Stakeholder Relations Perspectives in Managing Nigeria’s Rising Crimes

In today’s Nigerian society, crime represents a critical stakeholder. The unprecedented rise in crimes, such as, armed robbery, cultism, kidnapping, terrorism, banditry and cattle rustling has constrained the Nigerian government to introduce several crime fighting approaches. Despite government efforts, especially through State security forces, crimes have assumed a worsening dimension with increasing cases of attacks and abduction of villagers, worshippers, travellers and other settlers around Nigeria. Schools around the country are not spared, as both students and staff of different levels of educational institutions are kidnapped for ransom and sometimes killed by bandits and terrorists. Many Nigerian farmers have also been forced to abandon their farms due to incessant attacks. Not only are lives and property threatened, the Nigerian economy is also distressed by the impacts of insecurity on agriculture and the attendant hike in the prices of essential food commodities. Following the seeming inability of regular government crime fighting approaches to substantially deal with Nigeria’s rising insecurity, this paper examined the application of stakeholder relations perspectives to approach the country’s worsening insecurity. The qualitative paper combined Stakeholder and Relational Dialectics as theoretical cornerstone. It examined the impacts of some crime-yielding challenges, such as, illiteracy, unemployment, poverty, economic inequality and pseudo-social participation on the meteoric rise in crime in Nigeria. The paper recommended the application of dialogue in managing the rising militia activities and crimes. It was also recommended that beyond equipping State security formations, Nigerian government should direct attention to the conditions that breed crimes in the country.

Detection of organophosphate pesticide residues of chili (capsicum annuum l.) in different seasons in Aceh province

Chili is one of the essential food products that serve as a flavoring ingredient in the diet of the Indonesian people, especially in Aceh province. The analysis was conducted to investigate the safety level of chili sold in traditional markets of Aceh. The analysis was carried out on chili products sold in two different seasons, the rainy season (February, March and October) and the dry season (April, May, and August). Analysis of chili harvested in the rainy season was carried out on six samples from 6 districts. In comparison, analysis on samples sold in the dry season was obtained from 27 samples from 17 districts within Aceh Province. The study was conducted to analyze the pesticide residue of chili, which was traded in the traditional market in Aceh province for pesticides belong to the organophosphate group. Analysis was performed using Gas Chromatography (GC). The results of the analysis showed that in the rainy season, pesticide residue found in 2 districts (Aceh Besar and Bireuen districts). This residue belong to chlorpyrifos (0.74 mg kg−1) and dimethoate (0.61 mg kg−1). Meanwhile, in the dry season, five samples in four districts detected pesticide residues from the organophosphate group. However, only one district (Aceh Tamiang) had pesticide residues exceeding the MRL or more than 3 mg kg−1. The pesticide residue obtained in Aceh Tamiang district is (5.18 mg kg−1) from the profenofos group.

Comparison Statistical Rice Yield Prediction with Multiple Weather Parameters

Advance knowledge of harvestable products, especially essential food crops such as rice, wheat, maize, and pulses, would allow policymakers and traders to plan procurement, processing, pricing, marketing, and related infrastructure and procedures. There are many statistical models are being used for the yield prediction with different weather parameter combinations. The performance of these models are dependent on the location’s weather input and its accuracy. In this context, a study was conducted at Agro Climate Research Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore during Kharif (2020) season to compare the performance of four multivariate weather-based models viz., SMLR, LASSO, ENET and Bayesian models for the rice yield prediction at Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu State with Tmax, Tmin, Mean RH, WS, SSH, EVP and RF. The results indicated that the R2, RMSE, and nRMSE values of the above models were ranged between 0.54 to 0.79 per cent, 149 to 398 kg/ha, 4.0 to 10.6 per cent, respectively. The study concluded that the Bayesian model was found to be more reliable followed by LASSO and ENET. In addition, it was found that the Bayesian model could perform better even with limited weather parameters and detention of wind speed, sunshine hours and evaporation data would not affect the model performance. It is concluded that Bayesian model may be a better option for rice yield forecasting in Thanjavur districts of Tamil Nadu.

Mother’s Milk Microbiome Shaping Fecal and Skin Microbiota in Infants with Food Allergy and Atopic Dermatitis: A Pilot Analysis

The child microbiome, including gut and skin communities, is shaped by a multitude of factors, and breastfeeding is one of the most essential. Food allergy (FA) and atopic dermatitis (AD) are among the most common diseases in pediatrics, with the prevalence of each up to 6% and 20%, respectively. Therefore, we aimed at finding differences between the fecal and skin microbiomes of FA and AD patients in the context of breastfeeding, by means of the Illumina sequencing of 16S rRNA gene fragment libraries amplified from the total DNA isolated from samples collected from allergic and healthy infants. We also analyzed milk samples from the mothers of the examined children and searched for patterns of incidence suggesting milk influence on an infant’s allergy status. Here we show that a mother’s milk influences her child’s fecal and skin microbiomes and identify Acinetobacter as the taxon whose abundance is correlated with milk and child-derived samples. We demonstrate that breastfeeding makes allergic children's fecal and skin communities more similar to those of healthy infants than in the case of formula-feeding. We also identify signature taxa that might be important in maintaining health or allergy development.

Menace of Middlemanship in the Light of Islamic Teachings

Despite abundant agricultural production, the prices of fruits, vegetables, and other agricultural items remain high, keeping these products out of the a common man’s reach. Although small and poor farmers work hard throughout the year, yet they remain indebted and poor. There might be various reasons for their plight such as the extraordinarily high prices of agri-food items; however, the role of the middleman (Arhti) seems to be the most damaging in this regard. This paper analyses the role palyed by the middleman in Pakistan in the light of Islamic teachings and primary (through survey questionnaire) and secondary data. The study found that generally, the middleman is a cruel character and causes distortions in the economy, particularly in the agro-food market. He deprives poor farmers of meaningful profit, keeps them under the pressure of debt, and causes price hikes of essential items which leads to artificial inflationary pressures in the economy. Ultimately, this phenomenon exerts pressure on the government as well. The current study also found that the presence of middleman in the supply chain of agro-food items deprives poor farmers of their right of earning genuine profit.Moreover, it also increases the price of essential food items. Hence, in the light of Shariah guidelines, unnecessary brokering needs to be restricted so that farmers are able to sell their produce themselves. Furthermore, the middleman’s role needs to be curtailed for the welfare of the farmers, improvement of the agriculture sector, and the betterment of the economy. The study recommends the framing of comprehensive long-term policies for the purchase of crops, monitoring of fruit / vegetable markets, provision of interest-free loans to farmers, setting up of an efficient market mechanism, establishment of effective consumer courts, and the improvement of the transportation system.

ANALYSIS OF WILLINGNESS TO PAY CONTRIBUTIONS IN THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE IN REGENCY OF BANYUASIN

BPJS Kesehatan as the manager of the National Security Program (JKN), can be an appropriate health insurance to reduce the risk of people bearing health costs from their own pocket (out of pocket) in a very large and can lead to poverty. This study aims to analyze the willingness to pay JKN contributions to farmers in Banyuasin Regency in order to identify community groups that need subsidies from the government. This research is an analytical study with cross sectional design. The population of this research is all residents who work as farmers and have not registered as JKN participants with a total sample of 176 people. data analysis used chi square test and logistic regression test. This study found that the willingness to pay JKN contributions of Rp22.028 per person per month. The determinants of willingness to pay contributions in JKN membership are family income, food expenditure, non-essential food expenditure, non-food expenditure, number of family members, history of catastrophic disease, knowledge of contributions, and the ability to pay JKN contributions. The most dominant factor affecting the willingness to pay is non-essential food expenditure. The willingness to pay the JKN dues is still low. The ability to pay contributions is influenced by income, food expenditure, non-essential food expenditure, total non-food expenditure, number of family members, history of catastrophic disease, knowledge of contributions, and the ability to pay JKN contributions.

Development of an Automated Delivery Vehicle

The Covid – 19 pandemic has gone out of control all over the world causing nearly five million deaths. Number of affected persons keeps increasing and there is a huge problem of providing essential items for them. The objective of this project is to design an Automated Delivery System, which is suitable for Sri Lanka during such pandemic situations. Because of the situations like this, delivery people do not like to reach affected areas even for business. Therefore, the people living in such areas face the problem of getting even the basic needs such as essential food items and medicine. As a solution, an unmanned automated delivery vehicle system has been proposed in this research, which can be mainly used in locked down areas in Sri Lanka. It can be used to deliver goods without a driver to the required places, while maintaining the health guidelines and required security and safety. This can be further extended to certain areas such as private apartments, hospitals, supermarkets etc. to deliver items in automated way.

Unlearned lessons of food price spikes

The article substantiates the author’s hypothesis of the fundamental reasons for periodic «ups» in prices for essential food products, including the most recent price jump in the second half of 2020. Both the official assessments of the causes of recurring food price surges and the measures taken by the executive branch to stop and prevent them are subjected to critical analysis. Conclusions and fundamental proposals are formulated aimed at eradicating the systemic causes of price volatility in the domestic food market.

The Mycotoxin Risks Lurking in Breads Sold in Abuja Metropolis

Bread is one of the most essential food products that is universally accepted as a very convenient form of food that has desirability to all population rich or poor, rural or urban dwellers. A staple food prepared by baking dough of flour, water and/or sugar. It is a good source of nutrients, such as macronutrients and micronutrients that are all essential for human Bread like other bakery products are subject to microbial contamination and spoilage by molds irrespective of the intrinsic composition of the product. The present study was carried out to identify the fungi associated with bread spoilage sold in Abuja metropolis, Nigeria and the possible health risks. Twenty-four (24) bread products from different locations within FCT, Abuja, Nigeria covering the six regions; Abaji, AMAC, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali were sampled and the molds associated with them were isolated using spread plate method. Based on the cultural and morphological characterizations using standard identification techniques, the mold namely Aspergillus sp. (29.7%), Mucor sp. (17.4%), Penicillum sp. (17.1%), Fusarium sp. (14.7%), Rhizopus sp. (8.0%), Cladosporium sp. (7.4%) Alternaria sp. (3.4%) and Geotricum sp. (2.3%) were found. The presence of mold is a signal to the possibility of mycotoxin build-up and other food safety risks. Therefore, bread manufacturer and distribution vendors need to periodically validate their preventive measures to control potential hazards associated with fungi-laden breads.