Suchergebnisse

On August 27, 1985, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida succeeded to leadership of Nigeria by a coup d'etat. This book intends to analyse the essential contributions of the IBB era to the historical development of Nigeria. The decisions which have been taken by the IBB Administration and which are described in this book include the structural adjustment programme for economic recovery and development; measures to transform the rural and agricultural sectors of the country; policies of economic liberalisation; and the establishment of the Directorate for Social Mobilisation, popularly referred to as "MAMSER". (DÜI-Hff)

This study examines whether the Dutch Disease—a resource boom leading to the decline of the erstwhile tradable sector—is present in Nigeria in the light of the rejection of the Dutch Disease thesis in other studies on Nigeria. Quarterly data for our variables of interest were predominantly sourced from the International Financial Statistics of the IMF. The data are analysed through the use of vector autoregressive (VAR) modelling consisting of impulse response functions and variance decomposition analyses. Our results show that the Dutch Disease was diagnosed, albeit, as a delayed occurrence. This suggests that the government should lay more emphasis on the agricultural sector hitherto not given deserved attention.

This study investigated the interactive effect of brain-based instructional strategy and mathematics anxiety on students' attitude to Senior Secondary School Mathematics. A pre-test, post-test, control group quasi-experimental design was adopted with a 2 x 3 x 2 factorial matrix. The sample size was 522 Senior Secondary School Students from nine randomly selected co-educational schools from five Local Government Areas in Oyo State. Five schools were randomly assigned to the experimental (Brain-Based Instructional Strategy – BBIS), while four schools were assigned to the control group (Non-Brain-Based Instructional Strategy – NBBIS). The instruments were: Mathematics Attitude Questionnaire (r = 0.83), Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (r = 0.81) and Assessment Sheet for Evaluating Teachers' Performance. One research question guided the study in juxtaposition with one hypothesis. Data obtained from the research questions were analyzed using mean scores while the hypothesis was tested at 0.05 level of significance using the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). There was a significant interaction effect of Brain-based instructional strategy and mathematics anxiety on students' attitude towards Mathematics. Brain-based instructional strategy was more effective in improving students' attitude to Mathematics than the conventional method: both the treatment and anxiety worked together to produce a joint impact on students' attitudes. Teachers of Mathematics could, therefore, adopt this strategy for teaching secondary school students. This would go a long way in reducing the fear, test-phobia and undesirable attitude in Mathematics among students.

The research work was embarked upon with the purpose of finding out the effect of outdoor activities and gender on secondary school students' environmental knowledge .The study was carried out on 240 senior secondary school II students from four schools in two local government areas of Ibadan in Oyo State using a pre-test, post-test control group, quasi experimental design. The purposive sampling technique was used to assign the schools to experimental and control groups for the study. Two out of the four schools were assigned as experimental group and two as control group. Intact classes were used. The instruments used comprises Students' Test of Environmental Concept Knowledge in Biology (STECKB) with KR-21 of 0.8, instructional guide for teaching with outdoor activities, instructional guide for teaching with conventional method, evaluation sheet for assessing the teachers. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Analysis of Covariance - ANCOVA). The main effect of gender on students environmental knowledge was significant (F=4.482 P<05). The result of this study has shown the need for curriculum planners to include outdoor activity as one of the methods required in the curriculum, especially the student/teacher activities to bring about effective impartation of knowledge. It also established the fact that gender had a great impact in the learning of science since the males have proved to be more predisposed to learning than the female.

Safety assurance of consumer goods has become a global challenge. The presence of natural and synthetic contaminants in food compromises food safety and poses a risk to public health. This book discusses biological and chemical food contaminants, predictive and detection methods of food toxicants, survival mechanism of food pathogens, legislation on microbial contaminants to prevent public health risks and strategies to mitigate contamination

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are vital for achieving sustainable development. However, it remains unclear whether engagement in international trade-oriented policies improves SMEs operations, particularly in Africa, where concluded arrangements are made to partake in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). This study examined the role of trade liberalization on SMEs performance in Nigeria using the Central Bank of Nigeria's statistical bulletin and the World Development Indicators from 1981 to 2019. The ARDL model showed that a 1% rise in trade openness improves SMEs performance by approximately 2% but only in the short run. For the control variables, a 1% increase in labor force participation reduced SMEs performance by about 6% in the short run and increased it by approximately 9% in the long run. The results also showed that a 1% rise in gross fixed capital formation in the short run reduced SMEs performance by approximately 5%. The results showed an inconclusive short-run effect of the exchange rate and taxes on SMEs performance. With a 1% increase in the exchange rate, SMEs performance improved by approximately 0.04% in the long run. Similarly, a 1% increase in taxes improves SMEs performance by approximately 2.90% in the long run. Findings suggest a positive effect of trade liberalization on SMEs performance and support the operation of AfCFTA in achieving sustainable development. Policy efforts should focus on productive investment strategies and using locally sourced inputs to raise the competitiveness of SMEs.

This paper focused on the role of the low-income urban dwellers in attempting to solve their ever increasing and complicated housing problem which is a bye product of the enabling concept. Hence, this study was carried out with the main aim of determining the housing type and construction method suitable for the low-income urban dwellers in Bayelsa State Nigeria. This will help to reduce the growth of urban sprawl in the city and reduce the housing deficit for the urban poor. The study employed mixed method approach of qualitative and quantitative with the former taken most of the study. Data were collected by in-depth interview, observation, and questionnaire administration using data presentation instruments (sketches and photographs) to enhance the data presentation. Content analysis was used to analysis the qualitative data, while the quantitative data collected was analysed with both descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that the housing type suitable for the low-income is the non-conventional indigenous housing and development method of incremental housing construction. The recommendations included the adoption of incremental housing construction option, use of local construction methods, improved housing financing, provision of basic services and land availability by government.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.sace.19.2.17349

This sustainability of low-income housing in Nigerian cities vis-a-vis building regulation/minimum design standards is discussed in this paper. Thus, the papers appraised the practicability of the existing minimum housing standards regarded as a borrowed idea in relation to the socio-economic realities of the low-income urban dwellers. Data collection involved both qualitative and qualitative data from the private owners and rentals /users of low-income housing available in the study area. This study employs non-probability sampling designs which are a combination of purposive and expert sampling techniques. Sample frame of 20 housing units in the low-income neighbourhood and respondents were selected for in-depth study and interview, while only 15 key informants were interviewed. This was complemented with 1440 questionnaires distributed across the low-income residential neighbourhoods. The quantitative data were analysed using both simple descriptive and inferential statistics; this was done using the Minitab Statistical Package (MSP), Version 14 and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 which involved the calculation of the Chi-Square test while the qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis from where themes and conclusions were drawn. Findings show that the existing housing standards is not realistic and the low-income urban dwellers cannot afford the conventional standard houses because it requires high construction cost, building material and labour due to their poverty level. The paper further re-developed a proposed minimum housing standard which is practical and affordable to the urban poor. Finally, it recommended that housing standards should be based on the concept of "low and upgradable" which is relaxed and flexible for the low-income group while also encouraging incremental housing approach including the provision of basic infrastructure services by the government to enhance liveability. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.sace.20.3.18208