Thesis (B.A.)--Amherst College, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [98]-107). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.

Thesis (M.S. in Defense Analysis)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2005. / Thesis Advisor(s): Hy Rothstein. Includes bibliographical references (p. 99-107). Also available online.

Thesis (M.A. in Security Studies (Civil-Military Relations))--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2005. / Thesis Advisor(s): Donald Abenheim, Hans E. Peters. Includes bibliographical references (p. 55-57). Also available online.

Thesis (B.A.)--Amherst College, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [98]-107).

M.A.

No description available.

The eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has experienced constant instability and conflict since 1996. With the collapse of the state of Zaire and the renaming of the country by the late Laurent Desire Kabila in late 1996, there were high expectations from the Congolese population that the country was going to move forward. However, in less than two years, the central government in Kinshasa was facing a new rebellion from the east of the country, followed by widespread violence and criminal activities by armed and militia groups. Although military intervention from Zimbabwe, Namibia and Angola halted the rebellion march to Kinshasa, the capital city of DRC, and allowed the DRC government to sign peace agreement with its opponents in 2002; since then, the prospect of peace in the eastern DRC, especially the North and South Kivus seems bleak. Since 2002, that region has been the theatre of armed and militia groups (both local and foreign), owing to, in the views of various experts, the presence of mineral resources to support their criminal activities, as well as the economic interests of regional actors to create proxy militia and armed groups in the absence of central government in much of eastern DRC. The purpose and rationale of this study is to critically identify actors in the postconflict reconstruction process, and examine the role of mineral resources among other perpetuating factors of the protracted conflict in eastern DRC, in order to arrive at a comprehensive analysis of the reasons for the failure of peace building and post-conflict reconstruction processes that have been undertaken. This study aims to fill a gap in available literature, by pointing to some conflict drivers and factors which have previously been overlooked in post-conflict reconstruction, and in existing research on the topic, especially the role of mineral resources in sustaining conflict. A thorough conceptualization of relevant conflict theory and a historical overview of the conflict in DRC were provided as a point of departure in order to understand other factors that contribute to the intractability of conflict in eastern DRC, this study found that those factors were rooted in the legacy of colonialism; the bad leadership under both the colonial powers and subsequent government of Joseph Mobutu, manipulation and politicization of ethnic identities especially in the South and North Kivu and the geopolitical location of the eastern DRC. This study further established that the presence of mineral resources in eastern DRC indeed contributes to the continued insecurity in that region by providing succour to armed groups, thus undermining peace agreements especially the Pretoria agreement that formally ended hostilities in 2002. Furthermore, the study found that the issue of mineral resources is not the sole driver of the eastern DRC conflict, as the issues of ethnic polarisation especially, discrimination against Kinyarwanda speaking Congolese in the east, and the view that only military means can solve this problem; coupled with other security threats including the presence of foreign militia groups motivate the neighbouring countries of Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi to constantly meddle in DRC's internal affairs. The study suggests that additional research be conducted to further investigate the regional dimensions of the conflict and how perceived interests in mineral revenue contribute to the polarisation of the population in eastern DRC; leading to the proliferation of armed groups.

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1985 R337 / Master of Science

BACKGROUND: Micronutrient deficiency (vitamin A, iron, and iodine) is highly prevalent in the Dominican Republic as indicated by food consumption patterns, which are not reflective of consumption of micronutrient dense foods. Previous studies (Neves, Ramalho, Padilha, & Saunders, 2014) have shown that nutrition education offered by prenatal providers has a positive impact on nutrition outcomes in mothers and children. Little research exists which examines the difference in micronutrient consumption among mothers in the Dominican Republic. The aim of this study was to determine differences in micronutrient rich food consumption of mothers in the Dominican Republic based on type of prenatal provider (General practitioner, Obstetrics/gynecology (OBGYN) or no Provider). METHODS: The 2007 Dominican Republic DHS dataset was employed for this study. Odds ratios from multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine association between sources of prenatal service and micronutrient food intake. Statistical adjustments were made for residence, wealth index, education, marital status, smoking age and number children ever had. RESULTS: Compared with mothers who did not utilize any of the prenatal services, mothers who sought care from General practitioners and OBGYN had increased odds of consuming vitamin A, iodine and iron micronutrient rich foods, adjusting for residence, wealth index, education, marital status, smoking age and mother’s total number of children. However, the associations were not statistically significant. Compared to mothers who did not use prenatal care, mothers who used the services of General practitioners and OB/GYNs had greater odds, (OR=1.09; 95% CI:0.85-1.41) and (OR=1.29; 95% CI:1.01-1.65) respectively, of consuming at least one micronutrient food. Compared to mothers who did not use prenatal care, mothers who used the services of General practitioners (OR=1.31; 95% CI:1.00-1.70) and OB/GYNs and (OR=1.36; 95% CI:1.05-1.75), had greater odds of consuming at least two micronutrient foods. The corresponding odds ratios for consuming all three micronutrients for mothers using the services of General practitioners and OBGYN were 1.48 (95% CI=0.80-2.74) and 1.51 (95% CI=0.84-2.74), respectively. Prenatal Care and Micronutrient Dense Foods 3 DISCUSSION: Improvements and access to programs providing nutrition education for prenatal care providers, and medical and nutrition assistance to poor mothers may help to increase micronutrient rich food consumption in the Dominican Republic. KEY WORDS: micronutrient, diet, maternal, Dominican Republic

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy