The Role of Governance in Sustainable Land Management Malawian Experiences

This article focusses on Sustainable land Management as a complex subject, that is highly dependent on governance structure and how effective they are, at all levels in government right down to the village level. Due to this requirement the governance issues plays the centre role especially the governance at the village level where it all happens. SLM encompasses issues like policies, land tenure issues, hence the need to use governance as an entry point. Although the governance at all levels is important the key is local governance which has gained the most significant role in solving the current situation in Malawi. It was approached from the revitalization and recognition of the traditional leadership ie the Village Headman, the Group Village Headmen, right through to the Traditional Authority. This is then blended with the Local Government structures ie the Village Development Committee, Area Development Committee with their sub-committees, of particular interest is the Village Natural Resources Management Committee (VNRMCs). This gave the local structure the legitimacy and confidence to effectively take control and management of the land and its natural resources. This was reinforced with the local by-laws that are linked and aligned to the District Council by-laws. This resulted in large significant areas coming under SLM.

Innovations Enhancing Sustainable Land Management

The in depth analysis of the root causes of land degradation in Malawi and the magnitude of the problem demanded that the solutions had to be innovative and creative. By and large the most significant driver to land degradation in the Shire River Basin has been the demand for an energy source especially for the fast growing urban areas. Hence the million dollar question was how to reduce the degradation while the energy demand is still growing unabated by the day. Green charcoal/sustainable charcoal production replacing the evil charcoal that has destroyed our forests was seen as one entry point. This was through the introducing and domesticating the efficient charcoal kilns couple with innovative wood harvesting techniques to suit the required charcoal sizes in the market . Getting the green charcoal acceptable and establishing a governance structure and marketing systems that is conducive to the farmer might be a bigger hurdle to jump. Introducing the green water credit scheme became a challenge both to the seller and the buyer of this God given resource. Using this Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) approach to mitigate for environmental degradation and disasters has changed the perception that natural resources are a free gift from god to be abused anyhow. Weather index based crop insurance applied as a measure of securing the food production system through the shifting of the weather risk factor from the farmer to an insurer became another key entry point.  This would help sustain livelihoods, increasing food security reduces the amount and types of coping mechanisms that impinge on the sustainable utilization and management of the land. The bottom line will be how innovative do we need to be to make the farmer live a more comfortable life in a more friendlier way to the environment. The SLM project continues to promote innovations in different ways because it believes this will ensure the present and the future for this country.

The Conflict Dimension of Environmental Degradation and the Case of Lesotho

This article highlights the consequences of conflicts on the environment and its management. Environmental conflicts fall under public disputes, which have been observed to be a result of human needs. This observation is based on the fact that environmental degradation is more a result of social conflicts than of bio-physical conditions, and hence eludes attempts to control it. Numerous international examples of conflicts that have resulted in environmental degradation are highlighted to reinforce this theory. The case for Lesotho’s environmental degradation is traced from a historic perspective to present day problems and their manifestations. It concludes by examining the experiences of the National Environmental Youth Corps (NEYC) project and the recognition for the first time of the conflict dimension to the environmental degradation. It reviews the mitigation measures put in place by this project and the first positive signs towards the solution of the environmental degradation that has ravaged this country for years. It closes by advocating the equipping of natural resource and land-use planners with conflict analysis skills if the environment is to be conserved effectively

Whose language is it anyway? Students’ sense of belonging and role of English for Higher Education in the multilingual, South African context

The current decolonial commitments in Higher Education necessitate a need to deepen our understanding of the relationship between English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) and students’ sense of belonging, their identity, and epistemological access. This article investigates how EMI influences students’ personal and academic identities as well as their sense of belonging to the higher education space. Using student focus groups, this study is exploratory in nature and informed by the voices of undergraduate and postgraduate Humanities students at a South African university in the Free State. The responses were mixed, but there was general consensus that although English does have a place in higher education and can contribute to their sense of belonging, it also has an adverse effect on their identity; the use of indigenous languages provides them with greater epistemological access. A differentiated approach to multilingualism is a possible way forward

EVALUATING THE RELATIVE CONTRIBUTION OF CHANGING FARMING METHODS TO HABITAT LOSS IN THE MID-ZAMBEZI VALLEY, ZIMBABWE

Agriculture expansion is a major contributor to wildlife habitat loss in the ecological frontier areas. However, little is known about the contribution of different crops to wildlife habitat loss. In this study we evaluated the relative contribution of changes in farming practices, particularly the introduction of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L) to the loss of wildlife habitat with specific focus on the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) in the mid- Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe. First, we developed a remote sensing method based on normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from 16 day multi-temporal Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) remotely sensed data for the 2007 growing period, to test whether cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L) fields can significantly (p < 0.05) be distinguished from maize (Zea mays L) fields, as well as sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) fields. Second, we tested whether woodland fragmentation in the study area was best explained by the areal extent of cotton fields than the areal extent of cereal fields. Finally, we tested whether woodland fragmentation resulting from cotton fields explains elephant distribution better than woodland fragmentation resulting from the extent of cereal fields. Results show that multi-temporal remotely sensed data can be used to distinguish and map cotton and cereal fields. Cotton fields contributed more to woodland fragmentation than cereal fields. Also, we found out that woodland fragmentation from cotton fields significantly explained elephant distribution in the mid- Zambezi Valley. These results indicate that the areal extent of cotton fields explains elephant habitat fragmentation more than the areal extent of cereal fields. Thus, we conclude that the expansion of cotton fields contributes most to elephant habitat loss in the Mid-Zambezi Valley. These results imply that elephant conservation policy needs to address the reduction of the negative impact of cash crops such as cotton on the habitat particularly their threat to wildlife habitat which may eventually lead to loss these wild animals. Thus it is important to strike a balance between wildlife habitat conservation and agricultural production as advocated through the Communal Areas Management Programme For Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) polic

Publication trends of clinical trials performed in South Africa

Background. Investigators and sponsors of clinical trials have an ethical obligation to disseminate clinical trial results, whether positive or negative, in a timely manner.Objectives. To determine the publication rate and average time to reporting for clinical trials carried out in South Africa (SA) and to explore factors indicating whether a study is published or not.Methods. A registry-based quantitative retrospective analysis of 79 SA clinical trials for new medicines registered between January 2008 and December 2010 was performed. The relevant trial identification number in the register was used to track all peer-reviewed publications subsequent to registration. Tracking of clinical trials was done through a systematic literature search of the electronic journal databases of the South African Medical Journal (SAMJ), the Cochrane Library, Public Library of Science Medical Journal (PLoS Medicine) and BioMed Central, all of which are indexed on MEDLINE via PubMed. In addition, a manual search of the Open Access Journal of Clinical Trials databases and reference lists on articles related to the trial medicine was performed.Results. Of the 79 clinical trials surveyed, 72 were concluded by December 2014. Only 35 (48.6%) of them had the results published in a peer-reviewed journal, the current benchmark for dissemination of trial results. The majority (82.9%) of those published had a positive outcome. Of the 35 trials that were published, 77.1% were published within 2 years. The average time from completion to initial reporting was 22 months. Fewer than half (40.5%) of the clinical trials surveyed were placebo controlled.Conclusion. The absence of complete outcomes data from SA clinical trials warrants utmost attention. The study puts forward a case to the regulatory body and research ethics committees to compel all data from clinical trials to be made accessible to clinicians and the public in general by being published in an easily accessible form and in a timely manner

Linear and nonlinear stability analysis of binary viscoelastic fluid convection

The linear and weakly nonlinear stability analysis of the quiescent state in a viscoelastic fluid subject to vertical solute concentration and temperature gradients is investigated. The non-Newtonian behavior of the viscoelastic fluid is characterized using the Oldroyd model. Analytical expressions for the critical Rayleigh numbers and corresponding wave numbers for the onset of stationary or oscillatory convection subject to cross diffusion effects is determined. A stability diagram clearly demarcates non-overlapping regions of finger and diffusive instabilities. A Lorenz system is obtained in the case of the weakly nonlinear stability analysis. The effect of Dufour and Soret parameters on the heat and mass transports are determined and discussed. Due to consideration of dilute concentrations of the second diffusing component the route to chaos in binary viscoelastic fluid systems is similar to that of single-component (thermal) viscoelastic fluid systems. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

Concurrent use of Antiretroviral and African traditional medicines amongst people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWA) in the eThekwini Metropolitan area of KwaZulu Natal

Background: People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWA) often use African Traditional Medicines (ATM) either alone or in combination with Western medicines including Antiretrovirals (ARV).Objective: To explore the prevalence of concurrent Antiretrovirals (ARV) and African Traditional medicines (ATM) use and determine the effects of any concurrent use on the CD4+ Lymphocyte count and Viral Load (VL) of PLWA in the eThekwini Metropolitan area.Methods: A descriptive and exploratory study was carried out on 360 patients. Information was gathered on patients socioeconomic characteristics, ATM usage, outcome measures of HIV disease progression (CD4+ Count, VL). The data was analysed using descriptive statistics, univariate and multivariate analyses.Results: 4.98% (14/281) of the patients used ATM and ARV concurrently during the study period. Over 65% (185/281) reported ATM use before diagnosis with HIV whilst 77.6% (218/281) reported previous ATM use after their HIV diagnosis but before initiation with ARV. Place of residence (p=0.004), age (p&lt;0.001) and education level (P=0.041) were found to be significantly and positively correlated with ATM use. There were no statistically significant changes in mean plasma CD4+ Count and inconclusive effects on VL during the period of the study in the group taking ARV alone when compared with the group using ARV and ATM concomitantly.Conclusion: Concurrent ARV and ATM use is quite low (4.98%) when compared to ATM use before HIV diagnosis and after HIV diagnosis but before initiation with ARV. This may point to efficient pre-counselling efforts before ARV initiation by health care professionals. This study also demonstrated that there were no significant differences in the CD4+ and inconclusive effects on VL, between patients taking both ARV and ATM concomitantly and those using ARV alone.Keywords: African traditional medicines, AIDS; ARV; complimentary medicines, Drug-Herb interactions, Herbal medicine,HIV; Indigenous medicine, Medical Pluralism, South Afric

The Utility of the Upcoming HyspIRI’s Simulated Spectral Settings in Detecting Maize Gray Leafy Spot in Relation to Sentinel-2 MSI, VENµS, and Landsat 8 OLI Sensors

Abstract: Considering the high maize yield loses caused by incidences of disease, as well as incomprehensive monitoring initiatives in crop farming, there is a need for spatially explicit, cost-effective, and consistent approaches for monitoring, as well as for forecasting, food-crop diseases, such as maize Gray Leaf Spot. Such approaches are valuable in reducing the associated economic losses while fostering food security. In this study, we sought to investigate the utility of the forthcoming HyspIRI sensor in detecting disease progression of Maize Gray Leaf Spot infestation in relation to the Sentinel-2 MSI and Landsat 8 OLI spectral configurations simulated using proximally sensed data. Healthy, intermediate, and severe categories of maize crop infections by the Gray Leaf Spot disease were discriminated based on partial least squares–discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) algorithm. Comparatively, the results show that the HyspIRI’s simulated spectral settings slightly performed better than those of Sentinel-2 MSI, VENµS, and Landsat 8 OLI sensor. HyspIRI exhibited an overall accuracy of 0.98 compared to 0.95, 0.93, and 0.89, which were exhibited by Sentinel-2 MSI, VENµS, and Landsat 8 OLI sensor sensors, respectively. Furthermore, the results showed that the visible section, red-edge, and NIR covered by all the four sensors were the most influential spectral regions for discriminating different Maize Gray Leaf Spot infections. These findings underscore the potential value of the upcoming hyperspectral HyspIRI sensor in precision agriculture and forecasting of crop-disease epidemics, which are necessary to ensure food securit