UNAM Gā-aisib Repository (University of Namibia)
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Human impact on the biodiversity of macroinvertebrates in intertidal rocky shores along the Namibian coast
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science (Biodiversity Management and Research)The intertidal rocky shores along the central coast of Namibia provide multiple microhabitats supporting a high species biodiversity and a unique heterogeneous environment. Extreme anthropogenic disturbance such as harvesting and trampling due to human visitors may reduce biodiversity, modifying species genetic variability and overall ecosystem functioning. This research compares macroinvertebrate assemblage structures, size and diversity between disturbed and less disturbed sites. The study was conducted in March and June 2022 at six different sites along the coast – four disturbed sites and 2 control (less disturbed) sites. At each site, three line transects were used with a 0.5m x 0.5m quadrat placed at 5m intervals for 50m. In each quadrat, samples were counted and collected for identification and measurements. There was a significant difference in species assemblages in March (R = 0.557, P = 0.001) and June (R = 0. 618, P = 0.001) among all sites. There was a correlation between macroinvertebrate communities and sites due to environmental differences such as the type of habitat, water temperatures and human harvesting. Alien invasive mussels such as M. galloprovincialis and S. patagonicus had a significant reduced size (P < 0.05) in disturbed sites compared to control sites in both months. Majority of the limpet species such as S. argenvillei and C. granatina only had a significant smaller size (P < 0.05) in March and showed no significant difference in June. Oxystele variegata had larger sizes at control sites compared to disturbed sites in both months. There was a significant difference in species diversity between disturbed and less disturbed sites in both March (Z = -2.905, P = 0.002) and June (Z= -3.373, P < 0.001) indicating that both control sites had a greater species diversity than the disturbed sites. Human harvesting and trampling along with natural variation may play a crucial role in species assemblage structure, size and species diversity along the Namibian intertidal rocky shore. This study may be useful in filling the knowledge gap about the rocky intertidal structure along the Namibian coast and possibly identifying coastal management requirements
Factors influencing antibiotic prescribing choice among private general practitioners in Windhoek
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of master in public healthBackground: Inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics by physicians has been
implicated as the driving force behind antibiotic resistance posing a major threat to
public health. This study aimed to determine the factors influencing antibiotic
prescribing among private general practitioners in Windhoek.
Method: A quantitative, descriptive cross-sectional research design method was used.
A total of 71 private general practitioners in Windhoek completed the questionnaire.
Data were collected from May to June 2022 and analysed using SPSS version 26
software.
Findings: The patient-doctor relationship was found to influence antibiotic
prescribing majorly. While 68% of the participants indicated fear of the patient
developing a severe infection. The Namibian standard treatment guidelines and advice
from medical representatives were also found to affect prescribing behaviour. Lastly,
a positive correlation (p< 0.05) was found between participants being pressured to
prescribe antibiotics and their location of practice, fear of losing patients due to lack
of antibiotic prescription, and the number of patients seen per day.
Conclusion: This study uncovered correlations between the factors and the
demographic characteristics of the participants. These results indicate that antibiotic
stewardship programs and interventions may have to be tailored to accommodate
specific groups such as the age of physicians, location of practice, and the number of patients seen per da
An investigation into the relationship between infrastructure development and economic growth in Namibia
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the Degree of Master of Science (Development Finance)The study investigated the causal relationship between infrastructure development and economic growth in Namibia for the period Q11991- Q42020. Data used was sourced from the World Bank development indicators, Namibia Statistics Agency as well as COMSTAT and was converted to quarterly data using EViews. Time-series econometric techniques such as unit root, ARDL bound test as well as VAR framework has been used. The results of the ARDL bounds test revealed that there is a long run relationship between infrastructure development and economic growth. The vector error correction provided both short and long run estimates. The findings revealed a positive long run and short run relationship between infrastructure development and economic growth in Namibia. The study recommends that the Namibian government needs to increase infrastructure funding in Namibia, enforce monitoring and evaluation and promote Public Private Partnership (PPP)
The experiences of health care workers on prescribing PrEP to adolescent girls and young women at public health centers in Windhoek, Khomas region, Namibia
No full textA thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of master in public healthOral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is the usage of antiretroviral medications by HIV uninfected persons to prevent HIV. It has the potential to significantly reduce HIV
acquisition among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) aged 15–24 who have not
yet been exposed to HIV. The purpose of this study was to explore health care workers’
experiences on prescribing Pre-exposure prophylaxis to adolescent girls and young
woman at high risk of HIV in Windhoek. The objectives of the study were to explore
health care workers’ experiences to prescribing PrEP to adolescent girls and young
woman at high risk of HIV infections and to explore health care workers views on PrEP
delivery services among AGYW at public health centers. A qualitative, phenomenology
design was conducted at public health centers in Windhoek, Khomas region to explore
health care workers’ experiences to prescribing PrEP to adolescent girls and young
woman at high risk of HIV infections and explore their views on PrEP service delivery
among AGYW. Population of the study were nurses that are PrEP prescribers and health
centers contain of 58 nurses. Convenience sampling method was used to recruit nurses
into the study. A semi-structured interview guide was used as a data collection instrument.
Data were analyzed using thematic content analysis. Majority of HCWs indicated that
they promoted PrEP uptake among AGYW and were willing and comfortable with
prescribing Prep to AGYW. Few HCWs were not comfortable prescribing PrEP to
AGYW citing that it promotes the reduction in condom use. The study highlighted a need
to sensitize PrEP and sexual reproductive health for AGYW in all departments within the
health centers. PrEP introduction among AGYW requires more than solely training
HCWs on the clinical aspects of prescribing PrEP. It involves addressing HCWs’ biases
and preference regarding sexual health services to AGYW and preparing the health
facilities organization for the introduction of PrEP among AGYW. Furthermore, health
care workers need to conduct community health education to AGYW for them to develop
a culture of voluntarily visiting the health facility and request PrEP when the need arise.
Most importantly there is a need for health care workers to educate the community on
PrEP to reduce stigma based on PrEP initiation in the societ
Language ideologies and the use of mother tongues as the medium of instruction and learning in junior primary schools: A case study of parents and teachers in a Namibian school
No full textIn the Namibian education system, teaching in the junior primary is supposed to be done in the learners’ mother tongue. However, there is always controversy on adopting a language to be used as a medium of instruction (MoI) due to the multi-ethnic and multilingualism of the Namibian society. To make matters worse, parents equally cast doubt on enrolling their children in schools that uses mother tongue as an MoI. Framed within the qualitative case-study orientation, this research investigated: parents’ and teachers’ language ideologies and beliefs; the factors that informed the embodied and expressed language ideologies and beliefs of parents’ and teachers’; and how these dominant language ideologies and belief systems informed parents’ and teachers’ choice of language of instruction and the general implementation of the language policy in a Namibian school. The study found that both parents and teachers harbored monolingual ideological belief systems that did not only construct and perpetuate an “English-only” language zone but also banished all mother tongue languages from the school premises. Not only do the findings point to the hegemonic positioning of the English language in the minds of parents, teachers, and school principals as the only language that can lead to success, but its violation was punishable in a derogatory manner. The study concludes that, among others, parents, teachers, and school principals’ language ideologies and beliefs were shaped and informed by the prevailing English language hegemony. The liberal and duality stance of the Namibian language policy, and its decentralization, partly resulted in parents, teachers, and school principals’ neglect of the multilingualism and heterogeneity that the very same policy purports to advocate. The study recommends raising parents’ and teachers’ awareness of embracing the heteroglossia of language practices and for the ministry of education to consider a more inclusive language polic
Determination of the prevalence and density of true plasmodium falciparum infections and gametocyte carriage during two malaria outbreaks in Zambezi region, Namibia
No full textA thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science (Molecular Biology)Malaria is a disease caused by parasites from the genus Plasmodium, which are transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected female Anopheles mosquito. Malaria remains as one of the leading causes of mortality globally. Namibia has successfully reduced the malaria burden by over 90% between 2004 and 2014 and aimed to eliminate the disease by 2020, however, this progress has stalled and it has experienced outbreaks. New approaches are needed to understand and address the reasons for persistent transmission and outbreaks. Accurate diagnosis is a challenge with the routinely used Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) at low transmission settings as they have been reported to give both false-positive and false-negative results, both outcomes compromise the detection and treatment of all malaria cases. Furthermore, RDTs do not give much information about epidemiological parameters that affect malaria transmission and can be used to assess and mitigate against onward transmission of the disease which includes transmission intensity and risk of transmission. Molecular tools have been reported as being able to identify true malaria infections. This includes parasite species and strains as well as being able to give a more accurate and quantitative reflection of the malaria burden and potential risk of transmission, additional information that RDTs cannot provide. This study was conducted to confirm and identify the Plasmodium species confirmed by RDTs; quantify parasite densities and gametocytes during the 2017 and 2021 outbreak seasons to determine the importance of these parameters in assessing transmission intensity and risk. A total of 589 malaria RDT positives, (251 from the 2017 malaria outbreak and 338 from the 2021 outbreak) from the Zambezi region with corresponding dried blood spots (DBS) were analysed using DNA extracted using the Chelex method for conventional PCR. Only 223/589 (38%) RDT positive samples were confirmed as being true malaria positive: (71/251, 28% for 2017 and 152/338, 45% for 2021). All confirmed samples were identified as Plasmodium falciparum only. The QIAamp DNA kit was used to extract DNA from the 223 confirmed malaria positive samples for quantitative PCR to calculate parasite density for each malaria outbreak season (71 for 2017 and 152 for the 2021 season, a total of 223). The parasitaemia of the samples from each season was calculated and classified as follows: for 2017, low - 13%, moderate - 24%, high - 51%, hyperparasitaemia - 13%; for 2021 low - 24%, moderate - 29%, high - 40%, hyperparasitaemia - 7%. The mean parasite density was higher in 2017 (46088 p/μL) as compared to 2021 (35211 p/μL) (Mann-Whitney, p=0.008). Gametocyte carriage was determined by RTqPCR to detect and quantify the presence of Pfs25 transcripts for female gametocytes. The study showed that as parasitaemia increased, there was a higher chance of detecting gametocytes. Gametocyte detection was found in 59/71 (83%) for 2017 and 98/152 (64%) for 2021 using a Ct value of ≤35 as a cut-off point. There was a significant difference in gametocyte mean for 2017 (116 g/μL) and 2021 (892 g/μL) (Mann-Whitney, p=0.003). There was a moderate correlation between parasitaemia and gametocyte carriage during the 2017 outbreak (rho = 0.6) and a strong correlation for the 2021 outbreak (rho = 1) using Spearman’s Correlation. The Median test showed that during the 2021 outbreak there was no significant difference (p=0.910) between gametocyte carriage in low parasitaemia infections and moderate parasitaemia infections. This showed that low density infections are actually a risk factor for onward transmission of malaria. This study confirmed that P. falciparum is the dominant parasite causing malaria in the Zambezi region during the 2017 and 2021 outbreaks. It also showed that the use of RDTs for Reactive Case Detection (RACD) does not give an accurate picture of true malaria cases during outbreaks, only 38% of cases were confirmed by PCR. Both outbreaks showed moderate parasite density on average although both had high parasitaemia and hyper parasitaemia cases, signals indicative of an outbreak. Parasitaemia also correlated with gametocyte carriage showing that the parasite density was linked with higher transmission risk through gametocyte carriage. Thus, parasite density and gametocyte carriage as determined through the use of molecular tools can be used to assess the risk of transmission. However, further studies should be conducted in dry seasons to have a better understanding of residual transmission, parasite reservoir, and malaria epidemiology as a comparison to the outbreak seasons. The use of additional molecular analysis such as the Multiplicity of Infection (MOI), heterozygosity index and parasite transmission networks can also enrich the data collected during molecular surveillance and its usefulness in heterogeneous malaria transmission settings. It is recommended that molecular surveillance be used during passive surveillance at clinics; used during reactive case detection and Mass Screen and Treat and when targeting interventions to high-risk groups to understand the drivers of sustained transmission. This will contribute to the tailoring of cost-effective interventions and not a one-size fits all blanket intervention
Co-cultivation and matching of early- and late-maturing pearl millet varieties to sowing windows can enhance climate change adaptation in semi-arid sub-Saharan agroecosystems
No full textIt is hence crucial to establish the optimal sowing window of pearl millet for the NCR to optimize production resources and increase grain production among local farming communities in the face of climate change.
Therefore, the objectives of this study were to (i) analyze rainfall patterns and trends and their implications on the growing season, (ii) evaluate the grain yield dynamics of Namibia’s popular pearl millet varieties under different sowing dates, and (iii) determine the optimal sowing window for the semi-arid NCR to propose climate-smart adaptation options for smallholder farming households in northern Namibia.In semi-arid regions, climate change has affected crop growing season length and sowing time, potentially causing low yield of the rainfed staple crop pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) and food insecurity among smallholder farmers. In this study, we used 1994–2023 rainfall data from Namibia's semi-arid NorthCentral Region (NCR), receiving November–April summer rainfall, to analyze rainfall patterns and trends and their implications on the growing season to propose climate adaptation options for the region. The results revealed high annual and monthly rainfall variabilities, with nonsignificant negative trends for November– February rainfalls, implying a shortening growing season. Furthermore, we determined the effects of sowing date on grain yields of the early-maturing Okashana-2 and local landrace Kantana pearl millet varieties and the optimal sowing window for the region, using data from a two-year split-plot field experiment conducted at the University of Namibia-Ogongo Campus, NCR, during the rainy season. Cubic polynomial regression models were applied to grain yield data sets to predict grain production for any sowing date between January and March. Both varieties produced the highest grain yields under January sowings, with Kantana exhibiting a higher yield potential than Okashana-2. Kantana, sown by 14 January, had a yield advantage of up to 36.0% over Okashana-2, but its yield gradually reduced with delays in sowing. Okashana-2 exhibited higher yield stability across January sowings, surpassing Kantana’s yields by up to 9.4% following the 14 January sowing. We determined the pearl millet optimal sowing window for the NCR from 1–7 and 1–21 January for Kantana and Okashana-2, respectively. These results suggest that co-cultivation of early and late pearl millet varieties and growing early-maturing varieties under delayed seasons could stabilize grain production in northern Namibia and enhance farmers' climate adaptation. Semi-arid agro-region policymakers could utilize this
information to adjust local seed systems and extension strategies
Adoption and utilisation of workplace e-learning practices in the public sector organisations: A systematic review
No full textThis paper reports the findings of a scoping review that was conducted to aggregate information on workplace e-learning adoption and utilisation practices in public sector organisations. Also, the aim was to use the outcomes of the review to inform the development of the conceptual model to support the development of workplace e-learning implementation programmesThe e-learning concept is increasingly receiving attention in education butthere seems to be inadequate guidance in developing a formal programme for implementing e-learning, especially in the public sector. Hence, this study focuses on aggregating information on the adoption and utilisation of e-learning in the public sector and attempting the development of a conceptual model for understanding workplace e-learning implementation. A systematic search of the literature was conducted to collect all the literature addressing the adoption and utilisation of e-learning in the public sector. This review brought to light key factors that influence the adoption and utilisation of e-learning amongst public sector employees, including attitude, satisfaction, behaviour intention, continuance intention, or behaviour to use e-learning. The adoption and utilisation of e-learning in the public sector requires a carefully thought-through and evidence-based approach, especially the development of the e-learning programm
Assessing staff digital literacy level vs attitude toward online teaching and learning quadrant
No full textThis paper aimed at positioning a staff digital literacy level versus attitude toward online teaching and learning quadrant in the curriculum transformation interventions of various institutions to ensure that their policy intervention with regard to online learning remains user-friendly and sector appropriate. Using a critical autobiographical narrative inquiry, this quadrant was developed to assist educational institutions, personnel, and other stakeholders with a unique tool to assess their staff digital literacy level and the position of their attitude toward online teaching and learning. The quadrants consist of 4 sections: High Digital Literacy Level-Low Attitude Toward e-Teaching & Learning; High Digital Literacy Level-High Attitude Toward e-Teaching & Learning; Low Digital Literacy Level-Low Attitude Toward e-Teaching & Learning; Low Digital Literacy Level-High Attitude Toward e-Teaching & Learning. The quadrant used staff attitude as a yardstick to effectively implementing online learning initiatives in the education sector. The quadrants also serve as an educational re-engineering intervention strategy for the society 4.0/5.0 curriculum professional
Exploring grade 11-12 teachers’ use of instructional videos in natural science subjects at Ponhofi Secondary School
No full textThe purpose
of our research article is to explore the teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, beliefs and experience towards the use of
instructional videos in teaching Natural Science subjects at secondary school level in Namibia. While previous
researchers have documented the influence of teachers’ pedagogical beliefs on classroom practices related to
teaching mathematics (Vacc & Bright, 1999), science (Czerniak & Lumpe, 1996), history (Wilson & Wineburg,
1988), and literacy (Fang, 1996), only few examined how teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, beliefs and
preparedness influence adoption and use of instructional video in classrooms.This study explored Grade 11-12 teachers’ use of instructional videos in Natural Science subjects
at Ponhofi Secondary School in Namibia. To explore the attitudes, perceptions and experiences of teachers’ use
of instructional videos, 8 semi-structured interviews (pre and post) were conducted. The pre-semi structured
interviews were about the teachers’ attitudes, perceptions and experiences and were held with individual teachers
before the teaching intervention using instructional videos. After the intervention, the post semi-structured
interviews were conducted with the same individual teachers to assess their attitudes, perceptions and experiences
after the use of instructional videos. The findings revealed that most of the teachers perceive instructional videos
as powerful tools to teach Natural Science subjects and good for the learners’ subject mastery. The results further
showed that most of the teachers lack self-confidence and have a high level of technophobia. It also emerged that
there are a lot of barriers that affect teachers’ ability to use instructional videos such as technology resources,
technology support, knowledge and skills and these barriers negatively affect the use of technology in schools and
prevent teachers from becoming frequent technology-users. Finally, the findings revealed that, most of the
teachers use free downloadable videos from various websites such as Eureka, Make Me Genius, Smart Learning
for All and YouTube. The study concluded that teachers should adopt the culture of using instructional videos in
their lessons to make their lessons informative, interesting, and resourceful and enhance understanding, and
knowledge retentio