Has Privatization of Public Owned Enterprises Improved the Quality of Workers in Tanzania: a Case of Swiss Port (T) Limited

The study was conducted at Swissport offices located in Arusha and Dar es Salaam cities. The was carried out so as to establish whether privatization resulted into improvement of quality of work life among employees in privatized institutions using Swiss port as a case study. The study used more of qualitative approach was employed during the study. Findings indicate that there was a positive perception towards privatization of the public owned enterprises. The process led to formation of new management which employed new management styles that motivated employee to be efficient at workplace, provision of motivation such as high salaries, overtime payments, annual salary increase, payment of honoraria and payments of transport allowances. Recommendations were drawn to Swissport to extend her services to other areas such as harbours. Other privatized public enterprises had to adopt the Swissport’s salary scale, types of motivation provided to employees management styles and the reward system. Keywords: SWISSPORT, public owned enterprise, privatization, quality of workers, participatio

The Root Causes of the Girl Prostitution in Tanzania. A Case of Arusha Municipality

Abject Poverty has been an impetus of girl child prostitution in many urban cities of Tanzania, Arusha Municipality being among them. In a research conducted in Arusha Municipality between January and July 2011, with the aim of investigating the main causes of persistence of girl child prostitution, a sample of 200 respondents was selected, whereby 100 young girls were involved in an indepth interview while another sample of 100 respondents drawn from different stakeholders was included in focus group discussions and other research methods utilized in the study. From the research it was discovered that about 80% of the girls interviewed were forced into prostitution by either their poor family situation or by other reasons like peer pressure, culture, parent lack of responsibility reasons, lack of employment, growth of the city and globalization. However, the study found out that the girls in prostitution face a lot of social, physical, psychological and health problems which require more actions from all stakeholders despite the little efforts currently done. It is thus from this study that the research team recommends that all stakeholder should join forces in enforcing laws and by laws which protect these young girls from the hands of cruel customers, pedophiles and pimps. Apart from that the research team emphasizes on the importance of counseling and sex education to the girls who lack self esteem and are hopeless without any skills to help them out of that situation. Key words: Abject poverty, education, drug abuse, violence, globalizatio

Investigating impediments towards access to financial services by women entrepreneurs: A Case of Arumeru District

Lack of finance has been mentioned as a major reason which tends to paralyse women MSE’s in Tanzania and in Arumeru district in particular. In investigating this situation, a field research was conducted in Arumeru District between January and July 2012, with the aim of identifying microfinance institutions operating in the district and investigating the main challenges facing women (micro and small entrepreneurs) in accessing financial services. A sample of 150 respondents was selected, whereby 100 women entrepreneurs were involved in an interview and focus group discussion and while another sample of 50 respondents drawn from different stakeholders was included in focus group discussions and other research methods utilized in the study. From the research it was discovered that women face a lot of challenges including discrimination by the institutions, small loan sizes, strict unfavourable conditions, lack of collateral and property rights, high interest rates, lack of financial confidence and presence of cultural norms which stereotype against women in accessing and controlling any financial means. It is from these challenges that the study recommends to the financial institution to redesign their products to suit their clients’ needs and the government to re-evaluate the interest rate charged by the financial institution to be fair according to the level of the enterprise the client owns. Key words: entrepreneurship, financial services, gender, women

Nutrition in aneurysm clipping

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a serious clinical event associated with high mortality and, among survivors, serious morbidity. Maintaining the muscle volume in SAH patients is essential, as rehabilitation is often required after intensive care. In this study, we investigated whether proper nutritional administration improved clinical outcomes based on patients laboratory data and level of activities of daily living. This retrospective study was carried out on 250 consecutive SAH patients who underwent craniotomy within 72 hours of onset from February 2005 to June 2018. Finally, 75 patients with a BMI < 22 kg / m2 were included. We compared postoperative energy and protein intake in relation to measures of biochemical parameters and modified Rankin Scale at discharge. Serum Alb concentrations at 25-35 hospital days was significantly improved by postoperative energy intake of ≥ 25 kcal / kg and protein intake of ≥ 0.8 g / kg per day beginning 3 days. High serum Alb concentrations at 25-35 hospital days following the start of this intake were independent factors for good prognosis. This study suggests that the minimum postoperative nutritional intake per day for SAH patients undergoing aneurysmal clipping is 25 kcal / kg of energy and 0.8 g / kg of protein. Higher serum Alb concentrations corresponded to improved long-term functional outcome

Control of immunity and allergy by steroid hormones

Steroid hormones, especially glucocorticoids, androgens, and estrogens, have profound influence on immunity. Recent studies using cell-type specific steroid hormone receptor-deficient mice have revealed the precise roles of some of these hormones in the immune system. Glucocorticoids are known to have strong anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects and pleiotropic effects on innate and adaptive immune responses. They suppress the production of inflammatory cytokines by macrophages and DCs and the production of IFN-γ by NK cells, thus inhibiting innate immunity. By contrast, glucocorticoids enhance the immune response by inducing the expression of IL-7R and CXCR4 in T cells and the accumulation of T cells in lymphoid organs in accordance with the diurnal change of the glucocorticoid concentration. Thus, glucocorticoids suppress innate immunity but enhance adaptive immunity. Androgens suppress the homeostasis and activation of ILC2s and the differentiation of Th2 and Th17 cells and enhance the suppressive function of Tregs, thereby alleviating allergic airway inflammation. Thus, these steroid hormones have pleiotropic functions in the immune system. Further investigations are awaited on the regulation of immunity and allergy by estrogens using cell-specific steroid hormone receptor-deficient mice

RNA elements directing in vivo assembly of the 7SK/MePCE/Larp7 transcriptional regulatory snRNP

Through controlling the nuclear level of active positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb), the 7SK small nuclear RNA (snRNA) functions as a key regulator of RNA polymerase II transcription. Together with hexamethylene bisacetamide-inducible proteins 1/2 (HEXIM1/2), the 7SK snRNA sequesters P-TEFb into transcriptionally inactive ribonucleoprotein (RNP). In response to transcriptional stimulation, the 7SK/HEXIM/P-TEFb RNP releases P-TEFb to promote polymerase II-mediated messenger RNA synthesis. Besides transiently associating with HEXIM1/2 and P-TEFb, the 7SK snRNA stably interacts with the La-related protein 7 (Larp7) and the methylphosphate capping enzyme (MePCE). In this study, we used in vivo RNA-protein interaction assays to determine the sequence and structural elements of human 7SK snRNA directing assembly of the 7SK/MePCE/Larp7 core snRNP. MePCE interacts with the short 5'-terminal G1-U4/U106-G111 helix-tail motif and Larp7 binds to the 3'-terminal hairpin and the following U-rich tail of 7SK. The overall RNA structure and some particular nucleotides provide the information for specific binding of MePCE and Larp7. We also demonstrate that binding of Larp7 to 7SK is a prerequisite for in vivo recruitment of P-TEFb, indicating that besides providing stability for 7SK, Larp7 directly participates in P-TEFb regulation. Our results provide further explanation for the frequently observed link between Larp7 mutations and cancer development

Girl Trafficking: Causes, Experiences and Challenges encountered A case of Arusha Municipality

Persistence of human trafficking in Tanzania is reported to be exacerbated by many factors including patriarchal systems, poverty, peer influences, job opportunities and availability of social services to mention a few. Deprivation of capabilities however, has been thought to catalyze the situation more as compared to others. In a research conducted in Arusha Municipality involving girls who are victims of human trafficking and other stakeholders;  it was found out that destitution of rural families, forced marriages, peer influences, broken families and gender based violence were among the root causes which rendered these young girls become preys to traffickers.  Further the study found out that these young girls faced a lot of challenges including being overworked and being unpaid, being tortured physically and sometimes emotionally. Complementing these challenges the girls lamented on sexual abuse and even disease which they encounter. In combating the situation the study recommends more drastic measures to the Government and other stakeholders including increasing awareness in Human Trafficking to the general public and encourages victims to report the cases. Additionally it recommends that children who are most vulnerable and at high risk of being trafficked be checked regularly and if possible be supplied with the basic needs. Key words: Gender based violence, Human trafficking, Poverty, Trafficking in childre

Archaean Gold Mineralization in an Extensional Setting: The Structural History of the Kukuluma and Matandani Deposits, Geita Greenstone Belt, Tanzania

Three major gold deposits, Matandani, Kukuluma, and Area 3, host several million ouncez (Moz) of gold, along a ~5 km long, WNW trend in the E part of the Geita Greenstone Belt, NW Tanzania. The deposits are hosted in Archaean volcanoclastic sediment and intrusive diorite. The geological evolution of the deposits involved three separate stages: (1) an early stage of syn-sedimentary extensional deformation (D1) around 2715 Ma; (2) a second stage involving overprinting ductile folding (D2–4) and shearing (D5–6) events during N-S compression between 2700 and 2665 Ma, coeval with the emplacement of the Kukuluma Intrusive Complex; and (3) a final stage of extensional deformation (D7) accommodated by minor, broadly east-trending normal faults, preceded by the intrusion of felsic porphyritic dykes at ~2650 Ma. The geometry of the ore bodies at Kukuluma and Matandani is controlled by the distribution of magnetite-rich meta-ironstone, near the margins of monzonite-diorite bodies of the Kukuluma Intrusive Complex. The lithological contacts acted as redox boundaries, where high-grade mineralization was enhanced in damage zones with higher permeability, including syn-D3 hydrothermal breccia, D2–D3 fold hinges, and D6 shears. The actual mineralizing event was syn-D7, and occurred in an extensional setting that facilitated the infiltration of mineralizing fluids. Thus, whilst gold mineralization is late-tectonic, ore zone geometries are linked to older structures and lithological boundaries that formed before gold was introduced. The deformation-intrusive history of the Kukuluma and Matandani deposits is near identical to the geological history of the world-class Nyankanga and Geita Hill deposits in the central part of the Geita Greenstone Belt. This similarity suggests that the geological history of much of the greenstone belt is similar. All major gold deposits in the Geita Greenstone Belt lack close proximity to crustal-scale shear zones; they are associated with intrusive complexes and volcanics that formed in an oceanic plateau rather than subduction setting, and formed late-tectonically during an extensional phase. They are not characteristic of typical orogenic gold deposits

UM ESTUDO DA RELAÇÃO ENTRE VIOLÊNCIA PSICOLÓGICA E AUTOESTIMA

A violência psicológica cometidas por parceiros íntimos têm sido pouco investigada e as informações são imprecisas. Um hipótese é que quando a violência psicológica é constante, prejudica a formação da boa autoestima Dessa forma, o presente estudo tem como objetivo verificar a relação entre esses dois temas: violência psicológica e autoestima. A violência psicológica foi avaliada através de cinco perguntas do WHO VAW STUDY (2010) e a autoestima foi verificada pela Escala de Autoestima de Rosenberg. Tais instrumentos foram aplicados em 26 mulheres. Em relação à análise dos dados, foi realizado o teste de correlação de Spearman para verificar a correlação entre a autoestima e a violência psicológica. A partir do coeficiente de correlação de Spearman, foi encontrado associação entre os escores da autoestima e os escores da violência psicológica (p &lt; 0,001). Os resultados e discussões apresentados nesse estudo sustentam a associação entre a violência psicológica e a autoestima