South West Zone Research Articles

A Comparative Study of Psychological Factor (Comprehensive Tension) Among Female Athletes

Psychological needs play an important role in the promotion and demotion of tension, because any type of tension provide frustration and these frustrated needs leads towards aggressiveness in the individual, need of direct gain, power and prestige, need for resolving ambiguous cries and for group belongingness and conformity are the main needs which appears to be of utmost importance. The most of the tensions are due to physical, social, cultural, religious, economic, political and psychological cause, and the stability of the tension have been found to be due to high competition, lack of common goals, lack of contacts, value conflict, ignorance, partiality, prejudices, conformity, maladjustment and to achieve dominance by someone. The objective of this paper is to study to measure different kinds of tension viz. communal tension, caste tension, and religious tension cultural tension regional tension and language tension. For this purpose Fifty female athletes of age group 18-25 participated in south west zone inter-varsity tournament of respective sport viz judo, badminton; table tennis, wrestling, swimming and athletics, during 2007-2008 were selected as subjects for this study at random. COMPREHENSIVE SCALE OF TENSION by Dr. Rajeevlochan Bhardwaj was used. Reliability—IT POSSESS SPILT-HALF RELIABILITY OF .81 THROUGH spearman Brown Formula and of .88 by Gutman Formula. The reliability of data was ensured through tools reliability as well as tester’s reliability. The information gathered was treated with ANOVA (F-Ratio) technique was used for comparing all the six sports with respect to Locus of control’s-Score- All the scores of comprehensive tension scale are converted to T-Score to find out level of tension in each of six sports and also in total. It is found from The findings that the study indicate that there is no significance difference among female players of Athletics, Weight Lifting, Judo, Badminton, Swimming and Table Tennis.

Peer Group and Parental Support as Correlates of Academic Performance of Senior Secondary School Students in South West, Nigeria

This paper examines peer group and parental support as correlates of the academic performance of Senior Secondary School Students in South West Nigeria. The study adopted an ex-post facto design and descriptive research design of survey type. The population comprises all Senior Secondary School Students in South West Nigeria. The sample of the study consisted of one thousand, one hundred and fifty (1,150) senior secondary school students (i.e. SS 3) drawn from three states out of the six states in the South West Geo-political zone; namely Osun, Ondo and Ekiti. The researcher made use of a questionnaire and an inventory to collect data. A self -designed questionnaire tagged “Motivation and Academic Performance of Senior Secondary School Students” (MAPSSS) was used to elicit information from the respondents. This consists of two parts. Parts A and B. Parts A consists of the bio-data of the respondents (students), while Parts B consists of 9 Sections, Sections A-I, Section H and I of the questionnaire support was used to measure the relationship between peer influence and parental support on students’ academic performance. The two null hypotheses formulated were tested at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that there was a positive significant relationship between peer group, and parental support and the academic performance of students. On the basis of these findings, it was recommended that parents should monitor the type of peer group their children or ward mix or mingle with in school and provide the necessary support by providing all the educational needs of their children. They need to monitor the academic performance of their children/wards while they are in school.

Effect of Dietary Supplementation with Probiotics and Prebiotics on Haematological Indices, Serum Chemistry and Gut Salmonella Count of Broilers Sourced from Salmonella-infected Hatcheries in South-west Zone of Nigeria

Effect of Dietary Supplementation with Probiotics and Prebiotics on Haematological Indices, Serum Chemistry and Gut Salmonella Count of Broilers Sourced from Salmonella-infected Hatcheries in South-west Zone of Nigeria

Client Satisfaction with Delivery Care Service and Associated Factors in the Public Health Facilities of Gamo Gofa Zone, Southwest Ethiopia: In a Resource Limited Setting.

Background. Ensuring patient satisfaction is an important means of secondary prevention of maternal mortality. This study presents findings from a multidimensional study of client satisfaction from the Gamo Gofa Zone in Southwest Ethiopia. Methods. A facility based cross-sectional study using exit interviews was conducted from 2014. Client satisfaction was measured using a survey adopted from the Donabedian quality assessment framework. Thirteen health institutions were randomly sampled of 66 institutions in Gamo Gofa Zone. Logistic regression was used to determine predictors of client satisfaction. Results. The overall satisfaction level of the clients in this study was 79.1% with (95% CI; 75–82). Women attending health centres were more likely satisfied than women attending hospitals (χ 2 = 83.7, df = 12, P < 0.001). The proportion of women who complained about an unfriendly attitude or unresentful care from health workers was higher in the hospitals (χ 2 = 27.4, df = 1, P < 0.001). The presence of support persons during child birth improved client satisfaction (AOR = 6.23 95% CI; 2.75–14.1) and women who delivered with caesarean section are four times more likely satisfied than those who deliver vaginally (AOR 3.6 95% CI; 1.44–9.06). Client satisfaction was reduced if the women had to pay for the services (AOR = 0.27 95% CI; 0.09–81). Conclusions. The study shows that overall satisfaction level is good. More emphasis should be put on giving women friendly care, particularly at the hospitals.

Readiness of Primary Health Care Facilities in Jimma Zone to Provide Diabetic Services for Diabetic Clients, Jimma Zone, South West Ethiopia, March, 2013

Background: Diabetes is one of the commonest non-communicable diseases of the 21st century. Global burden of diabetes in 2010 was estimated at 285 million and projected to increase to 438 million by the year 2030, if no interventions are put in place. The primary health care facilities are the first level of contact for such rising cases of diabetes, despite of this fact there is no study done on the capabilities of primary health care facilities to accommodate diabetic services. Hence, the objective of this study is to assess the readiness of selected primary public hospitals and health centers to accommodate diabetic care in Jimma zone south west Ethiopia. Methods: Health facility based cross-sectional study design using quantitative and qualitative method of data collection was conducted from Feb 1-March 1, 2013. After checking the completeness, and coding of questionnaires, the quantitative data were entered into computer software and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: All of the facilities have at least some of the drugs and medical supplies and other resources required for the diagnosis and management of diabetes never the less there was no specific plan to deal with diabetic management at health facilities. Majority of patients were first diagnosed in other health facilities and referred to the current health institutions for follow up and there is no routine screening for diabetics in adult outpatient department in some health facilities. Conclusion and recommendation: Required drugs and medical supplies are not regularly fulfilled, health facilities have no plan for diabetic management, and health workers did not get training on management of diabetics. No routine screening at adult patients at outpatient departments. Hence the Woreda and the zone have to work on the capacity of the health workers and health facilities to handle diabetic care at health center level.

Evaluation of Crop-Livestock Integration Systems among Farm Families at Adopted Villages of the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services

This study evaluated the level of access to knowledge, farm assets and inputs utilization in crop-livestock integration systems (CLIS) among rural farm families at NAERLS adopted villages. A total of 120 farm families were interviewed through structured questionnaire. Forty farm families were randomly chosen from two adopted villages each in South West, North Central and North West zones of NAERLS. The data obtained were analysed by frequency counts, percentages, means and standard error of the means. The results showed, among others, that 95.8% of farmers interviewed were aware of CLIS. Mixed cropping (70%) was majorly practiced. Cereals were cultivated at higher rates (88.3%) in all the agro-ecological zones. Poultry ranked highest (54.2%) among all the livestock being kept by the farmers. Farmers at NAERLS adopted villages practiced CLIS at subsistent level based on their indigenous knowledge and technology. The existing practices of CLIS by farmers at NAERLS adopted villages should be packaged into a model that can encourage profitability and sustainability of integration of crops and livestock.

Impact of primary care nursing workforce characteristics on the control of high-blood pressure: a multilevel analysis

ObjectiveTo determine the impact of Primary Health Care (PHC) nursing workforce characteristics and of the clinical practice environment (CPE) perceived by nurses on the control of high-blood pressure (HBP).DesignCross-sectional analytical...

Determinants of utilisation of antenatal care and skilled birth attendant at delivery in South West Shoa Zone, Ethiopia: a cross sectional study.

BackgroundEthiopia has high maternal mortality ratio and poor access to maternal health services. Attendance of at least four antenatal care (ANC) visits and delivery by a skilled birth attendant (SBA) are important in preventing maternal deaths. Understanding the reasons behind the poor use of these services is important in designing strategies to address the problem. This study aimed to determine the coverage of at least four ANC visits and delivery by a SBA and to identify determinants of utilisation of these services in three districts in South West Shoa Zone, Ethiopia.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of 500 women aged 15–49 years with a delivery in two years prior to the survey was conducted in Wolisso, Wonchi and Goro districts in February 2013. Data were collected using an interviewer administered questionnaire. Logistic regression models were used to explore determinants of ANC attendance and SBA at delivery.ResultsCoverage of at least four ANC visits and SBA at delivery were 45.5 and 28.6 %, respectively. Most institutional deliveries (69 %) occurred at the single hospital that serves the study districts. Attendance of at least four ANC visits was positively associated with wealth status, knowledge of the recommended number of ANC visits, and attitude towards maternal health care, but was negatively associated with woman’s age. SBA at delivery was negatively associated with parity and time to the health facility, but was positively associated with urban residence, wealth, knowledge of the recommended number of ANC visits, perceived good quality of maternal health services, experience of a pregnancy/delivery related problem, involvement of the partner/family in decision making on delivery place, and birth preparedness.ConclusionsRaising awareness about the minimum recommended number of ANC visits, tackling geographical inaccessibility, improving the quality of care, encouraging pregnant women to have a birth and complication readiness plan and community mobilisation targeting women, husbands, and families for their involvement in maternal health care have the potential to increase use of maternal health services in this setting. Furthermore, supporting health centres to increase uptake of institutional delivery services may rapidly increase coverage of delivery by SBA and reduce inequity.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12978-015-0067-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Assessing Minerals Status of Dairy Animals in South-West Zone of Punjab

A study was carried out to assess dietary macro and micro-minerals status of milch buffaloes in Firozpur, Mansa and Muktsar districts, under South-West Zone of Punjab. Feeds and fodder samples were collected at random from various locations, following standard sampling procedure. The average calcium (Ca) content in straws was low (0.28%). Green fodders such as berseem (1.88%), chikori (1.26%), oat (0.45%), rye grass (0.56%) and mustard (1.34%) were found to be rich source of Ca. Concentrate feed ingredients such as mustard cake (0.68%), cottonseed cake (0.23%), rice polish (0.11%) and wheat flour (0.053%) were high to low in Ca. The phosphorus (P) content in crop residues and green fodders was 0.08 and 0.47 per cent, respectively. Concentrate feed ingredients were high (0.78%) in P. The magnesium content in roughages and concentrate feed ingredients was 0.31 and 0.41 per cent, respectively. The sodium content was low in concentrate ingredients (0.043%) and dry fodder (0.065%), but high in green fodder (0.63%). The sulphur content was adequate in green fodder (0.32%), whereas, crop residues (0.16%) and concentrate ingredients (0.18%), except mustard cake (0.33%) were deficient in sulphur; hence, its supplementation was necessary in the ration of milch animals. The cobalt was deficient in the diet of animals to the extent of 45 per cent; however, iron (average level &gt; 500 ppm) and manganese (average level &gt; 60 ppm) in most of the feed ingredients were adequate, with traditional feeding system. The average copper content was very low in straws (2.94 ppm) and moderate in green fodders (11.93 ppm). Concentrate ingredients were again low in copper (9.19 ppm). Zinc was deficient in most of the feedstuffs (average level&lt;38 ppm) and needed to be supplemented for proper productive and reproductive functions. From the present study, it was apparent that the levels of certain minerals such as calcium, phosphorus, sulphur, zinc, copper and cobalt were inadequate, as per the prevailing feeding practices and requirement of buffalo yielding 10 kg milk (6% fat) per day. However, the levels of some other mineral elements such as magnesium, sodium, potassium, iron, manganese and selenium were found to be adequate in the South-West Zone of Punjab

Drug utilization in selected health facilities of South West Shoa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia.

BackgroundSustaining the availability and rational use of safe and effective drugs is a major problem in developing countries. Irrational drug use affects quality of health care more than accessibility of drugs.ObjectiveTo assess drug utilization in selected health facilities of South West Shoa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in selected health facilities of South West Shoa Zone from January 21–28, 2012 by using structured questionnaires.ResultsOf 50 prescribers and 30 dispensers, 58% and 83.3% were males, respectively. The result showed that majority of prescribers agreed on availability of essential drugs (72%) and had access to up-to-date drug information (76%). However, 43.3% of dispensers didn’t get access to up-to-date drug information. 86% and 88% of prescribers note cost of drugs and stick to standard treatment guidelines of Ethiopia during prescription, respectively. All drug dispensers check the name of the drug (100%), age of the patient (90%), the dosage form of drug (96.7%), the route of administration (90%), the duration of therapy (86.7%), and frequency of administration (86.7%) for prescription papers.ConclusionIn general, drug utilization at the study sites was found to be good, although there are major deviations from the concept of rational drug use.

Determinants of Agro-inputs redemption under the electronic wallet initiative in Nigeria

The study assessed the spread of farmers and participation in terms of input redemption and the determinants of farmers redeemed with agro-inputs under the electronic-wallet initiative of the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme of the On-going Agricultural Transformation Agenda. Secondary data covering the Nigerian nation, with states and zonal breakdowns were used for the study. Analytical tools included the use of descriptive analysis such as mean, percentages coefficient of variation and graphical analysis. Other non-parametric and parametric tools employed included the analysis of variance and multiple regression analysis. The study revealed that the northern parts of the country accounted for about 90% of the total number of farmers redeemed with agro-inputs under the scheme, with the north-west accounting for about 50% of this figure. The performance of local government participation was generally above par given the average performance of 81.47% across zones, with over 90% active LGA participation recorded in the south-south and south-west. The analysis of variance test showed that the zonal achievements in terms of agro-inputs redeemed were significantly different across the 6 zones within the country. Ironically, the coefficient of variation index revealed a higher stability in farmers redeemed in the south west zone with an index of 1.15, in-spite of the placement of the zone relative to the northern zones. Farmers turn-out and number of active local government areas were also observed to be significant determinants of farmers redeemed with agro-inputs at 1% and 10% respectively. The study recommended the need for enhanced political support for the scheme at the state and local government levels, effective farmer education and mobilization, enhanced supervision of agro-input dealers and redemption centers, effective alignment of all on-going food security projects with the scheme, while prioritizing the scheme for targeted budgetary allocation.Keywords: Agro-input redemption, Electronic-wallet, Growth Enhancement Support Scheme, Agricultural Transformation Agenda

Household participation in the distribution of poultry and ruminants: a focus on pastoralists in Oyo area of south-western Nigeria

Transhumance, which is one of the traditional patterns of livestock husbandry, has been affected in recent years by a number of factors, giving rise to a system of sedentarization by the pastoralists in the sub-humid and humid zones of Nigeria. In view of this fact, a study was conducted to elicit the production intensification and marketing outline of livestock and poultry by the pastoralists in the southwest zone of Nigeria, by administering a well structured questionnaire to farmers in the zone. The result of the study indicated that livestock and poultry sales were common phenomenon and that of poultry was highest in all the seasons. Comparatively, the sale of cows was higher than that of bulls. The study also showed the order of the reasons for disposing an animal from the herd as financial obligation &gt; low productivity &gt; recumbent &gt; old age. The decision making was always within the household; husband took the final decision in the sale of ruminants; 88% of the decisions on the sale of poultry was made by the wives. It was observed that the sale of ruminants and poultry was gender disparate, as men (husband and adult male) were the principal sellers of ruminants and 68% of the sale of poultry selling was done by women (wives). Due to the existence of a central market in the rural area, the rural market was where the highest percentage of the ruminants and poultry was sold. Ruminants were mostly transported to the market place on foot while poultry was by truck. The traders were the principal buyers of both ruminants and poultry. It is concluded that the distribution pattern of livestock and poultry among the pastoralists is gender specific.Keywords: Household decision making, Livestock and poultry marketing, Pastoralists

Geology and stratigraphy of the south-eastern Lake Edward basin (Petroleum Exploration Area 4B), Albertine Rift Valley, Uganda

The Lake Edward basin lies within the Albertine Rift Valley of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo which forms the northern end of the western arm of the East African Rift System. It is a frontier petroleum prospective area, which, at the outset of this study, had no exploration wells drilled within it or any deep reflection seismic surveys. There have been some previous studies in the basin, but none produced a geological map subdividing the onshore rift-fill sediments or established a workable stratigraphic framework for them. Between 2007 and 2010, Dominion Uganda Ltd., in collaboration with Trinity College Dublin and the Petroleum Exploration and Production Department of the Ministry of Energy, Uganda, undertook a geological mapping survey of the south-eastern onshore part of the basin, known as petroleum ‘Exploration Area 4B’ (EA4B). Five rift sediment formations were identified and mapped across the area to produce a new geological map of EA4B. Palynological analyses suggest that all exposed rift sediments are (Late to Mid) Pleistocene–Holocene. EA4B is dominated by a north-east to south-west trending fault zone which underwent significant extension within the last 130,000 years to produce a trough, or sub-basin, to the south-east against the rift margin. This trough subsequently filled, initially with ponded swamp clays, followed by coarse fluvial and alluvial clastics. There is field evidence for minor inversion and ‘pop-up’ structures along some footwall crests, suggesting that the neotectonic phase is compressional or transpressional, and this has caused stream rejuvenation and incision.

English

This study assessed software selection and seployment sractices for library cooperation and resource sharing among aacademic libraries in South-West Nigeria. The purposive sampling technique was adopted and data collection instruments were questionnaire and interview. All of the 39 universities in the SouthWest zone were chosen and copies of questionnaire were administered to a representative of each academic library. 37 questionnaires were received. The descriptive statistical method of analysis was used. It was discovered that there is no form of cooperation and resource sharing among the academic libraries presently. The study recommends that National Universities Commission (NUC) should make automation a requirement for all academic libraries in Nigeria and recommend particular software(s) for cooperation and resource sharing to be possible among academic libraries among others.

Survey of Rust and Septoria Leaf Blotch Diseases of Wheat in Central Ethiopia and Virulence Diversity of Stem Rust Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici

Wheat is one of the most important cereal crops in Ethiopia and produced across large area of the country. Production of the crop constrained by several infection diseases including rust and Septoria leaf blotch diseases which are the major bottle neck of wheat production in Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to ass distribution, incidence and severity of wheat rusts and Septoria leaf blotch in west and South West Shewa zones and identification of Puccinia graminis f.sp. tritici virulences in Ethiopia. The survey was made in 2013 main cropping season (from September to October) following the main roads and accessible routes in each survey district, and stops were made at every 5 km intervals based on vehicles odometers as per wheat fields available. Five stops were made in each wheat field by moving “W” fashion at each stop interval using quadrants and data were collected from each. Race analysis was carried out by inoculating single uredinial isolates on to the 20 differential hosts. The result indicated that, stem, leaf and yellow rust mean incidence value 54.7%, 19.4% and 7.7% were recorded in the surveyed areas, respectively and mean severity value of 7.0%, 9.7% and 5.5% in the same order. Septoria leaf blotch was the most prevalent disease with100%. Mean incidence of 83% and 0.44 disease index of Septoria leaf blotch were recorded. The most widely grown Varieties Digelu and Kakaba showed susceptible reaction to stem and leaf rust whereas Meda wolabu were free both rusts. Variety Kubisa were susceptible to the three rusts (stem, leaf and yellow). Out of 20 isolates, two races namely TTKSK and TKTTF were identified. Race TTKSK was the most frequent with 95%. Stem rust resistance genes Sr36, SrTmp and Sr24 were effective against TTKSK and while, Sr8a, Sr24 and Sr31 were effective against TKTTF (Digelu race). Most of the genes possessed by the differentials were ineffective against one or more of the tested isolates except Sr24. Sr24 which confer resistance against most of the races detected and prevalent in Ethiopia can be used in breeding for resistance to stem rust in the country.

Buttressing the Need for Ethical Guidance for Online Reporting in Nigeria

There is a rapid growth in mobile Internet data subscription in Nigeria and an accompanying proliferation of online news outlets hoping to cash in on the attendant lucrative business potentials. This study is informed by the worrisome activities of these online reporting platforms. The study is an analytical discourse enriched with examples derived from a qualitative reading of relevant online news reports and interactions with some online reporters in Nigeria’s North Central, North West, South West and South South geo-political zones under the auspices of a National Orientation Agency project. The study examines benefits and ethical violations noticeable in online reporting in Nigeria. It identifies such benefits as providing avenues for immediate feedback, more diverse public input leading to more comprehensive stories and serving as a platform for social activism. However, it notes the prevalence of ethical infractions like misinformation, sensationalism, plagiarism/copyright infringement, very little consideration of public good and indecency. It recommends the establishment of associations of online reporters according to their genres and an overarching body to fashion out ethical guidelines and ratify them for their work in order to forestall severe censorship and legal regulation by government. Keywords: Online Reporting, Ethics, Benefits, Ethical Violations, Ethical Guidance

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis Uganda II family and resistance to first-line anti-tuberculosis drugs in Uganda.

BackgroundThe global increase in the burden of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) underscores an urgent need for data on factors involved in generation and spread of TB drug resistance. We performed molecular analyses on a representative sample of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) isolates. Basing on findings of the molecular epidemiological study in Kampala, we hypothesized that the predominant MTB strain lineage in Uganda is negatively associated with anti-TB drug resistance and we set out to test this hypothesis.MethodsWe extracted DNA from mycobacterial isolates collected from smear-positive TB patients in the national TB drug resistance survey and carried out IS6110-PCR. To identify MTB lineages/sub lineages RT-PCR SNP was performed using specific primers and hybridization probes and the ‘melting curve’ analysis was done to distinguish the Uganda II family from other MTB families. The primary outcome was the distribution of the Uganda II family and its associations with anti-TB drug resistance and HIV infection.ResultsOut of the 1537 patients enrolled, MTB isolates for 1001 patients were available for SNP analysis for identification of Uganda II family, of which 973 (97%) had conclusive RT-PCR results. Of these 422 (43.4%) were of the Uganda II family, mostly distributed in the south west zone (55.0%; OR = 4.6 for comparison with other zones; 95% CI 2.83-7.57; p < 0.001) but occurred in each of the other seven geographic zones at varying levels. Compared to the Uganda II family, other genotypes as a group were more likely to be resistant to any anti-TB drug (ORadj =2.9; 95% CI 1.63-5.06; p = 0.001) or MDR (ORadj 4.9; 95% CI, 1.15-20.60; p = 0.032), even after adjusting for geographic zone, patient category, sex, residence and HIV status. It was commonest in the 25–34 year age group 159/330 (48.2%). No association was observed between Uganda II family and HIV infection.ConclusionThe Uganda II family is a major cause of morbidity due to TB in all NTLP zones in Uganda. It is less likely to be resistant to anti-TB drugs than other MTB strain lineages.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12879-014-0703-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Condition Assessment Model for Underground Water Mains Performance

One of the greatest challenges facing by municipal engineers all over the world is condition assessment of underground water mains performance. As water mains are buried infrastructure, operated under pressure and most important it is inaccessible. In this situation, condition assessment of water mains is challenging as well as become mandatory to employ management strategies for these assets. This work presents the result of condition assessment of water mains performance by analytical hierarchy process modeling. The model was developed for data collected (2006–2011) from south-west zone of Surat city, India. The physical, operational and environmental main factors and 10 sub factors were selected to assess performance of water mains. The pair wise comparison matrices have been generated to make relative weights of each factor and their sub-factors. It represents relative importance of these factors among other factors. The pipe age is found highest relative contributing factor and pipe thickness is least relative contributing factor. The developed model generate results in terms of pipes condition on numeric scale, which is compared with linguistic scale and pipe condition is found like very risky, risky, adequate, good or excellent. The developed model is validated, which shows robust results of 86.4 %, the average validity percentage. Hence, the model is expected to benefit practitioners to prioritize rehabilitation or replacement planning for water mains.

Non-Monetary Assessment of Pro-Poor Growth In Nigeria: Evidence From Demographic and Health Surveys

Poverty analytical approaches have recently considered households’ deprivation in several welfare attributes in what has been tagged multidimensional poverty. This approach has been well embraced due to acceptability of human development indices as a parameter for comparing welfare across different segments of the population. In this study, non-monetary indicators of welfare were aggregated into composite welfare indicator for pro-poor growth assessment. The 1999, 2003 and 2008 Demographic and Health Survey data were analyzed using the poverty equivalent growth rate (PEGR) and growth incidence curves (GICs). Results show that although sometimes pro-poor, non-income growth rates in many of the zones and states were negative between 1999 and 2003. In the 2003–2008 period, some more positive values were obtained. Specifically, between 1999 and 2003, there was pro-poor growth in non-income poverty in the north-western zone with urban areas benefiting more than rural areas. In the North East zone, there was pro-poor growth between 1999 and 2003, while none was pro-poor between 2003 and 2008. In the North Central zone, all the sectoral results for between 1999 and 2003 had negative growth rates. In South West zone, the growth rates for all the analyses are with negative growth rates between 1999 and 2003. In the South South zone, all the sectoral results had negative growth rates and pro-poor. In South East zone, between 1999 and 2003, all the sectoral results are with positive growth rates and pro-poor. In the combined households (Nigeria) analysis, that all the results had negative growth rates. There is therefore the need for ensuring proper monitoring of non-income poverty across different zones and states in order to ensure adequacy of different mechanisms for tackling it.

Multilocational validation of integrated management practices for Sclerotinia rot of Indian mustard (&lt;i&gt;Brassica juncea&lt;/i&gt;)

Field studies were conducted from 2008 to 2011 on integrated management of Sclerotinia rot of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea L. Czerns &amp; Coss.) involving Trichoderma mixture (T. viride + T. hamatum) formulation (2×109 cfu/g) through seed treatment (10 g/kg), soil application (2.5 kg/ha) pre-incubated in farmyard manure and foliar sprays (0.2%) at 50 and 70 days after sowing along with improved cultural practices at Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, which reduced the disease incidence up to a minimum of 11.1% and increased the seed yield up to a maximum of 2.72 tonnes/ha as compared to control (disease incidence 26.9% and seed yield 1.77 tonnes/ha). Validation of management practices were also undertaken during 2008 to 2011 in farmer’s participatory mode under three different agro climates, Zone 1b and 3b in Rajasthan and south-west zone in Haryana. The validation studies revealed that integrated management strategies based on Trichoderma resulted in minimum Sclerotinia rot incidence (mean values of three regions 5.6%) and maximum seed yield (2.19 tonnes/ha) as compared to garlic clove extract (mean values 10.3% and seed yield 1.90 tonnes/ ha) and Farmers’ practices (mean values 19.2% and seed yield 1.66 tonnes/ha). Integrated management strategies based on Trichoderma spp. was found economically viable as indicated by incremental cost: benefit ratio ranging from 1:3.1 to 1:3.8 that was different with garlic clove extract (1:1.2 to 1:2.0), besides mustard seed was produced without any application of toxic fungicides.