Hasil untuk "History of Africa"

D. Fassin

Chinelo Eneh

KAYONGO Lynet

The Green Revolution in Africa has been mainly driven by international agencies such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Yara Foundation, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Despite the billions of dollars invested the success of the movement in Africa has been limited. This paper critically examines why the Green Revolution model promoted by the Alliance for the Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has had limited impact in Africa, arguing that the movement’s reliance on increased crop yields as a solution for poverty and hunger is overly simplistic and overlooks local conditions in Africa that make difficult for the Green Revolution to duplicate the successes of the Green Revolution in Asia and Latin America. It advocates for a paradigm shift toward ecologically sustainable and locally driven agricultural reforms that prioritize smallholder farmers and protects Africa’s food sovereignty. The paper uses historical analysis to critique the adverse ecological, social, and economic consequences of borrowed, externally driven agricultural models that overlook the unique challenges of African farming systems, such as low irrigation potential, dependence on mono-cultures, and inadequate attention to local diets and practices. It highlights the disproportionate benefits that the green revolution in Africa is accruing to medium-scale male farmers, while increasing gendered inequalities in food production and distribution.

Vinogradov I.S., Mamakhatov T.M.

In recent years, the drug situation in China has generally stabilized, and according to official Chinese statistics, the number of drug addicts is reducing. However, China remains one of the key sources of synthetic drugs and precursors to other countries. The spread of narcotic drugs (synthetic opioids, cannabinoids, methamphetamine and others) threatens all countries. An important factor is that the Chinese government is able to control the large number of pharmaceutical manufacturers in the country , thus making it difficult for new types and modifications of drugs and psychoactive substances to appear on the market. In recent years, the PRC leadership has taken a number of effective steps to combat the uncontrolled production and distribution of illegal drugs, in particular, the state tightens control and regulation of the production of synthetic psychoactive drugs. China has strict laws against drug trafficking, which also serve as an effective deterrent against the distribution and consumption of illicit substances. Due to these measures, the international drug business is forced to move laboratories for the production of synthetic drugs from China to other nearby countries such as Myanmar and India. The situation with the international drug trade in the modern world requires concerted action at the interstate level. The interaction between law enforcement agencies of the SCO (the Shanghai Cooperation Organization) member states is a good example of cooperation in this area. One of the priorities of this organization is the fight against drug crime. At this stage, it is necessary to further deepen cooperation between the law enforcement agencies of the SCO countries to identify established drug trafficking channels, fight against drug trafficking in the dark web and prevent the emergence of analogues to various psychotropic substances prohibited by law.

Jacinda Tran, Christine Lee Hathaway, Cara Jill Broshkevitch et al.

IntroductionWomen living with human immunodeficiency virus (WLHIV) face elevated risks of human papillomavirus (HPV) acquisition and cervical cancer (CC). Coverage of CC screening and treatment remains low in low-and-middle-income settings, reflecting resource challenges and loss to follow-up with current strategies. We estimated the health and economic impact of alternative scalable CC screening strategies in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, a region with high burden of CC and HIV.MethodsWe parameterized a dynamic compartmental model of HPV and HIV transmission and CC natural history to KwaZulu-Natal. Over 100 years, we simulated the status quo of a multi-visit screening and treatment strategy with cytology and colposcopy triage (South African standard of care) and six single-visit comparator scenarios with varying: 1) screening strategy (HPV DNA testing alone, with genotyping, or with automated visual evaluation triage, a new high-performance technology), 2) screening frequency (once-per-lifetime for all women, or repeated every 5 years for WLHIV and twice for women without HIV), and 3) loss to follow-up for treatment. Using the Ministry of Health perspective, we estimated costs associated with HPV vaccination, screening, and pre-cancer, CC, and HIV treatment. We quantified CC cases, deaths, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) averted for each scenario. We discounted costs (2022 US dollars) and outcomes at 3% annually and calculated incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs).ResultsWe projected 69,294 new CC cases and 43,950 CC-related deaths in the status quo scenario. HPV DNA testing achieved the greatest improvement in health outcomes, averting 9.4% of cases and 9.0% of deaths with one-time screening and 37.1% and 35.1%, respectively, with repeat screening. Compared to the cost of the status quo ($12.79 billion), repeat screening using HPV DNA genotyping had the greatest increase in costs. Repeat screening with HPV DNA testing was the most effective strategy below the willingness to pay threshold (ICER: $3,194/DALY averted). One-time screening with HPV DNA testing was also an efficient strategy (ICER: $1,398/DALY averted).ConclusionsRepeat single-visit screening with HPV DNA testing was the optimal strategy simulated. Single-visit strategies with increased frequency for WLHIV may be cost-effective in KwaZulu-Natal and similar settings with high HIV and HPV prevalence.

Sheganew Fetene Tassew, Temesgen Ayenew, Tadila Dires Nega et al.

Back groundA disaster is defined by the World Health Organization as a sudden ecological phenomenon of sufficient magnitude to necessitate outside help. Health institutions play an important part in the healthcare system during a disaster by providing critical medical care to their communities. It is critical that health professionals are prepared for catastrophes in order to protect themselves and the community. Method: Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines, we systematically reviewed and meta-analyzed articles from PubMed, Google Scholar and other electronics database that investigated levels of health professional knowledge toward disaster preparedness. To assess the pooled national health professional knowledge level, a weighted inverse variance random-effects model was used. Result: For the analysis, a total of 7 studies with a total of 1579 participants were used. In Ethiopia, the pooled good knowledge levels of health professional toward disaster preparedness was 48.58% (95% CI: 43.43, 53.73), implying that 48.58% of health professionals had good knowledge towards disaster preparedness. Based on the included studies positive predictive factors associated with health professional good knowledge of disaster preparedness include being a nursing professional, past experience in big disaster management, disaster training, and disaster simulation practice. Conclusion: In conclusion, only 48.58% of health professionals had good understanding of disaster preparedness, while the remaining 51.42% lacked disaster preparedness knowledge. The government, educational institutions, and non-governmental organizations should place a special emphasis on preparing health professionals for disaster management by providing training, sharing experience, and incorporating disaster management training into health professional curricula in their higher education programs.

Chinasa T. Okolo

In light of prominent discourse around the negative implications of generative AI, an emerging area of research is investigating the current and estimated impacts of AI-generated propaganda on African citizens participating in elections. Throughout Africa, there have already been suspected cases of AI-generated propaganda influencing electoral outcomes or precipitating coups in countries like Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and Gabon, underscoring the need for comprehensive research in this domain. This paper aims to highlight the risks associated with the spread of generative AI-driven disinformation within Africa while concurrently examining the roles of government, civil society, academia, and the general public in the responsible development, practical use, and robust governance of AI. To understand how African governments might effectively counteract the impact of AI-generated propaganda, this paper presents case studies illustrating the current usage of generative AI for election-related propaganda in Africa. Subsequently, this paper discusses efforts by fact-checking organisations to mitigate the negative impacts of disinformation, explores the potential for new initiatives to actively engage citizens in literacy efforts to combat disinformation spread, and advocates for increased governmental regulatory measures. Overall, this research seeks to increase comprehension of the potential ramifications of AI-generated propaganda on democratic processes within Africa and propose actionable strategies for stakeholders to address these multifaceted challenges.

Ziba Bakhtiar, Ghasem Eghlima, Mehrnaz Hatami et al.

Abstract Rosa canina L. (Rosaceae), commonly known as the rose hip, is originated from Europe, Africa, and Asia with a long history in medicinal applications. This study aimed to analyze the morphological traits, fatty acids profile, and content of phenolic compounds, anthocyanins, vitamin C, total carotenoid, total phenol, total flavonoid, and antioxidant activity of the fruits of eleven Iranian R. canina ecotypes (RCEs). The highest coefficient of variation was obtained in 1000 seed weight (46.57%). The seed oil varied from 8.08 ± 0.17% to 16.91 ± 0.35%. Linoleic (35.41 ± 0.78% to 49.59 ± 0.96%) and eicosanoic (17.67 ± 0.06% to 25.36 ± 0.54%) acids were the predominant fatty acids in the studied samples. The anthocyanin content in the fruits was ranged from 0.98 ± 0.03 to 4.41 ± 0.04 mg cyanidin 3-glucoside/100 g of dry weight (mg C3G/100 g DW). The high content of vitamin C (103.51 ± 1.24–419.70 ± 3.12 mg/100 g DW), total carotenoid (111.22 ± 0.78–206.98 ± 1.25 mg β-carotene equivalents per g of dry weight (mg β-CARE/g DW)), total phenol (52.87 ± 0.82–104.52 ± 0.23 mg GAE/g DW), and total flavonoid (14.20 ± 0.12–25.18 ± 0.47 mg RE/g DW) were observed in the studied samples. Catechin (20.42 ± 0.47–19.22 ± 0.13 µg/g DW) was the major phenolic compound. The high antioxidant activity in the fruits of the plant was recorded in the studied RCEs (IC50 = 12.54 ± 0.18–26.33 ± 0.13 μg/ml). A significant correlation between some phytochemical compounds (dependent variable) and morphological features (independent variable) was found. Based on our findings, the fruit of the studied ecotypes can be used for future breeding programs and drug development.

Muhammad Zubair Khan, Oleg E. Peil, Apoorva Sharma et al.

In the rapidly expanding field of two-dimensional materials, magnetic monolayers show great promise for the future applications in nanoelectronics, data storage, and sensing. The research in intrinsically magnetic two-dimensional materials mainly focuses on synthetic iodide and telluride based compounds, which inherently suffer from the lack of ambient stability. So far, naturally occurring layered magnetic materials have been vastly overlooked. These minerals offer a unique opportunity to explore air-stable complex layered systems with high concentration of local moment bearing ions. We demonstrate magnetic ordering in iron-rich two-dimensional phyllosilicates, focusing on mineral species of minnesotaite, annite, and biotite. These are naturally occurring van der Waals magnetic materials which integrate local moment baring ions of iron via magnesium/aluminium substitution in their octahedral sites. Due to self-inherent capping by silicate/aluminate tetrahedral groups, ultra-thin layers are air-stable. Chemical characterization, quantitative elemental analysis, and iron oxidation states were determined via Raman spectroscopy, wavelength disperse X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Superconducting quantum interference device magnetometry measurements were performed to examine the magnetic ordering. These layered materials exhibit paramagnetic or superparamagnetic characteristics at room temperature. At low temperature ferrimagnetic or antiferromagnetic ordering occurs, with the critical ordering temperature of 38.7 K for minnesotaite, 36.1 K for annite, and 4.9 K for biotite. In-field magnetic force microscopy on iron bearing phyllosilicates confirmed the paramagnetic response at room temperature, present down to monolayers.

Daniele Cassese, Nicola Dimitri, Gianluca Breghi et al.

Invasive non-Typhoidal Salmonella (iNTS) is one of the leading causes of blood stream infections in Sub-Saharan Africa, especially among children. iNTS can be difficult to diagnose, particularly in areas where malaria is endemic and difficult to treat, partly because of the emergence of antibiotic resistance. We developed a mathematical model to evaluate the impact of a vaccine for iNTS in 49 countries of sub-Saharan Africa. Without vaccination we estimate 9.2 million new iNTS cases among children below 5 years old in these 49 countries from 2022 to 2038, 6.2 million of which between 2028 and 2038. The introduction of a 85% (95%) efficacy vaccine in 2028 would prevent 2.6 (2.9) million of these new infections. We provide the country-specific impact of a iNTS vaccine considering the different age structures and vaccine coverage levels.

Robert Adam, Claire Antel, Munirat Bashir et al.

Establishing a deep underground physics laboratory to study, amongst others, double beta decay, geoneutrinos, reactor neutrinos and dark matter has been discussed for more than a decade within the austral African physicists' community. PAUL, the Paarl Africa Underground Laboratory, is an initiative foreseeing an open international laboratory devoted to the development of competitive science in the austral region. It has the advantage that the location, the Huguenot tunnel, exists already and the geology and the environment of the site is appropriate for an experimental facility. The paper describes the PAUL initiative, presents the physics prospects and discusses the capacity for building the future experimental facility.

Nesma Salah, Ahmed Esmail Awad, Sarah Fahmy

British officers of high social position in the Georgian and Victorian periods (1714-1901) took it for granted that when they set out on a military campaign in Africa or India they could enjoy the same standard of living as they did at home. While “ under canvas,” as life in camp was called, an officer and gentleman assured himself a high degree of comfort by using specially designed pieces of campaign, or knockdown, furniture. The only real difference between fine household furniture and its campaign counterpart was that the latter could be quickly folded up, packed away in boxes and transported everywhere easily and conveniently. Officer’s campaign furniture included chests, writing desks, bookcases, games tables, chairs, beds, sofa and washstands. Durability and comfort were the most important characteristic of campaign furniture, the campaign furniture logo "Don't make yourself feel uncomfortable for the lack of things you're used to, this is the great secret of camp life", as campaign furniture was made of the best materials and was usually made of beautiful forest wood carved into modern designs and furniture is filled inside its own box or cloth cover to protect furniture during transportation. The campaign furniture is not only durable and practical, but also elegant and designed with the latest contemporary taste. The innovation of campaign furniture is more than just an attractive chapter in British history but it is a good example of how cultural characteristics may lead to a unique type of furniture that can be filled and moved, as it contains the skills of the finest makers and designers of the 18th and 19th centuries and today the increased interest of designers in this furniture requires a thorough examination of every aspect of these ingenious pieces and the circumstances in which they were made...

Mona P. Nasrallah, Martine Elbejjani, Lara Nasreddine et al.

Abstract Background Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) remains a world epidemic. Obtaining accurate estimates of its incidence and their predictors will aid in targeting preventive measures, allocating resources, and strategizing its management. The Middle East North Africa region has high T2D prevalence and rates of rise. Few incidence studies exist for the region, and none from Lebanon. The current study objective was to determine diabetes incidence and diabetes predictors in a community-based Lebanese sample. A secondary objective was to describe the metabolic control over time in adults with preexisting diabetes. Methods This is a five-year (2014–2019) follow-up study on a random sample of 501 residents of the Greater Beirut area. Out of 478 people eligible to participate in the follow-up study, 198 returned (response rate 39.5%). Assessment included medical history, anthropometric measures, food frequency, sleep, and lifestyle questionnaires. Laboratory data included glycemic indices (fasting glucose and HbA1C) and other biological markers. The diagnosis of probable diabetes (PD) was based on one abnormal test for either fasting glucose ≥ 126 mg/dL or HbA1C ≥ 6.5% or having history of diabetes. Results The incidence of diabetes was 17.2 (95% CI 9.6–28.7) per 1000 person-years. Cardiometabolic risk factors independently associated with diabetes were: older age, higher BMI, family history of diabetes, metabolic syndrome, higher CRP and triglyceride level; whereas an independent predictor of diabetes was previous BMI. In addition, the 42 participants with preexisting diabetes had worsening of their metabolic profile over a five-year period. Conclusions The incidence of diabetes was high as compared to some reported world rates, and in line with the high prevalence in the MENA region. The risk was highest in those with positive family history and the presence of the metabolic syndrome or its components. Preventive measures should particularly target participants with that specific risk profile. This becomes particularly important when observing that metabolic control gets worse over time in individuals with diabetes.

Gbatsoron Anjande, Simeon T Asom, Ngutsav Ayila et al.

This study examines the roles of government spending and money supply on alleviating poverty in Africa. The study used 48 Sub-Saharan Africa countries from 2001 to 2017. The study employed one step and two-step system GMM and found that both the procedures have similar results. Different specifications were employed and the model selected was robust, with valid instruments and absence of autocorrelation at the second order. The study revealed that government spending and foreign direct investment have significant negative influence on reducing poverty while money supply has positive influence on the level of poverty in the region. The implication of the finding is that monetary policy tool of money supply has no strong influence in combating the menace of poverty. The study therefore recommends that emphasis should be placed on increasing more of government spending that would impact on the quality of life of the people in the region through multiplier effect, improving the financial system for effective monetary policy and attracting foreign direct inflows through enabling business environment in Africa.

Himanshu Mavani, Navinder Singh

The way the topic of black-body radiation is presented in standard textbooks (i.e. from Rayleigh-Jeans to Max Planck) does not follow the actual historical timeline of the understanding of the black-body radiation problem. Authors believe that a presentation which follows an actual timeline of the ideas (although not a logical presentation of the field) would be of interest not only from the history of science perspective but also from a pedagogical perspective. Therefore, we attempt a concise history of this very interesting field of science.

Alessandra Consolaro

This article deals with some issues regarding masculinity in contemporary India, focusing on popular culture, the clothing semiotics, and the media discourse on masculinity, referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leader of the Hindu nationalist party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Modi has manipulated many figures from the nationalist past in order to build an image of himself as “the real man,” reaffirming the mandate of masculinity in order to lead the nation into the new millennium.

Alewiya Yimam, Aklil Hailu, Rajalakshmi Murugan et al.

Background: An estimated 10% of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients have one or two risk factors for foot disease. The life-time risk for DFU among diabetic patients is 15%. Other factors associated with DFU include: barefoot walking, inappropriate footwear, poor foot hygiene and delayed medical care seeking. Objective: To assess the prevalence of diabetic foot ulcer and associated factors among diabetic patients. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted in Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital among 198 diabetic patients between April 1st and May 1st 2017. Respondents were selected using simple random sampling method. A structured interviewer guided questionnaire made up of three sections was used to gather information. Data completeness was checked and entered into Epi-Data version 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 22 for analysis. Descriptive statistics including frequencies and percentages were used to describe participants' characteristics and logistic regression involving bivariate and multivariable analysis were carried out to examine association between the independent and outcome variables. Level of significance was determined at p-value <0.05 and 95% CI. Result: The prevalence of DFU among diabetic patients in the study area was (20.7%). Occupation (AOR = 8.16; 95% CI: 1.2–9.5) and place of residence (AOR = 5.97; 95% CI: 1.47–24.3) were factors significantly associated with DFU. Conclusion: The prevalence of DFU among diabetic patients in this study was (20.7%). Occupation and place of residence were factors associated with DFU. Patient education on foot care may reduce the incidence of DFU.

Jeanne Cilliers

Very little is known about what family life looked like for settlers in colonial South Africa during the 18th or 19th century, nor how events over these centuries might have affected demographic change. The primary reason for this lacuna is a shortage of adequate data. Historians and genealogists have, over the last century, worked to combine the rich administrative records that are available in the Cape Archives in Cape Town and beyond, into a single genealogical volume of all settlers living in the 18th, 19th and early 20th century. Until recently, this valuable resource was not in a format that would enable its use for the type of event-history analyses that have come to dominate the field of contemporary historical demography. This is now changing with the introduction of the South African Families database (SAF). SAF is one of very few databases known to document a full population of immigrants and their families over several generations. This article introduces provides a brief background to, and technical overview of, the construction of the SAF. It discusses both the merits and limitations of its use in longitudinal demographic studies and offers a look into the types of studies it can enable.

Arnaud Mazier, Alexandre Bilger, Antonio E. Forte et al.

In this paper, we develop a framework for solving inverse deformation problems using the FEniCS Project finite element software. We validate our approach with experimental imaging data acquired from a soft silicone beam under gravity. In contrast with inverse iterative algorithms that require multiple solutions of a standard elasticity problem, the proposed method can compute the undeformed configuration by solving only one modified elasticity problem. This modified problem has a complexity comparable to the standard one. The framework is implemented within an open-source pipeline enabling the direct and inverse deformation simulation directly from imaging data. We use the high-level Unified Form Language (UFL) of the FEniCS Project to express the finite element model in variational form and to automatically derive the consistent Jacobian. Consequently, the design of the pipeline is flexible: for example, it allows the modification of the constitutive models by changing a single line of code. We include a complete working example showing the inverse deformation of a beam deformed by gravity as supplementary material.

Galina Sinkevich

A short history of Russian researches in Chinese astronomy in 19-20 centuries