scholarly journals Empowering Girls Through Sport: A Gender Transformative Approach to Life Skills?

2021 ◽  
pp. 91-111
Author(s):  
Christina Ting Kwauk
Keyword(s):  
Life Skills ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
Sport For Development ◽  
Key Space ◽  
Ideal Tool ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Life Skills Programs ◽  
Transformative Approach

AbstractFrom the Pacific Islands to Sub-Saharan Africa, development organizations have positioned sport as an ideal tool for building important life skills that can be transferred from the playing field to day-to-day realities. Sport has also been positioned as a key space for girls’ empowerment, especially in contexts where gender norms limit girls’ mobility and/or their opportunities to engage in activities stereotyped as being for boys. But an approach that solely focuses on empowering girls through sport by depositing in her useful life skills ignores the structural conditions that have disempowered her in the first place. This chapter examines the gender transformative potential of sport-based life skills programs by exploring the skills that are being targeted, especially for girls’ empowerment, by the sport for development (SFD) community. The chapter then examines the implications for our understanding of life skills approaches to gender transformative social change, particularly as it pertains to addressing the conditions that have held girls back.

Identifying threatened species in the "south" using new criteria

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 33 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. J. Stattersfield
Keyword(s):  
South America ◽  
Threatened Species ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Numerical Data ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Conservation Action ◽  
Red Lists ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
New Criteria ◽  
Clear Objective

The first application of the new IUCN threatened species categories to birds is reviewed. The advantage of this system is that it is characterized by clear, objective, quantitative criteria. However, for many species, requisite numerical data are lacking, and the magnitude of potential threats has to be inferred. Numbers of threatened species are compared for South America, sub-Saharan Africa, and Indo-Pacific Islands. Further analysis identifies the most important countries in terms of priority for conservation action for threatened species, the key habitats for their survival and the main dangers faced. The changes between successive Red Lists indicate a possible extinction crisis of considerable magnitude, whereby half the world's birds could disappear in 800 years. Averting this crisis requires identifying and protecting sites where suites of threatened species co-occur.

scholarly journals Feasibility and acceptability of financial incentives and peer-led life skills training for improving adherence to antiretroviral therapy among adolescents living with HIV in Rwanda: A pilot study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Majdi Osman ◽  
Simon Pierre Niyonsenga ◽  
Manasi Sharma ◽  
Rebecca Hope ◽  
Shannon Milroy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Antiretroviral Therapy ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Financial Incentives ◽  
Life Skills ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
Art Adherence ◽  
Life Skills Training ◽  
Sub Saharan

Abstract Background The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is the leading cause of death among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite the long-term benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART), adherence remains low among adolescents due to challenges related to cost, acquisition, and treatment regimen. Sub-optimal adherence to ART is associated with the development of viral resistance, treatment failure, and increased morbidity and mortality. Financial incentives and life skills training interventions have shown early promise in motivating protective behaviors, however, gaps still remain around effective and innovative ways to motivate adolescents to stay in HIV care. In partnership with youth, we developed an intervention to address their social and financial pressures in order to promote adherence. Methods A human-centered design approach was utilized to engage adolescents in the initial design of the intervention. Through random sampling, 72 adolescents ages 12–19 were then recruited from two clinics in Rwanda for the pilot study. Adolescents participated in three monthly peer-led life skills trainings at clinics and received financial incentives via mobile money upon clinic attendance and demonstration of suppressed viral load. Semi-structured interviews were then conducted with adolescents, healthcare workers, and caregivers to understand their experiences with the intervention. Results Participants responded favorably to the intervention because of the psychosocial, financial, and health benefits it provided. Caregivers felt that adolescents’ moods, attitudes, and overall well-being improved over time. Adolescents used funds to purchase school supplies and save for investments, thus mitigating their financial burdens. Additionally, we learned that logistical challenges such as SIM card registration and mobile phone access must be considered for scale-up of the intervention. Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first intervention designed in partnership with youth in sub-Saharan Africa aimed at removing financial barriers to ART adherence. The findings suggest that involving youth in the design of programs, providing them with financial incentives, and training them to use and invest their money wisely has a positive effect on them and their families. Thus, to improve adherence to ART and retention in care among HIV-positive youth, it is critical to address their socioeconomic and psychosocial needs.

scholarly journals Malaria in developing countries

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (01) ◽  
pp. 001-004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gema Ruiz Lopez del Prado ◽  
Cristina Hernán García ◽  
Lourdes Moreno Cea ◽  
Virginia Fernández Espinilla ◽  
Mari Fe Muñoz Moreno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Vaccine Candidate ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Transmission Rates ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
South Pacific Islands

Malaria still poses a real threat to travellers, particularly in areas with high transmission rates such as sub-Saharan Africa, Papua New Guinea, and the South Pacific islands. Malaria causes an estimated 660,000 deaths each year from 219 million cases of illness. It is a preventable and curable disease. Malaria symptoms appear after a period of seven days or longer, and without treatment, the disease can lead to death. Mosquito bite prevention is the main way to reduce malaria transmission. Chemoprophylaxis recommendations depend on travelers’ age, destination, type of travelling, or length of stay. Pregnant women, children, and immunosuppressed travelers are the most susceptible. There are currently no licensed vaccines against malaria. Results about a research vaccine candidate known as RTS,S/AS01 are expected in 2015.

Banana bunchy top virus (bunchy top of banana).

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lava Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Economic Effect ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sources Of Resistance ◽  
Worldwide Distribution ◽  
Planting Material ◽  
Banana Industry ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
South Pacific Islands

Abstract BBTV is the most serious virus disease of bananas and plantains. It occurs in Africa, Asia, Australia and South Pacific islands. The virus is transmitted in a persistent, circulative, non-propagative manner by the banana aphid, Pentalonia nigronervosa, which has worldwide distribution. The virus is also spread through infected planting material. All banana cultivars are thought to be susceptible, with no known sources of resistance. The typical symptoms of bunchy top of banana are very distinctive and readily distinguished from those caused by other viruses of banana. Infected plants exhibit a rosetted or 'bunchy top' appearance. Once infected, plants do not recover. The disease is a major constraint to production in many areas where it occurs. Devastating epidemics occurred early in the twentieth century in Fiji and Australia. In the 1920s, the disease had a dramatic economic effect on the banana industry in parts of Australia (Dale, 1987). More recently, BBTV has been decimating the banana industry in Pakistan (Jones, 1994) and in sub-Saharan Africa, BBTV was the main contributor to a reduction in banana bunch production by up to 70-90% in disease affected areas (Kumar et al., 2015). BBTV is listed by ISSG as one of the world's 100 worst invasive alien species.

Political Parties and Regime Outcomes in Multiparty Africa

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrienne LeBas
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Government Accountability ◽  
Hybrid Regimes ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
Party Organizations ◽  
Holding Power ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Independent Effects

Since the early 1990s, most African countries have experimented with multiparty elections, but the building and institutionalization of political parties has proven difficult. In many countries, parties—including those holding power—are fluid, volatile, and lack grassroots structures. In others, the party landscape remains surprisingly similar to Van de Walle’s assessment: “[consisting] of a dominant presidential party surrounded by a large number of small, highly volatile parties.” As Van de Walle points out, ruling parties—including the ex-single parties that continue to rule in many of Africa’s hybrid regimes—have advantages that mean that elections are not fought on a level playing field. Ruling parties may use repression against challengers, or they may manipulate voter registration, constituency redistricting, and other aspects of electoral administration. Incumbents can also take advantage of state resources, and a decline in patronage resources has been a powerful driver of electoral turnover in regions. But differences in election competitiveness in Africa are not only a function of repression, manipulation, or access to patronage. Differences in both ruling party and opposition party organizations have independent effects on parties’ ability to win elections, on the loyalty of mass constituencies, and on the conduct of election campaigns. New scholarship has started to take these differences in party organization seriously, and this will enrich our understanding of how voters in sub-Saharan Africa navigate political choice. Research on parties and party systems highlights the degree to which these factors differ across countries and over time, complicating standard narratives that often privilege clientelism and ethnicity as the primary—and largely uniform—influences on voter behavior and government accountability on the continent.

scholarly journals Cocoyam [Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott]: Exploring the Production, Health and Trade Potentials in Sub-Saharan Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4483
Author(s):  
Olutosin A. Otekunrin ◽  
Barbara Sawicka ◽  
Abigail G. Adeyonu ◽  
Oluwaseun A. Otekunrin ◽  
Leszek Rachoń
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Colocasia Esculenta ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
African Continent ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Staple Crop ◽  
Trade Potentials

Cocoyam [Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott] also known as taro is regarded as an important staple crop in the Pacific Islands, Asia and Africa. But, Africa has been unpopular in the taro international market though it accounted for the highest share of the global taro production level in the last two decades. Therefore, this study explores the global taro production outlook in two decades (2000–2019) with a special focus on African countries noting their challenges and limitations. Also, industrial, nutritional and health benefits of taro were discussed to showcase other viable potentials of the crop beyond its usefulness as a food security crop on the African continent.

scholarly journals Development of Livelihood Skills through School-Based, Agripreneurship Projects Integrating Youth-Adult Partnerships: The Experiences of Youth Partners in Uganda

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 111-127
Author(s):  
Stephen Mukembo ◽  
M. Craig Edwards ◽  
Craig Watters
Keyword(s):  
Youth Development ◽  
Positive Youth Development ◽  
Life Skills ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Learning Approaches ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
School Based ◽  
Sub Saharan

quipping young people with livelihood skills is essential for positive youth development and empowerment as they transition into adulthood to become productive and engaged members of their communities. In Uganda, which may be the case in other nations of Sub-Saharan Africa, and elsewhere, even though many youth are becoming better educated and graduating from high schools and colleges, a majority of these graduates remain either unemployed or underemployed. Many have not acquired the necessary skills to transition from school to becoming employable and self-reliant. This phenomenon has been attributed to an outdated curriculum that does not meet the needs of contemporary times. Further, the mode of instruction in most of Uganda’s schools is teacher-centered and provides little room for student engagement and creativity to generate new knowledge, to have authentic learning experiences, or to reflect. Such challenges may be overcome through student-centered learning approaches involving School-Based, Agripreneurship Projects (SAPs) that integrate Youth-Adult Partnerships (YAPs), as were explored in this study. Evaluation of the students’ experiences through deductive and inductive thematic analysis indicated that they acquired knowledge in poultry science, business, agripreneurship, and life skills, including better communication, leadership, and conflict resolution practices. Longitudinal studies should be conducted to determine the longterm effectiveness and impact of SAPs facilitated by Y-APs on improving youth livelihoods, especially that prepare them with the life skills necessary to be productive citizens. Such research could involve cohort or panel investigations. Keywords: entrepreneurship; positive youth development (PYD); project-based learning (PjBL)

Transformative Equality: Making the Sustainable Development Goals Work for Women

2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Fredman ◽  
Jaakko Kuosmanen ◽  
Meghan Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Women's Empowerment ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Women’S Empowerment ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Transformative Approach

It is generally agreed by most observers that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have fallen short of achieving gender equality and women's empowerment. Today, women continue to be more likely than men to live in poverty, and more than 18 million girls in sub-Saharan Africa are out of school. One of the crucial reasons for the failure of the MDGs in relation to women was their inability to address the deeply entrenched and interlocking factors that perpetuate women's disadvantage. The new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as articulated in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, constitute an improvement over the MDGs. Goal 5, which enshrines the stand-alone goal on gender equality, is comprised of nine specific targets, including the elimination of gender-based violence and access to reproductive health. In addition, gender equality is mainstreamed into numerous others goals. Given that the global community is now poised to implement the SDGs, the challenge is how best to integrate a transformative approach into the planning, implementation, and delivery of the specific targets so that the SDGs contribute to achieving gender equality and women's empowerment.

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