

EDUCATIONAL FACTORS AS DETERMINANT OF INTERNATIONAL RESERVES ACCUMULATION IN ORGANISATION OF PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES

There has been tepid growth of international reserves in OPEC economies despite huge chunks of oil revenue with high developmental needs. This study investigated the influence of educational factors using various levels of literacy in stimulating macroeconomic determinants of international reserves in OPEC member states with data between 2008 and 2018 obtained from World Bank Development Indicators across 15 member states. The study employed dynamic panel model and analysed the data using System of Generalised Method of Moment (SGMM). The findings show that educational levels, such as, adult, youth literacy, tertiary school and secondary school enrolment mitigate the adverse effect of exchange rate and stimulate the effect of crude oil prices while tertiary enrolment stimulate the effect of foreign direct investment and reduce the adverse effect of economic crises. In all, youth literacy was most impactful for these economies while economic crises were significantly positive at all levels as a primary determinant of international reserve accumulation. It was therefore concluded that educational enhance the economy to accumulate more reserves. The study recommended among others that national governments should ensure adequate funding is channelled to educational sector to improve the quality of education at institutions youth and secondary education levels in order to harness adequate knowledge and skills to enhance the efficiency of foreign investments