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A pedunculate barnacle, Leucolepas longa, occurs in densities over 1000 individuals m−2 on the summit of a small seamount near New Ireland, Papua New Guinea. Most of the population grows on vesicomyid clams projecting from sulphide-rich sediments, or on their dead shells, but the barnacle also settles on rock and on tubes of a vestimentiferan. Collections of several hundred barnacles allowed comparison of population and reproductive characteristics. The barnacle is a suspension feeder with a...

The South African Schools Act of 1996 (SASA) mandates the establishment of school governing bodies (SGBs), comprising parents, educators and non-educator members of staff. As parents are required to form the majority on an SGB, they have been placed in a powerful position with authority to influence fundamental issues, such as school budget, school and language policy, discipline, and appointment and promotion of teaching and administrative staff. A survey of educators' experiences and...

At Vista in recent times in order to be relevant lecturers in the English Department have had to extend the literature, theory and academic reading and writing repertoire to include new modules, such as ENG5009: Reading and Writing Skills for Business English . Students study the workings of groups in business, how to identify and manage conflict situations, conduct meetings, compose notices, agendas, minutes, reports and presentations and how to manage time and the rules of grammar. In this...

Cognitive dysfunction is a feature of many diseases and the impact is especially relevant in the young. While there are many sophisticated tests of cognitive function, the shorter Mini Mental State examination (MMSE) is the most widely used screening test. In Nigeria where cognitive function is not routinely assessed in the management of cases, the MMSE is probably the most practical test of cognitive function to be promoted. This is because it is easy to administer and to interpret. There...

This study focused on training for development for women involved in fish industry in Lagos State, Nigeria. Three hundred and fifty (350) women involved in fishery activities were randomly selected from 10 fishing villages purposively selected for the study in the state. Structured interview schedule was used to obtain information from the respondents. This was subjected to face validity and reliability test using split half techniques (r=0.85). The results indicate high need for training in...

Purpose: To ascertain how well health services in Lusaka, Zambia currently meet the safe motherhood and reproductive health care needs of women who have physical impairment leading to disability.Methods: A qualitative study was conducted in Lusaka, Zambia. In-depth tape-recorded interviews were conducted with 24 purposively selected women with disabilities and with 25 safe motherhood/reproductive public sector health service providers. Qualitative analysis was conducted using NVivo...

The importance of connections with peers to student development and retention has been highlighted in Astin's (1984) Theory of Student Involvement and Tinto's (1993) Theory of Student Departure, which are two of the most widely referenced and validated models in student affairs literature. However, recent research has questioned the applicability of these models to African American students who attend predominantly White institutions (PWIs). Although prior research has indicated that the...

This paper examines the impact of climate change and anthropogenic factors on desertification in the semi-arid region of Nigeria. Climatic data (Temperature and rainfall) for 52 years (1950 – 2001) from 25 meteorological stations were collected and analysed. Questionnaires were also used to solicit respondents' perception on the causes, effects and solution to desertification in Nigeria. The data were computed and analysed using the square method, maps and bar graphs. The results among...

A health crisis is facing sub-Saharan Africa. The population has increased mark- edly. In recent decades, communicable diseases and ‘new’ noncommunicable dis- ease epidemics have intensified. HIV/AIDS is perhaps the biggest health chal- lenge. However, the supply of health workers remains low and has been worsened by their migration to developed countries. This paper reviews health professionals’ ‘brain drain’ using data from Ghana and other African countries, with proxy data supplying some...

In the early 1990s, Tanzania reintroduced a policy of higher educational cost-shar- ing, designed to slowly move some of the costs of higher education, which in recent years had been borne almost exclusively by the government, toward parents and students as well as toward other nongovernmental parties. This article reports research into the difference this policy seems to have made at Tanzania’s major public university, the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), with particular atten- tion to...

* An earlier version of this paper was presented to a conference, “Improving Tertiary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa: Things that Work!” sponsored by the Association of African Universities and the World Bank, in Accra, Ghana, September 23–25, 2003.“Revenue supplementation” in higher education refers to shifting higher education costs away from relying mainly (sometimes virtually exclusively) on government, or the taxpayer, and toward parents, students, philanthropists, businesses, and...

Means testing, a form of subsidy targeting, attempts to distribute at least some higher education subsidies on the basis of need or estimated ability to pay. This article explores the major principles, approaches, and challenges as well as some of the controversies surrounding means testing, taking into account the unique context of the African continent. For example, in many African countries incomes are not only low but are also frequently hidden or partly in kind. Assets are often both...

Kenya has a long history of lending to students; but in the 1980s, the program was criticized for its poor administration, high costs, and low recovery rates. The estab- lishment of the Higher Education Loans Board in 1995 ushered in reforms that have broadened the program beyond the public universities to other postsecondary institutions and to some students in Kenya’s growing private sector and improved loan recoveries. This article describes these efforts to improve recoveries and makes a...

The funding framework developed in South Africa for institutions of higher edu- cation during the apartheid era raises serious concerns related to equity (access, particularly of the disadvantaged black majority) and efficiency (of outputs and outcomes, particularly, but not only, at historically black institutions). The new funding framework proposed in the government’s 1997 White Paper re- conceptualises the relationship between institutional costs and government expen- ditures. This...

Ethiopia is embarked on a higher education expansion and reform programme of impressive dimensions. Expansion will create new universities, establish three sys- tem support agencies, mount new courses, and triple enrolments. Reforms intro- duce increased institutional autonomy, curriculum revisions, new funding arrange- ments and student contributions by means of a graduate tax. This article analyses current higher education reform efforts in Ethiopia. It begins by sketching the so- cial...

To determine the prevalence of accidental injuries and body contaminations among the operating personnel during general surgical operation, those involved, the circumstances surrounding the injuries or body contaminations and the factors affecting the prevalence in a unit of a teaching hospital in Nigeria.Patients operated for general surgical conditions in a unit of a Teaching Hospital Complex during a period of two years (1997-1998) were studied. A proforma was designed to enter personal...

To report the prevalence and socio-economic correlates of tobacco use among primary school pupils in Nairobi, Kenya.Cross-sectional school-based survey.Ten primary schools in Nairobi, Kenya.A questionnaire was administered to 1198 primary school pupils aged 12 to 17 years and 1130 (response rate 94.3%) students responded under supervision in the classroom.A total of 31% (95% CI 27.5-34.5) had experimented with smoking, 9% (95% CI 7.1-11.5) with smokeless tobacco and 55% (95% CI 50.7-59.6)...

This article discusses Theatre for Development (TFD) praxis as an agency for integrated rural development in Africa. Development is not limited to improvement in Gross National Product (GNP) and other economic indices, but in the ability of a people to take creative control of their destinies by contributing in a participatory manner to the development issues in the community. Theatre for Development is an instrument of non-formal education and a strategy used to enhance democratic exchange...