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Investigating the Nigerian Leadership Capability and its Impact in Development and SocietyNweke, James E. Conable 01 January 2018 (has links)
Despite Nigeria's abundance of human and natural resources, after 57 years of independence, most Nigerians live in absolute poverty. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine the extent to which the Nigerian leadership exercised leadership capability. The primary research question investigated leadership actions that facilitated or undermined development and good governance objectives. This study adopted critical thinking leadership framework, as developed by the author. The primary data used in this study came from Afrobarometer surveys, round 4, 5, and combined data round 6, which is an updated version of independent surveys administered between 1999 and 2016. Also, data from the Transparency International, the World Bank, and the World Economic Forum were used to complement the Afrobarometer surveys. This study used descriptive statistics, multiple regression analysis, analysis of covariance, and multivariate analysis of covariance. Study results suggest Nigerian leadership exhibits self-centered attitudes toward development and good governance. Hence, the observed outcomes include poor government performance, weak economic management and governance, a high-level of ethical and financial corruption, and eroded public trust in government. It is an indication of a weak leadership capability and an absence of critical thinking leadership. This study recommends a change in the way the Nigerian government recruits top public servants if Nigeria seeks to curtail ethical and financial corruption and achieve its development objectives. This study is expected to contribute to positive social change by offering the Nigerian policymakers recommendations that are essential to address the issues associated with weak leadership capability among the Nigerian leadership.
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The liberalization of the mass media in Africa and its impact on indigenous languagesMusau, Paul M. 09 August 2012 (has links) (PDF)
Mass communication through the print and the electronic media has not been spared by the post-Cold-War wind of change that is sweeping across Africa and the rest of the world. According to Wilcox (1974: 37), in 1974 over 70 percent of all the newspapers that were printed in Africa were government-owned; in the same year, almost all radio and T.V. stations were owned by government. In the changing socio-eonomic climate, however, a state monopoly of the mass media in many Sub- Saharan African countries is now a thing of the past (see for instance, Bourgault 1995). Where, for example, there used to be only one or two newspapers owned by the government or the ruling party, there now exists a plethora of privately owned competing newspapers and other publications; and where there used to be only one sycophantic radio and T. V. station owned by the government, there now exist several radio and T. V. stations, many of them privately-owned commercial broadcasters. The general philosophy behind the liberalization of the mass media is what has come to be called `the freedom of speech`. Citing the liberalization of the electronic media in Kenya, this paper argues that the liberalization of the media in many Sub-Saharan countries has not been matched by policies that encourage the entrenchment, spread and full utilization of African indigenous languages. It is further argued that the lack of media policy that favours African indigenous languages is likely to lead to negative consequences for the languages of Africa.
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Adolescence is an Ocean: A Biocultural Investigation of Youth Food Consumption in TanzaniaDanforth, Elizabeth J. 01 January 2011 (has links)
This study investigates adolescents' relationships with food and other community and household members' perceptions of youth and their food consumption to understand the multifactorial dynamic processes which create nutritional outcomes among urban and rural youth in central Tanzania. Youth are an important and demographically large population in developing countries. The identities created during this distinct stage of cultural production can be reflected in youths' food consumption and relationships with food. Nutrition likely affects how youth transition through a variety of states, including their growth and development stages, primary to secondary to higher education, child to parent, or unemployed to employed. Food and nutrition are in transition in many developing countries such as Tanzania. Here, many adolescents experience undernutrition, in addition to increasing access to low-nutrient, high-calorie foods and increased risk for overweight and obesity during their lifespan. Little data exists in these contexts regarding food security, food consumption and nutritional outcomes.
This study utilizes a biocultural approach which constructs adolescence as a socially distinct and culturally variable period between childhood and adulthood with unique roles and responsibilities. This framework draws upon political economy theory, with influences from political ecology, evolutionary theory and an adaptive perspective to investigate youths' relationships with food within the larger context of their lives, households and communities. This study explores the ways that gender, poverty and locality affect youth and their relationships with food through qualitative and quantitative methodology.
A mixed-methods approach is used at two field sites in central Tanzania: rural Haydom Ward and urban Singida Municipality. Methods employed in this study include semi-structured interviews, pile sorts, focus groups, a quantitative survey, food frequency questionnaire, anthropometry, and participant observation. Qualitative data help to gain an in-depth understanding of adolescent health and nutrition in urban and rural areas of Tanzania, and provide a foundation for a quantitative survey, which aims to provide an overview of adolescent food consumption, nutritional status, and health-related behaviors on a larger scale.
Youth food consumption and nutrition in central Tanzania is imbedded within a web of social, biological and environmental processes and influenced by gender, population density, school enrollment, household structure and poverty. Food security risks and consumption patterns vary by field site, where seasonality and drought negatively impact rural adolescents' health and food consumption patterns, while lack of money and increased food cost affect urban adolescents more. Boys are especially vulnerable; they report consuming less food and exhibit poorer nutritional status than girls.
School attendance offers unique challenges to food consumption. Urban schools do not offer breakfast or lunch, so most students go the entire day without a meal. In rural areas, schools may provide food through mandatory `contributions' required for student enrollment, but these enrollment requirements can act as a barrier for poorer households. Additionally, rural schools are often far from students' homes, forcing many to live at the school in rented poor-quality shacks far from markets and potable water sources.
Parents and other community members view adolescents as essential members of the household who perform important tasks in the household and community. They also construct youth as problematic, and link food insecurity to culturally problematic behaviors where food insecurity leads adolescents to migrate to larger urban areas. Here, they may experience extreme poverty, engage in transactional sex, and abuse alcohol and drugs. Adolescent food consumption is imbedded within multifactorial challenges related to education, globalization, and household and community relationships. Strategies to address adolescent health or livelihood issues in Tanzania and elsewhere must engage a holistic approach where all aspects of adolescents' lives are considered.
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In search of the African voice in higher education: the language questionKaschula, Russell H January 2016 (has links)
This article seeks to understand what South African universities are doing by making use of language as a tool or as an enabling voice towards Africanisation and transformation with particular reference to Rhodes University, which serves as a case study. Although many universities now have language policies in place and are part of an enabling policy environment, when it comes to using language as part of transformation and asserting an African voice, there are still policy implementation challenges. It is argued in this article that implementation of policy, including university language policies, is now a key indicator for two levels of transformation; namely the more superficially visible or visual representation transformation, as well as deeper curriculum transformation through appropriate language usage. It is the latter form of transformation that largely eludes the contemporary South African university, whether these are historically black universities (HBUs) or historically white universities (HWUs). With the exception of a few best practices that are highlighted in this article, it is argued that transformation of the curriculum remains a long-term process, in the same way that language policy implementation is an ongoing process and requires commitment at all levels of university managerial and academic culture. The African voice in higher education remains an elusive one; though it is gaining ground, as evidenced by the recent removal of the Cecil John Rhodes Statue at the University of Cape Town. Furthermore, there is evidence of selected ongoing curriculum and pedagogic transformation, as presented in this article.
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L’ikposso uwi : phonologie, grammaire, textes, lexique / Ikposo Uwi : Phonology, grammar, texts, lexiconSoubrier, Aude 28 June 2013 (has links)
Cette thèse est une description phonologique et grammaticale de l’ikposso uwi, langue de la famille kwa, du phylum Niger-Congo. Elle est parlée au Togo par la population akposso, située dans la Région des Plateaux et comptant environ 150 000 personnes. Cette langue se divise en six dialectes : le logbo, l’uma, l’uwi, le litimé, l’ikponou et l’amou-oblo. Le corpus sur lequel se base cette étude est constitué (i) de 36 textes narratifs, (ii) de phrases élicitées à partir de livres d’images, (iii) du lexique issu de ces données, (iv) ainsi que de phrases d’élicitation libres, généralement en rapport avec les textes. La langue de travail et de traduction a toujours été le français. Phonologie et tonologie : La phonologie segmentale de l’ikposso uwi (chap. 1) est relativement simple. Les schèmes syllabiques sont peu nombreux et peu complexes. La principale caractéristique de la phonologie segmentale est l’harmonisation vocalique, avec un système à 10 voyelles. L’ikposso est une langue tonale (chap. 2). Les tons sont essentiels au niveau lexical mais supportent aussi des informations grammaticales. Il y a quatre tons ponctuels en uwi. Morphologie : Le nom et le syntagme nominal sont étudiés dans le chap. 3. La morphologie nominale est peu développée, contrairement à la morphologie verbale qui est très riche. Les adpositions font l’objet du chap. 4 et les pronoms celui du chap. 5. Les autres catégories de mots sont répertoriées dans le chap. 6. La morphologie verbale est beaucoup plus complexe que la morphologie nominale, avec de nombreux auxiliaires et préfixes de personne et d’aspect (chap. 7). Ce chapitre montre la richesse du système aspectuel.Syntaxe : L’ikposso est une langue avec un ordre des mots relativement fixe, SVOX. Cette caractéristique est toutefois en évolution, comme le montrent les constructions sérielles avec le verbe yɔ̄‘prendre’ (chap. 13) qui conduisent à un ordre des mots SOVX dans certains contextes discursifs. Le chap. 8 présente les différents types énonciatifs de phrases ainsi que les prédicats non verbaux. Le chap. 9 décrit le système de transitivité et de valence de la langue..... / Introduction : This thesis is a phonological and grammatical description of Ikposo Uwi, language of the phylum Niger-Congo and Kwa family. It is spoken in Togo by the people Akposso, about 150 000 people that live in the Région des Plateaux. This language divides itself into six dialects : Logbo, Uma, Uwi, Litimé, Ikponou and Amou-Oblo. The study relies on a corpus composed of (i) 36 narratives, (ii) elicitedsentences from picture books, (iii) the lexicon build on these data, (iv) and elicited sentences, generally in connection with the texts. The language used during work session and for translation has always been French.Phonology et tonology : The segmental phonology of Ikposo Uwi (Chapter 1) is quite simple. There are few syllabic schemes and they are not complex. The main characteristic is vocalic harmony, with a 10 vowel system.Ikposo is a tonal language (Chapter 2). Tones are very important on a lexical level, but they encode grammatical informations too. There are four level tones in the Uwi dialect.Morphologie : Nouns and nominal phrases are studied in Chapter 3. Nominal morphology is not very much developed, on the contrary to the rich verbal morphology, with auxiliaries, person index and aspectual prefixes (Chapter 7). Adpositions are studied in Chapter 4 and pronouns in Chapter 5. The other categories are identified in Chapter 6.Syntaxe : The word order is quite rigid : SVOX. This feature is however evolving, as we can see with the yɔ̄ serial verb construction (Chapter 13) that lead to a SOVX word order in some specific discursive contexts.Chapter 8 presents the different enunciative sentence types as well as non verbal predicates.Chapter 9 describes the transitivity and valency system of the language. Modifications in the argument structure are generally not morphologically marked. The only exception is the grammaticalization of 3rd person singular commitative pronoun fà : it makes a transitive-causative construction out fromverbs usually found in intransitive constructions. Ikposo uses massively serial verb constructions. Syntax and types of Ikposo’s serial verb constructions are studied in Chapter 10.The verb dʊ́‘to be at, to put’ (Chapter 11) is one of the most frequent positional verbs, due to its broad meaning. It is also used a lot as V2 in serial verb constructions : with this function dʊ́ undergoes either a grammaticalization process or a lexicalization process. The verb ká‘to give’ (Chapter 12), as V2 of serial verb constructions, undergoes a grammaticalization process, with a global dative meaning.The verb yɔ̄‘to take’ (Chapter 13) is used in serial verb constructions that tend to modify the word order of the arguments from SVO to SOV in some discursive contexts. yɔ̄introduces the object of the main verb or represents it on the main verb. In the latter case, the grammaticalized verb is prefixed yɔ̄-.Chapter 14 gathers the other frequent verbs that do not have a dedicated chapter. Among them, we find lɛ́‘to be, to be at’ used as a copula, bá‘to come’ and ɣā‘to go’ used as deictic verbs, tʊ̄‘to come from’ that grammaticalizes into a prepositional locution, and bā ‘to exceed’ used in comparative serial verbconstructions. Chapter 15 analyses the complex sentences of Ikposo. Among them, completivesare probably the most interesting. They are from two types : build with nominalized verbal predicates or with the quotative nʊ̄, more generally marker of reported speech.Finally, Chapter 16 shows the information structure of the language. I mostly studied the morphological markers of that structure, but a deeper analysis should show that the structure is more complex that these markers let think.
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A grammar of Cuwabo (Bantu P34, Mozambique) / Une grammaire du Cuwabo (Bantu P34, Mozambique)Guerois, Rozenn 04 June 2015 (has links)
Le cuwabo est une langue bantoue parlée par plus de 800.000 locuteurs au Nord-Est du Mozambique. Elle est répertoriée sous le code P34 selon la classification de Guthrie et appartient donc au groupe makhuwa (P30). Le cuwabo se divise en cinq variétés: le cuwabo central, le karungu, le mayindo, le nyaringa, et le manyawa. Ce travail se base sur le cuwabo central parlé dans le district de Quelimane. Des données de première main ont pu être collectées auprès d’une dizaine de locuteurs, lors de trois terrains réalisés entre 2011 et 2013, totalisant 10 mois. Cette thèse fournit une description grammaticale de la langue couvrant en détail les domaines de la phonologie et de la morphosyntaxe. La phonologie comprend deux chapitres : le premier est dédié à la phonologie segmentale tandis que le deuxième analyse le fonctionnement du système tonal de la langue. Notons que le cuwabo est l’unique langue P30 ayant retenu un ton lexical contrastif sur les thèmes lexicaux et verbaux. Morphologiquement, le syntagme nominal est dominé par un riche système d’accords des classes nominales, typique dans les langues bantoues. Le verbe cuwabo a une morphologie de type agglutinant, qui renferme un riche système de Temps-Aspect-Mode combinant préfixes et suffixes finaux. Il convient de noter l’existence de plusieurs enclitiques selon les constructions (enclitiques locatifs, enclitiques pronoms personnels dans les relatives, enclitiques comitatif ou instrumental). Enfin, la syntaxe s’étend sur trois chapitres : le premier s’intéresse aux constructions prédicatives verbales et non-verbales ; le deuxième s’intéresse aux constructions relatives et à la formation des questions ; le dernier aborde la question de l’ordre des constituants en lien avec la structure informationnelle. Les domaines préverbaux et postverbaux sont examinés, ainsi que leur interaction avec le marquage morphologique sur le verbe qui distingue les formes conjointes et les formes disjointes. L’annexe de cette thèse compile sept textes, glosés et traduits, qui permettent d’illustrer en contexte un grand nombre d’items grammaticaux présentés dans les chapitres descriptifs. / Cuwabo is a Bantu language, spoken by more than 800,000 people (INE 2007) in the north-eastern part of Mozambique. It is numbered P34 in Guthrie’s classification, and thus belongs to the P30 Makhuwa group. Cuwabo can be subdivided into five main varieties: central Cuwabo, Karungu, Mayindo, Nyaringa, and Manyawa. This work is based on central Cuwabo spoken in the district of Quelimane. First-hand data were recorded from 10 speakers in the course of three fieldtrips realised between 2011 and 2013, achieving a total duration of 10 months. This thesis provides a grammatical description of the language, covering in detail its phonology and its morphosyntax. Phonology is divided into two chapters: the first is devoted to segmental phonology whereas the second describes the tonal system of the language. Note that Cuwabo is the only P30 language whose nominal and verbal stems have retained a lexical tone contrast. Morphologically, the noun phrase is marked by a rich agreement system ruled by the noun classes, as typical in Bantu. Cuwabo has a highly agglutinative verbal morphology, which conveys a rich Tense-Aspect-Mood system combining both prefixes and final suffixes. Note the existence of several enclitics depending on the constructions (locative enclitics, personal pronoun enclitics in relative clauses, comitative or instrumental enclitics). The last three chapters address syntactic issues: the first presents a description of the basic clause structure, involving verbal and non-verbal predication; the second looks into the relative constructions in close interaction with question formation; the last one investigates word order and information structure in Cuwabo. Preverbal and postverbal constituents are examined, as well as their interaction with the morphological marking on the verb, distinguishing conjoint and disjoint tenses. The appendix contains seven Cuwabo texts glossed and translated into English, which allow to illustrate in context many of the grammatical items presented in the descriptive chapters.
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Fonologia segmental e supra-segmental do Quimbundo: variedades de Luanda, Bengo, Quanza Norte e Malange / Segmental and supra-segmental phonology of Kimbundu: Regiolects of Luanda, Bengo, Cuanza Norte and MalangeFrancisco da Silva Xavier 16 August 2010 (has links)
Desde os primeiros trabalhos lingüísticos efetuados sobre o quimbundo, língua banta H20 na classificação de Guthrie (1948), nota-se uma ausência de informações detalhadas e confiáveis a respeito de elementos sua estrutura prosódica e de sua fonologia como um todo. Essa lacuna me instigou a realizar, seguindo o quadro de pesquisas sobre as línguas africanas estabelecido pelo Departamento de Lingüística da Universidade de São Paulo, um estudo descritivo da fonologia segmental e supra-segmental do quimbundo, cujos resultados se organizam nesta tese de doutorado. O presente trabalho, tomando como base de investigação quatro variedades regionais representadas por cinco falantes nativos do quimbundo, abrange, no bojo da descrição lingüística, fenômenos verificáveis na estrutura segmental e prosódica da língua, tais como a harmonia vocálica, alterações de natureza fonética na configuração da estrutura silábica, casos de mudança de timbre vocálico, apagamento de segmentos, direção e extensão do espraiamento de traços consonantais e de tons fonológicos. Finalmente, a observação e a análise do fenômeno de sândi ao nível dos suprasegmentos permitem afirmar que o quimbundo utiliza variações de altura com valor distintivo apenas numa perspectiva paradigmática, o que comprova, portanto, seu estatuto de língua tonal. Acredito que a descrição aqui realizada é uma forma de lançar visibilidade ao quimbundo nas pesquisas sobre as línguas africanas e de atualizar as perspectivas de estudo da língua dentro das teorias lingüísticas. / From the first linguistic works on Kimbundu, a Bantu language coded as H20 according to Guthries zone classification (1948), there has been a lack of detailed and reliable information about the elements comprising its prosodic structure, and its phonology altogether. This gap has instigated my conducting a detailed description of both segmental and prosodic phonology of Kimbundu within the research framework for African languages set forth by the Linguistics Department of the University of São Paulo, and whose results make up this Ph.D. dissertation. Based on four regiolects represented by five native Kimbundu speakers, this descriptive study covers phenomena which can be found in the segmental and prosodic structure of this language, such as vowel harmony, phonetic alternations in the setup of the syllable structure, vowel quality changes, segment deletion, and the direction and range of consonantal feature and phonological tone spreading. Finally, the study of prosodic sandhi corroborates that Kimbundu makes use of different distinctive pitches only on a paradigmatic perspective, which proves true the claim that this is a tonal language. I strongly believe that this description work can be used to shed light upon Kimbundu on further research on African languages, in addition to updating the prospect studies of this language within linguistic theories.
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The development of isiZulu as an academic language for the teaching of fundamental concepts in economicsMakhatini, Freedom Nkanyiso January 2011 (has links)
This thesis looks at language as the medium of all our ideas and sentiments. The thesis represents a position statement regarding the development of isiZulu as an academic language. The field of Economics is used to merely illustrate and support the points that are being made in this work. It is argued that each language is viewed as the means of expression of the cultural heritage of its people, and it remains a reflection of cultural groups who speak that particular language. It is a fact that indigenous African Languages have been, for obvious reasons, blatantly understudied during the apartheid years in South Africa (Rudwick 2004). Languages have market value and the desirability of English as the most important global language today has an effect in most Black learners in South Africa. The study examined the development of indigenous African languages, isiZulu in particular, in Zululand University where ninety percent of students and lecturers are isiZulu first language speakers, and came to a conclusion that there is an urgent need for Black South African students to learn academic subjects through their mother tongues. This would help them in thorough understanding and interpretation of analytic text presented in a foreign language such as English. The study advocates that isiZulu, which is the mother-tongue of many students at the University of Zululand, should be a language for upward mobility to these students, but as the situation stands, isiZulu becomes a neglected or marginalised language since it is not the normal medium of instruction and it is not used for effective communication in their education system.
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The development of isiZulu as an academic language for the teaching of fundamental concepts in economicsMakhatini, Freedom Nkanyiso January 2011 (has links)
This thesis looks at language as the medium of all our ideas and sentiments. The thesis represents a position statement regarding the development of isiZulu as an academic language. The field of Economics is used to merely illustrate and support the points that are being made in this work. It is argued that each language is viewed as the means of expression of the cultural heritage of its people, and it remains a reflection of cultural groups who speak that particular language. It is a fact that indigenous African Languages have been, for obvious reasons, blatantly understudied during the apartheid years in South Africa (Rudwick 2004). Languages have market value and the desirability of English as the most important global language today has an effect in most Black learners in South Africa. The study examined the development of indigenous African languages, isiZulu in particular, in Zululand University where ninety percent of students and lecturers are isiZulu first language speakers, and came to a conclusion that there is an urgent need for Black South African students to learn academic subjects through their mother tongues. This would help them in thorough understanding and interpretation of analytic text presented in a foreign language such as English. The study advocates that isiZulu, which is the mother-tongue of many students at the University of Zululand, should be a language for upward mobility to these students, but as the situation stands, isiZulu becomes a neglected or marginalised language since it is not the normal medium of instruction and it is not used for effective communication in their education system.
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“A Wound That Never Heals”: Health-Seeking Behaviors and Attitudes Towards Breast Cancer and Cancer in General Among Women in Nakirebe, UgandaTezak, Ann Louise 21 June 2016 (has links)
The scale and severity of cancer, specifically breast cancer, remains significantly different across the spectrum of low-income to high-income countries. This study explores women’s beliefs about breast cancer and associated prevention and health-seeking behaviors in a rural area of Uganda. Through a critical medical anthropological perspective, the study examines the social, cultural, and economic factors that shape women’s understanding of cancer, and breast cancer specifically, and that influence their use of biomedical services. Data were collected over a three-month period through 35 in-depth interviews and two focus groups with 10 women older than 18 years in the rural setting of Nakirebe within Mpigi District, and through five interviews with health care personnel from a private and a government health care facility in Mpigi District. Quantitative and Qualitative data were analyzed using SPSS version 23 and MAXQDA 12.0.2, respectively. Findings suggest that women in this rural setting have limited access to screening and incomplete knowledge about breast cancer, and cancer in general, and internalize fears of a cancer diagnosis. No women were diagnosed with any type of cancer at the time of this study. Common attitudes towards cancer from the women include inevitable death, cancer is caused by contact with artificial substances and/or germs, and cancer causes pain, wounds that never heal, and the removal of body parts. Recommendations for improving cancer control and management in rural Uganda through awareness initiatives and community health outreach programs are presented.
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