UNAM Open Access Journal University of Namibia
Not a member yet
612 research outputs found
Sort by
Improving health care delivery in rural communities through the use of mobile phones: a case study in Windhoek
Get PDFPoor healthcare delivery in rural health centres is a major problem facing the health sector in Namibia. This paper investigated how mobile phones can be used to improve healthcare delivery services in Windhoek rural health centres. Data was collected using structured interviews. A qualitative design was used together with a case study approach. Three health centres, purposefully selected from Windhoek rural communities (Katutura, Khomasdal and Okuryangava) were used as case studies. Activity Theory (AT) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) were used to analyse the findings. The findings revealed that mobile phones are widely accepted by doctors, nurses and patients of Windhoek rural health centres; hence can be used to improve slow work processes and healthcare delivery services provided to patients at Out Patient Departments (OPDs) in Windhoek rural health centres. A mobile health service framework (MHSF) was proposed based on the work processes and healthcare delivery needs of patients who visit Windhoek rural health centres. The MHSF was further presented for expert reviews which consisted of a panel of one doctor, one nurse and two IT specialists. The expert review panel approved the MHSF and found it useful in improving healthcare delivery services in Windhoek rural health centres
Assessment of the prerequisites for the establishment of an Animal facility at the School of Medicine, University of Namibia: comparison of the current situation with international standards and requirements, and with discussion of alternative options
Get PDFThe School of Medicine (SoM) of the University of Namibia (UNAM) intends to establish an animal house for teaching and experimental research within its facilities. A number of rooms are dedicated for this purpose and partially equipped. This review investigates the feasibility of the project in the light of international standards for animal experimental settings, the prerequisites for the physical establishment, the technical installations, compliance to globally valid regulations of animal welfare, and the probability of getting reliable research outcomes from the given background. The identified current situation within the SoM is subsequently compared to the internationally accepted benchmarks for such institutions, and the principal features of the commonly followed guidelines are briefly listed. A selection of alternative methods to animal experiments is succinctly described and set in the context of the departments of SoM. However, the examination of the physical housing, technical equipment, required human resources and available infrastructure led to the conclusion that the intended use cannot be recommended since the relevant criteria are not met. Instead it would be advisable to construct a separate animal house based on recognized internationally valid standards. In the meantime, less costly non-animal state of the art methods could be introduced
Factors that cause poor performance in mathematics at National School Secondary Certificate level compared to Junior Secondary Certificate level in four selected schools in the two Kavango educational regions
Get PDFThis paper reports on factors that cause poor performance in Mathematics at the National School Secondary Certificate (NSSC) level compared to Junior Secondary Certificate (JSC) level. A total of 200 learners in Grade 10 (2011) and 170 Grade 12 (2013) were involved in the study. These learners did Mathematics at the same school for a period of three years (2011-2013). This study employed document analysis, a technique used to gather information by reviewing and analysed documents. In this study the following documents were reviewed and analysed: The 2011 Grade 10 November examination results, and the 2013 Grade 12 November examination results, respectively. The findings of this study revealed that 2011 Grade 10 learners who obtained E-U symbols did not perform well in the Grade 12 Mathematics examinations. These findings were of utmost importance to the curriculum developers, the National Institute for Educational Development (NIED), senior education officers, the Ministry of Education, institutions of higher learning, and other stakeholders in Mathematics education
A review of secondary metabolites isolated from Plocamium species worldwide
Get PDFA review of halogenated monoterpenes isolated from various Plocamium species worldwide is presented here for the first time. It is anticipated that this review will be of great valuable to the natural product chemist working in the field of drug discovery with reference to the characterisation of halogenated monoterpene secondary metabolites from various Plocamium species. In addition, the in vitro cytotoxic bioactivity of these compounds is also reviewed
The Namibian portfolio for languages: a tool for formative assessment in Namibian secondary schools
Get PDFThe notion of learner-centred education has received praise since its inception in the Namibian education system in the early 1990s. This development provided a need for restructuring the process of teaching-learning, the nature of the curriculum, materials and assessment. The Education for All document similarly advocates for the regulation of formative assessment since the early years of the new Namibia. Little evidence suggests that the practical integration of formative assessment has not been concretely defined. In a learner-centred approach, formative assessment is crucial. Whereas it can be generally accepted that formative assessment is at the core of assessment in most language classrooms, it remains unclear whether assessment is more summative than formative. While learners’ marks are indicative of summative assessment, there is no tool to form the basis for the implementation of formative assessment and teacher feedback on their learners’ formative assessment. A team of teachers of French as a foreign language in Namibia viewed the introduction of a portfolio for languages as a practical tool for teachers and learners in order to implement formative assessment. This paper presents the use of the Namibian Portfolio for Languages as a pedagogical tool for self-assessment
Aspects of negation in Otjiherero
Get PDFThe purpose of this article is to provide a detailed description of Otjiherero negative grammatical features; to show how negation behaves in Otjiherero expressions; the effect of negation on meanin; the concomitant phonological processes involved; and to determine whether negation reveals Otjiherero sentence structures in general. As Möhlig and Kavari (2008, p.166) put it; “…in independent tenses, negation is expressed by the prefi x hi- for 1st person singular and by ka- for all other persons and classes”, while ha negates all subordinate clauses. Double negation in Otjiherero is a matter of emphasis, although in the Kaoko dialect it is used in a normal way in certain contexts, and though it is not used at all in the central dialect of Otjiherero. As Dembetembe (1986, p. 1) states: “…linguistically affi rmation or negation is a feature of the predicate, the nucleus of which is the verb, whether this is expressed overtly or latently in surface structure”, investigating how negation of predicates works seems to be an appropriate descriptive approach
Individual agency and responsibility in African proverbial discourse
Get PDFAkarumwa nechekuchera (He was bitten by what he dug up). (Shona idiom reminding that trouble may be lying deep in the earth, minding its own business, as it were. Someone takes a pick and shovel and unearths it. The person bears the responsibility for the consequences of their own action.) While proverbial lore has been the focus of much research and publication over the years, not many of those have thoroughly examined what I intend to interrogate here, namely how this lore seeks to alert us to the connection between our actions and our responsibility for them. Proverbs are as old as human existence, as can be seen in Jewish thinkers devoting a whole book of The Old Testament to them. In their introduction to that book, the editors outline the domains of life in which a knowledge and acceptance of the wisdom contained in proverbs would enable the Children of Israel to live life as God intended at the Creation. These encompass “reverence for the Lord, religious morality, good manners, self-control, humility, patience, etiquette in social relationships, loyalty to friends, respect for the poor, good manners, family relationships, business dealings, common sense”. In this paper, after analysing Shona proverbs whose messages fall into some of these categories, I conclude that, far from being conservative and authoritarian injunctions out of synch with modernity because of their alleged downplaying of, even frowning on individualism for being inimical to African communal-ism, as some Western thinkers have concluded, African proverbs carry wisdom which reminds us of the connection between individual and communal action, on the one hand, and individual and communal responsibility for creating the societies that we live in through such action, on the other; in fact, proverbial lore recognises both individualism and communalism
Comparative study of Antioxidant properties, Polyphenols and Flavonoid contents of the tuber and seed extracts of Marama bean (Tylosema esculentum)
Get PDFTylosema esculentum, also known as the marama bean, is an underutilized legume from Southern Africa. Marama seeds and tubers are used as food and traditional medicine. The antiviral properties of the tuber and seeds have already been explored and the present work provides a first time report on the antioxidant activity and total phenolic content of marama tuber. Marama tuber extract, rich in phenolic compounds, exhibited the highest antioxidant activity compared to the seeds extract. IC50 values obtained for DPPH free radical scavenging were 95.62 ± 7.08 μg/ml and >1000 μg/ml for marama tuber and seed extracts, respectively. There was a positive correlation between the total phenolic content and antioxidant activity in the marama tuber and seed samples. In conclusion, the overall findings of this study suggest that the marama tuber could be a potential source of natural antioxidants
The road safety in Namibia: focus on road traffic accidents
Get PDFThis paper discusses road traffic accidents in Namibia. The occurrence of road accidents and the resulting fatalities and injuries are of great concern to the government of the Republic of Namibia. This is confirmed by available vehicle collision rate and overload statistics as well as independent studies of the municipal and Namibia traffic police. The paper also discusses the new road traffic and transport act, which is envisaged to be implemented in due course. This will improve the control of vehicle roadworthiness testing and registration, licensing of drivers, rules of the road and traffic law enforcement. The so-called ”human factor” plays a role in the majority of vehicle accidents. Cognitive psychology provides more detailed information on human factors. It explains theoretical concepts and principles on how the mind works. It has also been said that cars do not cause accidents, people do. For this reason a ”technical” and ”legal” approach alone are not regarded as sufficient to improve the road traffic safety situation in Namibia. Additional actions directed at applied research education of the public and in general the engendering of a road traffic safety ethic is necessary
"One that has given you little has your soul consoled” – unemployed youth on surviving without unemployment benefi ts in Namibia
No full textAlarmingly, youth unemployment rates in Namibia are among the highest in Southern Africa. This fact haunts Namibia terribly. The unemployment of those that should be the main bread winners does not only affect them as individuals, but also bears a negative impact on their families and friends. With poor access to productive assets such as capital, land and skills, the majority of the unemployed youth face a daily struggle to meet their basic needs and are often the ones on the periphery of the Namibian society. The difficulties in finding employment also mean difficulties in securing an income and a decent livelihood for these young people. In absence of a social protection system for unemployed people in Namibia, the situation of the youth is exacerbated. This study seeks to understand the social support system and survival strategies of the unemployed youth in Namibia. It draws data from the author’s on-going PhD research for which she conducted interviews with unemployed youth from Ohangwena and Khomas regions, with the aim to capture the lived experiences as well as the views of young people on the problem of youth unemployment in Namibia. The results point to the practical difficulties of unemployment the youth experience in their everyday lives. Findings indicate that the majority of youth are the most likely to fill low-quality jobs in the menial and informal economy rather than jobs with decent wages and benefits. In as much as the youth are engaging in the informal employment and economy, they do not regard it as employment. Consequently, many rely on family and friends for support in order to survive unemployment. As an onset to assist the unemployed, the author therefore propose the Basic Income Grand (BIG) as one way of socio-economic safety of the poor and unemployed as they persevere with their unemployment. Such an initiative can ameliorate the negative effects of unemployment specifically among the youth. This however, should not be regarded as a replacement for the possibility of unemployment benefit