20 research outputs found
Water - Energy - Food Nexus Narratives and Resource Securities: A Global South Perspective
No full textWater-Energy-Food Nexus Narratives and Resource Securities: A Global South Perspective provides a knowledge synthesis on the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus, focusing primarily on the global south. By presenting concepts, analytical tools, and case studies, the book serves as a practical resource for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners in sustainability and functional roles across all three sectors. It addresses key issues related to data availability, tools, indices, metrics, and application across multiple scales, beginning with a summary of existing knowledge. Finally, it examines the WEF nexus, presents global insights, and discusses future considerations and implications. This book presents an overview of existing knowledge on the WEF nexus and examines how such research aligns with emerging global WEF nexus perspectives, making it ideal for professionals, government entities, private industry, and the general public.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository 'You share, we take care!' - Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Water Resource
Spatially continuous dataset at local scale of Taita Hills in Kenya and Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania
No full textAbstractClimate change is a global concern, requiring local scale spatially continuous dataset and modeling of meteorological variables. This dataset article provided the interpolated temperature, rainfall and relative humidity dataset at local scale along Taita Hills and Mount Kilimanjaro altitudinal gradients in Kenya and Tanzania, respectively. The temperature and relative humidity were recorded hourly using automatic onset THHOBO data loggers and rainfall was recorded daily using GENERALR wireless rain gauges. Thin plate spline (TPS) was used to interpolate, with the degree of data smoothing determined by minimizing the generalized cross validation. The dataset provide information on the status of the current climatic conditions along the two mountainous altitudinal gradients in Kenya and Tanzania. The dataset will, thus, enhance future research
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Predictors of Stunting, Wasting and Underweight among Tanzanian Children Born to HIV-Infected Women.
Get PDFChildren born to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected women are susceptible to undernutrition, but modifiable risk factors and the time course of the development of undernutrition have not been well characterized. The objective of this study was to identify maternal, socioeconomic and child characteristics that are associated with stunting, wasting and underweight among Tanzanian children born to HIV-infected mothers, followed from 6 weeks of age for 24 months. Maternal and socioeconomic characteristics were recorded during pregnancy, data pertaining to the infant's birth were collected immediately after delivery, morbidity histories and anthropometric measurements were performed monthly. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards methods were used to assess the association between potential predictors and the time to first episode of stunting, wasting and underweight. A total of 2387 infants (54.0% male) were enrolled and followed for a median duration of 21.2 months. The respective prevalence of prematurity (<37 weeks) and low birth weight (<2500 g) was 15.2% and 7.0%; 11.3% of infants were HIV-positive at 6 weeks. Median time to first episode of stunting, wasting and underweight was 8.7, 7.2 and 7.0 months, respectively. Low maternal education, few household possessions, low infant birth weight, child HIV infection and male sex were all independent predictors of stunting, wasting and underweight. In addition, preterm infants were more likely to become wasted and underweight, whereas those with a low Apgar score at birth were more likely to become stunted. Interventions to improve maternal education and nutritional status, reduce mother-to-child transmission of HIV, and increase birth weight may lower the risk of undernutrition among children born to HIV-infected women
An Assessment of the Human Rights Attitudes toward Sexual Diversity in Kenya: A Case Study of Universities in Nairobi
No full textA Thesis Submitted To The School Of Humanities And Social Sciences In Partial Fulfillment Of The Requirement For The Award Of The Masters Of Arts Degree In International Relationsthe adoption of liberal constitutions that provide for extensive bills of rights in the world, there has been strong resistance among African countries to extend these rights to include minority groups, particularly the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTI) community. To date, same-sex sexual relations, particularly male to male sexual relations remain outlawed in more than two thirds of African countries, Kenya included. Although several African leaders have spoken out against homosexuality in very strong terms describing it as „un-African,‟ most laws criminalizing same-sex sexual acts were inherited from the colonial era and were enacted without the input of the people that currently enforce them. This study examines the opinions of ordinary African students in universities within Nairobi Kenya. It analyzes public opinion data from a questionnaire survey on the human rights attitudes toward homosexuality in Nairobi, Kenya, where the topic has been a subject of major debate in recent years especially with the current Kenyan president labeling same-sex sexuality as a “non-issue” in Kenya. This study also analyzes data from in-depth interviews with key informants in the LGBTI and human rights field in Kenya, and some within the Kenyan government. The author analyzes whether young educated adults in universities think homosexuality is ever acceptable, while trying to understand their moral, religious, and legal attitudes, and finding out whether they are willing to accept homosexuals living among them. The results indicate that the Kenyan students in universities still hold negative moral and religious attitudes toward homosexuality, with some minor variation by age, gender, and religion. However, they hold positive legal attitudes toward same-sex sexuality as a human rights issue which suggests that it may be possible to live in a country where laws do not have to specifically be made with respect to what is considered religiously correct by the population
Genomic and pedigree‐based predictive ability for quality traits in tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze)
Get PDF© 2021, The Author(s). Genetic improvement of quality traits in tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze) through conventional breeding methods has been limited, because tea quality is a difficult and expensive trait to measure. Genomic selection (GS) is suitable for predicting such complex traits, as it uses genome wide markers to estimate the genetic values of individuals. We compared the prediction accuracies of six genomic prediction models including Bayesian ridge regression (BRR), genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP), BayesA, BayesB, BayesC and reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces models incorporating the pedigree relationship namely; RKHS-pedigree, RKHS-markers and RKHS markers and pedigree (RKHS-MP) to determine the breeding values for 12 tea quality traits. One hundred and three tea genotypes were genotyped using genotyping-by-sequencing and phenotyped using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy in replicated trials. We also compared the effect of trait heritability and training population size on prediction accuracies. The traits with the highest prediction accuracies were; theogallin (0.59), epicatechin gallate (ECG) (0.56) and theobromine (0.61), while the traits with the lowest prediction accuracies were theanine (0.32) and caffeine (0.39). The performance of all the GS models were almost the same, with BRR (0.53), BayesA (0.52), GBLUP (0.50) and RKHS-MP (0.50) performing slightly better than the others. Heritability estimates were moderate to high (0.35–0.92). Prediction accuracies increased with increasing training population size and trait heritability. We conclude that the moderate to high prediction accuracies observed suggests GS is a promising approach in tea improvement and could be implemented in breeding programmes
Petrochemistry and U–Pb (zircon) age of porphyry dykes at the McKenzie Gulch porphyry–skarn Cu–Ag–Au deposit, north-central New Brunswick, Canada: implications for emplacement age, tectonic setting, and mineralization potential
Get PDFNorth- to northeast-trending intermediate to felsic porphyry dykes in the McKenzie Gulch (MG) area intrude Upper Ordovician through Silurian calcareous sedimentary rocks of the Matapédia Group. These dykes are spatially associated with numerous copper–silver skarn occurrences. In this area, two distinct suites of dykes are recognized: plagioclase–hornblende porphyry (P–H) and quartz–plagioclase porphyry (Q–P). These suites yielded U–Pb (zircon) ages of 386.2 ± 3.1 Ma and 386.4 ± 3.3 Ma, respectively, indicating a coeval relationship and similar genesis despite slight geochemical and petrographical differences. Geochemical data indicate that the dykes are granodioritic to granitic to slightly tonalitic in composition with I-type and slab failure signatures. When compared with other granitoids in the region, the Murdochville suite in Gaspésie, Québec, is the only intrusion that exhibits slab failure magmatic signatures similar to the MG dykes. Magmas with slab failure signatures are compositionally similar to tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite (TTG) suites and adakites. They exhibit low Y and Yb concentrations and subsequent high Sr/Y and La/Yb ratios, which are interpreted to be the result of melting of subducting slab and mantle during the waning stages of collision and consequent slab failure. These processes were followed by assimilation and fractional crystallization of minerals such as hornblende and clinopyroxene (± titanite), which preferentially partition Y and heavy rare earth elements (HREE) in the absence of significant plagioclase. Magmas with similar geochemical characteristics worldwide have been proposed to be an important source for metals in most porphyry Cu and skarn deposits and consequently are a target during mineral exploration.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author
The health of pregnant women in rural Tanzania with specific emphasis on anaemia and the impact of socially marketed insecticide treated bednets
Get PDFAnaemia in pregnancy is one of the main maternal health problems globally,
affecting over 50% of pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa. Although not
always shown to have a causal link, severe anaemia contributes to maternal
morbidity and mortality and to poor pregnancy outcomes and infant survival. The
work encompassed in this thesis describes fertility and health in pregnancy with a
specific emphasis on anaemia. In addition, the applicability of ITNs for the
prevention of malaria and anaemia in pregnancy is examined in more detail. In Part II of the thesis, achieved fertility and the family building preferences of
women are described. A high fertility setting is described in which there is also a
high incidence of late pregnancy loss, which increases the exposure of women to
poor maternal health outcomes. There were indications of an increasing desire
for fertility regulation methods, especially amongst teenagers. This was
evidenced principally by high levels of unmet need amongst teenagers for family
planning methods, and through focus group discussions which highlighted
induced abortion as a pressing concern for the health of young women. In Part III of the thesis the magnitude of anaemia as a health problem in
pregnancy is discussed. In Kilombero over three-quarters of pregnant women
were anaemic, 11% severely so, which defines the area as high risk. Multiple
risk factors for anaemia were present and there was a sharp seasonal peak. In
this study malaria and iron deficiency were both important contributors.
Unmarried women, both primigravidae and multigravidae, were at increased risk
of being severely anaemic suggesting that socio-economic vulnerability also
plays an important role. The relevance of pregnancy anaemia as a public health
issue was underlined by our findings that, independent of other factors, anaemia
in pregnancy was associated with a three-fold increase in infant mortality risk. In Part IV the impact of socially-marketed insecticide treated nets on pregnancy
and child morbidity was reported. Social marketing proved to be a highly
successful tool for delivering ITNs with a rapid increase in uptake of the product.
At the time of these impact surveys 61% of under two year olds and 53% of
pregnant women were ITN users. This was the first evaluation of the impact of
ITNs on morbidity under programme conditions. ITN use was associated with a
reduction of 38% of all cases of severe anaemia in pregnancy and 63% of all
cases in children under two years of age. It is recommended that ITNs be
promoted at every level for use by pregnant women and children. Women in the Kilombero Valley have a high life-time risk of dying due to
pregnancy related causes, typical of the sub-Saharan Region as a whole. They
are exposed to the three biggest contributors to ill health: poverty, malnutrition
and infectious disease, especially malaria. Approaches for tackling these
problems using complimentary strategies are discussed. However, due to the
multi-level benefits of ITN use in pregnancy – through protection of the pregnant
woman, her growing foetus, and subsequently impacting on infant health -
insecticide-treated bednets, together with improved campaigns for highlighting
the needs of pregnant women, are indicated as the principal way forward to
better health
Symptoms of Imminent Eclampsia Among Women Attending Care at Muhimbili National Hospital: A Case Refferent Study
Get PDFPreeclampsia affects about 5 to 10% of all pregnancies and eclamptic seizure is one of its serious complications. In many developing countries including Tanzania, maternal and perinatal mortality due to eclampsia are high. As yet, primary prevention of eclampsia is not possible since the causes are largely unknown. Headache, visual disturbance, abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting have been reported by various studies to precede most eclamptic seizures; thus could be used to predict and therefore prevent some cases given the availability of magnesium sulphate. These symptoms however are also common in normal pregnancy and post delivery mothers due to physiological changes of pregnancy and common disease conditions that usually affect pregnant women in our settings. The present study evaluated the characteristics of symptoms that are consistent with imminence of eclampsia This was a case referent study in which 123 eclamptic and 123 non eclamptic mothers that best matched in terms of age, parity, gestation age and delivery were enrolled, making a total of 246 women. The presence and characteristics of headache, visual disturbance, abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting were enquired. A 4 grade scale was used to grade the severity of headache. In the rest of symptoms, common presenting features were utilized. Headache was common in both groups but was more frequent in eclamptic than in referent group of women (88% vs. 43%, p <0.001). In eclamptic mothers headache was mainly severe, frontal and most of the seizures happened within one week of the onset of headache, as compared to referent women where headache was mostly mild and either frontal or generalized. Visual problems were significantly frequent in eclamptics than in referent women, (39% vs. 3% p<0.001). Of the eclamptic mothers who presented with visual problems, 45(94%) had blurring of vision, 32(67%) had blind spots, 10(21%) had photophobia and only 7(15%) had total blindness. A total of 47(98%) of eclamptic mothers developed seizures within 12hours of the onset of visual problems. The frequency of abdominal pain was not significantly different between eclamptic and referent mothers (47% vs.38% p=0.156), however upper quadrant abdominal pain was significantly reported in eclamptic than in referent group of women (36% vs.9%, p=0.001). There was no significant difference on the type of abdominal pain presented by both groups. Nausea was common in both eclamptics and referent group of women (60% vs. 54%, p=0.303). There was no difference on presentation with vomiting among eclamptic and referent women (62% vs. 68% p=0.516) and in both groups the type of vomiting was commonly non projectile. This study has revealed that headache, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting are common to pregnancy whether or not complicated by preeclampsia/eclampsia. The characteristics of headache, visual disturbances and abdominal pain differ between eclamptics and women without preeclampsia/eclampsia. In a pre eclamptic woman, an onset of a severe frontal headache or upper quadrant abdominal pain would suggest an occurrence of seizures within one week. Visual disturbance is the most ominous sign as seizures ensue within 12 hours of its onset. Nausea and vomiting cannot be reliably used to predict clampsia.\u
Time to Measure: A Proposed Theoretical Model for Head and Neck Cancer Intervals of Care
Get PDF\ua9 2025 The Author(s). World Journal of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Chinese Medical Association.Head and neck cancer care delays are challenging, given the complexity of cancer care pathways, which leads to delays throughout the patient journey, from the symptom onset to treatment completion. Current models and literature addressing cancer care are limited by heterogeneous definitions of care intervals, a focus on specific aspects of the patient journey instead of the whole care continuum, and limited use of implementation science to target gaps in implementing evidence-based interventions. Here, we propose the Head and Neck Cancer TImely aCess TO Care Model as an approach to conceptualize, measure, and address delays in diverse health systems
Intrapartum-related neonatal encephalopathy incidence and impairment at regional and global levels for 2010 with trends from 1990.
Get PDFBACKGROUND: Intrapartum hypoxic events ("birth asphyxia") may result in stillbirth, neonatal or postneonatal mortality, and impairment. Systematic morbidity estimates for the burden of impairment outcomes are currently limited. Neonatal encephalopathy (NE) following an intrapartum hypoxic event is a strong predictor of long-term impairment. METHODS: Linear regression modeling was conducted on data identified through systematic reviews to estimate NE incidence and time trends for 184 countries. Meta-analyses were undertaken to estimate the risk of NE by sex of the newborn, neonatal case fatality rate, and impairment risk. A compartmental model estimated postneonatal survivors of NE, depending on access to care, and then the proportion of survivors with impairment. Separate modeling for the Global Burden of Disease 2010 (GBD2010) study estimated disability adjusted life years (DALYs), years of life with disability (YLDs), and years of life lost (YLLs) attributed to intrapartum-related events. RESULTS: In 2010, 1.15 million babies (uncertainty range: 0.89-1.60 million; 8.5 cases per 1,000 live births) were estimated to have developed NE associated with intrapartum events, with 96% born in low- and middle-income countries, as compared with 1.60 million in 1990 (11.7 cases per 1,000 live births). An estimated 287,000 (181,000-440,000) neonates with NE died in 2010; 233,000 (163,000-342,000) survived with moderate or severe neurodevelopmental impairment; and 181,000 (82,000-319,000) had mild impairment. In GBD2010, intrapartum-related conditions comprised 50.2 million DALYs (2.4% of total) and 6.1 million YLDs. CONCLUSION: Intrapartum-related conditions are a large global burden, mostly due to high mortality in low-income countries. Universal coverage of obstetric care and neonatal resuscitation would prevent most of these deaths and disabilities. Rates of impairment are highest in middle-income countries where neonatal intensive care was more recently introduced, but quality may be poor. In settings without neonatal intensive care, the impairment rate is low due to high mortality, which is relevant for the scale-up of basic neonatal resuscitation
