National Land Coalitions and the Preservation of Communities’ Ancestral Land Heritage in Africa

National Land Coalitions (NLCs) work towards the recognition, defence, protection and redistribution of land rights at national level. They build upon frameworks on land tenure developed and agreed by different regional and intergovernmental institutions. Platforms are at the heart of protecting and preserving community and customary lands which constitute the major category of landholding in Africa. The purpose of this paper is threefold: share the successes of National Land Coalitions in selected countries in securing the land heritage for communities and other vulnerable groups; identify the ingredients for such successes including enabling factors and methods used; identify the bottlenecks and threats faced by the actors involved in these coalitions; as well as possible opportunities and recommendations to better capacitate these platforms in achieving their mandate. The analytical framework is based on three components of the syntax namely the Attribute, aIm, and Condition (AIC). The Attribute focuses on the organizational description, the aIm puts emphasis on the coalition’s goal, while the Condition highlights the means coalitions put at the service of their ambition. We undertook a literature review and three case studies serve as basis to analyse the contribution of National Land Coalitions to community land preservation. These include in Cameroon the Banen community in the Ebo Forest, and the land concessions in the Ntem Valley, and in Sierra Leone the palm oil investment by Socfin in the Malen Chiefdom. It is demonstrated that NLC actions and activities have contributed to increasing the preservation of community lands. These Coalitions emerge in a context of arable land scrambling, the adoption and implementation of new progressive land policies and laws that promote and protect community and customary land rights. Through intense policy dialogue, advocacy, and capacity strengthening, facilitated and supported by NLCs, more and more communities are in position to fight land dispossession by states and private actors. However, these Coalitions face challenges that hamper their action, including organizational structure, power asymmetries, financing and sustainability issues. In terms of opportunities, an increasing number of national legislative frameworks are being reviewed and land governance monitoring instruments like the LandMatrix and the LANDex are taken to scale. Spaces such as LandCollaborative put national platforms at the centre of people-centered land governance and facilitate horizontal learning between platform practitioners across countries in Africa

Anti-erosion stone bunds influence rodent dynamics and crop damage in Ethiopian highlands

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Rodent abundance, stone bund density and its effects on crop damage in the Tigray highlands, Ethiopia

In areas of subsistence agriculture, a variety of soil conservation methods have been implemented in the last few decades to improve crop yields, however these can have unintended consequences such as providing habitat for rodent pests. We studied rodent population dynamics and estimated crop damage in high and low stone bund density fields for four cropping seasons in Tigray highlands, northern Ethiopia. Stone bunds are physical structures for soil and water conservation, and potentially habitat for rodents. We used a general model to relate the proportion of crop damage to rodent abundance, stone bund density and crop stages. Generally, rodent abundance remained relatively low during the study period, except during the fourth quarter of the 2010 cropping season. We found a positive correlation between rodent abundance and crop damage, and significant variation in rodent abundance and crop damage between high and low stone bund density fields. Furthermore, crop damage also varied significantly between crop stages. We concluded that Mastomys awashensis (Lavrenchenko, Likhnova and Baskevich 1998) and Arvicanthis dembeensis (Ruppel 1842) were the two most important crop pests in Tigray highlands causing significant damage. Fields with high stone bund density (~10m average distance apart) harbor more rodents and endure a significantly higher proportion of crop damage compared to fields with lower stone bund density (~15m average distance 4 apart). The fact that rodent abundances peaked during the reproductive stage of the crop and around harvest implies the need for management intervention before these crop stages are attained

Epidemiology of rubella virus cases in the pre-vaccination era of Ethiopia, 2009–2015

Abstract Background Rubella is a common mild rash illness caused by rubella virus. The majority of infections occur in children and young adults. The infection is the cause of a serious birth defect known as Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS) when a woman acquires infection early in pregnancy. Ethiopia has not yet established rubella virus surveillance and has not yet introduced rubella vaccine into the routine immunization program. We characterize the epidemiology of laboratory confirmed rubella virus cases collected through measles surveillance from 2009 to 2015 to better understand the burden of the disease in the country. Methods A descriptive analysis was made to characterize rubella cases reported through the national measles case based surveillance system. The measles case definition was used to capture potential rubella cases. A suspected measles case was a person with generalized rash and fever with cough, or coryza or conjunctivitis. Those cases whose sera were negative for measles IgM antibodies were tested for rubella IgM antibody. A confirmed rubella case was a person who tested positive for rubella IgM. Only laboratory confirmed rubella cases were analyzed in this article. Results Between 2009 and 2015, a total of 28,284 serum/plasma samples were collected and tested for measles IgM antibody and 11,151 (39.4%) were found positive. A total of 17,066 measles IgM negative or indeterminate samples were tested for rubella virus IgM and 2615 (15.3%) were found positive during the same period. Of 2615 confirmed rubella cases, 52.2% were females. The age of confirmed cases ranged from one month to 42 years with a mean age of 7.3 years. Three-fourth of all confirmed rubella cases were aged less than 10 years. The number of laboratory confirmed rubella cases linearly increased from 83 in 2009 to 856 in 2013 but dropped to 222 and 319 in 2014 and 2015 respectively. Higher number of cases occurred in the hot dry season (January through June) and in the central and western part of Ethiopia with 127 lab-confirmed outbreaks in the study period. Conclusions Based on our analysis, rubella was found to be endemic throughout Ethiopia. Children below the age of 10 years were the most affected. The burden of rubella cases varied from year to year but had a seasonal peak in March. To better understand the magnitude of rubella prior to vaccine introduction, establishing rubella surveillance system, conducting sero-prevalence studies among child bearing age females and establishing CRS sentinel surveillance among young infants are critical

Thermodynamic prediction of biogas production and combustion: The spontaneity and energy conversion efficiency from photosynthesis to combustion

Due to inappropriate energy consumption and subpar waste management, the growing population leads to an increase in energy demand and environmental damage. The creation of biogas enhances the management of organic waste and provides renewable energy. The production of biogas, which is a mixture of several gases, primarily methane and carbon dioxide, occurs during the four phases of aerobic digestion (AD). The four stages are hydrolysis, acidogenesis, acetogenesis, and methanogensis. Biogas comprises 50–70% Methane, 25–40% carbon dioxide and remaining traces of gases. In this paper, these biogas production processes are not thoroughly studied utilizing thermodynamic principles. Using thermodynamic criteria, this article analyses and assesses why the aerobic digesting process is spontaneous. Entropy, enthalpy, and Gibbs free energy of reactions during the various stages of the formation of biogas are examined. At Standard Temperature and Pressure Conditions (STP), the combined four phases of biogas formation are exothermic and spontaneous based on the analysis of Entropy, enthalpy, and Gibbs free energy of reactions from balanced equations at standard conditions of temperature and pressure. A unit mole of glucose is used to compare the energy released during photosynthesis with the energy released during biogas burning. Three moles of methane can be produced from decomposition of glucose. The combustion of three moles of methane yields 2406.876 kJ energy and if the same amount of moles of biogas (60% methane and 40% carbon dioxide) burns the energy yield is reduced to 1604.584 kJ. From the energy captured by photosynthesis i.e., 2808.1 kJ/mol 57.141% of the energy is recovered in the biogas combustion process. This efficiency reaches to 85.711% if pure methane is burned. As the separation of methane from biogas, mixture in actual plants is not economically feasible the combustion of methane gas the ideal limit of the efficiency

Posttraumatic stress disorder in a war-affected area of Northeast Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Background: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a chronic condition that affects a significant proportion of war survivors following war and conflict. If PTSD is not managed, it can lead to decreased quality of life and impairments in daily functioning and lead to death. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder and its associated factors among residents in a war-affected area, Dessie Town, Northeast Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among adult residents in the war-affected area, Dessie Town. A total of 615 individuals were selected by a systematic random sampling method. PTSD was assessed using the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist, Civilian Version. Multivariable logistic regressions were used to measure the associated factors. Associations between variables were described using odds ratios, 95% confidence intervals, and a p-value less than 0.05. Results: The prevalence of PTSD was 34.5% (95% CI: 31–38). Female sex (AOR: 1.82; CI: 1.18–2.82), divorced or widowed (AOR: 2.12, CI: 1.23–3.66), having only primary schooling (AOR: 2.17; CI: 1.25–3.78), depression (AOR: 2.03; CI: 1.34–3.08), experienced ill health without medical care during the wartime (AOR: 2.97; CI: 1.43–6.16), forced separation from family (AOR: 1.90; CI: 1.16–3.12), and experienced stressful life events (AOR: 1.60; CI: 1.06–2.42) were significantly associated with PTSD. Conclusion: A significant rate of PTSD was found among residents of the war-affected area, Dessie Town. One in three people was experiencing PTSD. As a result, post-war mental health early screening and intervention is a priority, particularly for females, those who are separated or divorced, and those who have experienced stressful life events due to the war

Epidemiology of laboratory confirmed measles virus cases in the southern nations of Ethiopia, 2007\u20132014

Abstract Background In Ethiopia, measles case-based surveillance was introduced in 2004 as one strategy for measles control by laboratory confirmation of suspected cases. In this article, epidemiological distribution of laboratory-confirmed measles cases were reported from the Southern Nation Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR) of Ethiopia between 2007 and 2014, as the region is one of the highly measles affected areas in Ethiopia. Method A serum sample was collected from all measles suspected cases, and patient information was captured by case reporting format (CRF). Samples were transported to the National Measles Laboratory for Measles IgM testing by ELISA technique. Data entry and analysis were done using Epi-Info 3.5.4 software. Result A total of 4810 samples were tested for measles IgM using ELISA technique and 1507 (31.3%) were found positive during 2007\u20132014 in SNNPR of Ethiopia. Patients with age 1\u20134 years were the most affected regardless of sex. The incidence of measles confirmed cases increased from 15 in 2007 to 180 in 2013 per million population. The highest percentage of laboratory-confirmed cases were found in 2014. Measles was found distributed throughout the regional state. Conclusion Measles was found a public health important disease in SNNPR of Ethiopia, mostly affecting children 1\u20134 years. The incidence of measles cases is increasing from time to time. Additional research to determine the genotype of circulating measles virus, knowledge, attitude and practice of professionals and the population for measles vaccination and infection in the region is important. A wide age group measles vaccination campaign is highly recommended

Gender-based violence in the context of armed conflict in Northern Ethiopia

Abstract Background Gender-based violence (GBV) particularly against women is unfortunately common during armed conflicts. No rigorous and comprehensive empirical work has documented the extent of GBV and its consequences that took place during the two years of devastating armed conflict in Northern Ethiopia. This study aims to assess GBV and its consequences in war-torn areas of northern Ethiopia. Methods We used a qualitative method augmented by quantitative method to enroll research participants. We conducted in-depth interviews to characterize the lived experiences of GBV survivors. All interviews were conducted confidentially. The data were collected to the point of data saturation. All interviews were transcribed verbatim into local language, translated into English, and analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. We also used reports from healthcare facilities and conducted a descriptive analysis of the demographic characteristics of study participants. Results One thousand one hundred seventy-seven persons reported GBV to healthcare providers. The qualitative study identified several forms of violence (sexual, physical, and psychological). Gang rape against women including minors as young as 14 years old girls was reported. Additionally, the perpetrators sexually violated women who were pregnant, and elderly women as old as 65 years, who took refuge in religious institutions. The perpetrators committed direct assaults on the body with items (e.g., burning the body with cigarette fire) or weapons, holding women and girls as captives, and deprivation of sleep and food. GBV survivors reported stigma, prejudice, suicide attempts, nightmares, and hopelessness. GBV survivors dealt with the traumatic stress by outmigration (leaving their residences), seeking care at healthcare facilities, self-isolation, being silent, dropping out of school, and seeking counseling. Conclusion GBV survivors were subjected to multiple and compounding types of violence, with a wide range of adverse health consequences for survivors and their families. GBV survivors require multifaceted interventions including psychological, health, and economic support to rehabilitate them to lead a productive life