Search

Autistic children are at increased risk of experiencing a range of mental health difficulties, including anxiety. A number of intervention programmes are now available in high-income countries to support autistic children. However, to date there are no evidence-based interventions to support families of such children in South Asia. Based on consultations with clinicians, researchers and parents in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, we developed a culturally tailored two-session skills-based group programme for parents whose autistic children present with anxiety. This paper describes the process of creating this programme, to be delivered by mental health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Tobacco use, in both smoking and smokeless forms, is highly prevalent among South Asian adults. The aims of the study were twofold: (1) describe patterns of SLT and combustible tobacco product use in four South Asian countries stratified by country and sex, and (2) assess the relationships between SLT and smoking intensity, smoking quit attempts, and smoking cessation among South Asian men. Methods: Data were obtained from South Asia Biobank Study, collected between 2018 and 2022 from 148,944 men and women aged 18 years and above, living in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, or Sri Lanka. Mixed effects multivariable logistic and linear regression were used to quantify the associations of SLT use with quit attempt, cessation, and intensity. Results: Among the four South Asian countries, Bangladesh has the highest rates of current smoking (39.9% for male, 0.4% for female) and current SLT use (24.7% for male and 23.4% for female). Among male adults, ever SLT use was associated with a higher odds of smoking cessation in Bangladesh (OR, 2.88; 95% CI, 2.65, 3.13), India (OR, 2.02; 95% CI, 1.63, 2.50), and Sri Lanka (OR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.14, 1.62). Ever SLT use and current SLT use was associated with lower smoking intensity in all countries. Conclusions: In this large population-based study of South Asian adults, rates of smoking and SLT use vary widely by country and gender. Men who use SLT products are more likely to abstain from smoking compared with those who do not. What this paper adds?: • Tobacco use remains a leading risk factor of chronic disease in South Asia. Smokeless tobacco use is particularly popular in this region, even among adult women. Evidence on smokeless tobacco use and smoking cessation are inconclusive and may be dependent on specific cultural and historical factors. • Contemporaneous data on smokeless and combustible tobacco use patterns in South Asia are limited. Little is known whether SLT use is associated with smoking cessation in South Asia where the vast majority of the world's SLT users reside. • This study provided information on patterns of SLT use and smoking in four South Asia countries using a large population-based sample of 148,944 adults collected between 2018 and 2022. We observed that SLT use was associated with higher smoking cessation and lower smoking intensity among men. Strengthening SLT product regulation may have important population health implications with the changing tobacco use landscape in South Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: COBRA-BPS (Control of Blood Pressure and Risk Attenuation-Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka), a multicomponent, community health-worker (CHW)-led hypertension management program, has been shown to be effective in rural communities in South Asia. This paper presents the acceptability of COBRA-BPS multicomponent intervention among the key stakeholders. Methods: We conducted post-implementation interviews of 87 stakeholder including 23 community health workers (CHWs), 19 physicians and 45 patients in 15 rural communities randomized to COBRA-BPS multicomponent intervention in in Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. We used Theoretical Framework for Acceptability framework (TFA) with a focus on affective attitude, burden, ethicality, intervention coherence, opportunity cost, perceived effectiveness and self-efficacy. Results: COBRA-BPS multicomponent intervention was acceptable to most stakeholders. Despite some concerns about workload, most CHWs were enthusiastic and felt empowered. Physicians appreciated the training sessions and felt trusted by their patients. Patients were grateful to receive the intervention and valued it. However, patients in Pakistan and Bangladesh expressed the need for supplies of free medicines from the primary health facilities, while those in Sri Lanka were concerned about supplies' irregularities. All stakeholders favoured scaling-up COBRA-BPS at a national level. Conclusions: COBRA-BPS multicomponent intervention is acceptable to the key stakeholders in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Community engagement for national scale-up of COBRA-BPS is likely to be successful in all three countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of countries have focused on shipbuilding public policies, as it is commonly considered a deliberate industry and influences employment levels in many regions. Establishing key performance indicators can be a challenge to shipbuilding policymakers. This paper suggests an approach to this issue, based on three different MCDM techniques: the fuzzy DEMATEL, the Fuzzy ANP, and the MOORA. This approach makes it achievable to estimate performance and competitiveness, considering 25 different variables comprising four different viewpoints of a balanced scorecard approach. These dimensions include finance, customer, internal process, and learning and growth aspects. The methodology is applied to the analysis of the active shipyards of the Bay of Bengal Basin countries. Our main findings indicate that shipyards which are effective in 'customer' variables perform higher performance, while variables constituting the 'learning and growth' dimension demonstrate lower impact on it. Additionally, the dimensions of 'finance' and 'customer' show uttered impacts on the other dimensions, while 'learning and growth' has no impact on the other perspectives of the balanced scorecard. Through this methodology, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers might acquire a penetrating overview into the drivers of the global shift in shipbuilding industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The global scientific community has been quick to respond to health crisis unleashed by Covid-19 pandemic with intensified investments in R&D and thereby it gave new impetus to Covid-19 research. The world has come to witness unprecedented increase in research publications on control and treatment of Covid-19 pandemic. Like any other region in the world, South Asia too has been the worst-hit region and it too witnessed increase in Covid-related research studies. Systematic reviews of such literature and bibliometric studies are used nowadays as tools to identify and analyze key and significant South Asian contribution to the subject. The present study aims to assess and quantify the contribution and impact of Covid-19 research made by a group of select four South Asian countries. Methods: Publications data on Covid 19 covering the period between December 2019 and 8.7.2021 was sourced from the Scopus database. VOSviewer 1.6.14 software was applied to generate network maps, assess hot topics in the area and describe collaboration patterns in research between different countries. Results: A total of 18,64,275 publications reflecting the global research output on Covid-19 were retrieved from the Scopus database. The publications data of select four South Asian countries - Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka - was also retrieved. Comparatively the data size of select four South Asian countries was small, limited to 4012 documents, and accounting for a 2.15% share of the global research output on Covid-19 virus. Pakistan published the most number of Covid-19 publications (n = 2246, 55.58%), followed by Bangladesh (n = 1203, 29.99%), Nepal (n=512, 12.76%) and Sri Lanka (n=202, 5.03%). The United States as the collaborating partner in most number of publications contributed by South Asian countries (n = 609, 25.41%), followed by the United Kingdom (n = 496, 20.69%), China (n=453, 18.90%), Saudi Arabia (n=441, 18.40%) and India (n=426, 17.77%). Covid-19 treatment type was the most studied topic in the contributions made by South Asian countries accounting for a 16.45% share, followed by epidemiology (15.63%), risk factors (5.835), clinical studies (4.81%), etc. Conclusion: This paper finds that the quantity and quality of research pursued by a select group of four South Asian countries in the domain of Covid 19 studies has so far been small and insignificant. There is an urgent need on the part of select group of South Asian counties to improve their productivity and qualitative performance at the national, institutional, and individual author level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By following Johann Gottfried Herder's cultural nationalism, the paper illustrates the centrality of languages in the formation of modern nation states. Herder further enables us to comprehend the significance of a common cultural core for national unity; the negative role of uniformity that leads to exclusionary policies; and the development of dissension into armed conflicts among ethnicities and nations. Thus, Herder reveals that linguistic nationalism takes the dangerously ethnic turn when its civic elements are not properly utilised. Through Herder's method, I demonstrate the cause of conflict between language and cultural rights and other human rights. For this, I examine why the peoples of Sri Lanka and undivided Pakistan defined themselves primarily in ethnic terms during decolonisation and in religio-linguistic terms after independence. By comparing the 1930s' Sri Lankan vernacular (Swabasha) movement with the language movement (Bhasha Andolon) of 1952 in the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), I delineate the nature of challenges that marginalised peoples face regarding their cultural rights in decolonised societies. Since the societies require clear directions for nurturing ethnic cooperation, I suggest that the strategic aspects of Herder's idealism can pave the way for this. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Deliberate corrosive substance attacks (DCSA) have traditionally been associated with low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). However, the incidence of DCSA in certain geographical locations of the UK has increased in recent years. These attacks have a relatively low mortality rate but cause extensive life-changing injuries and the management from point of wounding to definitive care is challenging for all involved. Methods: A systematic review was used to identify literature about DCSA and establish how much evidence about these attacks has been published over the last decade. Victim and perpetrator characteristics, substances used, injury patterns, mortality, pre-hospital and hospital-based management and complications associated with management were areas of interest. The review included any medical literature (case reports, letters, reviews) published within the last 10 years that described DCSA against human victims. Non-English language articles were excluded. Results: Eighteen articles containing 762 victims of DCSA were included; seven victims had incomplete data. Articles were mostly from LMIC (Bangladesh, Columbia, Cambodia, India, Iran, Sri Lanka and Pakistan) but there were five articles were from the UK (three 'Letters to Editors', one survivor letter and one retrospective review of 21 victims). UK victim and perpetrator characteristics varied from those in LMIC. Seven papers described pre-hospital management and nine described hospital/surgical management. Conclusions: The evidence base surrounding DCSA is limited especially in the UK setting. More research into the epidemiology and management of DCSA in the UK is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a theoretically grounded strategy for the financial sustainability of smallto- medium nonprofit organisations (NPOs) engaged in social enterprise (SE) strategies. The theory is based on research conducted in the South Asia region: specifically India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Despite the significant growth in the NPO sector in this region, the literature does not adequately deal with the emergence of SE. Using an adaptation of Strauss and Corbin's (1998) pragmatic approach to grounded theory method (GTM), the aim of this research is to contribute to the formulation of practical solutions to achieving financial sustainability across the spectrum of the target organisations, with due consideration of their region and country specific social, cultural, economic, and institutional contexts and drivers. This is achieved through development of a performance-based management action framework to achieve financial sustainability for small-to-medium NPOs pursuing SE strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the implications of participation in an Australian Award Short Course Awards programme for inclusive educators from South Asia. Seventeen educators from Nepal, three from Bangladesh, and one from Sri Lanka participated in the short course in Brisbane, Australia with a follow up component in Kathmandu, Nepal. The aim of the short course was to provide a platform for sharing knowledge of inclusive education as a global concept, and how such knowledge could then be implemented in the local context. While in Brisbane, participants completed a Return to Work Plan (RWP) indicating how they anticipated applying their new knowledge in their respective workplaces. Data were collected both pre- and post-programme with follow-up individual interviews and focus groups once they returned to their home countries. Findings revealed that participants gained a broader understanding of inclusive education and 'diversity' that counter the perception of inclusion as restricted to only a specific area of 'special education'. For many participants, work habits changed as they applied their learning to include a greater range of diversity in their home countries. While the initial impact appeared localised, there were positive indications for longer-term sustainability. This research may assist other educators from developing countries to maximise the benefit of participation in similar short course programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving infant and young child feeding practices will help South Asian countries achieve the Millennium Development Goal of reducing child mortality. This paper aims to compare key indicators of complementary feeding and their determinants in children aged 6-23 months across five South Asian countries - Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The latest Demographic and Health Survey and National Family Health Survey India data were used. The analyses were confined to last-born children aged 6-23 months - 1728 in Bangladesh, 15 028 in India, 1428 in Nepal, 2106 in Sri Lanka and 443 infants aged 6-8 months in Pakistan. Introduction of solid, semi-solid or soft foods, minimum dietary diversity, minimum meal frequency and minimum acceptable diet, and their significant determinants were compared across the countries. Minimum dietary diversity among children aged 6-23 months ranged from 15% in India to 71% in Sri Lanka, with Nepal (34%) and Bangladesh (42%) in between. Minimum acceptable diet among breastfed children was 9% in India, 32% in Nepal, 40% in Bangladesh and 68% in Sri Lanka. The most consistent determinants of inappropriate complementary feeding practices across all countries were the lack of maternal education and lower household wealth. Limited exposure to media, inadequate antenatal care and lack of post-natal contacts by health workers were among predictors of inappropriate feeding. Overall, complementary feeding practices among children aged 6-23 months need improvement in all South Asian countries. More intensive interventions are necessary targeting the groups with sup-optimal practices, while programmes that cover entire populations are being continued. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines narratives of women from the Indian subcontinent, including Canadian refugee claimants, emerging from the conflict regions of Pakistan, Punjab, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, who have presented suicidal ideation or attempts or died by suicide. The focus is on the relationship of suicide and suicide behavior to particular systemic stressors related to familial, social, and group agendas. The vulnerability of individual women is presented in the context of gender issues, deeply embedded group trauma, historical legacies, and intragenerational dynamics, as well as acute stressors that contribute to the underlying distress of these women. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper describes how distance educations in developing countries can enhance interactivity by means of information and communication technologies. It is argued that e-learning involves a shift in the educational structure from traditional transmission of knowledge to interactive creation of knowledge. Our case studies are two distance educations in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka that use different technologies for implementing interactivity; Internet and computers in one case and video and mobile phones in the other. The findings are analyzed based on Structuration Theory and we compare the two approaches based on emerging norms and beliefs. Findings from both cases show the concurrent enactment of both the transmission and the interactive structure. Whereas peer collaboration and the use of self-assessment tools make students take more ownership of their learning, we also found the idea of a classroom with an instructive teacher to be deeply rooted in the students' minds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the demand for water in cities increases, the quantity of wastewater being produced is growing at a phenomenal rate. If resources are to be managed effectively, a new paradigm is required for urban wastewater management. This paper reviews the initial findings of a participatory action planning process for managing wastewater for agricultural use. It finds that such processes need considerable facilitation, capacity building and knowledge sharing, but that if a plan can be devised that meets the needs of the stakeholders, even if some compromise is required, then certain stakeholders are likely to take responsibility for specific aspects. This may not meet the entire integrated water resources management (IWRM) vision of the plan but provided the plan is developed in such a way that incremental implementation will be beneficial then this will produce some success and may stimulate further cooperation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the outcome of the Sri Lanka case study on assessing the economic impact of power interruptions on industry in the South Asia region, comprising the countries of Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and India. The technical assessment evaluates the cost to the country’s economy in terms of the industrial loss due to supply interruptions and environmental impacts from standby generation used to supplement the power requirements of the industrial sector.The study found that the main economic impact of the power interruptions, both planned and unplanned, is the loss of output in the industrial sector. In a typical year of power shortages, such as 2001, arising from a deficit in generation capacity, these losses can be as high as approximately US$ 81 million a year, which is approximately 0.65% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Also, the economic impact due to unplanned outages can be around US$ 45 million (0.3% of GDP) in a typical year. On average, these values for planned and unplanned outages are US$ 0.66 and US$ 1.08 per kW h of energy loss, respectively.It is also observed that 92% of the sampled industries have standby generation facilities to satisfy either, in full or partially, their own power requirements, which produced approximately 146 GW h of energy in 2001.The serious economic and environmental impacts of power interruptions, both planned and unplanned, underlines the importance of timely implementation of the long term least cost generation expansion plan and proper maintenance of transmission and distribution networks to ensure their high reliability. Therefore, it is clear that the utility needs to take immediate steps to improve its supply reliability in order to retain consumers and justify the existence of a centralised generation facility. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]