Prevalence and determinants of dietary practices among pregnant women in eastern Ethiopia

Introduction Appropriate dietary practices in pregnancy are critical to meet the increased metabolic and physiological demands; however, information about dietary practices among pregnant women, particularly rural residents, is limited. The study aimed to assess the level of appropriate dietary practices and associated determinants among pregnant women in Haramaya District, eastern Ethiopia, 2021. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 448 pregnant women in Haramaya District, Eastern Ethiopia. Data was collected through face-to-face interviews by trained research assistants, using a validated frequency questionnaire. The pregnant women were labeled as “appropriate dietary practice” when they consumed at least four meals daily, had a good food variety score, high dietary diversity score, and high consumption of animal source foods during the reference period. Otherwise, they were defined as “inappropriate.” A Poisson regression model with robust variance estimation was used to investigate the association of the independent variables with the dietary practice. An adjusted prevalence ratio with a 95% confidence interval was reported to show an association using a p-value < 0.05. Results The appropriate dietary practice among the study participants was 15.2% (95% CI = 12–18%). Of the respondents, 29.46, 37.5, and 24.7% had a high dietary diversity, high food variety score, and high consumption of animal source foods. The appropriate dietary practice was more prevalent among merchant women (APR = 2.07; 95% CI 1.07–4.02) and those whose husbands have at least a high school educational level (APR = 1.96; 95% CI 1.06–3.46). However, the prevalence of appropriate dietary practice was significantly lower among those who chewed khat (APR = 0.58; 95% CI 0.37–0.90) and among respondents who reported restriction of the intake of some foods (APR = 0.36; 95% CI 0.20–0.65). Conclusion We found sup-optimal appropriate dietary practice among pregnant women in this predominantly rural setting. Additionally, the lower appropriate dietary practice was observed among women who reported chewing khat and experienced restriction of dietary consumption during pregnancy. Therefore, nutrition policy programs and interventions aimed at encouraging maternal nutritional guidance and counseling are recommended.

Transmission dynamics model of Tuberculosis with optimal control strategies in Haramaya district, Ethiopia

In this study, we use a compartmental nonlinear deterministic mathematical model to investigate the effect of different optimal control strategies in controlling Tuberculosis (TB) disease transmission in the community. We employ stability theory of differential equations to investigate the qualitative behavior of the model by obtaining the basic reproduction number and determining the local stability conditions for the disease-free and endemic equilibria. We consider three control strategies representing distancing, case finding, and treatment efforts and numerically compare the levels of exposed and infectious populations with and without control strategies. The results suggest that combination of all controls is the best strategy to eradicate TB disease from the community at an optimal level with minimum cost of interventions.

Improvement Of Engine Driven Sorghum Thresher By Incorporating Grain Cleaning System

The improved engine driven sorghum threshing machine was designed and produced at Fedis agricultural research center with the objectives of solving the critical threshing and cleaning problems of sorghum produce the farmers’ and subsequently, to reduce the drudgery of the farmers’, grain loss and cost of threshing, in comparison with traditional methods of manual threshing by using wood log. The developed machine was tested in east Hararghe Zone, Haramaya district, Horo Kebele. The variables considered includes two sorghum varieties (muria and fandisha), three levels of cylinder speed (500,700 and 900 rpm), three position of cylinder-concave clearances (13, 18 and 23 mm) and three feed rates of the un-threshed sorghum head (10 kg/min, 15 kg/min and 20 kg/min). The experimental design was split-split plot design with three replications. The result obtained indicated 87.28-95.30% threshing efficiency, 7-10 qt/h output capacity and 74%-88% cleaning efficiency at constant grain moisture contents of 15-17% for both varieties.

Implications of Adopting Drip Irrigation System on Crop Yield and Gender-Sensitive Issues: The Case of Haramaya District, Ethiopia

Integration of advanced irrigation systems and technology is essential to improve crop water productivity and yields, especially in developing countries. This study aims at investigating the effects of adopting a drip irrigation system combined with hand-dug wells on crop water productivity and yields of household farmers and their perception on the proposed scheme over two cropping seasons in the Haramaya District, Ethiopia. We chose three locally called “Kebeles” within the District, and selected a certain number of household farmers that had similar characteristics within each Kebele. The selected farmers had practiced both the proposed drip irrigation with private hand-dug wells water supply (intervention pilots) and traditionally-used surface irrigation with communal water supply (non-intervention pilots) schemes. We also conducted interviews with the selected household farmers, personal observations, and measurements on crop water productivity and yields for both intervention and non-intervention pilots. We found that the proposed drip irrigation system significantly improved the crop productivity and yields of the farmers. More importantly, findings indicated that the use of drip irrigation system combined with hand-dug well water supplies reduced the over-exploitation of water (water savings) and labor-intensive manual-irrigation. The latter particularly helped women to work less on their farm works and thus provided them a flexible system to expand their plot sizes and grow a variety of crops. Overall, the drip irrigation system with water supply from hand-dug wells is highly recommended as it allows a flexible system for household farmers and provides an opportunity to expand their plot sizes with a variety of crops, which is also expected to mitigate the negative implications of climate change on freshwater water resources and crop productivity. However, the farmers of the Haramaya District expressed their need on capacity building, financial and technical supports from local to regional governments and other agencies to ensure an efficient and cost-effective drip irrigation system and to further improve their crop water productivity and yield, food self-sufficieny, and livelihoods. It is also important to consider market-based farming approaches, while promoting efficient irrigation systems and self-supply to ensure quick investment returns. This study recommends to adopt and expand the proposed drip irrigation system at household levels in Sub-Saharan and other similar regions.

Assessment of the Role of Small-Scale Irrigation Practice on House Hold Food Security in Haramaya District, Eastern Haraghe Zone, Eastern Ethiopia

However, irrigation practice is poor in Ethiopia, increases agricultural production and productivity. The study was conducted in Haramaya district, Eastern Ethiopia. The object of this study is to see contribution of small scale irrigation towards increasing agricultural production, and identify the factors that affecting the use of small scale irrigation. From the district, three peasant associations were purposively selected each from different agro ecological classifications. Sampling size of 116 households was interviewed and Secondary data were also collected from the office. Three different types of irrigation were identified; Surface irrigation type using furrow method of irrigation is the most common irrigation type in the study area, which accounts about 66.5%. The study indicated that, water scarcity, lack improved seed, and disease outbreak and drought were among the major constraints of irrigation practices in the study area. Therefore practicing water harvesting and supplying improved technologies provide extended service regularly for farmers should be practiced in the future.

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Tuberculosis among Adult Household Contacts of Smear Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Treated in Public Health Facilities of Haramaya District, Oromia Region, Eastern Ethiopia

Background. Tuberculosis is an infectious airborne disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It still remains a major public health problem which affects all age groups. Risk of exposure is higher in household contact than members of the general population. Objective. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of tuberculosis among adult household contacts of smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis in Haramaya district, Oromia Region, Eastern Ethiopia from February to March, 2019. Method. A community based cross-sectional study design was conducted. A total of 454 study participants were selected using systematic sampling method from all adult household contacts of smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients treated from July 2017 to December 2018. Data were collected using a pretested and structured questionnaire; and laboratory examination was processed using fluorescent smear microscope. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify the factors associated with the infection of pulmonary tuberculosis and a statistically significant association was declared at P-value < 0.05. Result. The overall prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis among adult household contacts was 7.8% (95% CI: 5.8–10.0). The risk factors for tuberculosis infection among household contacts were eating meals less than three times per day (AOR = 4.31; 95% CI: 1.61, 11.55), drinking raw milk (AOR = 4.12; 95% CI: 1.43, 11.90), having family history of tuberculosis with more than one index case (AOR = 2.7; 95% CI: 1.02, 6.92), living in poor ventilated houses (AOR = 4.02; 95% CI: 1.38, 11.76), and living in inadequate size of living room (AOR = 3.4; 95% CI: 1.30, 8.86). Conclusion. In this study, the prevalence of tuberculosis among adult household contacts of smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis is high. Eating meals less than three times per day, drinking raw milk, living in poor ventilated houses, and inadequate sizes of the rooms were identified as contributing factors. Therefore, we recommend that the transmission of tuberculosis can potentially be reduced by a better contact tracing and treatment strategies along with appropriate health education.