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Abstract Landslide hazards significantly threaten rural communities, impacting various aspects of livelihoods, including food security. The Gamo Highlands in southern Ethiopia is vulnerable to landslide hazards. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the effect of landslide hazards on rural households’ food security status in the Gacho Baba district, Gamo Highlands, southern Ethiopia. The study employed a mixed approach, to collect and analyze data collected from 289 households, community leaders, and early warning and food security experts. Purposive and multistage sampling techniques were deployed. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS), Food Consumption Score (FCS), and Reducing Coping Strategies Index (RCSI) were food in/security indicators used. The HFIAS reveals significant worries regarding stable access and availability of food, with 62% of sample households categorized as mildly, moderately, and severely food-insecure. FCS indicates prevalent challenges in achieving adequate food consumption levels among the surveyed households, with a significant portion falling into the poor consumption category (51.3%). while the investigation of coping strategies using RCSI categorized (53.3%) of study samples into high coping strategies. The study also reveals varying levels of awareness and preparedness among households, with a significant proportion expressing uncertainty about landslide occurrence and prevention mechanisms. The findings underscore the need for targeted educational and awareness initiatives, as well as comprehensive risk reduction strategies, to enhance household resilience and safeguard food security in landslide-prone areas.

Highlights Challenges in developing practical all-solid-state lithium–sulfur batteries (ASSLSBs) and recently devised concepts to address those critical challenges have been discussed. Recent developments in comprehending solid-state electrolytes, cathodes, and highperformance anodes, including key challenges associated with ion transport, electrochemical properties, and processing methods, have been discussed. Prospects of ASSLSBs for commercial use and guiding forthcoming research and development efforts in this area have been presented.

Maintaining forest biodiversity and carbon sequestration potential of forest resources enhances the provision capacity of forest ecosystem services. Experience from around the world and in Ethiopia has shown that shifting forest management from state-centred to community-centred arrangement can result in a better forest stock. Therefore, this study examined the status of woody species diversity, regeneration and total living biomass carbon stock of forests under participatory forest management (PFM) and the adjacent state managed non-participatory forest management (Non-PFM) in South eastern Ethiopia and implications to REDD+. Data were collected from 89 (44 PFM and 45 Non-PFM) nested circular plots from four PFM and three Non-PFM selected forest sites with transects laid systematically. Tree DBH and height were measured, the number of saplings, seedlings, mature trees were counted and species names were recorded. Woody species diversity was estimated using shannon, simpson, and evenness diversity indices. A total of 29 and 23 woody species were recorded in PFM and Non-PFM forests, respectively. Woody species diversity did not show significant difference between PFM and Non-PFM forests but it was relatively higher in PFM forest. The density per hectare of seedlings, sapling and mature trees were significantly greater in PFM forest than in Non-PFM forest. The mean aboveground biomass carbon stock of PFM forest (225.50±26.54) was significantly greater than that of the Non-PFM (156.24±15.72) forest. Hence, managing forests through participatory approaches contributes to the enhancement of sustainable management and climate change mitigation potentials through reducing emission from deforestation and forest degradation.

The electric vehicle (EV) revolution is sweeping the world, and Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is no exception. Despite the environmental and sustainability narratives surrounding EVs, it is now undeniable that the transition to electric mobility is inevitable. Over the last couple of years, the region has made considerable advancements in transitioning towards electric transportation, with the government and private sector collaborating to make EVs more accessible to the public. Despite the progress made, the region still has the lowest transition rate globally. Moreover, the available information is limited to identifying critical challenges that require attention to ensure a reasonable decarbonization of passenger vehicle transport in the region. This review focuses on the current advancements, challenges, and opportunities of EV development in SSA and puts forward ways to hasten its transition in the region. The transition towards EVs in SSA still faces significant challenges that need to be addressed. Particularly, the absence of clear policies and regulations that outline EV targets for individual countries, the high purchase price of EVs, poor electricity networks, and the scarcity of public e-charging stations are the primary impediments that obstruct the EV transition in SSA. To expedite the transition, it is highly recommended to formulate new regional and national strategies rather than adopting developed nations' EV transition model blueprint.

Faisel Dula Sema,1 Abdisa Gemedi Jara,1 Admasu Teshome Demessie,2 Tsegagabriel Shawel Lemma,2 Saron Naji Gebremariam,1 Gizework Alemnew Mekonnen,1 Wudneh Simegn,3 Asmamaw Emagn Kasahun,4 Masho Tigabe Tekle1 1Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia; 2Schools of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia; 3Department of Social and Administrative Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia; 4Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Faisel Dula Sema, Email faiselye1203@gmail.comBackground: The education and training of health professions students in geriatric care is critical to their future clinical practice. However, the knowledge and attitude of health science students toward geriatric care are barely studied in Ethiopia.Objective: This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of graduating medical, pharmacy, and nursing (MPN) students towards geriatric care at the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, North West Ethiopia.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 301 graduating MPN students using stratified random sampling from June 30, 2022, to July 30, 2022. The data was collected by using previously validated self-administered structured questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS version 26. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were done. A statistical significance was declared at a p-value < 0.05.Results: The majority of graduating MPN students had either neutral (70.76%) or positive (16.28%) attitudes towards older people; however, a greater amount (88%) of them had poor knowledge of geriatric care. The knowledge of female students was significantly less favorable than the knowledge of male students (p-value < 0.001). The knowledge and attitudes of pharmacy and nursing students were significantly lower than medical students (p-value < 0.001). The attitude mean rank score of students aged ≤ 25 years was significantly lower than students aged > 25 years (p-value < 0.001).Conclusion: The majority of graduating MPN students had poor knowledge despite having either a neutral or positive attitude toward geriatric care. Female students had lower knowledge scores than male students. Similarly, pharmacy and nursing students had lower knowledge and attitude scores than medical students, and the attitude score of students aged ≤ 25 years was lower than students aged > 25 years. Their respective departments should implement a strategy to improve the knowledge of MNP students.Keywords: knowledge, attitude, geriatric care, medical, pharmacy, nursing students

Molybdenum sulfide–oxide (MoS2, MS) emerges as the prime electrocatalyst candidate demonstrating hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity comparable to platinum (Pt). This study presents a facile electrochemical approach for fabricating a hybrid copper (Cu)/MoS2 (CMS) nanostructure thin-film electrocatalyst directly onto nickel foam (NF) without a binder or template. The synthesized CMS nanostructures were characterized utilizing energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and electrochemical methods. The XRD result revealed that the Cu metal coating on MS results in the creation of an extremely crystalline CMS nanostructure with a well-defined interface. The hybrid nanostructures demonstrated higher hydrogen production, attributed to the synergistic interplay of morphology and electron distribution at the interface. The nanostructures displayed a significantly low overpotential of −149 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and a Tafel slope of 117 mV dec−1, indicating enhanced catalytic activity compared to pristine MoS2.This research underscores the significant enhancement of the HER performance and conductivity achieved by CMS, showcasing its potential applications in renewable energy.

Background: Malaria is a critical public health concern in Ethiopia, with significant socioeconomic consequences. Malaria data trend analysis is essential for understanding transmission patterns and adopting evidence-based malaria control measures. The purpose of this study was to determine the 5 year distribution of malaria in North Shewa zone, Amhara region, Ethiopia, in 2023., Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was employed to analyse the 5 year trend of malaria surveillance data in the North Shewa zone of the Amhara regional, Ethiopia, spanning from July 2018 to June 2023. The malaria indicator data were gathered from the zone's public health emergency management database. Malaria data from the previous 5 years was collected, compiled, processed, and analysed using Microsoft Excel 2019., Results: Among a total of 434,110 suspected cases 47,889 (11.03%) cases were confirmed as malaria, with an average annual malaria incidence rate of 4.4 per 1000 population in the Zone. Malaria cases exhibited an increase from Epidemiological Week (Epi week) 37 to Epi week 49 (September to November) and again from Epi week 22 to week 30 (May to July). Individuals aged 15 and above, and all districts in the Zone except Angolela were notably affected by malaria., Conclusion: Despite implementing various measures to reduce malaria incidence, the disease continues to persist in the zone. Therefore, the Zone Health Department should intensify its preventive and control efforts., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Pregnant women and recent mothers face a higher risk of severe illness from Coronavirus disease 2019 due to physiological and immunological shifts during pregnancy, rendering them more vulnerable to inflammatory lung conditions. This susceptibility poses serious threats to both maternal and newborn health. Therefore, it is imperative for pregnant women to be fully informed about Coronavirus disease 2019 and to implement preventive measures. This study aimed to evaluate the collective knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to Coronavirus disease 2019 among pregnant women across Africa., Methods: The researchers collected studies from multiple databases, including Pub Med/MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Science Direct, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochran library, and Google Scholar. A combination of search terms and Boolean operators were utilized to gather relevant literature. Each study underwent quality assessment by five authors independently, using the modified Newcastle Ottawa Scale tailored for cross-sectional research. Statistical analysis was conducted using STATA™ Version 11 software, and meta-analysis was performed using the random-effects (Der Simonian and Laird) method. Heterogeneity was evaluated using I-squared (I 2 ) statistics, and a one-out sensitivity analysis was carried out., Results: This systematic review and meta-analysis included 19 articles, involving a total of 7852 participants. It revealed that the combined estimated prevalence of good knowledge about Coronavirus disease 2019, positive attitudes, and good practices among pregnant women was found to be 61.8 % (95 % CI: 53.0%-70.65 %; I 2  = 98.7 %), 51.7 % (95 % CI: 30.34%-73.6 %; I 2  = 99.3 %), and 52.31 % (95 % CI: 41.48%-63.15 %; I 2  = 98.8 %) respectively., Conclusion: This study emphasizes a significant concern: pregnant women exhibit a notable lack of knowledge, positive attitudes, and preventive practices regarding Coronavirus disease 2019. Considering their heightened vulnerability, urgent action is required to improve their understanding, attitudes, and behaviours related to the virus. Healthcare professionals should take proactive measures to educate pregnant women, addressing this crucial gap through various strategies., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)