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Agroforestry, the association between trees/shrubs and crops, a widespread practice in West Africa, is presented as a lever for ecological intensification to optimize cereal yields in the face of strong population growth and the fight against climate change. Within the framework of the EU-DESIRA SustainSAHEL project, we aim to develop techniques to spatially assess the effect of trees on millet yields on an intra-field scale using imagery from an UAV equipped with a multispectral camera combined with geostatistical approaches. Indeed, recent advances in earth observation technologies position the UAV as an effective tool for evaluating the agronomic performance of agroforestry systems and for taking into account the intra-field variability of yields caused by environmental conditions, agricultural practices or the presence of trees (Roupsard and al., 2020 ; Leroux and al., 2022). The objective of this study was to estimate millet yields intra-field variability using UAV and up-to-date geostatistical approaches.The study was carried out over the 2018-2022 cropping seasons in one representative Faidherbia parkland of the groundnut basin of Senegal. To that end, a Random Forest (RF) algorithm was first calibrated to estimate millet yield at sub-plot scale using a thresholding classification to eliminate non-vegetation elements and also to integrate texture data, in order to take into account the spatial relationships between pairs of pixels. Millet yields data and vegetation and textural index from aerial images at a flight height of 25 meters acquired in farmers’ plots were used to calibrate the RF model. The RF model was used to upscale yield at the whole field scale thus allowing to obtain a map of millet yield. Then Voronoï diagram, with Faidherbia as a reference, was applied to each yield map, considering each Voronoï region as a zone of influence of its included Faidherbia. We then applied a transformation and rotation matrix to overlay all the zones of influence of a population of 50 Faidherbia by putting all the trees at the same geographical position. Finally, we build an atlas, which is an average structure representative of a population and which makes possible to detect the patterns and properties of the evolution of the population considered, to evaluate the distance and directional effect of Faidherbia on vegetation index of the population and then on millet yield.The RF model is able to explain between 70 and 90 % of the millet yield variability. Then the analysis has shown that the tree has an influence on the millet stand density with a distance-decay effect from the tree. This stand density is about 60 % around the tree and 30 % at 15m from the tree.Key words : Agroforestry, Uav, Machine learning, Image analysis, Geostatistics, Atlas

Background: Although type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are on the rise in Africa, there are few African community-level behavior change interventions for reducing diabetes and hypertension risk. We describe the process used to develop a pilot program adapting the evidence-based CDC Diabetes Prevention Program’s Power to Prevent (DPP-P2P) in two low-income urban communities in Bamako, Mali. Methods: The 12 DPP-P2P group sessions and handouts were converted into culturally appropriate, pictorial presentations including multiple role-plays and demonstrations. Nineteen community health workers and 45 diabetic and hypertensive patients were recruited to give feedback on the sessions delivered in one-month at two community health centers. Changes in activity levels and diet were assessed by pre- and post-tests. Feedback was given after each session, and at the end, by focus groups conducted with both sets of participants. We performed a content analysis of the focus group discussion data and assessed pre and posttest differences in activity and diet using the Chi-square test, using Stata v. 15.1. Results: Participants were very enthusiastic about the program. They suggested more emphasis on involving the family, verifying the low-cost of healthy eating, and including exercise guides. The level of inactivity (less than 1 weekly) dropped from 35.3% to 12.1% (P=0.026), while engaging in some form of physical activity 3 or more times in the previous week rose from 32.3% to 75.8% (PConclusion: This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility and high acceptability of adapting the DPP-P2P delivered through community health workers in a low-income periurban setting of Africa . The high attendance to different sessions, adhesion to physical activities encourage for further effectiveness studies of DPP-P2P adaptation.

Theories of global justice have primarily eschewed race as foundational in the contemporary structures of global inequality, poverty, and violence. A lack of will to theorize global white supremacy contributed to the obfuscation of race as a persistent organizing idea of the global order. Yet, there is a long history of critical scholarship in political theory and international relations that responds to such silences. This article argues that global justice is inherently a racialized discourse, and the architecture of international law and justice is entrenched in and perpetuates racialized hierarchies of humanity. Beyond the theoretical debates too, current critical scholarship engages the architecture of the international justice system and its attendant liberal cosmopolitanism, which rests primarily on legal institutions, that operate in a racialized superstructure.

Non-metallic raw materials are largely unexplored in many African countries. In an attempt to reduce this knowledge gap, kaolin occurrences in three promising regions of southern Mauritania were examined. The aim of the paper is to describe the occurrences and characterize the material in terms of mineralogy and potential technical use in the ceramics industry. The kaolins are geologically associated with various sedimentary rock units in either the Coastal Basin (Kaédi), the Mauritanide Belt (Hassi Abyad) or the Taoudeni Basin (Néma). Geochemical data show Al2O3contents of between 9% and 38% (corresponding to 23–96% kaolinite). Samples from the Hassi Abyad and Kaédi regions have greater kaolinite contents on average and were further investigated mineralogically. The kaolin from the Néma region contained less kaolinite (

The potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a vegetable that ranks fifth in the world for human consumption. Its importance is growing more and more in the Senegalese diet. However, the potato production in Senegal does not meet the needs of the market, which maintains dependence on the outside for the supply of quality seeds. In addition, these imported seeds do not often have phytosanitary qualities required for local production in the Sahelian zone. The in vitro production of microtubers, used as seed, has been shown to be one of the most efficient means for propagation of basic material. To overcome the constraints linked to the supply and availability of potato seeds, with high germination capacity, the impact of the microtuber size on the yield of the plants under semi-controlled conditions was examined. The pre-germinated microtubers were produced in vitro from vitroplants of 3 different varieties (Aida, Atlas, Odessa) adapted to the edaphic-climatic conditions of Senegal. The effects of the seed sizes of microtubers, greater than 4 mm, sown under semi-controlled conditions, on the yield of the plants, result in an increase in the ratio, in the vegetative development of the plants, but also in the number and size of the minitubers harvested. The yield of the plants also depends on the variety. It can therefore be envisaged to produce local potato seeds from microtubers and minitubers.

Annona senegalensis (Pers.) or Annone from Senegal is a species found in the West African savannah and para-littoral sands. It offers real possibilities of socio-economic use, particularly in the medical, nutritional, ecosystem conservation and poverty alleviation fields. However, this wild species remained not fully exploited despite its potentialities. As a result, there is a need to regenerate this species; therefore, the in vitro propagation from adult material was undertaken. For this purpose, axillary nodes from plant regrowth taken from elderly subjects were aseptically introduced into different media enriched or not with phytohormones. Among the 3 culture media tested, that of Murashige and Skoog (MS, 1962) was the most reactive and made it possible to develop a micropropagation protocol for adult material of A. senegalensis. Thus, the introduction of these explants in media containing cytokinins (BAP and Kinetin) significantly increased the reactivity compared to media without hormones. If the best average numbers of shoots (2.3) and nodes (5.3) are obtained in MS + BAP 2 mg·L−1, with a reactivity of 91.66%, the addition of 0.1 mg·L−1 NAA gave the best average length (8.25 cm) of vitroplants. An induction time of 3 days into darkness with IBA at 50 mg·L−1, followed by a transfer to hormone-free expression medium (MS/2) under light, resulted in a rooting rate of 58.33%. After the gradual weaning of the young plants in a mini-greenhouse, under shade for 3 weeks, 50% of the plants survived. This in vitro regeneration protocol can therefore be adopted for the clonal propagation of adult material of A. senegalensis. However, the rooting rate can be improved by trying other hormonal combinations based on auxins or by considering ex-vitro rooting during shade weaning.

Background: Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a severe form of venous thromboembolic disease. In Africa, prevalence of PE in hospitalized medical patients varies among studies. Objective: Aim of this work was to study the epidemiological, clinical, therapeutic and evolution aspects of PE in the medicine department of Mali’s Hospital Bamako-Mali. Methodology: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study carried out from January 01, 2017 to December 31, 2020 in the medicine department of Mali’s hospital Bamako, including all inpatients admitted for PE during the study period. Results: Of 1814 hospitalized patients, 54 patients had pulmonary embolism. Hospital frequency of pulmonary embolism was 2.97%. Predominance was female and sex-ratio M/F was 0.38. Mean age in our series was 54.24 ±1.19 years. Predisposing factors to pulmonary embolism were dominated by obesity 37%, high blood pressure 35.2% and history of cardiovascular disease 20.4%. Dominant signs were dyspnoea and chest pain in 83.3% and 70.4% of cases respectively. Probability of pulmonary embolism was high in 40.7% according to Wells score. Patients with right heart failure were 22.2%. EKG showed sinus tachycardia70.4% and S1Q3 aspect 7.4%. Heart right chambers were dilated at transthoracic echography 42.6%. Obstruction was bilateral at chest angio CT for 51.9% and proximal for 42.6%. Deep venous thrombosis was associated at EP in 16.6%. Treatment was low weight molecular heparin followed by vitamin K antagonist or direct oral anticoagulant. One patient was successfully treated by thrombolysis. Hospital mortality was 16.7%. Conclusion: PE is a serious disease probably underdiagnosed. It is responsible of important mortality.

Green spiny lobster is one of the highest economically valued fisheries resources in Senegal. However, knowledge on this species are relatively old and insufficient. To realize this study on reproductive biology of Panulirusregius, sampling has been carried out between April and September 2017 from small-scale fisheries landed catches at the Petite Cote, Senegal. The length at first sexual maturity computed from the body allometric relationship according to the cephalothorax length (CL) was 67.95 mm in females and 67.51 mm in males. The CL at which 50% of the females were mature during the breeding season (CL50) was 94.50 mm. Individual fecundity was between 229,860 and 638,775 eggs depending on CL of individuals. In the catches surveyed, 64% of landed individuals had a total length (TL) less than 200 mm, which is the minimum landing length in accordance with the Senegalese fisheries law. This result indicates the difficulties to apply management measures relative to this fishery, which could compromise its sustainability in Senegalese Petite Cote.

From Bamiyan to Timbuktu and Palmyra, Islamic fundamentalist groups have willfully destroyed cultural edifices which were listed as world heritage sites. Yet, beyond the criminal acts and their sho...

Following the attacks in Timbuktu in 2012, the ICC’s Al Mahdi case became the first instance where one perpetrator was solely charged with the war crime of destruction of cultural heritage. The ICC prioritized the crimes against cultural heritage at the expense of other types of atrocities in Northern Mali for two reasons: expediency, and the convergence of interests between the Court, the Malian state, and the international community. This study finds that the international community, the state, and the local community do not have the same conceptions and approaches regarding cultural heritage, its protection, or its value.

IntroductionAs of December 2021, 22 countries and one jurisdiction in WHO African Region (AFRO) have adopted pictorial health warning labels on tobacco packaging, but only 13 have implemented them. In 2014, Senegal enacted a comprehensive tobacco control law, which requires strong provisions on tobacco packaging and labelling. The objective of this study was to assess the level of compliance with these provisions in Senegal 6 months after implementation.MethodsData collection took place in Senegal’s capital city of Dakar across 12 districts in February 2018, following the Tobacco Pack Surveillance System Field Protocol developed by the Institute for Global Tobacco Control at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Unique tobacco packs were purchased from a total of 48 tobacco vendors, and compliance with new packaging and labelling provisions was assessed.ResultsIn total, seven unique cigarette packs were confirmed to be legally available for sale in Dakar, Senegal. All packs complied with all health warning provisions (type, size, location, language and quitline information) as well as bans on quantitative emissions yields. However, no pack complied with the descriptive constituents and emissions statement required on the lateral side, and four of the seven packs violated the ban on misleading brand descriptors.ConclusionsAFRO countries have made substantial progress in adopting comprehensive tobacco control laws that bring them closer into alignment with the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. This study found areas of effective implementation of FCTC recommended packaging and labelling requirements, as well as areas in need of stronger enforcement.

Introduction après une phase pilote, le Sénégal est le premier pays en Afrique de l´Ouest à introduire le vaccin contre le cancer du col de l´utérus dans le Programme élargi de vaccination. Malgré la gratuité et la disponibilité du vaccin, la couverture est restée faible. L´objectif de cette étude était d´identifier les facteurs associés à la vaccination des filles contre le virus du papillome humain. Méthodes il s´agissait d´une étude analytique de type cas-témoin réalisée du 4 au 20 janvier 2020 à Dakar. La population d´étude était constituée de parents ou tuteurs de filles âgées de 9 à 10 ans. Nous avons réalisé un échantillonnage en grappes, des entretiens structurés directs et une revue documentaire. Les caractéristiques sociodémographiques, les connaissances des parents/tuteurs et les informations sur l´acte vaccinal ont été collectées à l´aide d´un questionnaire standardisé. Une régression logistique a permis d´estimer les odds-ratio. Résultats au cours de cette étude, 510 cas et 510 témoins, soient 1020 parents/tuteurs étaient interviewés. Les facteurs significatifs associés à la vaccination des filles étaient: l´instruction des parents/tuteurs (ORa=1,97; [1,81-2,25]), la connaissance de la maladie (ORa=3,05; [2,75-4,53], le revenu élevé du ménage (ORa=1,21; [1,13-1,85]), la crainte des effets secondaires (ORa=0,35; [0,27-0,44]), la réception de messages via internet/réseaux sociaux (ORa=0,54; [0,41-0,92]) et les horaires de vaccination adaptées à la communauté (ORa= 2,12 [1,59-2,64]). Conclusion la vaccination des filles peut être améliorée par un renforcement des connaissances des parents à travers des canaux appropriés et une meilleure organisation des services de santé.

L’agriculture a constitué pendant longtemps le socle de l’économie sénégalaise par sa contribution à la sécurité alimentaire des populations urbaines et rurales et la provision de ressources en devises, grâce notamment au dynamisme des exportations de produits arachidiers. Ces dernières décennies, la contribution de l’agriculture à la formation du produit intérieur brut a progressivement diminué. Malgré tout, le secteur a...

Third-order optical nonlinearity (TONL) of chalcogenide glasses (ChGs) in Ge-In-S (GIS) ternary system is characterized at two near-infrared wavelengths of 0.8 μm and 1.064 μm. It is found that the GIS ChGs with non-stoichiometric compositions exhibit extremely large TONL properties, and its origin has been explained from both aspects of glass structure and wavelength-dispersion dependence of the TONL properties. Nevertheless, calculation of figure of merits indicates that the GIS ChGs are suitable for n2-based TONL optical devices at long wavelength, while suitable for β-based devices at short wavelength.

The beam waist relative variation (BWRV) method known as a Z-scan based technique is used to demonstrate its feasibility in characterizing the thermal effects induced by a continuous laser beam in different materials. A study of several classical solvent-based solutions (water, ethanol, methanol …) is carried out before introducing the extension of the BWRV method to laterally map the tested sample. We show that the transverse xy-scan of the sample allows to extract an image of the phase shift due to local thermal heating. This new device, called XYZ-scan, is designed for the thermal characterization of inhomogeneous samples. An example will be given on an inhomogeneous 1.6 μ m thick thin film doped with silver nanoparticles.

Introduction:après une phase pilote, le Sénégal est le premier pays en Afrique de l´Ouest à introduire le vaccin contre le cancer du col de l´utérus dans le Programme élargi de vaccination. Malgré la gratuité et la disponibilité du vaccin, la couverture est restée faible. L´objectif de cette étude était d´identifier les facteurs associés à la vaccination des filles contre le virus du papillome humain. Méthodes:il s´agissait d´une étude analytique de type cas-témoin réalisée du 4 au 20 janvier 2020 à Dakar. La population d´étude était constituée de parents ou tuteurs de filles âgées de 9 à 10 ans. Nous avons réalisé un échantillonnage en grappes, des entretiens structurés directs et une revue documentaire. Les caractéristiques sociodémographiques, les connaissances des parents/tuteurs et les informations sur l´acte vaccinal ont été collectées à l´aide d´un questionnaire standardisé. Une régression logistique a permis d´estimer les odds-ratio. Résultats:au cours de cette étude, 510 cas et 510 témoins, soient 1020 parents/tuteurs étaient interviewés. Les facteurs significatifs associés à la vaccination des filles étaient: l´instruction des parents/tuteurs (ORa=1,97; [1,81-2,25]), la connaissance de la maladie (ORa=3,05; [2,75-4,53], le revenu élevé du ménage (ORa=1,21; [1,13-1,85]), la crainte des effets secondaires (ORa=0,35; [0,27-0,44]), la réception de messages via internet/réseaux sociaux (ORa=0,54; [0,41-0,92]) et les horaires de vaccination adaptées à la communauté (ORa= 2,12 [1,59-2,64]). Conclusion:la vaccination des filles peut être améliorée par un renforcement des connaissances des parents à travers des canaux appropriés et une meilleure organisation des services de santé.

Green spiny lobster is one of the highest economically valued fisheries resources in Senegal. However, knowledge on this species are relatively old and insufficient. To realize this study on reproductive biology of Panulirusregius, sampling has been carried out between April and September 2017 from small-scale fisheries landed catches at the Petite Cote, Senegal. The length at first sexual maturity computed from the body allometric relationship according to the cephalothorax length (CL) was 67.95 mm in females and 67.51 mm in males. The CL at which 50% of the females were mature during the breeding season (CL50) was 94.50 mm. Individual fecundity was between 229,860 and 638,775 eggs depending on CL of individuals. In the catches surveyed, 64% of landed individuals had a total length (TL) less than 200 mm, which is the minimum landing length in accordance with the Senegalese fisheries law. This result indicates the difficulties to apply management measures relative to this fishery, which could compromise its sustainability in Senegalese Petite Cote. &nbsp

Since November 2018, several countries in West and Central Africa have reported mortalities in donkeys and horses. Specifically, more than 66,000 horses and donkeys have succumbed to disease in Burkina Faso, Chad, Cameroon, The Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. Strangles caused by Streptococcus equi subsp equi, African Horse Sickness (AHS) virus, and Equine influenza virus (EIV) were all suspected as potential causative agents. This study reports the identification of EIV in field samples collected in Niger and Senegal. Phylogenetic analysis of the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase genes revealed that the identified viruses belonged to clade 1 of the Florida sublineage and were very similar to viruses identified in Nigeria in 2019. Interestingly, they were also more similar to EIVs from recent outbreaks in South America than to those in Europe and the USA. This is one of the first reports providing detailed description and characterization of EIVs in West and Central Africa region.