Motivation, estime de soi et perception de la performance des intrapreneurs du secteur public au Cameroun

The article has as objective to analyze motivation, self-esteem of intrapreneurs of the public sector on their performances. After defining the psychological profile of the intrapreneur, a quantitative and qualitative investigation of an enbedded case was carried out on three (03) intrapreneurs belonging to a mother enterprise. The results reveal that the more the self-esteem is high, graters is the motivation. Motivation causes persistent engagement (ou an attempt) to the creation of enterprises. Once the enterprise is created, the positive perception of his performance increases self-esteem of the intrapreneur. Self-esteem of the intrapreneur of the public sector depends on his competence, at the disposal for the promotion of entrepreneurship put into place by the mother enterprise and the encouragement of the colleagues of the intrapreneur. Self-esteem of the intrapreneur seems to be a component that should be developed in the perspective of promoting entrepreneurship.   Keywords : Self-esteem, entrepreneurship, performance, public sector, Cameroon. JEL Classification : M 13, M 55 and H 41 Paper type: Empirical researchL’article a pour objectif d’analyser l’influence de la motivation, de l’estime de soi des intrapreneurs du secteur public sur leur performance.  Après avoir décrit le profil psychologique des intrapreneurs, une investigation qualitative et quantitative de cas enchâssés est menée sur trois (03) intrapreneurs appartenant à une entreprise mère. Les résultats révèlent que, plus l’estime de soi s’élève, plus grande est la motivation. La grande motivation déclenche l’engagement persistant (ou l’essai) à la création des entreprises. Une fois l’entreprise créée, la perception positive de sa performance augmente l’estime de soi de l’intrapreneur. L’estime de soi des intrapreneurs du secteur public dépend de la compétence, du dispositif de la promotion de l’intrapreneuriat mis en place par l’entreprise mère et de l’encouragement des collègues de l’intrapreneur. L’estime de soi semble être une composante à développer dans la perspective de la promotion de l’intrapreneuriat.   Mots clés:  Estime de soi, intrapreneuriat, performance, secteur public, Cameroun. Classification JEL : M 13, M55 et H 41 Type de l’article : Recherche appliqué

Introducing medical parasitology at the University of Makeni, Sierra Leone

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version.Capacity building in Sierra Leone (West Africa) is critical to prevent potential future outbreaks similar to the 2013-16 Ebola outbreak that had devastating effects for the country and its poorly developed healthcare system. De Montfort University (DMU) in the United Kingdom (UK), in collaboration with parasitologists from the Spanish Universities of San Pablo CEU and Miguel Hernández de Elche, is leading a project to build the teaching and research capabilities of medical parasitology at the University of Makeni (UniMak, Sierra Leone). This project has two objectives: a) to introduce and enhance the teaching of medical parasitology, both theoretical and practical; and b) to implement and develop parasitology research related to important emerging human parasites such as Cryptosporidium spp. due to their public health significance. Two UniMak academics, hired to help initiate and implement the research part of the project, shared their culturally sensitive public health expertise to broker parasitology research in communities and perform a comprehensive environmental monitoring study for the detection of different emerging human parasites. The presence of targeted parasites are being studied microscopically using different staining techniques, which in turn have allowed UniMak’s academics to learn these techniques to develop new practicals in parasitology. To train UniMak’s academics and develop both parts of our project, a DMU researcher visited UniMak for two weeks in April 2019 and provided a voluntary short training course in basic parasitology, which is currently not taught in any of their programmes, and was attended by 31 students. These sessions covered basic introduction to medical parasitology and life-cycle, pathogenesis, detection, treatment and prevention of: a) coccidian parasites (Cryptosporidium, Cyclospora and Cystoisospora); b) Giardia intestinalis, Entamoeba and free-living amoebas; c) malaria and d) microsporidia. A theoretical session on common staining techniques was also provided. To facilitate the teaching and learning of these parasites, the novel resource DMU e-Parasitology was used, a package developed by the above participating universities and biomedical scientists from the UK National Health Service (NHS): http://parasitology.dmu.ac.uk/ index.htm. Following the two weeks of training, UniMak’s academics performed different curriculum modifications to the undergraduate programme ‘Public Health: Medical Laboratory Sciences’, which includes the introduction of new practicals in parasitology and changes to enhance the content of medical parasitology that will be subjected to examination. Thus, a new voluntary practical on Kinyoun stain for the detection of coccidian parasites was introduced in the final year module of ‘Medical Bacteriology and Parasitology’; eighteen students in pairs processed faecal samples from pigs provided by the Department of Agriculture and Food Security from a nearby farm. Academics at UniMak used the Kinyoun staining unit (available at http://parasitology.dmu.ac.uk/learn/lab/Kinyoun/story_html5.html; [1]) to deliver this practical. Although our project is at a preliminary stage, it has been shown to be effective in promoting the introduction and establishment of medical parasitology at UniMak and could be viewed as a case-study for other universities in low-income countries to promote the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and improve public health understanding of infectious diseases

La mention transitoire du potentiel entrepreneurial des étudiants des pays en mutation

Cette recherche vise à évaluer le potentiel entrepreneurial et de projeter les bases de promotion de l’esprit entrepreneurial chez les étudiants des pays en mutation. Une enquête portant sur le modèle de profil entrepreneurial comportant quatre composantes : les antécédents, les motivations, les aptitudes et les attitudes est menée auprès d’un échantillon de 161 étudiants camerounais et sénégalais. Les résultats indiquent que 63,97 % de cette population ont une note de potentiel entrepreneurial comprise entre 11 et 15 sur 25. Malgré cette mention transitoire, 97,51 % d’entre eux aimeraient à l’avenir créer une entreprise. Par ailleurs, 50,31 % qui ont déjà suivi le cours d’entrepreneuriat dans leur cursus académique, satisfaits des enseignements reçus, proposent qu’il soit davantage pratique et constitue une filière de formation dans les universités. Les spécialistes scientifiques en entrepreneuriat préconisent quant à eux, qu’il soit enseigné le plus tôt possible et suivant 3 étapes : la sensibilisation, la formation et l’accompagnement

Seroprevalence of Ebola virus infection in Bombali District, Sierra Leone

A serosurvey of anti-Ebola Zaire virus nucleoprotein IgG prevalence was carried out among Ebola virus disease survivors and their Community Contacts in Bombali District, Sierra Leone. Our data suggest that the specie of Ebola virus (Zaire) responsible of the 2013-2016 epidemic in West Africa may cause mild or asymptomatic infection in a proportion of cases, possibly due to an efficient immune response

Stratégie d’intervention de la médecine dans le domaine du sport: perception des sportifs de compétition pour l’amélioration de la performance

Cette étude a pour objectif d’examiner la perception qu’ont les sportifs de la pratique du corps médical dans le sport de haut niveau. Nous inspirant de la logique causale, un guide d’entretien portant sur huit (08) items, allant des missions à la fonction relationnelle en passant par les compétences des médecins du sport a été élaboré, puis administré à treize (13) sportifs de haut niveau. Les résultats obtenus par traitement de cas enchâssés ont revelé qu’en terme de perception de l’intervention sur la cible: 1) la moyenne générale est de 22,22 points sur 40; 2) la plus petite note attribuée par les répondants et qui porte sur les items 1, 2, 3 est de 0 sur 5; tandisque la plus grande note, relative aux items 4, 5, 7 et 8, avec une forte densité sur l’item 8, est de 5 sur 5. L’approche qualitative utilisée a permi de mieux comprendre le sens de cette notation. Ces résultats confirment que les efforts sont à effectuer, dans la perspective de l’atteinte des normes de la démocratie sanitaire dans le domaine du sport

Abusive use of antibiotics in poultry farming in Cameroon and the public health implications

The types and methods of use of antibiotics in poultry farms in Cameroon, residual levels and potential microbial resistance were determined. A questionnaire-based survey identified the different antibiotics used and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to determine residual levels of antibiotics. Pathogens were isolated, identified by use of commercial API kits and minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) was determined. Oxytetracyclin, tylocip and TCN (oxytetracycline, chloramphenicol and neomycin) were the most frequently used antibiotics. Antibiotics screened by HPLC were chloramphenicol, tetracycline and vancomycin. All of them except vancomycin were detected, and the concentration of these antibiotics was higher than the maximum residual limits (MRL) set by regulatory authorities. No residues of various antibiotics were found in egg albumen or yolk. The concentration of tetracycline was significantly higher in liver (150 ± 30 µg/g) than in other tissues. Foodborne pathogens, including Salmonella spp., Staphylococcus spp., Listeria spp., Clostridium spp. and Escherichia spp., were identified. Most of the pathogens were resistant to these various antibiotics tested. These findings imply the need for better management of antibiotic use to control sources of food contamination and reduce health risks associated with the presence of residues and the development of resistant pathogens by further legislation and enforcement of regulations on food hygiene and use of antibiotics

Evaluation of the nutritional status of infants from mothers tested positive to HIV/AIDS in the health district of Dschang, Cameroon

INTRODUCTION: Poor infant feeding practices are common in Africa, resulting in physical and intellectual developmental impairments. Good feeding practices are crucial, especially in the first year of growth. HIV/AIDS has worsened the clinical and nutritional status of both mothers and their children, exacerbating high rates of malnutrition. The aim of this study was to assess by participative approach, the nutritional status of infants from mothers tested positive to HIV in the health district of Dschang. METHODS: This is a cross sectional study with a period of recruitment of 2 years (2010-2012). Data Collection was done by the aim of a personal slip followed by training to strengthen the nutritional and hygienic capacity of targeted parents. Height and weight of infants were measured and body mass index (BMI) calculated. RESULTS: Significant difference (p ≤ 0.05) was noticed in height-for-age z-score (HAZ) of girls aged between 1 to 2 years compared to 1-year old girls as well as to boys of all ages, defining them as stunted. Furthermore, the weight-for-age z-score (WAZ) results indicate that both girls and boys of all age are in moderate state of malnutrition. The results of BMI thinness classified according to gender and age groups, indicates that most infants (68/130, 52.3%) showed grade 2 thinness predominantly in 2-years old both boys and girls. However, no participants fall within the normal category for age and sex, as well as overweight and obesity categories. CONCLUSION: Undernutrition exists among infants from mothers tested positive to HIV residing in Dschang, as most of the infants are underweight, and malnourished

Isolation of Angola-like Marburg virus from Egyptian rousette bats from West Africa.

Marburg virus (MARV) causes sporadic outbreaks of severe Marburg virus disease (MVD). Most MVD outbreaks originated in East Africa and field studies in East Africa, South Africa, Zambia, and Gabon identified the Egyptian rousette bat (ERB; Rousettus aegyptiacus) as a natural reservoir. However, the largest recorded MVD outbreak with the highest case-fatality ratio happened in 2005 in Angola, where direct spillover from bats was not  shown. Here, collaborative studies by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Njala University, University of California, Davis USAID-PREDICT, and the University of Makeni identify MARV circulating in ERBs in Sierra Leone. PCR, antibody and virus isolation data from 1755 bats of 42 species shows active MARV infection in approximately 2.5% of ERBs. Phylogenetic analysis identifies MARVs that are similar to the Angola strain. These results provide evidence of MARV circulation in West Africa and demonstrate the value of pathogen surveillance to identify previously undetected threats

Asymptomatic infection and unrecognised Ebola virus disease in Ebola-affected households in Sierra Leone: a cross-sectional study using a new non-invasive assay for antibodies to Ebola virus.

BACKGROUND: The frequency of asymptomatic infection with Ebola virus is unclear: previous estimates vary and there is no standard test. Asymptomatic infection with Ebola virus could contribute to population immunity, reducing spread. If people with asymptomatic infection are infectious it could explain re-emergences of Ebola virus disease (EVD) without known contact. METHODS: We validated a new oral fluid anti-glycoprotein IgG capture assay among survivors from Kerry Town Ebola Treatment Centre and controls from communities unaffected by EVD in Sierra Leone. We then assessed the seroprevalence of antibodies to Ebola virus in a cross-sectional study of household contacts of the survivors. All household members were interviewed. Two reactive tests were required for a positive result, with a third test to resolve any discrepancies. FINDINGS: The assay had a specificity of 100% (95% CI 98·9-100; 339 of 339 controls tested negative) and sensitivity of 95·9% (89·8-98·9; 93 of 97 PCR-confirmed survivors tested positive). Of household contacts not diagnosed with EVD, 47·6% (229 of 481) had high level exposure (direct contact with a corpse, body fluids, or a case with diarrhoea, vomiting, or bleeding). Among the contacts, 12·0% (95% CI 6·1-20·4; 11 of 92) with symptoms at the time other household members had EVD, and 2·6% (1·2-4·7; 10 of 388) with no symptoms tested positive. Among asymptomatic contacts, seropositivity was weakly correlated with exposure level. INTERPRETATION: This new highly specific and sensitive assay showed asymptomatic infection with Ebola virus was uncommon despite high exposure. The low prevalence suggests asymptomatic infection contributes little to herd immunity in Ebola, and even if infectious, would account for few transmissions. FUNDING: Wellcome Trust ERAES Programme, Save the Children

Quantitative Outcomes of a One Health Approach to Investigate the First Outbreak of African Swine Fever in the Republic of Sierra Leone

African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks have been reported in Sub-Saharan countries, including West Africa states, but has never been notified in the Republic of Sierra Leone. This is the first report describing field epidemiological and laboratory investigations into the outbreak of fatal pig disease in western rural and urban districts, Freetown. A preliminary finding indicated that pigs exhibited clinical and necropsy signs suggestive of ASF. Serological (ELISA) and molecular (qRT-PCR) methods used to confirm and investigate the outbreak yielded three positive results for the ASF antibody and all negative for Swine flu; thus, confirming ASF as the etiology agent