ABSTRACT Dairy commercialization is constrained by several factors including lack of funds. Access to financial services such as credit and savings were identified as important instruments to curb these financial challenges. Microfinance institutions (MFIs) have been found to play a critical role amongst smallholder farmers in enhancing their access to finance. This study sought to investigate factors influencing credit access and the extent of credit access and how microfinance participatio...
ABSTRACT The study aimed to investigate potential of ginger production and its influence to income generation to small-scale ginger growers. Specifically the study focused on estimating the profitability of ginger farming to the smallholders growers, analyze their social economic factors affecting ginger productivity, determine the annual household income generated from ginger production and explore the challenges facing ginger subsector. A cross sectional research design was adopted; the sa...
Abstract Climate change has greatly affected food production and food security. Erratic temperature rises and inconsistent precipitation have greatly influenced productivity of crops and livestock. The impacts have gotten much more pronounced among small scale farmers in Kenya whose farming activities are climate reliant. As a component of climate change adaptation, selecting suitable climate smart agriculture (CSA) technologies that can alleviate these adverse consequences is critical. The ...
PREFACE Sickle cell disease is a disorder that affects the red blood cells, which use a protein called haemoglobin to transport oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body. Sickle cell disease is inherited from parents who are AS. This means that a child cannot inherit the disease unless the parents pass down a detective copy of the gene. Unlike normal red blood cells, which can live for 120 days, sickle - shaped cells live only 10 to 20 days. Sickle cell anaemia is mostly dominated in Afri...
Abstract The well-being of the foetus is influenced by a number of factors[1] including maternal characteristics, the placenta and umbilical cord morphology and functions.[2] The placenta is a fantastic organ yet often neglected due to its transient existence; it performs functions that are later taken on by separate organs, including the lungs, liver, gut, kidneys and endocrine glands.[3] It is the interface between mother and foetus and influences maternal and newborn mortality.[4] Careful ...
Abstract Onifade, A.A. and Abu, O.A. 1998. Productive response of rabbits to supplemental copper in a diet based on tropical feedstuffs. J. Appl. Anim. Res., 13: 129-135. Effects of supplemental copper in a diet based on tropical feedstuffs on productive performance, carcass measurements and haematology of rabbits were investigated in a 70d trial. Copper as CuS04.0H2O was supplemented at 0, 125, 250 and 375 mg kg1 into a basal diet. The basal diet served as control treatment. Eight rabbits, e...
ABSTRACT Media representation of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) disease has greatly influenced how the disease and those who are affected by it are perceived in the society, thus often causing stigma towards those infected and affected. This dissertation therefore investigated to what extent stigma is present in print media reporting on HIV & AIDS in Namibia. This is because controlling the spread and managing HIV & AIDS in the country has be...
ABSTRACT A Quantum Cascade Laser Open-Path System (QCLOPS) version 2 sensor has been set-up and used to measure water vapour in the troposphere. The QCLOPS version 2 sensor was compared with a commercial humidity sensor. A positive correlation of 71.46 % was established between the coefficient of variation of the version 2 sensor and the mass concentration of the commercial humidity sensor. Ten different wood species namely Kroma, Dwindwinaba, Esia,Yaya, Konkroma, Emire, Mango, Esakoko, Cocoa...
ABSTRACT In 1991, Michael Grätzel and co-workers developed a new photovoltaic cell known as Dye Sensitized solar cells (DSSCs); these photovoltaic semiconductor devices convert solar radiation directly into electricity [1]. Metal-free sensitizers such as organic dyes and natural dyes have received attention as alternative DSSC applications and have been extensively developed [2]. Two metal free dyes were reported. These dyes were prepared through Schiff base synthetic methods, which a...
ABSTRACT Lake Baringo waters and sediments are being impacted negatively by metal contaminants sourced from the lake’s watershed posing a human and environmental health concern. The main objective was to determine the concentration of heavy metals cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) in water and sediments, and to characterize sediments in terms of grain size and total organic carbon and relate them to the heavy metal levels encountered at the sampled sites. 5 sites were s...
Abstract: Globally, there is growing interest to recycle organic waste using insect larvae into high-quality frass fertilizer through circular economy approach. This paper presents the first comparative report on the nutrient concentrations, fertilizing indices, nutrient supply potentials and compost maturity of nine edible insect frass fertilizers. Our results revealed that frass fertilizers from all the insect species had adequate concentrations and contents of macronutrients [nitrogen (N)...
Abstract Various ecological and environmental indicators including climate change, soil fertility, water availability and proper agronomic practices that form optimal agricultural systems are needed to be integrated for increasing agricultural productivity in the Tanzanian semi-arid agro-ecological zone. Among these indicators, climate change and soil fertility are the major limiting factors to affect crop yields in this semi-arid agro-ecological zone. To improve crop productivity, this study...
ABSTRACT Globally, chemical fertilizers cause serious environmental pollution and health hazards. Studies have shown that compost, a product of biodegradable organic matter, is not popular among Nigerian farmers because of its low quality. Improving compost quality is a challenge and supplementing it with natural fortifiers may be safer than opting for chemical fertilizers. This study was therefore designed to explore the effect of nutrient-rich alternatives on quality of compost made from ma...
ABSTRACT The inability of an organism to efficiently remove excess waste from the body have been a major issues attached to acute kidney injury (AKI) which is the most common cause of organ dysfunction. Oleanolic acid and rutin which are from the families of saponin and flavonoid respectively have been discovered to possess certain biological activities such as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammation, anti-viral and nephroprotective activities that can help in therapeutic management of acute kidney ...
Abstract: Worldwide, French beans (Phaseolus vulgarisL.), tomato (Solanum lycopersicumL.), andkales (Brassica oleraceaL.var. acephala) are considered economically important foodcrops. There is a rapid decline in their yield due to severe soil degradation. Thus, highcommercial fertilizer inputs are crucial, though they remain expensive and inaccessibleto resource poor farmers. We investigated the comparative performance of compostedblack soldier fly frass fertilizer (BSFFF), conventionallycom...