scholarly journals Digitisation at Three UK Herbaria Contributes Towards Food Security and Sustainable Timber Use

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Green ◽  
Marie-Hélène Weech ◽  
Robyn Drinkwater ◽  
Jacek Wajer
Keyword(s):  
Development Assistance ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Development Assistance Committee ◽  
Forest Conversion ◽  
Suitable Habitat ◽  
Herbarium Specimens ◽  
Timber Species ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Conservation Assessments ◽  
The Impact

The digitisation of herbarium collections has shown to provide a growing resource in conservation science. Mobilising the data on portals such as GBIF allows researchers to access key taxonomic, habitat and geographical data that would otherwise be unavailable unless institutions are physically visited. These data are used notably in conservation assessments, distribution studies and publication of new species (Canteiro et al. 2019). The herbarium specimens held in Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Natural History Museum, London, and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh are an unparalleled resource, estimated to hold representatives of around 85% of known plant species. By working collectively for the first time on a non-type material digitisation project, the three institutions collaborated to generate data for the subtribe Phaseolinae and rosewoods totalling 37,000 legume specimens. This pilot project was made possible through Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA)-allocated, Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding. This aid money is distributed by the UK government in its “global efforts to defeat poverty, tackle instability and create prosperity in developing countries”. This project focused on two case-studies: Study i. Supporting development of dry beans as a sustainable and resilient crop. Beans from the subtribe Phaseolinae, including cowpeas, lablab and wild beans, are extremely tolerant of poor-quality soils and drought. As a consequence they are particularly suitable for the low-input agricultural production systems. An estimated 14.5 million hectares of land is used for planting of cowpea each year with around 80% of that in Development Assistance Committee countries in sub Saharan Africa. Study ii. Aiding conservation and sustainable use of rosewoods and padauk (Dalbergia L.f. and Pterocarpus Jacq.). Dalbergia is distributed throughout tropical Asia, Africa and the Americas with many species being regionally endemic. Species also vary in habit from shrubs and trees to robust lianas. Pterocarpus is also pantropically distributed in a wide variety of habitats. However, suitable habitat across the natural range of these genera is now limited for many species due to a range of threats, namely deforestation, forest conversion for agriculture/human development, and logging. The timber from many species of Dalbergia and Pterocarpus has long been prized for its high-quality wood used for construction, fine furniture, cabinet work, marquetry and inlay, ethnic carvings, pianos, guitars and other musical instruments. All Dalbergia and most of the timber species of Pterocarpus are now listed on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendix II and the Brazilian D. nigra is listed on Appendix I. There is a huge illegal trade in these genera and serial depletion across the globe is a real and substantial risk to their survival (Winfield et al. 2016). This project used novel high-throughput methodologies and acted as a pilot study for future collaborative mass digitisation efforts. Specimens were taken from the collections, barcoded and minimal data fields captured, before high resolution images were created and the specimens returned. A subset of these was further subjected to full or partial label transcription via the use of the Atlas of Living Australia's DigiVol crowdsourcing platform or via in-house data capture. The resulting datasets will be made available via GBIF and partner sites and will be used to perform gap analyses on the collections across the institutions. We will examine the benefits of combined institutional data for these groups, assess how many species are represented in total and the geographic coverage of these collections. Use of the data will be measured by the number of downloads from GBIF and observing in-house use cases. Two research projects have just begun within Kew, using the data gathered for Pterocarpus and Lablab Adans., georeferencing for which is already underway and will contribute to conservation assessments and other measurable outputs. A data paper is planned which will also assist with tracking future use of the data set and help demonstrate the impact of the digitisation.

The impact of political liberalisation and democratisation on ethnic conflict in Africa: an empirical test of common assumptions

2000 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zeric Kay Smith
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Conflict ◽  
Empirical Test ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Resource Base ◽  
Sensitive Data ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Conflict In Africa ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

This article provides an empirical test of a set of common theoretical assumptions concerning the relationship between political liberalisation, democratisation and ethnic conflict in Africa. The theory in question posits that liberalisation will result in short-term increases in ethnic conflict and that democratisation will be followed by a decrease in ethnic conflict. The article employs a cross-national and time sensitive data set to test this hypothesis in the context of contemporary sub-Saharan Africa. A compelling benefit of this methodology is that it allows for an explanation of variation in ethnic conflict both across states and over time.The results indicate that the relationship between political liberalisation and ethnic conflict is the reverse of what the common assumptions would predict. Liberalisation has had an inverse relationship to ethnic conflict in sub-Saharan Africa between 1988 and 1997. Democratisation does not have the hypothesised effect even when lagged variables are employed. Structural variables as represented by GDP per capita and infant mortality rates are also systematically related to ethnic conflict. The author concludes that policy makers and analysts should continue to pursue both liberalisation and democratisation but should not neglect the central role of an adequate resource base in reducing ethnic conflict in Africa. Political liberalisation and democratic institutions, while providing some measure of relief, are by no means silver bullets for the difficult challenges posed by ethnic conflict in Africa.

scholarly journals Maxent modelling for habitat suitability of vulnerable tree Dalbergia latifolia in Nepal

Silva Fennica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dipak Mahatara ◽  
Amul Acharya ◽  
Bishnu Dhakal ◽  
Dipesh Sharma ◽  
Sunita Ulak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Model Prediction ◽  
Habitat Suitability ◽  
Habitat Management ◽  
Natural Habitat ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Forest Conversion ◽  
Suitable Habitat ◽  
Timber Species ◽  
Jackknife Test ◽  
Maxent Model

Roxb., commonly known as rosewood, is one of the highly valuable tropical timber species of Nepal. The tree species was widely distributed in the past, however, over-exploitation of natural habitat, deforestation, forest conversion for agriculture, illegal logging and the invasion of alien species resulted in the classification of this species as vulnerable by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) category. So, the prediction of habitat suitability and potential distribution of the species is required to develop restoration mechanisms and conservation interventions. In this study, we modelled the suitable habitat of over the entire possible range of Nepal using a Maxent model. We compiled 23 environmental variables (19 bioclimatic, 3 topographic and a vegetative layer), however, only 12 least correlated variables along with 43 spatially representative presence locations were retained for model prediction. We used a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to assess the model’s performance and a Jackknife procedure to evaluate the relative importance of predictor variables. The model was statistically significant with an area under the curve (AUC) value of 0.969. The internal Jackknife test indicated that elevation was the most important variable for the model prediction with 71.3% contribution followed by mean temperature of driest quarter (9.8%). The most (>0.6) suitable habitat for the was 235 484 hectares with large sections of area in two provinces whereas, the western most provinces were not suitable for as per Maxent model. The information presented here can provide a framework for nature conservation planning, monitoring and habitat management of this rare and endangered species.Dalbergia latifoliaD. latifoliaD. latifoliaD. latifolia

scholarly journals Has mobile phone technology aided the growth of agricultural productivity in sub-Saharan Africa?

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Omotomiwa Adenubi ◽  
Omphile Temoso ◽  
Isiaka Abdulaleem
Keyword(s):  
Panel Data ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Agricultural Productivity ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Set Covering ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Mobile Phone Technology ◽  
Tfp Growth ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

Background: A recent increase in the adoption of mobile phone technology generated a great deal of interest and optimism regarding its effect on economic development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), particularly on the enhancement of agricultural development.Aim: In this study the impact of mobile phone technology on agricultural productivity in SSA is examined.Setting: The empirical assessment uses a panel data set covering 41 countries over a period of 25 years.Methods: We employed an econometric approach and panel data covering 41 countries and a 25 year-period (1990–2014) to investigate the effect of the adoption of mobile phone technology and other socio-economic variables on agricultural total factor productivity (TFP). The use of regression analyses allowed us to estimate and measure the contribution of certain variables to agricultural TFP growth in SSA.Results: The results show that the uptake of mobile phone technology had a positive effect on agricultural TFP growth in SSA.Conclusion: Mobile phone technology has been established to be one of the drivers of agricultural productivity in SSA.Implication: The implications of this study are that governments, NGOs, and businesses working on improving agricultural productivity and food security in SSA need to continue endorsing mobile technology as a means to improve agricultural productivity.

scholarly journals Population Status of Tapanuli Orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) within the Renewable Energy Development and its Management Implications

2021 ◽  
pp. 478-493
Author(s):  
Didik Prasetyo ◽  
Yokyok Hadiprakarsa ◽  
Wanda Kuswanda ◽  
Jito Sugardjito
Keyword(s):  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Forest Conversion ◽  
Suitable Habitat ◽  
Construction Time ◽  
Species Survival ◽  
Project Construction ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Time Frames ◽  
The Impact

To protect Tapanuli orangutan it is essential to understand the actual situation. It has been studied 15% of its population live outside the protected area facing a density disruption due to forest conversion. Several best management practices have been created and tested for different natural concession types. Yet, the main objective to reduce the impact and increase wildlife survival is far away from the goal. To improve our understanding of the species survival within ongoing project construction, we conducted population density monitoring prior- to post-construction time frames within the hydroelectric dam project. Also, we carried out spatial analysis to understand the land cover change and orangutan’s suitable habitat distribution. This study found that during high construction activities, orangutans were avoiding the threat sources, and returned when the disturbances reduced. These findings indicated orangutans are ecology flexible and have the capability to increase its survival, although the company’s involvement is crucial to facilitate the successes. Our study is based on indirect observation, and spatial modeling, which may lead to an uncertain conclusion. Further research on orangutan ecology and behavior is prioritized.

Bank diversification and performance in an emerging market

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
King Carl Tornam Duho ◽  
Joseph Mensah Onumah ◽  
Raymond Agbesi Owodo
Keyword(s):  
Financial Stability ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Government Ownership ◽  
Income Diversification ◽  
Profit Efficiency ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of diversification on profitability, profit efficiency and financial stability of Ghanaian banks. Design/methodology/approach The authors employed a panel regression technique on a data set of 32 banks from 2000 to 2015. The data envelopment analysis is used to compute profit efficiency scores with credit risk accounted for. Findings The results suggest that income diversification decreases profit, profit efficiency and financial stability. The impact on profit and stability is U-shaped. The impact of asset diversification was found to be insignificant. High competition reduces both profitability and profit efficiency which is inconsistent with the quiet-life hypothesis of Hicks (1935), but financial stability increases with competition. High investment in tangible assets is associated with poor performance. Non-banking financial institutions that later became universal banks are not financially stable. Competition, size, age, government ownership and leverage which are controlled for and a sensitivity analysis conducted also provided relevant insights. Practical implications The results are relevant in understanding the events in the Ghanaian banking industry in 2017–2018. Income diversification strategy is essential in determining the performance of banks. Management has to figure out the extent and scope of their diversification to benefit from the strategy. Originality/value The authors examined diversification from the view-point of both the income statement and statement of financial position while most prior studies focused on only one aspect. The study is one of the few studies that employed the risk-adjusted profit efficiency measure in Sub-Saharan Africa.

scholarly journals Access to electricity and digital inclusion: evidence from mobile call detail records

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Georges V. Houngbonon ◽  
Erwan Le Quentrec ◽  
Stefania Rubrichi
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Text Messages ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Digital Inclusion ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Call Detail Records

AbstractDespite significant progress in mobile connectivity, a large number of individuals in Sub-Saharan Africa are at risk of being left behind, especially those living in rural areas and women. In this paper, we use an original data set of mobile call detail records from Senegal and exploit variations across plausibly similar rural municipalities to assess the impact of access to electricity on mobile connectivity. We find that access to mobile connectivity for rural users, measured by mobile telephony subscriptions or smartphone ownership, increases with access to electricity, with a stronger impact for women. The impact on usage is also positive, but stems from the increased volume of incoming communications: rural mobile users with access to electricity do not place more calls than those with limited access; rather, they receive more calls and text messages from urban areas, especially those with higher living standards. These findings suggest that access to electricity can be a significant driver of digital inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa.

scholarly journals The impact of large and small dams on malaria transmission in four basins in Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Solomon Kibret ◽  
Matthew McCartney ◽  
Jonathan Lautze ◽  
Luxon Nhamo ◽  
Guiyun Yan
Keyword(s):  
Malaria Transmission ◽  
Malaria Incidence ◽  
River Basins ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Large Dams ◽  
Small Dams ◽  
Dam Reservoirs ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Stable Transmission

AbstractExpansion of various types of water infrastructure is critical to water security in Africa. To date, analysis of adverse disease impacts has focused mainly on large dams. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of both small and large dams on malaria in four river basins in sub-Saharan Africa (i.e., the Limpopo, Omo-Turkana, Volta and Zambezi river basins). The European Commission’s Joint Research Center (JRC) Yearly Water Classification History v1.0 data set was used to identify water bodies in each of the basins. Annual malaria incidence data were obtained from the Malaria Atlas Project (MAP) database for the years 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2015. A total of 4907 small dams and 258 large dams in the four basins, with 14.7million people living close (< 5 km) to their reservoirs in 2015, were analysed. The annual number of malaria cases attributable to dams of either size across the four basins was 0.9–1.7 million depending on the year, of which between 77 and 85% was due to small dams. The majority of these cases occur in areas of stable transmission. Malaria incidence per kilometre of reservoir shoreline varied between years but for small dams was typically 2–7 times greater than that for large dams in the same basin. Between 2000 and 2015, the annual malaria incidence showed a broadly declining trend for both large and small dam reservoirs in areas of stable transmission in all four basins. In conclusion, the malaria impact of dams is far greater than previously recognized. Small and large dams represent hotspots of malaria transmission and, as such, should be a critical focus of future disease control efforts.

Age at Exposure to Parental Suicide and the Subsequent Risk of Suicide in Young People

Crisis ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuan-Ying Lee ◽  
Chung-Yi Li ◽  
Kun-Chia Chang ◽  
Tsung-Hsueh Lu ◽  
Ying-Yeh Chen
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Proportional Hazards ◽  
Proportional Hazards Model ◽  
Cox Proportional Hazards ◽  
Cox Proportional Hazards Model ◽  
Birth Registry ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Parental Suicide ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Age At Exposure

Abstract. Background: We investigated the age at exposure to parental suicide and the risk of subsequent suicide completion in young people. The impact of parental and offspring sex was also examined. Method: Using a cohort study design, we linked Taiwan's Birth Registry (1978–1997) with Taiwan's Death Registry (1985–2009) and identified 40,249 children who had experienced maternal suicide (n = 14,431), paternal suicide (n = 26,887), or the suicide of both parents (n = 281). Each exposed child was matched to 10 children of the same sex and birth year whose parents were still alive. This yielded a total of 398,081 children for our non-exposed cohort. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to compare the suicide risk of the exposed and non-exposed groups. Results: Compared with the non-exposed group, offspring who were exposed to parental suicide were 3.91 times (95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.10–4.92 more likely to die by suicide after adjusting for baseline characteristics. The risk of suicide seemed to be lower in older male offspring (HR = 3.94, 95% CI = 2.57–6.06), but higher in older female offspring (HR = 5.30, 95% CI = 3.05–9.22). Stratified analyses based on parental sex revealed similar patterns as the combined analysis. Limitations: As only register-­based data were used, we were not able to explore the impact of variables not contained in the data set, such as the role of mental illness. Conclusion: Our findings suggest a prominent elevation in the risk of suicide among offspring who lost their parents to suicide. The risk elevation differed according to the sex of the afflicted offspring as well as to their age at exposure.

Anne O. Krueger, Constantine Michalopoulos and Vernon W. Ruttan. Aid and Development. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. 1989. xiv + 386 pp.Price: U.S. $ 52.00

1991 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-217
Author(s):  
Mir Annice Mahmood
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
International Development ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Development Assistance ◽  
The United States ◽  
Social Infrastructure ◽  
Low Literacy ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Impact

Foreign aid has been the subject of much examination and research ever since it entered the economic armamentarium approximately 45 years ago. This was the time when the Second World War had successfully ended for the Allies in the defeat of Germany and Japan. However, a new enemy, the Soviet Union, had materialized at the end of the conflict. To counter the threat from the East, the United States undertook the implementation of the Marshal Plan, which was extremely successful in rebuilding and revitalizing a shattered Western Europe. Aid had made its impact. The book under review is by three well-known economists and is the outcome of a study sponsored by the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development. The major objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of assistance, i.e., aid, on economic development. This evaluation however, was to be based on the existing literature on the subject. The book has five major parts: Part One deals with development thought and development assistance; Part Two looks at the relationship between donors and recipients; Part Three evaluates the use of aid by sector; Part Four presents country case-studies; and Part Five synthesizes the lessons from development assistance. Part One of the book is very informative in that it summarises very concisely the theoretical underpinnings of the aid process. In the beginning, aid was thought to be the answer to underdevelopment which could be achieved by a transfer of capital from the rich to the poor. This approach, however, did not succeed as it was simplistic. Capital transfers were not sufficient in themselves to bring about development, as research in this area came to reveal. The development process is a complicated one, with inputs from all sectors of the economy. Thus, it came to be recognized that factors such as low literacy rates, poor health facilities, and lack of social infrastructure are also responsible for economic backwardness. Part One of the book, therefore, sums up appropriately the various trends in development thought. This is important because the book deals primarily with the issue of the effectiveness of aid as a catalyst to further economic development.

State Medical Boards' Perceptions of a Minimum Data Set and Current Practices for Collecting Physician Information

2013 ◽  
Vol 99 (4) ◽  
pp. 40-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron Young ◽  
Philip Davignon ◽  
Margaret B. Hansen ◽  
Mark A. Eggen
Keyword(s):  
Media Coverage ◽  
The United States ◽  
Minimum Data Set ◽  
Direct Patient Care ◽  
Physician Workforce ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Minimum Data ◽  
State Medical Boards ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Current Practices

ABSTRACT Recent media coverage has focused on the supply of physicians in the United States, especially with the impact of a growing physician shortage and the Affordable Care Act. State medical boards and other entities maintain data on physician licensure and discipline, as well as some biographical data describing their physician populations. However, there are gaps of workforce information in these sources. The Federation of State Medical Boards' (FSMB) Census of Licensed Physicians and the AMA Masterfile, for example, offer valuable information, but they provide a limited picture of the physician workforce. Furthermore, they are unable to shed light on some of the nuances in physician availability, such as how much time physicians spend providing direct patient care. In response to these gaps, policymakers and regulators have in recent years discussed the creation of a physician minimum data set (MDS), which would be gathered periodically and would provide key physician workforce information. While proponents of an MDS believe it would provide benefits to a variety of stakeholders, an effort has not been attempted to determine whether state medical boards think it is important to collect physician workforce data and if they currently collect workforce information from licensed physicians. To learn more, the FSMB sent surveys to the executive directors at state medical boards to determine their perceptions of collecting workforce data and current practices regarding their collection of such data. The purpose of this article is to convey results from this effort. Survey findings indicate that the vast majority of boards view physician workforce information as valuable in the determination of health care needs within their state, and that various boards are already collecting some data elements. Analysis of the data confirms the potential benefits of a physician minimum data set (MDS) and why state medical boards are in a unique position to collect MDS information from physicians.

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