This thesis analyses the food crisis in sub-Saharan Africa in the 1980s and 1990s, identifies roots of the problem, and proposes strategies of sustainable development based on self-sufficiency in food production for domestic needs. The main goal of this research has been to devise development strategies centered on development of the food production sector. The thesis strongly suggests that countries of the region should consider developing the food production sector to experience any meaningful development, and to escape a dark future of food shortages and food dependency on developed economies. Investigation into Development Economics, Dependency, Underdevelopment, and Modernization theories has provided a basis to justify that improvement of the food production sector is an urgent necessity for sub-Saharan African countries. The thesis uses a comparative analytical methodology based on a historical study of Kenya from the colonial period to the 1990s. The food crisis is identified as a common problem for many countries in sub-Saharan Africa and its general causes are investigated: ( 1) low output productivity of traditional methods and technology, (2) harsh ecological environment with frequent droughts and soil erosion, (3) neglect of food production in the policies and priorities of governments, ( 4) poor marketing and distribution of foodstuffs, (5) fast population growth. Kenya is then used as a model to confirm the hypothesis that roots of the crisis are strongly linked to the colonial setting of these economies as cash crop and raw material producers. Also, neglect of the food production sector in government policy is matched in the Kenyan case. Kenya's food crisis can be explained by two sets of factors. On the input side of the food production sector, reasons found were ( 1) government emphasis on cash crops to the neglect of food production, and (2) underdeveloped technology and agricultural methods used in food production. On the output side, food shortages are due to ( 1) an inefficient marketing and distribution system, (2) inefficient pricing policies, and (3) fast population growth. A model of five solutions is presented which puts emphasis, on the input side, on (1) a shift of policies from cash crop production to accommodate food crop production as a viable economic development policy, (2) curbing food imports, and (3) boosting domestic food production by empowering women, attracting men to the food production activity, reorganizing production, and improving agricultural technology and methods. On the output side the solutions call for ( 4) reorganizing and improving the distribution, and marketing, and pricing of foodstuffs, and (5) developing rural economies around the food production sector and the agribusiness industry.

Thesis (MScEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Developed countries have led the way in the implementation of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), with the main objectives of improving road safety and efficiency. Current ITS solutions are heavily dependent on advanced and expensive technologies, and do not necessarily meet the unique requirements of public transportation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The informal minibus taxi sector dominates public transport in SSA in general, and in South Africa in particular, and is notoriously dangerous – leading to many fatalities annually. This work presents the design and testing of a sensing and reporting system for public transport in SSA. The system contributes to improving the safety and efficiency of minibus taxis in SSA. The system provides three core functions, namely, reckless driving detection, multiple occupancy detection, and wireless reporting to a visualised online platform. The reckless driving detection system implements a novel model that augments inertial vehicle acceleration data with GPS speed information. The model is based on standards used in road design, and takes into account the relationship between a vehicle’s tyres and the road surface. A lateral acceleration threshold, which is speed dependant, and a longitudinal acceleration threshold are suggested to detect reckless driving. Acceleration data is filtered to remove both high-frequency noise and zero-frequency offset, and compared to the thresholds to detect reckless driving events. The occupancy detection system detects multiple occupants in the minibus taxi using low-cost capacitive sensor electrodes, which utilise the electrical field properties of a human body for presence detection. A simplified mathematical model was created to calculate the expected capacitance on the occupancy sensor electrode, and was compared to the measured capacitance in the minibus taxi. The theoretical and empirical results demonstrate that the capacitance of an occupied seat is more than double that of an unoccupied seat. Occupants were clearly detected in various scenarios, such as different occupant sizes, water on seat, various seated positions on the sensor, etc. The wireless reporting inside the vehicle is implemented using a ZigBee network on an Arduino platform. The extra-vehicle wireless reporting uses the existing SSA cellular network, and the online data visualisation is implemented on Trinity Telecoms’ SMART platform. The complete sensing and reporting system is implemented as a prototype, and tested in South African and Ugandan minibus taxis. The results demonstrate that the system achieves the set goals, and could be used to make transport in SSA safer and more efficient. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Ontwikkelde lande neem die voortou met die implementering van Intelligente Vervoer Stelsels (IVS) met die hoof doelwit om padveiligheid en vervoerstelsels se effektiwiteit te verbeter. Huidige stelsels wat ontwikkel is vir IVS is baie afhanklik van duur en gevorderde tegnologieë en bevredig dus nie die huidige vereistes binne die openbare vervoer stelsel van Sub-Sahara Afrika (SSA) nie. Die minibus taxi sektor domineer die openbare vervoer stelsel in SSA en meer spesifiek in Suid-Afrika, en daar is jaarliks duisende ongelukke waarvan baie tot sterftes lei. In hierdie werkstuk word daar ’n stelsel voorgestel wat minibus taxi’s in SSA kan monitor. Die doel van die stelsel is om die openbare vervoerstelsel se effektiwiteit en padveiligheid te verbeter. Die stelsel bestaan uit: roekelose bestuur opsporing, veelvoudigepassasier waarneming (monitor van aantal passasiers in voertuig) en network verslagdoening na ’n aanlyn platform. ’n Nuwe model is ontwikkel om roekelose bestuur op te spoor – deur die voertuig se versnelling en spoed te kombineer in berekenings. Die model se berekenings is ook gebasseer op die verwantskap tussen die voertuig se bande en die padoppervlak. Roekelose bestuur word bespeur deur ’n laterale en longitudinale drempel wat spoed afhanklik is. Versnellingsdata word gefilter om hoë-frekwensie geraas en nul-frekwensie afwykings te verwyder. Gefilterde data word dan met die gepaste drempel vergelyk om te bepaal of die bestuurder ’n roekelose beweging uitgevoer het. Die veelvoudige-passasier waarnemingstelsel is getoets in ’n minibus taxi en bestaan uit ’n lae-koste kapasitiewe sensor stelsel. Die stelsel meet ’n passasier se liggaamlike elektriese lading. ’n Wiskundige uitrukking van die kapasitiewe sensor stelsel is bepaal wat ’n teoretiese kapasitansie waarde gee. Dié waarde is met die gemete kapasitansie op die sensor elektrode vergelyk. Die resultate bevestig dat die ontwikkelde stelsels duidelik ’n sittende passasier kan identifiseer. Verskeie toetse is gedoen om te verseker dat die kapasitiewe stelsel gepas is vir die heterogene minibus taxi omgewing. Draadlose verslagdoening word binne die voertuig uitgevoer met behulp van ’n ZigBee netwerk wat geïmplementeer is op ’n Arduino platform. Die buite-voertuig verslagdoening stelsel gebruik bestaande sellulêre kommunikasie netwerke en die inligting word dan op Trinity Telecoms’ SMART platform visueel vertoon. Die volledige ontwikkelde stelsel is as ’n prototipe geïmplementeer en getoets in Suid-Afrikaanse en Ugandese minibus taxi’s. Die resultate toon aan dat die stelsel die doelwitte bereik en dat dit gebruik kan word om die vervoer stelsel in Suid Afrika veiliger en meer doeltreffend te maak.

Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 1999. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Globally the mining and minerals market is experiencing a decline. With this decline, focus is turning to Africa as an unexplored mineral wealth. In terms of global exploration expenditure, Africa is said to be experiencing the highest percentage growth of any other regional budget. The Halliburton company is reputed to be the premier source for the engineering and construction of refineries, chemical plants, and pipelines along with office buildings, infrastructure systems, government facilities, and much more. The South African office has recently established a mining and minerals division, which has experienced certain measures of success, however, a failure of the division appears to be the total lack of a significant growth strategy. This has resulted in the division becoming a one-client business. The Sub-Saharan market is characterised by unique challenges, which require a strong culture aligned with its market environment, strategic choice and distinctive competencies to be successful in the market. The purpose of this study project is primarily to make a contribution to the formulation of strategic direction in order to obtain practical implementation guidelines given the unique opportunities and challenges presented in this market. The formulation of the strategy for the mining and minerals business unit is achieved firstly be analysing the Sub-Saharan market, the dominant economic traits, and conducting a full industry and competitive analysis. Secondly, organisation situation analysis of Kellogg Brown & Root is conducted in order to assess the competitive positioning of the firm and distinct capabilities that the firm possesses, and those necessary for success in the market. This will include conducting an analysis of the internal strengths and weaknesses, of the company, and the external opportunities and threats facing the company. From the analyses conducted, strategic challenges are identified and suggestions are made to address these challenges. A strategic intent is proposed together with a mission statement, and a strategic and financial statement of objectives is developed. These statements of intent are not intended to prescribe to the firm and it's employees what the strategic approach should be, but to form the basis of further discussions and research and should not give way to misleading and unwarranted interpretations. The strategy formulated is superimposed onto the corporate strategy and no major discordance is evident. From the analyses conducted and strategy formulation process, suggestions are made that could provide manageable guidelines for the final implementation of the strategic business plan for the minerals division. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Tans word 'n afname in die mynbou en minerale mark wêreldwyd ondervind. As gevolg van hierdie afname het die fokus na Afrika as 'n onverkende minerale rykdom verskuif. In terme van wêreldwye eksplorasie besteding, word beweer dat Afrika die hoogste persentasie groei ten opsigte van enige ander streeksbegroting ondervind. Die Halliburton maatskappy word beskou as 'n vername bron vir die ontwikkeling en konstruksie van raffinaderye, chemiese aanlegte, pyplyne, geassosieerde kantoor geboue, infrastrukture, regerings fasiliteite en vele meer. Die Suid Afrikaanse kantoor het onlangs 'n mynwese en minerale afdeling op die been gebring wat al 'n mate van sukses ondervind het. Dit wil egter voorkom asof 'n tekortkoming van die afdeling 'n gebrek aan 'n doelgerigte groei strategie is. Dit het tot gevolg gehad dat die afdeling tot 'n een-kliënt-saak verval het. Die Sub-Sahara mark word gekenmerk deur unieke uitdagings wat 'n sterk kultuur inlyn met die mark omgewing, strategiese keuses en relevante bevoegdhede verg om suksesvol in die mark te wees. Die hoofdoel van hierdie studie is om 'n bydrae te maak tot die formulering van 'n strategiese koers met die doel om praktiese implementerings riglyne daar te stel, met inagneming van die unieke geleenthede en uitdagings wat in die mark bestaan. Die formulering van 'n strategie vir die mynwese en minerale besigheidsektor word eerstens verkry deur 'n analise van die Sub-Sahara mark, dominerende ekonomiese eienskappe en 'n ontleding van die industriele en mededingende omgewing. Tweedens word 'n organisaie situasie analise van Kellogg Brown & Root uitgevoer om die kompeterings posisie, huidige kenmerkende bekwaamhede en die wat benodig word vir sukses in die mark, van die maatskappy vas te stel. Dit sluit 'n ontleding van die interne swak en sterk punte van die maatskappy, asook die eksterne geleenthede en bedreigings vir die maatskappy in. Vanuit hierdie analise word strategiese uitdagings geidentifiseer en word voorstelle gemaak om hierdie uitdagings aan te spreek. 'n Strategiese oogmerk, tesame met 'n doelwitstelling word voorgestel, en 'n strategiese en finansiele doelstelling word ontwikkel. Die doel van hierdie studie projek is nie om aan die maatskappy en sy werknemers 'n strategiese benadering voor te skryf nie, maar om die basis te vorm vir verdere bespreking en navorsing. Die studie moet nie aanleiding gee tot verkeerde en misleidende vertolkings nie. Die geformuleerde strategie is ook met die huidige korporatiewe strategie vergelyk en geen noemenswaardige verskille is ooglopend nie. Vanuit die analise en die strategiese formuleringsproses word praktiese riglyne voorgestel vir die implementering van die strategiese besigheidsplan vir die mynwese en minerale afdeling.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(医学) / 甲第18165号 / 医博第3885号 / 新制||医||1003(附属図書館) / 31023 / 京都大学大学院医学研究科医学専攻 / (主査)教授 中山 健夫, 教授 髙折 晃史, 教授 中原 俊隆 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Medical Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

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No description available.

Master of Arts / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Matthew R. Sanderson / Food crises in Kenya are recurring phenomena. Despite widespread and perennial famines, Kenya is exporting food while importing food aid. This study focuses on the concept and question of food security in Kenya. If Kenya can produce and even export food products, why does the country still import food aid every year? Why is the country classified as food insecure? And why does the country still suffer from recurrent famines? Drawing on social science theory from the political economy of food and agriculture, this study postulates that the contradiction between exporting food and importing food aid is related to Kenya‟s subordinate position in the world economy. Using a comparative-historical, in-depth case study research design, this research descriptively explores the relationship between trends in food aid, trade, production and food security. The study finds that the relationship between food trade and aid with food security is mixed in Kenya. Aid and trade have not strongly enhanced food security in Kenya, but food insecurity in Kenya has not gotten markedly worse.

<p> <b>Background:</b> As the world becomes more urban and slums continue to grow in developing countries, research is needed to measure utilization of health services, health outcomes, and access to health care providers among urban slum residents. Estimating trends in urban health among slum residents relative to other urban inhabitants provides evidence of health disparities for priority-setting by program implementers and policy-makers. Research on the negative effects of slum environments on human health has started to emerge, yet there remains a paucity of evidence on morbidity trends over time and inequalities between slum residents and other urban residents. The goal of this study is to quantify maternal and child health care access, utilization and outcomes among urban slum dwellers in selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia over time. These three areas are addressed in three separate dissertation manuscripts. </p><p> <b>Methods:</b> This dissertation offers an in-depth analysis of household and health facility data to measure trends in maternal and child health care utilization and health outcomes among slum residents over time, as well as inequalities in access, utilization and outcomes between other urban and rural populations. Manuscripts 1 and 2 apply a unique spatial inequality approach to existing population-based household data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) to identify a sample of slum residents. Manuscript 1 assesses trends in maternal and child health care (MCH) utilization and health outcomes using DHS data in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Nepal, Nigeria and Tanzania between 2003 and 2011. In Manuscript 2, a trend analysis is performed in Kenya to examine diarrheal disease and acute respiratory infection (ARI) in children under-five in both slums and other urban and rural areas during the roll-out of a national slum upgrading program. Manuscript 3 further explores local-level dimensions of health care access from two slums in Kenya, generating evidence on service availability and readiness in slums. In this section, we analyze health facility data collected using a modified version of the World Health Organization&rsquo;s (WHO) Service Availability and Readiness Assessment (SARA). </p><p> <b>Results:</b> Manuscript 1 reports significant disparities between slum dwellers and other urban residents&rsquo; utilization of key maternal health interventions&mdash;appropriate antenatal care (ANC), tetanus toxoid vaccination, and skilled delivery&mdash;in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya and Nigeria. In addition, child health outcomes examined in Manuscript 1 suggest that the prevalence of diarrheal disease in children under-five is declining among other urban and rural residents, but not significantly among slum residents. Nigeria was the only exception, with significant declines in diarrheal disease prevalence in slums over the study period. Because ARI improvements are found across populations, the data suggests this condition is not unique to slum settings. The trend analysis in Manuscript 2 supports these findings&mdash;ARI is declining steadily over time not only among slum residents, but also among other urban and rural residents as well. Diarrheal disease prevalence, on the other hand, has not changed significantly over time, with stable levels among slum dwellers between 1993 and 2014. In Manuscript 3, analysis of general service availability and readiness in two locations&mdash;the Nyalenda slum of Kisumu and the Langas slum of Eldoret&mdash;reveals that slums perform far below recommended benchmarks set by WHO. When we compare service availability and readiness indicators with regional, urban, and national averages, in general slums in Kisumu and Eldoret perform poorly. However, there were some instances&mdash;typically involving standard precautions for infection control&mdash;where Kenyan slums actually performed better than comparison sites. </p><p> <b>Conclusions:</b> This research provides a comprehensive view of health systems dimensions in urban slums in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Manuscript 1 confirms evidence of an urban penalty and emphasizes a need to focus on maternal health care utilization in slums. Manuscript 2 detects little improvement in child health outcomes among slum dwellers in Kenya during the roll-out of the country&rsquo;s national slum upgrading program. An integrated approach to health and urban policy development is recommended based on these results. Manuscript 3 identifies areas of service availability and readiness in two Kenyan slums that fall below global targets and are in need of improvement in order to achieve desired health outcomes. Taken together, this study makes a significant contribution to the crucial demand for research on growing marginalized urban populations in developing countries.</p>

<p> Men in sub-Saharan Africa are less likely than women to use HIV services and, thus, are more likely to die from AIDS. While much of the literature argues that men&rsquo;s views of masculinity keep them from services, I use the theory of gendered organizations to provide another perspective. In this dissertation, I use a mixed methods approach to examine the gendered organization of facility-based HIV testing services in southern Malawi and how the organization of services creates additional barriers to men&rsquo;s use of care. </p><p> I combine four types of data: (1) survey data with facility clients to assess if quality of care differs by sex of client; (2) in-depth interviews with healthcare providers and policy makers to examine perceptions of men as clients; (3) participant observation in health facilities to understand how institutional protocols are enacted at the local level; and (4) international and national policy documents to situate local health institutions within broader global constructs of gender and HIV priorities. </p><p> I find that heterosexual men have become an invisible category within both international and national HIV policy. When they are included, they are described as the problem, not part of the solution to HIV epidemics. On the ground, the organization of HIV testing services has followed suit. </p><p> Health institutions, like other organizations, are not gender-neutral. Men in southern Malawi were not recruited for health services, were less likely than women to receive health education when they did attend a facility, and were less likely to have access to HIV testing because services were, at times, only offered during hours for antenatal services. Furthermore, HIV testing was often located near antenatal services, again contributing to the perception that testing was designed for women &ndash; because it was. Based on these findings, I argue that HIV testing is gendered across three levels of the health institution: (1) the organizational HIV policies; (2) the physical environment in which testing occurs; and (3) interactions within facilities that require clients to enact qualities typically viewed as feminine in order to successfully receive care (e.g., waiting long hours, being compliant, and being a caregiver).</p>

<p> Biomedical and behavioral interventions can virtually eliminate the risk of vertical (i.e., mother-to-child) HIV transmission. Pregnant and breastfeeding women&rsquo;s adherence to prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) interventions, however, remains a challenge across sub-Saharan Africa. Using a concurrent mixed methods approach, including a survey and semi-structured interviews, I test whether a relationship exists between women&rsquo;s low power within married couples (based on domains from the Theory of Gender and Power) and adherence across the PMTCT cascade of care, including drug adherence during and after pregnancy, safe infant feeding practices, and pediatric HIV testing. The results of this study indicate that intimate partner violence is particularly detrimental to PMTCT adherence. Certain PMTCT protocols are also affected by partner controlling behaviors, participation in household decisions, and economic dependence, but not to the same extent as violence. Women with low power cite a lack of partner support and an unwillingness to disclose their HIV status to the husband due to fear of violence or abandonment as reasons for low PMTCT adherence. Conversely, women with high power cite partner support and the ability to prioritize PMTCT, sometimes even over the marriage, as enabling adherence. Based on these results, augmented efforts to address gender power dynamics both in society and within the home are recommended to promote the health of HIV-positive women and their families.</p>