Strengthening innovation capacity of Nigerian agricultural research organizations:

Strong agricultural research and development (R&D) is crucial for improving agricultural productivity and efficiency, which in turn both lead to agricultural development, food security, and poverty reduction. However, several studies have shown that in many developing countries, in particular in sub-Saharan Africa, there is persistent underinvestment in R&D and weak research capacity, both of which continue to undermine agricultural productivity and growth in these countries.research system, innovation system, Capacity development, organizational culture,

FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL AND POVERTY IN NIGERIA: A LITERATURE REVIEW

Fuel subsidies in Nigeria have been a contentious issue for decades. However, the recent removal of fuel subsidy by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led administration has resulted in a looming fuel shortage crisis and left millions of Nigerians terrified about the knock-on effects on their daily lives. Meanwhile, the removal of the fuel subsidy has led to increased prices for transportation and commodities, adding to economic hardships, businesses struggle as they are forced to spend more money on fuel consumption. Hence, this paper examined fuel subsidy removal and poverty in Nigeria. By utilizing the theory of price elasticity of demand, the paper aimed to examine the rationale behind the fuel subsidy removal, the socio-economic implications of fuel subsidy removal and suggested palliative measures to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal in Nigeria. By utilizing content analysis method, the paper reveals factors such as private sector participation in the importation of petroleum products, availability of petrol at all times for all Nigerians and permanently banishing queues from petrol stations across the nation and free the country from the endless pains and sufferings that come with fuel scarcity, revenue generation, stimulating economic development among others as rationales behind fuel subsidy removal. The paper equally pointed at high cost of living, high rate of crime, and increase in poverty level as people and businesses struggle for survival among other socioeconomic implications of fuel subsidy removal in Nigeria. The paper concluded by recommending rural electrification, increase in the minimum wage and food importation/distribution among other feasible palliatives as suggested measures to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal in Nigeria. &nbsp

Assessment of ICT Skills Application of Teacher Educators in Kwara State Colleges of Education, Nigeria

The study was carried out to assess the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills application of teacher educators in Kwara State Colleges of Education, Nigeria. The descriptive survey research design was adopted; the population of the study comprised 430 lecturers from Kwara State Colleges of Education Oro, Lafiagi, and Ilorin, respectively. A proportional sampling technique was used to select 160 respondents from the two teacher educator institutions. A simple random sampling technique was used in selecting 60 respondents from Oro College of Education and 100 respondents from Kwara State College of Education Ilorin. One self-designed questionnaire titled ‘Assessment of ICT Competency Skills of Lecturers’ (AICTCSL) with four points Liker scale was used to elicit information from the respondents. The instrument was validated. Its reliability was ensured at .78. Total Average Weighted Response (TAWR), and percentage and frequency counts were used in analyzing the collected data for the raised research questions at .05 levels of significance, while z-test statistics were used in addressing the formulated hypotheses. It was discovered in the study that lecturers in the used institutions were competent in manipulating the computer keyboard and connecting to the internet but were not competent in accessing the information on CD, organizing electronic files into folders, use of application software, use of PowerPoint, word excel and blog website. Also, no significant difference was established between the mean scores of lecturers in Kwara State Colleges of education Oro and Ilorin on their ICT skills acquisition and use, while there was a significant difference in the mean ratings of teacher educators from Oro and Ilorin on their use of application software competency. It was therefore recommended that government should make it a matter of policy that all lecturers in the institutions are ICT literate and it should be a prerequisite for their promotion and recruitment for a lecturing job in the state

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Optimal production, scheduling, lot-sizing and power generation for a soft drink factory in absence of a power grid

Lot-sizing and scheduling has become an important aspect of manufacturing businesses nowadays. The effective and efficient management of scheduling and planning has the potential of reducing production cost which leads to increase in quality of products, which brings about competitive advantage. Lot-sizing and scheduling is a critical success factor especially in developing countries that lack technological infrastructure and resources available in developed countries. Due to the peculiar nature of the issue in Nigeria, the unit commitment problem (UCP) has to added to production planning to include energy considerations.Inspired by the complexity and the challenges faced by the soft drink industry in Nigeria. The aim of this thesis is to develop mathematical models for production planning that minimises production and backorder cost, evaluate the models under various demand profiles and determine the power needs of the factory under various demand profiles. Secondly, the thesis examines the operational and performance of diesel generators in preparation for model development, develops models that help determine minimum investment and running costs of diesel generators which falls under the unit commitment problem.The contributions of this thesis brings about development on a academic front by developing mathematical models that combine production planning and unit commitment with real world implications.A case study of a Nigerian soft drink producing company provides motivation and provides practical importance for the contribution of this thesis in the real world

EFFECTIVENESS OF HUMANITARIAN LOGISTICS OF RELIEF MATERIAL AT INTERNAL DISPLACED PERSONS CAMP IN ABUJA, NIGERIA

Over the years, disasters have displaced millions of people and has forced many people into poverty. Hence, the need for humanitarian aids to provide care and relief items for the displaced person. The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of humanitarian logistics of relief materials in selected internal displaced persons camp in Abuja. It formulated one null hypothesis stating, there is no statistically significance to the effectiveness of five key component of relief material logistics. Purposive sampling method was utilized to pick Malaysian Garden IDPs camp and Area one IDPs camp for this study. Conveniency sampling was utilized to administered 120 questionnaires among the humanitarian aids organization. Principal component factor analysis was used to reduce the variables into 5 key variables (i.e., Management of items in Inventory, Storage/warehousing of items, Distribution Approach, Procurement Method and available transport facilities). The data collected was analysed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics; T test was utilized to test the hypothesis. The result shows that there is no statistically significance to the effectiveness of Management of items in inventory (P-value= 0.278); storage/Warehouse of items (P-value= 0.469), Distribution approach (P-value=0.371, Procurement method P-value =0.135) and available transport facilities (P-value = 0.142). The study recommends among others that adequate transport facilities should be provided by the government to aid swift mobility in the IDPs camps. Also, Relief items which are frequently demanded like drugs should be stored by the aid organization for easily delivery to the IDPs when needed

Transalkylation of xylene and benzene over ZnO/SiO2 catalyst

Liquid phase transalkylation of mixture of xylene and benzene was investigated over ZnO/SiO2 catalyst in a batch reactor under continuous stirring using a magnetic stirrer with a temperature regulator. The prepared ZnO/SiO2 was characterized using Brunauer-Emmet-Teller Surface Area Analysis (BET), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), and Fourier Transfom InfraRed Spectroscopy (FTIR). Also, the effect of catalyst loading, reaction temperature and time were studied. The BET results obtained shows that there is an increase in the surface area of ZnO/SiO2 when compared to that of the parent SiO2. Impregnation of ZnO unto the SiO2 does not affect the parent structure of the SiO2 as depicted by the XRD result. Ethylbenzene is the product obtained from the transalkylation reaction and its yield is favored at a lower catalyst loading of 0.4 wt% as compared to 0.7 wt% and 1.0 wt% weight of xylene. A study of the effect of reaction temperature at 45 minutes on the yield shows that the yield is likely to increase with temperature. The maximum ethylbenzene yield obtained was approximately 62% at 60 oC and 75 minutes.Keywords: Transalkylation, ZnO/SiO2, Catalysis, Aromatics, Zinc Oxide, Silic

Effects and Implications of Drug Abuse on Students’ Attitude to Learning in Federal College of Education Technical, Gombe, Nigeria

Drug Abuse is a physical and physiological disorder often resulting from persistent and excessive self-administration of drugs without regard to medically and culturally acceptable patterns. This research focuses on the effects and implications of drug abuse on students' attitudes to learning in the Federal College of Education Technical, Gombe. The resultant effects of this menace could be physical, social, psychological, and mental, while the implication reflects mainly the student's cognitive, psychomotor, and affective domains of learning. The most commonly abused drugs by students are types of Amphetamine, one of which is tramadol, popularly known as Tramol, and types of Inhalants. The effect is pervasive among adolescent and middle-late childhood youth. The common causes of this menace include peer group, lack of proper parental care and supervision, coping with the pressure of life, and making forget problems. In comparison, some of the signs and symptoms are the unusual use of dark glasses, odor neutralizers such as perfume, air fresheners, and chewing gum. There is a significant relationship between drug abuse and students' attitude to learning. Therefore, it recommends that the college authorities organize periodic or routine seminars and workshops for students on campus. The topic should include health education and counseling, among others, and to request the Government to impose heavy tax on any industry involved in producing such illicit drugs

Seroprevalence of chicken infectious anemia virus infection among some poultry species in Maiduguri, Nigeria

Objective: This study was designed to investigate the seroprevalence of Chicken Infectious Anemia Virus (CIAV) among selected poultry species in Maiduguri, Nigeria. Materials and method: ELISA kit (X-Ovo FlockscreenTM, Cat. No.V085 5 plates. February, 2014 - Xnew kit format), Chicken serum, enzyme conjugate reagent, adhesive cover, wash buffer, substrate reagent, stop solution. Serum samples from village chickens, broilers, layers, ducks, turkeys and geese in Maiduguri were tested for CIAV antibodies using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) as per the manufacturers protocols at the Viral Research Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Maiduguri, Nigeria. The results were presented in simple percentages, bar charts and analyzed using SPSS Version 16 software. Results: Out of 944 sera from different species of poultry tested, an overall seroprevalence of 38.5% (n=363/944) was recorded in this study. The species distribution showed village chickens had 41.4% (n=166/944) prevalence, layers with 23.0% (n=12/52), broilers 46.6% (n=146/313), turkeys 23.6% (n=30/127), ducks 13.7% (n=4/29) and geese 22.7% (n=5/22) prevalence for CIAV antibodies. Conclusion: The result of this study shows that CIAV infection is present among different poultry species in the study area and therefore highlight the need for continuous surveillance so as to control further spread of the virus. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2017; 4(4.000): 385-389