Business-to-consumer e-commerce in Nigeria: Prospects and challenges

The growth of Internet usage in Nigeria continues to increase, recording over 90% growth rate between 2000 and 2008. While businesses in Nigeria are reported to have online access with opportunity for ecommercial activities, customers in the country however access business websites only to source for information but make purchases the traditional way. This paper aims at assessing the prospects and challenges of Business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce implementation in Nigeria from the consumers’ perspective. Survey research was adopted for this study. Research hypotheses were formulated and questionnaire designed and administered randomly to 900 respondents. Collected data was used to evaluate the acceptance of B2C e-commerce using the extended technology acceptance model (TAM). The extended TAM combines task-technology fit, relationship related construct: trust and risk, and the two TAM constructs to determine factors influencing consumer acceptance of B2C e-commerce in Nigeria. Findings revealed that there are significant relationships between the model variables. Tasktechnology fit and perceived usefulness have significant relationships with intentions to use, having a correlation coefficient of 0.2623 and 0.2002 respectively. Similarly, the interrelationship among trust, perceived risk, and behavioral intention are significant. The effect of risk on trust was statistically showing that risk is a predictor of trust. Risk has a high significant on trust and trust in turn has low significant effect on behavioral intention. Adding TTF and its relationships to the TAM also fit the data. The relationship between task-technology fit, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness and intention are significant

The State of e-Banking Implementation in Nigeria: A Post-Consolidation Review

The most widely used e-Banking instrument in �igeria is e-Payment, particularly the automatic teller machine (ATM) card. However, with the adoption of e-Banking by all the banks in �igeria, the volume of cash in circulation has continued to increase pre-and-post bank recapitalization/consolidation exercise. Furthermore, some of the 25 banks that survived the exercise were found lately to have depleted their capital base and have lost credibility before the consumers, e-Banking implementation notwithstanding. Therefore, in this paper, we review the state of e-Banking implementation in �igeria and evaluate the influence of trust on the adoption of e-Payment using an extended technology acceptance model (TAM). Similarly, we investigate organizational reputation, perceived risk and perceived trust in the management of banks as a factor for enhancing customer loyalty. The findings in this work reveal that perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness are not only antecedent to ebanking acceptance, they are also factors to retain customers to the use of e-banking system such as organizational reputation, perceived risk and trust

Rancang Bangun Sistem Informasi Obyek Wisata Berbasis Web Menggunakan Metode User Centered Design (Ucd)

The development of today's technology has been developing very rapidly and carry a very big change because with the technology information can be obtained quickly, accurately and not limited by time and place. One o f the growing sectors in technology development is in the field of tourism which contributes to distribute information about the attractions more interactive, especially through Internet technology. Yogyakarta has a variety of tourist attractions that are so beautiful, but not many people know the various tourist attractions in the area. Information on tourist places will be known if given a forum to exchange information on the matter in the form of a website. In order to generate tourism website in accordance with the wishes of users, the necessary methods of User Centered Design (UCD) based to the user. It is intended to provide information for tourists so it will be easier to plan excursions according to what they want without hesitation choose the desired attraction. Tourism information system was built using PHP as a programming language and MySQL as a database manager. This information system design using the UCD that engage users by providing input in the form of a questionnaire. This information system contains the profiles sights, means of transportation used and distance traveled. Other facilities that can be enjoyed for information about travel agents who can serve a trip out of town, and the inn (hotel). To implement this system needs the previous test program testing and system testing and then be evaluated. The information system created is a system that is capable of displaying objects on the map and provide information on the map if the object is selected, the user can view more detailed position of an object to be searched. For site owners can perform additional object data without having to perform the construction site from scratch, in this case both the data on a map or information. By making this system the objects displayed on the map always updates that facilitate and assist the user in doing excursions in Yogyakarta

A FRAMEWORK FOR MOBILE HEALTH CARE DELIVERY IN DEVELOPING NATIONS: A CASE STUDY OF NIGERIA

Health systems in developing nation especially low and low-middle income countries is characterised with numerous challenges which ranges from inefficient health information system, poor health delivery system, mortality and morbidity rate of disease and ailments, inadequate health manpower etc. The growth of ICT especially in developing nations has been on the increase bringing about a lot of invention amongst which mobile technology is one. Mobile technology as a significant ICT tool has the ability of penetrating into both the urban and rural areas and bringing about disruptive changes and development. The impact of technology has being seen in health system to bring across innovative inventions like telemedicine, telehealth, e- health, m-health and has provided solutions to diverse health challenges. This paper presents a mobile health (m-health) framework for providing promising sustainable healthcare services and health related information in developing countries using supporting technologies & tools support based on availability, ease to access, and affordability

PERFORMANCE AND CARCASS CHARACTERISTICS OF FINISHING BROILERS FED DIETS SUPPLEMENTED WITH COMBINATION OF PROBIOTICS (B. cereus) AND PREBIOTICS (MANNOSE [MOS])

The experiment aimed to investigate effect of combination of probiotics and prebiotics on the performance and carcass characteristics of broilers at finishing phase. A total number of 300 day-old Anak broiler chicks were used to determine the response of broiler chicks to diets supplemented with probiotics (Bacillus cereus) and prebiotics (Mannose). The chicks were randomly allotted to four treatment groups of 75 birds with 25 birds per replicate in a completely randomized design. The four dietary treatments comprised 500ppm MOS; 250ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS; 500ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS and 750ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS, respectively. Results showed that feed conversion ratio decreased significantly (P< 0.05) from 1.21 for groups fed det supplemented with 250ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS to 1.05 for groups fed with 750ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS  as more prebiotics were added to the probiotics. Final live weight, eviscerated weight and dressing percentage were significantly (p<0.05) influenced by combination of probiotics and prebiotics in finishing broilers. Final live weight values ranged from 2453.30g in birds fed 250ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS  to 2488.30g in birds fed 750ppm B. cereus  + 500ppm MOS, while eviscerated weight ranged from 1063.30g at 500ppm MOS to 1396.70g  at 750ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS. The same trend was observed for dressing percentage, neck, whole gizzard and liver. It was concluded that combination of probitics and prebiotics at 750ppm B. cereus + 500ppm MOS had positive effect on growth performance and carcass qualities of broilers at finishing phase. &nbsp

Power Supply Options and Suitability Assessment for Remote Oil and Gas Production Installations

This paper is aimed at analyzing the possible power options and configurations for remote locations in the oil and gas industry with the view of proposing a cost effect power supply option suitable for the different operational requirements at these remote locations. It reviews the different power options available and presents selection criteria for the optimum choice of power generation technology, transmission links and the generation topology. The extremely high reliability and availability requirement of power supply at oil and gas production installations, the remote nature of these locations and the high power requirements of these sites make it mandatory for the power supply system to be able to deliver power to remote locations with the required reliability and availability, minimal maintenance and high mean time between failures in a cost effective manner. Different power generation options and topologies were reviewed and the use of renewable energy sources was also considered. The combined cycle gas turbine due to its high capacity, high reliability, reduced footprint and maintenance cost, configured in a distributed generation topology was found to be the optimum option

IoT Enabled Real-Time Fishpond Management System

The infrastructure requirement for setting up catfish farms include, a source of clean water, an avenue for discharging the waste water and reliable water containment systems. The challenges faced by the operators of these fish ponds include the need for regular feeding of the fish, monitoring of the water quality and the changing of the water when the quality becomes unhealthy for the fish. This work presents an Internet of Things based approach for automating the management of the farms and enabling remote monitoring and management of the ponds. The system comprise of a pond controller which uses appropriate sensors to monitor the water quality of the pond. A CCTV records the activities around the pond and stores them in a cloud location. The Pond controller manages the automatic feeding system of the fish and the water control system for the pond. The system is also designed with capacity for remote operation through a specially designed mobile application which accesses the CCTV files and also controls the operation of the pond controller. This system will enable the management of one or more fish ponds from one mobile device, it will reduce the costs associated with managing the fish farms and improve quality of their yield

The impact of adjusting for baseline in pharmacogenomic genome-wide association studies of quantitative change.

In pharmacogenomic studies of quantitative change, any association between genetic variants and the pretreatment (baseline) measurement can bias the estimate of effect between those variants and drug response. A putative solution is to adjust for baseline. We conducted a series of genome-wide association studies (GWASs) for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) response to statin therapy in 34,874 participants of the Genetic Epidemiology Research on Adult Health and Aging (GERA) cohort as a case study to investigate the impact of baseline adjustment on results generated from pharmacogenomic studies of quantitative change. Across phenotypes of statin-induced LDL-C change, baseline adjustment identified variants from six loci meeting genome-wide significance (SORT/CELSR2/PSRC1, LPA, SLCO1B1, APOE, APOB, and SMARCA4/LDLR). In contrast, baseline-unadjusted analyses yielded variants from three loci meeting the criteria for genome-wide significance (LPA, APOE, and SLCO1B1). A genome-wide heterogeneity test of baseline versus statin on-treatment LDL-C levels was performed as the definitive test for the true effect of genetic variants on statin-induced LDL-C change. These findings were generally consistent with the models not adjusting for baseline signifying that genome-wide significant hits generated only from baseline-adjusted analyses (SORT/CELSR2/PSRC1, APOB, SMARCA4/LDLR) were likely biased. We then comprehensively reviewed published GWASs of drug-induced quantitative change and discovered that more than half (59%) inappropriately adjusted for baseline. Altogether, we demonstrate that (1) baseline adjustment introduces bias in pharmacogenomic studies of quantitative change and (2) this erroneous methodology is highly prevalent. We conclude that it is critical to avoid this common statistical approach in future pharmacogenomic studies of quantitative change

Corporate Image: A Strategy for Enhancing Customer Loyalty and Profitability

Organizations are nowadays concerned with managing their corporate image. There is a strong positive correlation between people’s perceptions of a company and pro-corporate supportive behaviour. In this study, past researchers on corporate image were incorporated to create a platform for framework which identifies the variables of relationship between corporate image and customer loyalty cum profitability. The study utilized descriptive statistics, bivariate correlation and linear regression to investigate the impact of corporate image on customer loyalty and profitability within the Nigerian service industry (banking). The study adopted the research instrument of self-structured questionnaire which was in line with the reviewed literature and focused on the main variables in the study. It was found in the model parameters that physical environment, service offering and customer loyalty have significant impact on the level of profitability. Thus, we can rightly conclude that the level of satisfaction among customers tends to affect the service offerings and customer loyalty which has a direct link with corporate profitability

Migrations and development policies in Nigeria.

The authors of this book chapter conclude that increased urbanization in Nigeria is a product of natural growth and migration. Rural-to-rural migration dominated during the colonial period. Independence was marked by rural-urban urban-urban and return migration streams. The authors posit that the problems of inadequate supplies of housing and clean water in urban centers led to overcrowding and the resulting urban social and health hazards. Urban in-migration was the cause of urban growth. The rural population structure was related to the availability of labor and food production. Rural development depended upon the availability of a resourceful willing and capable young population and reduced out-migration. Urban migrants increased the demand for educational services and strained existing resources. Rapid social changes have led to homelessness and changes in marriage and the family. Nigeria has a variety of climates and geography and abundant natural resources including oil. About 50% of the population is comprised of ethnic groups i.e. Hausa in the north Ibo in the southeast and the Yuroba in the west. During colonial periods large scale migration movements were fueled by social conflicts. Colonial practices increased the demand for labor in colonial agriculture and mining industries forced taxation on the adult population and produced a wage earning labor force. Traditional forms of social organization based on kinship and political or tribal rights were substituted with the European mode of social organization. The colonial regime created new urban centers and a population shift to developing areas in the north