The conditions for functional mechanisms of compensation and reward for environmental services

Mechanisms of compensation and reward for environmental services (CRES) are becoming increasingly contemplated as means for managing human–environment interactions. Most of the functional mechanisms in the tropics have been developed within the last 15 years; many developing countries still have had little experience with functional mechanisms. We consider the conditions that foster the origin and implementation of functional mechanisms. Deductive and inductive approaches are combined. Eight hypotheses are derived from theories of institution and policy change. Five case studies, from Latin America, Africa, and Asia, are then reviewed according to a common framework. The results suggest the following to be important conditions for functional CRES mechanisms: (1) localized scarcity for particular environmental services, (2) influence from international environmental agreements and international organizations, (3) government policies and public attitudes favoring a mixture of regulatory and marketbased instruments, and (4) security of individual and group property rights

Disease Surveillance Networks Initiative Africa: Final Evaluation

The overall objective of the Foundation's Disease Surveillance Networks (DSN) Initiative is to strengthen technical capacity at the country level for disease surveillance and to bolster response to outbreaks through the sharing of technical information and expertise. It supports formalizing collaboration, information sharing and best practices among established networks as well as trans-national, interdisciplinary and multi-sectoral efforts, and is experienced in developing and fostering innovative partnerships. In order to more effectively address disease threats, the DSN has four key outcome areas:(1) forming and sustaining trans-boundary DSN;(2) strengthening and applying technical and communication skills by local experts and institutions;(3) increasing access and use of improved tools and methods on information sharing, reporting and monitoring; and(4) emphasizing One Health and transdisciplinary approaches to policy and practice at global, regional and local levels

Value Innovation Strategy and the Performance of Roofing Sheet Manufacturers in Kenya

The production and uptake of locally manufactured roofing sheets have been on a steady downward trajectory over the last ten years, leading to a significant decline in revenue and employment in the sector. Kenya’s roofing sheet production fell more than 8 percent in 2019 following a decline that started with weakening demand in 2010. Value innovation strategy prescribes a path to positively sustaining performance by shifting firms from cut-throat market competition (the red ocean) to a wide-open new uncontested market space (the blue ocean). It argues that operating in "cutthroat and saturated markets" results in a "red ocean of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool." The main purpose of this study was to establish the effect of value innovation strategy on the performance of roofing sheet manufacturers in Kenya. The study adopted a mixed research method and employed a descriptive research design. The target population consisted of 241 employees drawn from all the fifteen (15) roofing sheet manufacturers in Kenya registered with the Kenya Association of Manufactures (KAM), from whom a sample size of one hundred and twenty-seven (127) employees was selected using the Krejcie and Morgan table formula. The findings of this study have illuminated a statistically significant positive effect of value innovation on firm performance, as evidenced by R-squared values of 0.687 (68.7%), with p-value of 0.00, way below the significance threshold of 0.05. The statistics imply that 68.7% of the variance in the performance of roofing sheet manufacturers can be attributed to the adoption of the value innovation strategy. Consequently, the study recommends that roofing sheet manufacturers must prioritize the adoption of need-based value innovation to ensure sustainable performance. Keywords: Value innovation, firm performance, and blue ocean DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/16-2-09 Publication date:March 31st 202

Policy and institutional context for NRM in Kenya: Challenges and opportunities for Landcare

Kenya’s natural resource base has dwindled over the years. The existence of many land-related laws, some of which are incompatible, has resulted in complex land management regimes, giving rise to fragmented interventions, poor land administration, and inadequate provision of agricultural services. The consequences are serious environmental problems aggravated by social, economic and political factors. Traditionally, land use practices were more sustainable, but many of these Landcare practices were discarded with the advent of colonialism. Today, significant progress is evident in rule-making, paving the way for adoption of more integrative approaches to natural resources management (NRM), including the more sustainable Landcare. Landcare is a widely-adopted community-based approach to NRM, that started in Australia in mid 1980s. The adoption of Landcare in Kenya, however, requires understanding of the policy and institutional contexts for which it can be applied. This paper attempts to identify regime structures and policy instruments for anchoring the Landcare approach in Kenya. It informs a larger regional effort for the transformation of NRM through a Landcare framework. This review paper concludes that: 1) the existing policy context is neither inhibitive for Landcare nor does it require new policies; 2) Due to the existing complex institutional architecture, the introduction Landcare approaches in Kenya should be pragmatic and nuanced; 3) Landcare adoption will not only lead to achievement of national goals, but international obligations as well; 4) The relevance and longevity of Landcare is dependent on appropriate modes of integration; and 5) a coalition approach appears to have the potential mode for integrating Landcare in Kenya

The conditions for functional mechanisms of compensation and reward for environmental services

Mechanisms of compensation and reward for environmental services (CRES) are becoming increasingly contemplated as means for managing human–environment interactions. Most of the functional mechanisms in the tropics have been developed within the last 15 years; many developing countries still have had little experience with functional mechanisms. We consider the conditions that foster the origin and implementation of functional mechanisms. Deductive and inductive approaches are combined. Eight hypotheses are derived from theories of institution and policy change. Five case studies, from Latin America, Africa, and Asia, are then reviewed according to a common framework. The results suggest the following to be important conditions for functional CRES mechanisms: (1) localized scarcity for particular environmental services, (2) influence from international environmental agreements and international organizations, (3) government policies and public attitudes favoring a mixture of regulatory and marketbased instruments, and (4) security of individual and group property rights

Elevated Levels of IL-10 and G-CSF Associated with Asymptomatic Malaria in Pregnant Women

In sub-Saharan Africa, approximately 30 million pregnant women are at risk of contracting malaria annually. Nearly 36% of healthy pregnant women receiving routine antenatal care tested positive for Plasmodium falciparum HRP-II antigen in Ghana. We tested the hypothesis that asymptomatic HRP II positive pregnant women expressed a unique Th1 and Th2 phenotype that differs from healthy controls. Plasma from healthy (n = 15) and asymptomatic (n = 25) pregnant women were evaluated for 27 biomarkers (IL-1b, IL-1ra, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, IL-10, IL-12, IL-13, IL-15, IL- 17, Eotaxin, bFGF-2, G-CSF, GM-CSF, IFN-γ, IP-10, MCP-1, MIP-1α, MIP-1β, PDGF-bb, RANTES, TNF, and VEGF) associated with Th1 and Th2 cytokine homeostasis. IL-10 and G-CSF levels were elevated in the asymptomatic group when compared with the healthy group (P = .031 and .041, resp.). The median ratios of IL-1β:5, IL-1β:10, IL-1β:G-CSF, IL-1β:Eotaxin, IL-12:G-CSF, IL-15:10, IL-17:G-CSF, IL-17:Eotaxin, TNF:IL-4, TNF:IL-5, and TNF:G-CSF were significantly different among the two groups. Thus, asymptomatic malaria carriage may be linked to circulating levels of IL-10 and G-CSF

Cytopenia among CML Patients on Imatinib in Kenya: Types, Grades, and Time Course

Background: Imatinib mesylate is the gold standard for the treatment of all phases of Philadelphia-positive chronic myeloid leukemia. Patients on imatinib treatment may develop cytopenia due to drug toxicity. This study aimed to determine the types, grades, and time course of cytopenia in CML patients on imatinib at a Nairobi hospital. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study of adult patients aged ≥18 years followed up at the Glivec International Patient Access Program (GIPAP) clinic from 2007 to 2015. Patients who developed cytopenia within 12 months of initiating imatinib were eligible. Clinical and hematologic data were retrieved from the patients’ charts and entered into a study proforma. Measures of central tendency such as mean, median, mode, standard deviation, and variance were used for analysis. Results: Sixty three percent (63.6%) of the 94 patients developed a monocytopenia, with anemia seen in 34%, neutropenia in 27.6%, and thrombocytopenia in 8% of the 94 patients. Anemia plus neutropenia was the most common bicytopenia at 12.7%. Pancytopenia was seen in only 5 of the 94 patients. Most of the cytopenia was grades 2 and 3. Anemia was present at baseline while neutropenia and thrombocytopenia developed within 12 months of imatinib initiation. Anemia resolved during the first 12 months of therapy while neutropenia and thrombocytopenia resolved within 24–36 months of treatment. Conclusion: Monocytopenia, especially anemia, was the most common type of cytopenia. The cytopenia was predominantly grade 2, developed in majority of the patients within 6 months after imatinib initiation, and had resolved by 24–36 months after imatinib initiation

Baseline blood count levels increase odds of cytopenia among CML patients in Kenya: a case control study

Background: Imatinib is the gold standard for the treatment of all phases of Philadelphia positive Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML). During treatment, patients may develop cytopenia. We aimed to study the baseline characteristics and factors associated with cytopenia at a Nairobi Hospital. Methods: This was a retrospective case-control study of patients aged ≥18 years on follow-up at the Glivec Inter‑ national Patient Access Program (GIPAP) clinic from 2007 to 2015. The cases consisted of CML patients on imatinib who developed cytopenia. The controls were CML patients on imatinib who did not develop cytopenia. Baseline socio – demographic, clinical, hematologic, and molecular data were retrieved from patients’ fles. Chi square or fshers’ exact tests were used to analyze for diferences between cytopenia and no cytopenia. Binary logistic regressions were employed to identify relationships. Univariate and multivariate analyses were done to identify independent predictors of cytopenia. Odds ratios (OR) were presented including the 95% confdence intervals and respective p values. Results: A total of 201 patients were studied consisting of ninety-four (94) patients with cytopenia and 107 with no cytopenia. Among the entire population, males were 52, and 42% were aged 36–50 years. Sex, age, marital status, occupation and education level were similar between the cytopenia and no cytopenia groups. Among the 201 patients, 70% had symptoms for \u3e12months before diagnosis, 78.6% had B symptoms at baseline, 80% had a moderate splenomegaly at baseline. Among patients with cytopenia, 40 and 37.4% developed cytopenia within 3months and 3–6months respectively after imatinib initiation. Baseline neutrophilia, neutropenia, anaemia, thrombocytosis, thrombocytopenia was found in 68, 11, 11, 23.5 and 11% respectively. Baseline hemoglobin, neutrophil and platelet level were signifcantly difer‑ ent between the cytopenia and the no cytopenia group. On univariable analysis, baseline anemia with hb\u3c7.9g/ dL (p =0.002), neutropenia (p =0.001), neutrophilia \u3e100,000/mm3 (p =0.002) and thrombocytopenia (p =0.001) increased the odds of developing cytopenia. On multivariable analysis, baseline anaemia (p value \u3c0.002), neutrope‑ nia (p value \u3c0.001), thrombocytopenia (p value, \u3c0.001) and thrombocytosis (p value, 0.033) increased the odds of developing cytopenia. Conclusion: Odds of cytopenia were higher in presence of baseline cytopenia and thrombocytosis. Clinicians should have a high index of suspicion for these patients