Benue State University Institutional Repository
Benue State University Institutional RepositoryNot a member yet
592 research outputs found
Sort by
CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN BENUE STATE, 1978 – 2015
Get PDFThis study focuses on the role of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Agricultural Development in Benue State between 1978 and 2015. It analyses how the CBN contributed to the agricultural development in the area under consideration. The study notes that the CBN initiated and implemented many agricultural development programmes solely or in tandem with policies of the Federal Government of Nigeria. However, most of the programmes failed to meet the needs of the rural dwellers and/or farmers. The inability of the CBN’s first agricultural development programme, the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme Fund (ACGSF) to effectively tackle the challenges impeding agricultural development led to the proliferation of the CBN’s agricultural development programmes in a bid to resolve the problems faced by the rural farmers. The study espouses the plethora of challenges faced by the Bank in the course of enhancing agricultural development. These challenges ranged from insufficient funding, corruption, bureaucratic bottlenecks, over-reliance on sponsorship, rural migration, general insecurity to life and property, illiteracy, high rate of loan default, and natural and operational constraints, among others. The essence of this study is to expose the seriousness of these challenges and in the process broadens policy options towards finding lasting solutions. The study employs theories of agricultural development and adopts the Financial-Led Growth Theory as the pillar of this work. The study adopts historical methodology in line with primary, secondary and tertiary sources; employing analytical and empirical tools in the course of investigation and analysis of the subject matter. The research discovered that, the CBN contributed marginally to agricultural development in Benue State. This is to say that, CBN has not completely freed the rural farmers from their plight. The argument is that, if the CBN pursued its policies of agricultural development diligently, utilized its funds judiciously and indeed partnered strategically and productively with key stakeholders (Federal Government, State Government, Participating Banks, and farmers), among others, this would go a long way in enhancing effective productivity and transformation of agricultural sector in the study area and even beyond
SOCIAL SUPPORT, CARE-BURDEN AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH OF SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS’ CAREGIVERS IN FEDERAL MEDICAL CENTRE, MAKURDI
Get PDFABSTRACT
This study investigated the moderating role of social support in the relationship between care-burden and psychological health of schizophrenic patients’ caregivers drawn from Federal Medical Centre, Makurdi. The study was built on ex-post facto design. A total of 309 caregivers participated in the study; out of which 147 (47.6%) were males and 162 (52.4%) were females. The respondents had a mean age 29.30 (SD = 3.94) years. The data for the study were collected using Psychological General Wellbeing Index (PGWI), Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale (MPSSS) and Zarit Care-Burden Interview (ZCBI). Three hypotheses were tested using regression analysis and moderation analysis. There was a significant joint influence of family support, friends’ support and Others’ support on the psychological health (anxiety, depressed mood, positive wellbeing, general health, self-control and vitality) of caregivers. Also, there was a significant negative influence of care-burden on psychological health of caregivers. Furthermore, social support significantly moderated the relationship between care-burden and overall psychological health mediated by duration of the illness but not age, sex, marital status and the number of hospital admissions. It was therefore recommended among other things that, clinicians should endeavour to assess caregivers to ascertain the level of care-burden and offer them the necessary professional support to improve their psychological health. Also, hospital management should establish caregivers’ welfare department to give adequate attention to caregivers of all patients. In addition, family members and friends should be encouraged by healthcare professionals to support caregivers of persons with schizophrenia to improve their mental health.Health of Schizophrenic Patients’ Caregiver
LE LANGAGE VIOLENT COMME EXPRESSION DE LA CONDITION DE LA FEMME NOIRE DANS L’ŒUVRE ROMANESQUE DE CALIXTHE BEYALA
Get PDFCette thèse vise à faire une analyse du sujet intitulé ‘‘L’emploi du langage violent comme expression de la condition féminine dans l’œuvre romanesque de Calixthe Beyala’’. L’étude se base sur les thèmes de la violence langagière et la condition de la femme africaine. La condition de la femme inclut, les différentes catégories de violence : la violence d’ordre verbal, matrimonial, physique, psychologique, sexuel que la femme subit. Notre romancière ne parle non seulement de l’attitude de l’homme envers la femme mais aussi de l’attitude des femmes envers les autres femmes. L’auteur parle de ces conditions qui subjuguent la femme. Beyala se sert des expressions provoquantes et touchantes pour présenter la souffrance et le mépris des femmes dans la société. Pour la méthodologie, notre corpus a été notre guide de première source de direction dans le travail. Puis nous nous sommes référés aux sources critiques publiées ou sur l’internet. Calixthe Beyala est l’une des femmes écrivains dont l’œuvre s’inscrit dans un contexte d’un féminisme radical. Le radicalisme cherche, par le verbe, à mettre fin aux structures traditionnelles africaines qui entravent l’épanouissement et la liberté de la femme africaine. Si la femme est le sujet et l’objet du discours romanesque africain, si elle constitue le personnage le plus prégnant et le plus attrayant des romans, son corps, ou son sexe, n’a jamais été autant considéré comme un sujet important pendant l’engagement littéraire des hommes avant les indépendances. L’objectif de cette étude est de montrer comment Calixthe Beyala se sert du langage révolutionnaire pour présenter la condition de la femme dans un système purement masculin. Nous avons découvert que Calixthe Beyala ne veut plus se taire ni se cacher derrière les mots châtiés. Elle parle ouvertement de ce qui, habituellement et par décence, est réservé, tenu secret, caché, interdit. Elle parle de ce qui ne doit pas être dit en privé pour ne pas déranger l’ordre des choses et de la bienséance. Nous avons donc remarqué que la crudité de la parole de la romancière à travers ses personnages féminins, est dans l’intention de choquer et de forcer le lecteur à prêter plus d’attention à son message sur la condition de la femme africaine.Langage Violent dans l’Œuvre Romanesque de
Calixthe Beyal
ELITE CONFLICTS AND THE CHALLENGE OF DEVELOPMENT IN IDOMALAND 1900-2000
No full textThe work examines the role of Idoma elite on the question of development in the area against the background of the high level of poverty and underdevelopment that the land has and is still witnessing. Having produced reputable sons and daughters who have held and are holding several esteemed administrative and political positions both in the state, and Nigeria at large, Idomaland is expected to be among the most developed societies in Nigeria. However, with the combination of both oral interviews, personal observations and consultations of Newspapers, magazines, articles and books, the work submits that, Idomaland is at its level of underdevelopment and abject poverty because its elite who are suppose to serve as agents of development, turned out to be agents of mass deprivation, because of constant misunderstanding among themselves, as a result of ideological differences and thought patterns which has derailed them from forming a coherent formidable force to pursue agendas that will attract development to the land.. To this end, the work contends that: although absolute eradication of conflicts from and among societal elites is unattainable, its management in terms of forgiveness, unity of purpose, redistribution of power etc is suggested to enhance societal development which Idomaland is in dire need of. particularly in the emergent democratic governance in Nigeria
EFFECTS OF POST-HARVEST LOSSES ON INCOME OF CASSAVA FARMERS IN VANDEIKYA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, BENUE STATE
No full textThis study investigated the effects of post-harvest losses on income of cassava farmers in Vandeikya Local Government Area of Benue State. The specific objectives were to assess the level of post-harvest losses as they affect income of cassava farmers in Vandeikya Local Government Area, investigate the factors responsible for harvest and post-harvest losses of cassava, examine the effects of post-harvest losses on income of cassava farmers and suggest ways of minimizing post-harvest losses of cassava and their effects on income of farmers in Vandeikya Local Government Area. The theoretical framework used for the study was the Modernization theory. A sample size of 363 respondents and 20 Key informants participated in the study. Structured Questionnaire and Key Informant Interview were used to collect data from small-scale farmers who cultivate cassava as their main crop and key informants respectively. The study found that about 1135.7 metric tons of cassavas were produced yearly during 2015-2017 in Vandeikya Local Government Area. About 23.5 % constituting 266.9 metric tons of the total production was incurred as post-harvest losses amounting to N26, 707,070.38 and per capita loss of N73, 573.20. Factors found to be responsible for those losses include, farmers’ use of poor agricultural practices, lack of adequate processing equipments, lack of organized markets for fresh cassava, lack of adequate storage facilities, and lack of access to genuine agricultural information among others. Although cassava farmers incurred post-harvest losses, test of the hypotheses showed that the relationship between the level of post-harvest losses and income of cassava farmers in the study area was negative given the Pearson Correlation coefficient of r = df = 1= - 0.02, P > 0.05. Also statistically, there was no significant effect of post-harvest losses on income of cassava farmers in Vandeikya Local Government Area because the result of the Multiple Regression analysis showed that the summed value of regressing post-harvest losses at various stages of 0.358 was less than the summed table value of 5.57. Similarly, the Gross Margin analysis of the post-harvest losses of cassava showed that the Gross Margin of cassava farmers without losses which is N 93,457,799 was less than the Gross Margin with losses of N 99,308,907. However, the negative difference of N 5,851,108 and a mean of N 16,118.75 indicated that the effect of post-harvest losses on income of cassava farmers was not significant. Based on the findings, the study recommended adult literacy classes for farmers; recruitment, training and deployment of Village Extension Agents to villages in the area to acquaint farmers with up to date genuine agricultural information; encouraging farmers to use cassava peels and other improvised feeds to feed their livestock; encouraging farmers to learn to use only effective traditional and modern agricultural practices; use adequate and proper storage facilities; address post-harvest deterioration of cassava properly and creation of cassava marketing boards by government to sustain and promote cassava trade to stabilize prices for cassava farmers.WORLD BAN
THE ROLE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF MAKURDI DIOCESAN AREA OF BENUE STATE
No full textThe study investigates the Role of the Catholic Church in the Development of Makurdi Diocesan Area of Benue State. The research adopted descriptive survey design. Materials were obtained from secondary and primary sources. Primary sources utilized information from interview schedules while secondary sources utilized materials from documented literature on the subject matter. The study discovered that the Catholic Church had over the years contributed to the development of Benue State from infrastructure to human development. The church had established schools, health centers, built bridges and assisted in the economic base of the state. The study also discovered that the church had contributed greatly to cultural development particularly in the area of language teaching and moral development. The study is significant since it is an expository study which had uncovered certain establishments of the Catholic church towards the development of the Makurdi Diocesan area which comprises, Makurdi, Guma, Gwer-East, and Gwer. The research argued that for the society to realize its full potentials for development in infrastructure, political, economic and culture, all sectors of the society must contribute their quota to the development of their host communities as demonstrated by the Catholic church. Therefore, the study advocated for both individual and collective efforts for the development of Benue Society. The study recommended that, there should be an enhanced value orientation which will galvanize the people to donate generously in order to help overcome the financial challenges of the church. The church should also attach more importance to technical and vocational education to enable beneficiaries to be self reliant and also able to contribute to church finance. The study also recommended that the church should advance her conflict resolution techniques since conflict in communities had been a major setback to many of the developmental efforts of the Catholic church in many communities. The charity work already in place by the Catholic church should be re-invigorated to enable her adequately address the challenges of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP), particularly within the Makurdi Diocesan area and Benue State in general. The study, therefore, concluded that the Catholic church's role in the development of Benue community should be sustained, and also that other churches and organizations should borrow from the Catholic experience to help complement the effort of government in the development of human society.SEL
A CRITIQUE OF HANNAH ARENDT’S NOTION OF TOTALITARIANISM
No full textThis study is a critique of Hannah Arendt’s notion of Totalitarianism. A critical survey into the political condition of the contemporary society reveals a phenomenon of injustice, oppression, discrimination, power tussle and violence. Despite the various concerns of philosophers from antiquity in regard to the concept and use of political power, the problem still persists. Many governments and political systems today have failed due to the misuse of political power or authority by leaders. Hannah Arendt in her Critique of Totalitarianism had criticized the misuse of absolute power during her time as exhibited by the Nazi’s authority under Hitler. This misuse of political authority and power degenerated under Hitler and had witnessed the horrific massacre of the Jewish populations in the then German state. The incidence unleashed devastating effects ranging from psychological, social, economic and health risks on the Jews who where the victims. This study employed a qualitative research design. The expository and analytical methods were used. Data were sourced from textbooks, journals, periodicals and the internet to present facts. The Expository method examined Arendt’s understanding of Totalitarianism while the Analytical method advanced the implication of totalitarianism on the society. The study found out that totalitarianism is inimical to development and a threat to human existence. And in the light of Arendt, it is not only a bad approach in governance but an evil against humanity. The study concludes that the society can develop only where there is an atmosphere for peace, justice, freedom and right to life; hence every act that may lead to a totalitarian practice must be curtailed.SEL
AN ASSESSMENT OF EDMUND HUSSERL’S EPOCHÉ
No full textThere has been controversies among thinkers on how we can make knowledge claims about objects of experience. The search for indubitability as starting point for philosophical thinking is not new. Descartes’ attempt to attain certainty by systematically casting doubt upon all our experience is one such. Edmund Husserl maintained that the Cartesian doubt was not radical enough. Radicalizing the Cartesian doubt, Husserl went beyond what he called the natural attitude by developing the technique he termed the epoché. Its purpose was to achieve indubitable certainty. In carrying out the epoché, Husserl enjoin us to suspend or put into bracket the existence of the outer world, our belief in the validity of our statements about the world, the proposition of all sciences and the human being. It is the setting aside of all philosophical propositions, and the accepted ideas about things which we are not clear about, but want to get at the root of their essence. Having performed this reduction, Husserl invites the thinker to positively focus his/her attention on the essential structures of reality as it offers itself to the experiencing thinking mind. Our knowledge, says Husserl, is upgraded from the level of facts to that of essences. It is Husserl’s contention that with this method, indubitable and apodictic knowledge will be guaranteed. This method he called phenomenology, one that offers us the opportunity to analyze the data of experience as is presented in the thinking and experiencing mind. While Husserl’s method appears to be ingenious, I do not think that it is as successful and effective as he intends it to be, because inherent in the subject are personal prejudices and presuppositions which invariably distort the epistemic content of whatever is being investigated.Using the expository method of research, this work concludes after weighing the strengths and weaknesses of Husserl’s epochéthat, the method ofthe epoché ends up in subjectivity and ultimately intersubjective knowledge.SEL
A HISTORY OF HIV AND AIDS AND ITS IMPACT IN IGEDELAND, 1986-2012
No full textThe thesis traces the origin and development of HIV and AIDS infection in Igede land from 1986 - 2012. HIV and AIDS is a deadly socio-health challenge that affects household, socio-economic growth and development of Igedeland. To this end, the researcher discourses the divergent views about the origin and the subsequent spread of HIV and AIDS across the globe using five schools of thought which include hunters theory, the oral polio vaccine theory, the contaminated needle theory, the conspiracy school of thought and finally colonialism theory, it is against this background that this study was carried out in Igedeland of central Nigeria, 1986-2012, paying attention to impact, Nature and patterns of stigmatization in Igedeland. Thus, the methodology employed in this study is multi-disciplinary approach, involving methods from history and other disciplines such as Economic, Geography, Sociology, mass communication, because issues relating to HIV and AIDS and its attendant impacts on the people have been a subject of interest to allied disciplines. Colonialism theory was used to explain the prevailing situation in the study area, using case study of selected Communities in Igede land, where cases of HIV and AIDS are prevalent due to high population density of people disposed to risky sexual behaviour. Igede as an agrarian society, the disease had a devastating impact on agricultural productivity due to loss of population of able bodied men and women. Socially, the work reveals that the pandemic led to increased number of orphans. Other findings of the research include the level of stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA) in the study area. It was discovered that there was a high level of stigmatization and discrimination against HIV and AIDS patients in the Igede society, which is capable of expediting the spread of the disease among the people. Furthermore, the study x-rays the responses of government and non-governmental organisation towards the management and spread of HIV and AIDS in Igede land. These responses and intervention efforts come from the federal government National Action committee on AIDS (NACA), the State Action Committee on Aids (SACA), the local Action committee on AIDS (LACA) the activities of various religious organizations, especially the Catholic Church, the Methodist Church of Nigeria, Community and opinion leaders as well as women groups. The thesis suggests urgent need to intensify effort towards dedicated research into alternative and herbal medicine and the need for increased funding by government to combat the spread of the pandemic. Government should address the issue of high level of poverty among the people as a matter of urgency, comprehensive sex education to increase awareness among the youths and adults alike.HIV and AIDS impact on Igedeland, 1986-201
SECURITY CHALLENGES AND MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN NORTH CENTRAL NIGERIA
No full textThis study investigated security challenges and management of public universities in North Central Nigeria. The purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of Boko Haram insurgency, activities of Fulani herdsmen, kidnapping, cultism, human trafficking and drug abuse on management of public universities in North Central Nigeria. Six research questions and six hypotheses guided the study. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprises 13,874 academic and senior administrative staff from 13 public universities. The sample consisted of 382 respondents from eight public universities. Multistage sampling technique was adopted in sampling the population. Security Challenges and Management of Universities Questionnaire (SCMUQ) with reliability coefficient of 0.85 and interview schedule were used for data collection. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the six research questions. Chi-square test of goodness-of-fit was used to test the six hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study established that Boko-Haram insurgency, activities of Fulani herdsmen, kidnapping, cultism, human trafficking and drug abuse have significant impact on management of public universities in North Central Nigeria. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among other things that there should be equally distribution of the country’s resources within the geographical areas of Nigeria to reduce the feeling of marginalization among Nigerians. The National Assembly should enact a land use act to help solve the problem Fulani herders always have with farmers in Nigeria. The government should create programmes that would empower our youths technically so that they will be self-reliant and avert their minds from criminal tendencies