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The COVID-19 disease has infected many countries with generalised impacts on the different income categories. To test this hypothesis, we carried out a survey among households (n = 412) representing different income groups in Nigeria. We used validated food insecurity experience and socio-psychologic tools. We analysed the data obtained using descriptive and inferential statistics. The earning capacities of the respondents range from US$145/month for the low-income earners to US$1945/month for high-income earners. A total of 173 households (42%) ran out of food during the COVID-19 pandemic. All categories of households have experienced increasing dependency from the general public and perception of increasing insecurity, with the high-income earners having the greatest shift. In addition, increasing levels of anger and irritations have been experienced with all categories. Of the socio-demographic variables, only gender (p = 0.012), level of education of household head (p = 0.000), work hours per day (p = 0.006), and family income based on society class (p = 0.000) were significantly associated with food security and hunger due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Household heads with medium (OR: 4.36, 95% CI: 2.64 – 7.21, p < 0.001) and high (OR: 30.27, 95% CI: 3.99 – 229.90, p < 0.001) family income based on society class were more likely to have satisfactory experience on food security and hunger than respondents with low family income. Irrespective of the social class of the respondents, some respondents had negative experiences such as movement/change of location within the same city (17.68%), begin a new relationship (14.43%), recent change of job/loss of job (11.55%), movement to another city (10.81%), and separation from spouse or long-term relationship (10.07%). However, 231 (60.16%) reported satisfaction with their jobs despite the pandemic. Psychological stress due to impact of COVID-19 was observed to be more in the low income earning group than others. It is recommended that socio-economic groups should be mapped and support systems should target each group as per the needed support in terms of health, social, economic, and mental wellness; the government should show political commitments and transparency in food security and counselling supports. National authorities should prioritize empirical-based interventions on resources allocation during crises.

This study evaluated the in vitro antioxidant properties, antibacterial and antifungal activities and in vivo anti-inflammatory properties, and identifying the phenolic compounds in Cistus salviifolius. The methanolic leaf extract showed the highest antioxidant activity with 6.1±1.60 µg/ml IC50 value using DPPH· and 55.5±0.20 µg/ml using Reducing Power Activity. The study revealed that the butanolic leaf extract and the aqueous leaf infusion exhibited the strongest growth-inhibiting effect against all Gram positive and Gram negative strains tested, respectively, whereas the methanolic leaf extract showed the strongest antifungal activity against the yeast tested. The MIC value for the butanolic leaf extract was 4 mg/ml against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli. The pharmacotoxicological tests proved the safety of the aqueous leaf infusion, which exhibit a moderate anti-inflammatory effect, with a significant inhibition of the oedema development equal to 44.7% compared to 59.3% for the reference product diclofenac sodium. Methanolic extracts of the leaf and flower buds showed varied contents of polyphenols, flavonoids, and hydrolysable tannins; which were 228.4±11.4 mg GAE/g, 34.2±0.6 mg QE/g, and 36.9±2.6 mg TAE/g of the dry weight for leaves; and 241.1±5.4 mg GAE/g, 47.6±4.5 mg QE/g, and 22.0±1.3 mg TAE/g of the dry weight for flower buds, respectively. Analysis of the ethereal and butanolic leaf extracts using Reversed Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatographic Method coupled with a Photodiode-Array Detector identified thirteen phenolic compounds, including ascorbic acid, vanillic acid, gallic acid, quercetin, and orientin.

The aim of this research was to determine the economic efficiency of sweet potato production in Polish conditions (49°49′ N, 21°50′ E). The study was based on the results of a 3-year (2017–2019) field experiment conducted in slightly acidic brown earth. The experiment used the random subblocks method, in which the main experimental factors were cultivation technologies: A) traditional, with no cover, B) with the use of PP spunbond nonwoven. Secondary factors included 5 cultivars of sweet potato of all earliness classes (Goldstar, Carmen Rubin, Satsumo Imo, Beauregard, White Triumph). Constant organic and mineral fertilization was used, and cultivation was carried out in accordance with normal agricultural practice. The propagating material included rooted cuttings of sweet potato from in vitro propagation, planted with 50 x 75 cm spacing. The economic effect of production was determined by all experimental factors. The profitability of production was increased by the use of PP spunbond nonwoven. The most beneficial economic factors were achieved when growing the Beauregard cultivar, and the least – when growing White Triumph. The largest cost of sweet potato commercial production were sweet potato cuttings, which amounted to 56%, and the smallest – plant protection products – 1% of direct costs per 1 ha of crops. Sweet potato production in Polish soil and climate conditions between 2017–2019 turned out to be cost-effective.

The COVID-19 disease has infected many countries, causing generalized impacts on different income categories. We carried out a survey among households (n = 412) representing different income groups in Nigeria. We used validated food insecurity experience and socio-psychologic tools. Data obtained were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The earning capacities of the respondents ranged from 145 USD/month for low-income earners to 1945 USD/month for high-income earners. A total of 173 households (42%) ran out of food during the COVID-19 pandemic. All categories of households experienced increasing dependency on the general public and a perception of increasing insecurity, with the high-income earners experiencing the greatest shift. In addition, increasing levels of anger and irritation were experienced among all categories. Of the socio-demographic variables, only gender, educational level of the household head, work hours per day, and family income based on society class were associated (p < 0.05) with food security and hunger due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although psychological stress was observed to be greater in the low-income earning group, household heads with medium and high family income were more likely to have satisfactory experiences regarding food security and hunger. It is recommended that socio-economic groups should be mapped and support systems should target each group to provide the needed support in terms of health, social, economic, and mental wellness.

The Mediterranean diet has a lot of health benefits but especially because it lowers the incidence of cardiovascular diseases. It has been shown that food components, certain nutrients and the pattern of the diet lowers the risk of several diseases such as diabetes, certain cancers, obesity, respiratory disorders, mental health and cognitive decline, bone diseases (osteoarthritis), healthy aging and quality of life among more others. It has been concluded from studying the mechanism responsible for lowering these risks that food combinations, food nutrients, presence of non-nutritive substances, lifestyles habits and the cooking techniques all together make the Mediterranean dietary pattern into a tool that can not only prevent but can also be used as a way of treatment for these medical ailments. As part of the essential dietary fat, consumption of extra virgin olive oil is the main feature of Mediterranean diet. Olive oil is noted to have anti-bacterial characteristics, involved in improving the endothelial function in young females, and is hypothesized to have epigenetic effects interplay offering protection from cancers due to the presence of beneficial monounsaturated fats. The presence of antioxidants contributes to the inflammation protecting properties of the olive oil. Olive oil has high quantities of antioxidants and offers numerous benefits for cardiovascular health, such as protection of LDL from oxidation and lowering of the high blood pressure as well as offers protection from diabetes mellitus. The Mediterranean diet and the Olive oil consumption also have a fundamental impact in secondary prevention, such as in patients with atrial fibrillation that underwent catheter ablation.

This study assesses the agricultural commercialization levels, determinants, and challenges confronting smallholder cassava farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria. This study was conducted in Oyo State, Nigeria using cross-sectional data from 211 smallholder cassava farmers and employing multi-stage sampling procedures. Descriptive statistics, Crop Commercialization Index (CCI), and Ordered Logit Model (OLM) were used to analyze the data collected. The results revealed that 83.9% of the cassava farmers participated in the commercialization of their cassava roots while the remaining farmers were non-participants. The greatest challenge faced by the cassava farmers in the study area was the incessant attacks by the Fulani herdsmen (destroying growing cassava on the farm) while other challenges included cassava cyclical gluts and poor access road. Moreover, OLM revealed that age, farm size, cassava marketing experience and distance to market had significant influence on commercialization levels of cassava farmers. However, in order to enhance increased commercialization levels of cassava farmers and peaceful coexistence in the study area, policies and intervention programmes that will facilitate rural infrastructure development and proffer lasting solution to the farmers-herders crisis should be given upmost priority.JEL Classification D13; M31; Q19

Hunger and food insecurity take center stage in most debates in Africa, and in recent times with serious concerns about Nigeria. This study assessed food insecurity among farming households in rural Oyo State, Nigeria, using cross-sectional datasets from 211 farming households through a multi-stage sampling procedure. The Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) module was employed in assessing food insecurity status of farming households, and the ordered logit model (OLM) was used to analyze factors influencing food insecurity among farming households. The results revealed that 12.8% of the farming households were food secure while 87.2% had varying levels of food insecurity. The OLM results indicated that age, household head’s years of schooling, gender, farm size, farm experience, non-farm income, food expenditure, and access to extension service significantly influenced food insecurity among farming households. Based on the findings, efforts should be geared towards promoting households’ education-related intervention programs in order to improve their nutrition-related knowledge that can enhance their food security status. Additionally, there should be provision of rural infrastructural facilities such as piped water, rural electrification, and healthcare service that promote healthy living and enhance households’ agricultural productivity.

Sufficient supply of potable water, hygiene facilities, and sanitation are major factors enhancing healthy living. Using the dataset from the 2018 South Africa General Household Survey, this study employed the logistic regression model to examine the effects of accessibility to potable water and sanitation on the incidence of diarrhea among under-five children. The findings from the research reveal that the majority of children have access to safe drinking water, although a substantial percentage (32%) of the households had to pay for access. The results of the logistic regression model show that households with access to clean water, to improved toilet facilities, and to water within their residence are less likely to record incidence of diarrhea among under-five children. Moreso, the likelihood of reporting diarrhea among the children decreases with the age of children and the age of household heads. Therefore, to contribute to the designing policies targeted at reducing the incidence of diarrhea among children, this study emphasized that the availability and accessibility of clean water, water-storage facilities, and improved fecal discharge facilities among the South African households are key.

Cocoyam [Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott] also known as taro is regarded as an important staple crop in the Pacific Islands, Asia and Africa. But, Africa has been unpopular in the taro international market though it accounted for the highest share of the global taro production level in the last two decades. Therefore, this study explores the global taro production outlook in two decades (2000–2019) with a special focus on African countries noting their challenges and limitations. Also, industrial, nutritional and health benefits of taro were discussed to showcase other viable potentials of the crop beyond its usefulness as a food security crop on the African continent.

In this study, we examined dietary diversity of women in cassava farming households of South-West, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to collect data on 352 farming households comprising 212 women members (158 women of child-bearing age (20-49 years) and 54 women above 49 years) between December 2019 and March 2020 in Oyo and Ogun States of South-West, Nigeria. The Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W) questionnaire was adapted and used to obtain the dietary diversity scores (DDS) of women of child bearing age over a 24-hour recall period. The individual version of the Household dietary diversity questionnaire was adapted and used to obtain the DDS of women above 49 years. Separate logistic regression models were fitted to determine the influence of selected variables on the dietary diversity of the two categories of women. Our results show that more than half of the women (55.1%) in the child-bearing category (20-49 years) did not attain the minimum score of 5 out of 10 food groups. In the older women category (> 49 years), more than half of the women (68.5%) met the required 4 or more food groups. In the child-bearing age category, the odds of attaining the minimum dietary diversity level were 0.04% smaller with an additional increase in transport cost. Also, women who had female household heads were approximately three times more likely to attain the minimum dietary diversity level than women who did not have female household heads. In the older women category, the odds of attaining the minimum dietary diversity level were 98.9% smaller for women with good road condition than for women with poor road condition. These results are useful for evidence-based decision making that can have positive impact on the lives of women in cassava farming households.

Aims: Acquiring suitable land for agricultural purposes is a challenge for most prospective farmers in South-West, Nigeria. This makes them acquire lands in government-owned forest reserves with special contractual agreements. Therefore, we evaluate farmers’ preferences for selected attributes of farming enclaves in four hypothetical forest reserves in South-West, Nigeria. Study Design: An orthogonal main effects design was used to construct the choice sets used for preference elicitation. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in December, 2017 in randomly selected communities of Oluyole Local government area of Oyo State, South-West, Nigeria. Methodology: Focus group discussions and relevant literature search were conducted to identify the relevant attributes. Four hypothetical forest reserves were considered and the selected attributes were size of the farmland, type of cropping system and land rent fee per hectare. Multistage sampling techniques were used to select 100 farmers and data were collected via face-to- interview. Multinomial logit model was used to analyse the data and willingness to pay for each of the selected attributes was also calculated. Results and Conclusion: We find that farmers value intercropping system the most. The coefficient of land rent fee (per hectare) is negative and significant implying that farmers obtain higher utility from very low land rent fees. They are willing to pay an extra 12.50 US Dollars land rent fees (per hectare) to have intercropping on a particular farming enclave while avoiding other enclaves with other cropping systems. Farm size and taungya do not contribute significantly to the farmers’ choice of farming enclave. These results will help forest reserve managers in formulating policies that will benefit farmers without jeopardising efficient management of forest resources.

The global emergence of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in December, 2019 became a major turning point in the global health system. As at 4th May, 2020, the Republic of South Africa, Egypt and Nigeria had 6 783, 6 465 and 2 558 confirmed cases of COVID-19, respectively. Surprisingly, the number of cases in South Africa has risen to 563 598 cases with 10 621 deaths, and the number of cases in Egypt has increased to 95 666 cases with 5 035 deaths while Nigeria has 46 867 cases with 950 deaths. Many African countries that were not having any reported cases of COVID-19 before now have confirmed cases while some experienced a huge spike in the number of confirmed cases due to SARS Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). As at 10th August, 2020, the situation report of the African COVID-19 cases have surpassed the record of 1 million (1 055 964) and deaths stood at 23 582 with 744 438 recoveries.The top five countries in terms of the number of confirmed cases (10 August 2020) are South Africa (563 598), Egypt (95 666), Nigeria (46 867), Ghana (41 212) and Algeria (35 156). Sadly, most African countries were inadequately prepared to combat this virus.

The study examined the effect of Avian Influenza (AI) on the household consumption of poultry products during the first outbreak of the disease in Ogun State, Nigeria. Furthermore, determinants influencing poultry products consumption during the outbreak were identified. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 120 households and a well structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent t-test and regression techniques.Egg consumption reduced significantly dropping from an average of 40 eggs/month to 29 eggs/month (p=0.038) during the AI outbreak. The average chicken expenditure/month dropped significantly from ₦1116.44 to ₦991.96 (p=0.019). Awareness of AI, educational level and amount spent on food consumption were the significant factors that contributed to the consumption of poultry products during the AI outbreak.The study therefore recommended that members of the public should be properly sensitized on safety precautions that should be cultivated before the consumption of poultry products especially during outbreaks of diseases.

The authors express appreciation to Claudio Schuftan for his thought-out response on our paper: Three decades of fighting against hunger in Africa: Progress, challenges and opportunities, which appeared in Volume 11, Number 3 (Otekunrin et al., 2020) of this esteemed journal.We also acknowledge Schuftan’s commendation that “there is nothing wrong with the calls the authors come up with. Key points are all there” and it gladdens our hearts that we have conveyed the message.We also note the grouse of Claudio Schuftan on the way we framed our recommendations. Based on our understanding of the serious implications of hunger, malnutrition, food security and conflict events on the people, it is a common knowledge that most international and national agencies (like the United Nations’) targets implementation at governments of affected countries in the world. For example, in the SDG 17 (Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development), which talks about implementation of the SDGs, it is crystal clear that its five targets (finance, technology, capacity building, trade and systemic issues) were directed to governments (United Nations, 2020), not “claim holders” as you have indicated. This is because implementing the SDGs has been found to be capital intensive as this is evident in Africa and other parts of the world (Roche et al., 2019).

Tackling hunger is a challenge for many African governments because of its endemic nature on the continent. Many African countries have found it difficult to achieve significant reductions in hunger and malnutrition since 1990. In this paper, we review the progress of African countries in the fight against hunger over the past three decades, using the Global Hunger Index (GHI) scores. Ghana had the best GHI improvement (-53.1%) while Zimbabwe and Central African Republic had slightly increased GHI scores (+1.6%). Within this time period, few countries had significant reductions in their GHI scores, while some suffered increases. Furthermore, in assessing the three indicators of GHI: (i) prevalence of undernourishment (percent population), (ii) prevalence of stunting in children (%) and (iii) prevalence of wasting in children (%), we found that no country in Africa was able to achieve all three targets. Six countries (Tunisia, Ghana, South Africa, Morocco, Mauritius and Algeria) were able to achieve targets for two of these while the majority achieved only one. We present country-level evidence of clear links between GHI scores with score for human development, social protection and terrorism. Some challenges that made the zero hunger target a difficult task in Africa are reviewed while opportunities for moving the continent towards the zero-hunger target by 2030 are also explored.

Sustainable Development Goal 2 is hinged on achieving zero hunger, worldwide, by the year 2030. Many developing countries, especially African countries, are faced with extreme hunger often caused or compounded by bad governance, conflicts and climate change. In this paper, we review patterns of Global Hunger Index scores across Africa from 2000 to 2018 noting advances and setbacks in the fight against hunger in relation to the underlying causes of hunger in these nations, using Nigeria, the poverty capital of the world, as a case study. We also review selected policies of the Nigerian government and development partners aimed at reducing hunger in Nigeria and proffer solutions that can help actualise the target of zero hunger by 2030.

A major criterion for determining the eligibility of candidates for admission into Nigerian Universities was their performance in UTME and Post-UTME before the scrap of the Post-UTME in 2016. This study was therefore aimed at investigating the performance of students in UTME conducted by Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and the Post-UTME conducted by the University of Ibadan from 2012/2013 to 2015/2016 with emphasis on gender and age-group performance in the two examinations. The secondary data used for this research comprised of the records of all 100 Level students admitted into the University from 2012/2013 to 2015/2016 academic sessions through UTME and Post-UTME. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics, independent samples t test and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient r. The results [(2012/13: 49.3%; 50.7%); (2013/14: 53.5%;46.5%); (2014/15: 53%;47%) and (2015/16: 53.3%;46.7%)], for male and female respectively showed that more male candidates were admitted compared to their female counterpart in each academic session except the 2012/2013 session that had higher female enrolment. More than 80% of the students were in the 16-20 age group. The independent t-test, for UTME and Post-UTME respectively, showed that the males had higher mean scores than the females and these mean scores were significant in all the sessions except in the 2015/16 session [(2012/13: P = .00; .04); (2013/14: P = .00; .03); (2014/15: P = .00; .00); (2015/16: P = .32; .29)]. The independent t-test for Post-UTME showed that the 16-20 age group had higher mean scores in the Post-UTME than the 21 & above age group in all the sessions but the only significant Post-UTME mean score for this group was in the 2012/13 session (P = .00). Also, the independent t-test for UTME showed that the 21 & above age group had higher mean scores in the UTME than the 16-20 age group in all the sessions except the 2015/16 session but the only significant UTME mean score for this group was in the 2013/14 session (P = .03). The Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient r was 0.306, -0.351, 0.456 and 0.641 for 2012/2013, 2013/2014, 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 respectively. All the r values were positively significant at 5% level except the value of r which was negatively significant for 2013/2014 session. The progressive and significant positive increase in the value of r in all the sessions except the 2013/2014 academic session suggested tacit support for the scrapping of the Post-UTME in the Nigerian University system.

This study examined the attitude and academic performance of public single-sex (Boys’ and Girls’ only) high school students in the teaching and learning of Agricultural Science in the aspect of practical knowledge of Agriculture. We investigated whether there were significant differences in the mean achievement test scores of students in practical Agriculture in the selected schools. We also examined the relationship between their academic performance in practical agriculture and their attitude to the subject. The study was a descriptive survey design carried out at Ibadan Metropolis, Nigeria. Six public single-sex (Boys’ and Girls’ only) schools were randomly selected from three Local Government Areas (LGAs) within Ibadan Zone comprising eleven LGAs in 2018. Sixty-nine Senior Secondary School (SSS III) students were randomly selected in Boys’ only (3) schools while ninety-seven students were randomly selected in Girls’ only (3) schools giving a total of 166 students that participated in this study. Practical Agricultural Science Students’ Achievement Test (PASSAT) and Students’ Attitude towards Practical Agriculture Questionnaire (SATPAGQ) were used for data collection. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Multiple Comparison techniques and t-test for equality of means. The ANOVA test was significant (p = .00). Post Hoc (Tukey HSD) test, a multiple comparison technique on the ANOVA showed that PASSAT mean scores obtained by one Girls’ only school was significantly different from one Boys’ only schools another two Girls’ only schools’ mean scores at 5% significant level. It was found that availability of school farm, use of instructional materials were not enough to bring about significant boost in academic success in PASSAT especially in three of the schools with less than average mean scores of 34.51, 40.23 and 44.07. The study therefore recommended that government and relevant stakeholders (Parents-Teachers Association, Old Boys’ and Girls’ Association among others) should provide human resources and needed infrastructural facilities for effective teaching and learning of Agricultural Science in both single-sex and Co-educational schools for better academic performance.

Nigeria possesses enormous potentials in the agricultural sector especially in the cassava sub-sector. This paper reviews the cassava production, consumption and utilization along its value chain globally. The paper focuses on Nigeria’s cassava trade outlook and how it can compete favourably with other exporting nations while examining its prospects, strategies for development and challengesthe cassava sub-sector is facing in recent time. Cassava production in Nigeria reached the highest level with an estimated value of 59 million and accounted for 20.4% world share in 2017. Egypt is the only African country ranked among the top ten highest exporters of cassava in the world with export value of $20.7 million and also the highest cassava exporter in Africa even though not amongthe highest producers of cassava in Africa and globally. Cassava is unarguably the most important root crop in Nigeria in terms of consumption. As the highest producer of cassava in the world, Nigeria recorded a small total export value ($1.25million) when compared to other leading producers like Thailand with highest export value of $1.19billion in 2017. Nigeria and the rest of African nations are yet to harness the great trade possibilities in the cassava sub-sector when compared to other regions (like Asia and North America) of the world.