WorldWideScience

Sample records for east african pastoralist

  1. Low-intensity violence and the social determinants of adolescent health among three East African pastoralist communities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pike, Ivy L; Hilton, Charles; Österle, Matthias; Olungah, Owuor

    2018-04-01

    Recently, strong pleas have emerged to place the health of adolescents on the global health agenda. To reposition adolescence front and center, scholars argue that we must work toward a richly contextualized approach that considers the role that social environments play in shaping the final stages of growth and development. We aim to contribute to this deeper understanding of the social determinants of global adolescent health by offering a case study of three nomadic pastoralist communities from northern Kenya. In addition to noteworthy political and economic marginalization, East African pastoralist communities also contend with chronic, low intensity intercommunity conflict. Data collected over five extensive visits from 2008 to 2011, include the 10-19 year olds from 215 randomly sampled Pokot, Samburu, and Turkana households. Using a case/control design, we sampled two sites per ethnic community: one directly affected and one less affected by intercommunity violence. Our nutritional findings indicate that teens ages 15-19 years old had significantly higher anthropometric values compared to younger teens. Living in a wealthier household is associated with greater height, body mass indices, and summed skinfolds for boys but not for girls. Anthropometric measures were influenced by household and community variation in the mixed-effects, multi-level regression models. The Self-Report Questionnaire (SRQ-20) was used to assess psychosocial health, with higher scores associated with living in a community directly affected by violence and having lost a loved one due to violence. Our findings highlight the unique nature of adolescent health challenges but also the central role even subtle differences across communities and households play in shaping young people's experiences. With few studies to document the lived experience of pastoralist youth as they move toward adulthood, examining how such challenging socioeconomic environment shapes health seems long overdue

  2. Emerging landscape degradation trends in the East African Horn

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pricope, N. G.; Michaelsen, J.; Husak, G. J.; Funk, C. C.; Lopez-Carr, D.

    2012-12-01

    Increasing climate variability along with declining trends in rainfall represent major risk factors affecting food security in many regions of the world. We identify Africa-wide regions where significant rainfall decreases from 1979-2011 are coupled with significant human population density increases. The rangelands of the East African Horn remain one of the world's most food insecure regions with significantly increasing human populations predominantly dependent on pastoralist and agro-pastoralist livelihoods. Widespread vegetation degradation is occurring, adversely impacting fragile ecosystems and human livelihoods. Using MODIS land cover and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data collected since 2000, we observe significant changes in vegetation patterns and productivity over the last decade across the East African Horn and demonstrate that these two products can be used concurrently at large spatial scales to monitor vegetation dynamics at decadal time scales. Results demonstrate that a near doubling of the population in pastoral regions is linked with hotspots of degradation in vegetation condition. The most significant land cover change and browning trends are observed in areas experiencing drying precipitation trends in addition to increasing population pressures. These findings have serious implications for current and future regional food security monitoring and forecasting and for mitigation and adaptation strategies in a region where population is expected to continue increasing against a backdrop of drying climate trends.Fig.1(a)Change in standardized precipitation index in Africa between 1979-2010 (b)Change in population density at continental scale using the GRUMPv1 1990 and 2000 and AfriPop 2010 population density datasets Fig.2 Land cover change trajectories based on 2001-2009 MOD12Q1 Land Cover product for the East African Horn overlaid over aggregated FEWS Net Livelihoods Zones.

  3. Climate variability and impacts on east African livestock herders: The Maasai of Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania

    OpenAIRE

    Galvin, K.A.; Thornton, P.K.; Boone, R.B.; Sunderland, J.

    2004-01-01

    Metadata only record East African pastoral adaptation and vulnerability to climate variability and climate change is assessed, using data from decision-making processes and ecological data of the Maasai of Ngorongoro Conservation Area as an example. The paper uses integrated modeling, linking PHEWS, a household model, to SAVANNA, an ecosystem model to look at the effects of drought and a series of wet years on the well-being of Maasai pastoralists. Model results suggest that the ecosystem ...

  4. Testosterone and paternal care in East African foragers and pastoralists

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muller, Martin N.; Marlowe, Frank W.; Bugumba, Revocatus; Ellison, Peter T.

    2008-01-01

    The ‘challenge hypothesis’ posits that testosterone facilitates reproductive effort (investment in male–male competition and mate-seeking) at the expense of parenting effort (investment in offspring and mates). Multiple studies, primarily in North America, have shown that men in committed relationships, fathers, or both maintain lower levels of testosterone than unpaired men. Data from non-western populations, however, show inconsistent results. We hypothesized that much of this cross-cultural variation can be attributed to differential investment in mating versus parenting effort, even among married fathers. Here, we directly test this idea by comparing two neighbouring Tanzanian groups that exhibit divergent styles of paternal involvement: Hadza foragers and Datoga pastoralists. We predicted that high levels of paternal care by Hadza fathers would be associated with decreased testosterone in comparison with non-fathers, and that no such difference between fathers and non-fathers would be evident in Datoga men, who provide minimal direct paternal care. Twenty-seven Hadza men and 80 Datoga men between the ages of 17 and 60 provided morning and afternoon saliva samples from which testosterone was assayed. Measurements in both populations confirmed these predictions, adding further support to the hypothesis that paternal care is associated with decreased testosterone production in men. PMID:18826936

  5. Pastoralism and wildlife: historical and current perspectives in the East African rangelands of Kenya and Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lankester, F; Davis, A

    2016-11-01

    The relationship between pastoralists, their livestock, wildlife and the rangelands of East Africa is multi-directional, complex and long-standing. The tumultuous events of the past century, however, have rewritten the nature of this relationship, reshaping the landscapes that were created, and relied upon, by both pastoralists and wildlife. Presently, much of the interaction between wildlife and pastoralists takes place in and around protected areas, the most contentious occurring in pastoral lands surrounding national parks. In conservation terminology these areas are called buffer zones. In the past century buffer zones have been shaped by, and contributed to, restrictive conservation policies, expropriation of land, efforts to include communities in conservation, both positive and negative wildlife/livestock interactions, and political tensions. In this review paper, the authors outline the history that shaped the current relationship between pastoralists, livestock and wildlife in buffer zones in East Africa and highlight some of the broader issues that pastoralists (and pastoralism as an effective livelihood strategy) now face. Finally, they consider some of the sustainable and equitable practices that could be implemented to improve livelihoods and benefit wildlife and pastoralism alike.

  6. Strengthening Local Safety Nets as a Key to Enhancing the Food Security of Pastoralists in East Africa: A Case Study of the Rendille of Northern Kenya

    OpenAIRE

    SUN, Xiaogang

    2017-01-01

    The increase in climate-change-related natural disasters presents a major threat to the food security of pastoralists in East Africa. This paper explores ways of reducing the dependence on food aid and enhancing the food security of pastoralists through a case study of the Rendille in Northern Kenya. Current Rendille food systems have resulted from adapted livestock herding strategies and loss of nomadic lifestyles, as well as dependence on food aid. Although food aid is included in the livel...

  7. East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The East African Medical Journal is intended for publication of papers on ... research on problems relevant to East Africa and other African countries will receive special ... Analysis of survival patterns of TB‐HIV co‐infected patients in relation to ...

  8. The Climate-Population Nexus in the East African Horn: Emerging Degradation Trends in Rangeland and Pastoral Livelihood Zones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pricope, N. G.; Husak, G. J.; Funk, C. C.; Lopez-Carr, D.

    2014-12-01

    Increasing climate variability and extreme weather conditions along with declining trends in both rainfall and temperature represent major risk factors affecting agricultural production and food security in many regions of the world. We identify regions where significant rainfall decrease from 1979-2011 over the entire continent of Africa couples with significant human population density increase. The rangelands of Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia in the East African Horn remain one of the world's most food insecure regions, yet have significantly increasing human populations predominantly dependent on pastoralist and agro-pastoralist livelihoods. Vegetation in this region is characterized by a variable mosaic of land covers, generally dominated by grasslands necessary for agro-pastoralism, interspersed by woody vegetation. Recent assessments indicate that widespread degradation is occurring, adversely impacting fragile ecosystems and human livelihoods. Using two underutilized MODIS products, we observe significant changes in vegetation patterns and productivity over the last decade all across the East African Horn. We observe significant vegetation browning trends in areas experiencing drying precipitation trends in addition to increasing population pressures. We also found that the drying precipitation trends only partially statistically explain the vegetation browning trends, further indicating that other factors such as population pressures and land use changes are responsible for the observed declining vegetation health. Furthermore, we show that the general vegetation browning trends persist even during years with normal rainfall conditions such as 2012, indicating potential long-term degradation of rangelands on which approximately 10 million people depend. These findings have serious implications for current and future regional food security monitoring and forecasting as well as for mitigation and adaptation strategies in a region where population is expected

  9. Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology has been published since 1977 by the Bird Committee of the East Africa Natural History Society. Originally titled Scopus, the addition of Journal of East African Ornithology began with our January 2018 issue. The journal is published Open Access twice a year, typically in January ...

  10. Early agriculture and crop transmission among Bronze Age mobile pastoralists of Central Eurasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spengler, Robert; Frachetti, Michael; Doumani, Paula; Rouse, Lynne; Cerasetti, Barbara; Bullion, Elissa; Mar'yashev, Alexei

    2014-05-22

    Archaeological research in Central Eurasia is exposing unprecedented scales of trans-regional interaction and technology transfer between East Asia and southwest Asia deep into the prehistoric past. This article presents a new archaeobotanical analysis from pastoralist campsites in the mountain and desert regions of Central Eurasia that documents the oldest known evidence for domesticated grains and farming among seasonally mobile herders. Carbonized grains from the sites of Tasbas and Begash illustrate the first transmission of southwest Asian and East Asian domesticated grains into the mountains of Inner Asia in the early third millennium BC. By the middle second millennium BC, seasonal camps in the mountains and deserts illustrate that Eurasian herders incorporated the cultivation of millet, wheat, barley and legumes into their subsistence strategy. These findings push back the chronology for domesticated plant use among Central Eurasian pastoralists by approximately 2000 years. Given the geography, chronology and seed morphology of these data, we argue that mobile pastoralists were key agents in the spread of crop repertoires and the transformation of agricultural economies across Asia from the third to the second millennium BC.

  11. East African Journal of Statistics: Journal Sponsorship

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Journal of Statistics: Journal Sponsorship. Journal Home > About the Journal > East African Journal of Statistics: Journal Sponsorship. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  12. Trends in health surveillance and joint service delivery for pastoralists in West and Central Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abakar, M F; Schelling, E; Béchir, M; Ngandolo, B N; Pfister, K; Alfaroukh, I O; Hassane, H M; Zinsstag, J

    2016-11-01

    In most sub-Saharan African countries, pastoralism represents an important economic resource and contributes significantly to national growth; however, challenges remain, particularly in providing social services to pastoralists (especially health and education) and in avoiding conflict with local sedentary communities and local authorities. All of this takes place while pastoralists try to maintain their mobile lifestyle within a rapidly changing ecosystem. Transdisciplinary approaches, such as 'One Health', which covers both human and animal health, have proven effective in delivering services and reaching mobile pastoralists in remote areas. The pastoralist way of life could be described as being linked to both their livestock and their environment, which makes social science an important element when researching the delivery and adaptation of social services to pastoralists. Early or pre-diagnostic detection of emerging and endemic infectious disease remains a vital aspect of health surveillance targeted at preventing further transmission and spread. Community-based syndromic surveillance, coupled with visual mobile phone technology, adapted to the high levels of illiteracy among nomads, could offer an alternative to existing health surveillance systems. Such an approach could contribute to accelerated reporting, which could in turn lead to targeted intervention among mobile pastoralists in sub-Saharan Africa. Although considerable efforts have been made towards integrating mobile pastoralists into social services, obstacles remain to the adoption of a clear, specific and sustainable policy on pastoralism in sub-Saharan Africa.

  13. Journal of East African Natural History

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The Journal of East African Natural History is published jointly by the East Africa Natural History Society and the National Museums of Kenya. The Journal publishes papers and notes in the field of natural history, broadly defined as the study of organisms in their natural state, relevant to the eastern African region.

  14. East African rarities committee report | Fisher | Scopus: Journal of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Rarities Committee (EARC) Special Report Species included for East African countries in Britton (1980) which have since been considered unacceptable. East African Rarities Committee Report 2013–2015. Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD ...

  15. Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology: Journal Sponsorship

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology: Journal Sponsorship. Journal Home > About the Journal > Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology: Journal Sponsorship. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  16. East African Journal of Public Health: Journal Sponsorship

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Journal of Public Health: Journal Sponsorship. Journal Home > About the Journal > East African Journal of Public Health: Journal Sponsorship. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  17. Archives: East and Central African Journal of Surgery

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Items 1 - 40 of 40 ... Archives: East and Central African Journal of Surgery. Journal Home > Archives: East and Central African Journal of Surgery. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  18. Migration of Chadic speaking pastoralists within Africa based on population structure of Chad Basin and phylogeography of mitochondrial L3f haplogroup.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cerný, Viktor; Fernandes, Verónica; Costa, Marta D; Hájek, Martin; Mulligan, Connie J; Pereira, Luísa

    2009-03-23

    Chad Basin, lying within the bidirectional corridor of African Sahel, is one of the most populated places in Sub-Saharan Africa today. The origin of its settlement appears connected with Holocene climatic ameliorations (aquatic resources) that started ~10,000 years before present (YBP). Although both Nilo-Saharan and Niger-Congo language families are encountered here, the most diversified group is the Chadic branch belonging to the Afro-Asiatic language phylum. In this article, we investigate the proposed ancient migration of Chadic pastoralists from Eastern Africa based on linguistic data and test for genetic traces of this migration in extant Chadic speaking populations. We performed whole mitochondrial genome sequencing of 16 L3f haplotypes, focused on clade L3f3 that occurs almost exclusively in Chadic speaking people living in the Chad Basin. These data supported the reconstruction of a L3f phylogenetic tree and calculation of times to the most recent common ancestor for all internal clades. A date ~8,000 YBP was estimated for the L3f3 sub-haplogroup, which is in good agreement with the supposed migration of Chadic speaking pastoralists and their linguistic differentiation from other Afro-Asiatic groups of East Africa. As a whole, the Afro-Asiatic language family presents low population structure, as 92.4% of mtDNA variation is found within populations and only 3.4% of variation can be attributed to diversity among language branches. The Chadic speaking populations form a relatively homogenous cluster, exhibiting lower diversification than the other Afro-Asiatic branches (Berber, Semitic and Cushitic). The results of our study support an East African origin of mitochondrial L3f3 clade that is present almost exclusively within Chadic speaking people living in Chad Basin. Whole genome sequence-based dates show that the ancestral haplogroup L3f must have emerged soon after the Out-of-Africa migration (around 57,100 +/- 9,400 YBP), but the "Chadic" L3f3 clade has

  19. Regional Integration: A Political Federation of the East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The aim of this paper is to explore the possibility and viability of an East African political federation project. Since the late 1800s under the then British East Africa, the countries of East Africa have been searching for ways to integrate. The search led to the establishment of the East African Community (EAC) in December ...

  20. Integrating the Indigenous Knowledge of Borana Pastoralists into Rangeland Management Strategies in Southern Ethiopia

    OpenAIRE

    World Bank

    2005-01-01

    Pastoralists' indigenous knowledge (IK) about ecology and social organization led to rangeland-management strategies appropriate to deal with the erratic rainfall in African drylands. Herd mobility was traditionally practiced as the key strategy to make use of the scattered rangeland resources on a large scale.

  1. EAST AFRICAN MEDICAL JOURNAL

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2003-11-11

    Nov 11, 2003 ... East African Medical Journal Vol. ... Lecturer/Consultant Surgeon, Paediatric Surgery Unit, Department of Surgery, College of Medical Sciences, University of Calabar, .... mind and the results obtained were however satisfying.

  2. Stable isotopic composition of East African lake waters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Odada, E.O.

    2001-01-01

    The investigation of stable isotopic composition of East African lake waters was conducted by scientists from the Department of Geology, University of Nairobi, as part of the International Decade for the East African Lakes (IDEAL) project and in close collaboration with the scientists from Large Lakes Observatory of the University of Minnesota and the Isotope Hydrology Laboratory of the IAEA in Vienna. The Research Contract was part of the IAEA Co-ordinated Research Programme on Isotope Techniques in Lake Dynamics Investigations, and was sponsored by the Agency. Water and grab sediment samples were obtained from East African Lakes during the month of January and February 1994 and July/August 1995. Water samples were analysed for oxygen and deuterium isotopic composition at the IAEA Laboratories in Vienna, Austria. In this final paper we report the results of the study of oxygen and deuterium isotopic composition from the East African lake waters. (author)

  3. Approaches to education provision for mobile pastoralists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dyer, C

    2016-11-01

    Experiences of mobile pastoralists often attest to a wide range of contradictions about the presumed advantages of formal education. While effort to 'reach' pastoralists has intensified under the global Education for All movement, there remain considerable difficulties in finding ways to make formal education relate to pastoralist livelihoods and complement endogenous knowledge. This paper examines how these dynamics play out across models of formal and non-formal education service provision, and identifies innovations that offer promising ways forward: Alternative Basic Education, Open and Distance Learning, and Pastoralist Field Schools.

  4. Journal of East African Natural History: Editorial Policies

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Focus and Scope. The Journal of East African Natural History is published jointly by the East Africa Natural History Society and the National Museums of Kenya. The Journal publishes papers and notes in the field of natural history, broadly defined as the study of organisms in their natural state, relevant to the eastern African ...

  5. Migration of Chadic speaking pastoralists within Africa based on population structure of Chad Basin and phylogeography of mitochondrial L3f haplogroup

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mulligan Connie J

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Chad Basin, lying within the bidirectional corridor of African Sahel, is one of the most populated places in Sub-Saharan Africa today. The origin of its settlement appears connected with Holocene climatic ameliorations (aquatic resources that started ~10,000 years before present (YBP. Although both Nilo-Saharan and Niger-Congo language families are encountered here, the most diversified group is the Chadic branch belonging to the Afro-Asiatic language phylum. In this article, we investigate the proposed ancient migration of Chadic pastoralists from Eastern Africa based on linguistic data and test for genetic traces of this migration in extant Chadic speaking populations. Results We performed whole mitochondrial genome sequencing of 16 L3f haplotypes, focused on clade L3f3 that occurs almost exclusively in Chadic speaking people living in the Chad Basin. These data supported the reconstruction of a L3f phylogenetic tree and calculation of times to the most recent common ancestor for all internal clades. A date ~8,000 YBP was estimated for the L3f3 sub-haplogroup, which is in good agreement with the supposed migration of Chadic speaking pastoralists and their linguistic differentiation from other Afro-Asiatic groups of East Africa. As a whole, the Afro-Asiatic language family presents low population structure, as 92.4% of mtDNA variation is found within populations and only 3.4% of variation can be attributed to diversity among language branches. The Chadic speaking populations form a relatively homogenous cluster, exhibiting lower diversification than the other Afro-Asiatic branches (Berber, Semitic and Cushitic. Conclusion The results of our study support an East African origin of mitochondrial L3f3 clade that is present almost exclusively within Chadic speaking people living in Chad Basin. Whole genome sequence-based dates show that the ancestral haplogroup L3f must have emerged soon after the Out-of-Africa migration (around

  6. Migration of Chadic speaking pastoralists within Africa based on population structure of Chad Basin and phylogeography of mitochondrial L3f haplogroup

    Science.gov (United States)

    Černý, Viktor; Fernandes, Verónica; Costa, Marta D; Hájek, Martin; Mulligan, Connie J; Pereira, Luísa

    2009-01-01

    Background Chad Basin, lying within the bidirectional corridor of African Sahel, is one of the most populated places in Sub-Saharan Africa today. The origin of its settlement appears connected with Holocene climatic ameliorations (aquatic resources) that started ~10,000 years before present (YBP). Although both Nilo-Saharan and Niger-Congo language families are encountered here, the most diversified group is the Chadic branch belonging to the Afro-Asiatic language phylum. In this article, we investigate the proposed ancient migration of Chadic pastoralists from Eastern Africa based on linguistic data and test for genetic traces of this migration in extant Chadic speaking populations. Results We performed whole mitochondrial genome sequencing of 16 L3f haplotypes, focused on clade L3f3 that occurs almost exclusively in Chadic speaking people living in the Chad Basin. These data supported the reconstruction of a L3f phylogenetic tree and calculation of times to the most recent common ancestor for all internal clades. A date ~8,000 YBP was estimated for the L3f3 sub-haplogroup, which is in good agreement with the supposed migration of Chadic speaking pastoralists and their linguistic differentiation from other Afro-Asiatic groups of East Africa. As a whole, the Afro-Asiatic language family presents low population structure, as 92.4% of mtDNA variation is found within populations and only 3.4% of variation can be attributed to diversity among language branches. The Chadic speaking populations form a relatively homogenous cluster, exhibiting lower diversification than the other Afro-Asiatic branches (Berber, Semitic and Cushitic). Conclusion The results of our study support an East African origin of mitochondrial L3f3 clade that is present almost exclusively within Chadic speaking people living in Chad Basin. Whole genome sequence-based dates show that the ancestral haplogroup L3f must have emerged soon after the Out-of-Africa migration (around 57,100 ± 9,400 YBP), but

  7. Phytogeography of the tropical north-east African mountains

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. Friis

    1983-11-01

    Full Text Available The tropical north-east African mountains are tentatively divided into four phytochoria, the formal rank of which is not defined. The division is based on patterns of distribution and endemism in the region. The recognition of a distinct Afromontane phytochorion is now well established (Chapman & White, 1970; Werger, 1978; White, 1978. However, there is still very little information on the phytogeography of the individual mountains or mountain systems. This study hopes to fill a little of the gap by analysing distribution patterns and patterns of endemism in the flora of the tropical north-east African mountains. The north-east African mountain system is the largest in tropical Africa (see e.g. map in White, 1978. At the core of this system is the large Ethiopian massif, around which are located various mountains and mountain chains. These include the Red Sea Hills in the Sudan, the mountain chain in northern Somalia, the south-west Arabian mountains, and the Imatong mountains of south-east Sudan. The latter are often referred to the East African mountain system (White, 1978 but. as I will point out later, they also have a close connection with the south-west highlands of Ethiopia. The paper presents some results of my study of the mountain flora of tropical north-east Africa, particularly the forest species. Where no source is indicated, the data are from my own unpublished studies.

  8. East and Central African Journal of Surgery: About this journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery: About this journal. Journal Home > East and Central African Journal of Surgery: About this journal. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  9. Traditional ecological knowledge underlying herding decisions of pastoralists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tamou, C; de Boer, I J M; Ripoll-Bosch, R; Oosting, S J

    2018-04-01

    Pastoralists have traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), which is important for their livelihoods and for policies and interventions. Pastoralism is under pressure, however, which may result in a decline of pastoral lifestyle and its related TEK. We, therefore, addressed the following objectives (i) to inventorise and assess how pastoralists characterise and value soils and forages in their environment, (ii) to analyse how soil, forage and livestock (i.e. cattle) characteristics relate to herding decisions and (iii) to determine whether TEK underlying herding decisions differs across generations. Data were collected through focus groups and individual interviews with 72 pastoralists, belonging to three generations and to three agro-ecological zones. Using a three-point scale (high, medium, low), four grasses and three tree forages were assessed in terms of nutritional quality for milk, meat, health and strength. Using their own visual criteria, pastoralists identified five different soils, which they selected for herding at different times of the year. Pastoralists stated that Pokuri was the best soil because of its low moisture content, whereas Karaal was the worst because forage hardly grows on it. They stated that perennials, such as Andropogon gayanus and Loxoderra ledermannii, were of high nutritional quality, whereas annuals such as Andropogon pseudapricus and Hyparrhenia involucrata were of low nutritional quality. Afzelia africana was perceived of high quality for milk production, whereas Khaya senegalensis had the highest quality for meat, health and strength. Pastoralists first used soil, then forage and finally livestock characteristics in their herding decisions. Pastoralists' TEK was not associated with their generations, but with their agro-ecological zones. This study suggests that pastoralists had common and detailed TEK about soils, forages and livestock characteristics, underlying their herding decisions. To conclude, pastoralists use a holistic

  10. Knowledge of mange among Masai pastoralists in Kenya.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francis Gakuya

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Pastoralists in low-income countries usually live in close proximity to their animals and thus represent an important repository of information about livestock disease. Since wild and domestic animals often mix freely whilst grazing, pastoralists are also able to observe first-hand the diseases that are present in wildlife and as such are key informants in disease outbreaks in sylvatic animals. We report here the findings of the first study of the knowledge and role of Masai pastoralists in mange in wildlife and livestock in Masai Mara, Kenya. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In this paper we describe the knowledge of mange accrued by 56 Masai pastoralists in Kenya and how they respond to it in both wildlife and livestock. In total, 52 (93% pastoralists had a clear idea of the clinical appearance of mange, 13 (23% understood its aetiology and 37 (66% knew that mites were the causal agent. Thirty-nine (69% believed that mange cross-infection between domestic and wild animals occurs, while 48 (85% had observed mange in domestic animals including sheep (77%, goats (57%, dogs (24% and cattle (14%. The pastoralists had also observed wild animals infected with mange, above all lions (19%, gazelles (14%, cheetahs (12% and wildebeests (2%. In 68% of cases Masai pastoralists treat mange infection or apply control measures, most commonly via the topical use of acaricides (29% and/or the reporting of the outbreak to the veterinary authorities (21%. In the period 2007-2011, Kenya Wildlife Service received 24 warnings of 59 wild animals with mange-like lesions from the Masai Mara pastoralist community. The reported species were cheetah, lion, wild dog, Thomson's gazelle and wildebeest. CONCLUSION: Masai pastoralists have good knowledge of mange epidemiology and treatment. Their observations and the treatments they apply are valuable in the control of this disease in both wild and domestic animals.

  11. Crop farmers and pastoralists' socio-economic characteristics ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Crop farmers and pastoralists' socio-economic characteristics influencing ... Journal of Agricultural Research and Development ... family size and farm size) influenced positively and significantly crop farmers and pastoralists land use conflict.

  12. Portulacaria afra in East AFrica | Newton | Journal of East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    No Abstract. East African Journal of Natural History Vol. 96 (1) 2007: pp. 107-108. http://dx.doi.org/10.2982/0012-8317(2007)96[107:PAIEA]2.0.CO;2 · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors · FAQ's · More about AJOL · AJOL's Partners · Terms and Conditions of Use ...

  13. Crowdfunding in Emerging Markets : Lessons from East African Startups

    OpenAIRE

    World Bank Group

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to capture lessons learned from East African entrepreneurs who were some of crowdfunding’s first adopters. Their experiences can serve as a practical guide for entrepreneurs looking to more effectively utilize crowdfunding across all emerging markets. In order to gather this data, the World Bank conducted interviews with a number of East African technology entr...

  14. Model, Proxy and Isotopic Perspectives on the East African Humid Period

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tierney, Jessica E.; Lewis, Sophie C.; Cook, Benjamin I.; LeGrande, Allegra N.; Schmidt, Gavin A.

    2011-01-01

    Both North and East Africa experienced more humid conditions during the early and mid-Holocene epoch (11,000-5000yr BP; 11-5 ka) relative to today. The North African Humid Period has been a major focus of paleoclimatic study, and represents a response of the hydrological cycle to the increase in boreal summer insolation and associated ocean, atmosphere and land surface feedbacks. Meanwhile, the mechanisms that caused the coeval East African Humid Period are poorly understood. Here, we use results from isotopeenabled coupled climate modeling experiments to investigate the cause of the East African Humid Period. The modeling results are interpreted alongside proxy records of both water balance and the isotopic composition of rainfall. Our simulations show that the orbitally-induced increase in dry season precipitation and the subsequent reduction in precipitation seasonality can explain the East African Humid Period, and this scenario agrees well with regional lake level and pollen paleoclimate data. Changes in zonal moisture flux from both the Atlantic and Indian Ocean account for the simulated increase in precipitation from June through November. Isotopic paleoclimate data and simulated changes in moisture source demonstrate that the western East African Rift Valley in particular experienced more humid conditions due to the influx of Atlantic moisture and enhanced convergence along the Congo Air Boundary. Our study demonstrates that zonal changes in moisture advection are an important determinant of climate variability in the East African region.

  15. East African Journal of Sciences: Submissions

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Aims The East African Journal of Sciences (EAJS) publishes original scientific ... of ideas among scientists engaged in research and development activities; and ... font size 12, Times New Roman), including tables, figures and illustrations.

  16. East African Orthopaedic Journal: Submissions

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Author Guidelines. The East African Orthopaedic Journal is published biannually by the Kenya Orthopaedics Association. Its primary objective is to give researchers in orthopaedics and ... Format should be as follows; Details of authors as for original articles, summary of not more than 200 words, introduction, case report,

  17. Collaboration with East African security organisations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nordby, Johannes Riber; Jacobsen, Katja L.

    2012-01-01

    of the concept. At the same time the three organisations represent different constellations of member nations and thus different national interests, and locally they have different legitimacy and political strength. Thus, when choosing collaboration partners for a security project it is not simply a question......When it comes to understanding the concept of security and the way fragile security situations should be solved, the difference is big. While EASF – the East African Standby Force – is a regular military force with a rather traditional, military perception of the concept of security, EAC (East...... African Community) and IGAD (Intergovernmental Authority on Development) have broader perceptions of the concept. According to EAC, security also concerns matters such as policy reform, legislation, education and infrastructure. IGAD considers food security and environmental and economic issues as part...

  18. East and Central African Journal of Surgery: Contact

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Principal Contact. Prof. Ignatius Kakande Editor-in-Chief Association of Surgeons of East Africa. East and Central African Journal of Surgery. P.O. Box 7051. Kampala. Uganda. Alternative email: igkakande@gmail.com. Phone: +256 772 501 745. Email: ecajs@gmail.com ...

  19. Determinants of vaccination coverage among pastoralists in north ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Determinants of vaccination coverage among pastoralists in north eastern Kenya. ... Attitudes, and Practices (KAPs) on vaccination coverage among settled and ... We used a structured instrument to survey pastoralist mothers with children ...

  20. General practitioners and clinical guidelines | Bhagat | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal: 2001 78(1): 30-34). Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v78i1.9109 · AJOL African Journals Online.

  1. East African Agricultural and Forestry Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Agricultural and Forestry Journal is published by the Kenya ... water resource base to meet the challenges of poverty alleviation and food security. ... on maize growth, nitrogen uptake and yield in a semi-arid Kenyan environment ...

  2. Knowledge of Bovine Tuberculosis, Cattle Husbandry and Dairy Practices amongst Pastoralists and Small-Scale Dairy Farmers in Cameroon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelly, Robert F.; Hamman, Saidou M.; Morgan, Kenton L.; Nkongho, Egbe F.; Ngwa, Victor Ngu; Tanya, Vincent; Andu, Walters N.; Sander, Melissa; Ndip, Lucy; Handel, Ian G.; Mazeri, Stella; Muwonge, Adrian; Bronsvoort, Barend M. de. C.

    2016-01-01

    Background Control of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) and zoonotic tuberculosis (zTB) has relied upon surveillance and slaughter of infected cattle, milk pasteurisation and public health education. In Cameroon, like many other sub-Saharan African countries, there is limited understanding of current cattle husbandry or milk processing practices or livestock keepers awareness of bTB. This paper describes husbandry and milk processing practices within different Cameroonian cattle keeping communities and bTB awareness in comparison to other infectious diseases. Study design A population based cross-sectional sample of herdsmen and a questionnaire were used to gather data from pastoralists and dairy farmers in the North West Region and Vina Division of Cameroon. Results Pastoralists were predominately male Fulanis who had kept cattle for over a decade. Dairy farmers were non-Fulani and nearly half were female. Pastoralists went on transhumance with their cattle and came into contact with other herds and potential wildlife reservoirs of bTB. Dairy farmers housed their cattle and had little contact with other herds or wildlife. Pastoralists were aware of bTB and other infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease and fasciolosis. These pastoralists were also able to identify clinical signs of these diseases. A similar proportion of dairy farmers were aware of bTB but fewer were aware of foot-and-mouth and fasciolosis. In general, dairy farmers were unable to identify any clinical signs for any of these diseases. Importantly most pastoralists and dairy farmers were unaware that bTB could be transmitted to people by consuming milk. Conclusions Current cattle husbandry practices make the control of bTB in cattle challenging especially in mobile pastoralist herds. Routine test and slaughter control in dairy herds would be tractable but would have profound impact on dairy farmer livelihoods. Prevention of transmission in milk offers the best approach for human risk mitigation

  3. East African Journal of Public Health

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The East African Journal of Public Health is a multi-disciplinary journal publishing scientific research work from a range of public health related disciplines including community medicine, epidemiology, nutrition, behavioural sciences, health promotion, health education, communicable and non-communicable disease.

  4. Socioeconomic Effects of Farmer-Pastoralist Conflict on Agricultural ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    USER

    of Farmer-pastoralist conflicts as it affects their family farming. Setting up of a .... agents are professionally committed. Also there is need to ... indicate the extent of social and economic losses incurred as a result of farmer- pastoralist conflict ...

  5. Scientific Communication | Okolo | East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 92, No 2 (2015) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  6. Tobacco smoking in black and white South Africans | Peltzer | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Tobacco smoking in black and white South Africans. K. Peltzer. Abstract. (East African Medical Journal: 2001 78(3): 115-118). Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v78i3.9074 · AJOL African Journals Online.

  7. Assessing sanitary mixtures in East African cities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Letema, S.C.

    2012-01-01

    The urbanisation of poverty and informality in East African cities poses a threat to environmental
    health, perpetuates social exclusion and inequalities, and creates service gaps (UN-Habitat, 2008).
    This makes conventional sanitation provision untenable citywide, giving rise to the

  8. Nutritional and health challenges of pastoralist populations in Kenya ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper examines nutritional and health challenges facing pastoralists who inhabit fragile rangelands and are one of the most nutritionally vulnerable population groups in Kenya. The review is based on a synthesis of literature on pastoralist food security, nutrition and health status and livelihoods in Kenya's rangelands.

  9. Acute appendicitis in a Kenya rural hospital | Willmore | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal: 2001 78(7): 355-357). Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v78i7.9007 · AJOL African Journals Online.

  10. East African Cenozoic vegetation history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linder, Hans Peter

    2017-11-01

    The modern vegetation of East Africa is a complex mosaic of rainforest patches; small islands of tropic-alpine vegetation; extensive savannas, ranging from almost pure grassland to wooded savannas; thickets; and montane grassland and forest. Here I trace the evolution of these vegetation types through the Cenozoic. Paleogene East Africa was most likely geomorphologically subdued and, as the few Eocene fossil sites suggest, a woodland in a seasonal climate. Woodland rather than rainforest may well have been the regional vegetation. Mountain building started with the Oligocene trap lava flows in Ethiopia, on which rainforest developed, with little evidence of grass and none of montane forests. The uplift of the East African Plateau took place during the middle Miocene. Fossil sites indicate the presence of rainforest, montane forest and thicket, and wooded grassland, often in close juxtaposition, from 17 to 10 Ma. By 10 Ma, marine deposits indicate extensive grassland in the region and isotope analysis indicates that this was a C 3 grassland. In the later Miocene rifting, first of the western Albertine Rift and then of the eastern Gregory Rift, added to the complexity of the environment. The building of the high strato-volcanos during the later Mio-Pliocene added environments suitable for tropic-alpine vegetation. During this time, the C 3 grassland was replaced by C 4 savannas, although overall the extent of grassland was reduced from the mid-Miocene high to the current low level. Lake-level fluctuations during the Quaternary indicate substantial variation in rainfall, presumably as a result of movements in the intertropical convergence zone and the Congo air boundary, but the impact of these fluctuations on the vegetation is still speculative. I argue that, overall, there was an increase in the complexity of East African vegetation complexity during the Neogene, largely as a result of orogeny. The impact of Quaternary climatic fluctuation is still poorly understood

  11. Ky’osimba Onaanya: understanding productivity of East African Highland banana

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Taulya, G.

    2015-01-01

    Over 30 million people in East Africa depend on East African highland bananas for food and income. The bananas are grown with limited additions of nutrients and no irrigation, despite widespread poor soil fertility and regular dry seasons. This thesis describes the effect of increasing rainfall

  12. East African Journal of Sciences: Editorial Policies

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Open Access Policy. This journal provides immediate open access to its content, upon registration, on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Creative Commons License East African Journal of Sciences by Haramaya University is licensed under a ...

  13. General practitioners and clinical guidelines | Bhagat | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 78, No 1 (2001) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  14. Ky'osimba Onaanya: Understanding Productivity of East African Highland Banana

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Taulya, G.

    2016-01-01

    Drought stress, potassium (K) and nitrogen (N) deficiencies are major constraints to East African highland banana (Musa spp. AAA-EA; hereafter referred to as ‘highland banana’), a primary staple food crop for over 30 million people in East Africa. This study explored the main and interactive effects

  15. Tuberculosis among transhumant pastoralist and settled communities of south-eastern Mauritania

    OpenAIRE

    L?, Aissata; Tall-Dia, Anta; Bonfoh, Bassirou; Schelling, Esther

    2016-01-01

    Background: Transhumant pastoralists of Mauritania were assumed to have a high prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) because of reduced access to diagnostic testing. No population-based survey on TB has been published for Mauritania.Objective: The goal of this study was to estimate the prevalence of presumptive TB cases among mobile pastoralists and villagers in a remote zone of Mauritania.Design: In the south-eastern province of Hodh Ech Chargui, 250 adult pastoralists and 250 villagers were rando...

  16. Short communications | Mockler | Scopus: Journal of East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 36, No 1 (2016) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  17. East African Journal of Public Health: Editorial Policies

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Focus and Scope. The East African Journal of Public Health is a multi-disciplinary journal publishing scientific research work from a range of public health related disciplines including community medicine, epidemiology, nutrition, behavioural sciences, health promotion, health education, communicable and ...

  18. Journal of East African Natural History: Submissions

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2017-11-01

    Nov 1, 2017 ... Author Guidelines. Submission: manuscripts should be submitted as a Word document in an email attachment, to the Editor-in-Chief, Journal of East African Natural History at office@naturekenya.org. The manuscript should be accompanied by a covering letter from the author, or in the case of multiple ...

  19. The biggest fish in the sea? Dynamic Kenyan labour migration in the East African community

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ong'ayo, A.O.O.; Oucho, J.O.; Oucho, L.A.

    2013-01-01

    This study assesses the Kenyan policy and institutional framework concerning South–South labour migration with particular focus on the East African Community (EAC) countries. It focuses mainly on one particular policy instrument, the East African Community Common Market framework. The research

  20. African Muslim Youth and the Middle East

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ihle, Annette Haaber

    this African tradition of religious scholarship in the Middle East. The paper will, with the help of Pierre Bourdieu's notion of forms of capital related to various fields, analyse the challenges which Muslim students encounter during their stay in the Middle East and the forms of capital they bring back......, marked by economic decline and political instability. In Africa a weak or even failed state often means that young people have in reality no access to political, educational or economic positions and resources. In some countries like Nigeria, Ghana and the Ivory Coast the marginalisation of the youth...

  1. Institutional development: from legal pluralism to institutional bricolage in West African pastoralism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fokou, G; Bonfoh, B

    2016-11-01

    Pastoralists in Africa are increasingly vulnerable to the effects of globalisation, climate change and changes in land use. They are confronted with problems related to access to scarce natural resources and their regulation, the management of mobility, and too little investment in health systems, livestock production and social service delivery. However, this paper focuses on positive trends and vital innovations in pastoral societies. These rely on robust institutions and policy frameworks that contribute to economically secure, politically stable, and environmentally sustainable livelihoods for African pastoral societies. The authors analyse ways in which internal and external efforts can improve the economic viability and social aspects of pastoralism. The institutions that manage natural resources and their effects on livelihoods and access to social services must be critically reviewed. The authors suggest that a new model for the economic and social development of African pastoralism should be positioned between donor- or governmentdriven development (in other words, 'seeing like a state') and the autonomous development goals of pastoralists ('seeing like a pastoralist'). Pastoralists are resourceful, entrepreneurial and innovative people, fully able to support new institutional systems and services which recognise their way of life and production systems. It seems evident that African pastoralism will maintain its vitality and creativity through a process of 'bricolage', with institutional and policy innovations based on a constant renegotiation of norms, the reinvention or transformation of tradition, the importance of legitimate authority and the role of the people themselves in shaping such arrangements.

  2. Dynamics of Pastoralist Relations at Change: An Exploration into the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Above all, the marginalization of pastoralists from major political, economic and other considerations, and prejudices attributed to the pastoralist way of life has led to persistent social conflicts. Besides, memories of historical animosities between the Afar and Karrayu ethnic groups served as adhesive glues for the pervasive ...

  3. Radio listening habits of pupils of Nomadic Pastoralists and Migrant ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The need to integrate Nigeria with other nations in the world that have achieved landmark results in Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI) innovation necessitated this study on radio listening habits of pupils of nomadic pastoralists and migrant fisherfolks in Nigeria. The study was carried out in four pastoralists' states of Borno, ...

  4. East African governments' responses to high cereal prices

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Meijerink, G.W.; Roza, P.; Berkum, van S.

    2009-01-01

    This study analyses the responses of governments in four East African countries (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Ethiopia) with respect to price formation and price transmission in the cereal sector. All four countries were confronted with high cereal prices in 2008. Government policies applied largely

  5. East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences is dedicated to all aspects of Pharmaceutical Sciences research and is published in English. The scientific papers published in the Journal fall into three main categories: review papers, original research papers and short communications. Review papers in ...

  6. Systematic and taxonomic issues concerning some East African bird ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 34 (2015) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  7. Bandwidth selection in smoothing functions | Kibua | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... inexpensive and, hence, worth adopting. We argue that the bandwidth parameter is determined by two factors: the kernel function and the length of the smoothing region. We give an illustrative example of its application using real data. Keywords: Kernel, Smoothing functions, Bandwidth > East African Journal of Statistics ...

  8. Panmixia in east African Platgyra daedalea | Macdonald | Western ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Reef coral populations in the western Indian Ocean are neglected in terms of research and management. Very little is known about coral population connectivity and dynamics at regional scales. Platygyra daedalea was collected from Indian Ocean coral reefs, mainly from the east African coast between Mombasa Marine ...

  9. East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. 1. Vol. 8(2) 40 - 42. Constituents of the Stem Bark of Dombeya Rotundifolia Hochst. S.N. NDWIGAH*', G.N. THOITHI', J.W. MWANGI~ AND 1.0. KIBWAGE'. 'Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, University of Nairobi,. P. 0.

  10. Genomic insights into the origin of farming in the ancient Near East

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lazaridis, Iosif; Nadel, Dani; Rollefson, Gary; Merrett, Deborah C.; Rohland, Nadin; Mallick, Swapan; Fernandes, Daniel; Novak, Mario; Gamarra, Beatriz; Sirak, Kendra; Connell, Sarah; Stewardson, Kristin; Harney, Eadaoin; Fu, Qiaomei; Gonzalez-Fortes, Gloria; Jones, Eppie R.; Roodenberg, Songül Alpaslan; Lengyel, György; Bocquentin, Fanny; Gasparian, Boris; Monge, Janet M.; Gregg, Michael; Eshed, Vered; Mizrahi, Ahuva-Sivan; Meiklejohn, Christopher; Gerritsen, Fokke; Bejenaru, Luminita; Blüher, Matthias; Campbell, Archie; Cavalleri, Gianpiero; Comas, David; Froguel, Philippe; Gilbert, Edmund; Kerr, Shona M.; Kovacs, Peter; Krause, Johannes; McGettigan, Darren; Merrigan, Michael; Merriwether, D. Andrew; O'Reilly, Seamus; Richards, Martin B.; Semino, Ornella; Shamoon-Pour, Michel; Stefanescu, Gheorghe; Stumvoll, Michael; Tönjes, Anke; Torroni, Antonio; Wilson, James F.; Yengo, Loic; Hovhannisyan, Nelli A.; Patterson, Nick; Pinhasi, Ron; Reich, David

    2016-01-01

    We report genome-wide ancient DNA from 44 ancient Near Easterners ranging in time between ~12,000-1,400 BCE, from Natufian hunter-gatherers to Bronze Age farmers. We show that the earliest populations of the Near East derived around half their ancestry from a ‘Basal Eurasian’ lineage that had little if any Neanderthal admixture and that separated from other non-African lineages prior to their separation from each other. The first farmers of the southern Levant (Israel and Jordan) and Zagros Mountains (Iran) were strongly genetically differentiated, and each descended from local hunter-gatherers. By the time of the Bronze Age, these two populations and Anatolian-related farmers had mixed with each other and with the hunter-gatherers of Europe to drastically reduce genetic differentiation. The impact of the Near Eastern farmers extended beyond the Near East: farmers related to those of Anatolia spread westward into Europe; farmers related to those of the Levant spread southward into East Africa; farmers related to those from Iran spread northward into the Eurasian steppe; and people related to both the early farmers of Iran and to the pastoralists of the Eurasian steppe spread eastward into South Asia. PMID:27459054

  11. Editorial : Clinical drug interactions | Kokwaro | East African Medical ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Journal Home > Vol 78, No 10 (2001) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register. Editorial: Clinical drug interactions. G. O. Kokwaro. Abstract. (East African Medical Journal 2001 78 (10): 505-506). Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT

  12. Attitudes, perceptions and behaviours towards HIV testing among African-American and East African immigrant women in Washington, DC: implications for targeted HIV testing promotion and communication strategies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Jesus, Maria; Carrete, Claudia; Maine, Cathleen; Nalls, Patricia

    2015-12-01

    The objective of the study was to examine and compare the HIV testing attitudes, perceptions and behaviours between African-American and East African immigrant women in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Adopting an inductive, qualitative methodological approach, we conducted a total of 40 in-depth, semistructured interviews between October 2012 and March 2013. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Overall, African-American women held more favourable views towards HIV testing than East African immigrant women. Very few East African immigrant women sought HIV testing intentionally. The majority of East African participants were tested inadvertently, while others tested for immigration-related or employment-related purposes. There were many barriers that impede women from seeking an HIV test including negative assumptions (eg, "Getting an HIV test implies that I am HIV positive"), negative emotions (eg, "Fear of being diagnosed with HIV and what this will mean for me") and potential negative reactions from partner or others (eg, "Getting an HIV test can signal distrust, disrespect, or infidelity"). There were nuances in how each group articulated some of these barriers and East African women expressed unique concerns that originated from experiences in their home countries. The study shed light into the complexity of factors that constrain women from presenting themselves voluntarily for an HIV test and highlighted the nuances between African-American and East African perceptions. Implications of findings for effective targeted HIV screening promotion and communication strategies among these groups of women are discussed. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

  13. Attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors toward HIV testing among African American and East African immigrant women in Washington, D.C.: Implications for targeted HIV testing promotion and communication strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Jesus, Maria; Carrete, Claudia; Maine, Cathleen; Nalls, Patricia

    2015-01-01

    Objectives The objective of the study was to examine and compare the HIV testing attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors between African American and East African immigrant women in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area. Methods Adopting an inductive, qualitative methodological approach, we conducted a total of 40 in-depth, semi-structured interviews between October 2012 and March 2013. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Results Overall, African American women held more favorable views toward HIV testing than East African immigrant women. Very few East African immigrant women sought HIV testing intentionally. The majority of East African participants were tested inadvertently, while others tested for immigration- or employment-related purposes. There were many barriers that impede women from seeking an HIV test including: negative assumptions (e.g., ‘Getting an HIV test implies that I am HIV positive’); negative emotions (e.g., ‘Fear of being diagnosed with HIV and what this will mean for me’); and potential negative reactions from partner or others (e.g., ‘Getting an HIV test can signal distrust, disrespect, or infidelity’). There were nuances in how each group articulated some of these barriers and East African women expressed unique concerns that originated from experiences in their home countries. Conclusions The study shed light into the complexity of factors that constrain women from presenting themselves voluntarily for an HIV test and highlighted the nuances between African American and East African perceptions. Implications of findings for effective targeted HIV screening promotion and communication strategies among these groups of women are discussed. PMID:25897146

  14. Weather, climate, and resource Information should meet the needs of Sahelian pastoralists

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Laura Vang; Mertz, Ole; Rasmussen, Kjeld

    2014-01-01

    There has been an increasing focus on providing better weather, climate, and resource information for decision making in drylands. This study explores what kind of information pastoralists in the Sahel received in 2013 and how they responded to this information. Moreover, the study assesses whether...... the disseminated information corresponds to the actual needs of pastoralists. The overall objective is thus to identify the outcome of providing weather, climate, and resource information to pastoralists and thereby to explore whether and how various products may guide their mobility and decision-making patterns....... Such information could be used to adjust the purchase of supplementary fodder, to make qualified choices on transhumance destinations, and to make changes in herd composition. As pastoralists primarily acquire this information by calling friends and family in nearby areas, the results point to a strong disconnect...

  15. Human Cryptosporidiosis: A Review | Ayuo | East African Medical ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 86, No 2 (2009) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  16. Adhesive intestinal obstruction | Kuremu | East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 83, No 6 (2006) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  17. Editorial : Emerging issues of measles | Obimbo | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 78, No 1 (2001) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  18. Looking forward to the East African Countries' Collaboration in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    of harmonizing nursing and midwifery education, practice and legislation. A study to ... opportunity for University Deans in the East African region to dialogue and examine possible areas .... essentials for a productive collaboration including; ... and 4 students graduated in mental health programs. ... such as e-learning.

  19. Characteristics of soils in selected maize growing sites along altitudinal gradients in East African highlands

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elijah Njuguna

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Maize is the main staple crop in the East African Mountains. Understanding how the edaphic characteristics change along altitudinal gradients is important for maximizing maize production in East African Highlands, which are the key maize production areas in the region. This study evaluated and compared the levels of some macro and micro-elements (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na and P and other soil parameters (pH, organic carbon content, soil texture [i.e. % Sand, % Clay and % Silt], cation exchange capacity [CEC], electric conductivity [EC], and water holding capacity [HC]. Soil samples were taken from maize plots along three altitudinal gradients in East African highlands (namely Machakos Hills, Taita Hills and Mount Kilimanjaro characterized by graded changes in climatic conditions. For all transects, pH, Ca, K and Mg decreased with the increase in altitude. In contrast, % Silt, organic carbon content, Al and water holding capacity (HC increased with increasing altitude. The research provides information on the status of the physical–chemical characteristics of soils along three altitudinal ranges of East African Highlands and includes data available for further research.

  20. Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology - Vol 32 (2012)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Remarks concerning the East African coastal form of the Tropical Boubou Laniarius aethiopicus sublacteus (Cassin 1851), and its supposed black morph · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. DA Turner, BW Finch, ND Hunter, 47-49 ...

  1. Records: East African Rarities Committee report and change of remit ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 29 (2009) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  2. Climate variability and impacts on east African livestock herders: the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Climate variability and impacts on east African livestock herders: the Maasai of ... and vulnerability to climate variability and climate change is assessed, using data ... Model results suggest that the ecosystem is quite resilient and suggests that ...

  3. Seismicity of the Earth 1900-2013 East African Rift

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayes, Gavin P.; Jones, Eric S.; Stadler, Timothy J.; Barnhart, William D.; McNamara, Daniel E.; Benz, Harley M.; Furlong, Kevin P.; Villaseñor, Antonio; Hayes, Gavin P.; Jones, Eric S.; Stadler, Timothy J.; Barnhart, William D.; McNamara, Daniel E.; Benz, Harley M.; Furlong, Kevin P.; Villaseñor, Antonio

    2014-01-01

    The East African Rift system (EARS) is a 3,000-km-long Cenozoic age continental rift extending from the Afar triple junction, between the horn of Africa and the Middle East, to western Mozambique. Sectors of active extension occur from the Indian Ocean, west to Botswana and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is the only rift system in the world that is active on a continent-wide scale, providing geologists with a view of how continental rifts develop over time into oceanic spreading centers like the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

  4. Proliferation and Shoot Recovery among the East African Highland ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Production of East African highland banana (EA-AAA banana) (Musa spp.) is limited by scarcity of planting materials, attributable to their low natural proliferation ability. Under natural field conditions, the EA-AAA bananas greatly differ in suckering ability. In vitro micropropagation has been adopted as an alternative means ...

  5. Maritime Security Concerns of the East African Community (EAC ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The maritime domain of the East African Community (EAC) is affected by a number of maritime security threats, including piracy, armed robbery against ships and an ongoing maritime border dispute between Kenya and Somalia. Neither the EAC nor its member States have long-term and holistic maritime security policies.

  6. Extremes in East African hydroclimate and links to Indo-Pacific variability on interannual to decadal timescales

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ummenhofer, Caroline C.; Kulüke, Marco; Tierney, Jessica E.

    2018-04-01

    East African hydroclimate exhibits considerable variability across a range of timescales, with implications for its population that depends on the region's two rainy seasons. Recent work demonstrated that current state-of-the-art climate models consistently underestimate the long rains in boreal spring over the Horn of Africa while overestimating the short rains in autumn. This inability to represent the seasonal cycle makes it problematic for climate models to project changes in East African precipitation. Here we consider whether this bias also has implications for understanding interannual and decadal variability in the East African long and short rains. Using a consistent framework with an unforced multi-century global coupled climate model simulation, the role of Indo-Pacific variability for East African rainfall is compared across timescales and related to observations. The dominant driver of East African rainfall anomalies critically depends on the timescale under consideration: Interannual variations in East African hydroclimate coincide with significant sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies across the Indo-Pacific, including those associated with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the eastern Pacific, and are linked to changes in the Walker circulation, regional winds and vertical velocities over East Africa. Prolonged drought/pluvial periods in contrast exhibit anomalous SST predominantly in the Indian Ocean and Indo-Pacific warm pool (IPWP) region, while eastern Pacific anomalies are insignificant. We assessed dominant frequencies in Indo-Pacific SST and found the eastern equatorial Pacific dominated by higher-frequency variability in the ENSO band, while the tropical Indian Ocean and IPWP exhibit lower-frequency variability beyond 10 years. This is consistent with the different contribution to regional precipitation anomalies for the eastern Pacific versus Indian Ocean and IPWP on interannual and decadal timescales, respectively. In the model

  7. Ky'osimba Onaanya: Understanding Productivity of East African Highland Banana

    OpenAIRE

    Taulya, G.

    2016-01-01

    Over 30 million people in East Africa depend on East African highland bananas for food and income. The bananas are grown with limited additions of nutrients and no irrigation, despite widespread poor soil fertility and regular dry seasons. This thesis describes the effect of increasing rainfall and application of potassium and nitrogen fertilizers on banana growth and yields. In areas that receive less than 1100 mm of rainfall per year, additional rainfall increases yields by 65%. Application...

  8. Hybridization in East African swarm-raiding army ants

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kronauer, Daniel Jc; Peters, Marcell K; Schöning, Caspar

    2011-01-01

    Hybridization can have complex effects on evolutionary dynamics in ants because of the combination of haplodiploid sex-determination and eusociality. While hybrid non-reproductive workers have been found in a range of species, examples of gene-flow via hybrid queens and males are rare. We studied...... hybridization in East African army ants (Dorylus subgenus Anomma) using morphology, mitochondrial DNA sequences, and nuclear microsatellites....

  9. Immunizing nomadic children and livestock--Experience in North East Zone of Somalia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamadjeu, Raoul; Mulugeta, Abraham; Gupta, Dhananjoy; Abshir Hirsi, Abdirisak; Belayneh, Asalif; Clark-Hattingh, Marianne; Adams, Clement; Abed, Payenda; Kyeyune, Brenda; Ahmed, Tajudin; Salih, Mohamed; Biaou, Cyprien; Toure, Brigitte

    2015-01-01

    Nomads and pastoralists represent around 30% of the population of North East zone of Somalia (Puntland) and have very limited access to basic health including immunization. During the 2013-2014 polio outbreak in Somalia, an increase number of polio cases notified health services among these underserved communities highlighted the urgent need to devise innovative strategies to reach them. Harnessing the high demand for veterinary services among pastoralist communities, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Livestock, with support from UNICEF, WHO and FAO launched an integrated human and animal vaccination campaign on 19 October 2014. Over 30 days, 20 social mobilizers conducted shelter to shelter social mobilization and interpersonal communication for nomadic/pastoralist hamlets, 20 human vaccination teams, accompanied by local community elders, traveled with animal vaccination teams to administer polio and measles vaccination to pastoralist communities in the 5 regions of Puntland. 26,393 children (0 to 10 years) received Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) out of which 34% for the first time ever; 23,099 were vaccinated against measles. and 12,556 Vitamin A. Despite various operational challenges and a significantly higher operational cost of $6.2 per child reached with OPV, the integrated human and animal vaccination campaign was effective in reaching the unvaccinated children from nomadic and pastoralist communities of Somalia.

  10. Genetic structure and diversity of East African taro [ Colocasia ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Taro [Colocasia esculenta (L) Schott] is mainly produced in Africa by small holder farmers and plays an important role in the livelihood of millions of poor people in less developed countries. The genetic diversity of East African taro has not been determined. This study utilizes six microsatellite primers to analyze five ...

  11. Agricultural Trade and Economic Growth in East African Community ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Community states, as many other states in the region, depend largely on agricultural activities to boost their economic growth and create employment. Up to 80 per cent of the populace depends on agriculture directly and indirectly for food, employment and income, while about 40 million people in EAC suffer ...

  12. Primary cerebral angitis of the central nervous | Das | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Various medications like intravenous immunoglobulin, antibiotics, acyclovir, methyl prednisolone and management for raised intracranial pressure were instituted. She rapidly deteroriated and died on tenth hospital day. Only at autopsy was the diagnosis of primary angitis of central nervous system established. East African ...

  13. East African Community Law : Institutional, Substantive and Comparative EU Aspects

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ugirashebuja, E.; Ruhangisa, J.E.; Ottervanger, T.R.; Cuyvers, A.

    2017-01-01

    The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental and supranational organization currently comprising the Republics of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, the United Republic of Tanzania, and the Republic of Uganda. Established in 2000, the EAC aims at widening and deepening

  14. East African wetland-catchment data base for sustainable wetland management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leemhuis, Constanze; Amler, Esther; Diekkrüger, Bernd; Gabiri, Geofrey; Näschen, Kristian

    2016-10-01

    Wetlands cover an area of approx. 18 Mio ha in the East African countries of Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, with still a relative small share being used for food production. Current upland agricultural use intensification in these countries due to demographic growth, climate change and globalization effects are leading to an over-exploitation of the resource base, followed by an intensification of agricultural wetland use. We aim on translating, transferring and upscaling knowledge on experimental test-site wetland properties, small-scale hydrological processes, and water related ecosystem services under different types of management from local to national scale. This information gained at the experimental wetland/catchment scale will be embedded as reference data within an East African wetland-catchment data base including catchment physical properties and a regional wetland inventory serving as a base for policy advice and the development of sustainable wetland management strategies.

  15. East African wetland-catchment data base for sustainable wetland management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. Leemhuis

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Wetlands cover an area of approx. 18 Mio ha in the East African countries of Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, with still a relative small share being used for food production. Current upland agricultural use intensification in these countries due to demographic growth, climate change and globalization effects are leading to an over-exploitation of the resource base, followed by an intensification of agricultural wetland use. We aim on translating, transferring and upscaling knowledge on experimental test-site wetland properties, small-scale hydrological processes, and water related ecosystem services under different types of management from local to national scale. This information gained at the experimental wetland/catchment scale will be embedded as reference data within an East African wetland-catchment data base including catchment physical properties and a regional wetland inventory serving as a base for policy advice and the development of sustainable wetland management strategies.

  16. Conservation presence, not socioeconomics, leads to differences in pastoralist perceived threats to argali

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wesley M. Sarmento

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Community-based conservation approaches that keep people on landscapes increasingly complement preservationist models of reserves without people. Evaluations of community conservation have shown that economic incentives and socioeconomics primarily drive people’s attitudes and perceptions. Work at Mongolia’s Ikh Nart Nature Reserve demonstrates how to achieve successful conservation by integrating local people into the overall program. Using a short questionnaire, we interviewed pastoralist families across two soums (similar to a U.S. county in Ikh Nart. We examined (1 pastoralists’ perceived threats to argali sheep (Ovis ammon, (2 socioeconomic differences among pastoralists, and (3 differences between pastoralists from different soums. We found that 15 years of conservation activities—education, research, and modest ecotourism—that occurred in the northern soum led to influences on people’s perceptions toward argali conservation. Compared with pastoralists from southern Ikh Nart, pastoralists from the northern part of the reserve more likely knew that argali are protected and understood primary threats to the species. Socioeconomic factors, such as age, sex, and wealth, did not significantly influence responses. The negligible economic incentives in Ikh Nart did not lead to response differences. Our results demonstrate that conservation can influence people across socioeconomic classes without providing large economic incentives.

  17. A one-size-fits-all HIV prevention and education approach?: Analyzing and interpreting divergent HIV risk perceptions between African American and East African immigrant women in Washington, DC

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Jesus, Maria; Taylor, Juanita; Maine, Cathleen; Nalls, Patricia

    2015-01-01

    Background To date, there are very few comparative US studies and none in DC that distinguish between US-born and foreign-born Black women to examine and compare their perceptions of HIV risk. This qualitative study, therefore, analyzes African American and East African women’s perceptions of HIV risk in the Washington DC Metropolitan area, which has the highest AIDS rate in the US. Methods Forty in-depth, semi-structured interviews and 10 cognitive interviews were conducted among a sample of 25 African American women and 25 East African born women between October 2012 and March 2013 to examine perceptions regarding HIV risk. The in-depth semi-structured interviews were preceded by the cognitive interviews and accompanying survey. Study protocol was reviewed and approved by the American University Institutional Review Board. Results Adopting Boerma and Weir’s Proximate Determinants conceptual framework to interpret the data, the results of the study demonstrate that African American and East African immigrant women have divergent perceptions of HIV risk. While African American women ascribe HIV risk to individual-level behaviors and choices such as unprotected sex, East African women attribute HIV risk to conditions of poverty and survival. Conclusions Study findings suggest that addressing HIV prevention and education among Black women in DC will require distinct and targeted strategies that are culturally and community-centered in order to resonate with these different audiences. PMID:26766523

  18. Alcoholism and diabetes mellitus: Case report | Otieno | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 79, No 2 (2002) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  19. Anorexia nervosa in Kenya | Njenga | East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 81, No 4 (2004) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  20. Post-traumatic stress disorder: Case report | Nyamai | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 77, No 4 (2000) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  1. Primary breast sarcoma: case report | Hassan | East African Medical ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 81, No 7 (2004) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  2. Kaposis sarcoma in a Nairobi Hospital | Onyango | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 81, No 3 (2004) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  3. Managing scalp defects in sub-Saharan Africa | Legbo | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Conclusions: Management of scalp defects remains a major challenge in our environment. The importance of continuing education of colleagues and other health workers in peripheral health units on the importance of proper initial wound debridement and early referral cannot be overemphasised. East African Medical ...

  4. East and Central African Journal of Surgery Volume 15 Number 2 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    East and central African Journal of Surgery. Page 136 ... at school. Early presentation, immediate intervention and treatment can prevent grave .... Bank DE, Diaz L, Behrman DA, Delaney J, Bizzocco S. Tongue entrapment in an aluminum.

  5. Exploring local knowledge and perceptions on zoonoses among pastoralists in northern and eastern Tanzania.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Ernest Mangesho

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available Zoonoses account for the most commonly reported emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, there is limited knowledge on how pastoral communities perceive zoonoses in relation to their livelihoods, culture and their wider ecology. This study was carried out to explore local knowledge and perceptions on zoonoses among pastoralists in Tanzania.This study involved pastoralists in Ngorongoro district in northern Tanzania and Kibaha and Bagamoyo districts in eastern Tanzania. Qualitative methods of focus group discussions, participatory epidemiology and interviews were used. A total of 223 people were involved in the study. Among the pastoralists, there was no specific term in their local language that describes zoonosis. Pastoralists from northern Tanzania possessed a higher understanding on the existence of a number of zoonoses than their eastern districts' counterparts. Understanding of zoonoses could be categorized into two broad groups: a local syndromic framework, whereby specific symptoms of a particular illness in humans concurred with symptoms in animals, and the biomedical framework, where a case definition is supported by diagnostic tests. Some pastoralists understand the possibility of some infections that could cross over to humans from animals but harm from these are generally tolerated and are not considered as threats. A number of social and cultural practices aimed at maintaining specific cultural functions including social cohesion and rites of passage involve animal products, which present zoonotic risk.These findings show how zoonoses are locally understood, and how epidemiology and biomedicine are shaping pastoralists perceptions to zoonoses. Evidence is needed to understand better the true burden and impact of zoonoses in these communities. More studies are needed that seek to clarify the common understanding of zoonoses that could be used to guide effective and locally relevant interventions

  6. Exploring local knowledge and perceptions on zoonoses among pastoralists in northern and eastern Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mangesho, Peter Ernest; Neselle, Moses Ole; Karimuribo, Esron D; Mlangwa, James E; Queenan, Kevin; Mboera, Leonard E G; Rushton, Jonathan; Kock, Richard; Häsler, Barbara; Kiwara, Angwara; Rweyemamu, Mark

    2017-02-01

    Zoonoses account for the most commonly reported emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, there is limited knowledge on how pastoral communities perceive zoonoses in relation to their livelihoods, culture and their wider ecology. This study was carried out to explore local knowledge and perceptions on zoonoses among pastoralists in Tanzania. This study involved pastoralists in Ngorongoro district in northern Tanzania and Kibaha and Bagamoyo districts in eastern Tanzania. Qualitative methods of focus group discussions, participatory epidemiology and interviews were used. A total of 223 people were involved in the study. Among the pastoralists, there was no specific term in their local language that describes zoonosis. Pastoralists from northern Tanzania possessed a higher understanding on the existence of a number of zoonoses than their eastern districts' counterparts. Understanding of zoonoses could be categorized into two broad groups: a local syndromic framework, whereby specific symptoms of a particular illness in humans concurred with symptoms in animals, and the biomedical framework, where a case definition is supported by diagnostic tests. Some pastoralists understand the possibility of some infections that could cross over to humans from animals but harm from these are generally tolerated and are not considered as threats. A number of social and cultural practices aimed at maintaining specific cultural functions including social cohesion and rites of passage involve animal products, which present zoonotic risk. These findings show how zoonoses are locally understood, and how epidemiology and biomedicine are shaping pastoralists perceptions to zoonoses. Evidence is needed to understand better the true burden and impact of zoonoses in these communities. More studies are needed that seek to clarify the common understanding of zoonoses that could be used to guide effective and locally relevant interventions. Such studies should

  7. East and Central African Journal of Surgery Volume 15 Number 2 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    East and central African Journal of Surgery. Page 122 ... curriculum by integrating the basic and clinical sciences focusing on organ system and featuring early .... 5. identify the different radiological and imaging investigations. 6. know how to ...

  8. Improving how meteorological information is used by pastoralists through adequate communication tools

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Laura Vang; Mertz, Ole; Rasmussen, Kjeld

    2015-01-01

    In West Africa, the channels for information flow from meteorological services to end-users, such as pastoralists, are relatively limited. As meteorological information is key to improving productivity for pastoralists, it represents a challenge at both local and national level to develop an effi......, and we propose that forecasts should be available as voice messages in local languages rather than text messages....

  9. African Postal Heritage : Tanzania 1885-1920s : part I : German East Africa, 1885-1914

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dietz, A.J.

    2016-01-01

    An earlier version of this African Postal Heritage Paper was published as African Studies Centre Leiden Working Paper 119 / 2015: "A postal history of the First World War in Africa and its aftermath - German colonies; III Deutsch Ostafrika / German East Africa", written by Ton Dietz.

  10. Cerebral cortices of East african early hominids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Falk, D

    1983-09-09

    An endocast of the frontal lobe of a reconstructed skull, which is approximately 2 million years old, from the Koobi Fora region of Kenya appears to represent the oldest human-like cortical sulcal pattern in the fossil record, while the endocast from another skull from the same region produces an endocast that appears apelike in its frontal lobe and similar to endocasts from earlier South African australopithecines. New analysis of paleoanatomical evidence thus indicates that at least two taxa of early hominids coexisted in East Africa.

  11. 59 East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Vol ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    pharm-chem

    East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Vol. 16 (2013). There is a misconception that traditional medicine is unique to developing countries of Africa, Asia and. South America. This is certainly not true. Traditional medicine, often referred to as "alternative medicine", is widely used in developed countries ...

  12. East and Central African Journal of Surgery Volume 15 Number 2 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery Volume 15 Number 2. ... Makerere University,School of Biomedical sciences Department of Anatomy, P.O Box 7072, ..... should be borne in mind when locating the nerve for a regional block in the ...

  13. Tuberculosis among transhumant pastoralist and settled communities of south-eastern Mauritania

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aissata Lô

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Background: Transhumant pastoralists of Mauritania were assumed to have a high prevalence of tuberculosis (TB because of reduced access to diagnostic testing. No population-based survey on TB has been published for Mauritania. Objective: The goal of this study was to estimate the prevalence of presumptive TB cases among mobile pastoralists and villagers in a remote zone of Mauritania. Design: In the south-eastern province of Hodh Ech Chargui, 250 adult pastoralists and 250 villagers were randomly enrolled using multistage cluster sampling in February 2012. A TB centre nurse examined participants using a standard clinical protocol, and a participant questionnaire was completed. Focus group discussions and interviews were conducted with community members and health personnel, respectively. Results: Fourteen new presumptive TB cases were identified, leading to an overall prevalence of 2.8%, (95% confidence interval (CI 1.5–4.7%. The prevalence was non-significantly higher among villagers than pastoralists (3.6% vs. 2.0%. Assuming illness duration was 3 years and all presumptive cases started treatment, an overall crude incidence of 933 cases/100,000 was derived. Five of six presumptive cases in Djiguenni were confirmed by sputum smear microscopy, but none out of eight presumptive cases were confirmed in Néma, although the same nurse performed all clinical examinations in both departments. This result was attributed to the use of expired reagents in Néma. Communities mentioned distance rather than lack of information as the main constraint to seeking diagnosis, but poor diagnostic centre performance also delayed decision-making. Conclusions: TB prevalences were high among both pastoralists and villagers. None of the 14 presumptive cases sought prior diagnostic testing. TB diagnostic centres in the remote rural study zone were poorly equipped. These centres must remain in operation to reduce TB incidence in vulnerable communities in insecure

  14. East African Journal of Public Health - Vol 7, No 1 (2010)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Journal of Public Health. ... DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. E Mutabaruka, C Dochez, D Nshimirimana, A Meheus ... Prevalence of cigarette smoking and knowledge of its health implications among Nigerian soldiers · EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT ...

  15. Knowledge, attitude and perceived stigma towards tuberculosis among pastoralists; Do they differ from sedentary communities? A comparative cross-sectional study.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bezawit Temesgen Sima

    Full Text Available Ethiopia is ninth among the world high tuberculosis (TB burden countries, pastoralists being the most affected population. However, there is no published report whether the behavior related to TB are different between pastoralist and the sedentary communities. Therefore, the main aim of this study is to assess the pastoralist community knowledge, attitude and perceived stigma towards tuberculosis and their health care seeking behavior in comparison to the neighboring sedentary communities and this may help to plan TB control interventions specifically for the pastoralist communities.A community-based cross-sectional survey was carried out from September 2014 to January 2015, among 337 individuals from pastoralist and 247 from the sedentary community of Kereyu district. Data were collected using structured questionnaires. Three focus group discussions were used to collect qualitative data, one with men and the other with women in the pastoralist and one with men in the sedentary groups. Data were analyzed using Statistical Software for Social Science, SPSS V 22 and STATA.A Lower proportion of pastoralists mentioned bacilli (bacteria as the cause of PTB compared to the sedentary group (63.9% vs. 81.0%, p<0.01, respectively. However, witchcraft was reported as the causes of TB by a higher proportion of pastoralists than the sedentary group (53.6% vs.23.5%, p<0.01, respectively. Similarly, a lower proportion of pastoralists indicated PTB is preventable compared to the sedentary group (95.8% vs. 99.6%, p<0.01, respectively. Moreover, majority of the pastoralists mentioned that most people would reject a TB patient in their community compared to the sedentary group (39.9% vs. 8.9%, p<0.001, respectively, and the pastoralists expressed that they would be ashamed/embarrassed if they had TB 68% vs.36.4%, p<0.001, respectively.The finding indicates that there is a lower awareness about TB, a negative attitude towards TB patients and a higher perceived

  16. The episode of genetic drift defining the migration of humans out of Africa is derived from a large east African population size.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuha Elhassan

    Full Text Available Human genetic variation particularly in Africa is still poorly understood. This is despite a consensus on the large African effective population size compared to populations from other continents. Based on sequencing of the mitochondrial Cytochrome C Oxidase subunit II (MT-CO2, and genome wide microsatellite data we observe evidence suggesting the effective size (Ne of humans to be larger than the current estimates, with a foci of increased genetic diversity in east Africa, and a population size of east Africans being at least 2-6 fold larger than other populations. Both phylogenetic and network analysis indicate that east Africans possess more ancestral lineages in comparison to various continental populations placing them at the root of the human evolutionary tree. Our results also affirm east Africa as the likely spot from which migration towards Asia has taken place. The study reflects the spectacular level of sequence variation within east Africans in comparison to the global sample, and appeals for further studies that may contribute towards filling the existing gaps in the database. The implication of these data to current genomic research, as well as the need to carry out defined studies of human genetic variation that includes more African populations; particularly east Africans is paramount.

  17. Associations of physical strength with facial shape in an African pastoralist society, the Maasai of Northern Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Butovskaya, Marina L; Windhager, Sonja; Karelin, Dimitri; Mezentseva, Anna; Schaefer, Katrin; Fink, Bernhard

    2018-01-01

    Previous research has documented associations of physical strength and facial morphology predominantly in men of Western societies. Faces of strong men tend to be more robust, are rounder and have a prominent jawline compared with faces of weak men. Here, we investigate whether the morphometric patterns of strength-face relationships reported for members of industrialized societies can also be found in members of an African pastoralist society, the Maasai of Northern Tanzania. Handgrip strength (HGS) measures and facial photographs were collected from a sample of 185 men and 120 women of the Maasai in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. In young-adults (20-29 years; n = 95) and mid-adults (30-50 years; n = 114), we digitized 71 somatometric landmarks and semilandmarks to capture variation in facial morphology and performed shape regressions of landmark coordinates upon HGS. Results were visualized in the form of thin-plate plate spline deformation grids and geometric morphometric morphs. Individuals with higher HGS tended to have wider faces with a lower and broader forehead, a wider distance between the medial canthi of the eyes, a wider nose, fuller lips, and a larger, squarer lower facial outline compared with weaker individuals of the same age-sex group. In mid-adult men, these associations were weaker than in the other age-sex groups. We conclude that the patterns of HGS relationships with face shape in the Maasai are similar to those reported from related investigations in samples of industrialized societies. We discuss differences between the present and related studies with regard to knowledge about the causes for age- and sex-related facial shape variation and physical strength associations.

  18. Associations of physical strength with facial shape in an African pastoralist society, the Maasai of Northern Tanzania.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marina L Butovskaya

    Full Text Available Previous research has documented associations of physical strength and facial morphology predominantly in men of Western societies. Faces of strong men tend to be more robust, are rounder and have a prominent jawline compared with faces of weak men. Here, we investigate whether the morphometric patterns of strength-face relationships reported for members of industrialized societies can also be found in members of an African pastoralist society, the Maasai of Northern Tanzania.Handgrip strength (HGS measures and facial photographs were collected from a sample of 185 men and 120 women of the Maasai in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. In young-adults (20-29 years; n = 95 and mid-adults (30-50 years; n = 114, we digitized 71 somatometric landmarks and semilandmarks to capture variation in facial morphology and performed shape regressions of landmark coordinates upon HGS. Results were visualized in the form of thin-plate plate spline deformation grids and geometric morphometric morphs.Individuals with higher HGS tended to have wider faces with a lower and broader forehead, a wider distance between the medial canthi of the eyes, a wider nose, fuller lips, and a larger, squarer lower facial outline compared with weaker individuals of the same age-sex group. In mid-adult men, these associations were weaker than in the other age-sex groups.We conclude that the patterns of HGS relationships with face shape in the Maasai are similar to those reported from related investigations in samples of industrialized societies. We discuss differences between the present and related studies with regard to knowledge about the causes for age- and sex-related facial shape variation and physical strength associations.

  19. Over grafting donor site | Rogers | East and Central African Journal ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 14, No 2 (2009) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register. Over grafting donor site. AD Rogers, AK ...

  20. Use of Machine Learning Techniques for Identification of Robust Teleconnections to East African Rainfall Variability

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, J. Brent; Robertson, F. R.; Funk, C.

    2014-01-01

    Hidden Markov models can be used to investigate structure of subseasonal variability. East African short rain variability has connections to large-scale tropical variability. MJO - Intraseasonal variations connected with appearance of "wet" and "dry" states. ENSO/IOZM SST and circulation anomalies are apparent during years of anomalous residence time in the subseasonal "wet" state. Similar results found in previous studies, but we can interpret this with respect to variations of subseasonal wet and dry modes. Reveal underlying connections between MJO/IOZM/ENSO with respect to East African rainfall.

  1. East and Central African Journal of Surgery http://www.bioline.org.br ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Patrick

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery ... Investigations and intra-operative findings were suggestive of testicular torsion. We report this case because of its unusual ... The diagnosis is made mainly through clinical examination and signs.

  2. Immunizing nomadic children and livestock – Experience in North East Zone of Somalia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamadjeu, Raoul; Mulugeta, Abraham; Gupta, Dhananjoy; Abshir Hirsi, Abdirisak; Belayneh, Asalif; Clark-Hattingh, Marianne; Adams, Clement; Abed, Payenda; Kyeyune, Brenda; Ahmed, Tajudin; Salih, Mohamed; Biaou, Cyprien; Toure, Brigitte

    2015-01-01

    Nomads and pastoralists represent around 30% of the population of North East zone of Somalia (Puntland) and have very limited access to basic health including immunization. During the 2013–2014 polio outbreak in Somalia, an increase number of polio cases notified health services among these underserved communities highlighted the urgent need to devise innovative strategies to reach them. Harnessing the high demand for veterinary services among pastoralist communities, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Livestock, with support from UNICEF, WHO and FAO launched an integrated human and animal vaccination campaign on 19 October 2014. Over 30 days, 20 social mobilizers conducted shelter to shelter social mobilization and interpersonal communication for nomadic/pastoralist hamlets, 20 human vaccination teams, accompanied by local community elders, traveled with animal vaccination teams to administer polio and measles vaccination to pastoralist communities in the 5 regions of Puntland. 26,393 children (0 to 10 years) received Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) out of which 34% for the first time ever; 23,099 were vaccinated against measles. and 12,556 Vitamin A. Despite various operational challenges and a significantly higher operational cost of $6.2 per child reached with OPV, the integrated human and animal vaccination campaign was effective in reaching the unvaccinated children from nomadic and pastoralist communities of Somalia. PMID:26365693

  3. Acute appendicitis in a Kenya rural hospital | Willmore | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 78, No 7 (2001) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  4. Louse-borne relapsing fever among East African refugees in Europe.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antinori, Spinello; Mediannikov, Oleg; Corbellino, Mario; Raoult, Didier

    2016-01-01

    Louse-borne relapsing fever a neglected and forgotten disease by western physicians has recently re-emerged among East African migrants seeking asylum in Europe. We review here the cases observed so far together with a critical reappraisal of several issues regarding clinical presentation, diagnosis and treatment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Task Shifting in HIV Clinics, Western Kenya | Kosgei | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 87, No 7 (2010) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  6. Signatures of selection for environmental adaptation and zebu × taurine hybrid fitness in East African shorthorn zebu

    Science.gov (United States)

    The East African Shorthorn Zebu (EASZ) cattle are ancient hybrid between Asian zebu × African taurine cattle preferred by local farmers due to their adaptability to the African environment. The genetic controls of these adaptabilities are not clearly understood yet. Here, we genotyped 92 EASZ sample...

  7. Comparison of East African and Iran natural feeding condition based ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In this scientific work, we used soils from Zanzibar (Tansania region east African), Guilan (north of Iran), Tehran (center of Iran) and two type of soils from Zabol and Saravan regions (southeastern of Iran) in a condition simulated like atmospheric ones. The amounts of reduced Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, pH, Ec, carbohydrate and lipid ...

  8. Reducing vulnerability among pastoralists in Northern Kenya

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    CCAA

    vulnerability among pastoralist communities in Mandera and Turkana in Northern Kenya, led by the Kenyan NGO ... to understand how people have experienced droughts and other ... norms and gender roles may make them more or less vulnerable, ... and see direct impacts on the resources they depend on for their.

  9. Reducing vulnerability among pastoralists in northern Kenya | IDRC ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    2011-04-21

    Apr 21, 2011 ... Research on climate-related vulnerability among pastoralist ... decisions that affect the use of resources that families depend on in times of stress, while ... these skills and approaches are useful to other areas of NEMA's work.

  10. Alignment between values of dryland pastoralists and conservation needs for small mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Addison, Jane; Pavey, Chris R

    2017-04-01

    Policies for conservation outside protected areas, such as those designed to address the decline in Australian mammals, will not result in net improvements unless they address barriers to proenvironmental behavior. We used a mixed-methods approach to explore potential value-action gaps (disconnects between values and subsequent action) for small mammal conservation behaviors among pastoralists in dryland Australia. Using semistructured surveys and open-ended interviews (n = 43), we explored values toward small mammals; uptake of a range of current and intended actions that may provide benefit to small mammals; and potential perceived barriers to their uptake. Pastoralists assigned great conservation value to small mammals; over 80% (n = 36) agreed to strongly agreed that small mammals on their property were important. These values did not translate into stated willingness to engage in voluntary cessation of wild-dog control (r 2 = 0.187, p = 0.142, n = 43). However, assigning great conservation value to small mammals was strongly related to stated voluntary willingness to engage in the proenvironmental behavior most likely to result in benefits to small mammals: cat and fox control (r 2 = 0.558, p = 0.000, n = 43). There was no significant difference between stated voluntarily and incentivized willingness to engage in cat and fox control (p = 0.862, n = 43). The high levels of willingness to engage in voluntary cat and fox control highlight a potential entry point for addressing Australia's mammal declines because the engagement of pastoralists in conservation programs targeting cat and fox control is unlikely to be prevented by attitudinal constraints. Qualitative data suggest there is likely a subpopulation of pastoralists who value small mammals but do not wish to engage in formal conservation programs due to relational barriers with potential implementers. A long-term commitment to engagement with pastoralists by implementers will thus be necessary for

  11. Hor - A Sedentarisation Success for Tibetan Pastoralists in Qinghai?

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Ptáčková, Jarmila

    2015-01-01

    Roč. 19, č. 2 (2015), s. 221-240 ISSN 0822-7942 Institutional support: RVO:68378009 Keywords : Sedentarisation, resettlement, Tibetan pastoralists, grassland development, vocational training Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology

  12. A One-Size-Fits-All HIV Prevention and Education Approach?: Interpreting Divergent HIV Risk Perceptions Between African American and East African Immigrant Women in Washington, DC Using the Proximate-Determinants Conceptual Framework.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Jesus, Maria; Taylor, Juanita; Maine, Cathleen; Nalls, Patricia

    2016-02-01

    To date, there are very few comparative US studies and none in DC that distinguish between US-born and foreign-born black women to examine and compare their perceptions of HIV risk. This qualitative study, therefore, analyzes African American and East African women's perceptions of HIV risk in the Washington DC Metropolitan area, which has the highest AIDS rate in the United States. Forty in-depth, semistructured interviews and 10 cognitive interviews were conducted among a sample of 25 African American women and 25 East African born women between October 2012 and March 2013 to examine perceptions regarding HIV risk. The in-depth semistructured interviews were preceded by the cognitive interviews and accompanying survey. Study protocol was reviewed and approved by the American University Institutional Review Board. Adopting Boerma and Weir's Proximate Determinants conceptual framework to interpret the data, the results of the study demonstrate that African American and East African immigrant women have divergent perceptions of HIV risk. Although African American women ascribe HIV risk to individual-level behaviors and choices such as unprotected sex, East African women attribute HIV risk to conditions of poverty and survival. Study findings suggest that addressing HIV prevention and education among black women in DC will require distinct and targeted strategies that are culturally and community-centered to resonate with these different audiences.

  13. Yellow fever, Asia and the East African slave trade.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cathey, John T; Marr, John S

    2014-05-01

    Yellow fever is endemic in parts of sub-Saharan Africa and South America, yet its principal vectors--species of mosquito of the genus Aedes--are found throughout tropical and subtropical latitudes. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that yellow fever originated in Africa and that its spread to the New World coincided with the slave trade, but why yellow fever has never appeared in Asia remains a mystery. None of several previously proposed explanations for its absence there is considered satisfactory. We contrast the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and trade across the Sahara and to the Arabian Peninsula and Mesopotamia, with that to Far East and Southeast Asian ports before abolition of the African slave trade, and before the scientific community understood the transmission vector of yellow fever and the viral life cycle, and the need for shipboard mosquito control. We propose that these differences in slave trading had a primary role in the avoidance of yellow fever transmission into Asia in the centuries before the 20(th) century. The relatively small volume of the Black African slave trade between Africa and East and Southeast Asia has heretofore been largely ignored. Although focal epidemics may have occurred, the volume was insufficient to reach the threshold for endemicity.

  14. East African Journal of Sciences (2015) Volume 9 (1) 41-48 Effect of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    tosheba

    East African Journal of Sciences (2015). Volume 9 (1) 41-48 ... but no significant difference was observed amongst them. Queen .... used method of termite management in western. Ethiopia ..... Ethiopia. Working Document Series 68, ICRA,.

  15. Geodynamics of the East African Rift System ∼30 Ma ago: A stress field model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Min, Ge; Hou, Guiting

    2018-06-01

    The East African Rift System (EARS) is thought to be an intra-continental ridge that meets the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the Ethiopian Afar as the failed arm of the Afar triple junction. The geodynamics of EARS is still unclear even though several models have been proposed. One model proposes that the EARS developed in a local tensile stress field derived from far-field loads because of the pushing of oceanic ridges. Alternatively, some scientists suggest that the formation of the EARS can be explained by upwelling mantle plumes beneath the lithospheric weak zone (e.g., the Pan-African suture zone). In our study, a shell model is established to consider the Earth's spherical curvature, the lithospheric heterogeneity of the African continent, and the coupling between the mantle plumes and the mid-ocean ridge. The results are calculated via the finite element method using ANSYS software and fit the geological evidence well. To discuss the effects of the different rock mechanical parameters and the boundary conditions, four comparative models are established with different parameters or boundary conditions. Model I ignores the heterogeneity of the African continent, Model II ignores mid-ocean spreading, Model III ignores the upwelling mantle plumes, and Model IV ignores both the heterogeneity of the African continent and the upwelling mantle plumes. Compared to these models is the original model that shows the best-fit results; this model indicates that the coupling of the upwelling mantle plumes and the mid-ocean ridge spreading causes the initial lithospheric breakup in Afar and East Africa. The extension direction and the separation of the EARS around the Tanzanian craton are attributed to the heterogeneity of the East African basement.

  16. Use and misuse of aspirin in rural Ethiopia | Duncan | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 83, No 1 (2006) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  17. Pastoralists at War: Violence and Security in the Kenya-Sudan-Uganda Border Region

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jonah Leff

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available The majority of those living in the border region of Kenya, Sudan, and Uganda are pastoralists, whose livelihoods are dictated by the upkeep and size of their herds. Harsh environmental conditions force pastoralists to migrate in search of water and pasturelands during the dry season. With limited access to water and competing rights to land, intertribal conflict arises when pastoralists from one tribe enter the territory of another. The increased availability of small arms in the region from past wars increasingly makes ordinary clashes fatal. Governments in the region have responded with heavy-handed coercive disarmament operations. These have led to distrust and subsequent violent clashes between communities and security providers. This report reviews the scale, consequences of, and responses to the many pastoral conflicts, utilizing methodological tools such as key informant interviews, retrospective analysis, and a thorough review of available literature.

  18. Factors Influencing Transient Poverty Among Agro-Pastoralists in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Factors Influencing Transient Poverty Among Agro-Pastoralists in semi-arid areas of Kenya. ... The number of livelihood sources, education level of the household head, relief food, extension service and distance to the nearest markets were positively related to per capita daily income. A negative relationship was observed ...

  19. East-African Social Sciences and Humanities Publishing: A Handmade Bibliometrics Approach

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schmidt, N

    2016-07-01

    For Eastern Africa, very little information about the SSH knowledge production can be found from a European perspective. Adequate indicators like information-rich bibliographic databases that cover East-Africa-based journals and book publishers are lacking. This research in progress explores their indexing situation in detail, their development, which is closely connected to political history, their (non-)usage, and affiliations as well as careerstages of their authors. Furthermore, it also pays attention to East-Africa-based SSH researchers who use other publication venues. Any bibliometric analysis in this field needs to rely on manual data collection, otherwise it would be heavily biased. This study lays out the foundation for citation analyses, qualitative research on the publications' content and the self-description of East-African scholars against the background of an academic environment that is often described as “international”. (Author)

  20. African mutinies in the Netherlands East Indies : a nineteenth-century colonial paradox

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kessel, van W.M.J.; Abbink, J.; Bruijn, de M.E.; Walraven, van K.

    2003-01-01

    Between 1831 and 1872, the Dutch government recruited 3,000 Africans from the Gold Coast and Ashanti (Ghana) for service in the colonial army in the Netherlands East Indies. The majority of them were ex-slaves but were promised that their conditions of service would be the same as those of

  1. Why communal pastoralists do what they do in the Richtersveld ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    their farming objectives and the motives underlying herd management practices ... food and supply household meat) to reduce the risk of destitution. Goats and ... choices, pastoralists employed a range of risk-mitigating farming strategies

  2. Diet-related buccal dental microwear patterns in Central African Pygmy foragers and Bantu-speaking farmer and pastoralist populations.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alejandro Romero

    Full Text Available Pygmy hunter-gatherers from Central Africa have shared a network of socioeconomic interactions with non-Pygmy Bantu speakers since agropastoral lifestyle spread across sub-Saharan Africa. Ethnographic studies have reported that their diets differ in consumption of both animal proteins and starch grains. Hunted meat and gathered plant foods, especially underground storage organs (USOs, are dietary staples for pygmies. However, scarce information exists about forager-farmer interaction and the agricultural products used by pygmies. Since the effects of dietary preferences on teeth in modern and past pygmies remain unknown, we explored dietary history through quantitative analysis of buccal microwear on cheek teeth in well-documented Baka pygmies. We then determined if microwear patterns differ among other Pygmy groups (Aka, Mbuti, and Babongo and between Bantu-speaking farmer and pastoralist populations from past centuries. The buccal dental microwear patterns of Pygmy hunter-gatherers and non-Pygmy Bantu pastoralists show lower scratch densities, indicative of diets more intensively based on nonabrasive foodstuffs, compared with Bantu farmers, who consume larger amounts of grit from stoneground foods. The Baka pygmies showed microwear patterns similar to those of ancient Aka and Mbuti, suggesting that the mechanical properties of their preferred diets have not significantly changed through time. In contrast, Babongo pygmies showed scratch densities and lengths similar to those of the farmers, consistent with sociocultural contacts and genetic factors. Our findings support that buccal microwear patterns predict dietary habits independent of ecological conditions and reflect the abrasive properties of preferred or fallback foods such as USOs, which may have contributed to the dietary specializations of ancient human populations.

  3. Cattle pastoralists' strategies to cope with water scarcity in climate ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... reveal a pastoral dynamics based on the programmed distance to the best resources, ... This could also enhance adaptation to climate change within the context of the ... Water resources, Pastoralist, Animal route, Adaptation Strategy, Benin ...

  4. The Rights of Pastoralist Peoples. A Framework for their Recognition in International Law

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miguel Ángel Martín López

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Pastoralists are one of the most poverty stricken and underdeveloped existing human groups in the world. Until now, having remained practically invisible in the eyes of international law, it is desirable to open a debate concerning the recognition of their rights. The ideal situation would be to create a specific category of rights dedicated expressly to these pastoralist peoples. Therefore, one can surmise that there are two laws that constitute its essential content: the law protecting their way of life and their access rights to the land

  5. Ideological trends in initial teacher education curricula: the case of East African universities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Proscovia Namubiru Ssentamu

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper reviews the ideological trends in initial teacher education curricula in East African universities during the post-independent and contemporary times. From the mid-1960s and mid-1980s, initial teacher education curricula were integrated and harmonised with support from the East African Community whose efforts were coordinated by the Inter-University Council for East Africa. With the breakup of the Community in 1977, each independent state pursued its own educational strategy. However, underfunding of the public sector by governments, introduction of market-friendly reforms under the World Bank Structural Adjustment Programme in 1987 and the de-regularisation policies led to the liberalisation of public services, including education. Liberalisation affected among others, the quality of the initial teacher education curricula. Consequently, national councils and commissions for higher education were established to control standards in higher education, and the Inter-University Council for East Africa was revived to standardise and harmonise educational standards at regional level. The review shows that over the past five decades, the structure and organisation of initial teacher education curricula has continuously adjusted itself and been adjusted to a hybrid culture blending classical humanism, utilitarianism, social re-constructionism, market and global ideologies. Comparable ideological inclinations at socio-economic and political levels have influenced this trend in the region. The paper highlights the implications of such trends on the future of initial teacher education in the region.

  6. Drought is a major yield loss factor for rainfed East African highland banana

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Asten, van P.; Asten-Fermont, van A.M.; Taulya, G.

    2011-01-01

    Although drought stress has been identified among the production constraints of East African highland bananas (Musa spp., AAA-EA genome), no quantitative data were available to support this assumption. This study uses data from three on-station fertilizer trials (5–6 cycles) in Central and Southwest

  7. Contrasted continental rifting via plume-craton interaction : Applications to Central East African Rift

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koptev, Alexander; Burov, Evgueni; Calais, Eric; Leroy, Sylvie; Gerya, Taras; Guillou-Frottier, Laurent; Cloetingh, Sierd

    The East African Rift system (EARS) provides a unique system with the juxtaposition of two contrasting yet simultaneously formed rift branches, the eastern, magma-rich, and the western, magma-poor, on either sides of the old thick Tanzanian craton embedded in a younger lithosphere. Data on the

  8. The role of households in solid waste management in East African capital cities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Solomon, A.O.

    2011-01-01

    Solid Management is a concern in East African capital cities. The absence of managing solid waste is a serious problem. An ever bigger concern is the growing quantities of waste that are generatedat households level in informal settlements. In most cases proper safeguard measures are largely

  9. Mainstreaming biodiversity and wildlife management into climate change policy frameworks in selected east and southern African countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga L. Kupika

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The Rio+20 outcomes document, the Future We Want, enshrines green economy as one of the platforms to attain sustainable development and calls for measures that seek to address climate change and biodiversity management. This paper audits climate change policies from selected east and southern African countries to determine the extent to which climate change legislation mainstreams biodiversity and wildlife management. A scan of international, continental, regional and national climate change policies was conducted to assess whether they include biodiversity and/or wildlife management issues. The key finding is that many climate change policy–related documents, particularly the National Adaptation Programme of Actions (NAPAs, address threats to biodiversity and wildlife resources. However, international policies like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and Kyoto Protocol do not address the matter under deliberation. Regional climate change policies such as the East African Community, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa and African Union address biodiversity and/or wildlife issues whilst the Southern African Development Community region does not have a stand-alone policy for climate change. Progressive countries like Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia have recently put in place detailed NAPAs which are mainstream responsive strategies intended to address climate change adaptation in the wildlife sector. Keywords: mainstreaming, biodiversity, wildlife, climate change policy, east and southern Africa

  10. Is the Proposed East African Monetary Union an Optimal Currency Area? A Structural Vector Autoregression Analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Steven K. Buigut; Neven Valev

    2004-01-01

    The treaty of 1999 to revive the defunct East African Community (EAC) ratified by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania came into force on July 2000 with the objective of fostering a closer co-operation in political, economic, social, and cultural fields. To achieve this, an East Africa Customs Union protocol was signed in March 2004. A Common Market, a Monetary Union, and ultimately a Political Federation of East Africa states is planned. Though the question of a monetary union has been discussed in t...

  11. Spatial patterns of sea surface temperature influences on East African precipitation as revealed by empirical orthogonal teleconnections

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tim eAppelhans

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available East Africa is characterized by a rather dry annual precipitation climatology with two distinct rainy seasons. In order to investigate sea surface temperature driven precipitation anomalies for the region we use the algorithm of empirical orthogonal teleconnection analysis as a data mining tool. We investigate the entire East African domain as well as 5 smaller sub-regions mainly located in areas of mountainous terrain. In searching for influential sea surface temperature patterns we do not focus any particular season or oceanic region. Furthermore, we investigate different time lags from zero to twelve months. The strongest influence is identified for the immediate (i.e. non-lagged influences of the Indian Ocean in close vicinity to the East African coast. None of the most important modes are located in the tropical Pacific Ocean, though the region is sometimes coupled with the Indian Ocean basin. Furthermore, we identify a region in the southern Indian Ocean around the Kerguelen Plateau which has not yet been reported in the literature with regard to precipitation modulation in East Africa. Finally, it is observed that not all regions in East Africa are equally influenced by the identified patterns.

  12. Giant seismites and megablock uplift in the East African Rift: evidence for Late Pleistocene large magnitude earthquakes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hilbert-Wolf, Hannah Louise; Roberts, Eric M

    2015-01-01

    In lieu of comprehensive instrumental seismic monitoring, short historical records, and limited fault trench investigations for many seismically active areas, the sedimentary record provides important archives of seismicity in the form of preserved horizons of soft-sediment deformation features, termed seismites. Here we report on extensive seismites in the Late Quaternary-Recent (≤ ~ 28,000 years BP) alluvial and lacustrine strata of the Rukwa Rift Basin, a segment of the Western Branch of the East African Rift System. We document examples of the most highly deformed sediments in shallow, subsurface strata close to the regional capital of Mbeya, Tanzania. This includes a remarkable, clastic 'megablock complex' that preserves remobilized sediment below vertically displaced blocks of intact strata (megablocks), some in excess of 20 m-wide. Documentation of these seismites expands the database of seismogenic sedimentary structures, and attests to large magnitude, Late Pleistocene-Recent earthquakes along the Western Branch of the East African Rift System. Understanding how seismicity deforms near-surface sediments is critical for predicting and preparing for modern seismic hazards, especially along the East African Rift and other tectonically active, developing regions.

  13. A new brachypterous scarab species, Orphnus longicornis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Orphninae), from the East African Rift.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frolov, Andrey; Akhmetova, Lilia

    2015-11-05

    The Afrotropical Region is the center of the diversity of the scarab beetle genus Orphnus MacLeay, 1819 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Orphninae), with 94 species occurring from Sahel in the north to Little Karoo in the south (Paulian, 1948; Petrovitz, 1971; Frolov, 2008). The East African Rift is one of the richest regions of the Afrotropics housing more than 20 species of Orphnus (Paulian, 1948; Frolov, 2013), most of which are endemic to this region. Yet the scarab beetle fauna of the East African Rift, and especially the Eastern Arc Mountains, is still inadequately studied. Examination of the material housed in the Museum of Natural History of Humboldt-Universität, Berlin, Germany (ZMHUB), revealed a series of brachypterous Orphnus beetles belonging to an undescribed species. The new species is described and illustrated below.

  14. The East African rift system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chorowicz, Jean

    2005-10-01

    This overview paper considers the East African rift system (EARS) as an intra-continental ridge system, comprising an axial rift. It describes the structural organization in three branches, the overall morphology, lithospheric cross-sections, the morphotectonics, the main tectonic features—with emphasis on the tension fractures—and volcanism in its relationships with the tectonics. The most characteristic features in the EARS are narrow elongate zones of thinned continental lithosphere related to asthenospheric intrusions in the upper mantle. This hidden part of the rift structure is expressed on the surface by thermal uplift of the rift shoulders. The graben valleys and basins are organized over a major failure in the lithospheric mantle, and in the crust comprise a major border fault, linked in depth to a low angle detachment fault, inducing asymmetric roll-over pattern, eventually accompanied by smaller normal faulting and tilted blocks. Considering the kinematics, divergent movements caused the continent to split along lines of preexisting lithospheric weaknesses marked by ancient tectonic patterns that focus the extensional strain. The hypothesis favored here is SE-ward relative divergent drifting of a not yet well individualized Somalian plate, a model in agreement with the existence of NW-striking transform and transfer zones. The East African rift system comprises a unique succession of graben basins linked and segmented by intracontinental transform, transfer and accommodation zones. In an attempt to make a point on the rift system evolution through time and space, it is clear that the role of plume impacts is determinant. The main phenomenon is formation of domes related to plume effect, weakening the lithosphere and, long after, failure inducing focused upper mantle thinning, asthenospheric intrusion and related thermal uplift of shoulders. The plume that had formed first at around 30 Ma was not in the Afar but likely in Lake Tana region (Ethiopia

  15. Genetic diversity and connectivity in the East African giant mud crab Scylla serrata: Implications for fisheries management.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cyrus Rumisha

    Full Text Available The giant mud crab Scylla serrata provides an important source of income and food to coastal communities in East Africa. However, increasing demand and exploitation due to the growing coastal population, export trade, and tourism industry are threatening the sustainability of the wild stock of this species. Because effective management requires a clear understanding of the connectivity among populations, this study was conducted to assess the genetic diversity and connectivity in the East African mangrove crab S. serrata. A section of 535 base pairs of the cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI gene and eight microsatellite loci were analysed from 230 tissue samples of giant mud crabs collected from Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, and South Africa. Microsatellite genetic diversity (He ranged between 0.56 and 0.6. The COI sequences showed 57 different haplotypes associated with low nucleotide diversity (current nucleotide diversity = 0.29%. In addition, the current nucleotide diversity was lower than the historical nucleotide diversity, indicating overexploitation or historical bottlenecks in the recent history of the studied population. Considering that the coastal population is growing rapidly, East African countries should promote sustainable fishing practices and sustainable use of mangrove resources to protect mud crabs and other marine fauna from the increasing pressure of exploitation. While microsatellite loci did not show significant genetic differentiation (p > 0.05, COI sequences revealed significant genetic divergence between sites on the East coast of Madagascar (ECM and sites on the West coast of Madagascar, mainland East Africa, as well as the Seychelles. Since East African countries agreed to achieve the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD target to protect over 10% of their marine areas by 2020, the observed pattern of connectivity and the measured genetic diversity can serve to provide useful information for designing

  16. Alienation and Revolutionary Vision in East African Post-Colonial Dramatic Literature

    OpenAIRE

    Fashina, Nelson O.

    2009-01-01

    This paper is a trans-disciplinary inquiry into the principles of alienation and revolutionary ethos in two East African plays of postcolonial society. It engages literary-textual exegesis and sociological theories to unravel the multi-dimensional forms of alienation as an interrogation of contemporary postcolonial history. The writers, though somewhat in throes and dilemma of exilic consciousness, ‘commodify’ and appropriate the literary enterprise as weapon of active physical revolt and tex...

  17. Understanding resilience of pastoralists to climate change and variability in the Southern Afar Region, Ethiopia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muluken Mekuyie

    Full Text Available Change in climate and climate extremes are acknowledged as a vital challenge to pastoral production systems. Alternative systems that are accessible to a household in order to make a living could determine the household’s resilience at a given point in time. This study was conducted in the Southern Afar region in Ethiopia to understand the resilience of pastoralists to climate change and variability. A household questionnaire survey and focus group discussions were employed to collect primary data at household level. A total of 250 pastoral households were sampled using stratified random sampling. The data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics and principal component analysis. The resilience of households to climate shocks and stresses was determined using a two-step modelling approach by clustering households into livelihood groups, gender and districts. The results indicated that agro-pastoral households were more resilient than pastoralists to climate-induced shock. Furthermore, households in the Gewane district were more resilient than those in the Amibara district. Female-headed households were less resilient than male-headed households. Enhancing livestock assets and productivity, social safety nets, access to market, credit, extension services and education, improving irrigation crop farming, and providing farm inputs significantly enhanced the resilience of pastoralists to climate change and variability. Keywords: Asset, Livelihood, Climate shock, Pastoralist, Resilience

  18. Field Plot Techniques for Black Sigatoka Evaluation in East African Highland Bananas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Okoro, JU.

    1997-01-01

    Full Text Available Number of plants per experimental unit and number of replications for the efficient and precise assessment of black sigatoka leaf spot disease caused by Mycosphaerella fijiensis in East African Highland bananas were determined. Two representative cultivars were used. Host response to black sigatoka infection was measured by recording the youngest leaf with necrotic spots. The number of plants per experimental unit was determined, using the methods of maximum curvature and comparison of variances, while the number of replications was estimated by Hatheway's method. The optimum experimental plot size was 3 plants (18 m2 for the beer banana cultivar 'Igitsiri', and 30 plants (180 m2 for the cooking banana cultivar 'Igisahira Gisanzwe', using the comparison of variances method. However, the optimum plot size was 15 plants (90 m2 for both cultivars using the method of maximum curvature. The latter statistical method was preferred because of the low precision of the estimates in the former method. Unreplicated trials with plots of 15 plants could be adequate to assess black sigatoka response in East African bananas if uniform disease pressure exists.

  19. Malaria prevalence, prevention and treatment seeking practices among nomadic pastoralists in northern Senegal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seck, Mame Cheikh; Thwing, Julie; Fall, Fatou Ba; Gomis, Jules Francois; Deme, Awa; Ndiaye, Yaye Die; Daniels, Rachel; Volkman, Sarah K; Ndiop, Medoune; Ba, Mady; Ndiaye, Daouda

    2017-10-13

    Malaria transmission in Senegal is highly stratified, from low in the dry north to moderately high in the moist south. In northern Senegal, along the Senegal River Valley and in the Ferlo semi-desert region, annual incidence is less than five cases per 1000 inhabitants. Many nomadic pastoralists have permanent dwellings in the Ferlo Desert and Senegal River Valley, but spend dry season in the south with their herds, returning north when the rains start, leading to a concern that this population could contribute to ongoing transmission in the north. A modified snowball sampling survey was conducted at six sites in northern Senegal to determine the malaria prevention and treatment seeking practices and parasite prevalence among nomadic pastoralists in the Senegal River Valley and the Ferlo Desert. Nomadic pastoralists aged 6 months and older were surveyed during September and October 2014, and data regarding demographics, access to care and preventive measures were collected. Parasite infection was detected using rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), microscopy (thin and thick smears) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Molecular barcodes were determined by high resolution melting (HRM). Of 1800 participants, 61% were male. Sixty-four percent had at least one bed net in the household, and 53% reported using a net the night before. Only 29% had received a net from a mass distribution campaign. Of the 8% (142) who reported having had fever in the last month, 55% sought care, 20% of whom received a diagnostic test, one-third of which (n = 5) were reported to be positive. Parasite prevalence was 0.44% by thick smear and 0.50% by PCR. None of the molecular barcodes identified among the nomadic pastoralists had been previously identified in Senegal. While access to and utilization of malaria control interventions among nomadic pastoralists was lower than the general population, parasite prevalence was lower than expected and sheds doubt on the perception that they are a

  20. Simulating sanitation and waste flows and their environmental impacts in East African urban centres

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Oyoo, R.

    2014-01-01

    Simulating Sanitation and Waste Flows and their Environmental Impacts in East African Urban Centres

    Abstract

    If improperly managed, urban waste flows can pose a significant threat to the quality of both the natural environment and public health.

  1. Minority drug-resistant HIV-1 variants in treatment naïve East-African and Caucasian patients detected by allele-specific real-time PCR.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Halime Ekici

    Full Text Available To assess the presence of two major non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTI drug resistance mutations (DRMs, Y181C and K103N, in minor viral quasispecies of treatment naïve HIV-1 infected East-African and Swedish patients by allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (AS-PCR.Treatment naïve adults (n=191 with three epidemiological backgrounds were included: 92 Ethiopians living in Ethiopia; 55 East-Africans who had migrated to Sweden; and 44 Caucasians living in Sweden. The pol gene was analysed by standard population sequencing and by AS-PCR for the detection of Y181C and K103N.The Y181C was detected in the minority quasispecies of six Ethiopians (6.5%, in two Caucasians (4.5%, and in one East-African (1.8%. The K103N was detected in one East- African (1.8%, by both methods. The proportion of mutants ranged from 0.25% to 17.5%. Additional DRMs were found in all three treatment naïve patient groups by population sequencing.Major NNRTI mutations can be found by AS-PCR in minor quasispecies of treatment naïve HIV-1 infected Ethiopians living in Ethiopia, in East-African and Caucasian patients living in Sweden in whom population sequencing reveal wild-type virus only. Surveys with standard sequencing are likely to underestimate transmitted drug resistance and the presence of resistant minor quasispecies in treatment naïve patients should be topic for future large scale studies.

  2. Traditional strategies used by pastoralists to cope with la nina ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Pastoralists traditionally relied on herd mobility to cope with drought. In the pastoral areas of Kajiado, Kenya this strategy is now threatened by increased individual land ownership as compared to communal access. Drought frequency as related to El-Nino and Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is predicated to increase with ...

  3. Pastoralists in a changing environment: The competition for grazing land in and around the W Biosphere Reserve, Benin Republic.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tamou, Charles; Ripoll-Bosch, Raimon; de Boer, Imke J M; Oosting, Simon J

    2018-04-01

    Pastoralists face increasing competition for land with crop farmers and nature in and around the W Biosphere Reserve (WBR) in Benin. Our aim was to describe and analyse land use changes in order to understand their drivers, and to describe and analyse the viewpoints of relevant stakeholders in order to understand the competition for land. To this end, remote sensing data, regional statistics, and survey data were collected. We found that crop land expansion around the WBR was the direct driver of decrease of the grazing land area. Population growth and rising demand for food crops, and government support to the cotton sector were indirect drivers of grazing land reduction. Furthermore, competing claims on land among users arose from the complex interaction of crop expansion, presence of WBR and the way it is governed, the lack of support to pastoralists, and the increasing shift of pastoralists' lifestyle into one of settled crop farmers. Pastoralism is under threat and its survival depends on the successful implementation of policies to support pastoralists and protect grazing lands.

  4. Emotional Understanding in Quechua Children from an Agro-Pastoralist Village

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tenenbaum, Harriet R.; Visscher, Paloma; Pons, Francisco; Harris, Paul L.

    2004-01-01

    Research on children's understanding of emotion has rarely focused on children from nonindustrialised countries, who may develop an understanding at different ages as compared to children reared in industrialised countries. Quechua children from an agro-pastoralist village were given an adapted version of the Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC) to…

  5. Evaluation of the LISEM soil erosion model in two catchments in the East African Highlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hessel, R.; Bosch, van den R.; Vigiak, O.

    2006-01-01

    Under increasing population pressure, soil erosion has become a threat in the East African Highlands, and erosion modelling can be useful to quantify this threat. To test its applicability for this region, the LISEM soil erosion model was applied to two small catchments, one in the Usumbara

  6. Women's Access to Land and Natural Resources in Pastoralist and ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    30 juin 2009 ... This project will explore women's access to land and land-based resources in five pastoralist and forest-dwelling communities in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, mainly, Hadza, Batwa, Maasai, Ogiek and Karamojong. The project is expected to shed light on how best to secure women's right to land and ...

  7. Alu insertion polymorphisms in the African Sahel and the origin of Fulani pastoralists

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Čížková, M.; Hofmanová, Z.; Mokhtar, M. G.; Janoušek, V.; Diallo, I.; Munclinger, P.; Černý, Viktor

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 44, č. 6 (2017), s. 537-545 ISSN 0301-4460 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA13-37998S Institutional support: RVO:67985912 Keywords : Alu insertions * Fulani nomads * Western African pastoralism * African Sahel Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology OBOR OECD: Archaeology Impact factor: 1.240, year: 2016

  8. Tectonic inheritance and continental rift architecture: Numerical and analogue models of the East African Rift System.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Corti, G.; van Wijk, J.W.; Cloetingh, S.A.P.L.; Morley, C.

    2007-01-01

    The western branch of the East African Rift is composed of an arcuate succession of elongate asymmetric basins, which differ in terms of interaction geometry, fault architecture and kinematics, and patterns of uplift/subsidence and erosion/sedimentation. The basins are located within Proterozoic

  9. Understanding roles and functions of cattle breeds for pastoralists in Benin

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tamou, Charles; Boer, de Imke J.M.; Ripoll-Bosch, Raimon; Oosting, Simon J.

    2018-01-01

    Animal genetic resources (AnGR) are essential for food security and the livelihoods of many pastoralists. However, the AnGR diversity is currently being eroded, as well as the traditional ecological knowledge associated to the use of indigenous breeds and their environment. The objectives of this

  10. Norms for multivariate diagnosis of nutrient imbalance in the East African highland bananas (musa spp.aaa)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wairegi, L.; Asten, van P.

    2011-01-01

    Despite low yields and soil fertility problems, fertilizer use in the East African Highland banana (AAA-EA) production is absent. High fertilizer costs increase the need for site-specific fertilizer recommendations that address deficiencies. This study aimed to derive and compare norms for AAA-EA

  11. Middle East and North African Health Informatics Association (MENAHIA): Building Sustainable Collaboration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Shorbaji, Najeeb; Househ, Mowafa; Taweel, Adel; Alanizi, Abdullah; Mohammed, Bennani Othmani; Abaza, Haitham; Bawadi, Hala; Rasuly, Hamayon; Alyafei, Khalid; Fernandez-Luque, Luis; Shouman, Mohamed; El-Hassan, Osama; Hussein, Rada; Alshammari, Riyad; Mandil, Salah; Shouman, Sarah; Taheri, Shahrad; Emara, Tamer; Dalhem, Wasmiya; Al-Hamdan, Zaid; Serhier, Zineb

    2018-04-22

    There has been a growing interest in Health Informatics applications, research, and education within the Middle East and North African Region over the past twenty years. People of this region share similar cultural and religious values, primarily speak the Arabic language, and have similar health care related issues, which are in dire need of being addressed. Health Informatics efforts, organizations, and initiatives within the region have been largely under-represented within, but not ignored by, the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA). Attempts to create bonds and collaboration between the different organizations of the region have remained scattered, and often, resulted in failure despite the fact that the need for a united health informatics collaborative within the region has never been more crucial than today. During the 2017 MEDINFO, held in Hangzhou, China, a new organization, the Middle East and North African Health Informatics Association (MENAHIA) was conceived as a regional non-governmental organization to promote and facilitate health informatics uptake within the region endorsing health informatics research and educational initiatives of the 22 countries represented within the region. This paper provides an overview of the collaboration and efforts to date in forming MENAHIA and displays the variety of initiatives that are already occurring within the MENAHIA region, which MENAHIA will help, endorse, support, share, and improve within the international forum of health informatics. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart.

  12. Use of Machine Learning Techniques for Iidentification of Robust Teleconnections to East African Rainfall Variability in Observations and Models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, J. Brent; Robertson, Franklin R.; Funk, Chris

    2014-01-01

    Providing advance warning of East African rainfall variations is a particular focus of several groups including those participating in the Famine Early Warming Systems Network. Both seasonal and long-term model projections of climate variability are being used to examine the societal impacts of hydrometeorological variability on seasonal to interannual and longer time scales. The NASA / USAID SERVIR project, which leverages satellite and modeling-based resources for environmental decision making in developing nations, is focusing on the evaluation of both seasonal and climate model projections to develop downscaled scenarios for using in impact modeling. The utility of these projections is reliant on the ability of current models to capture the embedded relationships between East African rainfall and evolving forcing within the coupled ocean-atmosphere-land climate system. Previous studies have posited relationships between variations in El Niño, the Walker circulation, Pacific decadal variability (PDV), and anthropogenic forcing. This study applies machine learning methods (e.g. clustering, probabilistic graphical model, nonlinear PCA) to observational datasets in an attempt to expose the importance of local and remote forcing mechanisms of East African rainfall variability. The ability of the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS5) coupled model to capture the associated relationships will be evaluated using Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) simulations.

  13. East African highland bananas (Musa spp. AAA-EA) 'worry' more about potassium deficiency than drought stress

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Taulya, G.

    2013-01-01

    Drought stress, potassium (K) and nitrogen (N) deficiencies are major constraints to rain-fed East African highland banana (EAHB) production in Uganda. It was hypothesised that the reduction in fresh bunch mass and increase in dry matter (DM) allocation to corms with drought stress, K and N

  14. Community-based management: under what conditions do Sami pastoralists manage pastures sustainably?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vera H Hausner

    Full Text Available Community-based management (CBM has been implemented in socio-ecological systems (SES worldwide. CBM has also been the prevailing policy in Sámi pastoral SES in Norway, but the outcomes tend to vary extensively among resource groups ("siidas". We asked why do some siidas self-organize to manage common pool resources sustainably and others do not? To answer this question we used a mixed methods approach. First, in the statistical analyses we analyzed the relationship between sustainability indicators and structural variables. We found that small winter pastures that are shared by few siidas were managed more sustainably than larger pastures. Seasonal siida stability, i.e., a low turnover of pastoralists working together throughout the year, and equality among herders, also contributed to more sustainable outcomes. Second, interviews were conducted in the five largest pastures to explain the relationships between the structural variables and sustainability. The pastoralists expressed a high level of agreement with respect to sustainable policies, but reported a low level of trust and cooperation among the siidas. The pastoralists requested siida tenures or clear rules and sanctioning mechanisms by an impartial authority rather than flexible organization or more autonomy for the siidas. The lack of nestedness in self-organization for managing pastures on larger scales, combined with the past economic policies, could explain why CBM is less sustainable on the largest winter pastures. We conclude that the scale mis-match between self-organization and the formal governance is a key condition for sustainability.

  15. Pastoralists' knowledge and practices towards clinical bovine dermatophilosis in cattle herds of North-Central Nigeria: the associated factors, burden and economic impact.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alhaji, Nma Bida; Isola, Tajudeen Opeyemi

    2018-02-01

    Dermatophilosis is a contagious disease of high economic importance. The study assessed knowledge/awareness and clinical burden of and mitigation measures practised against clinical bovine dermatophilosis in pastoral herds of North-Central Nigeria and associated socio-cultural factors that predisposed to its occurrence in herds. A cross-sectional survey was conducted between October 2015 and September 2016. Questionnaires were administered on pastoralists and clinical assessment of cattle with gross pathological lesions indicative of dermatophilosis conducted. Associated economic impact was estimated. All 384 selected pastoralists participated in the survey. The majorities of nomadic (97.4%) and sedentary (68.2%) pastoralists significantly (p Culture of giving out cattle as gift or payment for dowry was more likely (OR 28.56; 95% CI 15.64, 52.12) to influence dermatophilosis occurrence in herds. Overall clinical dermatophilosis burden was 3.6% (95% CI 3.46, 3.80) and the annual economic impact was estimated at 908,463.9 USD. This study has given an idea to the status of pastoralists' levels of awareness about dermatophilosis in Nigeria, which can be harnessed by policy makers to develop its mitigation measures. Significant influence of pastoralists' socio-cultural activities on dermatophilosis occurrence in herds was identified. Surveillance and control programmes towards dermatophilosis that take these factors into consideration will be beneficial to the herders.

  16. Climate change adaptation among Tibetan pastoralists: challenges in enhancing local adaptation through policy support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fu, Yao; Grumbine, R Edward; Wilkes, Andreas; Wang, Yun; Xu, Jian-Chu; Yang, Yong-Ping

    2012-10-01

    While researchers are aware that a mix of Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK), community-based resource management institutions, and higher-level institutions and policies can facilitate pastoralists' adaptation to climate change, policy makers have been slow to understand these linkages. Two critical issues are to what extent these factors play a role, and how to enhance local adaptation through government support. We investigated these issues through a case study of two pastoral communities on the Tibetan Plateau in China employing an analytical framework to understand local climate adaptation processes. We concluded that LEK and community-based institutions improve adaptation outcomes for Tibetan pastoralists through shaping and mobilizing resource availability to reduce risks. Higher-level institutions and policies contribute by providing resources from outside communities. There are dynamic interrelationships among these factors that can lead to support, conflict, and fragmentation. Government policy could enhance local adaptation through improvement of supportive relationships among these factors. While central government policies allow only limited room for overt integration of local knowledge/institutions, local governments often have some flexibility to buffer conflicts. In addition, government policies to support market-based economic development have greatly benefited adaptation outcomes for pastoralists. Overall, in China, there are still questions over how to create innovative institutions that blend LEK and community-based institutions with government policy making.

  17. Climate change and pastoralists: investing in people to respond to adversity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hesse, Ced; Cotula, Lorenzo

    2006-10-15

    While climatic fluctuations have always been a defining feature of dryland areas, and pastoralists have developed resilient livelihood systems to cope with difficult climates, global climate change is raising new challenges for pastoral systems in Africa and elsewhere. Action at local, national and international levels is needed to prevent destitution and help pastoral groups respond to the changing environment.

  18. The strange case of East African annual fishes: aridification correlates with diversification for a savannah aquatic group?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dorn, Alexander; Musilová, Zuzana; Platzer, Matthias; Reichwald, Kathrin; Cellerino, Alessandro

    2014-10-14

    Annual Nothobranchius fishes are distributed in East and Southern Africa and inhabit ephemeral pools filled during the monsoon season. Nothobranchius show extreme life-history adaptations: embryos survive by entering diapause and they are the vertebrates with the fastest maturation and the shortest lifespan. The distribution of Nothobranchius overlaps with the East Africa Rift System. The geological and paleoclimatic history of this region is known in detail: in particular, aridification of East Africa and expansion of grassland habitats started 8 Mya and three humid periods between 3 and 1 Mya are superimposed on the longer-term aridification. These climatic oscillations are thought to have shaped evolution of savannah African mammals. We reconstructed the phylogeny of Nothobranchius and dated the different stages of diversification in relation to these paleoclimatic events. We sequenced one mitochondrial locus and five nuclear loci in 63 specimens and obtained a robust phylogeny. Nothobranchius can be divided in four geographically separated clades whose boundaries largely correspond to the East Africa Rift system. Statistical analysis of dispersal and vicariance identifies a Nilo-Sudan origin with southwards dispersion and confirmed that these four clades are the result of vicariance events In the absence of fossil Nothobranchius, molecular clock was calibrated using more distant outgroups (secondary calibration). This method estimates the age of the Nothobranchius genus to be 8.3 (6.0 - 10.7) My and the separation of the four clades 4.8 (2.7-7.0) Mya. Diversification within the clades was estimated to have started ~3 Mya and most species pairs were estimated to have an age of 0.5-1 My. The mechanism of Nothobranchius diversification was allopatric and driven by geographic isolation. We propose a scenario where diversification of Nothobranchius started in rough coincidence with aridification of East Africa, establishment of grassland habitats and the appearance

  19. Post-Pan-African tectonic evolution of South Malawi in relation to the Karroo and recent East African rift systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castaing, C.

    1991-05-01

    Structural studies conducted in the Lengwe and Mwabvi Karroo basins and in the basement in South Malawi, using regional maps and published data extended to cover Southeast Africa, serve to propose a series of geodynamic reconstructions which reveal the persistence of an extensional tectonic regime, the minimum stress σ3 of which has varied through time. The period of Karroo rifting and the tholeiitic and alkaline magmatism which terminated it, were controlled by NW-SE extension, which resulted in the creation of roughly NE-SW troughs articulated by the Tanganyika-Malawi and Zambesi pre-transform systems. These were NW-SE sinistral-slip systems with directions of movement dipping slightly to the Southeast, which enabled the Mwanza fault to play an important role in the evolution of the Karroo basins of the Shire Valley. The Cretaceous was a transition period between the Karroo rifting and the formation of the Recent East African Rift System. Extension was NE-SW, with some evidence for a local compressional episode in the Lengwe basin. Beginning in the Cenozoic, the extension once more became NW-SE and controlled the evolution in transtension of the Recent East African Rift System. This history highlights the major role of transverse faults systems dominated by strike-slip motion in the evolution and perpetuation of the continental rift systems. These faults are of a greater geological persistence than the normal faults bounding the grabens, especially when they are located on major basement anisotropies.

  20. Relapsing fever causative agent in Southern Iran is a closely related species to East African borreliae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Naddaf, Saied Reza; Ghazinezhad, Behnaz; Kazemirad, Elham; Cutler, Sally Jane

    2017-10-01

    We obtained two blood samples from relapsing fever patients residing in Jask County, Hormozgan Province, southern Iran in 2013. Sequencing of a partial fragment of glpQ from two samples, and further characterization of one of them by analyzing flaB gene, and 16S-23S spacer (IGS) revealed the greatest sequence identity with East African borreliae, Borrelia recurrentis, and Borrelia duttonii, and Borrelia microti from Iran. Phylogenetic analyses of glpQ, flaB, and concatenated sequences (glpQ, flab, and IGS) clustered these sequences amongst East African Relapsing fever borreliae and B. microti from Iran. However, the more discriminatory IGS disclosed a unique 8-bp signature (CAGCCTAA) separating these from B. microti and indeed other relapsing fever borreliae. In southern Iran, relapsing fever cases are mostly from localities in which O. erraticus ticks, the notorious vector of B. microti, prevail. There are chances that this argasid tick serves as a host and vector of several closely related species or ecotypes including the one we identified in the present study. The distribution of this Borrelia species remains to be elucidated, but it is assumed to be endemic to lowland areas of the Hormozgan Province, as well as Sistan va Baluchistan in the southeast and South Khorasan (in Persian: Khorasan-e Jonobi) in the east of Iran. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  1. The use of mobile phones for demographic surveillance of mobile pastoralists and their animals in Chad: proof of principle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jean-Richard, Vreni; Crump, Lisa; Moto Daugla, Doumagoum; Hattendorf, Jan; Schelling, Esther; Zinsstag, Jakob

    2014-01-01

    Demographic information is foundational for the planning and management of social programmes, in particular health services. The existing INDEPTH network surveillance sites are limited to coverage of sedentary populations. Including mobile populations in this approach would be expensive, time consuming and possibly low in accuracy. Very little is known about the demography of mobile pastoralists and their animals, so innovative approaches are urgently needed. To test and evaluate a mobile demographic surveillance system for mobile pastoralist households, including livestock herds, using mobile phones. Mobile pastoralist camps were monitored (10 for 12 months and 10 for 18 months) using biweekly mobile phone calls with camp leaders and their wives to conduct interviews about the households and livestock. The collected information was validated through personal visits, GPS data and a livestock demographic model. The study showed the feasibility of mobile phone surveillance for mobile pastoralist camps, providing usable, valid information on human and livestock population structures, pregnancy outcomes and herd dynamics, as well as migration patterns. The approach was low-cost and applicable with the existing local resources. Demographic surveillance in mobile populations is feasible using mobile phones. Expansion of the small-scale system into a full mobile demographic surveillance system is warranted and would likely lead to improved planning and provision of human and animal health care.

  2. Pastoralist Community’s Perception of Tuberculosis: A Quantitative Study from Shinille Area of Ethiopia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Samuel Melaku

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Background. In Ethiopia the prevalence of all forms of TB is estimated at 261/100 000 population, leading to an annual mortality rate of 64/100 000 population. The incidence rate of smear-positive TB is 108/100 000 population. Objectives. To assess knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding TB among pastoralists in Shinille district, Somali region, Ethiopia. Method. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 821 pastoralists aged >18 years and above from February to May, 2011 using self-structured questionnaire. Results. Most (92.8% of the study participants heard about TB, but only 10.1% knew about its causative agent. Weight loss as main symptom, transmittance through respiratory air droplets, and sputum examination for diagnosis were the answers of 34.3%, 29.9%, and 37.9% of pastoralists, respectively. The majority (98.3% of respondents reported that TB could be cured, of which 93.3% believed with modern drugs. About 41.3% of participants mentioned covering the nose and mouth during sneezing and coughing as a preventive measure. The multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that household income >300 Ethiopian Birr and Somali ethnicity were associated with high TB knowledge. Regarding health seeking behaviour practice only 48.0% of the respondents preferred to visit government hospital and discuss their problems with doctors/health care providers. Conclusion. This study observed familiarity with gaps and low overall knowledge on TB and revealed negative attitudes like discrimination intentions in the studied pastoral community.

  3. East African discourses on khat and sex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beckerleg, Susan

    2010-12-01

    The study aims to review and analyse the varied East African discourses on the effects of khat use on libido, fertility, transmission of HIV, prostitution and rape. The data were gathered between 2004 and 2009 in Kenya and Uganda. Between 2004 and 2005 across Kenya and Uganda a broad survey approach was adopted, involving identification of and travel to production areas, interviews with producers and consumers in rural and urban settings. In addition, a survey of 300 Ugandan consumers was carried out in late 2004. Between 2007 and 2009, an in-depth study of khat production, trade and consumption was conducted in Uganda. This study also employed a mixture of methods, including key informant interviews participant-observation and a questionnaire survey administered to 210 khat consumers. Khat is associated, by consumers and its detractors alike, with changes in libido and sexual performance. Although there is no evidence to support their claims, detractors of khat use argue that khat causes sexual violence, causes women to enter sex work, and that chewing causes the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, including the HIV virus. In East Africa the discourse on khat and sex has led to consumption of the substances being associated by many people with uncontrolled sexual behaviour. There is no evidence that khat use fuels promiscuity, commercial sex, sexually transmitted diseases or rape. The current discourse on khat and sex touches on all these topics. Local religious and political leaders invoke khat use as a cause of what they argue is a breakdown of morals and social order. In Kenya and Uganda it is women khat consumers who are seen as sexually uncontrolled. In Uganda, the argument is extended even to men: with male khat chewers labelled as prone to commit rape. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Immigrant Entrepreneurship in United Arab Emirates: An exploratory study on East African Asian Immigrant Businesses

    OpenAIRE

    Khakoo, Mohamed Hussein Turabali

    2008-01-01

    Immigrant entrepreneurship has always existed and has developed remarkably. It is related to migration flows over time and has brought increasing attention from researchers and management practitioners in recent years. The research sets out to investigate the process by which immigrants enter into entrepreneurship. The idea of starting a small business and the internationalization strategies they follow. A homogeneous ethnic minority is researched upon, the East African Asians who had migrate...

  5. Estimates of interhemispheric transport of radioactive debris by the east African low-level jet stream

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rangarajan, C.; Eapen, C.D.

    1981-01-01

    The movement of air masses across the equator by way of the east African low-level jet stream has been studied using fission products from the French nuclear tests of the South Pacific as tracers. The studies show that the transit time of air masses from Malagasy to India is 3--6 days and about 75% of the air mass on the west coast of India is from the southern hemisphere

  6. Mineral fertilizer response and nutrient use efficiencies of East African highland banana (Musa spp., AAA-EAHB, cv. Kisansa)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nyombi, K.; Asten, van P.J.A.; Corbeels, M.; Taulya, G.; Leffelaar, P.A.; Giller, K.E.

    2010-01-01

    Poor yields of East African highland bananas (Musa spp., AAA-EAHB) on smallholder farms have often been attributed to problems of poor soil fertility. We measured the effects of mineral fertilizers on crop performance at two sites over two to three crop cycles; Kawanda in central Uganda and Ntungamo

  7. Phylogenetic relationships among East African haplochromine fish as revealed by short interspersed elements (SINEs).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terai, Yohey; Takezaki, Naoko; Mayer, Werner E; Tichy, Herbert; Takahata, Naoyuki; Klein, Jan; Okada, Norihiro

    2004-01-01

    Genomic DNA libraries were prepared from two endemic species of Lake Victoria haplochromine (cichlid) fish and used to isolate and characterize a set of short interspersed elements (SINEs). The distribution and sequences of the SINEs were used to infer phylogenetic relationships among East African haplochromines. The SINE-based classification divides the fish into four groups, which, in order of their divergence from a stem lineage, are the endemic Lake Tanganyika flock (group 1); fish of the nonendemic, monotypic, widely distributed genus Astatoreochromis (group 2); the endemic Lake Malawi flock (group 3); and group 4, which contains fish from widely dispersed East African localities including Lakes Victoria, Edward, George, Albert, and Rukwa, as well as many rivers. The group 4 haplochromines are characterized by a subset of polymorphic SINEs, each of which is present in some individuals and absent in others of the same population at a given locality, the same morphologically defined species, and the same mtDNA-defined haplogroup. SINE-defined group 4 contains six of the seven previously described mtDNA haplogroups. One of the polymorphic SINEs appears to be fixed in the endemic Lake Victoria flock; four others display the presence-or-absence polymorphism within the species of this flock. These findings have implications for the origin of Lake Victoria cichlids and for their founding population sizes.

  8. Climate risk management information, sources and responses in a pastoral region in East Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anthony Egeru

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Pastoralists in East Africa face a range of stressors, climate variability and change being one of them. Effective climate risk management involves managing the full range of variability and balancing hazard management with efforts to capitalise on opportunity; climate risk management information is central in this process. In this study, pastoralists’ perceptions of climate change, climate risk management information types, sources and attendant responses in a pastoral region in East Africa are examined. Through a multi-stage sampling process, a total of 198 heads of households in three districts were selected and interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. In addition, 29 focus group discussions and 10 key informant interviews were conducted to generate qualitative information to supplement survey data. Descriptive and thematic analysis were utilised in summarizing the data. Ninety-nine percent of the pastoralists noted that the climate had changed evidenced by high but erratic rainfall, occurrence of floods and variation in rainfall onset and cessation among other indicators. This change in climate had led to emergence of ‘new’ livestock and crop diseases, crop failure and low yields leading to frequent food shortages, water shortages, poor market access, and variation in pasture availability among other effects. Climate risk management information was received from multiple sources including; radio, diviners, community meetings, shrine elders, humanitarian agencies, and Uganda People’s defence forces (UPDF. Community meetings were however perceived as most accessible, reliable and dependable sources of information. Shifting livestock to dry season grazing and watering areas, selling firewood and charcoal, seeking for military escorts to grazing areas, purchasing veterinary drugs, shifting livestock to disease ‘free’ areas, and performing rituals (depending on the perceived risk constituted a set of responses undertaken in

  9. Middle East and North African Oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Quazzaz, Ayad

    1981-01-01

    Traces the history of oil and natural gas in the Middle East and relates the importance of the Middle East's current stores of oil to economic development. Information is presented on the relationship of major oil companies and local governments, OPEC, rate of production, and the impact of oil on the societies of the Middle East and North Africa.…

  10. African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically, scholarly information has flowed from North to South and from West to East. It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with ...

  11. ISSN 2073 ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. East Cent. East Cent. Afr. J.

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. ... collaboration in the writing and editing of Surgical Care at the District Hospital, ... increasing availability of computers and huge developments in software technology such ... Emergency Surgery ...

  12. African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journals OnLine (AJOL) is the world's largest and pre-eminent collection of peer-reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically, scholarly information has flowed from North to South and from West to East. It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics.

  13. Traditional Ecological Knowledge among transhumant pastoralists in Mediterranean Spain: learning for adaptation to global change

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Oteros Rozas, E.; Ontillera-Sánchez, R.; Sanosa, P.; Gómez-Baggethun, E.; Reyes-García, V.; González, J.A.

    2013-01-01

    Mobility is a millenary human strategy to deal with environmental change. An outstanding example of mobility is transhumance, an ancient pastoralist practice consisting of the seasonal migration of livestock between ecological regions following peaks in pasture productivity. The maintenance of

  14. Reassessment of source parameters for three major earthquakes in the East African rift system from historical seismograms and bulletins

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. Kulhánek

    2000-06-01

    Full Text Available Source parameters for three majo earthquakes in the East African rift are re-computed from historical seismograms and bulletins. The main shock and the largest foreshock of the August 25, 1906 earthquake sequence in the main Ethiopian rift are re-located on the eastern shoulder of the rift segment.The magnitude of the main shock is estimated to be 6.5 (Mw from spectral analysis. The December 13, 1910 earthquake in the Rukwa rift (Western Tanzania indicated a significant strike-slip component from teleseismcs body-waveform inversion for fault mechanism and seismic moment. The January 6, 1928 earthquake in the Gregory rift (Kenya showed a multiple rupture process and unusually long duration for a size of 6.6(Mw. The May 20, 1990 earthquake in Southern Sudan, mentioned merely for the sake of comparison, is the largest of all instrumentally recorded events in the East African rift system. Despite the fact that the mode of deformation in the continental rift is predominantly of extensional nature, the three largest earthquakes known to occur in the circum-Tanzanian craton have shallow focal depths and significant strike-slip component in their fault mechanisms. This and similar works will enrich the database for seismic hazard assessment in East Africa.

  15. Social Realism in the African Novel: The South African and East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Although the African novel arose from Europe, the African has used it to explore a different world view; a world where gods and men hold a place together in the affairs of men. But more importantly, the African novel has followed the peculiar history of colonization and decolonization. While the earlier novels depicted the ...

  16. Influence of Mascarene High and Indian Ocean dipole on East African extreme weather events

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ogwang Bob Alex

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Extreme weather and climate events such as floods and droughts are common in East Africa, causing huge socio-economic losses. This study links the east African October-December (OND rainfall, Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD and Mascarene High (MH.Correlation analysis is applied to quantify the relationship between the index of IOD (Dipole Mode Index (DMI and OND rainfall. Results show that there exists a significant correlation between OND rainfall and DMI, with a correlation coefficient of 0.6. During dry years, MH is observed to intensify and align itself in the southeast-northwest orientation, stretching up to the continent, which in turn inhibits the influx of moisture from Indian Ocean into East Africa. During wet years, MH weakens, shifts to the east and aligns itself in the zonal orientation. Moisture from Indian Ocean is freely transported into east Africa during wet years. Analysis of the drought and flood years with respect to the different variables including wind, velocity potential and divergence/ convergence revealed that the drought (flood years were characterized by divergence (convergence in the lower troposphere and convergence (divergence at the upper level, implying sinking (rising motion, especially over the western Indian Ocean and the study area. Convergence at low level gives rise to vertical stretching, whereas divergence results in vertical shrinking, which suppresses convection due to subsidence. Positive IOD (Negative IOD event results into flood (drought in the region. The evolution of these phenomena can thus be keenly observed for utilization in the update of seasonal forecasts.

  17. Good Governance and Foreign Direct Investment : A Legal Contribution to a Balanced Economic Development in the East African Community (EAC)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mbembe, Binda

    2015-01-01

    One of the objectives of the East African Community (EAC) is the promotion of a balanced economic development between its Partner States: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. And one of the ways to reach this economic development is the attraction of investment, especially Foreign Direct

  18. Khat chewing and acculturation in East-African migrants living in Frankfurt am Main/Germany.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bongard, Stephan; Nakajima, Motohiro; al'Absi, Mustafa

    2015-04-22

    Khat (Catha edulis, Forsk) is a drug widely used in countries around the Red Sea (East-Africa and Arabian Peninsula). In Germany khat chewing is illegal but nevertheless an often observed habit in immigrants from this region. This study investigates the interrelation between immigrants acculturation processes and traditional khat chewing habits. Sixty-one khat chewers (14 female) from East-African countries were interviewed about their khat chewing habits and acculturation strategy using standardized questionnaires. Results indicate that immigrants׳ khat chewing behaviors are similar to what is common in countries with traditional khat use. But khat chewing tended to be less among immigrants who were relatively more oriented towards their cultures of origin. Chewing khat was subjectively considered to help coping with problems, to forget bad memories and to concentrate better. It was concluded that khat chewing serves a functional use of coping with stressful events in the present or in the past within this sample. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Isolation and molecular characterization of Chikungunya virus from the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, India: evidence of an East, Central, and South African genotype.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muruganandam, N; Chaaithanya, I K; Senthil, G S; Shriram, A N; Bhattacharya, D; Jeevabharathi, G S; Sudeep, A B; Pradeepkumar, N; Vijayachari, P

    2011-12-01

    Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an Alphavirus belonging to the family Togaviridae. In 2006, CHIKV infection struck the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, with an attack rate of 60%. There were more than 10 cases with acute flaccid paralysis simulating the Guillian Barre Syndrome. The majority of the patients presented severe joint pain. The cause for such an explosive nature of the outbreak with increased morbidity was not known. The isolation of CHIKV was attempted and succeeded from nine subjects presenting clinical symptoms of Chikungunya fever. The cDNA of all the isolates was sequenced for partial E1 and nsP1 genes. Sequences were aligned based on the double locus sequence typing concept. The phylogenetic analysis shows that sequences of Andaman isolates grouped with the East, Central, and South African genotype of virus isolates from India, Sri Lanka, and Réunion. The genetic distance between Andaman isolates and the Réunion isolates was very small. The phylogenetic analysis confirmed the origin of the isolates responsible for the first ever confirmed CHIKV outbreak in these islands to be the East, Central, and South African genotype. In this manuscript, we discuss the involvement of the East, Central, and South African strain with the Chikungunya fever outbreak in this archipelago and double locus sequence typing as a first time approach.

  20. Planation surfaces as a record of medium to large wavelength deformation: the example of the Lake Albert Rift (Uganda) on the East African Dome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brendan, Simon; François, Guillocheau; Cécile, Robin; Jean, Braun; Olivier, Dauteuil; Massimo, Dall'Asta

    2016-04-01

    African relief is characterized by planation surfaces, some of them of continental scale. These surfaces are slightly deformed according to different wavelengths (x10 km; x100 km, x1000 km) which record both mantle dynamics (very long wavelength, x 1000 km) and lithosphere deformation (long wavelength deformation, x 100 km). Different types of these planation surfaces are recognized: - Etchplains capped by iron-duricrust which correspond to erosional nearly flat weathered surfaces resulting from the growth of laterites under warm and humid conditions. - Pediments which define mechanical erosional surfaces with concave or rectilinear profiles delimited by upslope scarps connected upstream with the upper landforms. We here focused on the Lake Albert Rift at the northern termination of the western branch of the East African Rift System of which the two branches are surimposed on the East-African Dome. Different wavelengths of deformation were characterized based on the 3D mapping of stepped planation surfaces: (1) very long wavelength deformations resulting from the uplift of the East African Dome; (2) long wavelength deformations resulting from the opening of the eastern branch and (3) medium wavelength deformations represented by the uplift of rift shoulders like the Rwenzori Mountains. The paleo-landscape reconstruction of Uganda shows the existence of four generations of landforms dated according to their geometrical relationships with volcanic rocks. A four stepped evolution of the Ugandan landforms is proposed: • 70 - 22 Ma: generation of two weathered planation surfaces (etchplain Uw and Iw). The upper one (Uw) records a very humid period culminating at time of the Early Eocene Climatic Optimum (70-45 Ma). It corresponds to the African Surface. A first uplift of the East African Dome generates a second lower planation surface (Iw) connected to the Atlantic Ocean base level; • 17-2.7 Ma: planation of large pediplains connected to the local base level induced

  1. Genetic susceptibility to infectious disease in East African Shorthorn Zebu: a genome-wide analysis of the effect of heterozygosity and exotic introgression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murray, Gemma G R; Woolhouse, Mark E J; Tapio, Miika; Mbole-Kariuki, Mary N; Sonstegard, Tad S; Thumbi, Samuel M; Jennings, Amy E; van Wyk, Ilana Conradie; Chase-Topping, Margo; Kiara, Henry; Toye, Phil; Coetzer, Koos; deC Bronsvoort, Barend M; Hanotte, Olivier

    2013-11-09

    Positive multi-locus heterozygosity-fitness correlations have been observed in a number of natural populations. They have been explained by the correlation between heterozygosity and inbreeding, and the negative effect of inbreeding on fitness (inbreeding depression). Exotic introgression in a locally adapted population has also been found to reduce fitness (outbreeding depression) through the breaking-up of co-adapted genes, or the introduction of non-locally adapted gene variants. In this study we examined the inter-relationships between genome-wide heterozygosity, introgression, and death or illness as a result of infectious disease in a sample of calves from an indigenous population of East African Shorthorn Zebu (crossbred Bos taurus x Bos indicus) in western Kenya. These calves were observed from birth to one year of age as part of the Infectious Disease in East African Livestock (IDEAL) project. Some of the calves were found to be genetic hybrids, resulting from the recent introgression of European cattle breed(s) into the indigenous population. European cattle are known to be less well adapted to the infectious diseases present in East Africa. If death and illness as a result of infectious disease have a genetic basis within the population, we would expect both a negative association of these outcomes with introgression and a positive association with heterozygosity. In this indigenous livestock population we observed negative associations between heterozygosity and both death and illness as a result of infectious disease and a positive association between European taurine introgression and episodes of clinical illness. We observe the effects of both inbreeding and outbreeding depression in the East African Shorthorn Zebu, and therefore find evidence of a genetic component to vulnerability to infectious disease. These results indicate that the significant burden of infectious disease in this population could, in principle, be reduced by altered breeding

  2. Power, slavery, and spirit possession in East Africa: A few reflections

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beatrice Nicolini

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Spirit possession and its relationship with power aims to offer here a better understanding not only of East African societies, but, most of all, of their historical role in numerous political and military conflicts and also within peace-building processes that represent a continuation of a topic of longstanding concern in East African history. The relationships between religions, local cultures and institutional powers throughout contemporary East African history will be re-read through regional and transnational, as well as international dynamics.

  3. Isotopic signature of Pan-African rejuvenation in the Kerala Khondalite belt, southern India: implications for east Gondwana reassembly

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Unnikrishnan Warrier, C.

    1997-01-01

    Sm-Nd isotope systematics on mineral separates from sillimanite-and cordierite-bearing metapelite (khondalite), and garnet-and biotite-bearing gneiss (leptynite) from the Kerala Khondalite Belt (KKB), southern India, yielded mineral isochron ages (wr-feld-bio-gar) of 537±27 Ma (MSWD=0.9) and 534±26 Ma (MSWD=1.23) respectively. Rb-Sr systematics in the same samples gave wr-feld-bio mineral isochron ages of 437±9 Ma (MSWD=0.67) and 467±9 Ma (MSWD=0.76). These results provide the first mineral isochron ages for the regional metasedimentaries in the KKB. The ε (Nd T) values at 550 Ma for khondalite and leptynite are -22.7 and -21.8 respectively. These results demonstrate a complete rejuvenation of the crust during Pan-African times. Coeval alkaline plutons emplaced along fault-lineaments in this area suggest an extensional tectonic regime. Geochronologic correlations with the Lutzow-Holm bay complexes in east Antarctica, and the highland and southwestern complex of Sri Lanka show that a similar Pan-African tectono-thermal event manifested in all the east Gondwana crustal fragments. (author)

  4. Bioenergy from agro-industrial residues in the East African region. Summary report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jungersen, G. [Dansk Teknologisk Inst. (Denmark); Kivaisi, A.; Rubindamayugi, M. [Univ. of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania, United Republic of)

    1998-05-01

    Tanzania has recently developed a comprehensive environmental policy which has put high priority on several specific environmental issues. One of the issues is the quality of waste water. A special priority is given to the pollution from the sisal industry. The East-African agro-industries generate very large quantities of organic residues from production and processing of different crops. These residues form a major contribution to the pollution of air, soil and waterways, but, at the same time they constitute a large potential for production of bioenergy through anaerobic digestion as well as potential substrate for other biological fermentation processes. Generally, these residues are regarded as having no or very little value and the different disposal methods are mainly a matter of getting rid of the waste. The generation of residues are very often concentrated on few large units, which makes the exploitation of these resources feasible in large scale biogas systems. Typically the units will have a potential of a daily methane generation of 1,000-20,000 m{sup 3} CH{sub 4}, equivalent to a potential electricity production of 0.2-3.2 MW. The future utilization of these resources for production of valuable products is described in this report. This report consists of 3 volumes. This summary report including the main objectives and findings from the different project report: Mapping and Quantification of Organic Agro-Industrial Residues in East Africa; Biogas - Bioenergy Potential in East Africa, Seminar Proceedings, Siler Sands, Dar es Salaam 22-23 September 1997; Bioenergy from Sisal residues - Experimental results and Capacity Building Activities. (EG)

  5. East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Paris, France, K. C. Takarinda, BSc, MSc, International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung ... Kenya and T. Galgalo, MSc, African Field Epidemiology Network. ... times more likely to develop active TB than those ... isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT), intensified TB case ... The capital city, where this study took place, had a.

  6. Weaning practices among pastoralists: New evidence of infant feeding patterns from Bronze Age Eurasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ventresca Miller, Alicia; Hanks, Bryan K; Judd, Margaret; Epimakhov, Andrey; Razhev, Dmitry

    2017-03-01

    This paper investigates infant feeding practices through stable carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotopic analyses of human bone collagen from Kamennyi Ambar 5, a Middle Bronze Age cemetery located in central Eurasia. The results presented are unique for the time period and region, as few cemeteries have been excavated to reveal a demographic cross-section of the population. Studies of weaning among pastoral societies are infrequent and this research adds to our knowledge of the timing, potential supplementary foods, and cessation of breastfeeding practices. Samples were collected from 41 subadults (Eurasia that were dependent on milk products as a supplementary food. Our discussion centers on supporting this hypothesis with modern information on central and east Eurasian herding societies including the age at which complementary foods are introduced, the types of complementary foods, and the timing of the cessation of breastfeeding. Integral to this work is the nature of pastoral economies and their dependence on animal products, the impact of complementary foods on nutrition and health, and how milk processing may have affected nutrition content and digestibility of foods. This research on Eurasian pastoralists provides insights into the complexities of weaning among prehistoric pastoral societies as well as the potential for different complementary foods to be incorporated into infant diets in the past. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  7. INSIDE THE NUMBERS: USING PRIVATE COMMERCIAL DATA TO ANALYZE EAST AFRICAN IMPORTED SOAP CONSUMPTION, 1870-1914

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Laird Jones

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Social historians identify soap as a “new need,” and argue its consumption indicates changing notions of bodily cleanliness, beauty and status. Relying largely on qualitative evidence such as traveler and missionary accounts, print advertising and oral interviews, they contend African soap use was influenced by Christian missions, colonial education and branding in the marketplace. Quantitative evidence – limited customs data – neither confirms nor challenges this position. More detailed commercial records, however, paint a somewhat different picture. The East African correspondence of William O’Swald & Co. indicates that soap marketing predated both Christian missions and colonial influence. Further, general purpose laundry soap was the overwhelming best seller. Personal toilette soaps lagged far behind. Laundering imported cotton textiles appeared the motive for initial soap purchases, and perhaps also the first step toward later personal soap use.

  8. Women Engagement with Power and Authority in Re-writing East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    From the relative absence of serious women writing in the early mainstream East African literature in English, starting the last quarter of the twentieth century, women writing has flourished to gain deserved space in the East African literary canon. In the writing of Kenya's Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye, Uganda's Mary Karooro ...

  9. Post-collisional magmatism in the central East African Orogen: The Maevarano Suite of north Madagascar

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goodenough, K.M.; Thomas, Ronald J.; De Waele, B.; Key, R.M.; Schofield, D.I.; Bauer, W.; Tucker, R.D.; Rafahatelo, J.-M.; Rabarimanana, M.; Ralison, A.V.; Randriamananjara, T.

    2010-01-01

    Late tectonic, post-collisional granite suites are a feature of many parts of the Late Neoproterozoic to Cambrian East African Orogen (EAO), where they are generally attributed to late extensional collapse of the orogen, accompanied by high heat flow and asthenospheric uprise. The Maevarano Suite comprises voluminous plutons which were emplaced in some of the tectonostratigraphic terranes of northern Madagascar, in the central part of the EAO, following collision and assembly during a major orogeny at ca. 550 Ma. The suite comprises three main magmatic phases: a minor early phase of foliated gabbros, quartz diorites, and granodiorites; a main phase of large batholiths of porphyritic granitoids and charnockites; and a late phase of small-scale plutons and sheets of monzonite, syenite, leucogranite and microgranite. The main phase intrusions tend to be massive, but with variably foliated margins. New U-Pb SHRIMP zircon data show that the whole suite was emplaced between ca. 537 and 522 Ma. Geochemically, all the rocks of the suite are enriched in the LILE, especially K, and the LREE, but are relatively depleted in Nb, Ta and the HREE. These characteristics are typical of post-collisional granitoids in the EAO and many other orogenic belts. It is proposed that the Maevarano Suite magmas were derived by melting of sub-continental lithospheric mantle that had been enriched in the LILE during earlier subduction events. The melting occurred during lithospheric delamination, which was associated with extensional collapse of the East African Orogen. ?? 2009 Natural Environment Research Council.

  10. Gene-centric meta-analysis of lipid traits in African, East Asian and Hispanic populations.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clara C Elbers

    Full Text Available Meta-analyses of European populations has successfully identified genetic variants in over 100 loci associated with lipid levels, but our knowledge in other ethnicities remains limited. To address this, we performed dense genotyping of ∼2,000 candidate genes in 7,657 African Americans, 1,315 Hispanics and 841 East Asians, using the IBC array, a custom ∼50,000 SNP genotyping array. Meta-analyses confirmed 16 lipid loci previously established in European populations at genome-wide significance level, and found multiple independent association signals within these lipid loci. Initial discovery and in silico follow-up in 7,000 additional African American samples, confirmed two novel loci: rs5030359 within ICAM1 is associated with total cholesterol (TC and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C (p = 8.8×10(-7 and p = 1.5×10(-6 respectively and a nonsense mutation rs3211938 within CD36 is associated with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C levels (p = 13.5×10(-12. The rs3211938-G allele, which is nearly absent in European and Asian populations, has been previously found to be associated with CD36 deficiency and shows a signature of selection in Africans and African Americans. Finally, we have evaluated the effect of SNPs established in European populations on lipid levels in multi-ethnic populations and show that most known lipid association signals span across ethnicities. However, differences between populations, especially differences in allele frequency, can be leveraged to identify novel signals, as shown by the discovery of ICAM1 and CD36 in the current report.

  11. Simultaneous determination of seven informative Y chromosome SNPs to differentiate East Asian, European, and African populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muro, Tomonori; Iida, Reiko; Fujihara, Junko; Yasuda, Toshihiro; Watanabe, Yukina; Imamura, Shinji; Nakamura, Hiroaki; Kimura-Kataoka, Kaori; Yuasa, Isao; Toga, Tomoko; Takeshita, Haruo

    2011-05-01

    Identification of the population origin of an individual is very useful for crime investigators who need to narrow down a suspect based on specimens left at a crime scene. Single nucleotide polymorphisms of the Y chromosome (Y-SNPs) are a class of markers of interest to forensic investigators because many of the markers indicate regional specificity, thus providing useful information about the geographic origin of a subject. We selected seven informative Y-SNPs (M168, M130, JST021355, M96, P126, P196, and P234) to differentiate the three major population groups (East Asian, European, and African) and used them to develop forensic application. SNP genotyping was carried out by multiplex PCR reaction and multiplex single base extension (MSBE) reaction followed by capillary electrophoresis of extension products. This method can be used to assign a haplogroup from both degraded male DNA samples and DNA samples containing a mixture of female and male DNA through PCR primers that generate small amplicons (less than about 150 bp) and are highly specific for targets on the Y chromosome. The allelic state of each marker was definitively determined from a total of 791 males from the three major population groups. As expected, samples from the three major population groups showed Y-haplogroups common in the region of provenance: Y haplogroups C, D, and O for East Asians; IJ and R1 for Europeans; and AB and E for Africans. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  12. East African Journal of Statistics

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    AFRICAN JOURNALS ONLINE (AJOL) · Journals · Advanced Search · USING ... EASJOSTA publishes the latest findings in applied and theoretical statistics. ... mathematics and acturial sciences, all considered as part of applied statistics.

  13. Seasonal patterns of mixed species groups in large East African mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kiffner, Christian; Kioko, John; Leweri, Cecilia; Krause, Stefan

    2014-01-01

    Mixed mammal species groups are common in East African savannah ecosystems. Yet, it is largely unknown if co-occurrences of large mammals result from random processes or social preferences and if interspecific associations are consistent across ecosystems and seasons. Because species may exchange important information and services, understanding patterns and drivers of heterospecific interactions is crucial for advancing animal and community ecology. We recorded 5403 single and multi-species clusters in the Serengeti-Ngorongoro and Tarangire-Manyara ecosystems during dry and wet seasons and used social network analyses to detect patterns of species associations. We found statistically significant associations between multiple species and association patterns differed spatially and seasonally. Consistently, wildebeest and zebras preferred being associated with other species, whereas carnivores, African elephants, Maasai giraffes and Kirk's dik-diks avoided being in mixed groups. During the dry season, we found that the betweenness (a measure of importance in the flow of information or disease) of species did not differ from a random expectation based on species abundance. In contrast, in the wet season, we found that these patterns were not simply explained by variations in abundances, suggesting that heterospecific associations were actively formed. These seasonal differences in observed patterns suggest that interspecific associations may be driven by resource overlap when resources are limited and by resource partitioning or anti-predator advantages when resources are abundant. We discuss potential mechanisms that could drive seasonal variation in the cost-benefit tradeoffs that underpin the formation of mixed-species groups.

  14. Treatment delay among pulmonary tuberculosis patients in pastoralist communities in Bale Zone, Southeast Ethiopia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hussen Awol

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Tuberculosis (TB is a major public health problem in Africa with Ethiopia being the most affected. Treatment delay is an important indicator of access to TB diagnosis and treatment. However, little is known about factors associated with treatment delay of pulmonary TB among pastoralists. Health facility based cross sectional study was conducted on 129 pulmonary TB patients in pastoralist community. The study was conducted in three health centers and a hospital. Time between onset of TB symptoms and first visit to a professional health care provider (patient delay, and the time between first visits to the professional health care provider to the date of diagnosis (provider's delay were analyzed using SPSS 16.0 statistical software. Findings A total of 129 new smear positive pulmonary TB patients participated in the study. The median total delay was 97 days. The median patient and health provider delays were 63 and 34 days, respectively. Ninety six percent of the patients were delayed for more than the twenty one days cutoff point. Patient delay was positively associated with first visit to traditional healer/private clinic/drug shop, rural residence, being illiterate, living in more than 10 kilometers from health facility; severity of illness at first presentation to health facility. Provider delay was positively associated with rural residence, being illiterate, patient with good functional status, patients in contact with more than two health providers, and place of first visit being traditional healer/private clinic/drug shop. Conclusions This study showed that majority of smear positive patients delayed either for diagnosis or treatment, thus continue to serve as reservoirs of infection. This indicates that there is a need for intervention to decrease patient and provider delays. Effort to reduce delays in pastoralist communities should focus on improving access to services in rural communities, engaging traditional and

  15. Compilation of an informative microsatellite set for genetic characterisation of East African finger millet (Eleusine coracana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Santie M. De Villiers

    2015-03-01

    Discussion: Five individual samples from an accession captured the largest number of alleles per locus compared to the four different bulked sampling strategies but this difference was not significant. The identified set comprised 20 markers: UGEP24, UGEP53, UGEP84, UGEP27, UGEP98, UGEP95, UGEP64, UGEP33, UGEP67, UGEP106, UGEP110, UGEP57, UGEP96, UGEP66, UGEP46, UGEP79, UGEP20, UGEP12, UGEP73 and UGEP5 and was since used to assess East African finger millet genetic diversity in two separate studies.

  16. Crustal evolution in north-east and east Africa from model Nd ages

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harris, N.B.W.; Hawkesworth, C.J.; Ries, A.C.

    1984-01-01

    The authors present the results of an Nd isotope study on the major rock units of the Pan-African (1,100-500 Myr BP) terrane. Charnockites from Jabel Uweinat, a basement inlier at the junction of Egypt, Libya and the Sudan, yield middle Archaean model Nd ages, whilst model ages of < 1,200 Myr have been obtained in a belt from the Eastern Desert of Egypt to north-west Kenya. Overall, the Pan-African rocks from north-east and east Africa and those from the Damara of Namibia exhibit a wide range of epsilonsub(Nd)(T) from +7.5 to -18.0 which reflects regional changes in tectonic style and is not readily reconciled with simple models for the evolution of average continental crust. (author)

  17. Transcending Landscapes: Working Across Scales and Levels in Pastoralist Rangeland Governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, Lance W; Ontiri, Enoch; Alemu, Tsegaye; Moiko, Stephen S

    2017-08-01

    Landscape approaches can be subjected to mistakenly targeting a single "best" level of governance, and paying too little attention to the role that cross-scale and cross-level interactions play in governance. In rangeland settings, resources, patterns of use of those resources, and the institutions for managing the resources exist at multiple levels and scales. While the scholarship on commons offers some guidance on how to conceptualize governance in rangeland landscapes, some elements of commons scholarship-notably the "design principles" for effective governance of commons-do not seem to apply neatly to governance in pastoralist rangeland settings. This paper examines three cases where attempts have been made to foster effective landscape governance in such settings to consider how the materiality of commons influences the nature of cross-scale and cross-level interactions, and how these interactions affect governance. In all three cases, although external actors seemed to work appropriately and effectively at community and landscape levels, landscape governance mechanisms have been facing great challenges arising from relationships beyond the landscape, both vertically to higher levels of decision-making and horizontally to communities normally residing in other landscapes. The cases demonstrate that fostering effective landscape-level governance cannot be accomplished only through action at the landscape level; it is a task that must be pursued at multiple levels and in relation to the connections across scales and levels. The paper suggests elements of a conceptual framework for understanding cross-level and cross-scale elements of landscape governance, and offers suggestions for governance design in pastoralist rangeland settings.

  18. Transcending Landscapes: Working Across Scales and Levels in Pastoralist Rangeland Governance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, Lance W.; Ontiri, Enoch; Alemu, Tsegaye; Moiko, Stephen S.

    2017-08-01

    Landscape approaches can be subjected to mistakenly targeting a single "best" level of governance, and paying too little attention to the role that cross-scale and cross-level interactions play in governance. In rangeland settings, resources, patterns of use of those resources, and the institutions for managing the resources exist at multiple levels and scales. While the scholarship on commons offers some guidance on how to conceptualize governance in rangeland landscapes, some elements of commons scholarship—notably the "design principles" for effective governance of commons—do not seem to apply neatly to governance in pastoralist rangeland settings. This paper examines three cases where attempts have been made to foster effective landscape governance in such settings to consider how the materiality of commons influences the nature of cross-scale and cross-level interactions, and how these interactions affect governance. In all three cases, although external actors seemed to work appropriately and effectively at community and landscape levels, landscape governance mechanisms have been facing great challenges arising from relationships beyond the landscape, both vertically to higher levels of decision-making and horizontally to communities normally residing in other landscapes. The cases demonstrate that fostering effective landscape-level governance cannot be accomplished only through action at the landscape level; it is a task that must be pursued at multiple levels and in relation to the connections across scales and levels. The paper suggests elements of a conceptual framework for understanding cross-level and cross-scale elements of landscape governance, and offers suggestions for governance design in pastoralist rangeland settings.

  19. Ages of tuff beds at East African early hominid sites and sediments in the Gulf of Aden

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarna-Wojcicki, A. M.; Meyer, C.E.; Roth, P.H.; Brown, F.H.

    1985-01-01

    The early hominids of East Africa were dated by determining the ages of tuff beds at the sites. Despite much research using palaeomagnetic and K/Ar-dating techniques, some of those ages are still controversial 1,2. To obtain independent age estimates for these tephra layers, we have examined cores from DSDP Sites 231 and 232 in the Gulf of Aden (Fig. 1a) which consist mainly of calcareous nannofossil ooze, but also contain rare tephra horizons3 dated by interpolation from the established nannofossil stratigraphy (Fig. 1b). Chemical analysis confirms that the identity and sequence of these horizons is the same as that at the East African sites. We conclude that the age of the Tulu Bor Tuff is <3.4 Myr and hence that the Hadar hominid specimens are also

  20. GEOTHERM programme supports geothermal energy world-wide. Geothermal energy, a chance for East African countries; GEOTHERM: BGR foerdert weltweit Nutzung geothermischer Energie. Geothermie - eine Chance fuer ostafrikanische Laender

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kraml, M.; Kessels, K.; Kalberkamp, U.; Ochmann, N.; Stadtler, C. [Bundesanstalt fuer Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR), Hannover (Germany)

    2007-02-15

    The high geothermal potential of East Africa, especially of the Eastern Rift, is known for a long time. Since these pioneer studies, geothermal plants have been constructed at three sites in East Africa. Nevertheless, up to now geothermal has been a success story only in Kenya. The steam power plant Olkaria I in Kenya is running reliability since 25 years. Today, the country produces more than 12% of its electricity from geothermal. Now, Eritrea, Djibouti, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia which are also situated along the East African Rift, are planning similar projects. The countries need to develop new energy sources because oil prices have reached a critical level. In the past, hydro power was regarded to be a reliable source of energy, but increased droughts changed the situation. Thus, the african states are searching for alternatives to be able to stabilise their energy supply and to cover the growing energy demand. There is much hope that the success of the Kenyan geothermal power plants will be repeated in the neighbouring countries. The East African countries have joined their forces to give impetus to the use of the regional geothermal resources. On behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources supports the countries in realising their plans as part of the GEOTHERM Programme. Together with further donors (Iceland, France, USA, Global Environment Facility) the path will be paved for geothermal power plants in the above mentioned six East African countries. The following main steps are necessary: - Awareness raising of political decision makers about the advantages of including geothermal into the national power plans - Improvement of knowledge about potentials geothermal sites - Development of a regional equipment pool including the necessary geophysical equipment, laboratories, etc. - Training in geothermal exploration and plant maintenance, to minimise risks of site

  1. The Ngorongoro Volcanic Highland and its relationships to volcanic deposits at Olduvai Gorge and East African Rift volcanism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mollel, Godwin F; Swisher, Carl C

    2012-08-01

    The Ngorongoro Volcanic Highland (NVH), situated adjacent and to the east of Olduvai Gorge in northern Tanzania, is the source of the immense quantities of lava, ignimbrite, air fall ash, and volcaniclastic debris that occur interbedded in the Plio-Pleistocene sedimentary deposits in the Laetoli and Olduvai areas. These volcanics have proven crucial to unraveling stratigraphic correlations, the age of these successions, the archaeological and paleontological remains, as well as the source materials from which the bulk of the stone tools were manufactured. The NVH towers some 2,000 m above the Olduvai and Laetoli landscapes, affecting local climate, run-off, and providing varying elevation - climate controlled ecosystem, habitats, and riparian corridors extending into the Olduvai and Laetoli lowlands. The NVH also plays a crucial role in addressing the genesis and history of East African Rift (EAR) magmatism in northern Tanzania. In this contribution, we provide age and petrochemical compositions of the major NVH centers: Lemagurut, basalt to benmorite, 2.4-2.2 Ma; Satiman, tephrite to phonolite, 4.6-3.5 Ma; Oldeani, basalt to trachyandesite, 1.6-1.5 Ma; Ngorongoro, basalt to rhyolite, 2.3-2.0 Ma; Olmoti, basalt to trachyte, 2.0-1.8 Ma; Embagai, nephelinite to phonolite, 1.2-0.6 Ma; and Engelosin, phonolite, 3-2.7 Ma. We then discuss how these correlate in time and composition with volcanics preserved at Olduvai Gorge. Finally, we place this into context with our current understanding as to the eruptive history of the NVH and relationship to East African Rift volcanism. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Historically, scholarly information has flowed from North to South and from West to East. It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with hundreds of journals from all ... Featured Country: Nigeria, Featured Journal: Nigeria Journal of Business Administration ...

  3. Seasonal patterns of mixed species groups in large East African mammals.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christian Kiffner

    Full Text Available Mixed mammal species groups are common in East African savannah ecosystems. Yet, it is largely unknown if co-occurrences of large mammals result from random processes or social preferences and if interspecific associations are consistent across ecosystems and seasons. Because species may exchange important information and services, understanding patterns and drivers of heterospecific interactions is crucial for advancing animal and community ecology. We recorded 5403 single and multi-species clusters in the Serengeti-Ngorongoro and Tarangire-Manyara ecosystems during dry and wet seasons and used social network analyses to detect patterns of species associations. We found statistically significant associations between multiple species and association patterns differed spatially and seasonally. Consistently, wildebeest and zebras preferred being associated with other species, whereas carnivores, African elephants, Maasai giraffes and Kirk's dik-diks avoided being in mixed groups. During the dry season, we found that the betweenness (a measure of importance in the flow of information or disease of species did not differ from a random expectation based on species abundance. In contrast, in the wet season, we found that these patterns were not simply explained by variations in abundances, suggesting that heterospecific associations were actively formed. These seasonal differences in observed patterns suggest that interspecific associations may be driven by resource overlap when resources are limited and by resource partitioning or anti-predator advantages when resources are abundant. We discuss potential mechanisms that could drive seasonal variation in the cost-benefit tradeoffs that underpin the formation of mixed-species groups.

  4. Genetic diversity of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis East African–Indian family in three tropical Asian countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yih-Yuan Chen

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Background: The Beijing lineage of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB is the most predominant MTB strain in Asian countries and is spreading worldwide, however, the East African–Indian (EAI lineage is also particularly prevalent in many tropical Asian countries. The evolutionary relationships among MTB EAI isolates from Taiwan and those of tropical Asian countries remain unknown. Methods: The EAI strains collected from patients in Taiwan were analyzed using spacer oligonucleotide typing and mycobacterial interspersed repetitive unit–variable number of tandem repeats (MIRU-VNTR typing, and compared with published profiles from Cambodia and Singapore to investigate potential epidemiological linkages. Results: Among the three countries, the EAI lineage was most prevalent in Cambodia (60%; Singapore, 25.62%; and Taiwan, 21.85%, having also the highest rates of multidrug resistance and lowest rates of clustering of MTB isolates. We describe a convenient method using seven selected MIRU-VNTR loci for first-line typing to discriminate Beijing and EAI lineages. A potential epidemiological linkage in these tropical Asian countries is also discussed based on a minimum-spanning tree constructed using 24 MIRU-VNTR loci of MTB EAI strains. Conclusion: This study identified evolutionary relationships among MTB EAI isolates from Taiwan and those of two other tropical Asian countries, Cambodia and Singapore. Keywords: East African–Indian family, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, tropical Asian countries

  5. Accès des femmes à la terre et aux ressources naturelles dans les ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Realties of women facing multiple exclusion in accessing land and land-based resources in pastoralist and forest dwelling communities in Uganda. 50878. Papers. Access to land and land based resources among women in pastoralist and forest-dependent communities in East Africa. 50877. Reports. Access to land and ...

  6. Health status and geographic mobility among semi-nomadic pastoralists in Mongolia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mocellin, Jérome; Foggin, Peter

    2008-06-01

    This paper sets out to examine the impact on health of a key aspect of the semi-nomadic lifestyle, namely geographic mobility. The relevant literature suggests that seasonal migrations of pastoralists tend to increase the risk of a poor health. Highlighted in this paper is an inverse association between spatial mobility and health status among the herders of rural Mongolia. Two types of mobility are involved in this process. For households, seasonal migration has a significant influence on health. At the level of individuals, however, there is another kind of mobility: that of travelling to meet personal needs. At both of these levels, statistically significant impacts on health were observed.

  7. Non-uniform splitting of a single mantle plume by double cratonic roots : Insight into the origin of the central and southern East African Rift System

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koptev, Alexander; Cloetingh, Sierd; Gerya, Taras; Calais, Eric; Leroy, Sylvie

    Using numerical thermo-mechanical experiments we analyse the role of an active mantle plume and pre-existing lithospheric thickness differences in the structural development of the central and southern East African Rift system. The plume-lithosphere interaction model setup captures the essential

  8. Predicting East African spring droughts using Pacific and Indian Ocean sea surface temperature indices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Funk, Christopher C.; Hoell, Andrew; Shukla, Shraddhanand; Blade, Ileana; Liebmann, Brant; Roberts, Jason B.; Robertson, Franklin R.

    2014-01-01

    In southern Ethiopia, Eastern Kenya, and southern Somalia poor boreal spring rains in 1999, 2000, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011 contributed to severe food insecurity and high levels of malnutrition. Predicting rainfall deficits in this region on seasonal and decadal time frames can help decision makers support disaster risk reduction while guiding climate-smart adaptation and agricultural development. Building on recent research that links more frequent droughts to a stronger Walker Circulation, warming in the Indo-Pacific warm pool, and an increased western Pacific sea surface temperature (SST) gradient, we explore the dominant modes of East African rainfall variability, links between these modes and sea surface temperatures, and a simple index-based monitoring-prediction system suitable for drought early warning.

  9. Re-infection with Fasciola gigantica 6-month post-treatment with triclabendazole in cattle from mobile pastoralist husbandry systems at Lake Chad.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greter, Helena; Batil, Annour A; Alfaroukh, Idriss O; Grimm, Felix; Ngandolo, Bongo N; Keiser, Jennifer; Utzinger, Jürg; Zinsstag, Jakob; Hattendorf, Jan

    2016-10-30

    At Lake Chad in central Africa, livestock fascioliasis caused by Fasciola gigantica represents a major veterinary health problem, particularly in cattle reared in mobile pastoralist husbandry systems. We assessed re-infection after a single dose of triclabendazole with fascioliasis in cattle in a mobile pastoralist setting towards the end of the dry season. Within the cattle herds of 14 groups of mobile pastoralists, 375 cattle were randomly selected. A faecal sample was obtained from each animal to determine the prevalence of F. gigantica. Animals were administered a single oral dose of triclabendazole (12mg/kg). A second faecal sample was obtained 6-month post-treatment after cattle had returned from the annual migration cycle. Faecal samples were fixed in sodium acetate-acetic acid-formalin (SAF), and examined for F. gigantica using the sedimentation technique. From the 375 cattle enrolled at baseline, 198 animals (53%) in 12 groups of mobile pastoralists were re-sampled at the 6-month follow-up. Baseline prevalence did not differ noteworthy between animals lost to follow-up and those re-examined. At baseline, bovine fascioliasis prevalence in cattle with follow-up data was 41.9% (95% confidence interval (CI) 35.2-48.9%). At the 6-month post-treatment follow-up, the prevalence was 46.0% (95% CI 39.2-52.9%), ranging between 0% and 75% at the herd level. The mean faecal egg counts at the unit of the herd were higher at follow-up compared to baseline. The observed persistent high prevalence of F. gigantica infection in cattle shows that a single pre-rainy season treatment does not prevent rapid re-infection despite the partial migration away from the high-risk areas at Lake Chad into drier areas. A locally adapted strategic control package for fascioliasis in cattle in the Lake Chad area ought to integrate targeted triclabendazole treatment and seasonal transhumance practices. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. The springboks in East Africa: the role of 1 SA Survey Company ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The springboks in East Africa: the role of 1 SA Survey Company (SAEC) in the East African campaign of World War II, 1940–1941. ... Scientia Militaria: South African Journal of Military Studies ... As a member of the British Commonwealth, South Africa was part of Britain's war effort from September 1939 onward. When Italy ...

  11. The lithosphere of the East African Rift and Plateau (Afar-Ethiopia-Turkana) : insights from Integrated 3-D density modelling

    OpenAIRE

    Woldetinsae, Girma

    2005-01-01

    The area encompassing the Eastern branch of the East African Rift System (EARS: Afar-Ethiopia-Turkana) and associated plateaux is an ideal region to investigate extension and magmatism associated with rupturing continental lithosphere. Ethiopia covers an important part of the EARS. It contains the major section of the ca. 5000 km Afro-Arabian rift and includes the transition between the Arabo-Nubian-Shield and the Mozambique Belt. A compilation of over 45000 onshore and offshore gravity stati...

  12. On being African and Reformed? Towards an African Reformed ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2014-06-17

    Jun 17, 2014 ... It is furthermore our contention that the notion of culture and African worldviews was always perceived negatively ..... dean of the South East Asia Graduate School of Theology. He later .... Another Reformed church for Indian.

  13. Modern wildlife conservation initiatives and the pastoralist/hunter nomads of northwestern Tibet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joseph L. Fox

    2004-04-01

    Full Text Available In 1993 the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR of China established the 300 000 km2 Chang Tang Nature Preserve on the northwestern Tibetan plateau, an action precipitated by rapidly diminishing populations of chiru (Tibetan antelope and wild yak. Some 30 000 nomadic pastoralists use areas within this reserve for livestock grazing, with many having traditionally depended in part on hunting for supplementary subsistence and trade. Following a 1997 request from TAR leaders for international assistance in addressing the conservation issues associated with the creation of this reserve, the TAR Forestry Bureau and the Network for University Co-operation Tibet — Norway began a 3-year research collaboration program in 2000 to outline human-wildlife interactions and conservation priorities in the western part of the reserve. To date, four excursions (2-6 weeks each have been made to the western Chang Tang region, and investigations of interactions between pastoralists and wildlife conservation objectives have been initiated in an area of about 5000 km2, including the 2300 km2 Aru basin located at 5000 m elevation at the northern edge of pastoralist inhabitation. The Aru site is unique in that nomads have only recently returned to this previously off-limits basin. But, as in surrounding areas, the people's lives are undergoing changes recently influenced by the introduction of permanent winter houses, changing international trade in shahtoosh and cashmere wool, and a move towards stricter hunting regulations. The northwestern Chang Tang, with the Aru basin as a prime site, represents one of the last strongholds of the endangered chiru and wild yak, as well as home to Tibetan gazelle, kiang, Tibetan argali, blue sheep, wolf, snow leopard and brown bear. In autumn 2000, for example, with approximately 12 000 of the wild ungulates (mostly the migratory chiru within the Aru basin along with some 8000 domestic livestock, issues of land use overlap and possible

  14. Accès des femmes à la terre et aux ressources naturelles dans les ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Realties of women facing multiple exclusion in accessing land and land-based resources in pastoralist and forest dwelling communities in Uganda. Téléchargez le PDF. Documents. Access to land and land based resources among women in pastoralist and forest-dependent communities in East Africa. Téléchargez le PDF.

  15. Kinematics of the entire East African Rift from GPS velocities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Floyd, M.; King, R. W.

    2017-12-01

    Through a collaborative effort of the GeoPRISMS East Africa Rift GPS Working Group, we have collected and collated all of the publicly available continuous and survey-mode data for the entire rift system between 1994 and 2017 and processed these data as part of a larger velocity solution for Africa, Arabia and western Eurasia. We present here our velocity solution encompassing the major bounding plates and intervening terranes along the East African Rift from the Red Sea to the Malawi Rift and adjacent regions for GPS sites with data spans of at least 2.4 years, and north and east velocity uncertainties less than 1.5 mm/yr. To obtain realistic uncertainties for the velocity estimates, we attempted at each stage of the analysis to account for the character of the noise: During phase processing, we used an elevation-dependent weighting based on the phase residuals for each station; we then examined each position time series, removing outliers and reweighting appropriately to account for the white noise component of the errors; and e accounted for temporal correlations by estimating an equivalent random-walk magnitude for each continuous site and applying the median value (0.5 mm/√yr) to all survey-mode sites. We rigorously estimate relative rotation rates of Nubia, by choosing subset of well-determined sites such that the effective weights of western, northeastern and southern Africa were roughly equivalent, and Somalia, for which the estimate is dominated by three sites (MALI, RCMN, SEY1) whose uncertainties are a factor of 2-3 smaller than those of the other sites. For both plates, the weighted root-mean-square of the velocity residuals is 0.5 mm/yr. Our unified velocity solution provides a geodetic framework and constraints on the continental-scale kinematics of surface motions as well as more local effects both within and outside of the rift structures. Specific focus areas with denser coverage than previous fields include the Danakil block, the Afar Rift, the

  16. A Comparative Analysis of Institutional Capacities for Implementing Disability Policies in East African Countries: Functions of National Councils for Disability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Akiko Yokoyama

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available During the “African Decade of Persons with Disabilities (2000-2009”, East African countries witnessed significant achievements, especially in the development of law, collection of statistics and in funding. However, many persons with disability are still marginalised from opportunities in education, healthcare and employment.Purpose: With the pre-supposition that the lack of institutional capacities for implementing disability policies is the one major stumbling-block which hinders widespread delivery of social services to persons with disabilities in low-income countries, this study makes a comparative analysis of institutional capacities in the disability sectors of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.Method: The research methods adopted were a literature survey and a field survey. The framework for analysis consists of: 1 capacities and functions of disability units in central governments, 2 relationships between central and local governments in the disability sector, and 3 relationships between governments and organisations of persons with disability (DPOs. Special attention is paid to the status, roles and functions of national councils for disability (NCDs, the independent statutory bodies recently established in each of the three countries, with clear authority and duties for the implementation of disability policies. The NCDs enable multi-sectoral stakeholders to be involved in the implementation of disability policies; therefore, positive relationships between the governments and DPOs are essential for the smooth functioning of the NCDs.Results: While the result of the field survey in Tanzania reveals several effective approaches for the smooth operation of the NCD, further study is needed to verify whether these approaches would be applicable to other East African countries such as Kenya and Uganda.doi 10.5463/DCID.v23i2.106

  17. Reassessment of source parameters for three major earthquakes in the East African rift system from historical seismograms and bulletins

    OpenAIRE

    Ayele, A.; Kulhánek, O.

    2000-01-01

    Source parameters for three majo earthquakes in the East African rift are re-computed from historical seismograms and bulletins. The main shock and the largest foreshock of the August 25, 1906 earthquake sequence in the main Ethiopian rift are re-located on the eastern shoulder of the rift segment.The magnitude of the main shock is estimated to be 6.5 (Mw) from spectral analysis. The December 13, 1910 earthquake in the Rukwa rift (Western Tanzania) indicated a significant strike-slip componen...

  18. Archives: East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Items 1 - 50 of 228 ... AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors · FAQ's · More about AJOL · AJOL's Partners · Terms and Conditions of Use · Contact AJOL · News. OTHER RESOURCES... for Researchers · for Journals · for Authors · for Policy Makers · about Open Access ...

  19. East African cassava mosaic-like viruses from Africa to Indian ocean islands: molecular diversity, evolutionary history and geographical dissemination of a bipartite begomovirus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    De Bruyn Alexandre

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Cassava (Manihot esculenta is a major food source for over 200 million sub-Saharan Africans. Unfortunately, its cultivation is severely hampered by cassava mosaic disease (CMD. Caused by a complex of bipartite cassava mosaic geminiviruses (CMG species (Family: Geminivirideae; Genus: Begomovirus CMD has been widely described throughout Africa and it is apparent that CMG's are expanding their geographical distribution. Determining where and when CMG movements have occurred could help curtail its spread and reveal the ecological and anthropic factors associated with similar viral invasions. We applied Bayesian phylogeographic inference and recombination analyses to available and newly described CMG sequences to reconstruct a plausible history of CMG diversification and migration between Africa and South West Indian Ocean (SWIO islands. Results The isolation and analysis of 114 DNA-A and 41 DNA-B sequences demonstrated the presence of three CMG species circulating in the Comoros and Seychelles archipelagos (East African cassava mosaic virus, EACMV; East African cassava mosaic Kenya virus, EACMKV; and East African cassava mosaic Cameroon virus, EACMCV. Phylogeographic analyses suggest that CMG’s presence on these SWIO islands is probably the result of at least four independent introduction events from mainland Africa occurring between 1988 and 2009. Amongst the islands of the Comoros archipelago, two major migration pathways were inferred: One from Grande Comore to Mohéli and the second from Mayotte to Anjouan. While only two recombination events characteristic of SWIO islands isolates were identified, numerous re-assortments events were detected between EACMV and EACMKV, which seem to almost freely interchange their genome components. Conclusions Rapid and extensive virus spread within the SWIO islands was demonstrated for three CMG complex species. Strong evolutionary or ecological interaction between CMG species may explain

  20. Grenvillian vs Pan-African tectonic evolution in the Gamburtsev Province of East Antarctica

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferraccioli, F.; Guochao, W.; Finn, C.; Bell, R. E.

    2017-12-01

    The Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains in interior East Antarctica are underlain by 50-60 km thick crust. In contrast, the Archean to Mesoproterozoic Mawson craton that occupies the Wilkes and Terre Adelie region features only 40-45 km thick crust. The Gamburtsev Province is underlain by 200 km thick lithoshere, as typically observed over Precambrian lithosphere that has not been substantially reworked during Phanerozoic subduction or collision. Ferraccioli et al., (2011) proposed that a segment of a stalled orogen (i.e. an orogen where widespread orogenic collapse and root delamination has not occurred) is preserved in the Gamburtsev Province and hypothesised that its origin relates to accretionary and subsequent collisional events at ca 1 Ga, linked to the assembly of Rodinia. However, passive seismic interpretations indicate that crustal thickening may relate instead to Pan-African age assembly of Gondwana (at ca 550 Ma). Here we interpret a set of enhanced magnetic and gravity images, depth to magnetic and gravity sources and 2D and forward and inverse models to characterise the crustal architecture of the Gamburtsev Province. Enhanced aeromagnetic images reveal a system of subglacial faults that segment the Gamburtsev Province into three distinct geophysical domains, the northern, central and southern domains. Apparent offsets in high-frequency magnetic anomalies within the central domain are interpreted as revealing a transpressional fault system parallel to the previously proposed Gamburtsev Suture. Our magnetic and gravity model, combined with independent constraints from sediment provenance ages, is interpreted as revealing arc and back arc terranes of inferred Grenvillian age in the northern and Central domains of the Gambrurtsev Province. Distinct magnetic anomalies correspond to inferred Paleoproterozoic crust that may have affinities with the Lambert Terrane and the South Pole Province, an inferred Mesoproterozoic (1.6-1.4 Ga?) igneous province. We

  1. Pleistocene North African genomes link Near Eastern and sub-Saharan African human populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van de Loosdrecht, Marieke; Bouzouggar, Abdeljalil; Humphrey, Louise; Posth, Cosimo; Barton, Nick; Aximu-Petri, Ayinuer; Nickel, Birgit; Nagel, Sarah; Talbi, El Hassan; El Hajraoui, Mohammed Abdeljalil; Amzazi, Saaïd; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Pääbo, Svante; Schiffels, Stephan; Meyer, Matthias; Haak, Wolfgang; Jeong, Choongwon; Krause, Johannes

    2018-05-04

    North Africa is a key region for understanding human history, but the genetic history of its people is largely unknown. We present genomic data from seven 15,000-year-old modern humans, attributed to the Iberomaurusian culture, from Morocco. We find a genetic affinity with early Holocene Near Easterners, best represented by Levantine Natufians, suggesting a pre-agricultural connection between Africa and the Near East. We do not find evidence for gene flow from Paleolithic Europeans to Late Pleistocene North Africans. The Taforalt individuals derive one-third of their ancestry from sub-Saharan Africans, best approximated by a mixture of genetic components preserved in present-day West and East Africans. Thus, we provide direct evidence for genetic interactions between modern humans across Africa and Eurasia in the Pleistocene. Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

  2. ISSN 2073 ISSN 2073 9990 East Cent. Afr. J. 9990 East Cent. Afr. J ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Hp 630 Dual Core

    COSECSA/ASEA Publication East and Central African ... the one hand on medical technology and equipment and on the other hand on the medical .... traumatic brain injury was the main cause of death amongst emergency admissions at the.

  3. An interdisciplinary approach for groundwater management in area contaminated by fluoride in East African Rift System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Da Pelo, Stefania; Melis, M. Teresa; Dessì, Francesco; Pistis, Marco; Funedda, Antonio; Oggiano, Giacomo; Carletti, Alberto; Soler Gil, Albert; Barbieri, Manuela; Pittalis, Daniele; Ghiglieri, Giorgio

    2017-04-01

    Groundwater is the main source of fresh water supply for most of the rural communities in Africa (approximately 75% of Africans has confidence in groundwater as their major source of drinking water). Many African countries has affected by high fluoride concentration in groundwater (up to 90 mg/L), generating the contamination of waters, soils and food, in particular in the eastern part of the continent. It seems that fluoride concentration is linked to geology of the Rift Valley: geogenic occurrence of fluoride is often connected to supergenic enrichment due to the weathering of alkaline volcanic rocks, fumaric gases and presence of thermal waters. The H2020 project FLOWERED (de-FLuoridation technologies for imprOving quality of WatEr and agRo-animal products along the East African Rift Valley in the context of aDaptation to climate change) wish to address environmental and health (human and animal) issues associated to the fluoride contamination in the African Rift Valley, in particular in three case study area located in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Kenya. FLOWERED aims to develop an integrated, sustainable and participative water and agriculture management at a cross-boundary catchment scale through a strong interdisciplinary research approach. It implies knowledge of geology, hydrogeology, mineralogy, geochemistry, agronomy, crop and animal sciences, engineering, technological sciences, data management and software design, economics and communication. The proposed approach is based on a detailed knowledge of the hydrogeological setting, with the identification and mapping of the specific geological conditions of water contamination and its relation with the different land uses. The East African Rift System (EARS) groundwater circulation and storage, today already poorly understood, is characterized by a complex arrangement of aquifers. It depends on the type of porosity and permeability created during and after the rock formation, and is strongly conditioned by the

  4. From subsistence to market economy: Responses of Tibetan pastoralists to new economic realities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angela Manderscheid

    2004-04-01

    Full Text Available In many regions around the world the pastoral economy shifted from subsistence-oriented to a market-oriented production. Pastoral goods acquired monetary value and became a market commodity that entailed changes in the production system and in the attitude towards livestock. On the Tibetan plateau this shift did not follow a linear way. Until the 1950s, most consumption requirements could be satisfied with animal products. Economic exchange relations were essential to provide grain requirements, at least for those households who relied exclusively on animal husbandry. During the Mao era, animal husbandry was carried out in line with state targets and the produce was delivered according to central planning. In the late 1970s the transition towards a market-oriented production began. This paper discusses the recent reactions of pastoralists to the new realities in one specific area on the eastern Tibetan plateau. This shift from pastoral products to market commodities, the commercial network established as well as the market places for pastoral produce, are examined in this paper. These facts show that the pastoralists in question successfully market their produce. The research area, Dzoge county, is located on the eastern border area of the Tibetan plateau, where different ethnic groups live in proximity to each other. Grassland predominates the landscape, used by nomads as pastures for livestock breeding (yak, sheep and horses. Mobile animal husbandry and the marketing of the livestock products are decisive to guarantee the livelihood of the majority of the population.

  5. Fundamental Flaws in the Architecture of the European Central Bank: The Possible End of the Euro Zone and its Effects to East African Community (EAC Countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nothando Moyo

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available European countries embarked on a European integration programme that saw the formation of the Euro, which has emerged as a major currency (Blair, 1999 that was introduced in 1998. With the Euro, came the establishment of the European Central Bank. Thus this study seeks to investigate the flaws in the formation of the European Central Bank that surfaced during the major economic crisis in Europe. The crisis revealing the gaps in the formation and structure of the European central bank have created major challenges for the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU. Through an extant review of literature the study will examine the East African Community Countries, investigating the ties they have to the euro zone to analyse how the crisis has affected them. Furthermore, the study will analyse what would happen to the growth patterns of the East African Countries and the various prospects they may have should the Eurozone come to an end.

  6. The African oil industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ford, Mark; Griffiths, Thalia

    1999-10-01

    Contains Executive Summary and Chapters on: Adding value to African hydrocarbons in a global energy market; North Africa; East Africa; West Africa; Central Africa; Southern Africa; Strategies for Africa; Outlook. (Author)

  7. Agricultural investments and farmer-fulani pastoralist conflict in West African drylands : A northern Ghanaian case study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Soeters, Sebastiaan; Weesie, Ruben; Zoomers, Annelies

    2017-01-01

    In the Global South, there is a push to drive agricultural modernisation processes through private sector investments. In West African drylands, land concessions are required for such agri-businesses are often negotiated through customary authorities, and inject large amounts of money into localised

  8. Fertility of the Small East African goat following pre-pubertal infection with Trypanosoma congolense

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Hara, H.B.; Gombe, S.

    1991-01-01

    Pre-pubertal male and female Small East African goats were infected with Trypanosoma congolense at 4-5 months of age. Changes in body weight and haemogram were monitored weekly. Progesterone and testosterone measurements were made three times weekly until the goats either reached puberty or 18 months of age. Onset of puberty was determined from observation of oestrus behaviour, mating or increase in libidio; this was confirmed by elevation in plasma progesterone or testosterone levels. Trypanosomiasis affected pre-pubertal goats by reducing body weight gain and delaying onset of puberty. Histological examination of the gonads showed pronounced pathological changes. These effects were reversed by treatment with isometamidium chloride (Samorin, May and Baker). It was concluded that early treatment of infected goats before serious gonadal damage could occur allowed full restoration of reproductive function. (author). 6 refs, 4 figs, 1 tab

  9. Identifying Hot Spots of Critical Forage Supply in Dryland Nomadic Pastoralist Areas: A Case Study for the Afar Region, Ethiopia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sonneveld, B.G.J.S.; Keyzer, M.A.; van Wesenbeeck, C.F.A.; Georgis, Kidane; Beyene, Fekadu; Urbano, Ferdinando; Meroni, Michele; Leo, Olivier; Yimer, Merkebu; Abdullatif, Mohammed

    2017-01-01

    This study develops a methodology to identify hot spots of critical forage supply in nomadic pastoralist areas, using the Afar Region, Ethiopia, as a special case. It addresses two main problems. First, it makes a spatially explicit assessment of fodder supply and demand extracted from a data poor

  10. "Getting tested is almost like going to the Salem witch trials": discordant discourses between Western public health messages and sociocultural expectations surrounding HIV testing among East African immigrant women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Jesus, Maria; Carrete, Claudia; Maine, Cathleen; Nalls, Patricia

    2015-01-01

    Washington, DC, has the highest AIDS diagnosis rate in the USA, and Black women are disproportionately affected. Although HIV testing is the first entryway into vital treatment services, evidence reveals that foreign-born blacks have a lower rate of recent HIV testing than US-born blacks. To date, however, there are no studies that examine the culture-specific perceptions of HIV testing among East African immigrant women (who comprise a large share of Black Africans in DC) to better understand their potential barriers to testing. Adopting the PEN-3 cultural model as our theoretical framework, the main objective of this study was to examine East African women's HIV testing perceptions and partner communication norms. Between October 2012 and March 2013, trained interviewers conducted a total of 25 interviews with East African women in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. For triangulation purposes, data collection consisted of both in-depth, semi-structured interviews and cognitive interviews, in which participants were administered a quantitative survey and assessed on how they interpreted items. Qualitative thematic analysis revealed a systematic pattern of discordant responses across participants. While they were aware of messages related to Western public health discourse surrounding HIV testing (e.g., Everyone should get tested for HIV; One should talk to one's spouse about HIV testing), divergent sociocultural expectations rooted in cultural and religious beliefs prevailed (e.g., Getting an HIV test brings shame to the person who got tested and to one's family; it implies one is engaging in immoral behavior; One should not talk with one's spouse about HIV testing; doing so breaks cultural norms). Implications of using a culture-centered model to examine the role of sociocultural expectations in HIV prevention research and to develop culturally responsive prevention strategies are discussed.

  11. At the Crossroads : ICT Policy Making in East Africa | CRDI - Centre ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    At the Crossroads : ICT Policy Making in East Africa. Couverture du livre At the Crossroads : ICT Policymaking in East Africa. Directeur(s) : Florence Etta et Laurent Elder. Maison(s) d'édition : East African Educational Publishers, CRDI. 1 janvier 2005. ISBN : 9966254390. 336 pages. e-ISBN : 1552502198. Téléchargez le ...

  12. 'WE CAN'T GET WORMS FROM COW DUNG': REPORTED KNOWLEDGE OF PARASITISM AMONG PASTORALIST YOUTH ATTENDING SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THE NGORONGORO CONSERVATION AREA, TANZANIA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henderson, Rita Isabel; Hatfield, Jennifer; Kutz, Susan; Olemshumba, Saningo; Van Der Meer, Frank; Manyama, Mange; Bastien, Sheri

    2016-11-01

    Records at the Endulen Hospital in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), Tanzania, reveal that soil-transmitted helminth infections and protozoa are consistently in the top ten diagnoses for Maasai pastoralists, indicating a significant public health concern. Nevertheless, Maasai pastoralist adaptations to life in close proximity to livestock and to unreliable access to water raise important questions about experiences of, and resiliency to, parasitic infections. Though these infections are particularly prevalent among youth in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), a focus on resiliency highlights local capacity to recover from and prevent illness. For instance, how is human parasitism perceived and experienced among communities displaying behaviours that studies have associated with transmission of diarrhoeal diseases, such as open defecation? Among these communities, how is parasitism seen to impact the health and development of children? And, what resources are available to endure or mitigate this heavy disease burden among affected communities? This study draws on formative research carried out in May 2014 in anticipation of an innovative school-based and youth-driven water, sanitation and hygiene education intervention rolled out in two boarding schools in the NCA in subsequent months. The initiative is grounded in a One Health approach to health promotion, drawing on partnerships in medicine, public health and veterinary medicine to appreciate the unique interactions between humans, animals and the environment that shape well-being among pastoralist communities. Qualitative data generated through group discussions with secondary school youth (n=60), Maasai teachers (n=6) and a women's group (n=8) in the NCA convey existing knowledge of the prevalence, prevention and treatment of human parasitism. An underlying principle of the larger initiative is to engage youth as creative agents of change in developing and sustaining locally relevant health promotion

  13. African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically, scholarly information has flowed from North to South and from West to East. It has also been difficult ... Featured Country: Egypt, Arab Rep. Featured Journal: Alexandria Journal of Medicine ...

  14. Content of a novel online collection of traditional east African food habits (1930s-1960s): data collected by the Max-Planck-Nutrition Research Unit, Bumbuli, Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raschke, Verena; Oltersdorf, Ulrich; Elmadfa, Ibrahim; Wahlqvist, Mark L; Cheema, Birinder Sb; Kouris-Blazos, Antigone

    2007-01-01

    Knowledge of traditional African foods and food habits has been, and continues to be, systematically extirpated. With the primary intent of collating data for our online collection documenting traditional African foods and food habits (available at: www.healthyeatingclub.com/Africa/), we reviewed the Oltersdorf Collection, 75 observational investigations conducted throughout East Africa (i.e. Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda) between the 1930s and 1960s as compiled by the Max Planck Nutrition Research Unit, formerly located in Bumbuli, Tanzania. Data were categorized as follows: (1) food availability, (2) chemical composition, (3) staple foods (i.e. native crops, cereals, legumes, roots and tubers, vegetables, fruits, spices, oils and fats, beverages, and animal foods), (4) food preparation and culture, and (5) nutrient intake and health status indicators. Many of the traditional foods identified, including millet, sorghum, various legumes, root and tubers, green leafy vegetables, plant oils and wild meats have known health benefits. Food preparatory practices during this period, including boiling and occasional roasting are superior to current practices which favor frying and deep-frying. Overall, our review and data extraction provide reason to believe that a diversified diet was possible for the people of East Africa during this period (1930s-1960s). There is a wealth of knowledge pertaining to traditional East African foods and food habits within the Oltersdorf Collection. These data are currently available via our online collection. Future efforts should contribute to collating and honing knowledge of traditional foods and food habits within this region, and indeed throughout the rest of Africa. Preserving and disseminating this knowledge may be crucial for abating projected trends for non-communicable diseases and malnutrition in Africa and abroad.

  15. Perceptions and Misperceptions: The Middle East and South Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moore, Michael; Tyson, G. A.

    1990-01-01

    Reports findings of a study examining the opinions and awareness level of South African, Israeli, and United States undergraduates about conflicts in either the Middle East or South Africa. Finds religious and racial characteristics determining differences in knowledge level and political support. Reveals South African Blacks and U.S. students…

  16. Knowledge, attitudes and practices of traditional birth attendants in pastoralist communities of Laikipia and Samburu counties, Kenya: a cross-sectional survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reeve, Matthew; Onyo, Pamela; Nyagero, Josephat; Morgan, Alison; Nduba, John; Kermode, Michelle

    2016-01-01

    Current efforts to reduce maternal and newborn mortality focus on promoting institutional deliveries with skilled birth attendants (SBAs), and discouraging deliveries at home attended by traditional birth attendants (TBAs). In rural Kenya, semi-nomadic pastoralist communities are underserved by the formal health system, experience high maternal and neonatal mortality, and rely primarily on TBAs for delivery care, despite Government proscription of TBA-assisted births. This study examined the knowledge, attitude and practices of TBAs serving these communities to assess the potential for collaboration between TBAs and SBAs. A cross-sectional, interviewer-administered survey was conducted among 171 TBAs from Maasai and Samburu pastoralist communities in Laikipia and Samburu counties, Kenya, as part of a larger mixed-methods study in partnership with a local service provider. BAs were relatively elderly (mean age 59.6 years), and attended an average of 5-6 deliveries per year. A minority (22.2%) had received formal training. They provided antenatal, intra-partum and post-partum care. Most TBA care was non-interventionist, but not necessarily consistent with best practice. Most had encountered birth complications, but knowledge regarding management of complications was sub-optimal. Most had previously referred at least one woman to a health facility (80.1%), were key participants in decision making to refer women (96.5%), and had been present at an institutional delivery (54.4%). TBAs continue to be key providers of maternal and neonatal healthcare in regions where the formal health system has poor coverage or acceptability. Strengthening existing TBA/SBA collaborations could improve both community links to the formal health system, and the quality of care provided to pastoralist women, while remaining consistent with current Government policy.

  17. Anorexia nervosa in Kenya | Njenga | East African Medical Journal

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Background: Anorexia nervosa is a rare disorder in Africans, inspite of posing a serious public health hazard in the West. Whereas it is possible that African psychiatrists lack the skills to diagnose the disorder, other possible explanations for its apparent rarity must be sought in view of emerging evidence, which suggests a ...

  18. ISSN 2073 ISSN 2073 9990 East Cent. Afr. J. s 9990 East Cent. Afr ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Hp 630 Dual Core

    East & Central African Journal of Surgery. Nov/Dec 2014 Vol. 19 (3). Pattern and and Outcome of Surgical Management of Postrenal cute Renal Failure Over. Three Years Period at Tikur nbessa Specialized Hospital. L. Samodai, D. ndualem, . Getasew. Addis Ababa University, School of Medicine, Department of Surgery.

  19. ‘Getting tested is almost like going to the Salem witch trials’: Discordant discourses between western public health messages and sociocultural expectations surrounding HIV testing among East African immigrant women

    Science.gov (United States)

    DE JESUS, Maria; CARRETE, Claudia; MAINE, Cathleen; NALLS, Patricia

    2015-01-01

    Washington, DC has the highest AIDS diagnosis rate in the United States and Black women are disproportionately affected. Although HIV testing is the first entryway into vital treatment services, evidence reveals that foreign-born blacks have a lower rate of recent HIV testing than U.S.-born blacks. To date, however, there are no studies that examine the culture-specific perceptions of HIV testing among East African immigrant women (who comprise a large share of Black Africans in DC) to better understand their potential barriers to testing. Adopting the PEN-3 cultural model as our theoretical framework, the main objective of this study was to examine East African women’s HIV testing perceptions and partner communication norms. Between October 2012 and March 2013, trained interviewers conducted a total of 25 interviews with East African women in the Washington DC Metropolitan area. For triangulation purposes, data collection consisted of both in-depth, semi-structured interviews and cognitive interviews, in which participants were administered a quantitative survey and assessed on how they interpreted items. Qualitative thematic analysis revealed a systematic pattern of discordant responses across participants. While they were aware of messages related to western public health discourse surrounding HIV testing (e.g., Everyone should get tested for HIV; One should talk to one’s spouse about HIV testing), divergent sociocultural expectations rooted in cultural and religious beliefs prevailed (e.g., Getting an HIV test brings shame to the person who got tested and to one’s family; it implies one is engaging in immoral behavior; One should not talk with one’s spouse about HIV testing; doing so breaks cultural norms). Implications of using a culture-centered model to examine the role of sociocultural expectations in HIV prevention research and to develop culturally responsive prevention strategies are discussed. PMID:25616443

  20. ISSN 2073 ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online) 90 East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    2005-04-12

    Apr 12, 2005 ... East and Central African Journal of Surgery. .... Any man who is over 40 years with a positive family history (Especially one with HPC-1 gene) warrants a ..... effects of fluid retention, venous & arterial thrombosis, cardiac toxicity, stroke. .... with insertion of an indwelling catheter or intermittent catheterization ...

  1. Exploring Pacific Climate Variability and Its Impacts on East African Water Resources and Food Security

    Science.gov (United States)

    Funk, C. C.; Hoerling, M. P.; Hoell, A.; Liebmann, B.; Verdin, J. P.; Eilerts, G.

    2014-12-01

    In 8 out the past 15 boreal springs (1999, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013), substantial parts of eastern East Africa experienced very low boreal spring rains. These rainfall deficits have triggered widespread food insecurity, and even contributed to the outbreak of famine conditions in Somalia in 2011. At both seasonal and decadal time scales, new science supported by the USAID Famine Early Warning Systems Network seeks to understand the mechanisms producing these droughts. We present research suggesting that the ultimate and proximate causes of these increases in aridity are i) stronger equatorial Pacific SST gradients and ii) associated increases in the strength of the Indo-Pacific Walker circulation. Using observations and new modeling ensembles, we explore the relative contributions of Pacific Decadal Variability (PDV) and global warming under warm and cold east Pacific Ocean states. This question is addressed in two ways: by using atmospheric GCMs forced with full and ENSO-only SSTs, and ii) by decomposing coupled ocean-atmosphere climate simulations into PDV and non-PDV components. These analyses allow us to explore the Walker circulation's sensitivity to climate change under various PDV states, and inform a tentative bracketing of 2030 climate conditions. We conclude by discussing links to East African development. Regions of high rainfall sensitivity are delineated and intersected with recent changes in population and land cover/land use. The interaction of elevation and climate is shown to create climatically secure regions that are likely to remain viable even under drier and warmer conditions; such regions may be logical targets for agricultural intensification. Conversely, arid low elevation regions are likely to experience substantial temperature impacts. Continued expansion into these areas may effectively create more 'drought' even if rainfall increases.

  2. Proceedings: Onderstepoort Centenary Pan-African Veterinary Conference : foreword

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Editorial Office

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available In 1908 a Pan-African Veterinary Conference formed part of the inauguration ceremony of the Onderstepoort Veterinary Laboratory. Attended by 18 delegates from 12 countries in southern Africa, including the four colonies and three protectorates forming British South Africa, Rhodesia, German South West Africa, Portuguese East Africa, Madagascar and the Belgian Congo, discussions focussed on the animal diseases of the region with the emphasis on trypanosomosis (nagana and East Coast fever. The successful meeting was followed by a series of similar conferences held in different African countries during the first half of the 20th Century.

  3. A Scoring Tool to Identify East African HIV-1 Serodiscordant Partnerships with a High Likelihood of Pregnancy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heffron, Renee; Cohen, Craig R; Ngure, Kenneth; Bukusi, Elizabeth; Were, Edwin; Kiarie, James; Mugo, Nelly; Celum, Connie; Baeten, Jared M

    2015-01-01

    HIV-1 prevention programs targeting HIV-1 serodiscordant couples need to identify couples that are likely to become pregnant to facilitate discussions about methods to minimize HIV-1 risk during pregnancy attempts (i.e. safer conception) or effective contraception when pregnancy is unintended. A clinical prediction tool could be used to identify HIV-1 serodiscordant couples with a high likelihood of pregnancy within one year. Using standardized clinical prediction methods, we developed and validated a tool to identify heterosexual East African HIV-1 serodiscordant couples with an increased likelihood of becoming pregnant in the next year. Datasets were from three prospectively followed cohorts, including nearly 7,000 couples from Kenya and Uganda participating in HIV-1 prevention trials and delivery projects. The final score encompassed the age of the woman, woman's number of children living, partnership duration, having had condomless sex in the past month, and non-use of an effective contraceptive. The area under the curve (AUC) for the probability of the score to correctly predict pregnancy was 0.74 (95% CI 0.72-0.76). Scores ≥ 7 predicted a pregnancy incidence of >17% per year and captured 78% of the pregnancies. Internal and external validation confirmed the predictive ability of the score. A pregnancy likelihood score encompassing basic demographic, clinical and behavioral factors defined African HIV-1 serodiscordant couples with high one-year pregnancy incidence rates. This tool could be used to engage African HIV-1 serodiscordant couples in counseling discussions about fertility intentions in order to offer services for safer conception or contraception that align with their reproductive goals.

  4. ISSN 2073 ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online) 90 East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. ... as the 3D cone beam CT machines which reduce exposure to irradiations, .... effect is closely related to the depth of impaction and height of the body of the mandible. ... extraction based on mere speculation or expectation of a sequelae, however a joint committee on third molar.

  5. Identification of four novel HLA-B alleles, B*1590, B*1591, B*2726, and B*4705, from an East African population by high-resolution sequence-based typing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, M; Mao, X; Plummer, F A

    2005-02-01

    We report here four novel HLA-B alleles, B*1590, B*1591, B*2726, and B*4705, identified from an East African population during sequence-based HLA-B typing. The novel alleles were confirmed by sequencing two separate polymerase chain reaction products, and by molecular cloning and sequencing multiple clones. B*1590 is identical to B*1510 at exon 2 and exon 3, except for a difference (GCCGTC) at codon 158. Sequence differences at codon 152 (GAGGTG) and codon 167 (TGGTCG) differentiate B*1591 from B*1503 at exon 3. B*2726 is identical to B*2708 at exon 2 and exon 3, except for a difference (AAGCAG) at codon 70. B*4705 was identified in three Kenyan women. The allele is identical to B*47010101/02 at exon 2 and exon 3, except for differences at codon 97 (AGGAAT) and codon 99 (TTTTAT). These new alleles have been named by the WHO Nomenclature Committee. Identification of these novel HLA-B alleles reflects the genetic diversity of this East African population.

  6. Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology: Contact

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Principal Contact. Darcy Ogada Dr Bird Committee of the East Africa Natural History Society. Editors,. Scopus,. c/o Nature Kenya,. P.O. Box 44486,. G.P.O. 00100,. Nairobi, Kenya. Email: scopus@naturekenya.org ...

  7. Imaging rifting at the lithospheric scale in the northern East African Rift using S-to-P receiver functions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lavayssiere, A.; Rychert, C.; Harmon, N.; Keir, D.; Hammond, J. O. S.; Kendall, J. M.; Leroy, S. D.; Doubre, C.

    2017-12-01

    The lithosphere is modified during rifting by a combination of mechanical stretching, heating and potentially partial melt. We image the crust and upper mantle discontinuity structure beneath the northern East African Rift System (EARS), a unique tectonically active continental rift exposing along strike the transition from continental rifting in the Main Ethiopian rift (MER) to incipient seafloor spreading in Afar and the Red Sea. S-to-P receiver functions from 182 stations across the northern EARS were generated from 3688 high quality waveforms using a multitaper technique and then migrated to depth using a regional velocity model. Waveform modelling of data stacked in large conversion point bins confirms the depth and strength of imaged discontinuities. We image the Moho at 29.6±4.7 km depth beneath the Ethiopian plateaux with a variability in depth that is possibly due to lower crustal intrusions. The crust is 27.3±3.9 km thick in the MER and thinner in northern Afar, 17.5±0.7 km. The model requires a 3±1.2% reduction in shear velocity with increasing depth at 68.5±1.5 km beneath the Ethiopian plateaux, consistent with the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB). We do not resolve a LAB beneath Afar and the MER. This is likely associated with partial melt near the base of the lithosphere, reducing the velocity contrast between the melt-intruded lithosphere and the partially molten asthenosphere. We identify a 4.5±0.7% increase in velocity with depth at 91±3 km beneath the MER. This change in velocity is consistent with the onset of melting found by previous receiver functions and petrology studies. Our results provide independent constraints on the depth of melt production in the asthenosphere and suggest melt percolation through the base of the lithosphere beneath the northernmost East African rift.

  8. Mapping International University Partnerships Identified by East African Universities as Strengthening Their Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health Programs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yarmoshuk, Aaron N; Guantai, Anastasia Nkatha; Mwangu, Mughwira; Cole, Donald C; Zarowsky, Christina

    International university partnerships are recommended for increasing the capacity of sub-Saharan African universities. Many publications describe individual partnerships and projects, and tools are available for guiding collaborations, but systematic mappings of the basic, common characteristics of partnerships are scarce. To document and categorize the international interuniversity partnerships deemed significant to building the capacity of medicine, nursing, and public health programs of 4 East African universities. Two universities in Kenya and 2 in Tanzania were purposefully selected. Key informant interviews, conducted with 42 senior representatives of the 4 universities, identified partnerships they considered significant for increasing the capacity of their institutions' medicine, nursing, and public health programs in education, research, or service. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed. Partners were classified by country of origin and corresponding international groupings, duration, programs, and academic health science components. One hundred twenty-nine university-to-university partnerships from 23 countries were identified. Each university reported between 25 and 36 international university partners. Seventy-four percent of partnerships were with universities in high-income countries, 15% in low- and middle-income countries, and 11% with consortia. Seventy percent included medicine, 37% nursing, and 45% public health; 15% included all 3 programs. Ninety-two percent included an education component, 47% research, and 24% service; 12% included all 3 components. This study confirms the rapid growth of interuniversity cross-border health partnerships this century. It also finds, however, that there is a pool of established international partnerships from numerous countries at each university. Most partnerships that seek to strengthen universities in East Africa should likely ensure they have a significant education component. Universities should make

  9. Complex population structure in African village dogs and its implications for inferring dog domestication history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyko, Adam R; Boyko, Ryan H; Boyko, Corin M; Parker, Heidi G; Castelhano, Marta; Corey, Liz; Degenhardt, Jeremiah D; Auton, Adam; Hedimbi, Marius; Kityo, Robert; Ostrander, Elaine A; Schoenebeck, Jeffrey; Todhunter, Rory J; Jones, Paul; Bustamante, Carlos D

    2009-08-18

    High genetic diversity of East Asian village dogs has recently been used to argue for an East Asian origin of the domestic dog. However, global village dog genetic diversity and the extent to which semiferal village dogs represent distinct, indigenous populations instead of admixtures of various dog breeds has not been quantified. Understanding these issues is critical to properly reconstructing the timing, number, and locations of dog domestication. To address these questions, we sampled 318 village dogs from 7 regions in Egypt, Uganda, and Namibia, measuring genetic diversity >680 bp of the mitochondrial D-loop, 300 SNPs, and 89 microsatellite markers. We also analyzed breed dogs, including putatively African breeds (Afghan hounds, Basenjis, Pharaoh hounds, Rhodesian ridgebacks, and Salukis), Puerto Rican street dogs, and mixed breed dogs from the United States. Village dogs from most African regions appear genetically distinct from non-native breed and mixed-breed dogs, although some individuals cluster genetically with Puerto Rican dogs or United States breed mixes instead of with neighboring village dogs. Thus, African village dogs are a mosaic of indigenous dogs descended from early migrants to Africa, and non-native, breed-admixed individuals. Among putatively African breeds, Pharaoh hounds, and Rhodesian ridgebacks clustered with non-native rather than indigenous African dogs, suggesting they have predominantly non-African origins. Surprisingly, we find similar mtDNA haplotype diversity in African and East Asian village dogs, potentially calling into question the hypothesis of an East Asian origin for dog domestication.

  10. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. s 9990 East Cent. Afr. J. s

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Prof Kakande

    COSECSA/ASEA Publication -East and Central African Journal of Surgery. .... Only the manner of skin closure varied. ... Table 1. Wound Closure Time. Mean wound closure time in group A was 244+8.20 seconds whereas mean wound ... They have been used on skin, bone, cartilage graft, and middle ear surgery, repair of.

  11. Toxoplasma encephalitis in HIV: case report | Ng'walali | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    P. M. Ng'walali, K. Kibayashi, M. P. Mbonde, A. M. Makata, J. N. Kitinya, S. Tsunenari. Abstract. (East African Medical Journal: 2001 78(5): 275-276). Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v78i5.9055 · AJOL African ...

  12. East and Central African Journal of Surgery

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    health institutions. Thus many patients present with advanced malignancies when surgery for cure is impossible and only palliative care can be offered. Unfortunately many African countries lack both facilities and specialists in palliative care. Until recently palliative care was not even included in the curriculum for medical.

  13. Brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis prevalence in livestock from pastoralist communities adjacent to Awash National Park, Ethiopia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tschopp, Rea; Bekele, Shiferaw; Moti, Tesfaye; Young, Douglas; Aseffa, Abraham

    2015-06-15

    This cross-sectional study investigated the prevalence of brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis (BTB) in local cattle and goat breeds of Oromo and Afar pastoralist communities living in two distinct parts around the Awash National Park. A questionnaire survey was carried out to assess information on husbandry, milk consumption habits, and on knowledge-attitude-practice regarding both diseases. Among a total of 771 animals from all sites tested by comparative intradermal tuberculin test (CIDT) none were BTB reactors with the >4mm cut-off. Using the >2mm cut-off, individual apparent prevalence was 0.9% (95%CI: 0.23-3.56%) in cattle and 0.7% (95%CI: 0.12-3.45%) in goats. Herd prevalence in Oromia and Afar sites was 0% and 66.7% respectively in goats and 16.7% and 50% in cattle. Among the 327 animals tested by enzyme linked immunoassay for brucellosis, 4.8% (95%CI: 1.2-17.1%) of cattle and 22.8% (95%CI: 5.98-29.5%) of goats were reactors. Highest individual prevalence of both diseases was found in Afar settlements with brucellosis being as high as 50%. Respondent ethnicity was the only risk factor for brucellosis positivity in goats in the univariable risk factor analysis. Knowledge about the diseases was poor. Raw goat milk was regularly consumed by women and children, putting them at risk for brucellosis. This study highlighted an increased prevalence gradient of BTB and brucellosis from West to East along the study sites with high brucellosis individual prevalence and abortion rates among Afar settlements in particular. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. AHP 42: GUARDIANS OF NATURE: TIBETAN PASTORALISTS AND THE NATURAL WORLD

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ཀླུ་ཚང་ཚེ་རིང་འབུམ། Tsering Bum (Tshe ring 'bum

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Guardians of Nature is a clearly written and very insightful view of the political economic, environmental, and social-cultural transformations reshaping lives and livelihoods on the Tibetan Plateau. Written as a first-hand narrative account of his work over several years with Yulshul villagers, Tsering Bum’s perceptive book discusses key issues of contemporary Tibetan pastoralism: mining, the importance of the caterpillar fungus economy, resettlement, co-ops, education policy, human-wildlife conflict, and sacred mountains. It also explores quite new phenomena, such as Tibetan pastoralists hiring Han Chinese as herding laborers while living off of caterpillar fungus income, and the rise of feral dogs as a result of the sharp drop in Tibetan mastiff prices. Tsering Bum’s analysis is informed by critiques of nature-culture binaries and illustrates the many effects of perverse policy incentives. Strongly recommended for anyone interested in understanding Tibetan pastoral areas today.

  15. A methodology to track temporal dynamics and rainfall thresholds of landslide processes in the East African Rift

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monsieurs, Elise; Jacobs, Liesbet; Kervyn, François; Kirschbaum, Dalia; d'Oreye, Nicolas; Derauw, Dominique; Kervyn, Matthieu; Nobile, Adriano; Trefois, Philippe; Dewitte, Olivier

    2015-04-01

    The East African rift valley is a major tectonic feature that shapes Central Africa and defines linear-shaped lowlands between highland ranges due to the action of geologic faults associated to earthquakes and volcanism. The region of interest, covering the Virunga Volcanic Province in eastern DRC, western Rwanda and Burundi, and southwest Uganda, is threatened by a rare combination of several types of geohazards, while it is also one of the most densely populated region of Africa. These geohazards can globally be classified as seismic, volcanic and landslide hazards. Landslides, include a wide range of ground movements, such as rock falls, deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows. Landslides are possibly the most important geohazard in terms of recurring impact on the populations, causing fatalities every year and resulting in structural and functional damage to infrastructure and private properties, as well as serious disruptions of the organization of societies. Many landslides are observed each year in the whole region, and their occurrence is clearly linked to complex topographic, lithologic and vegetation signatures coupled with heavy rainfall events, which is the main triggering factor. The source mechanisms underlying landslide triggering and dynamics in the region of interest are still poorly understood, even though in recent years, some progress has been made towards appropriate data collection. Taking into account difficulties of field accessibility, we present a methodology to study landslide processes by multi-scale and multi-sensor remote sensing data from very high to low resolution (Pléiades, TRMM, CosmoSkyMed, Sentinel). The research will address the evolution over time of such data combined with other earth observations (seismic ground based networks, catalogues, rain gauge networks, GPS surveying, field observations) to detect and study landslide occurrence, dynamics and evolution. This research aims to get insights into the rainfall

  16. Potential Predictability of the Sea-Surface Temperature Forced Equatorial East Africa Short Rains Interannual Variability in the 20th Century

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bahaga, T. K.; Gizaw, G.; Kucharski, F.; Diro, G. T.

    2014-12-01

    In this article, the predictability of the 20th century sea-surface temperature (SST) forced East African short rains variability is analyzed using observational data and ensembles of long atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM) simulations. To our knowledge, such an analysis for the whole 20th century using a series of AGCM ensemble simulations is carried out here for the first time. The physical mechanisms that govern the influence of SST on East African short rains in the model are also investigated. It is found that there is substantial skill in reproducing the East African short rains variability, given that the SSTs are known. Consistent with previous recent studies, it is found that the Indian Ocean and in particular the western pole of the Indian Ocean dipole (IOD) play a dominant role for the prediction skill, whereas SSTs outside the Indian Ocean play a minor role. The physical mechanism for the influence of the western Indian Ocean on East African rainfall in the model is consistent with previous findings and consists of a gill-type response to a warm (cold) anomaly that induces a westerly(easterly) low-level flow anomaly over equatorial Africa and leads to moisture flux convergence (divergence) over East Africa. On the other hand, a positive El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) anomaly leads to a spatially non-coherent reducing effect over parts of East Africa, but the relationship is not strong enough to provide any predictive skill in our model. The East African short rains prediction skill is also analyzed within a model-derived potential predictability framework and it is shown that the actual prediction skill is broadly consistent with the model potential prediction skill. Low-frequency variations of the prediction skill are mostly related to SSTs outside the Indian Ocean region and are likely due to an increased interference of ENSO with the Indian Ocean influence on East African short rains after the mid-1970s climate shift.

  17. Demographic and health surveillance of mobile pastoralists in Chad: integration of biometric fingerprint identification into a geographical information system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weibel, Daniel; Schelling, Esther; Bonfoh, Bassirou; Utzinger, Jürg; Hattendorf, Jan; Abdoulaye, Mahamat; Madjiade, Toguina; Zinsstag, Jakob

    2008-11-01

    There is a pressing need for baseline demographic and health-related data to plan, implement and evaluate health interventions in developing countries, and to monitor progress towards international development goals. However, mobile pastoralists, i.e. people who depend on a livestock production system and follow their herds as they move, remain marginalized from rural development plans and interventions. The fact that mobile people are hard to reach and stay in contact with is a plausible reason why they are underrepresented in national censuses and/or alternative sequential sample survey systems. We present a proof-of-concept of monitoring highly mobile, pastoral people by recording demographic and health-related data from 933 women and 2020 children and establishing a biometric identification system (BIS) based on the registration and identification of digital fingerprints. Although only 22 women, representing 2.4% of the total registered women, were encountered twice in the four survey rounds, the approach implemented is shown to be feasible. The BIS described here is linked to a geographical information system to facilitate the creation of the first health and demographic surveillance system in a mobile, pastoralist setting. Our ultimate goal is to implement and monitor interventions with the "one health" concept, thus integrating and improving human, animal and ecosystem health.

  18. Demographic and health surveillance of mobile pastoralists in Chad: integration of biometric fingerprint identification into a geographical information system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Weibel

    2008-11-01

    Full Text Available There is a pressing need for baseline demographic and health-related data to plan, implement and evaluate health interventions in developing countries, and to monitor progress towards international development goals. However, mobile pastoralists, i.e. people who depend on a livestock production system and follow their herds as they move, remain marginalized from rural development plans and interventions. The fact that mobile people are hard to reach and stay in contact with is a plausible reason why they are underrepresented in national censuses and/or alternative sequential sample survey systems. We present a proof-of-concept of monitoring highly mobile, pastoral people by recording demographic and health-related data from 933 women and 2020 children and establishing a biometric identification system (BIS based on the registration and identification of digital fingerprints. Although only 22 women, representing 2.4% of the total registered women, were encountered twice in the four survey rounds, the approach implemented is shown to be feasible. The BIS described here is linked to a geographical information system to facilitate the creation of the first health and demographic surveillance system in a mobile, pastoralist setting. Our ultimate goal is to implement and monitor interventions with the “one health” concept, thus integrating and improving human, animal and ecosystem health.

  19. A Scoring Tool to Identify East African HIV-1 Serodiscordant Partnerships with a High Likelihood of Pregnancy.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Renee Heffron

    Full Text Available HIV-1 prevention programs targeting HIV-1 serodiscordant couples need to identify couples that are likely to become pregnant to facilitate discussions about methods to minimize HIV-1 risk during pregnancy attempts (i.e. safer conception or effective contraception when pregnancy is unintended. A clinical prediction tool could be used to identify HIV-1 serodiscordant couples with a high likelihood of pregnancy within one year.Using standardized clinical prediction methods, we developed and validated a tool to identify heterosexual East African HIV-1 serodiscordant couples with an increased likelihood of becoming pregnant in the next year. Datasets were from three prospectively followed cohorts, including nearly 7,000 couples from Kenya and Uganda participating in HIV-1 prevention trials and delivery projects.The final score encompassed the age of the woman, woman's number of children living, partnership duration, having had condomless sex in the past month, and non-use of an effective contraceptive. The area under the curve (AUC for the probability of the score to correctly predict pregnancy was 0.74 (95% CI 0.72-0.76. Scores ≥ 7 predicted a pregnancy incidence of >17% per year and captured 78% of the pregnancies. Internal and external validation confirmed the predictive ability of the score.A pregnancy likelihood score encompassing basic demographic, clinical and behavioral factors defined African HIV-1 serodiscordant couples with high one-year pregnancy incidence rates. This tool could be used to engage African HIV-1 serodiscordant couples in counseling discussions about fertility intentions in order to offer services for safer conception or contraception that align with their reproductive goals.

  20. Blood vitamins and trace elements in Northern-East African cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus soemmeringii) in captivity in the Middle East.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beckmann, Katie M; O'Donovan, Declan; McKeown, Sean; Wernery, Ulli; Basu, Puja; Bailey, Tom A

    2013-09-01

    There are few published data regarding the endangered Northern-East African cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus soemmeringii), held in captivity in the Middle East and Europe. Studies have demonstrated a high incidence of disease in captive cheetahs, in which vitamin and trace element imbalances have often been implicated. Blood vitamin and trace element reference values in cheetahs merit further investigation. In this study, blood samples were opportunistically collected from apparently healthy A. j. soemmeringii from two collections (A and B) with successful breeding programs in the United Arab Emirates. The cheetahs were fed whole prey of mixed species (and, in Collection B, goat muscle and bone as well) dusted with vitamin and mineral supplements. Mean serum vitamin and trace element values (for cheetahs > 4 mo in age) were as follows: vitamin A (retinol), 2.20 microM/L (n = 27); vitamin B1, 0.0818 microM/L (n = 45); vitamin C, 28.6 microM/L (n=10); vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol), 35.6 microM/L (n = 27); copper (Cu), 12.53 microM/L (n = 27); selenium (Se), 3.10 microM/L (n = 27); and zinc (Zn), 10.87 microM/L (n = 27). Mean values of vitamin A, vitamin E, Cu, and Zn fell within ranges of published cheetah mean values, and mean Se was lower than range values for cheetahs presented in one previous study; blood vitamin B1 and vitamin C values of cheetahs have not previously been published. The values were taken to indicate that the cheetahs' nutritional status was adequate with regard to those nutrients analyzed. Serum vitamin E was particularly high in cheetahs fed fresh whole prey, and on this basis vitamin E supplementation of fresh whole prey appeared to have been unnecessary. There were differences (P < 0.05) between collections in serum vitamin B1, vitamin E, Cu, and 10 other hematologic and biochemical parameters. Nine hematologic and blood biochemical parameters differed among age categories.

  1. Applying East Asian Media Diplomacy Models to African Media: A ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The last two decades have seen the extensive expansion of South African and Nigerian media on the African continent. However, while the link between media and diplomacy, and the role of media in visualising the state for foreign audiences have received a lot of scholarly attention internationally, relatively little work has ...

  2. Ethnic entrepreneurship and internationalisation in East Africa

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leendert de Bell; Hein Roelfsema; Khalidi Swabiri

    Using the World Bank Enterprise Surveys panel data for the East African Community, this paper analyses the influence of ethnic origin of entrepreneurs on internationalisation and firm performance. Using traditional probit and OLS estimation techniques in combination with matching strategies to

  3. The influence of inherited structures on magmatic and amagmatic processes in the East African Rift.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Biggs, J.; Lloyd, R.; Hodge, M.; Robertson, E.; Wilks, M.; Fagereng, A.; Kendall, J. M.; Mdala, H. S.; Lewi, E.; Ayele, A.

    2017-12-01

    The idea that crustal heterogeneities, particularly inherited structures, influence the initiation and evolution of continental rifts is not new, but now modern techniques allow us to explore these controls from a fresh perspective, over a range of lengthscales, timescales and depths. In amagmatic rifts, I will demonstrate that deep fault structure is controlled by the stress orientation during the earliest phase of rifting, while the surface expression exploits near-surface weaknesses. I will show that pre-existing structures control the storage and orientation of deeper magma reservoirs in magmatic rifts, while the tectonic stress regime controls intra-rift faulting and shallow magmatism and stresses related to surface loading and cycles of inflation and deflation dominate at volcanic edifices. Finally, I will show how cross-rift structures influence short-term processes such as deformation and seismicity. I will illustrate the talk throughout using examples from along the East African Rift, including Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia.

  4. East and Central African Journal of Surgery

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    cough, diphtheria and measles. These no longer reach epidemic proportions in Africa as they did 30 years ago. But against a background of over- population, war and malnutrition, malaria and the diarrhoea1 diseases take an increasing toll of African children. In the cities, the diseases associated with affluence and gluttony ...

  5. The Use Of Information And Communication Technology And Social Networking Sites In Political Governance Of East African Legislative Assembly Parliament

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ainebyona Robert

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract This research project was carried out to ascertain the use of Information and Communication Technologies and Social Networking Sites in political governance of East African Legislative Assembly Parliament. The research project was based on the conviction that in this era of globalization use of ICTs and SNSs are fundamentally important and will have tremendous impact on governance leadership and legislation now and in the near future. The specific objective of this study was intended a To evaluate the use of Social Networking Sites in enhancing the political governance of East African Legislative assembly Parliament. The findings from the research showed that that all the respondents 100 were subscribed to social networking sites and used them from time to time. Additionally the EALA parliamentarians had a disparity when it came to use of SNSs to interact with constituents 73.3 of the respondents indicated that they have used SNSs to interact with constituents on matters affecting the community from time to time however 26.7 showed that they did not use Social Networking sites to interact with constituents. Lastly the use of ICTs and SNSs by EALA has also made it possible for citizens to view Assembly proceedings in real time and hence where able to view their representatives in the course of carrying out their duties in the political arena.Lastly the world is changing in a dynamic fashion SNSs are among the tools leading the transformation and it is about time Parliamentarians in Africa embrace SNSs as major tools in changing how leaders interact and remain accountable to their constituents a practice thats been a myth in Africa.

  6. Androgen Receptor Gene Polymorphism, Aggression, and Reproduction in Tanzanian Foragers and Pastoralists

    Science.gov (United States)

    Butovskaya, Marina L.; Lazebny, Oleg E.; Vasilyev, Vasiliy A.; Dronova, Daria A.; Karelin, Dmitri V.; Mabulla, Audax Z. P.; Shibalev, Dmitri V.; Shackelford, Todd K.; Fink, Bernhard; Ryskov, Alexey P.

    2015-01-01

    The androgen receptor (AR) gene polymorphism in humans is linked to aggression and may also be linked to reproduction. Here we report associations between AR gene polymorphism and aggression and reproduction in two small-scale societies in northern Tanzania (Africa)—the Hadza (monogamous foragers) and the Datoga (polygynous pastoralists). We secured self-reports of aggression and assessed genetic polymorphism of the number of CAG repeats for the AR gene for 210 Hadza men and 229 Datoga men (aged 17–70 years). We conducted structural equation modeling to identify links between AR gene polymorphism, aggression, and number of children born, and included age and ethnicity as covariates. Fewer AR CAG repeats predicted greater aggression, and Datoga men reported more aggression than did Hadza men. In addition, aggression mediated the identified negative relationship between CAG repeats and number of children born. PMID:26291982

  7. Natural hybrids in the genus of Aloe (Aloeaceae) in East Africa ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Natural hybrids can arise in the genus Aloe because their chief pollinators, sunbirds, are not species-specific when feeding on nectar. From literature and the observations of the writer and others, 16 cases of known or suspected natural interspecific hybrids in East Africa are recorded. Journal of East African Natural History ...

  8. Malaria in east African highlands during the past 30 years: impact of environmental changes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yousif El - Safi Himeidan

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available East African highlands are one of the most populated regions in Africa. The population densities in the highlands ranged between 158 persons/km2 in Ethiopia to 410 persons/km2 in Rwanda. According to the United Nations Population Fund, the region has the world's highest population growth rate. These factors are likely behind the high rates of poverty among the populations. As there were no employment opportunities other than agricultural, this demographic pressure of poor populations have included in an extensive unprecedented land use and land cover changes such as modification of bushland, woodland, and grassland on hillsides to farmland and transformation of papyrus swamps in valley bottoms to dairy pastures and cropland and changing of fallows on hillsides from short or seasonal to longer or perennial. Areas harvested for food crops were therefore increased by more than 100% in most of the highlands. The lost of forest areas, mainly due to subsistence agriculture, between 1990 - 2010 ranged between 8000 ha in Rwanda to 2838000 ha in Ethiopia. These unmitigated environmental changes in the highlands led to rise temperature and optimizing the spread and survival of malaria vectors and development of malaria parasites. Malaria in highlands was initially governed by low ambient temperature, trend of malaria transmission was therefore increased and several epidemics were observed in late 1980s and early 2000s. Although, malaria is decreasing through intensified interventions since mid 2000s onwards, these environmental changes might expose population in the highlands of east Africa to an increase risk of malaria and its epidemic particularly if the current interventions are not sustained.

  9. Genetic history of the African Sahelian populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Černý, V; Kulichová, I; Poloni, E S; Nunes, J M; Pereira, L; Mayor, A; Sanchez-Mazas, A

    2018-03-01

    From a biogeographic perspective, Africa is subdivided into distinct horizontal belts. Human populations living along the Sahel/Savannah belt south of the Sahara desert have often been overshadowed by extensive studies focusing on other African populations such as hunter-gatherers or Bantu in particular. However, the Sahel together with the Savannah bordering it in the south is a challenging region where people had and still have to cope with harsh climatic conditions and show resilient behaviours. Besides exponentially growing urban populations, several local groups leading various lifestyles and speaking languages belonging to three main linguistic families still live in rural localities across that region today. Thanks to several years of consistent population sampling throughout this area, the genetic history of the African Sahelian populations has been largely reconstructed and a deeper knowledge has been acquired regarding their adaptation to peculiar environments and/or subsistence modes. Distinct exposures to pathogens-in particular, malaria-likely contributed to their genetic differentiation for HLA genes. In addition, although food-producing strategies spread within the Sahel/Savannah belt relatively recently, during the last five millennia according to recent archaeological and archaeobotanical studies, remarkable amounts of genetic differences are also observed between sedentary farmers and more mobile pastoralists at multiple neutral and selected loci, reflecting both demographic effects and genetic adaptations to distinct cultural traits, such as dietary habits. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  10. Internal diversification of non-Sub-Saharan haplogroups in Sahelian populations and the spread of pastoralism beyond the Sahara.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kulichová, Iva; Fernandes, Verónica; Deme, Alioune; Nováčková, Jana; Stenzl, Vlastimil; Novelletto, Andrea; Pereira, Luísa; Černý, Viktor

    2017-10-01

    Today, African pastoralists are found mainly in the Sahel/Savannah belt spanning 6,000 km from west to east, flanked by the Sahara to the north and tropical rainforests to the south. The most significant group among them are the Fulani who not only keep cattle breeds of possible West Eurasian ancestry, but form themselves a gene pool containing some paternally and maternally-transmitted West Eurasian haplogroups. We generated complete sequences for 33 mitogenomes belonging to haplogroups H1 and U5 (23 and 10, respectively), and genotyped 16 STRs in 65 Y chromosomes belonging to haplogroup R1b-V88. We show that age estimates of the maternal lineage H1cb1, occurring almost exclusively in the Fulani, point to the time when the first cattle herders settled the Sahel/Savannah belt. Similar age estimates were obtained for paternal lineage R1b-V88, which occurs today in the Fulani but also in other, mostly pastoral populations. Maternal clade U5b1b1b, reported earlier in the Berbers, shows a shallower age, suggesting another possibly independent input into the Sahelian pastoralist gene pool. Despite the fact that animal domestication originated in the Near East ∼ 10 ka, and that it was from there that animals such as sheep, goats as well as cattle were introduced into Northeast Africa soon thereafter, contemporary cattle keepers in the Sahel/Savannah belt show uniparental genetic affinities that suggest the possibility of an ancient contact with an additional ancestral population of western Mediterranean ancestry. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  11. Important knowledge gaps among pastoralists on causes and treatment of udder health problems in livestock in southern Ethiopia: results of qualitative investigation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amenu, Kebede; Szonyi, Barbara; Grace, Delia; Wieland, Barbara

    2017-10-23

    Ethiopia has high prevalences of udder health problems including clinical and subclinical mastitis across production systems in different livestock species. Previous studies on udder health problems have largely focused on identification of mastitis causing microbial pathogens and associated risk factors. However, relatively little is known about the knowledge and beliefs of livestock keepers regarding udder health problems. An understanding of the beliefs on the other hand would facilitate effective communication between livestock keepers and animal health professionals. Therefore, this study aimed at exploring the knowledge and belief surrounding the causes, clinical signs and treatments for udder health problems in (agro-) pastoral communities in southern Ethiopia using qualitative investigation. The result showed that udder health problem, locally known as 'dhukkuba muchaa', which translates to 'disease of teats', was classified into three main types: (1) tick infestation (dirandisa), (2) swelling of udder often with pus discharge (nyaqarsa) and (3) acute mastitis caused by evil eye (buda) with 'bloody milk'. Tick infestation was perceived to directly cause mechanical damage to udder tissue or to resulting in swelling leading to nyaqarsa. Our analysis also revealed the strong misperception that acute and severe swelling of udder was caused by evil eye. According to the pastoralists, cows with large udders in the late pregnancy are prone to evil eye infliction upon giving birth. The pastoralists often treat udder health problems by combining both modern and traditional methods. Removal of ticks by hand and acarcide application were the preferred methods for limiting tick infestation while swelling and evil eye cases were treated with antibiotics (e.g. oxytetracycline). The study also revealed that specific herbs, only known by the herbalists, were used for traditional treatment of udder health. Although this information could not be divulged at the time, it

  12. Feeding East Africa : are genetically modified crops part of the solution?

    OpenAIRE

    Tarjem, Ida Arff

    2017-01-01

    The African continent is faced with enormous challenges of poverty, hunger and food insecurity, which is exacerbated by climatic and environmental change, and a rapidly increasing population; and in the midst of it all is the smallholder and subsistence African farmer. Some believe that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and GM crops may offer part of the solution to some of these challenges. The GMO debate has gained considerable traction in the East African region, as recent regulat...

  13. Drought is a recurring challenge in the Middle East.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaniewski, David; Van Campo, Elise; Weiss, Harvey

    2012-03-06

    Climate change and water availability in the Middle East are important in understanding human adaptive capacities in the face of long-term environmental changes. The key role of water availability for sedentary and nomad populations in these arid to semiarid landscapes is understood, but the millennium-scale influence of hydrologic instability on vegetation dynamics, human occupation, and historic land use are unknown, which has led to a stochastic view of population responses and adaptive capacities to precipitation anomalies. Within the time-frame of the last two global climate events, the Medieval Climate Anomaly and the Little Ice Age, we report hydrologic instability reconstructed from pollen-derived climate proxies recovered near Tell Leilan, at the Wadi Jarrah in the Khabur Plains of northeastern Syria, at the heart of ancient northern Mesopotamia. By coupling climate proxies with archaeological-historical data and a pollen-based record of agriculture, this integrative study suggests that variability in precipitation is a key factor on crop yields, productivity, and economic systems. It may also have been one of the main parameters controlling human settlement and population migrations at the century to millennial timescales in the arid to semiarid areas of the Middle East. An abrupt shift to drier conditions at ca. AD 1400 is contemporaneous with a change from sedentary village life to regional desertion and nomadization (sheep/camel pastoralists) during the preindustrial era in formerly Ottoman realms, and thereby adds climate change to the multiple causes for Ottoman Empire "decline."

  14. Eye Munchausen's Syndrome: Case Report | Atipo-Tsiba | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS ... Munchausen's syndrome is a psychiatric disorder characterised by a need to simulate a disease or trauma self-mutilation, in order to attract attention or sympathy. Patients with this ...

  15. THE IDIOSYNCRASY OF EAST AFRICAN ENGLISH Maria Tsilimos ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    maria tsilimos

    officer of the Consortium for Independent Education Providers in Sub-Saharan Africa, ... African English has to be studied systematically in order that its unique characteristics can be ..... the contextualisation of the event that is narrated. Also ...

  16. Vitamin D intake, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status and response to moderate vitamin D3 supplementation: a randomised controlled trial in East African and Finnish women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adebayo, Folasade A; Itkonen, Suvi T; Öhman, Taina; Skaffari, Essi; Saarnio, Elisa M; Erkkola, Maijaliisa; Cashman, Kevin D; Lamberg-Allardt, Christel

    2018-02-01

    Insufficient vitamin D status (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (S-25(OH)D)0·05 for differences between ethnic groups). In conclusion, high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency existed among East African women living in Finland, despite higher vitamin D intake than their Finnish peers. Moderate vitamin D3 supplementation was effective in increasing S-25(OH)D in both groups of women, and no ethnic differences existed in the response to supplementation.

  17. Gastric outlet obstruction in Northwestern Ethiopia | Kotisso | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 5, No 2 (2000) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  18. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    dell

    COSECSA/ASEA Publication -East and Central African Journal of Surgery April .... toward skeletal muscle, cartilage, fibrous tissue, and sometimes fat, and most ... ipsilateral lobes of the lung, the central nervous system including the spinal ...

  19. African Journal of Clinical and Experimental Microbiology

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journal of Clinical and Experimental Microbiology. ... of edible locally produced dry season leafy vegetables cultivated in south east Enugu, Nigeria ... Cross-seasonal analysis of bacteriological profile of water sources as a disease risk ...

  20. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent Afr J Surg

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    72 COSECSA/ASEA Publication -- East & Central African Journal of Surgery 2017; Vol. ... A 60-year-old man presented with a 6-month history of persistent difficulty in ... injury is due to the fact that jejunum is located relatively far away from the.

  1. AfricaArray seismological studies of the structure and evolution of the African continent

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Durrheim, RJ

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available and Madagascar. Brandt and Mulibo elucidated the relationship between the African Superplume, Superswell and the East African Rift System by studying the seismic velocity structure of the mantle. Kgaswane jointly inverted P-wave receiver functions (PRFs...

  2. Genomic Ancestry of North Africans Supports Back-to-Africa Migrations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gravel, Simon; Wang, Wei; Brisbin, Abra; Byrnes, Jake K.; Fadhlaoui-Zid, Karima; Zalloua, Pierre A.; Moreno-Estrada, Andres; Bertranpetit, Jaume; Bustamante, Carlos D.; Comas, David

    2012-01-01

    North African populations are distinct from sub-Saharan Africans based on cultural, linguistic, and phenotypic attributes; however, the time and the extent of genetic divergence between populations north and south of the Sahara remain poorly understood. Here, we interrogate the multilayered history of North Africa by characterizing the effect of hypothesized migrations from the Near East, Europe, and sub-Saharan Africa on current genetic diversity. We present dense, genome-wide SNP genotyping array data (730,000 sites) from seven North African populations, spanning from Egypt to Morocco, and one Spanish population. We identify a gradient of likely autochthonous Maghrebi ancestry that increases from east to west across northern Africa; this ancestry is likely derived from “back-to-Africa” gene flow more than 12,000 years ago (ya), prior to the Holocene. The indigenous North African ancestry is more frequent in populations with historical Berber ethnicity. In most North African populations we also see substantial shared ancestry with the Near East, and to a lesser extent sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. To estimate the time of migration from sub-Saharan populations into North Africa, we implement a maximum likelihood dating method based on the distribution of migrant tracts. In order to first identify migrant tracts, we assign local ancestry to haplotypes using a novel, principal component-based analysis of three ancestral populations. We estimate that a migration of western African origin into Morocco began about 40 generations ago (approximately 1,200 ya); a migration of individuals with Nilotic ancestry into Egypt occurred about 25 generations ago (approximately 750 ya). Our genomic data reveal an extraordinarily complex history of migrations, involving at least five ancestral populations, into North Africa. PMID:22253600

  3. Genomic ancestry of North Africans supports back-to-Africa migrations.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brenna M Henn

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available North African populations are distinct from sub-Saharan Africans based on cultural, linguistic, and phenotypic attributes; however, the time and the extent of genetic divergence between populations north and south of the Sahara remain poorly understood. Here, we interrogate the multilayered history of North Africa by characterizing the effect of hypothesized migrations from the Near East, Europe, and sub-Saharan Africa on current genetic diversity. We present dense, genome-wide SNP genotyping array data (730,000 sites from seven North African populations, spanning from Egypt to Morocco, and one Spanish population. We identify a gradient of likely autochthonous Maghrebi ancestry that increases from east to west across northern Africa; this ancestry is likely derived from "back-to-Africa" gene flow more than 12,000 years ago (ya, prior to the Holocene. The indigenous North African ancestry is more frequent in populations with historical Berber ethnicity. In most North African populations we also see substantial shared ancestry with the Near East, and to a lesser extent sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. To estimate the time of migration from sub-Saharan populations into North Africa, we implement a maximum likelihood dating method based on the distribution of migrant tracts. In order to first identify migrant tracts, we assign local ancestry to haplotypes using a novel, principal component-based analysis of three ancestral populations. We estimate that a migration of western African origin into Morocco began about 40 generations ago (approximately 1,200 ya; a migration of individuals with Nilotic ancestry into Egypt occurred about 25 generations ago (approximately 750 ya. Our genomic data reveal an extraordinarily complex history of migrations, involving at least five ancestral populations, into North Africa.

  4. Quantification of African cassava mosaic virus (ACMV) and East African cassava mosaic virus (EACMV-UG) in single and mixed infected Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) using quantitative PCR.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Naseem, Saadia; Winter, Stephan

    2016-01-01

    The quantity of genomic DNA-A and DNA-B of African cassava mosaic virus (ACMV) and East African cassava mosaic virus Uganda (Uganda variant, EACMV-UG) was analysed using quantitative PCR to assess virus concentrations in plants from susceptible and tolerant cultivars. The concentrations of genome components in absolute and relative quantification experiments in single and mixed viral infections were determined. Virus concentration was much higher in symptomatic leaf tissues compared to non-symptomatic leaves and corresponded with the severity of disease symptoms. In general, higher titres were recorded for EACMV-UG Ca055 compared to ACMV DRC6. The quantitative assessment also showed that the distribution of both viruses in the moderately resistant cassava cv. TMS 30572 was not different from the highly susceptible cv. TME 117. Natural mixed infections with both viruses gave severe disease symptoms. Relative quantification of virus genomes in mixed infections showed higher concentrations of EACMV-UG DNA-A compared to ACMV DNA-A, but a marked reduction of EACMV-UG DNA-B. The higher concentrations of EACMV-UG DNA-B compared to EACMV DNA-A accumulation in single infections were consistent. Since DNA-B is implicated in virus cell-to-cell spread and systemic movement, the abundance of the EACMV-UG DNA-B may be an important factor driving cassava mosaic disease epidemic. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Come together : African universities collaborate to improve bandwidth

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    test

    Telecommunications Union], government people, and donor groups.” ... could be vitally useful for information-strapped universities and post-secondary institutions. They ... to purchase a stake in the East African Submarine System (EASSy).

  6. Forecasting The Onset Of The East African Rains

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacLeod, D.; Palmer, T.

    2017-12-01

    The timing of the rainy seasons is critical for East Africa, where many livelihoods depend on rain-fed agriculture. The exact onset date of the rains varies from year to year and a delayed start has significant implications for food security. Early warning of anomalous onset can help mitigate risks by informing farmer decisions on crop choice and timing of planting. Onset forecasts may also pre-warn governments and NGOs of upcoming need for financial support and humanitarian intervention. Here we assess the potential to forecast the onset of both the short and long rains over East Africa at subseasonal to seasonal timescales. Based on operational reforecasts from ECMWF, we will demonstrate skilful prediction of onset anomalies. An investigation to determine potential sources of this forecast skill will also be presented. This work has been carried out as part of the project ForPAc: "Towards forecast-based preparedness action".

  7. Quality Education for the Pastoralist in Public Primary Schools in Kajiado County, Kenya: Case Study of Dupoto-E-Maa Education Project in Kajiado Central District

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ouda, James Bill; Opiyo, Rose Atieno; Wambiya, Pascal

    2015-01-01

    Conditions of learning are critical in determining quality of education. There have been real concerns raised by stakeholders regarding the quality of education for pastoralists in public primary schools in Kajiado Central District in Kenya. Interventions have been put in place to address the issue of quality education. One such intervention is…

  8. African Journals Online: Browse Alphabetically -- letter E

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Items 1 - 39 of 39 ... The East African Journal of Sciences (EAJS) publishes original ... The objects of the Association journal shall be the advancement of the science and art of ..... Economics, Business Management, and Public Administration and ...

  9. Development of catchment research, with particular attention to Plynlimon and its forerunner, the East African catchments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blackie, J. R.; Robinson, M.

    2007-01-01

    Dr J.S.G. McCulloch was deeply involved in the establishment of research catchments in East Africa and subsequently in the UK to investigate the hydrological consequences of changes in land use. Comparison of these studies provides an insight into how influential his inputs and direction have been in the progressive development of the philosophy, the instrumentation and the analytical techniques now employed in catchment research. There were great contrasts in the environments: tropical highland (high radiation, intense rainfall) vs. temperate maritime (low radiation and frontal storms), contrasting soils and vegetation types, as well as the differing social and economic pressures in developing and developed nations. Nevertheless, the underlying scientific philosophy was common to both, although techniques had to be modified according to local conditions. As specialised instrumentation and analytical techniques were developed for the UK catchments many were also integrated into the East African studies. Many lessons were learned in the course of these studies and from the experiences of other studies around the world. Overall, a rigorous scientific approach was developed with widespread applicability. Beyond the basics of catchment selection and the quantification of the main components of the catchment water balance, this involved initiating parallel process studies to provide information on specific aspects of catchment behaviour. This information could then form the basis for models capable of extrapolation from the observed time series to other periods/hydrological events and, ultimately, the capability of predicting the consequences of changes in catchment land management to other areas in a range of climates.

  10. Creating opportunities for youth in East Africa | IDRC - International ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    2016-06-30

    Jun 30, 2016 ... Youth employment is crucial to the development of the East African ... Even those with university degrees and college diplomas often fall ... However, the study shows that there is limited awareness of the benefits of career ...

  11. Menstruation in Rural Igbo Women of South East Nigeria: Attitudes ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Menstruation in Rural Igbo Women of South East Nigeria: Attitudes, Beliefs and Practices. ... African Journal of Reproductive Health ... Some respondents observed self-imposed restrictions on exercises, food items, visits and sex in order to ...

  12. Gastric cancers at Kibogora Hospital | Ntakiyiruta | East and Central ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 14, No 1 (2009) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  13. Changes in northeast African hydrology and vegetation associated with Pliocene–Pleistocene sapropel cycles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rose, Cassaundra; Polissar, Pratigya J.; Tierney, Jessica E.; Filley, Timothy

    2016-01-01

    East African climate change since the Late Miocene consisted of persistent shorter-term, orbital-scale wet–dry cycles superimposed upon a long-term trend towards more open, grassy landscapes. Either or both of these modes of palaeoclimate variability may have influenced East African mammalian evolution, yet the interrelationship between these secular and orbital palaeoclimate signals remains poorly understood. Here, we explore whether the long-term secular climate change was also accompanied by significant changes at the orbital-scale. We develop northeast African hydroclimate and vegetation proxy data for two 100 kyr-duration windows near 3.05 and 1.75 Ma at ODP Site 967 in the eastern Mediterranean basin, where sedimentation is dominated by eastern Sahara dust input and Nile River run-off. These two windows were selected because they have comparable orbital configurations and bracket an important increase in East African C4 grasslands. We conducted high-resolution (2.5 kyr sampling) multiproxy biomarker, H- and C-isotopic analyses of plant waxes and lignin phenols to document orbital-scale changes in hydrology, vegetation and woody cover for these two intervals. Both intervals are dominated by large-amplitude, precession-scale (approx. 20 kyr) changes in northeast African vegetation and rainfall/run-off. The δ13Cwax values and lignin phenol composition record a variable but consistently C4 grass-dominated ecosystem for both intervals (50–80% C4). Precessional δDwax cycles were approximately 20–30‰ in peak-to-peak amplitude, comparable with other δDwax records of the Early Holocene African Humid Period. There were no significant differences in the means or variances of the δDwax or δ13Cwax data for the 3.05 and 1.75 Ma intervals studied, suggesting that the palaeohydrology and palaeovegetation responses to precessional forcing were similar for these two periods. Data for these two windows suggest that the eastern Sahara did not experience the

  14. African Sandalwood or Nepalese Sandalwood: a Brief Synthesis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaime A. TEIXEIRA DA SILVA

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available African sandalwood or East African sandalwood (Osyris lanceolata Hochst. & Steud.; Santalaceae, also known as Nepalese sandalwood (Osyris wightiana var. rotundifolia P.C. Tam, is a hemi-parasitic tree known for its fragrant wood. The essential oil is extracted from the root bark for the perfume industry and different parts of the tree have various medicinal uses. African sandalwood contains an array of phytochemicals such as dihydro-β-agarofuran polyesters, agarofuranases, polyesters, other sesquiterpenes and bisabolanes. This mini-review focuses on the general biology, traditional uses, phytochemical properties, propagation for conservation, and hemiparasitism of O. lanceolata.

  15. Mechanisms of Vowel Variation in African American English.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holt, Yolanda Feimster

    2018-02-15

    This research explored mechanisms of vowel variation in African American English by comparing 2 geographically distant groups of African American and White American English speakers for participation in the African American Shift and the Southern Vowel Shift. Thirty-two male (African American: n = 16, White American controls: n = 16) lifelong residents of cities in eastern and western North Carolina produced heed,hid,heyd,head,had,hod,hawed,whod,hood,hoed,hide,howed,hoyd, and heard 3 times each in random order. Formant frequency, duration, and acoustic analyses were completed for the vowels /i, ɪ, e, ɛ, æ, ɑ, ɔ, u, ʊ, o, aɪ, aʊ, oɪ, ɝ/ produced in the listed words. African American English speakers show vowel variation. In the west, the African American English speakers are participating in the Southern Vowel Shift and hod fronting of the African American Shift. In the east, neither the African American English speakers nor their White peers are participating in the Southern Vowel Shift. The African American English speakers show limited participation in the African American Shift. The results provide evidence of regional and socio-ethnic variation in African American English in North Carolina.

  16. ‘Everybody knows’, but the rest of the world: the case of a caterpillar-borne reproductive loss syndrome in dromedary camels observed by Sahrawi pastoralists of Western Sahara

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Volpato, G.; Nardo, Di A.; Rossi, D.; Lamin Saleh, S.; Broglia, A.

    2013-01-01

    Background The traditional knowledge of local communities throughout the world is a valuable source of novel ideas and information to science. In this study, the ethnoveterinary knowledge of Sahrawi pastoralists of Western Sahara has been used in order to put forward a scientific hypothesis

  17. Pastoralists' Perception and Ecological Knowledge on Savanna Ecosystem Dynamics in Semi-arid Botswana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olaotswe Kgosikoma

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available We investigated vegetation dynamics in relation to livestock grazing as perceived by pastoral farmers in different regions of Botswana. A structured questionnaire was used to collect farmers' understanding of vegetation changes and causes within three different grazing lands. The pastoral farmers' description of dominant vegetation differed significantly both at the local and district level, which suggests that rangelands consist of patches dominated by different grasses and woody vegetation. Most pastoralists indicated that grass composition has undergone changes, and unpalatable grasses such as Aristida congesta and Megaloprotachne albescens are increasing. The different factors perceived by pastoral farmers to cause changes in vegetation composition included rainfall, overgrazing, and fire. Bush encroachment is considered to be more common in communal grazing land than in ranches. According to pastoral farmers, the ranching system is less degrading to the environment and more sustainable for livestock production than is communal grazing.

  18. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent Afr J Surg

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    57 COSECSA/ASEA Publication -- East & Central African Journal of Surgery 2017; Vol. 22 (3) ... traumatic injury is an enormous public health problem throughout the world. ... In Nigeria, the annual report of the Federal Road Safety Corps in 2014 .... and unemployed individuals accounted for most of the occupational groups.

  19. Do African microfinance institutions need efficiency for financial stability and social outreach?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Md A.K. Azad

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Microfinance institutions (MFIs have the dual objective of providing social welfare and financial stability. We evaluated the financial efficiency of MFIs in sub-Saharan African countries by comparing their regional performances during the period 2004-2013. We addressed prevailing MFI heterogeneity by using the concept of "metafrontier". The results showed that on an average, more than half the MFIs showed a drop in productivity. The measure of how much one country gets closer to or further away from world frontier technology is commonly known as the TGC score. In world frontier technology, East and South Asian countries have taken the lead (TGC score 1.0048 while sub-Saharan African countries lag behind (TGC score 1.0020. Most East and South Asian countries have a TGC score of 1, and most sub-Saharan African countries have a TGC score less than 1. This signifies that Asian countries lead world frontier technology and most African countries do not. The decomposition of efficiency scores showed that with regard to technical changes, African nations had progressed on average only 0.01%, and efficiency change scores had regressed by 0.59% annually.

  20. Mainstreaming road safety in the regional integration of the East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    one context-specific keyword (synonym of) or have one topic related word. It had also to be ..... injuries in Iran. (Unpublished doctoral thesis), Karolinska Institutet, Sweden. ... East and Central African Journal of Surgery, 7(1), 23-26. Nzioki, T.

  1. Prediction of East African Seasonal Rainfall Using Simplex Canonical Correlation Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ntale, Henry K.; Yew Gan, Thian; Mwale, Davison

    2003-06-01

    A linear statistical model, canonical correlation analysis (CCA), was driven by the Nelder-Mead simplex optimization algorithm (called CCA-NMS) to predict the standardized seasonal rainfall totals of East Africa at 3-month lead time using SLP and SST anomaly fields of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans combined together by 24 simplex optimized weights, and then `reduced' by the principal component analysis. Applying the optimized weights to the predictor fields produced better March-April-May (MAM) and September-October-November (SON) seasonal rain forecasts than a direct application of the same, unweighted predictor fields to CCA at both calibration and validation stages. Northeastern Tanzania and south-central Kenya had the best SON prediction results with both validation correlation and Hanssen-Kuipers skill scores exceeding +0.3. The MAM season was better predicted in the western parts of East Africa. The CCA correlation maps showed that low SON rainfall in East Africa is associated with cold SSTs off the Somali coast and the Benguela (Angola) coast, and low MAM rainfall is associated with a buildup of low SSTs in the Indian Ocean adjacent to East Africa and the Gulf of Guinea.

  2. Phytosterols from Dombeya torrida (J. F. Gmel.) | Ndwigah | East and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 16, No 2 (2013) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

  3. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online) 60

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Hp 630 Dual Core

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. August/September 2016 Volume 21 Number 2. 60. Spontaneous pneumothorax in a Neonate with .... scientific &research publication vol.4, issue 3,Mar 2014. 3. G.W. Holcomb, J.P. Murphy Ashcraft s ...

  4. An exceptional case of historical outbreeding in African sable antelope populations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pitra, C.; Hansen, Anders J.; Lieckfeldt, D.

    2002-01-01

    ) sequences analysed from 95 individuals representing 17 sampling locations scattered through the African miombo (Brachystegia) woodland ecosystem] and phylogeographical statistical procedures (gene genealogy, nested cladistic and admixture proportion analyses), we (i) give a detailed dissection...... of the geographical genetic structure of Hippotragus niger; (ii) infer the processes and events potentially involved in the population history; and (iii) trace extensive introgressive hybridization in the species. The present-day sable antelope population shows a tripartite pattern of genetic subdivision representing...... West Tanzanian, Kenya/East Tanzanian and Southern Africa locations. Nested clade analysis revealed that past allopatric fragmentation, caused probably by habitat discontinuities associated with the East African Rift Valley system, together with intermediary episodic long-distance colonization...

  5. Editorial : Emerging issues of measles | Obimbo | East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Metrics powered by PLOS ALM · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v78i1.9102 · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors. OTHER RESOURCES... for Researchers · for Journals · for Authors · for Policy Makers · about Open Access · FAQ's · News · AJOL jobs · More about ...

  6. Community and provider perceptions of traditional and skilled birth attendants providing maternal health care for pastoralist communities in Kenya: a qualitative study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Byrne, Abbey; Caulfield, Tanya; Onyo, Pamela; Nyagero, Josephat; Morgan, Alison; Nduba, John; Kermode, Michelle

    2016-03-01

    Kenya has a high burden of maternal and newborn mortality. Consequently, the Government of Kenya introduced health system reforms to promote the availability of skilled birth attendants (SBAs) and proscribed deliveries by traditional birth attendants (TBAs). Despite these changes, only 10% of women from pastoralist communities are delivered by an SBA in a health facility, and the majority are delivered by TBAs at home. The aim of this study is to better understand the practices and perceptions of TBAs and SBAs serving the remotely located, semi-nomadic, pastoralist communities of Laikipia and Samburu counties in Kenya, to inform the development of an SBA/TBA collaborative care model. This descriptive qualitative study was undertaken in 2013-14. We conducted four focus group discussions (FGDs) with TBAs, three with community health workers, ten with community women, and three with community men. In-depth interviews were conducted with seven SBAs and eight key informants. Topic areas covered were: practices and perceptions of SBAs and TBAs; rewards and challenges; managing obstetric complications; and options for SBA/TBA collaboration. All data were translated, transcribed and thematically analysed. TBAs are valued and accessible members of their communities who adhere to traditional practices and provide practical and emotional support to women during pregnancy, delivery and post-partum. Some TBA practices are potentially harmful to women e.g., restricting food intake during pregnancy, and participants recognised that TBAs are unable to manage obstetric complications. SBAs are acknowledged as having valuable technical skills and resources that contribute to safe and clean deliveries, especially in the event of complications, but there is also a perception that SBAs mistreat women. Both TBAs and SBAs identified a range of challenges related to their work, and instances of mutual respect and informal collaborations between SBAs and TBAs were described. These findings

  7. Livestock mortality in pastoralist herds in Ethiopia and implications for drought response.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Catley, Andy; Admassu, Berhanu; Bekele, Gezu; Abebe, Dawit

    2014-07-01

    Participatory epidemiology methods were employed retrospectively in three pastoralist regions of Ethiopia to estimate the specific causes of excess livestock mortality during drought. The results showed that starvation/dehydration accounted for between 61.5 and 100 per cent of excess livestock mortality during drought, whereas disease-related mortality accounted for between 0 and 28.1 per cent of excess mortality. Field observations indicate that, in livestock, disease risks and mortality increase in the immediate post-drought period, during rain. The design of livelihoods-based drought response programmes should include protection of core livestock assets, and it should take account of the specific causes of excess livestock mortality during drought and immediately afterwards. This study shows that, when comparing livestock feed supplementation and veterinary support, relatively more aid should be directed at the former if the objective is to protect core livestock during drought. Veterinary support should consider disease-related mortality in the immediate post-drought period, and tailor inputs accordingly. © 2014 The Author(s). Disasters © Overseas Development Institute, 2014.

  8. Maintainability in a manpower system | Owino | East African Journal ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    : EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eajosta.v1i1.39173 · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors ...

  9. Regional Integration: A Political Federation of the East African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    sulaiman.adebowale

    2006-06-13

    Jun 13, 2006 ... He suggested that the countries of the East Africa Community (EAC) together with .... tries engaged in free trade for local produce. This was .... First, he averred that economic integration is not enough because of political ...

  10. Adaptation is.... Predicting malaria's changing course in East Africa

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    IDRC

    Health experts say controlling malaria is crucial if the three East African nations are to achieve the UN Millennium. Development Goal of halving the incidence of infectious diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS by 2015. Looking ahead:Prevention and treatment. Improved malaria prediction will be an.

  11. Annals of African Surgery - Vol 12, No 2 (2015)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Incidence of Early Post Operative Infection after Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty at an East African Centre · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. JWM Kigera, P Kimpiatu ...

  12. Early human speciation, brain expansion and dispersal influenced by African climate pulses.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Susanne Shultz

    Full Text Available Early human evolution is characterised by pulsed speciation and dispersal events that cannot be explained fully by global or continental paleoclimate records. We propose that the collated record of ephemeral East African Rift System (EARS lakes could be a proxy for the regional paleoclimate conditions experienced by early hominins. Here we show that the presence of these lakes is associated with low levels of dust deposition in both West African and Mediterranean records, but is not associated with long-term global cooling and aridification of East Africa. Hominin expansion and diversification seem to be associated with climate pulses characterized by the precession-forced appearance and disappearance of deep EARS lakes. The most profound period for hominin evolution occurs at about 1.9 Ma; with the highest recorded diversity of hominin species, the appearance of Homo (sensu stricto and major dispersal events out of East Africa into Eurasia. During this period, ephemeral deep-freshwater lakes appeared along the whole length of the EARS, fundamentally changing the local environment. The relationship between the local environment and hominin brain expansion is less clear. The major step-wise expansion in brain size around 1.9 Ma when Homo appeared was coeval with the occurrence of ephemeral deep lakes. Subsequent incremental increases in brain size are associated with dry periods with few if any lakes. Plio-Pleistocene East African climate pulses as evinced by the paleo-lake records seem, therefore, fundamental to hominin speciation, encephalisation and migration.

  13. Early human speciation, brain expansion and dispersal influenced by African climate pulses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shultz, Susanne; Maslin, Mark

    2013-01-01

    Early human evolution is characterised by pulsed speciation and dispersal events that cannot be explained fully by global or continental paleoclimate records. We propose that the collated record of ephemeral East African Rift System (EARS) lakes could be a proxy for the regional paleoclimate conditions experienced by early hominins. Here we show that the presence of these lakes is associated with low levels of dust deposition in both West African and Mediterranean records, but is not associated with long-term global cooling and aridification of East Africa. Hominin expansion and diversification seem to be associated with climate pulses characterized by the precession-forced appearance and disappearance of deep EARS lakes. The most profound period for hominin evolution occurs at about 1.9 Ma; with the highest recorded diversity of hominin species, the appearance of Homo (sensu stricto) and major dispersal events out of East Africa into Eurasia. During this period, ephemeral deep-freshwater lakes appeared along the whole length of the EARS, fundamentally changing the local environment. The relationship between the local environment and hominin brain expansion is less clear. The major step-wise expansion in brain size around 1.9 Ma when Homo appeared was coeval with the occurrence of ephemeral deep lakes. Subsequent incremental increases in brain size are associated with dry periods with few if any lakes. Plio-Pleistocene East African climate pulses as evinced by the paleo-lake records seem, therefore, fundamental to hominin speciation, encephalisation and migration.

  14. Genomic footprints of dryland stress adaptation in Egyptian fat-tail sheep and their divergence from East African and western Asia cohorts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mwacharo, Joram M; Kim, Eui-Soo; Elbeltagy, Ahmed R; Aboul-Naga, Adel M; Rischkowsky, Barbara A; Rothschild, Max F

    2017-12-15

    African indigenous sheep are classified as fat-tail, thin-tail and fat-rump hair sheep. The fat-tail are well adapted to dryland environments, but little is known on their genome profiles. We analyzed patterns of genomic variation by genotyping, with the Ovine SNP50K microarray, 394 individuals from five populations of fat-tail sheep from a desert environment in Egypt. Comparative inferences with other East African and western Asia fat-tail and European sheep, reveal at least two phylogeographically distinct genepools of fat-tail sheep in Africa that differ from the European genepool, suggesting separate evolutionary and breeding history. We identified 24 candidate selection sweep regions, spanning 172 potentially novel and known genes, which are enriched with genes underpinning dryland adaptation physiology. In particular, we found selection sweeps spanning genes and/or pathways associated with metabolism; response to stress, ultraviolet radiation, oxidative stress and DNA damage repair; activation of immune response; regulation of reproduction, organ function and development, body size and morphology, skin and hair pigmentation, and keratinization. Our findings provide insights on the complexity of genome architecture regarding dryland stress adaptation in the fat-tail sheep and showcase the indigenous stocks as appropriate genotypes for adaptation planning to sustain livestock production and human livelihoods, under future climates.

  15. A report from the first regional pain medicine symposia in East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    A report from the first regional pain medicine symposia in East, Central and Southern African ... Definition and concept of the Rhino model in pain education in Africa ... pain medicine among residents to stimulate their ideas for pain research ...

  16. East African Medical Journal - Vol 87, No 8 (2010)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Association of the ENPP1 rs997509 polymorphism with obesity in South African mixed ancestry learners · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. T Matsha, B Fanampe, Y Yako, S Hassan, M Hoffmann, L Van der Merwe, RT Erasmus ...

  17. Some third order rotatable designs in five dimensions | Mutiso | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... performed according to our dimensional designs need not be discarded. These deisgns require a smaller number of points than most of the available five dimensional third order rotatable designs. Keywords: third order; rotatable designs; four dimensions; five dimensions; sequential > East African Journal of Statistics Vol.

  18. East African refugees adapting to life in the UK

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Samuel Bekalo

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available This article reflects on the first-hand life experiences of refugees ofEast/Horn of Africa origin on arrival in the UK. The experiences – someof which could be seen as humorous or sad – may be informative andrelevant for other practitioners.

  19. Advancing the Structural Use of Earth-based Bricks: Addressing Key Challenges in the East African Context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mang Tia

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available The research discussed in this paper is a subset of a bigger, NSF funded research project that is directed at investigating the use of sustainable building materials. The deployment context for the research is the hot and humid climate using selected cases from the East African region. The overarching goal for the research is advancing the structural use of earth-based technologies. Significant strides can be made through developing strategies for countering the adverse factors that affect the structural performance of the resulting wall, especially ones related to moisture dynamics. The research was executed in two phases. The first phase was a two-day NSF supported workshop which was held in Tanzania in July 2009. It provided a forum for sharing best practices in earth-based building technologies and developing a research and development roadmap. The priority research areas were broadly classified as optimizing the physio-mechanical properties of earth as a building material and managing socio-cultural impediments. In the second phase of the research, the authors collaborated with researchers from East Africa to conduct experimental work on the optimization of physio-mechanical properties. The specific research issues that have been addressed are: (1 characterizing the chemical reactions that can be linked to deterioration triggered by hygrothermal loads based on the hot and humid context, and; (2 developing a prototype for a simpler, portable, affordable and viable compressed brick production machine. The paper discusses the results from the characterization work that ultimately will be used to design bricks that have specific properties based on an understanding of how different stabilizers affect the hydration process. It also describes a cheaper, portable and more efficient prototype machine that has been developed as part of the follow-up research activities.

  20. A review of visceral leishmaniasis during the conflict in South Sudan and the consequences for East African countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Salem, Waleed; Herricks, Jennifer R; Hotez, Peter J

    2016-08-22

    Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), caused predominantly by Leishmania donovani and transmitted by both Phlebotomus orientalis and Phlebotomus martini, is highly endemic in East Africa where approximately 30 thousands VL cases are reported annually. The largest numbers of cases are found in Sudan - where Phlebotomus orientalis proliferate in Acacia forests especially on Sudan's eastern border with Ethiopia, followed by South Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Uganda. Long-standing civil war and unrest is a dominant determinant of VL in East African countries. Here we attempt to identify the correlation between VL epidemics and civil unrest. In this review, literature published between 1955 and 2016 have been gathered from MSF, UNICEF, OCHA, UNHCR, PubMed and Google Scholar to analyse the correlation between conflict and human suffering from VL, which is especially apparent in South Sudan. Waves of forced migration as a consequence of civil wars between 1983 and 2005 have resulted in massive and lethal epidemics in southern Sudan. Following a comprehensive peace agreement, but especially with increased allocation of resources for disease treatment and prevention in 2011, cases of VL declined reaching the lowest levels after South Sudan declared independence. However, in the latest epidemic that began in 2014 after the onset of a civil war in South Sudan, more than 1.5 million displaced refugees have migrated internally to states highly endemic for VL, while 800,000 have fled to neighboring countries. We find a strong relationship between civil unrest and VL epidemics which tend to occur among immunologically naïve migrants entering VL-endemic areas and when Leishmania-infected individuals migrate to new areas and establish additional foci of disease. Further complicating factors in East Africa's VL epidemics include severe lack of access to diagnosis and treatment, HIV/AIDS co-infection, food insecurity and malnutrition. Moreover, cases of post-kala-azar dermal

  1. Firm Productivity and Infrastructure Costs in East Africa

    OpenAIRE

    Iimi, Atsushi; Humphrey, Richard Martin; Melibaeva, Sevara

    2015-01-01

    Infrastructure is an important driving force for economic growth. It reduces trade and transaction costs and stimulates the productivity of the economy. Africa has been lagging behind in the global manufacturing market. Among others, infrastructure is an important constraint in many African countries. Using firm-level data for East Africa, the paper reexamines the relationship between firm ...

  2. Journal of East African Natural History - Vol 89 (2000)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    10.2982/0012-8317(2000)89[73:ASOTSM]2.0.CO;2 · Status of the cheetah in Tanzania in the mid 1990's · EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. PM Gros, 85-100. Germination of important East ...

  3. East African Crisis Response: Shaping Ethiopian Peace Force for Better Participation in Future Peace Operations

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Amdemichael, Haile A

    2006-01-01

    .... This thesis analyzes the Organization of African Unity/African Union (OAU/AU) efforts after the Cold War to restore security and ensure stability in the region and outlines the process of creating African Standby Forces (ASF...

  4. African financial systems: A review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Franklin Allen

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available We start by providing an overview of financial systems in the African continent. We then consider the regions of Arab North Africa, West Africa, East and Central Africa, and Southern Africa in more detail. The paper covers, among other things, central banks, deposit-taking banks, non-bank institutions, such as the stock markets, fixed income markets, insurance markets, and microfinance institutions.

  5. Risk factors for placenta praevia in Southern Nigeria | Eniola | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Design: A prospective case control study. Setting: A tertiary center - Obafemi Awolowo ... Conclusions: From our study, the risk factors for placenta praevia are a history of retained placenta, previous caesarean section, previous abortion, grand multiparity and maternal age over 35 years. (East African Medical Journal: 2002 ...

  6. Spatial vegetation patterns and neighborhood competition among woody plants in an East African savanna.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dohn, Justin; Augustine, David J; Hanan, Niall P; Ratnam, Jayashree; Sankaran, Mahesh

    2017-02-01

    The majority of research on savanna vegetation dynamics has focused on the coexistence of woody and herbaceous vegetation. Interactions among woody plants in savannas are relatively poorly understood. We present data from a 10-yr longitudinal study of spatially explicit growth patterns of woody vegetation in an East African savanna following exclusion of large herbivores and in the absence of fire. We examined plant spatial patterns and quantified the degree of competition among woody individuals. Woody plants in this semiarid savanna exhibit strongly clumped spatial distributions at scales of 1-5 m. However, analysis of woody plant growth rates relative to their conspecific and heterospecific neighbors revealed evidence for strong competitive interactions at neighborhood scales of up to 5 m for most woody plant species. Thus, woody plants were aggregated in clumps despite significantly decreased growth rates in close proximity to neighbors, indicating that the spatial distribution of woody plants in this region depends on dispersal and establishment processes rather than on competitive, density-dependent mortality. However, our documentation of suppressive effects of woody plants on neighbors also suggests a potentially important role for tree-tree competition in controlling vegetation structure and indicates that the balanced-competition hypothesis may contribute to well-known patterns in maximum tree cover across rainfall gradients in Africa. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

  7. How could herd mobility be used to manage resources and livestock ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    We consider these scenarios as starting points for discussions on future management options that pastoralists in Namaqualand may wish to consider as the managers of rangeland commons. Keywords: grazing management, herd mobility, Namaqualand, semi-arid. African Journal of Range & Forage Science 2013, ...

  8. East Africa Evaluation Hub - Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Outcome Mapping is a planning, monitoring and evaluation methodology developed by IDRC and its partners. There is an active ... This project will adapt training resources to the East African context and build the capacity of IIRR to become a regional centre of Outcome Mapping training and support. It will also promote the ...

  9. Plasmodium falciparum parasite prevalence in East Africa: A Review ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Objectives: Empirical data on malaria endemicity are rarely available for public domain use to guide effective malaria control. This paper describes the work carried in East Africa since 1997 as part of a pan-African collaboration to map the risk of malaria, Mapping Malaria Risk in Africa (MARA) aimed at redressing deficiency ...

  10. Snake Bite: A review of Current Literature | Dreyer | East and Central ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery ... Snake bite most commonly affects those living in the tropical and sub-tropical areas of Africa, Asia, the ... (WHO) recently recognised snake bite as a neglected tropical disease and this has led to a ...

  11. East African Medical Journal - Vol 83, No 9 (2006)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    An overview of health financing patterns and the way forward in the who african region · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. JM Kirigia, A Preker, G Carrin, C Mwikisa, AJ Diarra-Nama, S1-S28. http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v83i9.9492 ...

  12. Human group C rotaviruses identified in Kenya | Mwenda | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 80, No 2 (2003) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  13. Cystic Medulloblastoma in a child | Agrawal | East and Central ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 14, No 1 (2009) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register. Cystic Medulloblastoma in a child. A Agrawal ...

  14. Reducing the Burden of Cancer in East Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    The mission of CGH is to advance global cancer research, build expertise, and leverage resources across nations to reduce cancer deaths worldwide. To carry out that mission, we facilitate the sharing of knowledge and expertise. CGH's latest effort, the East Africa Cancer Control Leadership Forum, carried out this mission by helping African partners develop their own individual cancer control programs.

  15. Treatment of human and livestock helminth infections in a mobile pastoralist setting at Lake Chad: Attitudes to health and analysis of active pharmaceutical ingredients of locally available anthelminthic drugs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greter, Helena; Cowan, Noemi; Ngandolo, Bongo N; Kessely, Hamit; Alfaroukh, Idriss O; Utzinger, Jürg; Keiser, Jennifer; Zinsstag, Jakob

    2017-11-01

    Mobile pastoralists face challenges in accessing quality health care and medication for managing human and animal diseases. We determined livestock disease priorities, health seeking behaviour of people bearing helminthiases and - placing particular emphasis on trematode infections - treatment strategies and outcome satisfaction among mobile pastoralists of four ethnic groups in the Lake Chad area using focus group discussions. People suffering from schistosomiasis were interviewed about symptoms, health seeking behaviour and their satisfaction with respect to the provided treatment. Anthelminthic drugs for human and veterinary use obtained from various health care structures were analysed for active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and quantity, using high pressure liquid chromatography-UV and liquid chromatography combined with tandem mass spectrometry. Most people suffering from schistosomiasis sought treatment at health care centres. Yet, they also consulted informal providers without medical training. Regarding animal health, self-mediated therapy was common to manage suspected livestock fascioliasis. Self-reported treatment satisfaction for human schistosomiasis and trematodiasis treatment outcome in livestock were low. Mobile pastoralists perceived the purchased drugs to be of low quality. Among 33 products locally sold as anthelminthic drugs for human or veterinary use, 27 contained albendazole or mebendazole, varying between 91% and 159% of the labelled amount. Six products were sold loosely with incomplete information and their API could not be identified. No counterfeit anthelminthic drugs were detected. None of the samples contained praziquantel or triclabendazole, the drugs of choice against schistosomiasis and fascioliasis, respectively. The perceived unsatisfactory treatment outcomes in humans and animals infected with trematodes are most likely due to empiric diagnosis and the resulting use of inadequate therapy for human schistosomiasis and the

  16. The beginnings of dairying as practised by pastoralists in ‘green’ Saharan Africa in the 5th millennium BC

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Julie Dunne

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Previous research has identified the antiquity and chronology of dairying practices as beginning in the Near East and its subsequent spread across Europe. In the Libyan Sahara, archaeological evidence, confirmed by the remarkable rock art depicting cattle herding, together with faunal evidence, also suggests an early inception of dairying practices in North Africa and the formation of an independent ‘secondary products’ economy by mobile pastoral groups. In this paper, we elaborate on the first unequivocal chemical evidence, based on the δ13C and Δ13C values of the major fatty acids of milk fat, for the adoption of dairying practices by prehistoric Saharan African people in the fifth millennium BC.

  17. Extra-territorial African police and soldiers in Southern Rhodesia ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Southern Rhodesia were dominated by African men from neighbouring territories such as Nyasaland, Northern Rhodesia and Portuguese East Africa who had entered the regional migrant labour system. This included many with previous military experience. As the British South Africa Police (BSAP) evolved from a ...

  18. Household Density and Infant Care in an East African Society

    Science.gov (United States)

    Munroe, Ruth H.; Munroe, Robert L.

    1971-01-01

    A cross-cultural relationship between household density and infant indulgence was investigated among Logoli infants in East Africa. Findings were taken as supportive of the view that socialization practices are influenced by ecological variables. (Author/JB)

  19. The genus Atheris (Serpentes: Viperidae) in East Africa: phylogeny and the role of rifting and climate in shaping the current pattern of species diversity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menegon, M; Loader, S P; Marsden, S J; Branch, W R; Davenport, T R B; Ursenbacher, S

    2014-10-01

    Past climatic and tectonic events are believed to have strongly influenced species diversity in the Eastern Afromontane Biodiversity Hotspot. We investigated the phylogenetic relationships and historical biogeography of the East African genus Atheris (Serpentes: Viperidae), and explored temporal and spatial relationships between Atheris species across Africa, and the impact of palaeoclimatic fluctuations and tectonic movements on cladogenesis of the genus. Using mitochondrial sequence data, the phylogeny of East African species of Atheris shows congruent temporal patterns that link diversification to major tectonic and aridification events within East Africa over the last 15million years (my). Our results are consistent with a scenario of a delayed direct west-east colonisation of the Eastern Arc Mountains of Atheris by the formation of the western rift. Based on the phylogenetic patterns, this terrestrial, forest-associated genus has dispersed into East Africa across a divided route, on both west-southeasterly and west-northeasterly directions (a C-shaped route). Cladogenesis in the Eastern Arc Mountains and Southern Highlands of Tanzania corresponds to late Miocene and Plio-Pleistocene climatic shifts. Taxonomically, our data confirmed the monophyly of Atheris as currently defined, and reveal four major East African clades, three of which occur in discrete mountain ranges. Possible cryptic taxa are identified in the Atheris rungweensis and A. ceratophora clades. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Relevance of pottery on traditional African economy: an ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This study probes the relevance of potteries in archaeological records in the reconstruction of traditional African economy as shown among the people of North-East Yoruba land of Nigeria. The use of ethnoarchaeological paradigms in the study of potteries, which has been employed in this study, can shed immense lights ...

  1. Nile perch fish processing waste along Lake Victoria in East Africa ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Nile perch fish processing waste along Lake Victoria in East Africa: Auditing and characterization. ... African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology ... If you would like more information about how to print, save, and work with PDFs, Highwire Press provides a helpful Frequently Asked Questions about PDFs.

  2. Piebald Camels

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriele Volpato

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Animal breeds are the diverse outcome of the thousands-year-long process of livestock domestication. Many of these breeds are piebald, resulting from the artificial selection by pastoralists of animals bearing a genetic condition known as leucism, and selected for their productive, behavioural, or aesthetical traits. Piebald dromedary camels have not been studied or discussed before, and their same existence is often overlooked. Based on fieldwork in Western Sahara, direct observations across Northern and East Africa and the Middle East, and a literature review, we address the morphological and behavioural traits, geographical distribution, taxonomy, and material and cultural importance of piebald (painted camels. They are a hundreds-year-old camel breed used for caravans, as mounts, and for aesthetical and cultural reasons across Sudan, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, Western Sahara, and Morocco. While they are increasingly bred out of a pastoral context for tourism and entertainment in the Canary Islands, mainland Europe, and the USA, in part of their original African range, piebald camels are under threat due to wars, droughts, and demise of pastoral livelihoods. More research is needed about these ‘beautiful and dignified’ animals.

  3. ISSN 2073 ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online) 9990 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    COSECSA/ASEA Publication East and Central African Journal of Surgery. ... Bisphosphonates are currently widely used in the treatment of osteoporosis. ... Subtrochanteric fracture, lateral cortical thickening (solid black arrows), .... Schilcher J, Aspenberg P.Incidence of stress fractures of the femoral shaft in women treated.

  4. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online) 89

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Hp 630 Dual Core

    (Online). Publication COSECSA/ASEA -East and Central African Journal of Surgery. ... Vein Thrombosis – a Management ilemma – a Case Report. S G Mungazi, D .... A 67 year old hypertensive female patient initially presented to the Physicians with a history of .... survival in the absence of an IVC catheter. Whilst no major ...

  5. Tropical South-East Atlantic response to ENSO as an ecosystem ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Cases were selected based on indices of Pacific sea surface temperature and South-East African rainfall. ... an El Niño event, and higher sardine Sardinops sagax catches tend to follow a La Niña event, through the northward and southward shift respectively of the South Atlantic anticyclone and attendant coastal upwelling.

  6. Three new fern records for Kilimanjaro | Hemp | Journal of East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Working on the flora and vegetation of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, three ferns in three families were found that are not yet recorded for the floral region T2. The altitudinal range, localities and habitat description are given for Adiantum reniforme, Azolla africana and Trichomanes radicans. Journal of East African Natural History ...

  7. African Peace and Security Architecture: A Strategic Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-12-16

    International Development Agency DDR Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration EAC East African Community EASBRICOM Africa Standby Brigade...children, drug control, population, migration, labour and employment, sports and culture); Human resources, science and technology (education...disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR), security sector reform (SSR), and responsibility to protect (R2P) to peacebuilding, peacekeeping, and

  8. Contemporary Journal of African Studies - Vol 1, No 1 (2013)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Lion Cities: Deflating the MDG success of East Asian Tigers to a Worldwide Success Story of Dense Urban Areas with Greater Capacity · EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. A Krauss, 105-110 ...

  9. Clothing Matters: Asian-African Businessmen in European Suits 1880-1980

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    G. Oonk (Gijsbert)

    2011-01-01

    textabstractSummary Asian businessmen in East Africa supplied goods, services and capital to African, Arabic, Asian and European customers, traders and other businessmen. In this complex cultural environment, they had to choose what to wear on any given what occasion. Expressing dignity, wealth,

  10. Mapping and quantification of organic agro-industrial residues in East Africa

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jungersen, G. [Dansk Teknologisk Inst. (Denmark); Kivaisi, A.; Rubindamayugi, M. [Univ. of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania, United Republic of)

    1998-05-01

    The East-African agro-industries generate very large quantities of organic residues from production and processing of different crops. These residues form a major contribution to the pollution of air, soil and water ways, but, at the same time they constitute a large potential for production of bioenergy through anaerobic digestion as well as potential substrate for other biological fermentation processes. The utilization of these resources for production of valuable products would contribute significantly to: Improvement of the local energy supply, through production of bio-energy; Improvement of the economy of the East African agro-industry; Reduction of the environmental impact from the agro-industrial sector. Except for production of cane sugar, most agro-industrial residues are generated from cash crops, which are produced and processed in the developing countries and where the final products mainly are used for export. In the East-African Region the most important of these crops are: Sisal, coffee, Cashew nuts and Pineapple. In addition significant quantities of organic residues are generated from other food processing activities like breweries, consumption of bananas etc. The total potential methane production of the residues available for use in biomethanization systems in East Africa is 189.61 million m{sup 3} of methane per year. Converted to diesel oil equivalents and including the residues only feasible for combustion systems, the total bioenergy potential of agro-industrial residues in Eastern Africa is 279,176 TOE. If this potential was fully utilized for production of electricity, it would correspond to installed effects of 37,68 and 31 MW in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, respectively, equivalent to 10%, 11% and 18% of the currently installed effect is these countries. Residues from sisal and coffee processing constitute the main part of the bioenergy potential, on average approximately 75%, while the remaining 25% of the potential are formed by the

  11. Oral hygiene practices and risk of oral leukoplakia | Macigo | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    East African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 83, No 4 (2006) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should ...

  12. ISSN 2073-9990 East Cent. Afr. J. surg. (Online) 99

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Hp 630 Dual Core

    East and Central African Journal of Surgery. August/September 2016 Volume 21 Number 2. 99. Case of Osteosarcoma Presenting Primarily .... РЖЛГР ЗЖ ГЗЖЛГЦФ РЕСО 31 (1): 18 20, Jan Mar 2010. 2. Mana M, Houda A: Low Grade Central ...

  13. Mainstreaming road safety in the regional integration of the East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The East African Community (EAC) comprising of five states: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda bear a disproportionate burden of the global public health burden for road traffic injuries (RTIs). In response to this, each state has devised its own road safety measures, but not at the EAC level. This paper aims to ...

  14. Relevance of East African Drill Cores to Human Evolution: the Case of the Olorgesailie Drilling Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Potts, R.

    2016-12-01

    Drill cores reaching the local basement of the East African Rift were obtained in 2012 south of the Olorgesailie Basin, Kenya, 20 km from excavations that document key benchmarks in the origin of Homo sapiens. Sediments totaling 216 m were obtained from two drilling locations representing the past 1 million years. The cores were acquired to build a detailed environmental record spatially associated with the transition from Acheulean to Middle Stone Age technology and extensive turnover in mammalian species. The project seeks precise tests of how climate dynamics and tectonic events were linked with these transitions. Core lithology (A.K. Behrensmeyer), geochronology (A. Deino), diatoms (R.B. Owen), phytoliths (R. Kinyanjui), geochemistry (N. Rabideaux, D. Deocampo), among other indicators, show evidence of strong environmental variability in agreement with predicted high-eccentricity modulation of climate during the evolutionary transitions. Increase in hominin mobility, elaboration of symbolic behavior, and concurrent turnover in mammalian species indicating heightened adaptability to unpredictable ecosystems, point to a direct link between the evolutionary transitions and the landscape dynamics reflected in the Olorgesailie drill cores. For paleoanthropologists and Earth scientists, any link between evolutionary transitions and environmental dynamics requires robust evolutionary datasets pertinent to how selection, extinction, population divergence, and other evolutionary processes were impacted by the dynamics uncovered in drill core studies. Fossil and archeological data offer a rich source of data and of robust environment-evolution explanations that must be integrated into efforts by Earth scientists who seek to examine high-resolution climate records of human evolution. Paleoanthropological examples will illustrate the opportunities that exist for connecting evolutionary benchmarks to the data obtained from drilled African muds. Project members: R. Potts, A

  15. East Africa, an oil geopolitics at high risk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Auge, Benjamin

    2012-11-01

    As the Sub-Saharan African oil production has been concentrated in the Guinea Gulf countries since the 1950's, as this region remains the main African oil producer (Maghreb excluded), and as new discoveries has been made in Uganda in 2006 and exploration has been extended to neighbouring countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique), this report first questions the situation of the exploration of the Albert Lake by proposing an overview of intervening actors, by commenting the political use of the debate about oil, by commenting the situation on the Congolese side of the lake, and by commenting how the lake is shared between Uganda and the Republic of Congo. In the next part, the author discusses the use and future of the Ugandan oil by outlining the role of the Essar company in the regional refining, and by evoking projects of regional pipelines. The last part addresses the status of exploration in other East African countries (Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Mozambique)

  16. Teachers’ Perceptions on the Use of African Languages in the Curriculum: A Case Study of Schools in Kenya, East Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martin C. Njoroge

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available In order to revitalize African languages and advocate for their use as media of instruction in Kenyan schools, it is important to investigate and document the teachers’ attitude towards the use of these languages in teaching. The research on which this paper is based set forth to explore teachers’ perceptions on the use of the mother tongue as the language of instruction in Kenya, East Africa. Six schools out of 54 public schools in the Gatundu district were randomly sampled. 32 teachers of Grades 1-3 were interviewed to find out the actual practices in their classrooms, the challenges they faced, and the perceptions they held in relation to the use of the mother tongue in their teaching. The data were qualitatively analyzed and the emergent findings support the claim that the use of learners’ mother tongue is beneficial to learners. In addition, the paper discusses the findings and proposes recommendations for pedagogy.

  17. Giant fat containing breast masses: report of six cases | Hanna | East ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Six patients with giant fat containing breast masses encountered over a 20 year period are presented including a brief review of the literature. These benign tumours especially the giant varieties are rare but are likely to be increasingly diagnosed because of the widespread use of mammography. (East African Medical ...

  18. the effect of drought in south east ethiopia: study of pediatric ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Balcha Girma

    BACK GROUND: The East African region of the continent, particularly Ethiopia experienced prolonged drought during 1997-2000 resulting in severe food shortage especially in southeast part of the country. As a result people, mostly children suffered from malnutrition, which is associated cause of death for more than half of ...

  19. What we do | Page 117 | IDRC - International Development ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    India, Central Asia, Far East Asia, South Asia ... Women's Access to Land and Natural Resources in Pastoralist and Forest Communities in ... Egyptian coastal populations are already affected by coastal erosion, ... The global financial crisis of 2008 has aggravated poverty and inequality through contractions in employment, ...

  20. Maritime vessels carry more than half of growing U.S.-East Africa trade

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-03-01

    Trade between the United States and East African countries (defined in this special report as Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda) has grown substantially in recent years, reaching $1.3 billion in value in 2007. Between 1997 and 2007, U.S. e...

  1. Survey of gastrointestinal parasite infection in African lion ( Panthera ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Little is known about gastrointestinal parasite infections in large carnivores in Africa and what is available is largely from East Africa. We collected faecal samples from nine spotted hyaenas (Crocuta crocuta), 15 lions (Panthera leo) and 13 African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) from Luangwa Valley, Zambia. The most common ...

  2. Hantavirus strains in East Africa related to Western African hantaviruses

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Těšíková, Jana; Bryjová, Anna; Bryja, Josef; Lavrenchenko, L. A.; Goüy de Bellocq, Joëlle

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 17, č. 4 (2017), s. 278-280 ISSN 1530-3667 R&D Projects: GA ČR GCP502/11/J070 Institutional support: RVO:68081766 Keywords : bats * East Africa * hantavirus * phylogeny * rodents Subject RIV: EE - Microbiology, Virology OBOR OECD: Infectious Diseases Impact factor: 2.045, year: 2016

  3. Adopting Cultivation to Remain Pastoralists: The Diversification of Maasai Livelihoods in Northern Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCabe, J Terrence; Leslie, Paul W; Deluca, Laura

    2010-06-01

    Over the past four decades, Maasai pastoralists in Tanzania have adopted agriculture, integrating it with their traditional pastoralism. This livelihood diversification has complex origins and profound implications for Maasai social organization, culture, and demography, and ultimately for their health and well being and for the local and regional environment. In this paper, we examine the process by which this engagement with, and increasing dependence upon, agriculture came about in Ngorongoro District, northern Tanzania. The process there was more complex and influenced by a wider variety of factors than has been reported by previous descriptions of Maasai livelihood diversification. It generally involved two stages: planting a garden first, and later expanding the garden to a farm. We found that some households adopted cultivation out of necessity, but far more did so by choice. Among the latter, some adopted cultivation to reduce risk, while for others it was a reflection of changing cultural and social norms. Motivations for adopting cultivation differed among people of different wealth categories. Diversification was part of wider cultural changes, and was also influenced by power differentials among Maasai age sets and by government policies.

  4. HPV infection and EGFR activation/alteration in HIV-infected East African patients with conjunctival carcinoma.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jing Jie Yu

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available There has been substantial growth in the numbers of patients with conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma infected with HIV in East Africa. The natural history of the conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma appears to be unique in this region of the world, but the etiologic mechanism unclear and therapeutic options limited. This research was carried out to determine if conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma harbors human papillomavirus DNA and is associated with activation of the EGFR signaling pathway. Positive findings would identify etiologic causes and provide clinical guidance to improve treatment.Expression of p-MAPK/MAPK, p-Akt/Akt and p-EGFR/EGFR in cell nuclei and cytoplasm of 38 FFPE specimens were assessed by immunohistochemistry; HPV genotype was detected by qPCR assay; EGFR mutation was assessed by DNA sequencing analysis; and EGFR mRNA expression was measured using relative qPCR. Statistical analyses included two-sided Fisher exact test or chi-square test, Spearman correlation coefficient and ANOVA. HPV 18 was found in 61% of samples, with HPV 16 double-genotype in 6 patients (16%. Immunohistochemistry and qPCR data suggest that activation and expression of the EGFR signaling pathway is related to disease progression of conjunctival cancer. The associations between cytoplasmic p-MAPK, cytoplasmic p-Akt and tumor invasiveness were significant (p = 0.05 or 0.028. Nuclear p-EGFR appeared only in invasive tumors. A significant positive association between EGFR expression and disease invasiveness was observed (p = 0.01. A SNP in 10 patients and one missense mutation were found within EGFR tyrosine kinase domain. Statistical analysis indicates that patients with measurable EGFR expression more likely harbor EGFR mutations, compared to those with negative EGFR expression (35.3% vs. 0%.We conclude that HPV types 16/18 infection is frequent in East African patients with AIDS-associated squamous cell carcinoma of the conjunctiva. EGFR activation

  5. Analysis of the genetic diversity of selected East African sweet potato

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Aghomotsegin

    Taiwan. Orange. 65. Mugande x New kawogo 2. Uganda. Cream. 66. Bungoma. Uganda .... African countries is still very slow due to financial and technical .... IPGRI, Rome,. Italy and Institute for Genetic Diversity, Ithaca, New York, USA. ISBN:.

  6. Tectonics, orbital forcing, global climate change, and human evolution in Africa: introduction to the African paleoclimate special volume.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maslin, Mark A; Christensen, Beth

    2007-11-01

    The late Cenozoic climate of Africa is a critical component for understanding human evolution. African climate is controlled by major tectonic changes, global climate transitions, and local variations in orbital forcing. We introduce the special African Paleoclimate Issue of the Journal of Human Evolution by providing a background for and synthesis of the latest work relating to the environmental context for human evolution. Records presented in this special issue suggest that the regional tectonics, appearance of C(4) plants in East Africa, and late Cenozoic global cooling combined to produce a long-term drying trend in East Africa. Of particular importance is the uplift associated with the East African Rift Valley formation, which altered wind flow patterns from a more zonal to more meridinal direction. Results in this volume suggest a marked difference in the climate history of southern and eastern Africa, though both are clearly influenced by the major global climate thresholds crossed in the last 3 million years. Papers in this volume present lake, speleothem, and marine paleoclimate records showing that the East African long-term drying trend is punctuated by episodes of short, alternating periods of extreme wetness and aridity. These periods of extreme climate variability are characterized by the precession-forced appearance and disappearance of large, deep lakes in the East African Rift Valley and paralleled by low and high wind-driven dust loads reaching the adjacent ocean basins. Dating of these records show that over the last 3 million years such periods only occur at the times of major global climatic transitions, such as the intensification of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation (2.7-2.5 Ma), intensification of the Walker Circulation (1.9-1.7 Ma), and the Mid-Pleistocene Revolution (1-0.7 Ma). Authors in this volume suggest this onset occurs as high latitude forcing in both Hemispheres compresses the Intertropical Convergence Zone so that East Africa

  7. Characteristics of US-Born Versus Foreign-Born Americans of African Descent With Chronic Hepatitis B.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hassan, Mohamed A; Kim, W Ray; Li, Ruosha; Smith, Coleman I; Fried, Michael W; Sterling, Richard K; Ghany, Marc G; Wahed, Abdus S; Ganova-Raeva, Lilia M; Roberts, Lewis R; Lok, Anna S F

    2017-08-01

    Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is more common in African Americans than in white Americans. We compared the epidemiologic, clinical, and virological characteristics of US-born African Americans (USAAs) to those of foreign-born African Americans (FBAAs) with chronic hepatitis B. The adult cohort study of the Hepatitis B Research Network enrolls patients with HBV infection from 21 clinical sites in the United States and Canada. A total of 237 (15%) of the adult participants with chronic HBV infection that were enrolled from January 20, 2011, to October 2, 2013, were of African descent, including 57 USAAs and 180 FBAAs (76%). Compared with FBAAs, USAAs were older and more likely to have acquired HBV through sexual exposure, to be HBeAg-positive, to have higher HBV DNA levels, and to be infected with HBV genotype A2. FBAAs from West Africa were more likely to have elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (72% vs. 50%; P < 0.01) and higher HBV DNA levels (median, 3.2 log10 IU/mL vs. 2.8 log10 IU/mL; P = 0.03) compared with East African FBAAs. The predominant HBV genotype among West African FBAAs was E (67%), whereas genotypes A (78%) and D (16%) were common in East African FBAAs. Significant differences were found between USAAs and FBAAs, highlighting the need for tailored strategies for prevention and management of chronic HBV infection for African Americans. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  8. East and Central African Journal of Surgery Volume 15 Number 2 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DELL

    population live10 and own about 20% of the world's vehicles. The WHO African ... used as a base line for future progression and comparison, these are Motorization index (Vehicle .... Motor vehicle crash. 782. 0. 0. 0 ... Electric accident. 36. 0. 0.

  9. The African Health Profession Regulatory Collaborative for Nurses and Midwives

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    McCarthy Carey F

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background More than thirty-five sub-Saharan African countries have severe health workforce shortages. Many also struggle with a mismatch between the knowledge and competencies of health professionals and the needs of the populations they serve. Addressing these workforce challenges requires collaboration among health and education stakeholders and reform of health worker regulations. Health professional regulatory bodies, such as nursing and midwifery councils, have the mandate to reform regulations yet often do not have the resources or expertise to do so. In 2011, the United States of America Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began a four-year initiative to increase the collaboration among national stakeholders and help strengthen the capacity of health professional regulatory bodies to reform national regulatory frameworks. The initiative is called the African Health Regulatory Collaborative for Nurses and Midwives. This article describes the African Health Regulatory Collaborative for Nurses and Midwives and discusses its importance in implementing and sustaining national, regional, and global workforce initiatives. Discussion The African Health Profession Regulatory Collaborative for Nurses and Midwives convenes leaders responsible for regulation from 14 countries in East, Central and Southern Africa. It provides a high profile, south-to-south collaboration to assist countries in implementing joint approaches to problems affecting the health workforce. Implemented in partnership with Emory University, the Commonwealth Secretariat, and the East, Central and Southern African College of Nursing, this initiative also supports four to five countries per year in implementing locally-designed regulation improvement projects. Over time, the African Health Regulatory Collaborative for Nurses and Midwives will help to increase the regulatory capacity of health professional organizations and ultimately improve regulation and

  10. African Heath Sciences Vol 8 No 1.p65

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Harriet

    2008-03-01

    Mar 1, 2008 ... 12: 59. 7. Ejele OA, Nwauche CA, Erhabor O. Seroprevalence of HIV infection among Blood donors in port Harcourt, Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Medicine 2005; 14:287-89. 8. Zachariah et al. HIV prevalence and demographic risk fac- tors in blood donors. East African Medical Journal. 2002;. 79: 88-91. 9.

  11. A south equatorial African precipitation dipole and the associated atmospheric circulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dezfuli, A. K.; Zaitchik, B.; Gnanadesikan, A.

    2013-12-01

    South Equatorial Africa (SEA) is a climatically diverse region that includes a dramatic topographic and vegetation contrast between the lowland, humid Congo basin to the west and the East African Plateau to the east. Due to lack of conventional weather data and a tendency for researchers to treat East and western Africa as separate regions, dynamics of the atmospheric water cycle across SEA have received relatively little attention, particularly at subseasonal timescales. Both western and eastern sectors of SEA are affected by large-scale drivers of the water cycle associated with Atlantic variability (western sector), Indian Ocean variability (eastern sector) and Pacific variability (both sectors). However, a specific characteristic of SEA is strong heterogeneity in interannual rainfall variability that cannot be explained by large-scale climatic phenomena. For this reason, this study examines regional climate dynamics on daily time-scale with a focus on the role that the abrupt topographic contrast between the lowland Congo and the East African highlands plays in driving rainfall behavior on short timescales. Analysis of daily precipitation data during November-March reveals a zonally-oriented dipole mode over SEA that explains the leading pattern of weather-scale precipitation variability in the region. The separating longitude of the two poles is coincident with the zonal variation of topography. An anomalous counter-clockwise atmospheric circulation associated with the dipole mode appears over the entire SEA. The circulation is triggered by its low-level westerly component, which is in turn generated by an interhemispheric pressure gradient. These enhanced westerlies hit the East African highlands and produce topographically-driven low-level convergence and convection that further intensifies the circulation. Recent studies have shown that under climate change the position and intensity of subtropical highs in both hemispheres and the intensity of

  12. Journal of East African Natural History - Vol 86, No 1 (1997)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1997)86[1:ACIT]2.0.CO;2 · New fern records for Kilimanjaro · EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. Andreas Hemp, 37-42. Zoogeography and biodiversity of syrphidae (Diptera) in East Africa ...

  13. Journal of East African Natural History - Vol 88, No 1 (1999)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Canthariphilous insects in east Africa · EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. C Hemp, A Hemp, K Dettner, 1-15. http://dx.doi.org/10.2982/0012-8317(1999)88[1:CIIEA]2.0.CO;2 ...

  14. Loci associated with skin pigmentation identified in African populations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crawford, Nicholas G.; Kelly, Derek E.; Hansen, Matthew E. B.; Beltrame, Marcia H.; Fan, Shaohua; Bowman, Shanna L.; Jewett, Ethan; Ranciaro, Alessia; Thompson, Simon; Lo, Yancy; Pfeifer, Susanne P.; Jensen, Jeffrey D.; Campbell, Michael C.; Beggs, William; Hormozdiari, Farhad; Mpoloka, Sununguko Wata; Mokone, Gaonyadiwe George; Nyambo, Thomas; Meskel, Dawit Wolde; Belay, Gurja; Haut, Jake; Rothschild, Harriet; Zon, Leonard; Zhou, Yi; Kovacs, Michael A.; Xu, Mai; Zhang, Tongwu; Bishop, Kevin; Sinclair, Jason; Rivas, Cecilia; Elliot, Eugene; Choi, Jiyeon; Li, Shengchao A.; Hicks, Belynda; Burgess, Shawn; Abnet, Christian; Watkins-Chow, Dawn E.; Oceana, Elena; Song, Yun S.; Eskin, Eleazar; Brown, Kevin M.; Marks, Michael S.; Loftus, Stacie K.; Pavan, William J.; Yeager, Meredith; Chanock, Stephen; Tishkoff, Sarah

    2017-01-01

    Despite the wide range of skin pigmentation in humans, little is known about its genetic basis in global populations. Examining ethnically diverse African genomes, we identify variants in or near SLC24A5, MFSD12, DDB1, TMEM138, OCA2 and HERC2 that are significantly associated with skin pigmentation. Genetic evidence indicates that the light pigmentation variant at SLC24A5 was introduced into East Africa by gene flow from non-Africans. At all other loci, variants associated with dark pigmentation in Africans are identical by descent in southern Asian and Australo-Melanesian populations. Functional analyses indicate that MFSD12 encodes a lysosomal protein that affects melanogenesis in zebrafish and mice, and that mutations in melanocyte-specific regulatory regions near DDB1/TMEM138 correlate with expression of UV response genes under selection in Eurasians. PMID:29025994

  15. Aspects of size and geography of an African cyberspace

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Williams Nwagwu

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available In this study, data on web links collected from 15 African countries, three with the highest Internet penetration in each of North, West, Central, East, and South regions were used to study the number and origins of links to Africa. The sample has a ratio of one Internet user per 12 persons. Altogether, all African countries generated a total of 124,047,702 Web pages and 30,546,967 inlinks to the pages, an average of about 0.25 links per page. But the sample constituted which 28% of all the countries in the region generated 98,629,700 pages and 21,272,500 inlinks, an average of about 0.21 inlinks per page. South Africa ranked highest in web pages and web links per population and also received the highest number of inlinks from other African countries and the G8. However, Kenya linked other African countries more than the others did. Population size does not relate to number of web pages, self-inlinks, and inlinks or penetration, but relates positively with number of Internet users. Among others, a major step in boosting use of Internet resources in Africa will be in developing policies that will encourage African countries to use information developed by other African countries.

  16. Shifting livelihood strategies in northern Nigeria - extensified production and livelihood diversification amongst Fulani pastoralists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Majekodunmi, Ayodele O; Dongkum, Charles; Langs, Tok; Shaw, Alexandra P M; Welburn, Susan C

    2017-01-01

    This paper presents an in-depth investigation of the livelihood strategies of Fulani pastoralists in north central Nigeria. Results show a diversified crop-livestock system aimed at spreading risk and reducing cattle offtake, adapted to natural resource competition and insecurity by extensification, with further diversification into off-farm activities to spread risk, increase livelihood security and capture opportunities. However, significant costs were associated with extensification, and integration of crop and livestock enterprises was limited. Mean total income per capita in the study area was $554 or $1.52/person/day with 42% of households earning less than 1.25/person/day. Income levels were positively correlated with income diversity and price received per animal sold, rather than herd size. The outcomes of this livelihood strategy were favourable across the whole community, but when individual households are considered, there was evidence of moderate economic inequality in total income, cash income and herd size (Gini coefficient 0.32, 0.35 and 0.43 respectively). The poorest households were quite vulnerable, with low assets, income and income diversity. Implications for sustainability are discussed given the likelihood that the negative trends of reduced access to natural resources and insecurity will continue.

  17. Littoral sedimentation of rift lakes: an illustrated overview from the modern to Pliocene Lake Turkana (East African Rift System, Kenya)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuster, Mathieu; Nutz, Alexis

    2015-04-01

    Existing depositional models for rift lakes can be summarized as clastics transported by axial and lateral rivers, then distributed by fan-deltas and/or deltas into a standing water body which is dominated by settling of fine particles, and experiencing occasional coarser underflows. Even if known from paleolakes and modern lakes, reworking of clastics by alongshore drift, waves and storms are rarely considered in depositional models. However, if we consider the lake Turkana Basin (East African Rift System, Kenya) it is obvious that this vision is incomplete. Three representative time slices are considered here: the modern Lake Turkana, the Megalake Turkana which developed thanks to the African Humid Period (Holocene), and the Plio-Pleistocene highstand episodes of paleolake Turkana (Nachukui, Shungura and Koobi Fora Formations, Omo Group). First, remarkable clastic morphosedimentary structures such as beach ridges, spits, washover fans, lagoons, or wave-dominated deltas are very well developed along the shoreline of modern lake Turkana, suggesting strong hydrodynamics responsible for a major reworking of the fluvial-derived clastics all along the littoral zone (longshore and cross-shore transport) of the lake. Similarly, past hydrodynamics are recorded from prominent raised beach ridges and spits, well-preserved all around the lake, above its present water-level (~360 m asl) and up to ~455 m. These large-scale clastic morphosedimentary structures also record the maximum extent of Megalake Turkana during the African Humid Period, as well as its subsequent regression forced by the end of the Holocene climatic optimum. Several hundreds of meters of fluvial-deltaic-lacustrine deposits spanning the Pliocene-Pleistocene are exposed in the Turkana basin thanks to tectonic faulting. These deposits are world famous for their paleontological and archeological content that documents the very early story of Mankind. They also preserve several paleolake highstand episodes with

  18. Characterising East Antarctic Lithosphere and its Rift Systems using Gravity Inversion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vaughan, Alan P. M.; Kusznir, Nick J.; Ferraccioli, Fausto; Leat, Phil T.; Jordan, Tom A. R. M.; Purucker, Michael E.; Golynsky, A. V. Sasha; Rogozhina, Irina

    2013-04-01

    Since the International Geophysical Year (1957), a view has prevailed that East Antarctica has a relatively homogeneous lithospheric structure, consisting of a craton-like mosaic of Precambrian terranes, stable since the Pan-African orogeny ~500 million years ago (e.g. Ferracioli et al. 2011). Recent recognition of a continental-scale rift system cutting the East Antarctic interior has crystallised an alternative view of much more recent geological activity with important implications. The newly defined East Antarctic Rift System (EARS) (Ferraccioli et al. 2011) appears to extend from at least the South Pole to the continental margin at the Lambert Rift, a distance of 2500 km. This is comparable in scale to the well-studied East African rift system. New analysis of RadarSat data by Golynsky & Golynsky (2009) indicates that further rift zones may form widely distributed extension zones within the continent. A pilot study (Vaughan et al. 2012), using a newly developed gravity inversion technique (Chappell & Kusznir 2008) with existing public domain satellite data, shows distinct crustal thickness provinces with overall high average thickness separated by thinner, possibly rifted, crust. Understanding the nature of crustal thickness in East Antarctica is critical because: 1) this is poorly known along the ocean-continent transition, but is necessary to improve the plate reconstruction fit between Antarctica, Australia and India in Gondwana, which will also better define how and when these continents separated; 2) lateral variation in crustal thickness can be used to test supercontinent reconstructions and assess the effects of crystalline basement architecture and mechanical properties on rifting; 3) rift zone trajectories through East Antarctica will define the geometry of zones of crustal and lithospheric thinning at plate-scale; 4) it is not clear why or when the crust of East Antarctica became so thick and elevated, but knowing this can be used to test models of

  19. Spatial modelling of malaria risk factors in Ruhuha sector in the east of Rwanda

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tuyishimire, J.; Kateera, F.; Mugisha, J.; Amer, S.; Mens, P.

    2017-01-01

    Malaria is a vector borne disease posing a severe health risk to the population of Sub Saharan Africa and particularly in the East African Rift-Valley Region. The fact that malaria is still killing hundreds of thousands of people annually is due to insufficient researchers about its causing factors

  20. Trading or coercion? Variation in male mating strategies between two communities of East African chimpanzees.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaburu, Stefano S K; Newton-Fisher, Nicholas E

    2015-06-01

    Across taxa, males employ a variety of mating strategies, including sexual coercion and the provision, or trading, of resources. Biological market theory (BMT) predicts that trading of commodities for mating opportunities should exist only when males cannot monopolize access to females and/or obtain mating by force, in situations where power differentials between males are low; both coercion and trading have been reported for chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ). Here, we investigate whether the choice of strategy depends on the variation in male power differentials, using data from two wild communities of East African chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii ): the structurally despotic Sonso community (Budongo, Uganda) and the structurally egalitarian M-group (Mahale, Tanzania). We found evidence of sexual coercion by male Sonso chimpanzees, and of trading-of grooming for mating-by M-group males; females traded sex for neither meat nor protection from male aggression. Our results suggest that the despotism-egalitarian axis influences strategy choice: male chimpanzees appear to pursue sexual coercion when power differentials are large and trading when power differentials are small and coercion consequently ineffective. Our findings demonstrate that trading and coercive strategies are not restricted to particular chimpanzee subspecies; instead, their occurrence is consistent with BMT predictions. Our study raises interesting, and as yet unanswered, questions regarding female chimpanzees' willingness to trade sex for grooming, if doing so represents a compromise to their fundamentally promiscuous mating strategy. It highlights the importance of within-species cross-group comparisons and the need for further study of the relationship between mating strategy and dominance steepness.

  1. Land - Ocean Climate Linkages and the Human Evolution - New ICDP and IODP Drilling Initiatives in the East African Rift Valley and SW Indian Ocean

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zahn, R.; Feibel, C.; Co-Pis, Icdp/Iodp

    2009-04-01

    The past 5 Ma were marked by systematic shifts towards colder climates and concomitant reorganizations in ocean circulation and marine heat transports. Some of the changes involved plate-tectonic shifts such as the closure of the Panamanian Isthmus and restructuring of the Indonesian archipelago that affected inter-ocean communications and altered the world ocean circulation. These changes induced ocean-atmosphere feedbacks with consequences for climates globally and locally. Two new ICDP and IODP drilling initiatives target these developments from the perspectives of marine and terrestrial palaeoclimatology and the human evolution. The ICDP drilling initiative HSPDP ("Hominid Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project"; ICDP ref. no. 10/07) targets lacustrine depocentres in Ethiopia (Hadar) and Kenya (West Turkana, Olorgesailie, Magadi) to retrieve sedimentary sequences close to the places and times where various species of hominins lived over currently available outcrop records. The records will provide a spatially resolved record of the East African environmental history in conjunction with climate variability at orbital (Milankovitch) and sub-orbital (ENSO decadal) time scales. HSPDP specifically aims at (1) compiling master chronologies for outcrops around each of the depocentres; (2) assessing which aspects of the paleoenvironmental records are a function of local origin (hydrology, hydrogeology) and which are linked with regional or larger-scale signals; (3) correlating broad-scale patterns of hominin phylogeny with the global beat of climate variability and (4) correlating regional shifts in the hominin fossil and archaeological record with more local patterns of paleoenvironmental change. Ultimately the aim is to test hypotheses that link physical and cultural adaptations in the course of the hominin evolution to local environmental change and variability. The IODP initiative SAFARI ("Southern African Climates, Agulhas Warm Water Transports and Retroflection

  2. The historical spread of Arabian Pastoralists to the eastern African Sahel evidenced by the lactase persistence -13,915*G allele and mitochondrial DNA

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Priehodová, E.; Austerlitz, F.; Čížková, M.; Mokhtar, M. G.; Poloni, E. S.; Černý, Viktor

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 29, č. 3 (2017), č. článku e22950. ISSN 1042-0533 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA13-37998S Institutional support: RVO:67985912 Keywords : lactase persistence * Arabs * pastoralism * African Sahel Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology OBOR OECD: Archaeology Impact factor: 1.780, year: 2016

  3. Kenya | Page 57 | CRDI - Centre de recherches pour le ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    The devastating drought that gripped much of East Africa in 2009 was one of the worst in living memory. But in the arid and semi-arid lands of Northern Kenya, drought is no stranger. Since 1993, Kenya has declared six national disasters because of drought. Read more about Reducing vulnerability among pastoralists in ...

  4. Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) Contributions to Strengthening Resilience and Sustainability for the East African Community

    Science.gov (United States)

    Budde, M. E.; Galu, G.; Funk, C. C.; Verdin, J. P.; Rowland, J.

    2014-12-01

    The Planning for Resilience in East Africa through Policy, Adaptation, Research, and Economic Development (PREPARED) is a multi-organizational project aimed at mainstreaming climate-resilient development planning and program implementation into the East African Community (EAC). The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) has partnered with the PREPARED project to address three key development challenges for the EAC; 1) increasing resiliency to climate change, 2) managing trans-boundary freshwater biodiversity and conservation and 3) improving access to drinking water supply and sanitation services. USGS FEWS NET has been instrumental in the development of gridded climate data sets that are the fundamental building blocks for climate change adaptation studies in the region. Tools such as the Geospatial Climate Tool (GeoCLIM) have been developed to interpolate time-series grids of precipitation and temperature values from station observations and associated satellite imagery, elevation data, and other spatially continuous fields. The GeoCLIM tool also allows the identification of anomalies and assessments of both their frequency of occurrence and directional trends. A major effort has been put forth to build the capacities of local and regional institutions to use GeoCLIM to integrate their station data (which is not typically available to the public) into improved national and regional gridded climate data sets. In addition to the improvements and capacity building activities related to geospatial analysis tools, FEWS NET will assist in two other areas; 1) downscaling of climate change scenarios and 2) vulnerability impact assessments. FEWS NET will provide expertise in statistical downscaling of Global Climate Model output fields and work with regional institutions to assess results of other downscaling methods. Completion of a vulnerability impact assessment (VIA) involves the examination of sectoral consequences in identified climate "hot spots". FEWS NET

  5. Dietary trends in the Middle East and North Africa: an ecological study (1961 to 2007).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golzarand, Mahdieh; Mirmiran, Parvin; Jessri, Mahsa; Toolabi, Karamollah; Mojarrad, Mehdi; Azizi, Fereidoun

    2012-10-01

    Middle Eastern and North African countries are undergoing nutrition transition, a transition which is associated with an increased burden of non-communicable diseases. This necessitates the evaluation of dietary patterns in these regions. The present study aimed to assess changes in dietary patterns in Middle Eastern and North African countries between 1961 and 2007. Availability of energy and fifteen main food items during 1961-2007 was examined using FAO food balance sheets from the FAOSTAT database. Fifteen countries including nine in the Middle East and six in North Africa were selected and the average availability of total energy and different food items in these regions were compared. Over the 47 years studied, energy and food availability (apart from animal fats and alcoholic beverages) has increased in the Middle East and North Africa. In both regions the proportion of energy derived from meat and vegetable oils has increased significantly while that from cereals decreased significantly. In addition, the proportion of energy from milk and dairy products and vegetables has shown an ascending trend in North Africa while the proportion of energy from fruits has shown a descending trend in the Middle East. The study results reveal an unfavourable trend towards a Westernized diet in the Middle East and, to a certain extent, in North Africa. Tailored nutritional education encouraging healthy eating for prevention of the burden of chronic diseases in these countries seems essential.

  6. Crustal and mantle structure and anisotropy beneath the incipient segments of the East African Rift System: Preliminary results from the ongoing SAFARI

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Y.; Reed, C. A.; Gao, S. S.; Liu, K. H.; Massinque, B.; Mdala, H. S.; moidaki, M.; Mutamina, D. M.; Atekwana, E. A.; Ingate, S. F.; Reusch, A.; Barstow, N.

    2013-12-01

    Despite the vast wealth of research conducted toward understanding processes associated with continental rifting, the extent of our knowledge is derived primarily from studies focused on mature rift systems, such as the well-developed portions of the East African Rift System (EARS) north of Lake Malawi. To explore the dynamics of early rift evolution, the SAFARI (Seismic Arrays for African Rift Initiation) team deployed 50 PASSCAL broadband seismic stations across the Malawi, Luangwa, and Okavango rifts of the EARS during the summer of 2012. The cumulative length of the profiles is about 2500 km and the planned recording duration is 2 years. Here we present the preliminary results of systematic analyses of data obtained from the first year of acquisition for all 50 stations. A total of 446 high-quality shear-wave splitting measurements using PKS, SKKS, and SKS phases from 84 teleseismic events were used to constrain fast polarization directions and splitting times throughout the region. The Malawi and Okavango rifts are characterized by mostly NE trending fast directions with a mean splitting time of about 1 s. The fast directions on the west side of the Luangwa Rift Zone are parallel to the rift valley, and those on the east side are more N-S oriented. Stacking of approximately 1900 radial receiver functions reveals significant spatial variations of both crustal thickness and the ratio of crustal P and S wave velocities, as well as the thickness of the mantle transition zone. Stations situated within the Malawi rift demonstrate a southward increase in observed crustal thickness, which is consistent with the hypothesis that the Malawi rift originated at the northern end of the rift system and propagated southward. Both the Okavango and Luangwa rifts are associated with thinned crust and increased Vp/Vs, although additional data is required at some stations to enhance the reliability of the observations. Teleseismic P-wave travel-time residuals show a delay of about

  7. The socio-economic impact of important camel diseases as perceived by a pastoralist community in Kenya.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mochabo, M O K; Kitala, P M; Gathura, P B; Ogara, W O; Eregae, E M; Kaitho, T D; Catley, A

    2006-12-01

    This paper presents the results of a study conducted in a pastoral community in Kenya using participatory appraisal approaches. The objective of the study was to assess the socio-economic impact of camel trypanosomosis (surra) according to the perceptions of the pastoralists. Four livestock grazing units were conveniently selected and in each of them, three groups of key informants comprising five to eight persons were selected for the participatory exercises. Five camel diseases were listed in order of importance according to their severity and frequency of occurrence including trypanosomosis, mange, non-specific diarrhoea, tick infestations and haemorrhagic septicaemia. The losses listed as incurred due to the five diseases were: losses in milk, meat, blood, fats and hides, dowry payments, and depreciation in sale of animals, losses due to infertility and abortions, and losses due to the cost of treatment. There was good agreement (P impact. There is a need for veterinary and policy decision-makers to focus more attention on the control of surra in this arid and semi-arid area of Kenya.

  8. Brief communication: Drought likelihood for East Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Yang

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The East Africa drought in autumn of year 2016 caused malnutrition, illness and death. Close to 16 million people across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya needed food, water and medical assistance. Many factors influence drought stress and response. However, inevitably the following question is asked: are elevated greenhouse gas concentrations altering extreme rainfall deficit frequency? We investigate this with general circulation models (GCMs. After GCM bias correction to match the climatological mean of the CHIRPS data-based rainfall product, climate models project small decreases in probability of drought with the same (or worse severity as 2016 ASO (August to October East African event. This is by the end of the 21st century compared to the probabilities for present day. However, when further adjusting the climatological variability of GCMs to also match CHIRPS data, by additionally bias-correcting for variance, then the probability of drought occurrence will increase slightly over the same period.

  9. Brief communication: Drought likelihood for East Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Hui; Huntingford, Chris

    2018-02-01

    The East Africa drought in autumn of year 2016 caused malnutrition, illness and death. Close to 16 million people across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya needed food, water and medical assistance. Many factors influence drought stress and response. However, inevitably the following question is asked: are elevated greenhouse gas concentrations altering extreme rainfall deficit frequency? We investigate this with general circulation models (GCMs). After GCM bias correction to match the climatological mean of the CHIRPS data-based rainfall product, climate models project small decreases in probability of drought with the same (or worse) severity as 2016 ASO (August to October) East African event. This is by the end of the 21st century compared to the probabilities for present day. However, when further adjusting the climatological variability of GCMs to also match CHIRPS data, by additionally bias-correcting for variance, then the probability of drought occurrence will increase slightly over the same period.

  10. The ‘complete gospel’ revisited: Middle East and African influences

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Glenna S. Jackson

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available The author focuses on the historically-reliable gospel pericopes in which a woman is the lead character. She argues that these women provide the complete gospel − Jesus teaches, heals, preaches and is anointed in the context of female-based stories and, of course, the women take him from conception to resurrection. Jackson argues, not only from an analysis of the texts themselves, but also from her personal experiences in the Middle East and Africa.

  11. Assessing vulnerability of urban African communities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Karlsson Nyed, Patrik; Jean-Baptiste, Nathalie; Herslund, Lise Byskov

    2014-01-01

    East African cities are in the process of assessing their vulnerabilities to climate change, but face difficulties in capturing the complexity of the various facets of vulnerability. This holistic approach, captures four different dimensions of vulnerability to flooding - Assets, Institutions......, Attitudes and the Physical environment, with Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, as a case city. The methodology is actively involving the expertise of the stakeholders, and uses GIS to analyze and compile the data. The final output is presented as a comprehensible map, delineating the varying vulnerability...

  12. East and Central African Journal of Surgery http://www.bioline.org.br ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Patrick

    populations in Asia, far-east, and North America. By far reported cases ... Zomba Central hospital with long standing history of a giant scalp cutenous horn for about 28 years .Excision ... educative pathologies goes under reported. Case Report.

  13. Survey of Haemoparasitic Infections among Fulani pastoralists in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ADOWIE PERE

    in six communities of Rivers State, Niger Delta, Nigeria- Ahoada – East, Elele, Eleme,. Elelenwo, Oyigbo and Bori. ... positive for different heamoparasites, showing 564 (78.2%) for Plasmodium falciparum, while 74(2.5%) were positive for .... women did not receive the drug for medical reasons. Day provocative samples ...

  14. A Developmental Assets Approach in East Africa: Can Swahili Measures Capture Adolescent Strengths and Supports?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drescher, Christopher F.; Johnson, Laura R.; Kurz, A. Solomon; Scales, Peter C.; Kiliho, Ray P.

    2018-01-01

    Background: Assets-based approaches are well-suited to youth living in majority world contexts, such as East Africa. However, positive psychology research with African adolescents is rare. One hindering factor is the lack of translated measures for conducting research. Objective: This study builds capacity for positive youth development research…

  15. A spring forward for hominin evolution in East Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cuthbert, Mark O; Ashley, Gail M

    2014-01-01

    Groundwater is essential to modern human survival during drought periods. There is also growing geological evidence of springs associated with stone tools and hominin fossils in the East African Rift System (EARS) during a critical period for hominin evolution (from 1.8 Ma). However it is not known how vulnerable these springs may have been to climate variability and whether groundwater availability may have played a part in human evolution. Recent interdisciplinary research at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, has documented climate fluctuations attributable to astronomic forcing and the presence of paleosprings directly associated with archaeological sites. Using palaeogeological reconstruction and groundwater modelling of the Olduvai Gorge paleo-catchment, we show how spring discharge was likely linked to East African climate variability of annual to Milankovitch cycle timescales. Under decadal to centennial timescales, spring flow would have been relatively invariant providing good water resource resilience through long droughts. For multi-millennial periods, modelled spring flows lag groundwater recharge by 100 s to 1000 years. The lag creates long buffer periods allowing hominins to adapt to new habitats as potable surface water from rivers or lakes became increasingly scarce. Localised groundwater systems are likely to have been widespread within the EARS providing refugia and intense competition during dry periods, thus being an important factor in natural selection and evolution, as well as a vital resource during hominin dispersal within and out of Africa.

  16. Mosaic maternal ancestry in the Great Lakes region of East Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomes, Verónica; Pala, Maria; Salas, Antonio; Álvarez-Iglesias, Vanesa; Amorim, António; Gómez-Carballa, Alberto; Carracedo, Ángel; Clarke, Douglas J; Hill, Catherine; Mormina, Maru; Shaw, Marie-Anne; Dunne, David W; Pereira, Rui; Pereira, Vânia; Prata, Maria João; Sánchez-Diz, Paula; Rito, Teresa; Soares, Pedro; Gusmão, Leonor; Richards, Martin B

    2015-09-01

    The Great Lakes lie within a region of East Africa with very high human genetic diversity, home of many ethno-linguistic groups usually assumed to be the product of a small number of major dispersals. However, our knowledge of these dispersals relies primarily on the inferences of historical, linguistics and oral traditions, with attempts to match up the archaeological evidence where possible. This is an obvious area to which archaeogenetics can contribute, yet Uganda, at the heart of these developments, has not been studied for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation. Here, we compare mtDNA lineages at this putative genetic crossroads across 409 representatives of the major language groups: Bantu speakers and Eastern and Western Nilotic speakers. We show that Uganda harbours one of the highest mtDNA diversities within and between linguistic groups, with the various groups significantly differentiated from each other. Despite an inferred linguistic origin in South Sudan, the data from the two Nilotic-speaking groups point to a much more complex history, involving not only possible dispersals from Sudan and the Horn but also large-scale assimilation of autochthonous lineages within East Africa and even Uganda itself. The Eastern Nilotic group also carries signals characteristic of West-Central Africa, primarily due to Bantu influence, whereas a much stronger signal in the Western Nilotic group suggests direct West-Central African ancestry. Bantu speakers share lineages with both Nilotic groups, and also harbour East African lineages not found in Western Nilotic speakers, likely due to assimilating indigenous populations since arriving in the region ~3000 years ago.

  17. Archaeological significance of trace element analysis of South West African potsherds

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boule, G.J.; Peisach, M.; Jacobson, L.

    1979-01-01

    The archaeological study of early population movements in South West Africa/Namibia has been aided by trace element analysis of potsherds. The results suggest that the central areas of the country were populated by mobile groups of pastoralists and hunter-gatherers, while the northern areas were settled by sedentary peoples [af

  18. The political economy of oil and gas extraction: imperatives for fiscal and legal regimes in East Africa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Owiso, Michael Omondi

    2018-01-01

    , cultural and environmental implications of this? This contribution examines the Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) that result in the models for sharing production as envisaged by the three East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Against these models the study unearths the interests...

  19. Generation of ecosystem hotspots using short-term cattle corrals in an African savanna

    Science.gov (United States)

    Many rangelands are now being managed for multiple uses, and it is increasingly important to identify livestock management practices that maximize long-term productivity, biodiversity and wildlife conservation. In sub-Saharan Africa, pastoralists and ranchers use temporary thorn-fence corrals (“boma...

  20. Contrasted continental rifting via plume-craton interaction: Applications to Central East African Rift

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexander Koptev

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The East African Rift system (EARS provides a unique system with the juxtaposition of two contrasting yet simultaneously formed rift branches, the eastern, magma-rich, and the western, magma-poor, on either sides of the old thick Tanzanian craton embedded in a younger lithosphere. Data on the pre-rift, syn-rift and post-rift far-field volcanic and tectonic activity show that the EARS formed in the context of the interaction between a deep mantle plume and a horizontally and vertically heterogeneous lithosphere under far-field tectonic extension. We bring quantitative insights into this evolution by implementing high-resolution 3D thermo-mechanical numerical deformation models of a lithosphere of realistic rheology. The models focus on the central part of the EARS. We explore scenarios of plume-lithosphere interaction with plumes of various size and initial position rising beneath a tectonically pre-stretched lithosphere. We test the impact of the inherited rheological discontinuities (suture zones along the craton borders, of the rheological structure, of lithosphere plate thickness variations, and of physical and mechanical contrasts between the craton and the embedding lithosphere. Our experiments indicate that the ascending plume material is deflected by the cratonic keel and preferentially channeled along one of its sides, leading to the formation of a large rift zone along the eastern side of the craton, with significant magmatic activity and substantial melt amount derived from the mantle plume material. We show that the observed asymmetry of the central EARS, with coeval amagmatic (western and magmatic (eastern branches, can be explained by the splitting of warm material rising from a broad plume head whose initial position is slightly shifted to the eastern side of the craton. In that case, neither a mechanical weakness of the contact between the craton and the embedding lithosphere nor the presence of second plume are required to

  1. Historical volcanism and the state of stress in the East African Rift System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geoffrey Wadge

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Crustal extension at the East African Rift System (EARS should, as a tectonic ideal, involve a stress field in which the direction of minimum horizontal stress is perpendicular to the rift. A volcano in such a setting should produce dykes and fissures parallel to the rift. How closely do the volcanoes of the EARS follow this? We answer this question by studying the 21 volcanoes that have erupted historically (since about 1800 and find that 7 match the (approximate geometrical ideal. At the other 14 volcanoes the orientation of the eruptive fissures/dykes and/or the axes of the host rift segments are oblique to the ideal values. To explain the eruptions at these volcanoes we invoke local (non-plate tectonic variations of the stress field caused by: crustal heterogeneities and anisotropies (dominated by NW structures in the Protoerozoic basement, transfer zone tectonics at the ends of offset rift segments, gravitational loading by the volcanic edifice (typically those with 1-2 km relief and magmatic pressure in central reservoirs. We find that the more oblique volcanoes tend to have large edifices, large eruptive volumes and evolved and mixed magmas capable of explosive behaviour. Nine of the volcanoes have calderas of varying ellipticity, 6 of which are large, reservoir-collapse types mainly elongated across rift (e.g. Kone and 3 are smaller, elongated parallel to the rift and contain active lava lakes (e.g. Erta Ale, suggesting different mechanisms of formation and stress fields. Nyamuragira is the only EARS volcano with enough sufficiently well-documented eruptions to infer its long-term dynamic behaviour. Eruptions within 7 km of the volcano are of relatively short duration (<100 days, but eruptions with more distal fissures tend to have greater obliquity and longer durations, indicating a changing stress field away from the volcano. There were major changes in long-term magma extrusion rates in 1977 (and perhaps in 2002 due to major along

  2. Energy consumption, economic growth and CO2 emissions in Middle East and North African countries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arouri, Mohamed El Hedi; Ben Youssef, Adel; M'henni, Hatem; Rault, Christophe

    2012-01-01

    This article extends the recent findings of , , and by implementing recent bootstrap panel unit root tests and cointegration techniques to investigate the relationship between carbon dioxide emissions, energy consumption, and real GDP for 12 Middle East and North African Countries (MENA) over the period 1981–2005. Our results show that in the long-run energy consumption has a positive significant impact on CO 2 emissions. More interestingly, we show that real GDP exhibits a quadratic relationship with CO 2 emissions for the region as a whole. However, although the estimated long-run coefficients of income and its square satisfy the EKC hypothesis in most studied countries, the turning points are very low in some cases and very high in other cases, hence providing poor evidence in support of the EKC hypothesis. CO 2 emission reductions per capita have been achieved in the MENA region, even while the region exhibited economic growth over the period 1981–2005. The econometric relationships derived in this paper suggest that future reductions in CO 2 emissions per capita might be achieved at the same time as GDP per capita in the MENA region continues to grow. - Highlights: ► We study the links between CO 2 emissions, energy consumption and GDP in MENA region. ► Energy consumption has a positive correlation with CO 2 emissions. ► GDP exhibits a quadratic relationship with CO 2 emissions for the region as a whole. ► However, the turning points are low in some cases and high in other cases. ► Thus, not all countries need to sacrifice economic growth to decrease CO 2 emissions.

  3. the composition of the milk of the african dwarf goat, springbok and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    OF THE AFRICAN DWARF GOAT,. SPRINGBOK AND BLUE DUIKER. H. F. VON KETELHODT. Queen's Park Zoo, East London. Accepted: May, 1976. The rearing of animals in captivity involves many factors of which one of the most important is to ensure that conditions are suitable for the development of young. Ideally, the ...

  4. East coast fever caused by Theileria parva is characterized by macrophage activation associated with vasculitis and respiratory failure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Respiratory failure and death in East Coast Fever (ECF), a clinical syndrome of African cattle caused by the apicomplexan parasite Theileria parva, has historically been attributed to pulmonary infiltration by infected lymphocytes. However, immunohistochemical staining of tissue from T. parva infect...

  5. Danish Interests in Regional Security Institutions in East Africa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nordby, Johannes Riber; Jacobsen, Katja

    2013-01-01

    For the past decade, peace and security in East Africa have gained increasing focus internationally. The region has experienced armed conflicts, civil wars, rebellion, drought and famine. Yet, at the same time, there is an emerging ambition among a number of African states to handle security issues...... on the continent independently. Such ambitions have fostered a variety of military capacity building programmes supported by external donors. The present report explores how up until now Denmark has sought to contribute to strengthening political and military security in East Africa. This has mainly been done...... through capacity building projects anchored in different regional security institutions. The report illuminates some of the risks that such capacity building projects might confront. Furthermore the report points out some of the challenges that exist in the cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign...

  6. Strengthening African Union for African Integration: An African ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. ... in the international state system and seek for African initiative in solving African problems. ... of the African Union by examining the efforts of African Leaders towards African integration, ...

  7. The April 2017 M6.7 Botswana Earthquake: Implications for African Intraplate Seismicity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gardonio, B.; Calais, E.; Jolivet, R.

    2017-12-01

    The last decades have seen a rapidly increasing number of studies of interplate seismicity, revealing for instance the fundamental relationship between seismic and aseismic slip along plate boundary faults. To the contrary, intraplate earthquakes, occurring far from plate boundaries are still misunderstood and by far less studied. Key questions are the mechanisms through which elastic strain builds up and is released in the seismogenic crust in such contexts, in the absence of (yet) measurable intraplate strain rates. The April 2017 M6.7 Botswana earthquake was a surprise in many ways. This is the largest recorded event that struck this ordinarily seismically quiet region, West to the East-African Rift system where most of the usual southern seismicity occurs. It may also be the largest intraplate event recorded since the 1988 Tennant Creek earthquake in central Australia. No active structure can be mapped at the surface. Active extension related to the east African rifting may occur several hundreds of kilometers to the north-east with low rates of a few mm per year. Closer to the event, the Okavango delta, located at 20° of latitude and 23° of longitude is considered by some as an incipient rift with very low deformation rates, similar to a large part of the southern African continent. Interestingly, seismic activity in the area of the recent Botswana earthquake is more important than the world average intraplate activity, potentially due to rifting to the east and/or large stresses induced by lateral gradients in gravitational potential energy (this part of the world has an altitude of 1000 to 2000 m.). The aim of this study is to better constrain the tectonic setting and the dynamics of the Botswana earthquake area. To do so, we analyze a Sentinel 1 interferogram of the event to constrain the strike, dip, depth, magnitude and location of the earthquake. We also analyze continuous teleseismic signals during two months centered on the mainshock using a template

  8. Mapping of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Genetic Diversity Profiles in Tanzania and Other African Countries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mbugi, Erasto V.; Katale, Bugwesa Z.; Streicher, Elizabeth M.; Keyyu, Julius D.; Kendall, Sharon L.; Dockrell, Hazel M.; Michel, Anita L.; Rweyemamu, Mark M.; Warren, Robin M.; Matee, Mecky I.; van Helden, Paul D.; Couvin, David; Rastogi, Nalin

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to assess and characterize Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) genotypic diversity in Tanzania, as well as in neighbouring East and other several African countries. We used spoligotyping to identify a total of 293 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates (one isolate per patient) collected in the Bunda, Dar es Salaam, Ngorongoro and Serengeti areas in Tanzania. The results were compared with results in the SITVIT2 international database of the Pasteur Institute of Guadeloupe. Genotyping and phylogeographical analyses highlighted the predominance of the CAS, T, EAI, and LAM MTBC lineages in Tanzania. The three most frequent Spoligotype International Types (SITs) were: SIT21/CAS1-Kili (n = 76; 25.94%), SIT59/LAM11-ZWE (n = 22; 7.51%), and SIT126/EAI5 tentatively reclassified as EAI3-TZA (n = 18; 6.14%). Furthermore, three SITs were newly created in this study (SIT4056/EAI5 n = 2, SIT4057/T1 n = 1, and SIT4058/EAI5 n = 1). We noted that the East-African-Indian (EAI) lineage was more predominant in Bunda, the Manu lineage was more common among strains isolated in Ngorongoro, and the Central-Asian (CAS) lineage was more predominant in Dar es Salaam (p-value<0.0001). No statistically significant differences were noted when comparing HIV status of patients vs. major lineages (p-value = 0.103). However, when grouping lineages as Principal Genetic Groups (PGG), we noticed that PGG2/3 group (Haarlem, LAM, S, T, and X) was more associated with HIV-positive patients as compared to PGG1 group (Beijing, CAS, EAI, and Manu) (p-value = 0.03). This study provided mapping of MTBC genetic diversity in Tanzania (containing information on isolates from different cities) and neighbouring East African and other several African countries highlighting differences as regards to MTBC genotypic distribution between Tanzania and other African countries. This work also allowed underlining of spoligotyping patterns tentatively grouped within the newly designated EAI3-TZA

  9. Mapping of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Genetic Diversity Profiles in Tanzania and Other African Countries.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Erasto V Mbugi

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to assess and characterize Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC genotypic diversity in Tanzania, as well as in neighbouring East and other several African countries. We used spoligotyping to identify a total of 293 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates (one isolate per patient collected in the Bunda, Dar es Salaam, Ngorongoro and Serengeti areas in Tanzania. The results were compared with results in the SITVIT2 international database of the Pasteur Institute of Guadeloupe. Genotyping and phylogeographical analyses highlighted the predominance of the CAS, T, EAI, and LAM MTBC lineages in Tanzania. The three most frequent Spoligotype International Types (SITs were: SIT21/CAS1-Kili (n = 76; 25.94%, SIT59/LAM11-ZWE (n = 22; 7.51%, and SIT126/EAI5 tentatively reclassified as EAI3-TZA (n = 18; 6.14%. Furthermore, three SITs were newly created in this study (SIT4056/EAI5 n = 2, SIT4057/T1 n = 1, and SIT4058/EAI5 n = 1. We noted that the East-African-Indian (EAI lineage was more predominant in Bunda, the Manu lineage was more common among strains isolated in Ngorongoro, and the Central-Asian (CAS lineage was more predominant in Dar es Salaam (p-value<0.0001. No statistically significant differences were noted when comparing HIV status of patients vs. major lineages (p-value = 0.103. However, when grouping lineages as Principal Genetic Groups (PGG, we noticed that PGG2/3 group (Haarlem, LAM, S, T, and X was more associated with HIV-positive patients as compared to PGG1 group (Beijing, CAS, EAI, and Manu (p-value = 0.03. This study provided mapping of MTBC genetic diversity in Tanzania (containing information on isolates from different cities and neighbouring East African and other several African countries highlighting differences as regards to MTBC genotypic distribution between Tanzania and other African countries. This work also allowed underlining of spoligotyping patterns tentatively grouped within the newly designated EAI3

  10. Mapping of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Genetic Diversity Profiles in Tanzania and Other African Countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mbugi, Erasto V; Katale, Bugwesa Z; Streicher, Elizabeth M; Keyyu, Julius D; Kendall, Sharon L; Dockrell, Hazel M; Michel, Anita L; Rweyemamu, Mark M; Warren, Robin M; Matee, Mecky I; van Helden, Paul D; Couvin, David; Rastogi, Nalin

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to assess and characterize Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) genotypic diversity in Tanzania, as well as in neighbouring East and other several African countries. We used spoligotyping to identify a total of 293 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates (one isolate per patient) collected in the Bunda, Dar es Salaam, Ngorongoro and Serengeti areas in Tanzania. The results were compared with results in the SITVIT2 international database of the Pasteur Institute of Guadeloupe. Genotyping and phylogeographical analyses highlighted the predominance of the CAS, T, EAI, and LAM MTBC lineages in Tanzania. The three most frequent Spoligotype International Types (SITs) were: SIT21/CAS1-Kili (n = 76; 25.94%), SIT59/LAM11-ZWE (n = 22; 7.51%), and SIT126/EAI5 tentatively reclassified as EAI3-TZA (n = 18; 6.14%). Furthermore, three SITs were newly created in this study (SIT4056/EAI5 n = 2, SIT4057/T1 n = 1, and SIT4058/EAI5 n = 1). We noted that the East-African-Indian (EAI) lineage was more predominant in Bunda, the Manu lineage was more common among strains isolated in Ngorongoro, and the Central-Asian (CAS) lineage was more predominant in Dar es Salaam (p-value<0.0001). No statistically significant differences were noted when comparing HIV status of patients vs. major lineages (p-value = 0.103). However, when grouping lineages as Principal Genetic Groups (PGG), we noticed that PGG2/3 group (Haarlem, LAM, S, T, and X) was more associated with HIV-positive patients as compared to PGG1 group (Beijing, CAS, EAI, and Manu) (p-value = 0.03). This study provided mapping of MTBC genetic diversity in Tanzania (containing information on isolates from different cities) and neighbouring East African and other several African countries highlighting differences as regards to MTBC genotypic distribution between Tanzania and other African countries. This work also allowed underlining of spoligotyping patterns tentatively grouped within the newly designated EAI3-TZA

  11. Genetic adaptation of giant lobelias (Lobelia aberdarica and Lobelia telekii to different altitudes in East African mountains

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shu-Ying eZhao

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The giant lobelias in East African mountains are good models for studying molecular mechanisms of adaptation to different altitudes. In this study, we generated RNA-seq data of a middle-altitude species Lobelia aberdarica and a high-altitude species L. telekii, followed by selective pressure estimation of their orthologous genes. Our aim was to explore the important genes potentially involved in adaptation to different altitudes. About 9.3 Gb of clean nucleotides, 167,929 – 170,534 unigenes with total lengths of 159,762,099 – 171,138,936 bp for each of the two species were generated. OrthoMCL method identified 3,049 1:1 orthologous genes (each species was represented by one ortholog. Estimations of non-synonymous to synonymous rate were performed using an approximate method and a maximum likelihood method in PAML. 85 orthologous genes were under positive selection. At least 8 of these genes are possibly involved in DNA repair, response to DNA damage and temperature stimulus, and regulation of gene expression, which hints on how giant lobelias adapt to high altitudinal environment that characterised by cold, low oxygen and strong ultraviolet radiation. The negatively selected genes are over-represented in Gene ontology terms of hydrolase, macromolecular complex assembly among others. This study sheds light on understanding the molecular mechanism of adaptation to different altitudes, and provides genomic resources for further studies of giant lobelias.

  12. Climatology of the African Easterly Jet and Subtropical Highs over North Africa and Arabian Peninsula and a Numerical Case Study of an Intense African Easterly Wave

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spinks, James D.

    North African climate is analyzed between 1979 and 2010 with an emphasis on August using the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) global dataset to investigate the effects of the subtropical anticyclones over North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula on the Africa easterly jet (AEJ). It was found that the AEJ encloses a core with a local wind maximum (LWM) in both West and East Africa, in which the west LWM core has a higher zonal wind speed. The strength of both cores is distinctly different by way of thermal wind balance. The variability of these synoptic weather features is higher in East Africa. The most noticeable variability of intensity occurred with easterly waves. Maintenance of easterly waves from the Arabian Peninsula into East Africa is dependent on strong zonal gradients from the AEJ. These zonal gradients were induced by the strengthening of the subtropical highs and the presence of a westerly jet in Central Africa and south of the Arabian Peninsula. During positive ENSO periods, these systems are generally weaker while in negative periods are stronger. The origins of an intense African easterly wave (AEW) and mesoscale convective system (MCS) in August 2004 (A04) were traced back to the southern Arabian Peninsula, Asir Mountains, and Ethiopian Highlands using gridded satellite (GridSat) data, ERA-I, and the WRF-ARW model. A vorticity budget was developed to investigate the dynamics and mechanisms that contribute to the formation of A04's vorticity perturbation.

  13. Prevalence and Severity of Oral Diseases in the Africa and Middle East Region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abid, A; Maatouk, F; Berrezouga, L; Azodo, C; Uti, O; El-Shamy, H; Oginni, A

    2015-07-01

    This review aims to determine the prevalence and severity of oral health diseases in the Africa and Middle East region (AMER). The profile of oral diseases is not homogeneous across the AMER. There are large disparities between groups. Reliable data are scarce. The prevalence and severity of oral diseases appear to be increasing in the African region, as does associated morbidity. There are substantial differences in inequalities in oral health. Dental caries prevalence is less severe in most African countries than in developed countries, but the high rate of untreated caries reflects the limited resources available and difficulties of access and affordability to essential oral health care services. The prevalence of gingival inflammation is very high in all age groups in several African countries. The prevalence of maxillofacial trauma has increased in many countries, with a wide variation of the incidence and high prevalence of traumatic dental injuries in primary and permanent teeth. Orofacial clefts are among the most common birth defects. Annual incidence of oral cancer is estimated as 25 cases per 100,000 people in Africa. Noma is a major public health problem for the Middle East and North African (MENA) region. Data about human immunodeficiency virus/AIDS are limited, particularly in the MENA region. According to the World Health Organization Regional Committee for Africa report, some fundamental key basic knowledge gaps need to be underlined. They include inequalities in oral health, low priority for oral health, lack of adequate funding, inadequate dental student training, obstacles to medical and dental research, and poor databases. There are very few effective public prevention and oral health promotion programs in the AMER. Universal health coverage is not achievable without scientific research on the effectiveness of health promotion interventions. © International & American Associations for Dental Research 2015.

  14. Botanical ethnoveterinary therapies used by agro-pastoralists of Fafan zone, Eastern Ethiopia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feyera, Teka; Mekonnen, Endalkachew; Wakayo, Befekadu Urga; Assefa, Solomon

    2017-08-09

    In Ethiopia, plant based remedies are still the most important and sometimes the only source of therapeutics in the management of livestock diseases. However, documentation of this indigenous knowledge of therapeutic system still remains at a minimum level. The aim of this study was, thus, to document the traditional knowledge of botanical ethnoveterinary therapies in the agro-pastoral communities of Fafan Zone, Eastern Ethiopia. The study employed a cross-sectional participatory survey. Purposive sampling technique was applied to select key respondents with desired knowledge in traditional animal health care system. Data were gathered from a total of 24 (22 males and 2 females) ethnoveterinary practitioners and herbalists using an in-depth-interview complemented with group discussion and field observation. The current ethnobotanical survey indicated that botanical ethnoveterinary therapies are the mainstay of livestock health care system in the studied communities. A total of 49 medicinal plants belonging to 21 families, which are used by traditional healers and livestock raisers for the treatment of 29 types of livestock ailments/health problems, were identified in the study area. The major plant parts used were leaves (43%) followed by roots (35%). In most cases, traditional plant remedies were prepared by pounding the remedial plant part and mixing it with water at room temperature. The various types of identified medicinal plants and their application in ethnoveternary practice of Fafan zone agro pastoralists indicate the depth of indigenous knowledge in ethnobotanical therapy. The identified medicinal plants could be potentially useful for future phytochemical and pharmacological studies.

  15. Plio-Pleistocene aardvarks (Mammalia, Tubulidentata from East Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. Lehmann

    2008-08-01

    Full Text Available The Tubulidentata are unique among mammals for being the only order represented nowadays by a single living species, Orycteropus afer: the aardvark. Nevertheless, it is one of the least studied mammalian orders. Aardvarks are currently distributed all over sub-Saharan Africa, but the fossil record extends their spatial range to Europe and Asia. The earliest known Tubulidentata are ca. 20 million years old. About 14 species and three to four genera have been recognised so far, but since the late Pliocene, aardvarks have only been represented by a single genus and are restricted to Africa. The extant aardvark is the only species of Tubulidentata with a large distribution area, i.e. the African continent. There are three known Plio-Pleistocene African species of aardvark: Orycteropus afer (Pallas, 1766, O. crassidens MacInnes, 1956, and O. djourabensis Lehmann et al., 2004. Fossils of these species have been discovered in North-Africa, Kenya, and Chad respectively. The present study is focused on the aardvark material found in the Plio-Pleistocene of East Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya. New specimens from Asa Issie (Ethiopia and East Turkana (Kenya are described, and published ones are re-examined in the light of the latest discoveries. This study demonstrates that Kenyan specimens identified as O. crassidens are in fact representatives of the Chadian O. djourabensis. Moreover, additional material from Ethiopia and Kenya shows a close relationship with the latter species too. The presence of specimens of O. djourabensis in Chad and in Kenya during the Plio-Pleistocene implies that this taxon is the oldest-known species of aardvark to have experienced a continental dispersal. It also shows that Tubulidentates were able to cross Africa from east-west during Plio-Pleistocene times, despite the presence of the Rift Valley. It is however not possible to infer the centre of origin of O. djourabensis. Finally, this study suggests that two species of aardvark

  16. Differential decay of the East-African Antarctic Orogen : an integrated examination of Northeastern Mozambique

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ueda, K.; Jacobs, J.; Emmel, B.; Thomas, R. J.; Matola, R.

    2009-04-01

    In Northeastern Mozambique, the late Proterozoic - early Paleozoic East African-Antarctic Orogen can be subdivided into two major blocks that exhibit some relevant differences. The line of divide is represented by the Lurio Belt, a kinematically poorly constrained shear zone that also marks the conceptual northern limit of frequent late-tectonic granitoid intrusions. Moreover, far-travelled granulite-facies nappes cover a much larger area north of this belt (Viola et. al, 2008), giving rise to the assumption of different exhumation and present exposure levels. U/Pb data from previous surveys (e.g., Norconsult consortium, 2007) show coeval high-grade metamorphism in the whole region between c. 610 - 550 Ma, while the block south of the Lurio Belt also shows continuing metamorphism until c. 490 Ma that can be related to extension. Geothermobarometry for samples from within the Lurio Belt (Engvik et. al, 2007) indicates rapid exhumation after high-pressure granulite facies metamorphism and is consistant with the assumption of long tectonic activity. A possible model for the outlined pattern is the delamination of the orogenic root only in the southern part, followed by rapid mechanical thinning as well as by isostatic accommodation along the Lurio Belt. A valuable marker was identified in the metasedimentary Mecuburi group that overlies the southern basement. U/Pb analysis of detrital zircons have yielded a maximum deposition age of c. 600 Ma, while metamorphism is recorded until c. 505 Ma. Investigations of the relationship between metasediments and older basement show that the basal contact is a fairly preserved depositional contact, allowing to suppose a conjoint post-depositional evolution. It is notable that the timing of deposition shortly follows the onset of the main, widespread high-grade metamorphism. Relatively high but variable degrees of migmatisation in the Mecuburi Group require a phase of burial from surface to deep levels after 600 Ma, followed by

  17. Security Threats Emerging from the Middle East and North Africa

    OpenAIRE

    Çınar, Bekir

    2015-01-01

    The main security threats affecting the Middle East and North African (MENA) region arise from energy insecurity, immigration and terrorism. These threats would remain if authorities and other stake holders do not address the root causes of the problems, which are artificial national borders, authoritarian regimes and lack of pluralist education. This paper suggests that lifting state borders and setting up regional economic communities such as the EU may ease conflicts in the region which ca...

  18. Oral Health Inequalities between Rural and Urban Populations of the African and Middle East Region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ogunbodede, E O; Kida, I A; Madjapa, H S; Amedari, M; Ehizele, A; Mutave, R; Sodipo, B; Temilola, S; Okoye, L

    2015-07-01

    Although there have been major improvements in oral health, with remarkable advances in the prevention and management of oral diseases, globally, inequalities persist between urban and rural communities. These inequalities exist in the distribution of oral health services, accessibility, utilization, treatment outcomes, oral health knowledge and practices, health insurance coverage, oral health-related quality of life, and prevalence of oral diseases, among others. People living in rural areas are likely to be poorer, be less health literate, have more caries, have fewer teeth, have no health insurance coverage, and have less money to spend on dental care than persons living in urban areas. Rural areas are often associated with lower education levels, which in turn have been found to be related to lower levels of health literacy and poor use of health care services. These factors have an impact on oral health care, service delivery, and research. Hence, unmet dental care remains one of the most urgent health care needs in these communities. We highlight some of the conceptual issues relating to urban-rural inequalities in oral health, especially in the African and Middle East Region (AMER). Actions to reduce oral health inequalities and ameliorate rural-urban disparity are necessary both within the health sector and the wider policy environment. Recommended actions include population-specific oral health promotion programs, measures aimed at increasing access to oral health services in rural areas, integration of oral health into existing primary health care services, and support for research aimed at informing policy on the social determinants of health. Concerted efforts must be made by all stakeholders (governments, health care workforce, organizations, and communities) to reduce disparities and improve oral health outcomes in underserved populations. © International & American Associations for Dental Research 2015.

  19. International trends in health science librarianship part 14: East Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gathoni, Nasra; Kamau, Nancy; Nannozi, Judith; Singirankabo, Marcel

    2015-06-01

    This is the 14th in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship in the 21st century. This is the second of four articles pertaining to different regions in the African continent. The present issue focuses on countries in East Africa (Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda). The next feature column will investigate trends in West Africa. JM. © 2015 Health Libraries Group.

  20. Comparison of environmental performance for different waste management scenarios in East Africa: The case of Kampala City, Uganda

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Oyoo, R.; Leemans, R.; Mol, A.P.J.

    2014-01-01

    Poor waste flows management in East African cities has become an environmental and public health concerns to the city authorities and the general public. We assessed the environmental impacts of waste recycling in Kampala City, for four designed waste management scenarios, namely: (1) Scenario S1

  1. Unraveling African plate structure from elevation, geoid and geology data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chardon, Dominique; Bajolet, Flora; Robert, Alexandra; Rouby, Delphine

    2014-05-01

    The aim of our project is to simulate the long-wavelength, flexural isostatic response of the African plate to sediment transfers due to Meso-Cenozoic erosion - deposition processes in order to extract the residual topography driven by mantle dynamics. Our work will be based on the reconstruction and subtraction of two continental-scale erosional-depositional surfaces of Eocene and Late Cretaceous ages and their offshore extensions. The first step of our project consists in computing crustal and lithospheric maps of the African plate considering its various crustal geological components (cratons, mobile belts, basins, rifts and passive margins of various ages and strengths). In order to consider these heterogeneities, we compute a 2D distribution of crustal densities and thermal parameters from geological data and use it as an input of our modeling. We combine elevation and geoid anomaly data using a thermal analysis, following the method of Fullea et al. (2007) in order to map crustal and lithospheric thicknesses. In this approach, we assume local isostasy and consider a four-layer model made of crust and lithospheric mantle plus seawater and asthenosphere. In addition, we compare our results with crustal thickness datasets compiled from bibliography, existing global models such as CRUST 1.0, and tomographic lithospheric models. The obtained crustal thicknesses range from 30 to 45km, with the thickest crust confined to the northern part of the West African Craton, the Kaapvaal craton, and the Congo cuvette. The crust in the East African Rift appears unrealistically thick (40-45 km) as it is not isotatically compensated, highlighting the dynamic effect of the African superswell. The thinnest crust (30-35km) follows a central East-West trend coinciding with Cretaceous rifts and the Cameroon volcanic line. Pan-African mobile belts yield intermediate values of ca. 35-40 km. The lithosphere reaches 250 km beneath cratons, but remains globally thin (ca. 150-180 km

  2. A long-standing Pleistocene refugium in southern Africa and a mosaic of refugia in East Africa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lorenzen, Eline; Masembe, Charles; Arctander, Peter

    2010-01-01

    Aim Previous genetic studies of African savanna ungulates have indicated Pleistocene refugial areas in East and southern Africa, and recent palynological, palaeovegetation and fossil studies have suggested the presence of a long-standing refugium in the south and a mosaic of refugia in the east....... Phylogeographic analysis of the common eland antelope, Taurotragus oryx (Bovidae), was used to assess these hypotheses and the existence of genetic signatures of Pleistocene climate change. Location The sub-Saharan savanna biome of East and southern Africa. Methods Mitochondrial DNA control-region fragments (414...... bp) from 122 individuals of common eland were analysed to elucidate the phylogeography, genetic diversity, spatial population structuring, historical migration and demographic history of the species. The phylogeographic split among major genetic lineages was dated using Bayesian coalescent...

  3. Sex Education Targeting African Communities in the United Kingdom: Is It Fit for Purpose?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmidt, E.; Olomo, F.; Corcoran, N.

    2012-01-01

    This study addresses the issue of the sexual needs of ethnic minority groups in the UK. Using focus group discussions with health service users and third-sector providers, it explores the perception of sex education by Black African communities living in a culturally diverse area in East London, focusing specifically on participants' understanding…

  4. Rayleigh Wave Phase Velocities Beneath the Central and Southern East African Rift System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adams, A. N.; Miller, J. C.

    2017-12-01

    This study uses the Automated Generalized Seismological Data Function (AGSDF) method to develop a model of Rayleigh wave phase velocities in the central and southern portions of the East African Rift System (EARS). These phase velocity models at periods of 20-100s lend insight into the lithospheric structures associated with surficial rifting and volcanism, as well as basement structures that pre-date and affect the course of rifting. A large dataset of >700 earthquakes is used, comprised of Mw=6.0+ events that occurred between the years 1995 and 2016. These events were recorded by a composite array of 176 stations from twelve non-contemporaneous seismic networks, each with a distinctive array geometry and station spacing. Several first-order features are resolved in this phase velocity model, confirming findings from previous studies. (1) Low velocities are observed in isolated regions along the Western Rift Branch and across the Eastern Rift Branch, corresponding to areas of active volcanism. (2) Two linear low velocity zones are imaged trending southeast and southwest from the Eastern Rift Branch in Tanzania, corresponding with areas of seismic activity and indicating possible incipient rifting. (3) High velocity regions are observed beneath both the Tanzania Craton and the Bangweulu Block. Furthermore, this model indicates several new findings. (1) High velocities beneath the Bangweulu Block extend to longer periods than those found beneath the Tanzania Craton, perhaps indicating that rifting processes have not altered the Bangweulu Block as extensively as the Tanzania Craton. (2) At long periods, the fast velocities beneath the Bangweulu Block extend eastwards beyond the surficial boundaries, to and possibly across the Malawi Rift. This may suggest the presence of older, thick blocks of lithosphere in regions where they are not exposed at the surface. (3) Finally, while the findings of this study correspond well with previous studies in regions of overlapping

  5. 3D Numerical Rift Modeling with Application to the East African Rift System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glerum, A.; Brune, S.; Naliboff, J.

    2017-12-01

    As key components of plate tectonics, continental rifting and the formation of passive margins have been extensively studied with both analogue models and numerical techniques. Only recently however, technical advances have enabled numerical investigations into rift evolution in three dimensions, as is actually required for including those processes that cause rift-parallel variability, such as structural inheritance and oblique extension (Brune 2016). We use the massively parallel finite element code ASPECT (Kronbichler et al. 2012; Heister et al. 2017) to investigate rift evolution. ASPECT's adaptive mesh refinement enables us to focus resolution on the regions of interest (i.e. the rift center), while leaving other areas such as the asthenospheric mantle at coarse resolution, leading to kilometer-scale local mesh resolution in 3D. Furthermore, we implemented plastic and viscous strain weakening of the nonlinear viscoplastic rheology required to develop asymmetric rift geometries (e.g. Huismans and Beaumont 2003). Additionally created plugins to ASPECT allow us to specify initial temperature and composition conditions based on geophysical data (e.g. LITHO1.0, Pasyanos et al. 2014) or to prescribe more general along-strike variation in the initial strain seeding the rift. Employing the above functionality, we construct regional models of the East African Rift System (EARS), the world's largest currently active rift. As the EARS is characterized by both orthogonal and oblique rift sections, multi-phase extension histories as well as magmatic and a-magmatic branches (e.g. Chorowicz 2005; Ebinger and Scholz 2011), it constitutes an extensive natural laboratory for our research into the 3D nature of continental rifting. References:Brune, S. (2016), in Plate boundaries and natural hazards, AGU Geophysical Monograph 219, J. C. Duarte and W. P. Schellart (Eds.). Chorowicz, J. (2005). J. Afr. Earth Sci., 43, 379-410. Ebinger, C. and Scholz, C. A. (2011), in Tectonics of

  6. Constraints to estimating the prevalence of trypanosome infections in East African zebu cattle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cox, Andrew P; Tosas, Olga; Tilley, Aimee; Picozzi, Kim; Coleman, Paul; Hide, Geoff; Welburn, Susan C

    2010-09-06

    In East Africa, animal trypanosomiasis is caused by many tsetse transmitted protozoan parasites including Trypanosoma vivax, T. congolense and subspecies of T. brucei s.l. (T. b. brucei and zoonotic human infective T. b. rhodesiense) that may co-circulate in domestic and wild animals. Accurate species-specific prevalence measurements of these parasites in animal populations are complicated by mixed infections of trypanosomes within individual hosts, low parasite densities and difficulties in conducting field studies. Many Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) based diagnostic tools are available to characterise and quantify infection in animals. These are important for assessing the contribution of infections in animal reservoirs and the risk posed to humans from zoonotic trypanosome species. New matrices for DNA capture have simplified large scale field PCR analyses but few studies have examined the impact of these techniques on prevalence estimations. The Whatman FTA matrix has been evaluated using a random sample of 35 village zebu cattle from a population naturally exposed to trypanosome infection. Using a generic trypanosome-specific PCR, prevalence was systematically evaluated. Multiple PCR samples taken from single FTA cards demonstrated that a single punch from an FTA card is not sufficient to confirm the infectivity status of an individual animal as parasite DNA is unevenly distributed across the card. At low parasite densities in the host, this stochastic sampling effect results in underestimation of prevalence based on single punch PCR testing. Repeated testing increased the estimated prevalence of all Trypanosoma spp. from 9.7% to 86%. Using repeat testing, a very high prevalence of pathogenic trypanosomes was detected in these local village cattle: T. brucei (34.3%), T. congolense (42.9%) and T. vivax (22.9%). These results show that, despite the convenience of Whatman FTA cards and specific PCR based detection tools, the chronically low parasitaemias in

  7. Status and potential of geothermal power in East Africa; Status quo und Entwicklungspotential der Geothermie in Ostafrika

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kraml, M.; Kessels, K.; Kalberkamp, U.; Kehrer, P.; Ochmann, N.; Reitmayr, G.; Stadtler, C. [Bundesanstalt fuer Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe, Hannover (Germany); Delvaux, D. [Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren (Belgium)

    2006-10-15

    Each country of the East African rift has potential sites for geothermal power generation. The biggest resources are expected in Kenya and Ethiopia, where conventional steam power plants can be constructed. In 2003, the six states of the region, i.e. Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda come together and decided, together with the UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme), to work on the systematic development of geothermal power in the region. Together with several investors, the ''African Rift Geothermal Development Facility'' (ARGeo) was founded with total funds of nearly 24 million US dollars. (orig.)

  8. The Late Quaternary history of climate and vegetation in East and southern Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E. M. van Zinderen Bakker Sr

    1983-11-01

    Full Text Available In the vast region of East and southern Africa the alternating glacial and interglacial periods of the Quaternarv were characterized by considerable changes in temperature and precipitation. During the last glacial maximum the influence of the ITCZ was limited, while the circulation systems were strengthened. The ocean surface waters were cooler and the Benguela Current was activated. In the montane areas of East Africa and also in southern Africa the temperature dropped by about 6°C. During this hypothermal period, rainfall on the east African plateau and mountains diminished. Summer precipitation could still penetrate the eastern half of southern Africa from the Indian Ocean, while the western half was arid to semi-arid. Cyclonic winter rain migrated further north beyond the latitude of the Orange River. The consequences of these climatic changes during the last glacial maximum were that the woodlands of East Africa opened up. On the plateau of South Africa austro-afroalpine vegetation dominated. The south coastal plain was very windy and cold to temperate, while the Namib and Kalahari were respectively hyper-arid and semi-humid. During hyperthermals the vegetation pattern resembled present-day conditions more closely.

  9. New Evidence for the Expansion of an Upper Pleistocene Population out of East Africa, from the Site of Station One, Northern Sudan

    OpenAIRE

    Rose, Jeffrey I.

    2004-01-01

    Evidence for a hunter-gatherer range-expansion is indicated by the site of Station One in the northern Sudan, a surface scatter of chipped stone debris systematically collected almost 40 years ago, though not studied until present. Based on technological and typological correlates in East Africa, the predominant use of quartz pebbles for raw material, and the production of small bifacial tools, the site can be classified as Middle Stone Age. While often appearing in East African assemblages, ...

  10. Epidemic malaria and warmer temperatures in recent decades in an East African highland

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Alonso, David; Bouma, Menno J.; Pascual, Mercedes

    2011-01-01

    Climate change impacts on malaria are typically assessed with scenarios for the long-term future. Here we focus instead on the recent past (1970-2003) to address whether warmer temperatures have already increased the incidence of malaria in a highland region of East Africa. Our analyses rely on a

  11. Pastoral Decision-Making: An Empirical Investigation of Rangeland Use

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    MacPeak, J.

    1999-01-01

    Recent research in range ecology suggests that the process of resource degradation in African arid and semi-arid rangelands may be less reliant on how many animals are kept on the rangeland than on where these animals are kept. Analysis of pastoralist land use decisions indicated that rangeland condition influences livestock keeping. However, it was found that food and income production strategies, herd characteristics play critical roles in livestock keeping decisions

  12. PASTORALISTS NON‐RESPONSIVENESS TO LIVESTOCK MARKETS IN EAST POKOT, KENYA

    OpenAIRE

    Vincent, Ng’eno; Korir, M.K.; Nyangweso, P.M.; Kipsat, Mary J.; Lagat, B.K.

    2010-01-01

    One of the major challenges facing the state‐owned Kenya Meat Commission (KMC) in Kenya has been the inadequate supply of quality live animals for meat processing. It has been observed that the live animal throughput is inadequate and, as a result the existing meat processing facilities operate at less than 50% of their operational capacities. This has increased the fixed costs of operation thereby decreasing the export abattoirs competitiveness in the domestic and export markets. Overcoming ...

  13. Practices and discourses of ubuntu: Implications for an African model of disability?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Berghs

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Southern African scholars and activists working in disability studies have argued that ubuntu or unhu is a part of their world view. Objectives: Thinking seriously about ubuntu, as a shared collective humanness or social ethics, means to examine how Africans have framed a struggle for this shared humanity in terms of decolonisation and activism. Method: Three examples of applications of ubuntu are given, with two mainly linked to making explicit umaka. Firstly, ubuntu is linked to making visible the invisible inequalities for a common humanity in South Africa. Secondly, it becomes correlated to the expression of environmental justice in West and East African countries. Results: An African model of disability that encapsulates ubuntu is correlated to how Africans have illustrated a social ethics of a common humanity in their grassroots struggles against oppression and disablement in the 20th century. Ubuntu also locates disability politically within the wider environment and practices of sustainability which are now important to the post-2105 agenda, Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD and the (UN Sustainable Development Goals linked to climate change. Conclusion: A different kind of political action linked to social justice seems to be evolving in line with ubuntu. This has implications for the future of disability studies.

  14. Practices and discourses of ubuntu: Implications for an African model of disability?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berghs, Maria

    2017-01-01

    Southern African scholars and activists working in disability studies have argued that ubuntu or unhu is a part of their world view. Thinking seriously about ubuntu, as a shared collective humanness or social ethics, means to examine how Africans have framed a struggle for this shared humanity in terms of decolonisation and activism. Three examples of applications of ubuntu are given, with two mainly linked to making explicit umaka. Firstly, ubuntu is linked to making visible the invisible inequalities for a common humanity in South Africa. Secondly, it becomes correlated to the expression of environmental justice in West and East African countries. An African model of disability that encapsulates ubuntu is correlated to how Africans have illustrated a social ethics of a common humanity in their grassroots struggles against oppression and disablement in the 20th century. Ubuntu also locates disability politically within the wider environment and practices of sustainability which are now important to the post-2105 agenda, Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the (UN) Sustainable Development Goals linked to climate change. A different kind of political action linked to social justice seems to be evolving in line with ubuntu . This has implications for the future of disability studies.

  15. Seismic signatures of the Pan-African orogeny: implications for southern Indian high-grade terranes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rai, Abhishek; Gaur, V. K.; Rai, S. S.; Priestley, K.

    2009-02-01

    We present the results of a study designed to investigate and compare the seismic characteristics of the once contiguous terranes of eastern Gondwanaland, now incorporated in five separated continental masses, which, during the Neoproterozoic (~600Ma) Pan-African orogeny, suffered a high degree of thermal stress and deformation. Receiver functions and surface wave data from stations located in East Antarctica, Sri Lanka, the southern-Indian high-grade terranes, Madagascar and the Tanzania-Mozambique belt, were used to determine the shear-wave velocity structure, Moho depth and VP/VS values of the respective crustal segments. This study provides an additional dimension to the otherwise well-documented characteristic petrology of their surface exposures and other geological signatures such as their extensive granulitization and gem formation during the Pan-African event. Analysis of the receiver functions and surface wave data for these seismic stations located on their present day widely distributed continental fragments have been made. It is observed that with the exception of KOD (at Kodaikanal hill), situated on the southern Indian granulites having the thickest crust (~43.5 km), most of the Pan-African granulitic terranes have a crustal thicknesses of ~37 +/- 0.8km, with a transition to higher velocity at mid-crustal depths, and that their bulk composition is felsic. Average crustal VP/VS values (1.704 +/- 0.03) and thicknesses (37.8 +/- 0.8km), for four stations (SYO, PALK, TRV and ABPO), now located in East Antarctica, Sri Lanka, India and Madagascar, respectively, show remarkable similarity, indicating that the Pan-African orogeny was extensive enough to reorder the crustal structure of a wide region with a broadly similar stamp.

  16. Extremely low long-term erosion rates around the Gamburtsev Mountains in interior East Antarctica

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cox, S. E.; Thomson, S. N.; Reiners, P. W.; Hemming, S. R.; van de Flierdt, T.

    2010-11-01

    The high elevation and rugged relief (>3 km) of the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains (GSM) have long been considered enigmatic. Orogenesis normally occurs near plate boundaries, not cratonic interiors, and large-scale tectonic activity last occurred in East Antarctica during the Pan-African (480-600 Ma). We sampled detrital apatite from Eocene sands in Prydz Bay at the terminus of the Lambert Graben, which drained a large pre-glacial basin including the northern Gamburtsev Mountains. Apatite fission-track and (U-Th)/He cooling ages constrain bedrock erosion rates throughout the catchment. We double-dated apatites to resolve individual cooling histories. Erosion was very slow, averaging 0.01-0.02 km/Myr for >250 Myr, supporting the preservation of high elevation in interior East Antarctica since at least the cessation of Permian rifting. Long-term topographic preservation lends credence to postulated high-elevation mountain ice caps in East Antarctica since at least the Cretaceous and to the idea that cold-based glaciation can preserve tectonically inactive topography.

  17. Tiger, tiger, burning bright? industrial policy lessons from Ireland and East Asia for small African economies

    OpenAIRE

    Bailey, David; Lenihan, Helena; Singh, Ajit

    2008-01-01

    The African economies, particularly those in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) stand today at an important crossroads. During the 1980s, for the average African country, GDP per capita fell at a rate of 0.5 percent per annum; in the 1990s it rose slightly at a rate of 0.3 percent per annum. However, in the last four years, the average growth rate of this variable has been a respectable 3 percent per annum. In 2007, GDP growth rate in Africa was estimated to be 6 percent per annum, one of the highest r...

  18. Acral peeling skin syndrome in two East-African siblings: case report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kiprono, Samson K; Chaula, Baraka M; Naafs, Bernard; Masenga, John E

    2012-03-19

    Acral peeling skin syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive genodermatosis due to a missense mutation in transglutaminase 5. The skin peeling occurs at the separation of the stratum corneum from the stratum granulosum. We present a case of two siblings who developed continuous peeling of the palms and soles from the first year of life. This peeling was more severe on the soles than palms and on younger sibling than elder sibling. Peeling is worsened by occlusion and sweating. Sporadic cases of Acral Peeling Skin Syndrome occur in African population. There is variability in time of presentation and clinical severity even within families.

  19. Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alice Kelly Pennaz

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The decline of wildlife in Central and West African border parks has been directly linked to Islamic terrorism in the region in media and government discourse. Using Waza National Park in the Far North Region of Cameroon as a case study, we show that wildlife declines in the park long preceded the appearance of Boko Haram, the extremist group best known for kidnapping over 200 girls in northern Nigeria. We also show that there is no evidence that Boko Haram are using wildlife products from the park to sustain their operations. Instead, the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative obscures complex, historically embedded reasons for insecurity in northern Cameroon as well as massive losses of biodiversity in this region. The media and governments' focus on the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative has important implications for the victims of Boko Haram, including mobile pastoralists. It is their cattle that are most likely a major source of sustenance and funding for the operations of Boko Haram. However, because these mobile pastoralist groups are “invisible” in the bush, their struggles remain ignored. We argue that the continued espousal of the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative allows Boko Haram violence against mobile pastoralists to continue, and makes way for further environmental degradation in Cameroon's protected areas.

  20. Meat Quality Characteristics of Small East African Goats and Norwegian Crosses Finished under Small Scale Farming Conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hozza, W A; Mtenga, L A; Kifaro, G C; Shija, D S N; Mushi, D E; Safari, J G; Shirima, E J M

    2014-12-01

    The aim of the experiment was to study the effect of feeding system on meat quality characteristics of Small East African (SEA) goats and their crosses with Norwegian (SEA×N) goats finished under small scale farming conditions. Twenty four castrated goats at the age of 18 months with live body weight of 16.7±0.54 kg from each breed (SEA and SEA×N) were distributed in a completely randomized design in a 2×3 factorial arrangement (two breed, and three dietary treatments). The dietary treatments were; no access to concentrate (T0), 66% access to ad libitum concentrate allowance (T66) and 100% access to ad libitum concentrate allowance with 20% refusal (T100) and the experimental period was for 84 days. In addition, all goats were allowed to graze for 2 hours daily and later fed grass hay on ad libitum basis. Daily feed intakes were recorded for all 84-days of experiment after which the animals were slaughtered. Feed intake of T100 animals was 536 g/d, which was 183 g/d higher than that of T66 group. Supplemented goats had significantly (p0.05) for dressing percentage and carcass conformation among supplemented goats except fatness score, total fat depots and carcass fat which increased (pgoats fed concentrate declined rapidly and reached below 6 at 6 h post-mortem but temperature remained at 28°C. Cooking loss and meat tenderness improved (pgoats and their crosses with Norwegian breeds finished under small scale farming conditions in rural areas. Therefore, concentrate supplementation of goats of both breeds improves meat quality attributes.

  1. Nontuberculous mycobacteria in Middle East: Current situation and future challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Velayati, Ali Akbar; Rahideh, Sanaz; Nezhad, Zahra Derakhshani; Farnia, Parissa; Mirsaeidi, Mehdi

    2015-03-01

    Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are a diverse group of bacterial species that are distributed in the environment. Many of these environmental bacteria can cause disease in humans. The identification of NTM in environmental sources is important for both clinical and epidemiological purposes. In this study, the distribution of NTM species from environmental and clinical samples in the Middle East was reviewed. In order to provide an overview of NTM, as well as recent epidemiological trends, all studies addressing NTM in the Middle East from 1984 to 2014 were reviewed. A total of 96 articles were found, in which 1751 NTM strains were isolated and 1084 of which were obtained from clinical samples, 619 from environmental samples and 48 were cited by case reports. Mycobacterium fortuitum was the most common rapid growing mycobacteria (RGM) isolated from both clinical (269 out of 447 RGM; 60.1%) and environmental (135 out of 289 RGM; 46.7%) samples. Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) was the most common slow growing mycobacteria (SGM) isolated from clinical samples (140 out of 637 SGM; 21.9%). An increasing trend in NTM isolation from the Middle East was noted over the last 5years. This review demonstrates the increasing concern regarding NTM disease in the Middle East, emphasizing the need for regional collaboration and coordination in order to respond appropriately. Copyright © 2015 Asian African Society for Mycobacteriology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. On the edge of Bantu expansions: mtDNA, Y chromosome and lactase persistence genetic variation in southwestern Angola

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beleza Sandra

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Current information about the expansion of Bantu-speaking peoples is hampered by the scarcity of genetic data from well identified populations from southern Africa. Here, we fill an important gap in the analysis of the western edge of the Bantu migrations by studying for the first time the patterns of Y-chromosome, mtDNA and lactase persistence genetic variation in four representative groups living around the Namib Desert in southwestern Angola (Ovimbundu, Ganguela, Nyaneka-Nkumbi and Kuvale. We assessed the differentiation between these populations and their levels of admixture with Khoe-San groups, and examined their relationship with other sub-Saharan populations. We further combined our dataset with previously published data on Y-chromosome and mtDNA variation to explore a general isolation with migration model and infer the demographic parameters underlying current genetic diversity in Bantu populations. Results Correspondence analysis, lineage sharing patterns and admixture estimates indicate that the gene pool from southwestern Angola is predominantly derived from West-Central Africa. The pastoralist Herero-speaking Kuvale people were additionally characterized by relatively high frequencies of Y-chromosome (12% and mtDNA (22% Khoe-San lineages, as well as by the presence of the -14010C lactase persistence mutation (6%, which likely originated in non-Bantu pastoralists from East Africa. Inferred demographic parameters show that both male and female populations underwent significant size growth after the split between the western and eastern branches of Bantu expansions occurring 4000 years ago. However, males had lower population sizes and migration rates than females throughout the Bantu dispersals. Conclusion Genetic variation in southwestern Angola essentially results from the encounter of an offshoot of West-Central Africa with autochthonous Khoisan-speaking peoples from the south. Interactions between the Bantus

  3. Genetic and antigenic characterization of serotype O FMD viruses from East Africa for the selection of suitable vaccine strain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lloyd-Jones, Katie; Mahapatra, Mana; Upadhyaya, Sasmita; Paton, David J; Babu, Aravindh; Hutchings, Geoff; Parida, Satya

    2017-12-14

    Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is endemic in Eastern Africa with circulation of multiple serotypes of the virus in the region. Most of the outbreaks are caused by serotype O followed by serotype A. The lack of concerted FMD control programmes in Africa has provided little incentive for vaccine producers to select vaccines that are tailored to circulating regional isolates creating further negative feedback to deter the introduction of vaccine-based control schemes. In this study a total of 80 serotype O FMD viruses (FMDV) isolated from 1993 to 2012 from East and North Africa were characterized by virus neutralisation tests using bovine antisera to three existing (O/KEN/77/78, O/Manisa and O/PanAsia-2) and three putative (O/EA/2002, O/EA/2009 and O/EA/2010) vaccine strains and by capsid sequencing. Genetically, these viruses were grouped as either of East African origin with subdivision into four topotypes (EA-1, 2, 3 and 4) or of Middle-East South Asian (ME-SA) topotype. The ME-SA topotype viruses were mainly detected in Egypt and Libya reflecting the trade links with the Middle East countries. There was good serological cross-reactivity between the vaccine strains and most of the field isolates analysed, indicating that vaccine selection should not be a major constraint for control of serotype O FMD by vaccination, and that both local and internationally available commercial vaccines could be used. The O/KEN/77/78 vaccine, commonly used in the region, exhibited comparatively lower percent in vitro match against the predominant topotypes (EA-2 and EA-3) circulating in the region whereas O/PanAsia-2 and O/Manisa vaccines revealed broader protection against East African serotype O viruses, even though they genetically belong to the ME-SA topotype. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  4. Innovations in sanitation for sustainable urban growth; modernized mixtures in an east african context

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Letema, S.; Van Vliet, B.; Van Lier, J.B.

    2012-01-01

    Urbanisation of poverty and informality in East Africa poses a threat to public health and environmental protection, perpetuating social exclusion and inequalities, while it creates service gaps. Neither conventional on-site sanitation nor modern centralised off-site sanitation provisions are

  5. Acral peeling skin syndrome in two East-African siblings: case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kiprono Samson K

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Acral peeling skin syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive genodermatosis due to a missense mutation in transglutaminase 5. The skin peeling occurs at the separation of the stratum corneum from the stratum granulosum. Case presentation We present a case of two siblings who developed continuous peeling of the palms and soles from the first year of life. This peeling was more severe on the soles than palms and on younger sibling than elder sibling. Peeling is worsened by occlusion and sweating. Conclusions Sporadic cases of Acral Peeling Skin Syndrome occur in African population. There is variability in time of presentation and clinical severity even within families.

  6. Initial impact of integrated agricultural research for development in East and Central Africa

    OpenAIRE

    Nkonya, Ephraim; Kato, Edward; Oduol, Judith; Pali, Pamela; Farrow, Andrew

    2013-01-01

    Conventional agricultural research approaches have generated research results with limited adoption rates in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Recently, a new research approach – integrated agricultural research for development (IAR4D) was introduced in SSA. The IAR4D approach goes beyond the conventional research focus on agricultural production technologies, as it includes marketing and development activities. This paper analyses the impact of IAR4D in the East and Central African region using pa...

  7. Southern African Power Pool: Planning and Prospects for Renewable Energy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miketa, Asami [IRENA, Bonn (Germany); Merven, Bruno [Energy Research Centre, Univ. of Cape Town (South Africa)

    2013-06-25

    With the energy systems of many African countries dominated by fossil-fuel sources that are vulnerable to global price volatility, regional and intra-continental power systems with high shares of renewable energy can provide least-cost option to support continued economic growth and address the continent’s acute energy access problem. Unlocking Africa’s huge renewable energy potential could help to take many people out of poverty, while ensuring the uptake of sustainable technologies for the continent’s long-term development. The report examines the ''renewable scenario'' based on a modelling tool developed by IRENA and tested in cooperation with the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Initial results from the System Planning and Test (SPLAT) model show that the share of renewable technologies in Southern Africa could increase from the current 10% to as much as 46% in 2030, with 20% of decentralised capacity coming from renewable sources and nearly 80% of the envisaged capacity additions between 2010 and 2030 being provided by renewable energy technologies. Deployment and export of hydropower from the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Inga hydropower project to the SADC region would significantly reduce average electricity generation costs. Analysis using SPLAT – along with a similar model developed for West Africa – can provide valuable input for regional dialogue and energy projects such as the East and Southern Africa Clean Energy Corridor and the Programme for Infrastructure and Development in Africa (PIDA). IRENA, together with partner organisations, has started plans to set up capacity building and development support for energy system modelling and planning for greater integration of renewables in Africa. IRENA is also completing a similar model and study for East Africa and intends to extend this work to Central and North Africa.

  8. Gender Equity in Mathematics Achievement in East African Primary Schools: Context Counts

    OpenAIRE

    Tia L. Zuze; Valerie E. Lee

    2007-01-01

    Although primary school enrollment is gradually on the increase in the developing world, differences in mathematics achievement between girls and boys persist. A complex combination of factors that is related to issues of the home environment, the school context, and national policy influences the performance of female students when compared to their male peers. We focus on three countries in East Africa with a female disadvantage in mathematics achievement and use data from 8,795 primary sch...

  9. Constraints to estimating the prevalence of trypanosome infections in East African zebu cattle

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cox Andrew P

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background In East Africa, animal trypanosomiasis is caused by many tsetse transmitted protozoan parasites including Trypanosoma vivax, T. congolense and subspecies of T. brucei s.l. (T. b. brucei and zoonotic human infective T. b. rhodesiense that may co-circulate in domestic and wild animals. Accurate species-specific prevalence measurements of these parasites in animal populations are complicated by mixed infections of trypanosomes within individual hosts, low parasite densities and difficulties in conducting field studies. Many Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR based diagnostic tools are available to characterise and quantify infection in animals. These are important for assessing the contribution of infections in animal reservoirs and the risk posed to humans from zoonotic trypanosome species. New matrices for DNA capture have simplified large scale field PCR analyses but few studies have examined the impact of these techniques on prevalence estimations. Results The Whatman FTA matrix has been evaluated using a random sample of 35 village zebu cattle from a population naturally exposed to trypanosome infection. Using a generic trypanosome-specific PCR, prevalence was systematically evaluated. Multiple PCR samples taken from single FTA cards demonstrated that a single punch from an FTA card is not sufficient to confirm the infectivity status of an individual animal as parasite DNA is unevenly distributed across the card. At low parasite densities in the host, this stochastic sampling effect results in underestimation of prevalence based on single punch PCR testing. Repeated testing increased the estimated prevalence of all Trypanosoma spp. from 9.7% to 86%. Using repeat testing, a very high prevalence of pathogenic trypanosomes was detected in these local village cattle: T. brucei (34.3%, T. congolense (42.9% and T. vivax (22.9%. Conclusions These results show that, despite the convenience of Whatman FTA cards and specific PCR based

  10. Tradition, globalisation and language dilemma in education: African options for the 21st century

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rwantabagu, Hermenegilde

    2011-08-01

    This paper addresses the dilemma of language in education in African countries with particular reference to Burundi. African languages are still marginalised by colonial languages such as French and English. Looking at other African countries in general and at the case of Burundi in detail, an analysis is made of the adopted policies aimed at promoting the use of the mother tongue as a basis for knowledge acquisition and cultural integration. Burundi has gone through a series of educational reforms both before and after gaining independence in 1962, with French and Kirundi competing as curricular teaching languages. After the integration of Burundi into the East African Community in July 2007, English and Kiswahili were added to the curriculum, complicating education policies. This article places particular emphasis on the contextual challenges that tend to impair the full implementation of the adopted policy reforms. The paper concludes by advocating for a multilingual approach in which the indigenous mother tongue serves as the basis for the acquisition of other languages in the curriculum.

  11. Arid waste? Reassessing the value of dryland pastoralism

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hesse, Ced; MacGregor, James

    2009-06-15

    East Africa has a huge hidden asset – but risks throwing it away in the quest for economic development. This is its millions-strong herds of dryland livestock managed by pastoralists. New findings show that pastoralism has immense potential value for reducing poverty, managing the environment, promoting sustainable development and building climate resilience. In Kenya alone, the sector is worth an estimated three-quarters of a billion dollars a year. Yet pastoralism is seen by many as archaic, economically inefficient, chaotic and environmentally destructive – perceptions that are not evidence-based, yet drive much regional policy. Inadequate, inaccurate national statistics on pastoralism do little to alter this view. Persistent undervaluation has effectively trapped up to 20 million dryland pastoralists in a cycle of poverty, conflict and environmental degradation. Now, with climate change biting, the time is ripe for a conceptual framework that captures the total economic benefits of this livelihood.

  12. A new fossil cichlid from the Middle Miocene in the East African Rift Valley (Tugen Hills, Central Kenya: First record of a putative Ectodini

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Melanie Altner

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Identification of fossil cichlids is difficult, because the currently used diagnostic morphological characters for living cichlids are mostly soft tissue based and such characters are hardly preserved in fossils. During our recent fieldwork in the Central Kenya Rift (E-Africa, we discovered several exceptionally well-preserved fossil cichlids, which can be assigned to different lineages among the African Pseudocrenilabrinae. Here we present one of those new specimens. Its most conspicuous character is a lateral line divided into three segments. This specimen was found in the lacustrine sediments of the Middle Miocene site Waril, Tugen Hills, Kenya. The site represents the deposits of an ancient freshwater lake ca. 9-10 million years ago. Previous work on fossil leaves from the same site allow for the reconstruction of open vegetation surrounding the lake and pronounced dry seasons. Among the main further characteristics of the new fossil cichlid is a lachrimal with six lateral line canals, big cycloid scales and a low number of dorsal fin spines (XIII. The latter two characters are traceable in several members of tribes within the Pseudocrenilabrinae. However, a lachrimal with six lateral line canals is exclusively found in certain tribes of the EAR (East African Radiation within the Pseudocrenilabrinae. Moreover, the unique lateral line pattern is solely present in two genera of the EAR tribe Ectodini. However, the fossil shows cycloid scales, while modern Ectodini have ctenoid scales. Taken all evidence together, this fossil may perhaps represent an ancient lineage related to the Ectodini. Up to date, there is no definite fossil record of the members of the EAR. Our fossil may represent the first reliable calibration point for this group, which would be consistent with the previously reconstructed diversification time of the H-lineage (EAR tribes, except Boulengerochromini, Bathybatini, Trematocarini and Lamprologini and the Lamprologini ca

  13. Chad Genetic Diversity Reveals an African History Marked by Multiple Holocene Eurasian Migrations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haber, Marc; Mezzavilla, Massimo; Bergström, Anders; Prado-Martinez, Javier; Hallast, Pille; Saif-Ali, Riyadh; Al-Habori, Molham; Dedoussis, George; Zeggini, Eleftheria; Blue-Smith, Jason; Wells, R Spencer; Xue, Yali; Zalloua, Pierre A; Tyler-Smith, Chris

    2016-12-01

    Understanding human genetic diversity in Africa is important for interpreting the evolution of all humans, yet vast regions in Africa, such as Chad, remain genetically poorly investigated. Here, we use genotype data from 480 samples from Chad, the Near East, and southern Europe, as well as whole-genome sequencing from 19 of them, to show that many populations today derive their genomes from ancient African-Eurasian admixtures. We found evidence of early Eurasian backflow to Africa in people speaking the unclassified isolate Laal language in southern Chad and estimate from linkage-disequilibrium decay that this occurred 4,750-7,200 years ago. It brought to Africa a Y chromosome lineage (R1b-V88) whose closest relatives are widespread in present-day Eurasia; we estimate from sequence data that the Chad R1b-V88 Y chromosomes coalesced 5,700-7,300 years ago. This migration could thus have originated among Near Eastern farmers during the African Humid Period. We also found that the previously documented Eurasian backflow into Africa, which occurred ∼3,000 years ago and was thought to be mostly limited to East Africa, had a more westward impact affecting populations in northern Chad, such as the Toubou, who have 20%-30% Eurasian ancestry today. We observed a decline in heterozygosity in admixed Africans and found that the Eurasian admixture can bias inferences on their coalescent history and confound genetic signals from adaptation and archaic introgression. Copyright © 2016 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Saghro Group in the Ougnat Massif (Morocco), an evidence for a continuous Cadomian basin along the northern West African Craton

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michard, André; Soulaimani, Abderrahmane; Ouanaimi, Hassan; Raddi, Youssef; Aït Brahim, Lahsen; Rjimati, Ech-Cherki; Baidder, Lahssen; Saddiqi, Omar

    2017-03-01

    The Saghro Group (SG) is a folded, low-grade volcano-sedimentary series up to 8 km thick that crops out within and to the north of the Pan-African suture zone in the central and eastern Anti-Atlas. Here we describe the SG of the Ougnat inliers that are exposed in the easternmost Anti-Atlas beneath the unconformable, Late Ediacaran Ouarzazate Group (OZG) volcanic rocks. The Ougnat SG mostly consists of volcaniclastic greywackes accumulated in a peritidal-to-shallow basin. The basin infilling was deformed by NNE-trending, mostly upright folds with axial-planar slaty cleavage and low-grade metamorphism. The deformed SG rocks were intruded by the ∼550 Ma Mellab hypovolcanic granodiorite. The latter also crosscuts the lowest OZG rocks that are dated to 574-571 Ma in the western Saghro region. The SG rocks that form the Siroua and Saghro inliers have an oldest age of 620-610 Ma and were folded at ∼610-580 Ma at the onset of the Cadomian orogenic events. We show that the SG rocks are similar to the ;Série verte; (SV) rocks that are exposed in the Ougarta and western Hoggar east of the Pan-African suture. We infer that the SG and SV rocks accumulated in a same, continuous basin that was bounding the West African Craton to the north and the east. This strongly subsiding basin formed close to a volcanic arc and was folded during the last Pan-African synmetamorphic events. Fold orientation and age of folding differ however along the edge of the West African Craton. The orogenic greywackes that form the remnants of the SG-SV basin thus constitute a precious record of the diachronic Cadomian event s.l. along the West African Craton northern margin.

  15. Conservation and monitoring of a persecuted African lion population by Maasai warriors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dolrenry, Stephanie; Hazzah, Leela; Frank, Laurence G

    2016-06-01

    Although Africa has many threatened species and biological hot spots, there are few citizen science schemes, particularly in rural communities, and there has been limited evaluation of existing programs. We engaged traditional Maasai warriors (pastoralist men aged 15 to 35) in community-based conservation and demographic monitoring of a persecuted African lion (Panthera leo) population. Through direct engagement, we investigated whether a citizen science approach employing local warriors, who had no formal education, could produce reliable data on the demographics, predation, and movements of a species with which their communities have been in conflict for generations. Warriors were given benefits such as literacy training and skill enhancement and engaged in the monitoring of the lions. The trained warriors reported on lion sign across an area nearly 4000 km(2) . Scientists worked together with the warriors to verify their reports and gather observations on the lion population. Using the verified reports and collected observations, we examined our scientific knowledge relative to the lion population preceding and during the citizen science program. Our observations showed that data quality and quantity improved with the involvement and training of the participants. Furthermore, because they engaged in conservation and gained personal benefits, the participants came to appreciate a species that was traditionally their foe. We believe engaging other local communities in biodiversity conservation and monitoring may be an effective conservation approach in rural Africa. © 2016 Society for Conservation Biology.

  16. The African Standby Force and Regional Security Integration

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mandrup, Thomas

    2015-01-01

    the challenges facing the region? The regional enmities between the states seem to be widespread, deep-rooted and of a nearly chronic nature. In June 2015 the African Union and its member-states announced that they expected the five regionally based standby brigades to be fully operational by December 2015....... The readiness is to be tested at a continental field exercise, Amani Africa 11 to take place in South Africa October 2015. (Defence Web, 2015) The article will start by mapping out the security dynamics and architecture in East Africa, including its membership circles and priorities. The article...

  17. Multiple and differentiated contributions to the male gene pool of pastoral and farmer populations of the African Sahel

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Bučková, J.; Černý, Viktor; Novelletto, A.

    2013-01-01

    Roč. 151, č. 1 (2013), s. 10-21 ISSN 0002-9483 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA13-37998S Institutional support: RVO:67985912 Keywords : Y chromosome * nomadic pastoralists * sedentary farmers Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology Impact factor: 2.514, year: 2013

  18. Analysis of pastoralists' perception on challenges and opportunities for sheep and goat production in Northern Kenya.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdilatif, Mohamed Haji; Onono, Joshua Orungo; Mutua, Florence Kanini

    2018-05-16

    Small ruminants' production contributes to livelihood of pastoral communities, but this faces myriad constraints. This study aimed at identifying challenges facing producers of small ruminants, prioritizing diseases and their control measures and documenting opportunities for improvement. Sixteen focus group discussions with livestock owners and 13 key informant interviews were done in selected areas in Mandera County, Northern Kenya, and both quantitative and qualitative data collected using a questionnaire guide. Occurrences of diseases (27.4%) and drought (25%) were consistently ranked high in all groups. Other production challenges included increased predation of livestock, inadequate delivery of veterinary services, and increased livestock mortalities. Peste des Petit ruminants was ranked high with a median rank of 21.5%, while contagious caprine pleuropneumonia and sheep and goat pox were ranked second and third, respectively. Other diseases included tick-borne diseases, helminthosis, and pneumonia. Vaccination was ranked as the most effective control strategy for infectious diseases. Other control measures included recitation of Quran and cauterization. However, several opportunities exist for support of small ruminants' production: increased budgetary allocation for disease control by government, initiation of projects that enhance livestock production in the region by government and its development partners. These findings are useful for policy makers for disease control and organizations that are working on projects that focuses on enhancement of pastoralists' resilience, while future research could also identify appropriate technologies that reduces these impacts.

  19. The Intertropical Convergence Zone over the Middle East and North Africa: Detection and Trends

    KAUST Repository

    Scott, Anna A.

    2013-01-01

    This thesis provides an overview of identifying the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The ITCZ is a zone of wind convergence around the equator that coincides with an area of intense precipitation that is commonly termed a tropical rainbelt. In Africa, these two concepts are frequently confounded. This work studies the correlation between precipitation and commonly used ITCZ indicators. A further attempt is made to detect movement in the African ITCZ, based on earlier paleontological studies showing historical changes in precipitation. Zonally averaged wind convergence is found to be the most reliable indicator of the African ITCZ, one having a low correlation with zonally averaged precipitation. Precipitation is found only to be a reliable indicator for the African ITCZ in zones near the wind convergence, which reaches as far north as 20_N in the summer. No secular change in location of the African ITCZ is found for the time of available data. Finally, historical data shows that any increase in precipitation in the Sahel, a region where precipitation is driven by the ITCZ, is mildly negatively correlated with precipitation in the rainbelt area, suggesting that shifts in the ITCZ result in a widening of the precipitation profile as well as a shift of the entire zone.

  20. The Intertropical Convergence Zone over the Middle East and North Africa: Detection and Trends

    KAUST Repository

    Scott, Anna A.

    2013-05-01

    This thesis provides an overview of identifying the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The ITCZ is a zone of wind convergence around the equator that coincides with an area of intense precipitation that is commonly termed a tropical rainbelt. In Africa, these two concepts are frequently confounded. This work studies the correlation between precipitation and commonly used ITCZ indicators. A further attempt is made to detect movement in the African ITCZ, based on earlier paleontological studies showing historical changes in precipitation. Zonally averaged wind convergence is found to be the most reliable indicator of the African ITCZ, one having a low correlation with zonally averaged precipitation. Precipitation is found only to be a reliable indicator for the African ITCZ in zones near the wind convergence, which reaches as far north as 20_N in the summer. No secular change in location of the African ITCZ is found for the time of available data. Finally, historical data shows that any increase in precipitation in the Sahel, a region where precipitation is driven by the ITCZ, is mildly negatively correlated with precipitation in the rainbelt area, suggesting that shifts in the ITCZ result in a widening of the precipitation profile as well as a shift of the entire zone.

  1. The value of milk in rangelands in Mandera County, Kenya

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ngugi, Keziah; Ertsen, Maurits

    2015-04-01

    Lack of water over expansive regions in Greater Horn of Africa created the rangelands and rangelands created pastoralism. Pastoralism involve keeping of large livestock herds and movement in search of resources, mainly water, pasture, medicine and wild foods. Several studies have been done in the last century and findings pointed at pastoralism being primitive and unsustainable. It has been predicted it would die in the last century but in the rangelands, pastoralism lives on and it is resilient. This study is based in Mandera, a pastoralism county in Kenya that neighbors Ethiopia to the North and Somalia to the East. The study sought to investigate contribution of milk to pastoralism resilience. Interviews were conducted in the field among the pastoralists, women groups, transporters, traders, government officials and consumers of milk. These information was corroborated with actual field investigations in the expansive rangelands of Mandera County. Pastoralists rarely slaughter or sell their livestock even when the animals waste away during droughts. This is because they have been through such cycles before and observed livestock make tremendous recovery when the right conditions were restored. Rangelands lack infrastructure, there are no roads, schools, telephone or hospitals. Pastoralists diet is comprised of rice, wheat and milk. It was established milk was the main source of income among pastoralists in Mandera County. From milk, the pastoralists make income that is used to purchase the other foodstuffs. Milk is available on daily basis in large quantities owing to the large number of livestock. Unfortunately, every pastoralist household produce copious amounts of milk, thus no local demand and transport infrastructure is nonexistent, making sale of milk a near impossible task. The findings showed the pastoralists have established unique routes through which milk reach the markets in urban centers where demand is high. Urbanization sustain pastoralism. These

  2. African Journals Online: Central African Republic

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    African Journals Online: Central African Republic. Home > African Journals Online: Central African Republic. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Browse By Category · Browse Alphabetically · Browse By Country · List All Titles · Free to read Titles This ...

  3. Introduction of East African cassava mosaic Zanzibar virus to Oman harks back to "Zanzibar, the capital of Oman".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, Akhtar J; Akhtar, Sohail; Al-Matrushi, Abdulrahman M; Fauquet, Claude M; Briddon, Rob W

    2013-02-01

    Cassava mosaic disease (CMD) is the most devastating disease of the subsistence crop cassava (Manihot esculenta) across Africa and the Indian subcontinent. The disease is caused by viruses of the genus Begomovirus (family Geminiviridae)-seven species have been identified so far. The Sultanate of Oman is unusual among countries in Arabia in growing cassava on a small scale for local consumption. During a recent survey in A'Seeb wilayat of Muscat governorate, Oman, cassava plants were identified with symptoms typical of CMD. A begomovirus, East African cassava mosaic Zanzibar virus (EACMZV), was isolated from symptomatic plants. This virus was previously only known to occur in Zanzibar and Kenya. During the 19th Century, Zanzibar was governed by Oman and was so important that the Sultan of Oman moved his capital there from Muscat. After a period of colonial rule, the governing Arab elite was overthrown, following independence in the 1960s, and many expatriate Omanis returned to their homeland. Having gained a liking for the local Zanzibar cuisine, it appears that returning Omanis did not wish to do without dishes made from one particular favorite, cassava. Consequently, they carried planting material back to Oman for cultivation in their kitchen gardens. The evidence suggests that this material harbored EACMZV. Recently, Oman has been shown to be a nexus for geminiviruses and their associated satellites from diverse geographic origins. With their propensity to recombine, a major mechanism for evolution of geminiviruses, and the fact that Oman (and several other Arabian countries) is a major hub for trade and travel by air and sea, the possibility of onward spread is worrying.

  4. Population genetics of the potentially invasive African fruit fly species, Ceratitis rosa and Ceratitis fasciventris (Diptera: Tephritidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baliraine, F N; Bonizzoni, M; Guglielmino, C R; Osir, E O; Lux, S A; Mulaa, F J; Gomulski, L M; Zheng, L; Quilici, S; Gasperi, G; Malacrida, A R

    2004-03-01

    A set of 10 microsatellite markers was used to survey the levels of genetic variability and to analyse the genetic aspects of the population dynamics of two potentially invasive pest fruit fly species, Ceratitis rosa and C. fasciventris, in Africa. The loci were derived from the closely related species, C. capitata. The degree of microsatellite polymorphism in C. rosa and C. fasciventris was extensive and comparable to that of C. capitata. In C. rosa, the evolution of microsatellite polymorphism in its distribution area reflects the colonization history of this species. The mainland populations are more polymorphic than the island populations. Low levels of differentiation were found within the Africa mainland area, while greater levels of differentiation affect the islands. Ceratitis fasciventris is a central-east African species. The microsatellite data over the Uganda/Kenya spatial scale suggest a recent expansion and possibly continuing gene flow within this area. The microsatellite variability data from C. rosa and C. fasciventris, together with those of C. capitata, support the hypothesis of an east African origin of the Ceratitis spp.

  5. Microbiological quality of milk in Tanzania: from Maasai stable to African consumer table.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schoder, Dagmar; Maichin, Andreas; Lema, Benedict; Laffa, John

    2013-11-01

    In Tanzania, pastoralists such as the Maasai and small urban farmers are responsible for the country's milk production, and 95% of the national milk supply is sold without regulation. This study was conducted using hygiene checklists and milk sampling to investigate milk quality and safety at various steps throughout the milk production chain. In regions of Dar es Salaam and Lake Victoria, 196 milk samples were collected: 109 samples of raw milk, 41 samples of packed or open served heat-treated products, and 46 samples of fermented products. Samples were taken from (i) the production level (pastoralists and urban farmers), (ii) the collection level (middlemen and depots), (iii) processors (dairies), and (iv) retailers (kiosks). Samples were analyzed for hygiene criteria (total bacteria, total coliforms, Escherichia coli, and coagulase-positive staphylococci) and foodborne pathogens such as Salmonella, enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7, and Listeria monocytogenes. Adequate heating of milk for drinking was determined via heat labile alkaline phosphatase and lactoperoxidase analysis. Total bacterial counts indicated that only 67% (73 of 109) of raw milk samples and 46% (19 of 41) of heat-treated samples met national Tanzanian standards. Bulk milk samples taken from the traditional milking vessels of Maasai pastoralists had the lowest total bacterial counts: ≥ 1 × 10(2) CFU/ml. Foodborne pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella were isolated from 10.1% (11 of 109) of raw milk samples but were not detected in heat-treated or fermented products, and 83% of heat-treated milk samples were lactoperoxidase negative, indicating overpasteurization. Coliforms were detected in 41% (17 of 41) of processed milk samples, thus indicating a high rate of recontamination. A progressive decrease in microbial quality along the milk production chain was attributed to departures from traditional methods, inadequate milk containers, long transport distances, lack of cooling, and

  6. Multiple origins and regional dispersal of resistant dhps in African Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Richard J Pearce

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available Although the molecular basis of resistance to a number of common antimalarial drugs is well known, a geographic description of the emergence and dispersal of resistance mutations across Africa has not been attempted. To that end we have characterised the evolutionary origins of antifolate resistance mutations in the dihydropteroate synthase (dhps gene and mapped their contemporary distribution.We used microsatellite polymorphism flanking the dhps gene to determine which resistance alleles shared common ancestry and found five major lineages each of which had a unique geographical distribution. The extent to which allelic lineages were shared among 20 African Plasmodium falciparum populations revealed five major geographical groupings. Resistance lineages were common to all sites within these regions. The most marked differentiation was between east and west African P. falciparum, in which resistance alleles were not only of different ancestry but also carried different resistance mutations.Resistant dhps has emerged independently in multiple sites in Africa during the past 10-20 years. Our data show the molecular basis of resistance differs between east and west Africa, which is likely to translate into differing antifolate sensitivity. We have also demonstrated that the dispersal patterns of resistance lineages give unique insights into recent parasite migration patterns.

  7. West African pholcid spiders: an overview, with descriptions of five new species (Araneae, Pholcidae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bernhard A. Huber

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available This paper summarizes current knowledge about West African pholcids. West Africa is here defined as the area south of 17°N and west of 5°E, including mainly the Upper Guinean subregion of the Guineo-Congolian center of endemism. This includes all of Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo and Benin. An annotated list of the 14 genera and 38 species recorded from this area is given, together with distribution maps and an identification key to genera. Five species are newly described: Anansus atewa sp. nov., Artema bunkpurugu sp. nov., Leptopholcus kintampo sp. nov., Spermophora akwamu sp. nov., and S. ziama sp. nov. The female of Quamtana kitahurira is newly described. Additional new records are given for 16 previously described species, including 33 new country records. Distribution patterns of West African pholcids are discussed, as well as possible explanations for relatively low West African pholcid species diversity as compared to Central and East Africa.

  8. Dual African origins of global Aedes aegypti s.l. populations revealed by mitochondrial DNA.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michelle Moore

    Full Text Available Aedes aegypti is the primary global vector to humans of yellow fever and dengue flaviviruses. Over the past 50 years, many population genetic studies have documented large genetic differences among global populations of this species. These studies initially used morphological polymorphisms, followed later by allozymes, and most recently various molecular genetic markers including microsatellites and mitochondrial markers. In particular, since 2000, fourteen publications and four unpublished datasets have used sequence data from the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 4 mitochondrial gene to compare Ae. aegypti collections and collectively 95 unique mtDNA haplotypes have been found. Phylogenetic analyses in these many studies consistently resolved two clades but no comprehensive study of mtDNA haplotypes have been made in Africa, the continent in which the species originated.ND4 haplotypes were sequenced in 426 Ae. aegypti s.l. from Senegal, West Africa and Kenya, East Africa. In Senegal 15 and in Kenya 7 new haplotypes were discovered. When added to the 95 published haplotypes and including 6 African Aedes species as outgroups, phylogenetic analyses showed that all but one Senegal haplotype occurred in a basal clade while most East African haplotypes occurred in a second clade arising from the basal clade. Globally distributed haplotypes occurred in both clades demonstrating that populations outside Africa consist of mixtures of mosquitoes from both clades.Populations of Ae. aegypti outside Africa consist of mosquitoes arising from one of two ancestral clades. One clade is basal and primarily associated with West Africa while the second arises from the first and contains primarily mosquitoes from East Africa.

  9. Meta-analysis of proportion estimates of Extended-Spectrum-Beta-Lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in East Africa hospitals

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sonda, Tolbert; Kumburu, Happiness; van Zwetselaar, Marco

    2016-01-01

    Background: A high proportion of Extended-Spectrum-Beta-Lactamase (ESBL) producing Enterobacteriaceae is causing common infections in all regions of the world. The burden of antibiotic resistance due to ESBL in East Africa is large but information is scarce and thus it is unclear how big the prob......Background: A high proportion of Extended-Spectrum-Beta-Lactamase (ESBL) producing Enterobacteriaceae is causing common infections in all regions of the world. The burden of antibiotic resistance due to ESBL in East Africa is large but information is scarce and thus it is unclear how big...... the problem really is. To gain insight into the magnitude and molecular epidemiology of ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae in East Africa a literature search was performed in PubMed on 31 July 2015 to retrieve articles with relevant information on ESBL. Methods and results: Meta-analysis was performed...... to determine overall proportion estimate of ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae. A total of 4076 bacterial isolates were included in the analysis. The overall pooled proportion of ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae among included surveys done in East African hospitals was found to be 0. 42 (95 % CI: 0...

  10. Parsing the Gulf between Africans and African Americans

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ashly Nsangou

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The rise in African immigrants to the US provides an opportunity to assess relations between Africans and African Americans in college. An online survey of 322 current and recently-graduated college students (including 45 Africans, 160 African Americans, and 117 whites assessed respondents’ experiences of racism in US high schools and colleges. Semi-structured interviews of 30 students (10 African, 10 African American and 10 white students supplemented these data. Even within a sociopolitical context of more visible racial intolerance, Black intra-racial cohesion was absent. Although more first- and second-generation Africans (73% felt that they had been judged while living in the US compared to African Americans (34% or whites (20%, for 70–80% of respondents, this had occurred only in high school. Despite experiencing these judgments, Africans’ identity related more to their focus on education than their race, reflected in a higher proportion who felt intense family pressure to attend college (65% compared to African Americans (37% and whites (39%. Interview data confirmed previous reports in the literature that African Americans lack a sense of connection to Africans, attributed to Africans’ purported sense of superiority and disregard for African Americans’ ongoing struggle to end oppression. These mixed-methods data suggest that intermingling in the college environment has not resulted in first- and second-generation Africans and African Americans sharing a common in-group, race-based identity. We discuss the implications of overlooking ethnic distinctions due to presumptions of racial homogeneity that deprive Black individuals of their uniqueness.

  11. Fatty acid composition of minced meat, longissimus muscle and omental fat from Small East African goats finished on different levels of concentrate supplementation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mushi, D E; Thomassen, M S; Kifaro, G C; Eik, L O

    2010-10-01

    Effects of supplementing Small East African (SEA) goats with concentrate diets on fatty acids composition of minced meat, M. longissimus dorsi (LD) and omental fat were assessed using 23 animals (14.5 months old and 20.1 kg body weight). Goats were subjected to four levels of concentrate supplementation: ad libitum concentrate allowance (T100), 66% (T66), 33% (T33) and 0% (T0) of ad libitum concentrate allowance. All goats were slaughtered after 90 days of experimental period. Minced meat from concentrate-supplemented goats had higher (Pmeat from T00 and T66 goats had similar proportions of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and n-6 PUFA that were higher (Pgoats whereas margaric and arachidonic acids were in higher (Pgoats. Overall, LD was associated with PUFA, omental fat with saturated fatty acids (SFA), minced meat with MUFA. It is concluded that finishing SEA goats on concentrate diets will increase the proportion of DFA in meat from them. In addition, the proportion of PUFA in meat from such goats will peak at concentrate supplementation equivalent to 66% of their ad libitum intake. Consumers should avoid high intake of internal fat due to their richness in SFA. Copyright (c) 2010 The American Meat Science Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Bioaccumulation and biomagnification of mercury in African lakes: The importance of trophic status

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Poste, Amanda E., E-mail: amanda.poste@niva.no [Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Gaustadalléen 21, 0349 Oslo (Norway); Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1 (Canada); Muir, Derek C.G. [Aquatic Contaminants Research Division, Environment Canada, 867 Lakeshore Drive, Burlington, ON L7R 4A6 (Canada); Guildford, Stephanie J.; Hecky, Robert E. [Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1 (Canada); Large Lakes Observatory, University of Minnesota Duluth, 2205 East Fifth Street, Duluth, MN 55812 (United States)

    2015-02-15

    Despite the global prevalence of both mercury (Hg) contamination and anthropogenic eutrophication, relatively little is known about the behavior of Hg in eutrophic and hypereutrophic systems or the effects of lake trophic status on Hg uptake and trophodynamics. In the current study we explore Hg trophodynamics at 8 tropical East African study sites ranging from mesotrophic to hypereutrophic, in order to assess the influence of lake trophic status on Hg uptake and biomagnification. Comprehensive water, plankton and fish samples were collected for analysis of total mercury (THg) and stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios. We found evidence that uptake of THg into phytoplankton tended to be lower in higher productivity systems. THg concentrations in fish were generally low, and THg trophic magnification factors (TMFs; representing the average increase in contaminant concentrations from one trophic level to the next) ranged from 1.9 to 5.6. Furthermore TMFs were significantly lower in hypereutrophic lakes than in meso- and eutrophic lakes, and were negatively related to chlorophyll a concentrations both across our study lakes, and across African lakes for which literature data were available. These observations suggest that THg concentrations were strongly influenced by trophic status, with year-round high phytoplankton and fish growth rates reducing the potential for high THg in fish in these productive tropical lakes. - Highlights: • We characterized Hg in water and biota from 8 East African study sites. • Hg concentrations in fish were low and should not pose a risk to human consumers. • Hg uptake and biomagnification rates were negatively related to trophic status. • Growth dilution in phytoplankton and consumer trophic levels led to low fish Hg.

  13. Bioaccumulation and biomagnification of mercury in African lakes: The importance of trophic status

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Poste, Amanda E.; Muir, Derek C.G.; Guildford, Stephanie J.; Hecky, Robert E.

    2015-01-01

    Despite the global prevalence of both mercury (Hg) contamination and anthropogenic eutrophication, relatively little is known about the behavior of Hg in eutrophic and hypereutrophic systems or the effects of lake trophic status on Hg uptake and trophodynamics. In the current study we explore Hg trophodynamics at 8 tropical East African study sites ranging from mesotrophic to hypereutrophic, in order to assess the influence of lake trophic status on Hg uptake and biomagnification. Comprehensive water, plankton and fish samples were collected for analysis of total mercury (THg) and stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios. We found evidence that uptake of THg into phytoplankton tended to be lower in higher productivity systems. THg concentrations in fish were generally low, and THg trophic magnification factors (TMFs; representing the average increase in contaminant concentrations from one trophic level to the next) ranged from 1.9 to 5.6. Furthermore TMFs were significantly lower in hypereutrophic lakes than in meso- and eutrophic lakes, and were negatively related to chlorophyll a concentrations both across our study lakes, and across African lakes for which literature data were available. These observations suggest that THg concentrations were strongly influenced by trophic status, with year-round high phytoplankton and fish growth rates reducing the potential for high THg in fish in these productive tropical lakes. - Highlights: • We characterized Hg in water and biota from 8 East African study sites. • Hg concentrations in fish were low and should not pose a risk to human consumers. • Hg uptake and biomagnification rates were negatively related to trophic status. • Growth dilution in phytoplankton and consumer trophic levels led to low fish Hg

  14. A new velocity field for Africa from combined GPS and DORIS space geodetic Solutions: Contribution to the definition of the African reference frame (AFREF)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saria, E.; Calais, E.; Altamimi, Z.; Willis, P.; Farah, H.

    2013-04-01

    We analyzed 16 years of GPS and 17 years of Doppler orbitography and radiopositioning integrated by satellite (DORIS) data at continuously operating geodetic sites in Africa and surroundings to describe the present-day kinematics of the Nubian and Somalian plates and constrain relative motions across the East African Rift. The resulting velocity field describes horizontal and vertical motion at 133 GPS sites and 9 DORIS sites. Horizontal velocities at sites located on stable Nubia fit a single plate model with a weighted root mean square residual of 0.6 mm/yr (maximum residual 1 mm/yr), an upper bound for plate-wide motions and for regional-scale deformation in the seismically active southern Africa and Cameroon volcanic line. We confirm significant southward motion ( ˜ 1.5 mm/yr) in Morocco with respect to Nubia, consistent with earlier findings. We propose an updated angular velocity for the divergence between Nubia and Somalia, which provides the kinematic boundary conditions to rifting in East Africa. We update a plate motion model for the East African Rift and revise the counterclockwise rotation of the Victoria plate and clockwise rotation of the Rovuma plate with respect to Nubia. Vertical velocities range from - 2 to +2 mm/yr, close to their uncertainties, with no clear geographic pattern. This study provides the first continent-wide position/velocity solution for Africa, expressed in International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF2008), a contribution to the upcoming African Reference Frame (AFREF). Except for a few regions, the African continent remains largely under-sampled by continuous space geodetic data. Efforts are needed to augment the geodetic infrastructure and openly share existing data sets so that the objectives of AFREF can be fully reached.

  15. United Nations - African Union Cooperation In Conflict Prevention, Peacekeeping and Peacebuildin

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liliya Igorevna Romadan

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The article addresses the cooperation between the United Nations and regional organizations, in particular the African Union in the sphere of security and settlement of conflicts. Over the last decade the role of the AU and sub regional organizations has dramatically increased. Through its agencies of ensuring peace and security the African Union is making significant contribution to strengthening stability and promotion of democracy and human rights in Africa. In the beginning of the article authors make a review of the level of security on the African continent and stress the sharpest conflict zones. According to researches one of the most turbulent regions on continent in terms of security is the North-East Africa. Continuing quarter-century war in Somalia, conflict relations between Somalia and Ethiopia, the border crises between Ethiopia and Eritrea, which in the late 20th century turned into the war between the two countries, finally, the number of armed clashes in Sudan attracted the special attention to the region of the entire world community. Authors pay the main attention to the cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union in the sphere of settling regional conflicts and holding peacekeeping operations. In the article the main mechanisms and methods that are used by the United Nations and the African Union to hold peacekeeping operations are analyzed in details. The situation in Somalia and efforts of the United Nations and the African Union that are making towards stabilization in this country are also studied. Authors reveal the basic elements and make a review of the mixed multicomponent peacekeeping operation of the United Nations and the African Union in Sudan. In the conclusion authors stress the measures that could strengthen the strategic cooperation between the United Nations and the African union. According to the authors the most important task is to solve problems of financing joint peacekeeping operations

  16. African Journals Online: African Studies

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Items 51 - 56 of 56 ... Research Review of the Institute of African Studies. Please note: As of 2013 the Research Review of the Institute of African Studies is now publishing under the title Contemporary Journal of African Studies. You can view the CJAS pages on AJOL here: http://www.ajol.info/index.php/contjas/index.

  17. Xenoliths from Bunyaruguru volcanic field: Some insights into lithology of East African Rift upper mantle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muravyeva, N. S.; Senin, V. G.

    2018-01-01

    The mineral composition of mantle xenoliths from kamafugites of the Bunyaruguru volcanic field has been determined. The major and some trace elements (Si, Ti, Al, Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca, Na, K, Cr, Ni, Ba, Sr, La, Ce, Nd, Nb) has been analyzed in olivine, clinopyroxene, phlogopite, Cr-spinel, titanomagnetite, perovskite and carbonates of xenoliths and their host lavas. Bunyaruguru is one of three (Katwe-Kikorongo, Fort Portal and Bunyaruguru) volcanic fields included in the Toro-Ankole province located on the North end of the West Branch of the East African Rift. The xenoliths from three craters within the Bunyaruguru volcanic field revealed the different character of metasomatic alteration, reflecting the heterogeneity of the mantle on the kilometer scale. The most unusual finding was composite glimmerite-wehrlite xenolith from the crater Kazimiro, which contains the fresh primary high-Mg olivine with inclusions of Cr-spinel that had not been previously identified in this area. The different composition of phenocryst and xenolith minerals indicates that the studied xenoliths are not cumulus of enclosing magma, but the composition of xenoliths characterizes the lithology of the upper mantle of the area. The carbonate melt inclusions in olivine Fo90 demonstrate the existence of primary carbonatitic magmas in Bunyaruguru upper mantle. The results of texture and chemical investigation of the xenolith minerals indicate the time sequence of metasomatic alteration of Bunyaruguru upper mantle: MARID metasomatism at the first stage followed by carbonate metasomatism. The abundances of REE in perovskites from kamafugite are 2-4 times higher than similar values for xenolith. Therefore the kamafugite magma was been generated from a more enriched mantle source than the source of the xenoliths. The evaluation of P-T conditions formation of clinopyroxene xenolith revealed the range of pressure 20-65 kbar and the temperatures range 830-1040 °C. The pressure of clinopyroxene phenocryst

  18. Black versus Black: The Relationship among African, African American, and African Caribbean Persons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jackson, Jennifer V.; Cothran, Mary E.

    2003-01-01

    Surveyed people of African descent regarding relationships among African, African-American, and African-Caribbean persons, focusing on contact and friendship, travel to countries of the diaspora, cross-cultural communication, thoughts and stereotypes, and education. Most respondents had contacts with the other groups, but groups had preconceived…

  19. SADCC: challenging the "South African connection.".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liebenow, J G

    1982-01-01

    The Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC) which unites 9 states with a combined population of 60 million, has as its objective the task of promoting economic development and realizing economic independence. In many respects the strain of neocolonialism that Southern Africa faces at this time is even more virulent than that facing West, Central, and East Africa. In the latter regions the surrender of political authority by colonial administrators frequently left the commercial, agricultural, and industrial interests of the European powers in continued control of the economies of the former colonies. The fate of economic development plans was determined by situations and decisions made in places distant from the African continent. In the case of Southern Africa, the withdrawal or expulsion of European colonialists has found whites in neighboring South Africa most eager to step into the economic breech. For most of the Southern African states this variant strain of the neocolonial virus creates a dual problem: the independent states acting separately have been no match for South Africa; and the acquiescence of independent African states in forging economic links with South Africa has impeded the liberation efforts of Africans in Namibia and the Republic of South Africa. Discussion focus turns to the challenges that confront SADCC; transport as the most significant factor accounting for the dependency of SADCC states upon South Africa; the role of minerals in dependency; other aspects of dependency; South Africa's proposed Constellation of States; the origins and objectives of SADCC; and dollars and donors. SADCC planning for economic liberation has been conducted against the background of a counterproposal advanced by South Africa's government, which put the Republic at the center of an expanded network of economic linkages within the entire southern African region. While being formally rejected, the Constellation of States scheme does have

  20. Human leptospirosis in Tanzania: sequencing and phylogenetic analysis confirm that pathogenic Leptospira species circulate among agro-pastoralists living in Katavi-Rukwa ecosystem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muller, Shabani K; Assenga, Justine A; Matemba, Lucas E; Misinzo, Gerald; Kazwala, Rudovick R

    2016-06-10

    Leptospirosis is a neglected zoonotic disease of worldwide public health importance. The disease affects humans, domestic animals and wildlife. However, leptospirosis is challenging in its diagnosis in humans. Culture technique, which is time consuming, is not recommended for clinical diagnosis. For these reasons, serological and molecular techniques remain the test of choice. The major objective of this study was to explore the genetic characteristic of Leptospira species which are prevalent among agro-pastoralists living in Katavi-Rukwa Ecosystem, Tanzania. A cross-sectional epidemiological study was carried out in the Katavi-Region South-west, Tanzania between August, 2013 and November, 2014. A total of 267 participants were randomly recruited for the study. Microscopic agglutination test (MAT) was used to detect antibody against six Leptospira antigens including local serogroups Icterohaemorrhagiae, Ballum, Grippotyphosa, Sejroe and reference serogroups Hebdomadis, and Australis. Samples with MAT titers ≥ 1:160 were scored as positive, samples with MAT titers ranging from 1:20 to 1:80 were scored as exposed to Leptospira, and absence of agglutination titers was scored as negative. All MAT positive samples, including the low titre samples were subjected to PCR using the respective 16S rRNA primers for the pathogenic and non-pathogenic species. Out of 267 samples tested, 80 (29.9 %) were positive with MAT. The major circulating leptospiral serogroups were Sejroe (15.7 %,), Icterohaemorrhagiae (8.9 %), Grippotyphosa (4.8 %), Hebdomadis (3.37 %), Australis (1.49 %) and Ballum (1.19 %). By using PCR, 33 (15.7 %) out of 210 samples were pathogenic Leptospira while no saprophytic Leptospira spp. was detected. Partial 16S rRNA gene sequences of Leptospira species which were obtained from this study were submitted to GenBank and acquired accession numbers KP313246 and KP313247. Phylogenetic analysis of the nucleotide sequences revealed that species

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site.