Oil rents and the tenure of the leaders in Africa

It is often underlined that African oil producing countries are politically unstable as a result of this natural resource. Based on the data relating to the duration in office of 101 heads of States exercises of power of 26 African countries (North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa), our study finds that: this instability does not appear in the executive branch of the state. Conversly, using survival analysis including non-parametric and parametric estimators, and controlling for many factors which affect the leader's tenure, our results suggest a positive link between oil rents and the duration in office of the leader. While other minerals rents do not appear to have the same effect. An interpretation of these results is that oil has a strategic aspect that other mining products do not have. Hence, no matter what the type of political regime is in country, the international community is tempted to exert fewer pressures for the change of the leader in an oil producing State.Duration models

Oil rents, governance quality, and the allocation of talents in developing countries

Evidence shows that the allocation of talented people is not neutral for growth. Thus, a country with a large population of law concentrators tends to develop rent-seeking activities that reduce growth. A country with a large population of engineers tends to foster innovation and strengthen growth. But what determines the allocation of talents? This question has not yet been empirically examined. This paper contributes to fill this gap. Based on a sample of 69 developing countries the paper highlights that oil rents determine the allocation of talents but this effect is not linear. It largely depends on the quality of governance. While, oil rents in well governed countries tend to orient talents towards productive activities, oil rents in badly governed countries tend to orient talents towards rent-seeking activities. These results are robust to different specifications, datasets on governance quality and estimation methods.Rent-seeking; occupational choice; oil rents

On the mobilization of domestic resources in oil countries: The role of historical factors

This paper investigates the sources of variability in the mobilization of domestic tax revenue in oil-producing countries. It argues that the type of natural resources exploited during colonial rule can affect the contemporary levels of domestic tax revenue in oil countries. We test this conjecture by regressing non-oil tax revenue on a proxy of extractive capacity, which is the distance between the date of the beginning of oil production and the date of a country's political independence. The results show that this proxy of extractive capacity positively affects the non-oil tax revenue of oil-producing countries, and these results are robust to various sensitivity checks. The persistence of the pre-existing extractive institutions as well as their subsequent privileged position explain why the elites have no interest in changing this scenario

Oil rents, governance quality, and the allocation of talents in developing countries

Evidence shows that the allocation of talented people is not neutral for growth. Thus, a country with a large population of law concentrators tends to develop rent-seeking activities that reduce growth. A country with a large population of engineers tends to foster innovation and strengthen growth. But what determines the allocation of talents? This question has not yet been empirically examined. This paper contributes to fill this gap. Based on a sample of 69 developing countries the paper highlights that oil rents determine the allocation of talents but this effect is not linear. It largely depends on the quality of governance. While, oil rents in well governed countries tend to orient talents towards productive activities, oil rents in badly governed countries tend to orient talents towards rent-seeking activities. These results are robust to different specifications, datasets on governance quality and estimation methods

Morphologie du quotidien, souffrance sociale et parcours individuels au Cameroun: la mort de Monique Koumatekel, un problème social ?

Le présent article part de “l’affaire Koumatekel” pour établir un lien entre les parcours individuels et la violence sociale à travers une réflexion critique sur la quotidienneté au Cameroun. Ce drame renvoie à la mort de Monique Koumatekel, une jeune femme enceinte qui meurt dans l’enceinte de l’hôpital Laquintinie de la ville de Douala devant un personnel médical indifférent. Pour sauver les deux foetus qu’elle portait, sa nièce effectue une chirurgie postpartum en plein air. Une image qui fera le tour de la toile et les choux gras de la presse tant locale qu’internationale. Au-delà du buzz qu’elle a provoqué et la mobilisation politique et sociale qu’elle a suscitée, cette mort s’est révélée comme un moment de vérité pour le peuple camerounais. Car la trajectoire thérapeutique et sociale de Monique retrace le parcours d’un quotidien informé, au niveau individuel par les logiques de la survie et au niveau social par celles de l’exclusion socioéconomique. La souffrance sociale, qui détermine les parcours individuels, est le produit de la violence structurelle. Le dysfonctionnement du système de santé camerounais, devant lequel Koumatekel a buté, n’est rien qu’autre que le reflet du dysfonctionnement de l’ensemble du système social.Mots-clés: Souffrance sociale, mobilisation politique, logique de survie, système de santé, CamerounEnglish AbstractThis paper starts with the “Koumatekel drama” and establishes a link between individual trajectories and social suffering through a critical reflection on everyday life in Cameroon. This drama refers to the personal experience of a young pregnant woman, Monique Koumatekel, who dies within the compound of a referral hospital in Douala in front of an indifferent medical staff. The niece of the deceased, in a desperate attempt to save the two fetuses, disembowels her. The image of Monica’s death body circumnavigated the web and the local and international press. This drama turned out to be a moment of truth for the entire Cameroonian society through the political and social mobilization it sparked. Beyond the buzz it provoked, this drama uncovers a deeper which is about how the therapeutic and social trajectory of Monique retraces the daily path of ordinary citizen; a path informed, at the individual level by survivals logics and, at the social level, by those of the socio-political exclusion. Social suffering, that frames individual trajectories, is the product of structural violence. Hence, the malfunctioning of the Cameroonian health system, that failed Koumatekel, is nothing other than the reflection of the dysfunction of the entire social system.Keywords: Social suffering, political mobilization, survival logic, health system, Cameroo

Endoscopic Papillary Balloon Dilation and Extraction of Bile Duct Stone

AbstractEndoscopic therapy is the first-line treatment for patients with common bile duct stones. Removing bile duct stones by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreaticography (ERCP) requires enlarging the papillary opening, either by cutting the biliary sphincter with an endoscopic sphincterotomy or by endoscopic papillary balloon dilation. Dilation has the advantage of sphincter preservation and a lower risk of hemorrhage, but carries an increased risk of post-ERCP pancreatitis. Although popular in Asia, in the Western world this technique is therefore reserved for patients with a major risk of bleeding or difficult anatomy. Here the technique of balloon dilation of the papillary sphincter is demonstrated in a patient with cholangiosepsis and septic coagulopathy. This article is part of an expert video encyclopedia

Pouvoir discrétionnaire des acteurs de première ligne en contexte de développement : analyse des stratégies d'enseignants dans l'accessibilisation de l'éducation secondaire au Cameroun

Alors que les rapports, optimistes, sur l'évolution de l’éducation en Afrique se sont davantage intéressés jusqu’ici aux aspects quantitatifs, comptables et pédagogiques, cette thèse est plutôt centrée sur les facteurs humains et qualitatifs de l’accessibilisation de l’éducation secondaire au Cameroun. Au moment où l'éducation secondaire commence à faire l'objet de plus de vulgarisation et de reconnaissance de la part des États africains et des institutions internationales partenaires, il est opportun de se pencher sur la qualité de son offre. Aussi, par une exploration empirique de leurs perceptions, actions et interactions, nous tentons de saisir, de façon inductive, la portée de l’exercice du pouvoir discrétionnaire chez les enseignants fonctionnaires du secondaire public, les facteurs qui le pré-structurent et ses répercussions sur le processus d’accessibilisation de ce niveau d’éducation en zone rurale notamment. Le contexte rural de pays en développement offre un cadre d’analyse assez particulier de politiques publiques, à cause des conditions de vie et de travail inhabituelles, ainsi que de l’éloignement des centres de décision. Nous voulons connaître les facteurs qui influencent le travail de ces enseignants, comment ils y font face et ce que cela change dans la réalisation des objectifs visés par la politique concernée. Pour ce faire, nous avons parcouru de nombreux documents ayant trait à l'organisation et au fonctionnement de l'éducation au Cameroun, et réalisé une quarantaine d'entrevues semi-dirigées, avec des enseignants fonctionnaires, hommes et femmes, jeunes et anciens confondus et travaillant en zone rurale. Cette recherche contribue à enrichir le bagage théorique en analyse des politiques publiques en campant la nature des stratégies des acteurs de première ligne dans la zone rurale de pays francophones d'Afrique subsaharienne, avec une structure politico-administrative assez centralisée, du moins en ce qui concerne le secteur de l'éducation secondaire. Elle dévoile également des dysfonctionnements pratiques en termes de mobilisation des ressources, humaines surtout, et ouvre par le fait même, des avenues pour un meilleur encadrement administratif, éthique et managérial des ressources affectées à l’éducation, en vue d'une meilleure gestion du pouvoir discrétionnaire des acteurs de base dans ce contexte particulier

Prevalence and phenotypic features of polycystic ovary syndrome among patients attending gynaecology clinic in two referral hospitals in Yaoundé, Cameroon

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common gynaecological endocrine disease in women at reproductive age. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and phenotypes of PCOS among women attending gynecology clinic at the two referral hospitals in Yaoundé.Methods: It was a cross sectional retrospective study involving women attending the gynecology clinic of two referral hospitals in Yaoundé, Cameroon from January 2016 to March 2018. The socio-demographic information, clinical and laboratory characteristics of each patient were collected from the medical files.Results: A total of 143 patients diagnosed with PCOS were included. The prevalence of PCOS was estimated at 3.5%. The mean age of patients was 29.18±4.5 years with a range of 17 to 41 years. Most patients were either overweight (31.7%) or obese (43%) and 0.7% patients were underweight. The most frequent presentations of PCOS patients were infertility (74.1%), oligomenorrhea/amenorrhea (68.5%), hirsutism (62,9%) and acne (20.3%). The different phenotypes represented were classical phenotype A: 69% (99/143), phenotype B: 17% (24/143), phenotype C: 09% (13/143) and phenotype D: 05% (07/143). Medical treatment (76.9%) and general measures (23.1%) were the most frequent therapeutic options among PCOS patients. In vitro fertilization (08.4%) and surgical drilling (07%) was also used.Conclusions: Prevalence of PCOS in our setting is 3.5%. The classical phenotype A is the most common. It is important to think about PCOS in women attending gynecology clinic

Numerical modelling of transient gas-liquid flows (application to stratified & slug flow regimes)

A new methodology was developed for the numerical simulation of transient two-phase flow in pipes. The method combines high-resolution numerical solvers and adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) techniques, and can achieve an order of magnitude improvement in computational time compared to solvers using conventional uniform grids. After a thorough analysis of the mathematical models used to describe the complex behaviour of two-phase flows, the methodology was used with three specific models in order to evaluate the robustness and accuracy of the numerical schemes developed, and to assess the ability of these models to predict two physical flow regimes, namely stratified and slug flows. The first stage of the validation work was to examine the physical correlations required for an accurate modelling of the stratified smooth and wavy flow patterns, and a new combination of existing correlations for the wall and interfacial friction factors was suggested in order to properly predict the flow features of the experimental transient case investigated. The second and final phase of the work dealt with the complex and multi-dimensional nature of slug flow. This flow regime remains a major and expensive headache for oil producers, due to its unsteady nature and high-pressure drop. The irregular flow results in poor oil/water separation, limits production and can cause flaring. The modelling approached that was adopted here is based on the two-fluid model, which can theoretically follows each formed slug and predicts its evolution, growth and decay, as it moves along the pipe. However, the slug flow study, performed here through a test case above the Inviscid Kelvin-Helmholtz transition from stratified to slug flow, showed that the incompressible two-fluid model used is unable to accurately predict most of the features of this complex flow. Mechanisms such as the interfacial wave formation, the slug growth and propagation, although observed from the simulations, cannot be accurately determined by the model.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

EFFECTIVENESS OF MARKETING-MIX STRATEGIES ON CUSTOMERS OF FITNESS ESTABLISHMENTS. PILOT AND PRELIMINARY STUDY IN THE CITY OF YAOUNDE (CAMEROON)

The rise of concerns related to maintaining the health of populations through the regular practice of physical and sports activity is at the origin of a meteoric proliferation that has tipped fitness establishments into an increasingly competitive field rougher in major Cameroonian urban centers. In this context, the development of strategies to capture and retain customers is essential for the promoters of said establishments. This pilot and preliminary study aims to analyze the effectiveness of the marketing-mix strategies on the clientele of fitness establishments in the city of Yaoundé. To achieve this, a qualitative case study approach was favored, and semi- structured interviews were conducted with participants sampled randomly in 7 cases. The qualitative analysis of the adopted marketing-mix policies was carried out using Sphinx IQ software. I n addition to the availability of fitness seekers to pay when they are satisfied with the services offered to them, the results show that a cross between pull and push strategies, an increase in the number of rooms available 24 hours a day, as well as a product offer corresponding to expectations have a positive impact on attracting and retaining customers. Thus, by making it possible to understand the strategic aspects on which fitness establishments will have to rely in order to be more competitive, these preliminary results mark out avenues for reflection on applications of the marketing-mix in a new economic sector and in boom in fitness in Cameroon